Loss

It would be really cool if someone could do that for all sets, actually.

You know, I have heard far worse ideas than you putting together single disc comps for indy wrestlers to help sell themselves to the big leagues.

So glad you liked it! Yeah, I didn't even really touch on the mechanics of the match because I was so blown away by the emotion, but the actual wrestling is pretty great too. I could probably write a lot more about this match at some point, and likely will.

No, it was a RAW in South Africa in April with a Savio Vega vs Crush main event.

This is a looonnnggg Pulp Fiction, clocking in at over 15 minutes. It starts with New Jack cutting the most focused promo I've ever seen from him, even though he says the same thing over and over. Gertner promises to shave his head and chest if the Dudleys do not enter Hardcore Heaven as the champs. We also hear from Sabu, RVD & Bill Alfonso, with RVD wearing a Wrestle War '92 t-shirt to make a point about Paul E. being a hypocrite because he worked for the Big Two when he was RVD's age too. RVD's "Mr. Monday Night" nickname when he wasn't a big deal on RAW when he was pushed there made him seem like kind of a tool. Was that the point? Then we get a promo from JIM CORNETTE. I didn't realize he did anything at all as a follow-up to the initial appearance. He has a few great lines here. We also get a few comments from Sandman and Dreamer where they want Taz to team with them in the cage at Hardcore Heaven. Taz isn't thrilled about the idea since every partner he has ever had has fucked him over, so his answer is no. Shane Douglas's answer is also no, even though he wasn't asked. JERRY LAWLER cuts a promo behind a cage! Rick Rude feels like they need to solve this problem on their own, but when he starts talking about it, he gets worked up and ends up agreeing to join Sandman and Dreamer! I think ...

Douglas and Francine cut this promo in the dark on the beach. Shane wears his wrestling gear … I guess that works as a swimsuit. He claims that he took a dive in the match with Taz because the TV title was useless to him and now he can set his sights on Terry Funk. Weird that he buries the TV title like that. I like these on-location promos, but I wish they would at least explain why he's there.

We start with the finish of a PG-13 vs Flanagan/Dunn match from a house show, which looks pretty great. Flanagan is bleeding. PJ Walker hits the ring and DDTs Flanagan on a chair behind the ref's back, giving the win and titles to PG-13. Flanagan is carted out on a stretcher. Lance Russell then sends us to a pre-taped PG-13 promo. They copy the NWO a little, as the promo is filmed in black and white. The storyline is that the USWA sent them packing for 90 days and didn't give a shit, so now they will call the shots and they plan on making life tough for everyone. They are also now representing ECW and have words for Jerry Lawler and Brian Christopher. This is a particularly great promo.

It makes me sad that this match has probably never been seen and will most likely never be seen by most hardcore wrestling fans. It's a shame such an incredible wrestling match will probably never get its proper due because of the lack of interest in Joshi these days. Please seek this out if you haven't seen it.

The layout and pacing of the match is excellent. The offense is great and they are both very aggressive (almost shockingly so). There is some really cool matwork too. But that's not what pushes this over the top. This match's biggest strength is that this title (this WCW women's cruiserweight title -- this existed and somehow ended up in GAEA) seems like the richest prize in wrestling because of how hard these two fight for it. The slugfests, the stiffness, the tears, BITING … it all produces an amazing match. The displayed desire to win here is just off the page. The pro wrestling equivalent of Hunger Games in that the stakes seem almost impossibly high. Most wrestling at its core is built around man vs man conflict, but this is a little deeper than that. This is about Toshie vs herself, even turning on her own body when it starts to fail her. It's a hell of a ride, and is probably in my top five matches for the year at this point at worst. This match should be seen by anyone who calls themselves a wrestling fan. The heartbreak (and triumph) in the post-match is one of those iconic moments in pro wrestling history. I can't say enough about this, and the fact that I've never seen a match from either of them and they were still able to captivate me like this really speaks volumes. The single biggest out of nowhere surprise on any yearbook.

Luger is over huge coming off the Bash at the Beach win. He challenges Hogan to a title match at Road Wild. The NWO sans Hogan (but including Muto and Chono) surround the ring. It looks like they're about to take him out. What appears to be a fake Sting comes out, but it's the real deal! He stands next to Luger and is ready to fight off the NWO as the show goes off the air. Good stuff.

Kevin Nash has a sudden injury and is in a wheelchair to avoid The Giant's wrath. Nash is furious that anyone would think he was a Sting impostor last night. This is funny. "I would never stoop so low as to attack another combatant from behind." They officially announce that Konnan has joined the NWO. Nash says even when he looks like Larry Flynt, he is just too sweet to close things out.

