SmarKdown's Blog

WWF WrestleMania IV Review

We’ve finally reached the big event – WrestleMania IV. The show drew a 485,000 buyrate on PPV, up from the prior year’s 400,000 and had an attendance of 19,199 people.

Enjoy the review!

Before starting, here is the list of champions at the time:

WWF Champion: – (vacated)
Intercontinental Champion: Honky Tonk Man
Tag Team Champions: Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)
Women’s Champion: Sensational Sherri

The hosts are Gorilla Monsoon & Jesse Ventura

Match #1: Battle royal

The participants were Bad News Brown, The Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov), The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart), The Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell), Danny Davis, George Steele, Harley Race, Hillbilly Jim, The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques and Raymond), The Young Stallions (Paul Roma and Jim Powers), Junkyard Dog, Ken Patera, Ron Bass, Sam Houston, and Sika.

Weird to open a show, especially a WrestleMania, with a battle royal! George Steele starts the match on the outside while the usual kicking & punching happens inside the ring and a number of guys get thrown out. I’m finally able to follow the action a few minutes later, with Harley Race and Junkyard Dog getting into a headbutt fest. Ken Patera eliminates both Bolsheviks only to be eliminated by Brown. Jacques Rougeau, Harley Race and Paul Roma go as well, and we’re down to JYD, Bret Hart and Bad News Brown, who just recently made his debut.

The heels go after The Dog, whose hope spot – basically headbutts – is quickly cut off by Bret and BNB. They team up to toss him, and both celebrate together, wanting to share the trophy. Brown kills Bret with the enziguiri from behind, though, and dumps him to win the whole thing. Bret then gets back in to get his revenge and break the trophy in half, turning babyface and getting quite the great reaction.

This was your typical battle royal, with kicks, punches, people fighting in the corner, undercarders flying everywhere and not much going on. The ending was memorable, though, and it started Bret Hart’s (and technically Jim Neidhart’s) awesome babyface run. I don’t rate battle royales. As for the points, Bad News will get one for winning and Bret one as well for being the only highlight from this otherwise forgettable opener.

Tournament – first round

Match #2: ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan vs. ‘The Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase(w/ Andre the Giant & Virgil)

Here’s the first of maaany tournament matches to crown the new WWF Champion! Lockup gets things going, won by Duggan who is all fired up to start. Duggan dumps DiBiase, who bails. DiBiase gets back in with chops, but he’s not able to take control as Hacksaw keeps cutting him off. Ted finally catches him with a lariat, adding a middle-rope elbow and his usual fistdrop for two. DiBiase with another fistdrop but he misses a suplex, and Duggan makes him crazy comeback. He goes for his tackle thingie, but Andre trips him from the outside, which allows DiBiase to give him a knee to the back followed by a third fistdrop for the win.

Acceptable match with the right guy going over. Duggan looked out of position a number of times, though, so it must’ve been a long night for Mr. Hacksaw if you know what I mean. Watchable match despite being way too short. *1/2

Match #3: Dino Bravo(w/ Frenchy Martin) vs. ‘The Rock’ Don Muraco(w/ ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham)

Winner meets DiBiase in the next round. In other words, filler with the babyface going over so that the mega heel DiBiase can beat him in the second round. Yeah, that sums it up! Muraco with a powerslam and a splash for two. They get into a sequence of armdrags, won by Dino who then adds an elbow for two. Bravo with a gutwrench suplex but he misses a charge and hits knees in the corner, with The Rock immediately going after it. Muraco charges but hits the ref, though, after Bravo used him as a shield. Bravo finishes with the sideslam, but instead of counting the ref awards the match to Muraco via DQ. Hella laaaaaaaaameeeee.

Not much happened here. Filler with a shitty ending, with the winner quite clearly moving up to lose to the Million Dolar Man in the next round. 1/4*

Match #4: Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat vs. Greg ‘The Hammer’ Valentine(w/ Jimmy Hart)

This finally looks a bit better on paper, doesn’t it!? Classic Steamboat armdrags to start, going after the arm immediately. Valentine cuts him off and dumps him, but Steamboat skins the cat and dropkicks him for two back in. Valentine finally drops Ricky throat first on the ropes to stop Steamboat for good, chopping away and hitting the hammer for two. Backdrop suplex is blocked by The Dragon, though, who whips Hammer into the corner and goes right back to working the arm.

