|
This is called Nice Guys Finish Last and it focuses on the heels of the WWE, I assume. I should also mention that the WWE put a full Pay-Per-View on here for the first time. That PPV is Survivor Series 1994. It will only run for a short time, but that’s still cool it is posted on here. I doubt I will do a review since I will wait for the Survivor Series Anthology DVD’s that will eventually be released. That’s just a cool new thing to add on here and this turning into a great investment.
-King Kong Bundy & Big John Studd vs. Paul Orndorff and Hulk Hogan-
This is a rather famous match from Championship Wrestling, which aired on July 19th, 1986. We head to the locker room where Orndorff is not happy with Hogan, who ducked an Orndorff phone call earlier in the day. Orndorff starts off with Studd and quickly tosses him around, getting a sunset flip for one and a hiptoss. Bundy comes in and doesn't fare that much better. Studd comes back and Orndorff says he will bodyslam him, then fails. He does end up dropkicking Studd and Bundy down before posing for the crowd and tagging in Hogan. Hogan comes in and immediately shows up Orndorff by bodyslamming Studd. This is why this angle worked so well. Hogan and Orndorff were friends and Orndorff just got jealous that Hogan was always outdoing him by just that much, getting more attention than Orndorff, and being more loved by the public than Orndorff. All of that built up to this moment; when Hogan was taking on both heels and Studd sent Hogan into Orndorff in the corner. The heels were disqualified at 6:00 for tossing the referee to beat on Hogan but the results of the match are inconsequential to what happened next. Orndorff comes in and clears the ring of Bundy and Studd. The fans were just waiting for Orndorff to pick up his buddy and regroup and celebrate in the ring. Instead, Orndorff comes in, helps up Hogan, lifts his hand up in victory, and then clotheslines him! The fans reaction to this was priceless. Their cheers went to disbelief. When Orndorff piledrove Hogan to the mat and put his hand to his ears the turn was complete. Orndorff waved in Bundy and Studd and joined Heenan's evil family. Some of the lesser faces of the time ran in to help Hogan. This feud was money for the rest of the year and if the WWE had the Survivor Series at this time, this definitely would've been the main event. It was just perfectly executed and that's why so many people still remember the feud even though it didn't headline a Pay-Per-View. The match was nothing, * at most, but the storyline was perfect.
-Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis-
This is a Saturday’s Night Main Event match from January 3rd, 1987 that was the set-up to their Wrestlemania III match. We have a pre-match interview with Adonis and we see Piper whacking him with a crutch which I guess necessitated this match. We also hear from Piper, too. Roddy is not fighting for money, he’s fighting for pride. Piper starts by putting his kilt over Adrian’s head and biting him. Vince notes that this was not the first time Adonis has had a skirt over his head. That was pretty funny. A high knee gets Adonis wrapped up in the ropes and Piper follows with a spin kick. Adonis is sent to the corner and he flips up to a seated position on the top turnbuckle. Piper has Adonis cornered but Adonis pounds back and rakes Piper a few times with his nails. Piper blocks a right and delivers two of his own that falls the Adorable one. Adonis grabs a sleeper but Piper gets to the ropes and both guys end up outside. Hart comes over and he gets knocked for a loop by Piper. Adonis grabs the spray can Hart brought to ringside and Adonis sprays Piper in the eyes. Adonis gets back inside the ring as Piper is counted out at 3:49. Piper finally makes it to the ring but it’s too late. Piper tosses the referee down thinking it was Adonis. They would steal this same exact angle for the Roberts/Martel match a few years later. This was just a garbage match used to set up the big angle for Wrestlemania III. ½*.
-Introducing: The Million Dollar Man-
This is an interview with Ted DiBiase as he remembers his first match in the WWE in 1987 at Madison, Wisconsin. I guess this means his modern WWE debut because he did work in the early 80’s there. He talks about throwing money into the crowd to piss them off, but they liked getting the money. He jokes about offering them money and then finding a way for them to lose. Ted talks about how he came into the WWE and how he heard Vince was interested in him. He thought the role was natural for a villain. He discusses the Main Event episode where Andre defeated Hogan and how he was a part of it. He appreciates how the WWE let him introduce his son. We get to see one of Ted’s early matches, possibly his 1987 debut. He throws money out into the crowd and has Virgil with him. Ted is wrestling Jerry Allen and Jerry is chucked around as Vince confirms this is Ted’s debut. DiBiase slams Allen down and drops a fist. He back drops Allen but Allen comes back with a body-press for one. DiBiase hotshots Allen across the top rope and a Million Dollar Dream that he turns into a Side-Russian Legsweep. That’s an interesting version of the hold. He covers and gets the win at 1:53. I liked the Million Dollar Dream variation there. ½*. By the way, this match was from the 08/15/87 edition of Superstars.
