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-Leonard’s Pre-Elite 8 Notes - Your voting for the “Elite 8” has brought some tough matches, to be sure. You’ve got some iconic themes left in this tournament, with three tough matches. I don’t envy you voters, that’s for sure. Thanks for your input, and I’ll keep giving you my analysis. (P.S., I’m extremely bummed to see Ric Flair’s theme go, but it’s not my decision…) Elite 8 1 Hulk Hogan “Real American” defeated 9 Undertaker (traditional theme) -CMV1 note – I don’t think there was ever really any doubt. Some voters questioned why this match-up took place in this round, citing a bias against the Taker. It was all based on pre-tournament seeding by the average ranking from me and Leo. This is just the way the cookie crumbles for the Deadman. Although, realistically, he doesn’t have a top 4 theme. People wanted this to take place in a later round, but if there’s any match-up in this round that should take place later on, it’s Austin vs. Warrior. -Leonard’s Notes - In my personal rankings, I put the Undertaker’s traditional “Funeral March” at number one, because I really do think it’s the best written, as well as one of the most long-lasting themes of professional wrestling. But one surely cannot doubt the long-reaching effects of “Real American,” and it’s part in the Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Connection that started in the early 1980’s. Without its part, we may not have sports-entertainment as it is today. A bit of a stretch? Maybe, but I’m not so sure. Then I remembered what wrestling is all about. If I’m a “mark,” (and let’s face it, these days I pretty much am), that Undertaker theme never gets old. Sure, Real American gets the initial pops, as do the “Hell’s Bells.” At the end of the day, Undertaker’s theme was just about wrestling, and not that other stuff. Twenty-odd years later, the Deadman’s theme still sends the same chills down the average fan’s spine as it did when it first accompanied the man. Hogan’s theme, while very good, could have been used with anyone else with an inkling of American spirit (see The Patriot, Kurt Angle, Jack Swagger, Sgt. Slaughter when he wasn’t an Iraqi sympathizer, or the U.S. Express, the team for which the theme was originally meant). There’s only one “Undertaker,” and that’s why this theme should (but understandably won’t) pull out the victory. -“The toughest one for myself. I fully expect "Real American" to win here. However, I’ve decided to go with The Undertaker. It's not a theme that gets you pumped up like it's competitor. Nor is it meant to. The theme is used to create a dark, somewhat somber atmosphere. Which reflects greatly on the character. I really feel that a great theme should be an extension of the character. And while I can't argue that Hogan's theme wasn't great, I've never thought that it was best suited to Hogan himself. (That may get me a bit of hate). In fact, I believe Hogan could have used a number of different songs and it wouldn't have done anything to hurt his image. "Real American", for me, would have been best suited to a Kurt Angle or Jack Swagger.” – JDThompson -“I was the biggest Hulkamaniac growing up so Real American always puts a smile on my face that lasts long after the song is over. However I was scared shitless of the Undertaker's theme as a child. Fond memories of both so I refuse to vote.” - Failbmfa 15 Million Dollar Man defeated 23 New World Order -CMV1 note – This was a massive landslide victory for Dibiase and his self sung entrance music. I was shocked at the margin of victory. We’re talking close to 90% of the vote. I had the NWO theme ranked in my top 5 when this whole thing started and I did think it would make it to the final four. To me, MDM’s theme is the most surprising participant of the latter rounds. If you’d have asked me in the beginning where I thought MDM would get ousted, I’d have probably said in the round of 32. I never expected it to make it this far. It took down Flair, for crying out loud… -Leonard’s Notes - These are two completely different themes, so it’s somewhat difficult to make comparisons between the two. I will say this though: While I don’t like the nWo theme, I certainly understand its importance. But it was also very quick to get on the nerves of the average Nitro viewer, as hearing 10-12 times a show could get aggravating. The Million Dollar Man, however, had a theme that was campy, fun, and told you all you needed to know about him (he likes money…a lot). Yes, the New World Order theme signifies an era of WCW dominance, but it equally signifies its downfall. The MDM theme, on the other hand, represents all that was fun and cheeky about 1980’s wrestling. I would give the win to Dibiase’s music (and extra points for “singing” his own theme!). -“One song is a generic theme with words annoyingly played over and over again like….we…we…we…we…we…..w…w…..we are in the core. N….n…..n….new…..ne…..new….new world order. While the other song has a generic 80’s tune with the wrestler himself talk singing the words. Ted wins cause he sang is own song, improved the generic tune with his words and it got its wrestler over. nWo might have fit the wrestlers, but if you were like me, by the 10th time the song played on a single addition of Nitro, it brought bad heat.” - MachoKing -“I will say it again: Any song with DiBiase's awesome maniacal laugh in it is very hard to beat. ‘Everyone's got a price, BAHAHAHAHA!’” - Mizfan 11 Stone Cold “Glass Shatter” defeated 3 Ultimate Warrior -CMV1 note – With 85% of the vote, Austin demolished Warrior to advance to the final four against MDM. I was very