Valentine escapes that with an atomic drop and a clothesline, going after the throat on the outside. He only succeeds in waking up The Dragon, however, who fires away with some violent chops. Valentine catches him with a gutbuster and he goes to work on the legs. He gets into a chopfest with Steamboat, which doesn’t sound like a good idea, and indeed Ricky wins that one.

Hammer goes to the eyes to cut him off, though, and hits a shoulderbreaker. He drops a forearm off the top and is thinking Figure Four, but Steamboat chops his way out of it. The mega flying chop gets two. Steamboat sends Valentine into the turnbuckles a lot of times and goes up for the kill, but Valentine rolls over for the upset win to advance.

Good match between two great workers. Steamboat proceeds to do his classic pose and wave goodybe to the fans, having just worked his final match for the WWF before leaving to have the best trilogy ever with Flair in the NWA the following year. I can understand Valentine getting the win here, but considering Valentine wasn’t going to get a mega-push and the winner of this would meet Randy Savage in the next round, I would’ve personally put Savage over Steamboat instead in return for III. Valentine could’ve been protected with a DQ or some kind of finish that could set up a future program for him, but it is what it is. ***

Match #5: ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. ‘Natural’ Butch Reed(w/ Slick)

Savage starts in control, but Reed catches him and drops a fist to take over. He pounds away as Savage is already playing macho-in-peril. Reed with a suplex and an elbowdrop gets two. Savage bails, but Reed necksnaps on the apron and stays in control. Savage’s comeback attempt is quickly killed by Reed, who hits a lariat. He goes up but takes waaay too long, distracted with Elizabeth, as Savage slams him off and quickly follows up with the Macho Elbow to advance.

After a pretty good Steamboat/Valentine match, we’re right back to the short and really basic matches. This was literally the heel taking over the whole match, getting distracted and losing to the babyface’s finisher. Simple as that. 1/2*

Match #6: Bam Bam Bigelow(w/ Oliver Humperdink) vs. One Man Gang(w/ Slick)

Gang slugs away to start, hitting a splash in the corner early on. He misses a charge, though, and Bam Bam runs wild. Splash, crossbody and a fistdrop all get two. Gang dumps Bam Bam, who eventually headbutts him and goes for his finisher, but Slick grabs his leg and Bam Bam doesn’t make it back in before the count of ten. Say it with me: l-a-m-e.

Four months earlier, Bam Bam was the highlight of the first Survivor Series in history, and here he’s being eliminated in under three minutes. I don’t know what happened, but Bigelow must’ve pissed off somebody. And I bet that somebdoy’s name starts with a V. This was nothing with a nothing finish. DUD

Match #7: Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts vs. ‘Ravishing’ Rick Rude(w/ Bobby Heenan)

Here it is, the final match of the tournament’s first round. Rude gets cocky to start, and that allows Roberts to take over. They trade slams and Roberts work the arm, keeping a hold of it and not letting Rude escape. Wristlock is turned into an armbar, before Rude finally manages to escape from it. Roberts catches him with a kneelift, though, and tries the DDT, but Rude blocks and he’s outta there in a hurry.

Rude gets back in and Roberts is immediately all over the arm again, until he misses a kneelift and Rude slaps on a chinlock. At this time, it’s quite clear this is ending in a time limit draw, and we even hear some ‘boring’ chants from the nasty 1988 smarky fans – which is a shame because the match is technically good. A number of Roberts comebacks are cut off by Rude, who keeps him in the chinlock. Snake breaks free but runs into an elbow, and back to the chinlock goes Rude, as at this point there’s no doubt how this one will end.

Roberts finally breaks free and starts going for the hope spot, with a backdrop and a clothesline setting up the DDT. Rude blocks, though, and a backdrop suplex gets two. They hit each other for the double KO spot, with Rude stealing the pin with his feet on the ropes… but the fifteen minute time limit expires at two. And they’re both eliminated, with One Man Gang automatically going to the finals. Yey!?

