PeteF3
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Everything posted by PeteF3
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I know it's way after the fact, but the Tugboat attack being left off the set (apparently) was an oversight, IMO. It was the same Superstars episode as Earthquake & Bravo on the Brother Love Show and could have easily replaced that segment if time was a factor. It was a rare case--at least at that time--of the WWF changing plans on short notice and was also the final segment that Jesse Ventura called as a WWF announcer. -
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Pringle invokes all he's done for the USWA in the past year with the Eric Embry write-in campaign. The hype is on for the Final Battle--Armageddon--between Kerry Von Erich and Matt Borne. Which is ill-fated. I wonder if Borne hasn't walked out already in favor of the NAWA. Kerry's final Texas match would be 3 days after the big show.
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Somehow the last-minute build to WrestleWar and the less-than-last-minute-but-still-plan-B build to Capital Combat were so much more compelling than this. That said, this was the first time I'd ever seen El Gigante and I have to admit that my mind was utterly blown. Standing silently and pointing his finger was likely his career highlight with me.
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I think Steamboat had a stake in the promotion itself. WrestleMania I: The Sequel! Borne and Steamboat are JIP just smacking the shit out of each other. Borne gets to kick out of the flying karate chop. Steamboat goes for a high knee and hurts it in the process. Borne goes after the knee but gets small-packaged on a figure four attempt. The announced time is about 6:27 but both guys look like they've gone through a war. Steamboat is a mess by the time Robert Fuller gets to the ring. Fuller is relentless tearing after the knee from the opening. Steamer does his trademark backflip-out-of-the-suplex counter but hurts the knee again in landing, and Fuller seamlessly scoops the leg up, applies a stepover toe hold cradle, and gets the pin! Markout city for that upset. This seriously may be the greatest 90-second match in wrestling history. They told every single thing they needed to tell in that time. This is also another one of those "That guy wrestled that guy?" matches, but it's the best one of the set so far. Mid-Atlantic meets Memphis with Memphis winning this one. Steamboat is interviewed afterward and gives what might be the promo of his career. Fuller is awesome as usual. NAWA/SAPW was a promotion that was actually really deep with talent, both veterans like we see here to go with Vince Torelli/Ken Shamrock, Chris Chavis, the American Bulldogs/Pitbulls, and the Nasty Boys. But the changing face of television would doom them just as it would Smoky Mountain Wrestling.
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Yes, this was one of my most anticipated matches of the set. It's only the last couple of minutes but it seriously lives up to the billing. Spinks actually comes across as competent from what we see, selling well and throwing good-looking punches. Snowman interferes as Lawler has Spinks on the ropes in round 5, and Lawler is double teamed afterward. As much as a fuck-up as he was it's still absolutely astounding to see a former world boxing champion work a glorified indy show and doing it as a heel of all things, needing to be bailed out by a crony. Lawler in studio starts off doing a full-fledged babyface promo and ramps it up from there, referring to Snowman as someone who belongs in the audience buying tickets to see him and to his posse as a bunch of welfare stooges. "Hey, when are you due back in the display window at Woolworth's?" 1990!
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The ill-fated Beefcake Intercontinental title run is in full force. Heenan gushes over Perfect's looks to a degree not seen in...well, months, when the Genius was doing it. We're talking unveiling-of-the-Narcissist levels of homoeroticism here. Perfect does a really good job of moving the focus from haircutting to what the title belt means. A very NWA-esque promo that makes the championship look important.
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The latest on Hulk Hogan: he's feeling better physically. Did he get his ribs broken, or a busted sternum, or what? Give us some specifics here, Gene. Emotionally and mentally, however, he's a long way away. Tugboat does a phenomenally cheesy and over-the-top promo spot reading a Hulkamaniac's letter, encouraging us to keep writing and buying Hulk Hogan Friendship Bracelets. Wow, I vividly remember Tugboat reading the letter but do NOT remember him being that ridiculously perky about it. Maybe did more than one of these where he was sadder. Tugboat is pretty much a lost cause at this point.
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An improvement over Kobashi/Misawa but probably ten minutes too long. These guys' ambitions were still ahead of their ability, and it showed at times. Still, the match was well laid-out and surprisingly hate-filled at times, the run of false finishes was well-done, and I appreciated an All-Japan epic that actually ended with a cradle move for once.