disappointed in the result and about 5 votes in the WWE Forums in, I implored the voters to do the right thing and vote for Warrior. Unfortunately, it seems that my plea only served to strengthen the resolve of the One Warrior Anti-Nation. I seriously am a little shocked at the margin of victory just as I was for the previous match-up. Warrior vs. Austin seemed like it would be so close, but I guess people’s love for Austin was the deciding factor. I wonder if people voted the person rather than the theme. They were both pretty generic themes, but Warrior’s theme made him. He would’ve been a far lesser talent without his pump up the crowd/energy entrance. Boo this result. -Leonard’s Notes - Stone Cold’s theme represents the entire Attitude Era, yes. It is also true that both of these themes have very similar compositional setups, as it’s just two repeating sections. Yes, Warrior wasn’t around for an extraordinarily long amount of time, and yes, Steve Austin is a Hall of Fame mainstay in the annals of professional wrestling history. BUT, this is a contest on themes, and the Warrior’s is somewhat superior. In a world of “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling,” Warrior’s theme stood out because it was a bit different (though very similar to the Rockers’ theme) in its repetition. If you take out the glass, Austin’s theme is just a generic rock theme amongst a whole bunch of other generic rock themes. Warrior should win—and maybe then Disturbed will do a terrible rendition of it. Ha. -“It's defiant, it's the energy, it's the sound of the Texas Rattlesnake stomping down to the ring with the Smoking Skull title belt being dragged to the ring as Steve Austin got ready to stomp a mud hole into his challenger. The theme was hard and captured the aggression that many in the late 90's were feeling.” – LWO4Life -“Ultimate Warrior- This is my favorite wrestler as a kid and I won't turn my back him. Even though he is a weird dude, he always go down in my book as one my favorites. Plus I still have the toy from when I was a kid...” – Dsouth16 4 Triple H “Time to Play the Game” defeated 5 DX -CMV1 note – Alas, there was not a close vote in the entire Elite 8, as Triple H pretty easily defeated DX. I don’t agree with this result, either. While both theme’s perfectly fit the characters that they play to the ring, DX’s theme was in your face and a theme that also perfectly fit the most popular era in the history of the business. I think something like that trumps TTPTG, which is just a solid theme. I don’t think the Game stands a chance against Hogan, but I have been proven wrong very often in this tournament. Anything is possible. -Leonard’s Notes - We had the battle of Ortons last time, now we have the battle of Triple Hs. I could go into a spiel about how the compositional matter is similar, and the guitar themes are both very infectious. But a poster at LOPforums.com said it best—The Game’s theme remains one of the most intimidating themes, not only of this current era, but in all of wrestling. I dare say it rivals that of the Undertaker. Two very good themes, but The Game’s should edge out DX. -“I've always felt like this song was the most intimidating music of all-time, which Is exactly how Triple H is thought of.” – Afroninja -“This is the toughest choice of the round, but I have to give the nod to HHH's solo theme for one simple reason: the WWE Iron Will/Satan's Prison Anthology DVD. The WWE's compilation of Elimination Chamber matches features Trips in a vast proportion of them, and I've gotten a far greater buzz out of Hunter's theme than anyone else on that DVD, and it's reminded how much I want Trips to return and how much I will mark like crazy when he does. The DX theme is awesome too, and against anyone else in this round I would vote for it, but I gotta give it to the combination of Motorhead and the iconic way Trips does his entrance with the water bottle. Screw it, THIS one or DX or STONE COLD MUST BEAT HOGAN OR I'LL RIOT.” – Johnathan91919 Elite 8 Wrap-Up It was a surprising round, in many ways. The Ultimate Warrior's theme was ousted by Stone Cold's. One must wonder if the voters based their decisions on the man or the theme. Warrior surely isn't an IWC favorite, but his theme is still highly regarded as one of the best ever. Austin's glass shattering intro to his entrance is as classic as any small smart of any theme song, but the song as a whole didn't do as much for the character as did Warrior's. Austin's opponent in the Final Four will be Million Dollar Man and his self sung theme. If there's been one major surprise throughout this tournament, it's been the amazing run of Ted Dibiase's entrance music. After toppling Flair in the Sweet 16, it just eliminated NWO. I doubt that it can beat Austin, but I've been wrong a lot in the last several weeks. There's been no surprise, however, that Hulk Hogan's "Real American" has mowed through its competition. The odds on favorite to win it all and my personal #1 ranking heading into the tournament, "Real American" is the most iconic song perhaps in the history of wrestling. It's opponent in the Final Four is Triple H's "Time to Play the Game." Interesting that both semi-final matches pit one theme from the Attitude era against a theme from the Hogan era. The two most popular eras in the history of the sport will decide the greatest theme music in WWE history...how fitting. Surprised by any of these results? Thoughts on the Final Four before the results are released? Feel free to share. Also, feel free to check out the WWE forums and vote on the Final Four.
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