-British Bulldogs vs. Hart Foundation-
This is a match-up from Primetime Wrestling which aired on November 19th, 1987. The Bulldogs are introduced with Matilda as their manager. Heenan is on as announcer and the way it sounds this could be one of Heenan’s first color jobs. Dynamite and Hart start things off with Dynamite shoving Hart off after a lock-up. Dynamite takes Hart over with a side-headlock before tagging in Davey Boy, who flips out of an arm-bar and counters into one of his own. Davey gets a crucifix pin on Hart for two. Hart tags in the Anvil to let the powerhouses go at it. Anvil shoves off Davey Boy but is taken down with a drop toe hold. Anvil tags in Hart who goes after the arm of Davey Boy. Davey counters with a forearm and brings in Dynamite for a double head-butt. Dynamite sends Hart to the corner chest first and covers for two. Dynamite tries a suplex but Hart counters with the best counter I’ve seen, a punch to the ribs. Hart dumps Dynamite to the outside and he takes a bad bump to the back. Hart then falls down and claims Bulldog attacked him while the ref was counting out Dynamite. The ref’s attention is diverted now and this allows Neidhart to soften up Dynamite some more. Anvil comes in and locks Dynamite in a bearhug but Dynamite sunset flips out of that for two. Dynamite’s double-teamed in the corner. Dynamite comes back with a big clothesline and makes the hot tag to Davey Boy. He dropkicks Neidhart then continues the assault with a double-noggin knocker before clotheslining Anvil for two. Davey sunset flips Anvil but Hart breaks up the pin. Bulldog puts a sleeper on Anvil and Bret wants to interfere again, but Dynamite wards him off. The ref pushes Dynamite to his corner allowing Hart to elbow Davey Boy to the back of the head. Anvil falls on top of him and the ref counts the pinfall at 9:37. This was disappointing for a Harts/Bulldog match, especially in the early goings of the match which was just too slow. ***.
-Tito Santana vs. Rick Martel-
This match-up took place in Boston on April 22nd, 1989. This was shortly after the break-up of Strike Force. Santana comes down to the ring only to get blindsided by Martel. Martel destroys the knee of Santana, dropping chairs on it before entering the ring. The referee tells the timekeeper that the bout will be postponed until later on that evening. So we go to later that evening, and Martel starts the match by driving the knee of Santana into the ringpost. That’s actually a smart idea. Martel continues working the knee until Tito makes the improbable comeback. Tito pounds on Martel in the corner, even tossing away the referee. Martel shoves down Tito and covers, using the ropes, for the pinfall at 3:14. Yikes, that was a garbage match. It really lacked any flow and Tito’s comeback was just out of nowhere. The knee injury that was so shoved down our throats didn’t even figure in the outcome of the match. *.
-Mr. Perfect vs. Bret Hart-
This is a Primetime match from November 6th, 1989 and is probably one of their first encounters. WWECLASSICS is also teasing their Maple Leaf Gardens match being posted next month. I wonder what the theme will be? This was during the first (and brief) Bret Hart solo run. It sounds like Schiavone and Alfred Hayes announcing which is an interesting combination. Mr. Perfect has the Genius in his corner to boot. Hart shoulderblocks Perfect down, then hiptosses him to the outside. Perfect gets shoulderblocked down again and then Hart mocks Perfect a bit as Perfect looks on in disgust. Hart grabs a side-headlock and Perfect pulls his hair a couple of times. When Perfect tries to break Hart holds on by grabbing the hair first. Hey, turnabout is fair play. Perfect breaks and Hart ends up on the apron. Hart sunset flips in for two and takes control with a side headlock takeover. Perfect breaks and sneaks in a knee to the gut but Hart comes back with a crucifix pin for two and another side-headlock takeover. We take a quick commercial break and come back with Perfect hanging out on the outside as Hart awaits him in the ring. Perfect stalls some more to get some heel heat then punches Hart down with an illegal fist when the ref tries to break them up in the corner. Hart is sent outside and Perfect follows, chopping him down to the mat. Hart makes his way back to the ring and is sent chest-first into the corner and Perfect takes advantage with a pinfall for two. Perfect works in the patented necksnap and covers Hart for two. Perfect goes upstairs but Hart pops-up and tosses him off. Hart gets a pair of atomic drops and hair tosses Perfect across the ring culminating in Perfect getting crotched between the ringpost. Hart suplexes Perfect for two. A small package gets two, as does a backbreaker. Hart argues with the ref allowing Perfect to roll up Hart for two. Hart kicks off and Perfect ends up outside. Hart follows but gets smacked down. Perfect suplexes Hart back into the ring. Hart rolls-up Perfect for two but Perfect reverses that with his own cradle and with the use of the tights he is able to get the pinfall at 14:22. It’s nice to see Perfect win a match against Hart. It’s not up to their Summerslam or King of the Ring match but it was still quite good. ***1/2.