Technically speaking, this was one of the best matches of the first round, second only to Steamboat vs. Valentine. With that said, though, for a tournament match with little to no storyline to support it this was ridiculously long and got boring. Plus we have One Man Gang in the semis, because he’s big. Could’ve been Rude, who was a much more interesting cocky character (and he had Heenan), and would’ve guaranteed a much better match for later. But it is what it is, as we now take a break from the tournament. **

Match #8: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Hercules(w/ Bobby Heenan)

Here it is people, the PPV debut of this Ultimate Warrior guy – I’m sure you’ve probably heard of him! This was Warrior’s first feud, after four or five months of squashes, and he was put over like crazy in the build-up and was getting better and better reactions. Hercules, on the other hand, had surprisingly one of the best matches (apart from the famous ones) at WrestleMania III against Billy Jack Haynes, so I was excited for this one.

They no-sell a number of power moves to start, and Warrior misses a clothesline. That looked awful. Now Hercules clotheslines him, and it takes three to put him down. Immediately after that, it only takes one for Warrior to put the heel down. Hercules eventually dumps Warrior, though, and they brawl for a bit on the outside with Warrior selling nothing. Back in, they get into an awful-looking slugfest in the corner, with Hercules taking him down with an atomic drop. He sets up for the full nelson, but both go down for the double pin, with Warrior getting one shoulder up for the fluke win. What is up with these finishes on this show!!

This match was sloppy as hell, and Warrior definitely needed a better finish. This was very early in his career, and could’ve killed his push dead. It ultimately did not, but taking away the power of hindsight, this is nothing but the disappointment of the night. It gets nothing and likes it. DUD

Tournament – Quarter finals

Match #9: Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant(w/ Ted DiBiase & Virgil)

After over 93 thousand fans in the first encounter a year earlier, and after over thirty three million viewers in the second bout on The Main Event a couple of months previously, it was time for the third and final meeting. Andre is looking horrible at this point, struggling even to walk inside the ring. Andre takes over to start, until Hogan goes after DiBiase and starts delivering some chops.

Andre gets caught in the ropes as usual, and Hogan takes advantage of that to… pose and take off his shirt. He finally takes Andre down and drops some elbows, but Andre catches him and chokes him. And chokes him. And chokes him. And chokes him…. DiBiase gets a few shots behind the ref’s back, before eventually Hogan hulks up but DiBiase introduces a chair. They both use it, double disqualification, they’re both eliminated. Please say it with me again, this time in capital letters…

LAME

This was terrible, unquestionably the worst match of the three. By far. At least the crowd were into it, but apart from that there’s nothing to take from this “match”. 1/4* After the match, DiBiase runs away, so Hogan ends up killing poor Virgil with a suplex on the concrete that had to hurt like balls – ‘no way I’m taking that bump here, brother’ – with Hogan simply dropping Virgil from his shoulders all the way to the floor. And then he slams Andre before poses and poses and poses and more poses for like five minutes, despite having been eliminated. Not like he’d be back later that nig… oh shit.

Match #10: ‘The Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase vs. ‘The Rock’ Don Muraco(w/ ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham)

Due to the result of the prior match, the winner of this one would automatically advance to the finals. Plus, DiBiase having no one in his corner creates an interesting and different scenario. Ted sells the fact that he’s alone to start, and that allows Muraco to run wild on him. Powerslam gets two. Fistdrop gets two. Dropkick gets two. DiBiase bails but runs into the former WWF Champion Graham, and that allows Muraco to stay in control. DiBiase finally cuts him off, though, using the ropes to yank Muraco right into the turnbuckle.

Now DiBiase pounds away on Muraco, choking him. A knee to the gut drops Muraco, and Ted fires away the million dollar fistdrops. DiBiase misses an elbow off the top, though, and feeds Muraco’s babyface comeback like crazy. He hits a number of clotheslines, before DiBiase catches him with a vicious stungun for the cheap win. And he qualifies for the title match already.

