int: Bugsy McGraw

 

1. Bugsy McGraw vs Frank Dusek

 

This is a straight up comedy match.

 

int: Bill Mercer sit down with Kerry Von Erich regarding his win of NWA title

 

 

 

2. Kevin Von Erich vs Jimmy Garvin - Ft Worth

 

JIP 10 minutes in. Just the finish

 

int: Bill Irwin

 

3. Kevin Von Erich vs Bill Irwin

 

This is a non title match for the Texas Title. It looks like we get a slight clip. Kevin does a great job working over the leg of Irwin. Kevin on the mat is pretty swank. Irwin's selling of the leg while on offense was real good. The finish came out of nowhere. I liked this fine, it was good solid wrestling but not nomination worthy.

 

int: Bugsy McGraw

 

4. Bugsy McGraw vs Bill Irwin

 

McGraw doing the 3 stooges is gold. The crowd is eating this shit up. Some of his interviews could be extra material.

 

5. Kerry Von Erich + Al Madril vs King Kong Bundy + Superfly - Ric Flair comes down to watch

 

I didn't like this. and it seemed to take forever to end.

 

6. Harley Race vs King Kong Bundy - Reunion Arena, 8-15-82

 

This was worked with a real metodicial pace. It seemed like a game of chess. Race arm dragging Bundy was a neat visual. A great bump into the ringpost by Race. Race did a lot of damage with his headbutt . I liked how Bundy would use his weight and lean on Race, just smart work. The bear hug and escape was great. Race busting out a flying head scissors was unexepected. Race slamming Bundy popped the crowd. This just falls short for me. It also hurt having 2 heels going against each other.

 

int: Arman Hussain w/ King Kong Bundy

 

int: Ric Flair

A great promo from the man.

 

7. Kevin + David Von Erich vs Kabuki + Magic Dragon - Reunion Arena, 8-15-82

 

Their is some clipping in here. Overall just a lot of uninspired work. Magic Dragon had some flashy moves. It had a neat looking finish.

 

int: Kevin + David Von Erich

 

8. Ric Flair vs Kerry Von Erich - 2 out of 3 falls; Reunion Arena, 8-15-82

 

This is also on the new Flair DVD.

This is just a great match. Flair was just laying it in on KVE. Their was a couple of miscommunication spots, but were covered real nice. The booking did make Kerry look like the uncrowmed champ. This had a big time feel, with a super hot crowd. This is a classic and a slam dunk nomination. I'm going to be curious on which of the big 2 matches will finish higher. This or the cage. Their are so many great moments in this match. Just in the 1st 5 minutes the headlock spots were just awesome. An easy top 10 match that is truly epic in work and atmosphere.

Bugsy McGraw vs. Frank Dusek (8/8/82)

 

This is a spotlight match for Bugsy’s babyface turn and nothing but comedy.

 

Then we get an interview with Kerry talking about his battles for the NWA title and future matchup with Flair on 8/15/82. Kerry is pretty coherant here so the drugs haven’t set in yet.

 

Then we get the finish from a Kevin/Jimmy Garvin match from Fort Worth in 1983.

 

Kevin Von Erich vs. Wild Bill Irwin (8/8/82)

 

Funny thing during this match was that they were pimping the fact that Tommy Rich was coming in on commentary. Kevin looked good early on working on the leg then Irwin started fighting back but couldn’t do much due to the legwork showing some good selling. Kevin would soon come back and got the win on a botched victory roll that looked really awkward. Fun while it lasted.

 

Bugsy McGraw vs. Wild Bill Irwin (8/3/82)

 

Bugsy has Roscoe the Clown in his corner and the crowd loves Bugsy to death as this turn was really over. Bugsy throws paper on Irwin forcing him to leave the ring and get counted out.

 

Al Madril & “Modern Day Warrior” Kerry Von Erich vs. King Kong Bundy & Superfly (8/3/82)

 

Ric Flair is at ringside scouting the match. I’m not sure on who Superfly is but I think I read somewhere that it was Ray Candy aka Mr. Kareem Muhammad. The match was okay but it was mainly all about playing up to Flair facing Kerry at Reunion Arena on 8/15/82 although it did have Kerry slam Bundy for the pin which upset Flair.