-Tugboat & The Bushwhackers vs. Earthquake & The Nasty Boys-
This is from Superstars and aired on June 15th, 1991. I find it odd that this match would be on here since it is only a few months away from being on Legacy anyway. Based on who is in this match, you can probably find out where the Nice Guys Finish Last thing comes into play and who turns on whom. Do I actually need to review another Bushwhackers match? Knobbs starts with Luke, who clotheslines Knobbs down. Butch comes in and pounds away, which shows the extent of his wrestling prowess. Sags comes in and does some punches of his own. Knobbs comes back in and misses a charge, so Luke bites him. The Bushwhackers tag in Tugboat, whose back was turned, so the Nasty's tag in Earthquake. The two big guys stare each other down and Tugboat tags out to Luke. Earthquake kills Luke and he’s dead in the heel corner. A double elbow drop knocks Luke down but Butch makes the save. Earthquake powerslams Luke and again Butch makes the save. Butch tries to take on all the four heels until Tugboat comes in and nails Butch. He splashes Luke which leads to Earthquake hitting the butt splash for the pin at 4:24. The match sucked (DUD), but it did set up the Natural Disasters tag team, as Tugboat turned to the dark side to team with Earthquake as one-half of the Natural Disasters.
-Natural Disasters(c) vs. Money Inc for the WWE Tag Team Titles-
This comes to us from an episode of Wrestling Challenge that aired on January 1st, 1992. The Nasty Boys come down and are not happy with Jimmy giving Money Inc. the title shot and not them. So DiBiase pays off the Nasty’s to go away. The Nasty’s take the money then attack Money Inc. IRS is down and out so the Disasters start to double-team DiBiase as the bell ring. Typhoon avalanches DiBiase, and Earthquake follows on top of that. A second one follows. DiBiase flops down. Typhoon heads off the ropes and IRS pulls his leg down, allowing DiBiase to tag in IRS. IRS elbow drops Typhoon a couple of times for one. He tries for a suplex showing he is much smarter with money than he is in wrestling. Typhoon easily reverses it and tags in Earthquake. Earthquake tosses DiBiase around and atomic drops IRS to the outside. Earthquake powerslams DiBiase and follows with an elbow. He ties for the Earthquake when the Headshrinkers head out. Typhoon heads them off in the ring as the ref is distracted. This allows Money Inc. to toss Earthquake to the outside, where he rams his head into the steel barricade at ringside. We head to commercial and come back with Earthquake slowly getting into the ring. IRS and DiBiase both put sleeper holds on Earthquake, though I question why he didn’t use the Million Dollar Dream. Earthquake keeps breaking by backing into the corner, but it is the heel corner and the heels can easily tag out. DiBiase ends up in the ring and the Million Dollar Dream is enough to knock out Earthquake and give Money Inc. the titles at 7:21. I didn’t expect much but the booking of this match was really well-done. The heels used their guile to defeat the champs cleanly by knocking out Earthquake and just wearing him down. I really liked this match. ***. We end with a Jimmy Hart interview. The Nasty Boys come out to have words with Jimmy. They aren’t happy at all. This turned the Nasty’s face and set up a Nasty/Money Inc. feud.
-Randy Savage(c) vs. Ric Flair for the WWE Title-
This is a Primetime Wrestling match that I clearly remember watching back in September 14th, 1992. I loved the finish and it is a match that the WWE hasn’t really been seen anywhere, which the WWE admits on their website. This is the full match with the pre and post match celebrations. We start with Okerlund interviewing Macho Man about retaining his WWE title at Summerslam. He’s pissed at Flair for putting him and Warrior against each other. Okerlund asks about Macho’s knee and Macho says it’s fine. Razor Ramon interrupts and he wants Macho’s gold. Macho knocks him down, all while selling the knee. We head to the match, with Flair coming out with Mr. Perfect. Savage comes out, with his knee still in bad shape. McMahon and Heenan call the action here.
Perfect trips up Macho with the bad knee to start and Flair goes right to work on that knee, causing Macho to head outside. Macho tries to lure Flair to him, but Flair wisely keeps his distance waiting for an opportunity to attack. Flair kicks the knee and chops at Savage, but Savage reverses Flair into the corner to escape. Flair takes down Savage and tries for the figure-four, only to have Savage kick out of it. Savage is way too distracted by Perfect on the outside, too. Flair boots the knee and snapmares Savage down. Flair works the knee like the champ he is. Savage comes back with a press slam, but he immediately sells the knee after performing it. Flair is up quickly and tries to attack the knee again but Savage grabs an abdominal stretch. So Flair breaks by punching the knee. Savage is sent to the corner but Savage clotheslines him on the rebound for two. Flair is up first and suplexes Macho Man for two. Flair puts Macho in a single leg crab but Macho makes the ropes. Flair bodyslams Savage and drops a knee to the face, stretching the knee out some more as Savage goes to the ropes to break. Savage sneaks in a small package for two as Perfect continues to distract Savage. Flair dumps Savage to outside and Savage takes a tough bump.
We head to a break and return with Savage rolling back into the ring and sending Flair to the corner and back dropping him on the rebound. Savage clotheslines Flair to the outside and then sends him into the steel barricade. Savage suplexes Flair on the mat then brandishes a chair to chase Perfect away. Flair charges Savage but is backdropped. Savage rolls Flair inside and heads upstairs. Flair hits a double axe-handle from the top and Flair is out, but Savage’s knee gets completely messed up now and he can’t cover. Ramon saunters out to the ring area as Perfect distracts Savage. Flair dropkicks Savage to the outside and while the ref is distracted Ramon takes out Savage’s knee. Flair rolls Savage back into the middle of the ring and locks the figure-four on him. Savage refuses to give up and he doesn’t give up, but eventually the pain is too much and Savage blacks out and the ref counts the pinfall because Savage’s shoulders are down. Flair wins his second WWE title at 15:60. This was a really well-booked match. Savage had an injury and Flair (and company) just went to work on it. This match was really believable, especially with Perfect’s interference and Macho’s reactions to it. This was just perfect psychology. I thought the figure-four at the end went on a bit too long, but everything else was great. ****.
