Saturday, July 25, 2009

wm010 Marty Jannetty

http://www.aduckwhat.com/robert/heroclix/customs_view.cfm?figs=52882

The Rockers were the mildly successful team of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty. Blatantly stealing their gimmick from the great Rock N Roll Express, Michaels and Jannetty pioneered a high flying style of tag team wrestling in the WWF in the early 90s. They had a feud with the Orient Express that produced some good matches, and had one short unrecognized reign as tag team champs. What the Rockers will be most remembered for though is their shocking split on Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake's "Barber Shop" interview segment. A great example for me personally of how the drama of pro wrestling can warp childhood memories, I distinctly remember Michaels' superkicking Jannetty straight through the window when he turned heel. Rewatching the video (linked below) though shows that Michaels superkicked, then grabbed and smashed Jannetty through the window... far less dramatic, but still pretty traumatizing at the time when WWF rarely allowed blood on TV.

Jannetty was a consistent wrestler throughout his career, and although he never acheived anywhere near the star status of Shawn Michaels, he was clearly the worker of their team and held their matches together. Marty did have some success after the split, winning the Intercontinental Championship from Michaels once, and then later winning the Tag Team Championships (in a recognized reign this time) with the 123 Kid. I tried to capture Jannetty's unremarkable consistency in his dial, with a stronger second half as he actually was more successful after splitting with Michaels. Also worth noting is the Battle Fury he gains at the sight of his own blood.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCljiGVZ5fE

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