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Jim Cornette unpacks WCW's Black Scorpion identity problem

The VICE Sports episode revisits a masked villain whose elaborate entrance into wrestling came before a crucial decision: who was underneath.

Channel: VICE Sports Story of Trari Newsroom

Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 376,898 views a day, 49 times a normal first day on this channel (7,708).

Jim Herd and the Black Scorpion | Cornette Side of the RingJim Herd and the Black Scorpion | Cornette Side of the Ring

Things we can learn from the video

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  1. 0:00Cornette traces Jim Herd's arrival at WCW from a background that included managing Pizza Hut.
  2. 3:00The Ding Dongs, a masked tag team covered in bells, illustrate Cornette's criticism of WCW's character ideas.
  3. 4:10Cornette recalls the rejected Hunchbacks pitch, other cartoonish characters and RoboCop's appearance.
  4. 6:07Cornette says the Black Scorpion storyline began without a decision about who would be under the mask.
  5. 7:25Stage magic and body doubles lead to Starrcade 1990, where Ric Flair is revealed as the Black Scorpion.
  6. 9:43The account moves to Flair's WWF departure in 1991 and Herd's exit from WCW in January 1992.

A masked wrestling villain can keep the audience guessing. According to Jim Cornette, WCW's Black Scorpion had the people making the show guessing, too: they launched the mystery without deciding who was behind the mask.

That creative predicament sits at the center of "Jim Herd and the Black Scorpion | Cornette Side of the Ring," which drew about 260,000 views in twelve hours. It had already gone far beyond VICE Sports' usual full-day audience for a regular video, with a comment section many times busier than normal.

Cornette worked in WCW during Herd's leadership, and his account starts with the former Pizza Hut executive's arrival after Turner Broadcasting bought Jim Crockett Promotions. He describes an effort to make the wrestling company more kid-friendly, illustrated by a masked tag team covered in little bells, the Ding Dongs, and an appearance by RoboCop alongside Sting.

The Black Scorpion was a more sustained puzzle. Introduced to challenge Sting, the character acquired stage magic and body doubles as the story continued. Cornette's criticism is specific: the production kept elaborating on a question it had not worked out how to answer.

At Starrcade 1990, Ric Flair was unmasked as the villain. The episode then follows the growing friction between Flair and Herd through Flair's departure for the WWF the following year.

Viewers are discussing the Scorpion's distinctive voice, comparing it with other wrestling characters and even Inspector Gadget's Dr. Claw. Others are asking for Cornette and his podcast co-host Brian Last to tackle a full wrestling-history miniseries.

Published on Trari

Where next?

More from VICE SportsVideo taking off 134x its usual first dayHulk Hogan, Richard Belzer and the sleeper hold that went wrong on live TVJim Cornette's latest episode also revisits John Stossel's slap and Giant Haystacks's studio slam, and its comment section is running far busier than usual.Channel: VICE Sports · Story of October 12, 2026 Also in Documentaries and journalismVideo taking off 17x its usual first dayIs Haiti safe enough to go back to? FRONTLINE goes to lookSebastian Walker's documentary follows the end of Temporary Protected Status from deportation flights in Cap-Haïtien to ankle monitors in Springfield, Ohio.Channel: FRONTLINE PBS | Official · Story of October 22, 2026 A different discovery todayVideo taking off 57x its usual first dayNew Mexico's attorney general wants Epstein's estate in survivors' handsRaúl Torrez announces a federal civil suit against the estate's co-executors, whom C-SPAN's title identifies as Epstein's attorney and accountant.Channel: C-SPAN · Story of October 22, 2026

What viewers say

  • This guy could rant about water sprinklers and I'd still tune in
    @bozotheclown1142See it on YouTube
  • just hire jim and brian to do a history of professional wrestling miniseries already
    @anonblahanonSee it on YouTube
  • The Black Scorpion sounds like "Dr Claw" from Inspector Gadget.
    @Damien-q8tSee it on YouTube
4 more comments
  • There was no way I wasn't clicking after seeing the words "Jim Herd" and "Jim Cornette" in the title.
    @CJM51392See it on YouTube
  • Best way to kill time before kickoff
    @BarryMcCockinerIISee it on YouTube
  • Such a good series, hopefully they keep it going for awhile
    @alexmagli3746See it on YouTube
  • I'm now addicted to those Cornette Side of the Ring
    @Azgoon69See it on YouTube

Public comments from the video's page on YouTube

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The facts
Subscribers
1,130,000
Channel views, last 7 days
1,608,236
Channel views, pace per day
116,036 (on a normal day: 189,663)
Video published
October 18, 2026
Video views so far
260,229 (less than a day online)
Video views, pace per day
376,898

The numbers

The episode passed the channel's usual full-day views well before its first day was over. Comments also arrived far faster than on a typical upload.

the video's first day
usual first day here
7,708
this video
376,898
subscribers
1,130,000
no significant change in the last 7 days
total views
297,741,060
views per day
116,036
typical day: 189,663
the video
views
260,229
likes
7,125
comments
970
days online
1
subscribers: this channel and similar channels
RocaNews
1,160,000
VICE Sports
1,130,000
Channel 4 Documentaries
1,120,000
Natural World Facts
1,070,000
Odyssey - Ancient History…
1,060,000
Banijay History
1,050,000
As of October 19, 2026 · Data source: Trari Social News, Trari Traffic Trends and Ranking Platform, Google YouTube
Subscriber, view, like and comment counts are YouTube's. Rates, usual days, rankings, comparisons and categories are Trari's own calculations.
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