We see some of the post-match activities, including Ramon doing further damage to the knee of Ramon. Was there ever a blowoff for this feud? The Ultimate Warrior comes down to carry Savage to the back. Yeah, thanks for not showing up 5 minutes ago, buddy. We end with Flair celebrating in the back with Mr. Perfect and Bobby Heenan and having some champagne.
-Shawn Michaels(c) vs. Marty Jannetty for the Intercontinental Title in a Steel Cage Match-
This is from August 17th, 1993 and appeared on a WWE Home Video from back in the day. Shawn has Diesel in his corner. It sounds like Gorilla Monsoon and Johnny Polo announcing. Jannetty goes right after Michaels and tosses him around. Shawn tries a quick escape but Jannetty pulls him back in. Jannetty clotheslines Michaels down and covers, but there is no referee! What an idiot! Why didn’t the announcers pick up on that, either? Jannetty tries to send Michaels head-first into the cage but Michaels blocks that. Michaels dropkicks Jannetty down and chokes him. Hey, there’s no referee so why not? Michaels tries another dropkick but Jannetty catches him and slingshots him into the cage. Jannetty covers and now the ref jumps into the cage and counts to two before Michaels kicks out. Gorilla says that having pinfalls in a cage match is ridiculous and I agree. Jannetty heads for the door but Michaels catches him. Polo asks Gorilla about the Doors and he starts singing Light My Fire. Shit, the WWE can’t even play their OWN songs on their DVD’s but they can get away with that? Michaels gets knocked out when he misses a blind charge and heads for the door, but Diesel makes sure he can’t escape. Michaels catches up to Jannetty and chucks him face-first into the cage. Shawn tries to go through the door now but this time it is Jannetty there to bring his back in. Shawn tries to climb out now but only gets to the top turnbuckle before Jannetty pulls his pants down and brings him back in. If you can believe it, Jannetty even blew the pulling down the pants spot. Michaels puts Jannetty in a sleeper. The referee comes in again to make sure Jannetty’s not asleep. Jannetty finds renewed life and charges towards the cage, ducking in time for Michaels face to hit it. Jannetty atomic drops Michaels into the steel cage and tries to climb over the top. Jannetty puts one leg over the top of the cage but Michaels pulls him in hard and Michaels starts to climb over. He gets both legs over and is about to drop, but Jannetty pulls him back in by the hair. They are perched on the top of the cage and Jannetty press slams Michaels off the top. Jannetty starts to climb over the top but Diesel wards him off, allowing Michaels to exit through the door to retain the title at 13:08. I just want to know what drugs Jannetty was on during this match. **1/2.
-Bob Backlund vs. Bret Hart(c) for the WWE Title-
This is from an episode of Superstars which aired on July 30th, 1994. Bob was still over as a face here, though that may change by the end of the episode. Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler are calling the action. Hart and Backlund stare down to start before locking up and breaking cleanly. Backlund corners Hart and shoulders him before doing a bodyscissor and turning it into a two-count. Backlund gets another two-count before Hart backs him off and they do a test of strength, which Backlund kicks out of and covers for two. He gets a second two-count before Bret cools off and takes down Backlund and locks on an armbar. Backlund tries to snapmare out of it but Bret holds on. Backlund tries a belly to back suplex to break the hold but again Bret holds on, even getting a cover for two. Backlund bridges out of it and covers Hart for two. Backlund forearms Hart down and covers for two. Hart headbutts Backlund, but damages himself, too. So Backlund responds with a headbutt of his own. Backlund piledrives Hart for two as we hit the first commercial break. We return with Backlund attempting another piledriver only to get backdropped out of it. Hart comes back with a bodyslam and a legdrop. He tries for an abdominal stretch but Backlund counters that into one of his own. Hart hiptosses out of it and both guys roll around before rolling outside. Backlund’s in first but Hart is on the offensive first, elbowing Backlund in the kidneys. Backlund sends Hart into the corner and bodyslams him down for two. Backlund puts Hart in a bodyvice but Hart breaks free and a backslide gets two.
