WWE’s ‘Invasion’ Was A Mistake Nobody Can Forget

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In 2001, WCW’s television shows were canceled by its parent company, and all of the promotion’s assets were sold to WWE. While the acquisition did not automatically include talent contracts, WWE had the option of buying out willing performers and bringing them over. Once the deal was done, Vince McMahon began signing a significant number of those former WCW stars in preparation for a major storyline. Fulfilling the fantasies of countless wrestling fans, WWE intended to stage a WCW Invasion.

Sadly, it wouldn’t turn out the way most had hoped, and is today remembered as a mistake by most fans. After Shane McMahon first announced on TV that he’d acquired WCW in March, the full Invasion didn’t begin until months later. Lance Storm became the first WCW performer to debut that May, and though Storm is a perfectly capable wrestler, the moment was indicative of the entire storyline. 

Most of WCW’s biggest names wouldn’t be involved, and the storyline instead became wrapped up in the McMahon family soap opera. Many of the performers on WCW’s side were midcarders, or had a tenuous connection to the company. There were some exciting additions who took part, such as Booker T, but it soon became evident people like Sting and Goldberg weren’t showing up right away. Even the addition of ECW stars like Rob Van Dam couldn’t salvage the mess.

The WCW Invasion sputters to an end

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Before the storyline culminated towards the end of 2001, there were some odd bumps in the road. Vince McMahon made the decision that summer to integrate WCW branding into parts of “WWE Raw,” complete with new graphics and commentators. However, he never fully committed to the idea, likely because the reaction to the first segment was horrendous. As a result of the poor crowd reactions, the WCW side became the heels, opposing a heroic coalition of WWE wrestlers.

In one of the most baffling decisions made during the invasion, the company had “Stone Cold” Steve Austin defect to the WCW team at the Invasion pay-per-view, maintaining his position as a heel after faking out fans to believe he’d turned face again. As the year wore on, the story grew more and more convoluted and nonsensical. A decision was made to end the invasion at Survivor Series in November. In the end, the last two people left in the ring were Austin and The Rock, meaning that the hyped-up WCW Invasion concluded with WWE’s two biggest stars.

In the years since, there are few who deny that the storyline did not live up to its potential. From the illogical plot to the lack of notable WCW names, the Invasion is a storyline that will go down in history for its wasted potential.

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