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Yeah, Flair corroborated that in his first DVD set. Herd went from having Flair drop the belt to Luger at the Bash to Flair dropping the belt to Windham at a house show (or TV taping, I forget) to just firing him outright.
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This is another sort of a "Hey, these two guys wrestled each other" match but man, is it miles ahead of Bret vs. Misawa. The only Owen thing that really bothered me as far as looking choreographed was his too-easy blocked kick into an enzuigiri spot. No, he didn't have much in the way of strikes but I can deal with that if you throw some nasty suplexes, something I'm not sure Owen gets enough credit for in general. His moonsault was off but was a good excuse for Mutoh to kick out and then say, "Here, let me show you how it's done."
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Finally, WCW remembers that the U.S. Title exists. Won't be the last time this disappearing act happens. Paul E. rattles off past U.S. Champions like Johnny Valentine, Ric Flair, both Funks, and Jack Brisco, and promises that Mean Mark's name will be added to the list. You have to shake your head at Paul's "future of wrestling" talk for Callous knowing where he was soon to end up.
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Top 10 MOTYC easily. All ten guys brought something to the table, and I loved Goto's presence here in every respect. The crowd absolutely despised him, which is always a treat to see a native get that kind of reaction, and he really came off as an outsider with stuff like bringing chairs into the match. He even heels it up in the post-match. Hoshino works some awesome house-afire stuff. Sasaki is a big bundle of energy who seems to have been studying Rick Steiner at times. Saito takes some absurd bumps to the floor and his sentons are as great as usual. I hate Koshinaka and he's a lot of fun here, working maybe the longest sequence of anyone in the match. Hamaguchi throws everything he has into every move he does and maybe has the best regular elbowdrop in wrestling history. SSM brings some nice chunky offense. I've never seen Kurisu before but he worked a little mini-match with Koshinaka that was nice. Choshu was Choshu. Yeah, there's nothing not to love about this.
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Lots of stiff foreign object shots to start with, and Funk takes an absolutely ridiculous bump off the ring apron. It wasn't a big Nestea Plunge like Cactus Jack, just something that looked like it could have torn his groin and ACL at the same time. Eventually the brawl moves outside the ring area, where Funk teases taking a backwards bump into the river, but manages to hold on and apply the SPINNING TOE HOLD on the motherfucking river bank in the middle of a crazy brawl. Then Hansen kicks him off and into the river he finally goes, then a BODYSLAM into the river for good measure. STAN HANSEN HAS BEEN DISQUALIFIED FOR THROWING TERRY FUNK INTO THE RIVER--even by the standards of BS finishes set by Hansen on American soil in the past, that is a new one. The fight continues into the utility trailers/locker rooms, with Hansen trying to break through a door a la Michael Myers and eventually he pulls Terry out by the bullrope. Amazing. The spinning toe hold on the bank was almost as much fun as the bodyslam.
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Roses are red, Violets are blue, Tessa, I love you, baby, I love you! Eat your heart out, Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Tatum reveals that he had a "drinkin' problem for a few days" after Tessa left him, but he's given up drinking, gotten himself a tan, and has CHANGED. Hugs all around, including two hugs for some rather uncomfortable Sportatorium fans, one of whom loses his cowboy hat in a hilarious moment. Tatum's sudden mood swing when the crowd starts getting on his face is legitimately unsettling. "Bubba Fangman" is about the most hilarious misnomer in wrestling history--I expected a big Ray Boone/Makhan Singh type instead of a generic pasty-faced jobber. Tatum still wants to shake hands after every exchange until Fangman makes the mistake of armbarring him one too many times, leading to a false handshake, kick to the gut, a nice superkick, and the DREADED SHININOMAKI for the win.
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If Pringle had to slide back into PBP (I wonder if Johnson was covering the World Cup for someone), then honestly, I'd rather hear him do it straight than try to be Michael Cole. Austin dispatches with Germany in really effectively quick fashion, and John Brazelle breaks up a post-match attack and gets them to sign for a mixed tag match against Chris & Toni Adams. Chris & Toni then attack and finally it looks like Chris gets to look effective against Austin, as they run Austin & Jeannie off. Really compelling build to this mixed tag. "GO HOME SLUT!"