There’s a nice pinfall-bridge sequence that ends with a Backlund backslide for two. Hart sends Backlund to the corner and follows with a backbreaker for two. Bret tries a sharpshooter but Backlund blocks it, allowing Bret to casually elbow drop Backlund in the face. Bret heads off the ropes and trips on Backlund before falling outside. Backlund drags him back in and covers for two. Backlund back suplexes Bret, which Ross notes is vintage Backlund. I am so used to hearing the word Vintage precede the word Undertaker when it is leaving Ross’ mouth. Of course, by this time Undertaker was only three years into his WWE career and nothing of his was vintage yet. Backlund counters a Hart bodyslam with a small package for a long two-count. Backlund is energized by this near-fall and tries a bodyslam of his own and Hart uses that same counter, the small package, to secure the pinfall at 14:27. Backlund is pissed that he didn’t win but still shakes Hart’s hand. Hart wants another handshake after celebrating some more but Backlund instead slaps him and puts him in the chicken wing. Backlund gets some huge heel heat and thus the crazy Bob Backlund character was born. This was a really good television match, with some cool old-school action and the creation of the evil Backlund character that was actually really interesting in the mid 90’s. It set an example of a guy not just being a gimmick but playing a realistic character, like the ass-kicking type Austin was. People could believe that this old guy was a fucking psycho, and Backlund played it up. I always thought great wrestling characters were just extensions of their own personalities anyway and Backlund was one such example. ***1/2.
-Ric Flair & Sting vs. Arn Anderson & Brian Pillman-
This comes to use from Halloween Havoc 1995, an event that was held on October 29th. Arn was a Horseman here and is introduced as such, but I don’t know if Brian was in it yet. . Schiavone states that Brian and Anderson attacked Flair earlier in the evening. Nature Boy is introduced first, though Sting comes out first. Flair is still not out as the match starts. Sting reverses a hammerlock, forcing Arn to go to the ropes. Sting wards off a double-team and locks Arn in a full-nelson before dropping him. Arn tries to knock Sting down but he keeps kipping up. Sting responds with a bulldog, then slugs Brian down. He clears the ring again as the heels regroup. Sting is drawn to the outside where Brian lures him into an Arn clothesline, but Sting ducks and clotheslines both guys down. Tony talks up Sting to which Heenan responds, “Oh shut up, what did you co-sign on a house with him?” Classic Heenan. Sting press-slams Pillman and calls for Arn. Pillman heads upstairs to double-team Sting but Sting slingshots Arn into the corner and Pillman gets crotched. Sting then takes Pillman off the op and sends Pillman to the outside, right into the steel barricade. So Arn drives Sting into the head of Pillman and Arn goes to work. Flair comes running down to the ring, still in a shirt and pants, but the ref makes him go to his corner. Arn dumps Sting, allowing Pillman to drive him into the steel barricade. Sting is taken down with a side headlock as Pillman tries to come in with a splash off the top rope. That hits the knees of Sting. Sting tries to tag but an incoming Arn puts the kibosh on that tag attempt. Sting finally makes his corner but Flair isn’t there to tag since Pillman lured him to the mat and Flair chased Pillman around. So Arn puts Sting in an abdominal stretch, which Pillman adds pressure to illegally. Arn and Brian continue to make sure Sting doesn’t make his corner. Arn hits his spinebuster and covers, but Flair breaks up that pin. Arn locks Sting in a bearhug and Sting is almost out, but he is able to escape. He still can’t make the tag as Brian comes in to drop an elbow to the back of Sting. Sting finally makes the tag to Flair, and Flair comes in and knocks Sting down! Flair turned on Sting! Sting is triple-teamed and Flair lays into Sting. The referees come in to call this thing off at 18:00. The official decision isn’t announced but we hear a Flair promo after the match. This was a good classic tag-team match, but without an ending it’s just sort of average. **1/2.
-Rey Misterio vs. Syxx(c) for the Cruiserweight Title-
This is from the April 21st, 1997 edition of Nitro and Syxx you newer fans may know as X-Pac or that guy who made a sex tape with Chyna. Syxx has Kevin Nash with him and seeing him, could this be the lawn-dart toss incident? Syxx starts with an over-emphatic side headlock and a hammerlock, but Rey armdrags out of it. Rey does his own over-emphatic headlock. Rey slaps Syxx and forearms him in the corner. Syxx is taken down with a headscissors but he comes back by tossing Rey up and letting him fall on the mat. Syxx legdrops Rey then kicks him down in the corner before hitting the Bronco Buster. Syxx plays the asshole heel so well. Rey gets caught in an abdominal stretch and Syxx uses the ropes for leverage. Rey reverses the abdominal stretch but is hiptossed to the outside. Well, this isn’t the lawn-dart incident because the announcers reference said event. Syxx tries another Bronco Buster but is crotched in the corner. Rey gets a hurricanrana for two and does another one that sends Syxx outside. Rey follows with a somersault pescado over the top. Rey celebrates in the ring but Nash hits a bit boot and powerbombs Rey. Syxx comes in with his cross-face chicken wing and the bell rings at 5:55. JJ Dillon comes down to the ring and brings down the paramedics and security to the ring. The fans chant we want Sid as Rey is brought to the back. * for the Rey highspot.