 

American Heavyweight Title: King Kong Bundy © vs. Harley Race (8/15/82)

 

Odd seeing Race fight for a regional title and working in a heel vs. heel match although Race worked face here. Race giving Bundy armdrags and snapmares was pretty fun and he was using his patented knees and headbutts to weaken Bundy but the big man kept the fight going. Bundy would chuck Race into the ringpost shoulder first that looked like it hurt pretty good and would send Race to the floor. Bundy then would keep the pressure on Race by using his weight advantage with a bearhug to squeeze Race but he would break through with the headbutts. Race had a problem getting Bundy down so he decided to break out a headscissors followed up with a bodyslam and a diving headbutt that Bundy would kick out of at 2. Bundy gets up and drops to the floor to recover but Race would pull him up leading to Bundy pulling him out so they decided to beat on each other on the apron for the double countout as Race tries to use a shoulder block into the ringpost but fails. Race hits Bundy with a dropkick after the match for his trouble. I liked this more than shoe did and I think it deserves some consideration as a low-end nom.

 

Next we get a great promo from Flair surrounded by women on Kerry. Extra material.

 

No DQ for the All-Asia Tag Titles: The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon (Haru Sonoda) © vs. David & Kevin Von Erich (8/15/82)

 

Von Erich’s look good here and David goes to the claw early trying to get Kabuki but the heels would fight back. We do get some clips here which completely misses the transition to the heel control section. Kabuki nukes Kevin with a superkick as he was running into the corner but Kevin would get the tag to David. David would get pounded on leading to Kevin trying to fight the heels off but David would hit a double clothesline leading to a Vader Bomb on Dragon to win the titles. Another okay match.

 

2 out of 3 falls for the NWA World Heavyweight Title: “Nature Boy” Ric Flair © vs. “Modern Day Warrior” Kerry Von Erich (8/15/82)

 

This is one of their first matchups if not the first and they got Alfred Neely from Mid-South to be the impartial ref. This is the first classic between these two men who worked together as good as any other two men could at this time. It had all the great things you need like a hot crowd, great work by both men, and a great story with Kerry being the one who is destined to win the title but always comes up short which would be the story for the next 20 months. The finish was novel at this time but this type of finish would soon become a nuisance later on but for now it was fresh. Grand slam nomination and as easy as it gets.

Bugsy McGraw vs Frank Dusek

 

I thought this was kinda charming in it's own, weird little way.

 

Bill Mercer sit down with Kerry Von Erich regarding his win over Harley Race and becoming #1 contender to the NWA Champion

 

This wasn't really compelling. It had the coherence that Kerry's interviews often lacked, but it didn't have the emotion that made a lot of his more incoherent interviews work.

 

Kevin Von Erich vs Bill Irwin

 

Wow, I was shocked not just at how little I liked this match, but at how little I liked Kevin in it. I mean, Kev was a legit "best in the world" contender at this point, but he looked sub-Sayama sloppy here. Botched headscissors takedown in the corner, botched victory roll, feeble strikes...this is a guy with phenomenal execution and a reputation for working stiff even by the standards of the stiffest American promotion of the 80's. What the hell happened? Is this the one match that John Williams bases his opinion of Kevin on like Meltzer bases his opinion on Jumbo on that one match against the Funks? Oh, well. I guess everyone is allowed to have an off night now and then.

 

Bugsy McGraw vs Bill Irwin

 

I liked the Dusek match better, but Bugsy is epically over here, and we definitely need to throw some of his Curly Howard-meets-Wavy Gravy interviews on as extras.

 

Kerry Von Erich + Al Madril vs King Kong Bundy + Superfly - Ric Flair comes down to watch

 

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..........

 

Harley Race vs King Kong Bundy - Reunion Arena, 8-15-82

 

Arman Hussein was a pretty fun manager. Bundy continues to look good, laying in a nice beating on Race. Race is in the odd position of working as overmatched face. His methodical style kinda hindered that when he was on offense, but he took Bundy's beating very well. All his headbutts looked really good, he had a pair of nice dropkicks, and the final slugfest on the apron with Race missing the charge and shoulderblocking the ringpost was really well done. Flawed, but what was good was really good. I will agree with Kris that this is a nomination.

 

int: Ric Flair

Quintessential Flair. A worthy extra.

 

Kevin + David Von Erich vs Kabuki + Magic Dragon - Reunion Arena, 8-15-82

 

I saw these teams match up before and it was uninspiring. This I think was even worse. Kabuki in particular was really falling down on the job. He is normally kinda bad, but how the fuck do you blow blocking the Iron Claw? Kevin charging the corner and eating his superkick was a fantastic spot as always, but otherwise, fuck this match.