Another brief match, but damn did Muraco’s shit look good! He totally brought it against the top heel in the organization at the time, who was more than willing to make him look like a million dollars (no pun intended, HAHAHAHA) and the result was a perfectly acceptable match. Still way too short like most tournament matches, but watchable and decent. *3/4

Match #11: ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. Greg ‘The Hammer’ Valentine(w/ Jimmy Hart)

This looks good on paper, especially after Valentine’s first-round hidden gem with Dragon. On the other hand, though, the matches have mostly been short. Valentine goes after Macho to start, who escapes with a kneedrop. Hammer cuts him off with a forearm off the top, and a shoulderbreaker gets two. Valentine dumps Savage, and chops away on the floor. Choking and shots to the throat follow, and gets a couple of nearfalls back in. Savage finally makes the comeback, but goes after Jimmy and Valentines is back in control. Suplex is blocked and Savage hits his own, but Valentine crotches him up top to prevent the Macho Elbow. He goes to school on the leg, setting up the figure-four, but Savage turns it into a cradle for the win.

Unlike Valentine’s first round match, this was shorter and basic. Everything looked good and believable, sure, because these two are awesome workers. But it was nothing out of this world. This ends the quarter-finals of the tournament, also. *1/4

Match #12: The Honky Tonk Man(c)(w/ Jimmy Hart & Peggy Sue) vs. Brutus ‘The Barber’ Beefcake – WWF Intercontinental Championship

This feud felt really rushed, as Beefcake was just starting a feud with Greg Valentine and the whole Savage/Honky disagreement forced them to pretty much switch everything. Beefcake kinda wants the title, but what he really wants is to cut the heels’ hair, so you can pretty much imagine his chances. Honky at this point has been the champion for about ten months. Honky starts in control, but Beefcake atomic drops him and GOES AFTER THE HAIR!!

Honky bails, and eventually catches Brutus and pounds away on him, with Jimmy adding a few shots. Honky goes for the Shake Rattle & Roll, but Beefcake holds on to the ropes and Honky takes the bump. Beefcake runs wild and eventually catches him in the sleeper, and Jimmy nails the ref with the megaphone for the DQ. Ain’t no stopping these shitty finishes, geez.

Beefcake then celebrates like nothing’s happened – you just lost a title match, you idiot! – and goes after Jimmy Hart, cutting a little bit of his hair to end the segment. Maybe I’m being generous, but I love Honky’s run and he never fails to entertain, so let’s call it 1/4*.

Match #13: The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith & The Dynamite Kid) & Koko B. Ware vs. The Islanders (Haku & Tama) & Bobby ‘The Brain’ Heenan

Heenan, hilarious as usual, comes out with a ridiculous dog-proof vest to protect himself from Matilda! The Bulldogs double-team Tama to start, and a Smith slam gets two. Elbow misses, however, and Haku comes in to eat a slam himself as well. Smith goes to the chinlock, but the Islanders eventually corner him and take over. Smith finally escapes and brings in Koko, who takes out both Islanders.

Dynamite gets back in and he gets worked over, as Heenan finally tags in and immediately tags out after a single shot. Tama splash hits knees, though, and Koko gets the hot tag. Haku gets in for a cheap clothesline, which allows the heels to stay in control. Heenan tags back in and Koko quickly turns the tables, with everyone getting inside the ring and one of the Islanders slamming Koko for the Heenan pin.

This was nothing special and the crowd was tired at this point, but fuck it I’ll take what I can at this point. At least this had a story. *

Match #14: ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. One Man Gang(w/ Slick) – WWF Championship Tournament Semi Final

The winner here of course meets Ted DiBiase for the belt in the final match. And Gang got the bye in the second round, having only wrestled one (very short) match. Gang attacks Savage to start, putting him down with forearms for two. A giant splash misses, though, but Savage goes for a slam (for some reason) that is obviously blocked and Gang chokes away. Slick goes after Elizabeth on the outside, and Gang uses a cane right in front of the ref to put Savage in the main-event via DQ like a complete dumbass. Giant facepalm, moving on… obviously this is nothing but a big fat DUD.