La Parka vs Super Calo sees Randy Savage quickly hit the ring and attack both guys. He is apparently assuming La Parka is DDP. But it's clearly not, as DDP hits the ring just a second later. Curt Hennig ends up coming out to the ring and hitting Page with a pair of brass knucks and takes off. Savage drops a big elbow on Page to end the segment. There's speculation on whether this means he has joined the NWO. I don't really care. Gene tries to get an answer from Hennig. Hennig calls him the biggest mark in the business, and says five years ago Page was asking him for an autograph. He also says he couldn't last 30 seconds in the ring with him, and the rumor is that he couldn't even last 30 seconds with his hosebag of a wife. That gets a whoa reaction from the crowd. Ric Flair immediately shows up and wants to go party. Hennig looks confused.

It's the World Premiere of the Nitro Girls! This gets a Michael Buffer intro. Eh, Alex Wright is honestly a much better dancer than any of them. They look to have changed lineups frequently because I only recognize a few of them.

They were cutting quite the pace before the angle, which remains a sentimental all-time favorite. We get the debut of DUDE LOVE, Mick Foley basically dressing like a hippy and working like Jimmy Valiant. Austin's transition from "WTF is this?" to "Fuck it, I'll just go with it" is greatgreatgreat. "Owwww, have mercy."

Shawn Michaels is back. Smart bringing him back in San Antonio where he was guaranteed to have the crowd on his side. Shawn sort of brushes off the idea of teaming with Austin tonight to win the tag titles. He'd rather talk about Bret Hart's vow to stop wrestling in the U.S. if he can't beat Undertaker at Summerslam. Shawn obnoxiously begs Vince to let him do something -- anything -- at Summerslam. He thinks it will be the end of Bret Hart in the U.S. and he wants to be there to see it. If Vince's exuberant reactions to Shawn are genuine, that's really something else.

This match put a big smile on my face. I LOVED the armdrag stuff with Rodman and Luger. Watch Luger handhold Dennis Rodman through these really fun sequences and don't tell me Lex couldn't work. Hogan doing all these classic heel tricks is really fun too. This is about as perfectly put together as a match involving someone of Dennis Rodman's celebrity could be. Nash as the Fake Sting was a dumb spot -- only because the announcers fell for it -- in an otherwise really fun match. Rodman taking the torture rack was a great photo-op/Sportscenter moment.

Last few minutes. Curt Hennig was the mystery partner. He's not over with this crowd at all. Hennig ends up turning on DDP after a misunderstanding, leaving Hall and Savage to finish off DDP. Wow did they use Hennig terribly (not that I really think he had much to add at this point anyway).

More of the same with Hogan and Rodman together, but that's not at all a bad thing.

Last few minutes and the end of a feud which it seemed at the time would never ever ever end. Weird finish, as Jacqueline brings a chair into the ring and Sullivan wants to hit Benoit with it, but she wants to do it. He refuses to comply, and she breaks the chair over his head. Well, she gets upset easily. Benoit wins the match and Kevin Sullivan's wrestling career is officially over.

Tenay's commentary is much better here than in the previous Nitro matches. The crowd doesn't really get this in a way where they pop for the specific spots unfortunately, which is sad as they do a great job laying this out and this is an excellent match. I can almost hear the announcers who do not get this style of wrestling at all looking down on it, even though they don't outwardly shit on it. This is another example of WCW having a great idea that they really could have developed into something special had they stayed patient.

Raven finally breaks his silence. Gene's facial expressions when Raven is speaking his gibberish crack me up. I am laughing even more because I used the word "gibberish" before Gene did (well, not chronologically, but you know what I mean). Stevie says Raven should share the announcement tomorrow on Nitro and Raven beats him up.

Definitely a solid match. Much better than I expected it to be. I still think this whole Blood Runs Cold division was a great idea that just needed more support and focus. Lots of offense innovation, but in a way that made sense, was sold properly and popped the crowd. Just a terrific show opener - one I'd even consider for that spot on my all-time card. Vandenberg should have still been selling the kick instead of cutting the promo after the match though.

As these matches go, this had its moments. I liked Tanaka doing the plancha over the barbed wire to the floor. This was really just Tanaka vs Kanemura with other guys in the mix not really doing much. Tanaka and Kanemura come across as stars worth caring about, but no one else involved does.

Taz wants a fan to take off the RAW IS WAR t-shirt he's wearing. This is interspersed with Tommy Dreamer being carted into an ambulance. The crowd chants "Burn The Shirt". Give Paul Heyman credit for tricking these shitheads into thinking that this gesture means anything at all.

Tommy's testicle injury is getting a lot of play in these promos. Beulah is pretty despondent about it. She doesn't want Tommy to return, and the idea of him coming back troubles her, but it should trouble Lawler more. Good work from Beulah.