-D-Generation X vs. Legion of Doom-
This is from the December 15th, 1997 episode of Raw and one that I remember clearly watching during my tape collecting days. DX were definitely at their snarkiest during this time. I think DX actually were their best in late November to December of 1997. DX plays Rock-Paper-Scissors to see who will start and it looks like Shawn is starting with Animal. Animal shoves down Michaels to start because he’s an Animal, get it? Animal follows the power with a shoulder-block. He wanders into the LOD corner and is hammered down by Hawk. HHH is tagged in and he is shoulderblocked down. Of course, HHH is about a third the size he is now. HHH goes to work on the arm and Michaels comes in with an axe-handle off the top. Animal sends Michaels to the ropes but he slides to the outside where is met with a Hawk clothesline. Hawk dumps Michaels back in where he is clotheslined back to the outside. Michaels tries to crawl to the back but HHH brings him back in then tags into the match. Hawk comes in and clotheslines HHH down. Hawk is sent to the ropes where Michaels kicks him in the back and HHH follows with a high-knee. Hawk is double-teamed in the corner as Michaels gloats to Animal to draw him in and continue the double-team. HHH comes in with a knee drop for two. We take a quick break and return with Michaels keeping Hawk in a rest-hold, surely so we at home don’t miss any action on TV! Hawk gets sent to the corner and Michaels charges but they butt heads and Hawk is able to make the tag to Animal. He cleans house with clotheslines and powerslams Michaels when Billy Gunn makes his way to ringside, as does Road Dogg. The duo had beaten the LOD for the tag titles previously and this was before they were the New Age Outlaws and part of DX. They would join soon after this, of course. So Hawk is knocked out with an ether-soaked rag and Chyna low-blows Animal to get the DQ at 7:41. They dump Animal and shave Hawk’s head. Animal is then powerslammed through the table at ringside and Billy does a top rope legdrop from the top rope, followed by a Michaels elbowdrop from the top. The match was terrible and was just built around the angle at the end. ½*.
-Kevin Nash vs. Hulk Hogan-
This is their January 4th, 1999 Nitro match-up. This is often looked as the act that started the decline of WCW. Nash mocks Hogan’s shirt-tearing before the match. Hogan is dressed casually in jeans tonight. Nash shoves Hogan a minute into the “match” for the first offensive maneuver of the night. Hogan then pokes Nash with his thumb and Nash collapses. Hogan covers for the pinfall, the victory, and the title at 1:39. Goldberg comes out and attacks Hogan and all only to have Luger turn his back on Goldberg and a New World Order beatdown ensues. The finger-poke of doom was definitely not one of WCW’s better ideas. DUD. The beatdown that follows (with a freakin’ shock-stick no less) is just too over the top and a complete waste of time. If you want to know how to kill a company, watch this so you see what NOT to do.
-The Rock(c) vs. Triple H in an I Quit Match for the WWE Title-
I’m pretty sure I remember the finish of this January 24th, 1999 Raw match. Let’s see if my memory holds up! Michael Cole talks about Halftime Heat and the Rock/Mankind match that will headline it. I think that did really well in the ratings and that was where Mankind won the title back. I wish they would show that match one of these days. I think I may have it on tape somewhere. This was during the Rock’s shirt-wearing days. I heard this was because he had surgery on his chest to prevent sagging and was covering it up. I don’t know if that was true or not. HHH attacks Rock as soon as he gets into the ring and slugs Rock around for a bit before tossing him to the outside. HHH follows with a baseball slide. Rock heads up the ramp and HHH follows. HHH clotheslines the Rock and tries to get an I Quit but Rock just tells him he will kick his monkey ass. They head back to ringside where HHH is sent into the ringbell. Rock puts on Michael Cole’s headset and talks trash to HHH. HHH charges and knocks Rock down. He sends Rock into the railing and into the front row. HHH chokes Rock with an electrical wire but Rock still won’t quit. So HHH sends Rock into the steps before dumping him back into the ring. HHH grabs the ringbell to use it but Rock blocks and DDT’s HHH. Rock puts the ringbell over HHH’s head and hits the Corporate Elbow, hitting the bell with the hammer. Rock wants HHH to quit but HHH tells him to Suck it instead. HHH uses the knee and Pedigrees Rocky. He isn’t done with the Rock and dumps him to the outside. He Pedigrees him on the floor now but he’s still not done. He sets Rock up on the table and is about to Pedigree him through the table when Kane and the Corporation come out and takes Chyna hostage. They tell HHH that he better quit immediately or Chyna will have her neck broken by Kane. HHH quits and this match is over at 9:13. Yeah, HHH saved Chyna rather than get the WWE Title. HHH goes to look after Chyna and then gets a big surprise when Chyna low blows HHH and turns on him. Sucks to be HHH. I remember liking this match when I first watched and I still enjoy it now, though all the turns and all don’t hold up over time since Chyna turned about 3,000 more times in the months that followed. *1/2.