Match #15: Strike Force (Rick Martel & Tito Santana)(c) vs. Demolition (Ax & Smash)(w/ Mr. Fuji) – WWF Tag Team Championship

I was actually excited for this match going into this show, but at this point I just want this show to end. Demolition actually get a (small, but noticeable) babyface reaction, mostly because the Demos were cool as fuck with a badass theme song while the the champions had not only done nothing during their reign, but also looked like chumps next to these two larger-than-life proper superstars.

Smash completely overpowers Martel to start, and Santana comes in to dropkick him over. Ax gets in and Santana armdrags him, as the babyfaces work over the arm with quick tags. The Demos finally catch Tito, as they cheat for a while and Ax powerslams him for two. Heat spot follows, before Tito catches Ax with an great flying forearm and he brings in Martel for the hot tag. Martel puts Ax in the boston crab while the ref gets distracte with Fuji on the apron, and from behind Smash hits Martel with the cane for the win and the titles.

This was a decent match, but everyone was ready for this show to end at this point and this match died in the death slot. The win got a face pop and the Demos would go on to hold the titles forever, before the record was recently broken by… The New Day. Let that one sink in, I’ll wait! *3/4

Main-event: ‘The Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase(w/ Andre the Giant) vs. ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) – Tournament Final Match for the vacant WWF Championship

Finally!!! They lockup to start as Andre already trips up Savage to make his presence felt. He does it twice, and the crowd starts chanting for Hogan. DiBiase goes after the arm but Savage clotheslines him a couple of times, and DiBiase bails. Back in, DiBiase gets a few shots until Savage necksnaps him on the ropes, and a high knee sends Ted into Andre. He goes up but Andre shields DiBiase, and Savage sends Liz to the back, and the Hogan chants get louder!

DiBiase hits the chinlock, and out comes Liz with the Hulkster, who takes a seat at ringside. Andre again trips Savage, and this time Hogan is immediately there to attack him. DiBiase gets a number of nearfalls inside the ring, with an elbowdrop, a suplex and a gutwrench suplex. DiBiase goes up only to get slammed off, but the Macho Elbow misses. It’s Million Dollar Dream time with Andre adding a shot, which brings Hogan inside for a chair shot to DiBiase’s back. A second Macho Elbow attempt connects, and three seconds later Savage is the undisputed WWF Champion.

Easily the match of the night and the reason why this show is remembered. Although it wasn’t technically as good as Steamboat vs. Valentine, it was still a good match and had drama and a story to support it and elevate it. The Mega Powers celebrate to close the show, as the build-up to WrestleMania V officially begins! ***1/4

Overall, I wouldn’t call this show BAD but it’s certainly weird and quite the struggle to get through. And it’s definitely not a good event. This ‘Mania gets a three out of ten.

Finally, here are the points for this crazy show:

Randy Savage: 10.5 points (5 for star ratings + 2 for pinfall wins + 0.5 for a DQ win + 2 for winning a title + 1 for main-eventing);
Ted DiBiase: 8.5 points (6.5 for star ratings + 2 for pinfall wins + 1 for main-eventing – 1 for a pinfall loss);
Ax: 5.25 points (1.75 for star rating + 1 for pinfall win + 2 for winning a title + 0.5 for picking up the fall);
Smash: 4.75 points (1.75 for star rating + 1 for pinfall win + 2 for winning a title)
Greg Valentine: 4.25 points (4.25 for star ratings + 1 for a pinfall win – 1 for a pinfall loss);
Bobby Heenan: 2.5 points (1 for star rating + 1 for pinfall win + 0.5 for picking up the fall);
Haku & Tama: 2 points (1 for star rating + 1 for pinfall win);
Jake Roberts & Rick Rude: 2 points (for star rating);
Ricky Steamboat: 2 points (3 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Don Muraco: 1.5 points (2 for star ratings + 0.5 for DQ win – 1 for pinfall loss);
Warrior: 1 point (for star rating);
Bad News Brown: 1 point (for winning the battle royal);
Bret Hart: 1 point (for face turn);
Honky Tonk Man: 0.75 points (0.25 for star rating + 1 for retaining a title – 0.5 for DQ loss);
Brutus Beefcake: 0.75 points (0.25 for star rating + 0.5 for DQ win);
Jim Duggan: 0.5 points (1.5 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Hogan & Andre: 0.25 points (for star rating);
One Man Gang: 0 points (0.5 for a CO win – 0.5 for a DQ loss);
Davey Boy & Dynamite Kid: 0 points (1 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Dino Bravo: -0.25 points (0.25 for star rating – 0.5 for DQ loss);
Butch Reed: -0.5 points (0.5 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Koko B. Ware: -0.5 points (1 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss – 0.5 for giving up the fall);
Bam Bam Bigelow: -0.5 points (for CO loss);
Hercules: -1 point (for pinfall loss);
Tito Santana: -1.25 points (1.75 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss – 2 for dropping a title);
Rick Martel: -1.75 points (1.75 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss – 2 for dropping a title – 0.5 for giving up the fall)

