WWE runs it shows throughout the year without any breaks and this has been the case since forever. Thus, WWE has to come up with various storylines to keep the fans invested and continue watching the programs.
The storylines are of different types and lengths, as we sometimes see long term storylines while some storylines are very short. WWE tries to give the stories a proper conclusion, but sometimes has to end them abruptly due to certain reasons. Here are 10 instances where WWE had to stop a story in the 1990s decade.
10 The Ultimate Maniacs Vs. Ric Flair & Razor Ramon - 1992
Randy Savage retained his WWE Title against The Ultimate Warrior at SummerSlam 1992. But, he lost the title just a few days later to Ric Flair with the help of Razor Ramon. To even the odds, Warrior decided to form a team with Savage.
Thus, "The Ultimate Maniacs" duo was born. At Survivor Series 1992, The Ultimate Maniacs were scheduled to face Ric Flair & Razor Ramon. However, Warrior was fired from WWE before the event due to allegations of drug abuse. He was replaced by Mr. Perfect at the event, and thus ended the tag team.
9 Shawn Michaels Vs. Marty Jannetty - 1992 & 1993
Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty were a tag team from 1988 to 1992 called The Rockers. But in 1992 Shawn betrayed Jannetty in the famous Barber Shop segment, as he superkicked Jannetty and threw him through a glass window. They were supposed to have a match at WrestleMania 8, but Jannetty was released by WWE as he was sentenced to 6 months of house arrest due to possession of drugs.
Jannetty would return to WWE in late 1992, and resume the feud with Shawn. The two wrestled each other for the Intercontinental Title at Royal Rumble 1993, where Shawn emerged victorious. The program headed towards a rematch at WrestleMania 9, but once again Jannetty got released and the plans were cancelled. The storyline would eventually end later in 1993, but it's a shame we didn't get a 'Mania encounter between the two.
8 Sherri Martel Vs. Luna Vachon - 1993
Women's wrestling wasn't taken seriously by WWE at all in the 1990s. Women were mostly only used as valets. Thus, women feuds were pretty rare in the era. One feud which started but couldn't reach the breaking point was Sherri Martel vs. Luna Vachon in 1993.
Sherri was briefly managing Tatanka, and Luna was managing Bam Bam Bigelow at the time. They entered into a feud where we saw a brawl and some segments between the two. They constantly wrestled on house shows, but never on a proper stage. Sherri was then released due to failed drug tests, which officially marked the end of the storyline.
7 Bret Hart Vs. Jerry Lawler - 1993
Jerry Lawler joined WWE in 1992 as a commentator and a part-time wrestler. His first feud in the company was against Bret Hart in 1993. The story between the two started at King of the Ring 1993, when Bret won the King of the Ring tournament. Lawler, who was known as The King, took offense to this and attacked Hart during his coronation and claimed he was the only king.
The program became extremely heated as Lawler constantly talked trash about The Hart Family. They had a match at SummerSlam, which Lawler ended up winning because Hart refused to release the Sharpshooter. At Survivor Series, The Hart Family was supposed to face Team Jerry Lawler in an elimination match. However, the match had to be dropped due to Lawler facing rape charges. The feud would resume only in 1995.
6 Triple H's King Of The Ring Win - 1996
Triple H made his WWE debut in 1995. WWE started building him up slowly, and he was set to receive a big push, as he was scheduled to win the 1996 King of the Ring tournament, which would give him a lot of momentum. Unfortunately for Hunter, the MSG "Curtain Call" incident changed the plans.
HHH was part of a backstage group called "The Kliq", and members of the group Kevin Nash & Scott Hall were going to WCW in mid 1996. During their last match in WWE, HHH, Shawn Michaels, Nash & Hall broke character and hugged it out in the ring. Thus, for breaking kayfabe, HHH was the one punished (Michaels was WWE Champion, while the other two were gone) and his push was delayed. Of course, Steve Austin would win the tournament instead.
5 Goldust Vs. Brian Pillman - 1997
Brian Pillman had a very short-lived WWE career, but it was certainly a memorable one. In 1997, he entered into a program with Goldust. Pillman and Goldust had a match at In Your House: Ground Zero with the stipulation that If Goldust won, Pillman would have to leave WWE. But, if Pillman won, Goldust's wife Marlena would become his personal assistant for 30 days.
Pillman won the match by hitting Goldust with Marlena's purse. The following weeks, we saw some uncomfortable segments of Pillman and Marlena together in bed, and Marlena was forced by him to wear revealing outfits. The plan was for Marlena to turn on Goldust for Pillman, but Pillman's sudden death stopped the program.
4 Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels - 1997
The feud between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart was both on-screen and off-screen, and it is one of the most widely known feuds of WWE. They were supposed to have a proper feud in 1997, but it had many starts and stops. Bret was supposed to win the WWE Title from Shawn at WrestleMania 13, and drop it back to him at another PPV.
However, in February, Shawn "lost his smile", and vacated the WWE belt which forced Bret to face Steve Austin at 'Mania instead. They had a feud eventually later in the year, but the feud had to end after just one match at Survivor Series 1997, where the famous Montreal Screwjob happened as Bret and WWE couldn't come up with an agreement over his contract.
3 The Hart Foundation - 1997
The Hart Foundation stable was formed in 1997, which consisted of Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Jim Neidhart, The British Bulldog, & Brian Pillman. It was a great faction, and was running smoothly and was perhaps the best part of WWE in 1997.
However, things went wrong with the faction in late 1997 and it had to be disbanded. Pillman died in October, and Bret Hart had to leave WWE in 1997 as mentioned previously. Due to the Montreal Screwjob, Bulldog and Neidhart also followed Bret to WCW.
2 The Artist Formerly Known As Goldust With Luna Vachon - 1998
Dustin Runnels had some weird gimmicks in WWE. His initial "Goldust" gimmick remains to be one of the weirdest gimmicks in wrestling history. As mentioned earlier, Goldust had a feud with Pillman where he lost his wife Marlena to him.
Goldust then split with Marlena, and got Luna Vachon as his manager. He changed his gimmick and became "The Artist Formerly Known As Goldust". He mimicked many wrestlers as part of the gimmick with characters like "Hunterdust" & "Sabledust". But it was clear that he was going nowhere with the gimmick, and soon started wrestling under his real name... before eventually becoming Goldust again!
1 Owen Hart As The Blue Blazer - 1999
Owen Hart was doing well in the midcard, when his career took a weird turn in the Attitude Era. After his run as part of The Nation of Domination, he went back to his Blue Blazer gimmick and formed a tag team with Jeff Jarrett.
The duo even won the tag team titles, and successfully retained the belts against Test & D'Lo Brown at WrestleMania 15, before losing them to Kane & X-Pac. Owen was scheduled to challenge for the Intercontinental Title against The Godfather at Over The Edge 1999, but due to a malfunction during his entrance, he unfortunately died.
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