-Mankind(c) vs. Triple H for the WWE Title-
This is their August 23rd, 1999 Raw match-up and was the night after Mankind won the title at Summerslam with Jesse Ventura as referee. The Rock comes out before either wrestler is introduced. Shane McMahon comes out as the special guest referee, Trips follows and finally our champ, Mankind. There’s a lot of blurring going on right now. Triple H attacks Mankind as soon as he comes into the ring. The video on this looks terrible, especially compared to some of the other earlier stuff I’ve seen on here. It’s very dark. I don’t think it’s just my computer, either. Mankind charges with a knee to Triple H in the corner then bulldogs HHH for a pinfall. Shane refuses to count, instead opting to yell at the Rock. Mankind drops an elbow and pulls out Socko. Mankind puts Shane in the Mandible Claw and tosses him to the outside. This allows HHH to sneak up from behind. He tries for the Pedigree but Mankind backdrops him and puts the Mandible Claw on Trips. Chyna comes running down and she runs right into the Mandible Claw, too. Mankind hits HHH with the double-arm DDT but there is no ref. The fans count to about 10 before a ref comes out and Trips kicks out at two. Mankind dumps HHH and follows. Triple H reverses an Irish Whip to the stairs and Chyna adds damage to Mankind by powerslamming him into the steps. Mankind recovers and charges with a chair but gets booted in the face by HHH. HHH hits a neckbreaker in the ring for two. HHH sends Mankind into the corner and schoolboys him for two. Mankind slugs away but runs into a high knee for two. Rock verbally abusing Cole this whole time is a lot of fun, too. HHH and Hebner argue a bit, allowing Mankind to punch HHH down. HHH sends Mankind to the corner but a blind charge hits the boot of Mankind and a clothesline for Mankind gets two. A cactus clothesline sends both guys to the outside. Chyna distracts the ref, allowing Shane to hit Mankind in the back with a chair. Mankind no sells that but doesn’t no-sell the chair shot from HHH. HHH follows that up with one to Rock as well. Shane rolls Mankind into the ring, and then knocks out Hebner. HHH Pedigrees Mankind and covers him, and Shane counts the one-two-three to give HHH his first WWE Title at 8:42. I remember being pissed watching this back then, especially since Mankind was one of my favorite wrestlers at the time. This would be just one of many WWE titles for HHH. The match was really overbooked but it got to me on an emotional level 10 years ago so it did its job there. **.
-Test & Stephanie’s Marriage-
This is from Monday Night Raw which aired on November 29th, 1999. This is a famous segment for a couple of reasons. First, it was the longest overrun in Raw’s history and secondly it really cemented HHH as the top heel of the business. Most of this was shown on the WWE McMahon DVD. Basically Steph is about to get married to Test when HHH comes out and reveals he already married Steph in a drive-thru ceremony. This led to a McMahon/HHH match at Armageddon, though it probably should’ve been a Test/HHH match-up. This really brought HHH up in my opinion from just a heel to a conniving monster heel that would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. You can really track HHH’s progression into the upper echelon from here. This segment doesn’t hold up too well. It is just extremely long, with HHH not interrupting until about 8 minutes into the 15 minute run-time.
-Rey Misterio(c) vs. Tajiri for the WWE Cruiserweight Title-
This is a title-bout from an episode of Smackdown that aired on September 25th, 20003. Tajiri starts with a kick attempt to the head, which Misterio ducks. Misterio comes back with an armdrag which Tajiri follows to a bodyslam/knee-drop combo for two. Misterio comes back with a top rope headscissors. A victory roll gets one before it is reversed by Tajiri for two. La Majestral roll-up for Tajiri gets two before a Misterio dropkick gets two. Tajiri avoids a blind charge and puts Rey in the Tarantula, his submission using the ropes that is illegal, because of the ropes. Tajiri tries to go for the mist but Rey kicks Tajiri in the mouth before he could use it. Rey dropkicks Misterio to the outside and Rey follows with a top rope springboard to the outside that sends us to a commercial break. We return with Rey going upstairs and flying off and meeting a Tajiri kick to the gut. Tajiri gets another dropkick to the gut of Rey and covers, but Rey makes the ropes. I always liked Tajiri and his kicks, especially how realistic they were. With the WWE competing with the MMA stuff, you would think they would bring someone like Tajiri back to make these matches seem a bit more realistic. Tajiri wraps a bodyscissors around Rey and it leads to a chop-fest between the two of them. Tajiri does a gut-wrench suplex move but falls forward and drops Rey on his knee and Tajiri keeps working the midsection of Rey with another bodyscissors that gets a few pinfall chances, too. a blind charge for Tajiri hits Rey's elbow and Rey bulldogs Tajiri for two. Rey hits an Asai moonsault for two but Tajiri quickly turns the tables with a back suplex for two. Tajiri sets up Rey on the turnbuckle in a reverse tree of woe and dropkicks him to the back of the head. Tajiri follows with a Michinoku Driver for two. Rey tries to hop up on Tajiri but Tajiri shrugs him off and tries to kick him in the face. Rey moves and it is the ref who is hit, instead. Tajiri tries to his somersault handspring elbow but Rey kicks him down and hits the 619. Tajiri ducks the West Coast Pop and lays out Rey with a superkick. Another ref runs down to make the count and Rey kicks out at two. Tajiri is not happy. The second ref goes to check on the first ref as Rey sunset flips Tajiri. Tajiri spews out Red mist in Rey's face and this enables Tajiri to just kick Rey in the back of the head for the pinfall and the title at 11:45. That was a nice long match that really had time to develop. Unfortunately, there was little psychology aside from Tajiri working the mid-section. It was a great TV match, though. ***1/2.
