Do think Sting's crow act pre-Starrcade 97 would have worked post-Starrcade 97? I think one of the reasons he didn't catch fire after the title win(botching it is the main reason but still…) is because he went back to being regular old Sting but still kept the emo crow face paint. It was jarring. Would fans have accepted the World Champion just sitting in the rafters and maybe not appearing at all for shows? For example, let's say crazy Macho Man is out of control for a few weeks on Nitro and all of the sudden, Sting rappels down and points his bat, signaling shit is about to go down and Sting vs Savage happens at the PPV. Next month it happens with Nash or whatever heel is hot that month. Kinda like a babyface version of what the Shield is now, never talking, just showing up and dealing out justice to whoever deserves it. And feel free to use your answer to bury the Fuj. Thanks.
Yeah, but now he'll know it's coming.
So yeah, I totally think that Crow Sting would have worked, although in a sense probably not because his whole success was predicated on never actually wrestling, and as noted once he got into the ring again it was just plain old Sting. At the very least, keeping him in the rafters with the belt would have increased the prestige and specialness of the title. Say what you will about Hogan never defending the damn thing, but at least it was a Big Deal when he finally did give someone a title match. Kind of like how The Fuj would be more special if he didn't post 100 times in every thread.