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There are literally hundreds of themed chess sets, featuring characters like the Avengers. Why not have a pro wrestling themed chess set too? But who would be which piece? We speculate these questions in this fun slide show.
The game of Chess has been around since at least the fifth century, when it was created in northern India. Originally the game was called Chaturanga, and it spread through the Persian empire until it reached all four corners of the world. Now commonly anglicized as Chess, the game is enjoyed by millions of people on every continent except Antarctica...and we wouldn't be surprised if a few explorers and scientists took a board along with them.
Given how popular Chess is, it's no surprise that there are so many themed chess sets. From Avengers chess to sets based upon the American Civil War, there seems to be no end to the themes.
One glaring omission from the myriad chess themes available is the almost total derth of pro wrestling themed sets. But if you were going to design a pro wrestling chess set, who would be in it?
This slideshow proposes setting the pro wrestling chess set during the Monday Night War, with one half of the board being WCW and the other half WWE. Here are the pieces and who would play them, as well as the rationale for why they were chosen.
WWE King: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin is the main reason why WWE won the Monday Night War.
Even when Steve Austin was injured and unable to compete, he could drive up ratings just by standing in the ring and doing a promo or interview. His unbridled charisma, great character, and dominance of the WWE Attitude Era make him the perfect choice to be the centerpiece of the WWE side of the chess board.
Austin gained prominence like no other wrestler during the attitude era and he would be the one guy fit enough to be defended by the WWE roster.
WCW King: Eric Bischoff
For WCW's king, it just makes good sense to choose Eric Bischoff for the role.
Although he didn't wield quite as much power as Vince McMahon did in WWE, Bischoff nonetheless oversaw most of the WCW operations during the Monday Night War. He even wielded power outside of his official purview, which he used in ways that both made the talent happy and also very angry.
Much like Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff also became a vital character during the Monday Night War, appearing as an on-screen personality.
Bischoff was the main antagonist that the WWE looked to beat and thereby he cemented his position as the king of the opposite tribe.
WWE Queen: Stephanie McMahon
For WWE's queen, you need a piece that represents political power and the ability to adapt to almost any situation. You also need someone nearly equal to the King.
Stephanie McMahon fits into this role nicely, as the billion dollar princess of the WWE. Through both on-screen roles and her backstage officiating duties, Stephanie has wielded an enormous amount of power in WWE since she was out of high school.
She is a near perfect fit for WWE's Queen Piece.
WCW Queen: Hollywood Hulk Hogan
First of all, the queen piece is often gender swapped in themed chess sets, so this isn't meant as an insult to the Hulkster. Rather, it's an acknowledgement that he was the number two figure in WCW during the Monday Night War.
Hulk Hogan wielded an enormous amount of power in WCW. Due to his influence, WCW began hiring established wrestling stars, much like Vince McMahon did during the 1980s in WWE. Hogan's belief that wrestlers under forty couldn't draw money was put to the test when WCW was flooded with talent like Roddy Piper, Randy Savage, Paul Orndorff and Rick Martel.
The Queen is the most versatile piece on the board, simultaneously powerful and in need of protection. We can't think of a more apropos piece than Hollywood Hulk Hogan.
It is also a notable and relevant fact that the queen here was responsible for many other pieces defecting to the rival color.
WWE Bishops: The APA
The Bishop is an essential piece in chess. Its ability to move diagonally helps it to threaten pieces all of the way across the board.
If you want threatening, look no further than the APA, Farooq and Bradshaw. During the Monday Night Wars this pair were inseparable, wreaking havoc upon the WWE's tag team division, and occasionally taking money to attack singles stars as well.
Big, menacing and much quicker than they look, the APA is the perfect pair of Bishops for the WWE side of the Monday Night War chess set.
WCW Bishops: The Outsiders
For the WCW side's bishop piece, we look to the other aspect of the piece, which pertain to their representation of political power.
Though unofficially beyond the purview of government, the bishops represent the religious aspect of wielding political power. They are often able to gain a lot more power than one would think and can greatly influence the way a kingdom operates.
That sounds a lot like Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, who despite being contracted as wrestlers managed to wield a great deal of power behind the scenes in WCW.
It was the WCW bishop pairing that in fact triggered the monday night wars. Hall and Nash's move to the WCW was the first shot that rattled the WWE.
WWE Knights: DX
The Knight in chess is a piece that moves in a very unusual way. It can hop over other pieces, and can use its unorthodox style to threaten pieces in a vast variety of ways.
In many ways, this is the same as DX. Triple H and Shawn Michaels acted much like heels, but were so entertaining they wound up getting a lot of cheers. Many underestimate the horse headed knight chess piece, but it is full of surprises, just like Degeneration X and their 'invasions' of WCW events.
WCW Knights: Harlem Heat
On WCW's side, we find that Harlem Heat makes a great set of Knights.
Big and imposing, but capable of moving with a cat-like grace, the Harlem Heat put their opponents off balance with their surprising technical prowess. That sounds like the unorthodox offense of the knights in chess.
The duo were arguably the most successful tag team in WCW history, racking up nine World Tag Team championships during their run with the company.
WWE Rooks: The Undertaker and Mankind
During the Monday Night War, two of the greatest rivals of all time were Undertaker and Mankind.
Before the advent of Mankind, Undertaker was nigh-invincible, only losing due to foul play and often taking on entire stables of wrestlers. Mankind humanized the Dead man, and made him a more believable character who could sometimes lose.
The pair are a good analogy for the Rook pieces because they're both imposing, capable of broad sweeping moves across the arena...or chess board...and were the pillars upon which the WWE rested during the Monday Night War.
WCW Rooks: Nature Boy Ric Flair and Arn Anderson
The Rook pieces in chess are meant to provide the stalwart defense and attack that is needed to protect the more vulnerable pieces, such as the King.
Ric Flair and Arn Anderson are perfect for this role. In many ways, they are the buttresses which helped prop up WCW during its very early, unprofitable years. They also represent the Four Horsemen, without whom there probably wouldn't have been a WCW, and therefore a Monday Night War.
WWE Pawns: The Dudleys, The Hardys, Edge and Christian, Spike Dudley and Lita
The pawns in chess are both humble and absolutely vital to the game. While they are not in as grand a position as the other pieces, they are still essential to achieve victory. And not to mention that a simple pawn can cross the board and become one of the most powerful players in the game.
For WWE, this points at the participants of the Table, Ladders, and Chairs matches which made the Attitude Era famous. Edge and Christian, the Dudleys, and the Hardys make a great set of pawns, with Spike Dudley and Lita rounding out the final two.
WCW Pawns: the Luchadores
While most of the emphasis was placed on the NWO as being the sole force increasing Monday Nitro's ratings, the fact is it was an ensemble cast and many others played a part beyond the elites of the NWO.
One of the highlights of WCW programming was its cruiserweight division. Booked by Man of a Thousand Holds Dean Malenko, it featured a great deal of international talent, many of whom hailed from Mexico. The Luchadores like Rey Mysterio, La Parka, Juventud Guerrera, Eddie Guerrero, El Dandy, Silver King, Hector Garza and Psicosis often performed the curtain jerker match, getting the fans excited for the show with their high flying and wild action.
There you have it; The pieces of a hypothetical Monday Night Wars chess game. Questions or comments? Please leave them below the article, and as always thanks for reading!
