While Jim Ross has called some of the biggest and best moments in WWE history, he also has the unfortunate distinction of being at the announce desk during some of the more infamous storylines ever.
One such storyline threw itself head-first into every list of the worst angles in WWE history during the Autumn of 2002, and it featured the World Heavyweight Champion and his number one contender. Following his return to action following an injury, Kane had begun to show a more human side to his character and was tremendously popular with fans as a result. The Big Red Machine rode this fan support all of the way into a shot at Triple H and the World Championship.
However, as part of the rivalry, Triple H claimed that Kane had been responsible for the death of a woman named Katie Vick, going as far as to suggest that he had committed necrophilia. The low point of the whole angle featured Triple H in a Kane mask visiting a funeral home and the casket of Katie Vick. Triple H then simulated having sex with the corpse. The storyline and segment were slammed by fans at the time, and have continued to draw anger from viewers even today.
“I Never Understood The Logic Behind It” – Jim Ross
Reflecting on the storyline during a recent episode of his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross said that he never understood the need for the story, commenting that the subject has no place on a wrestling program.
“So I never understood the logic behind it. It failed miserably. It was in poor taste. I don’t want to put programming on television, where a dad who’s getting a pass to watch wrestling on Monday night has to explain to his kid What necrophilia [is]. What are the sex components of this alleged storyline? Well, that’s not what you want to explain to a child, you want to make them a fan. And if you want heat on Triple H, then shoot an angle with the baby face, not a mannequin.
So I don’t know. I never saw any value in it. I think it was embarrassing to wrestling. And that’s a big statement. But you can say blank is an embarrassment to pro- wrestling. So and I believe that to be true, then I believe to be true now. I was so shocked.
And I knew the subject matter was going to be very, very delicate, to say the very least. But I didn’t know all the specifics, and all the machinations of how they’re going to produce that segment. It was just horrible, just horrible. And I felt so bad for the audience. And you know, you can almost theoretically [hear] your TV’s clicking, channels changing.
You know, again, if you’ve got to sit and explain a political, a religious or a sexual angle to your audience, you’re on the wrong road. And they covet these kids for all the right reasons, primarily to create more cash. And it’s just amazing, I get at a loss for words just thinking about [it]. Again, I’m just trying to figure out why we did it. You really believe it’s going to work? I wonder whose idea that was in a writing room. [Conrad mentions Vince]. I don’t know, sometimes somebody would have a germ of an idea and he would then embellish it and make it his own. That could have been the case in this matter.
I’ve never heard a writer, Brucey [Bruce Prichard] might remember it better than me, because I had another job I was trying to get done. But I don’t know. I don’t know why we did it. And I don’t know why, and now and I’ve never heard any person in my life talk positively about this storyline. There’s no redeeming qualities to this piece of sh*t.”
The rivalry between Triple H and Kane came to an end at No Mercy where The Game defeated his masked foe to unify the Intercontinental and World Heavyweight Titles.
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