-Chris Jericho & Christian vs. Lita &Trish Stratus-
This is one I had never seen before and it is from the 2003 Armageddon held on December 14th. I had stopped watching by this time but according to the blurb written underneath the match listing, it appears that Y2J and Christian had a bet over Trish Stratus, Trish found out and was pissed, so Eric Bischoff set up a Battle of the Sexes match between the guys and the girls. This is sure to be a mess. The King shows his age by mentioning the tennis Battle of the Sexes match and JR needs to clarify what he means. Chris actually looks a little bit troubled about this match until Trish slaps away at him. She tries a cross body but that goes badly. Jericho spanks her, because he can. So Trish kicks him in the gut and slaps him some more before taking a headscissor take down. Christian tags in and shoves Trish down hard into her corner, which draws Lita. Lita headbutts Christian and induces him to a chase. Lita boots him when he gets back in only to get shoved to the corner. Christian misses a blind charge and Lita headscissors him down for two. Lita heads to the ropes and Jericho pulls her down by the hair. Christian bodyslams Lita and tags in Jericho who does the same. Chris tries a powerbomb but Lita rolls through it to a pinfall which was blown pretty badly. Christian comes in and pulls of Lita’s shirt, making this the best spot of the match. So Lita low blows Christian while the referee is distracted. Lita makes the tag to Trish who forearms Christian. She high kicks Christian and tries the springboard bulldog. Christian ducks that and charges but is sent hard to the outside. Jericho heads upstairs and is crotched by Lita. Trish tries the handspring hurricanrana but is shoved off. Christian covers but picks her up at two. Christian charges Trish, who ducks and Christian hits Jericho. Christian is rolled up for two but Trish is clotheslined right down. Lita comes in with the headscissors from the top rope so Jericho pulls her form the ring and tosses her into the guardrail. Jericho and Trish square off in the ring, allowing Christian to roll-up Trish for the pinfall at 6:38. This wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be and I was really entertained by it. The acting of Jericho makes this match, by the way. **.
-The Bottom Line- This subscription really paid off this month. There were a lot of good matches in here. There are three AWESOME Bret Hart matches on here as well as one of my personal favorite matches in Flair/Savage for the WWE title that still holds up really well. There’s also some really historic stuff on here like the Fingerpoke and Orndorff turning on Hogan. There is really something for everyone. This month was just awesome.
By the way, here’s a rundown of matches that were featured this month that I didn’t review here, though ones with a * are ones that I have reviewed elsewhere (most likely on DVD). I’ve put some quick comments for most of these matches.
--Dusty Rhodes vs. Barry Windham (from Great American Bash 1988)
I just wasn’t interested in this one to be honest.
--Rick Rude vs. Ultimate Warrior (from Wrestlemania V)*
This is a match I already reviewed on the Wrestlemania Anthology Volume 1 DVD. Rude won the title on interference from Bobby Heenan in a solid **1/2 match.
--Jake Roberts attacks Macho Man (from Superstars that aired on November 23rd, 1991).
I have seen this one before. Basically, Jake attacks Macho with a snake that bites Macho man.
--Tatanka vs. Lex Luger (from SummerSlam 1994)
I don’t remember this match but is forthcoming as I get through the SummerSlam anthologies.
--Royal Rumble 1997 Match*
This is when Austin won the Rumble after dubiously eliminating Bret Hart. This was reviewed on the Royal Rumble Anthology Vol. II DVD and it was rated **1/2.
--The Rock vs. Mankind (from Survivor Series 1998)
I have seen this one before, too. I’ll save this for when the WWE puts out the Survivor Series box sets. Rock beats Mankind with the Sharpshooter as Vince McMahon rings the damn bell. It was the end of a long tournament and both guys were kind of gassed and it hurt the quality of the match.
--HHH(c) vs. Chris Jericho (from Raw, April 17th, 2000)*
This is one I clearly remember. Jericho wins the title in a fast-count thanks to Earl Hebner but later relinquishes the title when Hebner reverses the decision. This is on the Monday Night Raw 15th Anniversary DVD and I pegged this as ***.
--Randy Orton(c) vs. Triple H for the WWE Title (from Unforgiven 2003)
I just don’t like Randy Orton and that is all there is to it. I don’t care for Triple H all that much, either.
--Matt Hardy & Lita vs. Eric Bischoff & Molly Holly (from Raw, November 17th, 2003)
I don’t even care about this in the least. Matt and Lita are in a match and Matt turns on Lita at the end to turn himself heel.
--Rob Van Dam(c) vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Title (from Armageddon, December 14th, 2003).
This just held no interest for me. I don’t like Randy Orton, I don’t like RVD, and this was an easy one for me to bypass. Also, this was the second match from Armageddon 2003 that is on this month. Just an observation, really.
--Mickie James vs. Trish Stratus (from Wrestlemania 22 – April 2nd, 2006)
I have never seen this one, but I will be reviewing it when I get up to the WM 22 DVD.
|