That’s it, this was WrestleMania IV. I feel like I need another vacation after reviewing this whole show!! Thank you all and I’ll see you next time.

WWF The Main Event 1988 Star Ratings

While I was on vacation in Switzerland during the last number of days, I watched The Main Event and the March 12th edition of SNME. I didn’t do proper reviews for the shows, but I will throw in star ratings for the matches in order to continue the points system right heading into WrestleMania IV, the next show to be (properly) reviewed!

We’re going to start with The Main Event

Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) def. The Honky Tonk Man(c)(w/ Jimmy Hart) for the WWF Intercontinental Championship by DQ **3/4
Andre the Giant(w/ Ted DiBiase & Virgil) def. Hulk Hogan(c) for the WWF Championship **1/2
Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)(c) def. The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart)(w/ Jimmy Hart) for the WWF Tag Team Championship N/R – the show went off the air while the match was just starting, due to time issues

As far as the point system goes:

Randy Savage: 3.25 points (2.75 for star rating + 0.5 for win via DQ);
The Honky Tonk Man: 3.25 points (2.75 for star rating + 1 for successfully retaining a title – 0.5 for DQ loss);
Andre the Giant: 5.5 points (2.5 for star rating + 1 for win via pinfall + 2 for winning a title);
Hulk Hogan: -0.5 points (2.5 for star rating – 1 for loss via pinfall – 2 for dropping a title);
Rick Martel, Tito Santana, Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart: 1 point (for main-eventing)

Saturday Night’s Main Event (March 12th)

Brutus ‘The Barber’ Beefcake def. Greg ‘The Hammer’ Valentine(w/ Jimmy Hart) **3/4
Hulk Hogan def. ‘King’ Harley Race(w/ Bobby Heenan) ***
‘The Million Dollar Man’ Ted DiBiase(w/ Virgil & Andre the Giant) def. Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) by count-out ***1/2
The Islanders (Haku & Tama)(w/ Bobby Heenan) def. The Killer Bees (‘Jumping’ Jim Brunzell & B. Brian Blair) 1/2*
One Man Gang(w/ Slick) def. Ken Patera DUD

The points for this show:

Brutus Beefcake: 3.75 points (2.75 for star rating + 1 for win via pinfall);
Greg Valentine: 1.75 points (2.75 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Hulk Hogan: 4 points (3 for star rating + 1 for win via pinfall);
Harley Race: 3 points (3 for star rating – 1 for pinfall loss);
Ted DiBiase: 4 points (3.5 for star rating + 0.5 for count-out win);
Randy Savage: 3 points (3.5 for star rating – 0.5 for count-out loss);
Tama: 2 points (0.5 for star rating + 1 for the win + 0.5 for getting the win);
Haku: 1.5 points (0.5 for star rating + 1 for the win);
Jim Brunzell: -0.5 points (0.5 for star rating – 1 for the loss);
B. Brian Blair: -1 point (0.5 for star rating – 1 for the loss – 0.5 for being pinned);
One Man Gang: 2 points (1 for main-eventing + 1 for pinfall win);
Ken Patera: 0 points (1 for main-eventing – 1 for pinfall loss)

Before finishing, I’d like to apologize for not doing a proper review as usual. I was on vacation when I watched these shows and obviously wasn’t taking notes of everything that was happening. Thank you anyway, and don’t miss WrestleMania IV next!

WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event #14 Review 01.02.1988

Welcome everyone to my first review of 1988. As I mentioned in the last review, I will add the points system starting with this show, and the wrestler with the most points at the end of the year will win the SmarKdown award for WWF Wrestler Of 1988. Here’s how many points everything is worth:

1/2 point (0.5): a win via DQ or count-out; extra for pinfall/submission falls in stipulation matches (ie: iron man matches, elimination tag matches, steel cage match, etc)
1 point: main-eventing the show; winning via pin or submission (in a tag team match, the person getting the winning fall will get an EXTRA 1/2 point); winning a stipulation match; successfully retaining a title
2 points: capturing a title
The star rating: the exact star rating a match gets will be considered points for all the participants
Vice-versa for those wrestlers who get pinned or drop titles, as the exact same number of points will be TAKEN from said wrestlers
In case there’s a draw, those two (or more) wrestlers involved will be untied by a) direct confrontations between each other; b) the number of appearances, as I will give the edge to the wrestler who appeared less times on the reviews and managed to get as many points as someone with more appearances; c) number of victories; and d) the overall number of main-events

Enjoy the review!

Before starting, here is the list of champions at the time:

WWF Champion: Hulk Hogan
Intercontinental Champion: Honky Tonk Man
Tag Team Champions: Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)
Women’s Champion: Sensational Sherri

The hosts are Vince McMahon & Jesse Ventura

Match #1: Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)(c) vs. The Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff & Boris Zhukov)(w/ Slick) – 2/3 Falls Match – WWF Tag Team Championship

The Bolsheviks were the first team eliminated at Survivor Series, so of course they get a title shot. Who said Vince never cared about his tag divisions!? Boris starts with Tito, who of course uses his speed to avoid the bigger heel. The babyfaces work on Boris’ arm before he tags in Volkoff, who does nothing either. The heels finally get something going and choke away, with Boris hitting a suplex. They go into a faster wrestling sequence that has some effort but not the best execution, as Martel comes in running wild for the first fall via Boston Crab on Boris.

Martel doesn’t waste any time in going for it again, but Volkoff interferes and the heels finally take over. Volkoff hits a backbreaker for two, and from there they cut the ring in half and use quick tags while working Martel’s back. Martel finally gets some separation with a sunset flip, and it’s hot tag Tito. He hits his Flying Forearm on Boris, but Nikolai gets in and breaks it up. Slick gives Nikolai an international object while Zhukov grabs Martel, but (surprise surprise) he hits Zhukov instead and that’s enough to finish the challengers in less than eight minutes!

Like I said earlier, the effort was there but the heels never felt like anything close to a threat. They were also not the best technical workers in the world, and they were clearly out of their league doing wrestling sequences with Martel and Tito. Perfectly acceptable wrestling. Nothing more, nothing less. **

Match #2: Jake Roberts vs. Sika(w/ Mr. Fuji)

Jake takes over to start, going after the Samoan’s arm. Sika misses a clothesline and Roberts pounds away, until a Fuji cheapshot allows Sika to take control. Sika works in his weird nerve hold that looks more like THE PEC MASSAGE OF DOOM, and that goes on for about a minute. Roberts finally makes the comeback, but Fuji trips him up. Sika charges, but Jake simply rolls him up for the win.

Well, that was apparently a match that existed. After the match, Sika runs away so Fuji eats the DDT and the snake instead. It took Roberts three minutes to beat the challenger for Hogan’s heavyweight belt two months previously. DUD – not that this was horrible, just a giant sack of nothing.

Match #3: Hulk Hogan(c) vs. King Kong Bundy(w/ Andre the Giant) – WWF Championship

At the previous edition of SNME, Bundy defeated Hogan via count-out. This is the rematch, without Bobby Heenan at ringside. Hogan rams Bundy’s face into all the corners to start, so Bundy bails to talk some strategy with Andre. Back in, Hogan with a clothesline and Bundy does the same. Again Hogan gets the better of him back in, working a wristlock, but Bundy brings him down by the hair. Bundy drops an elbow and works Hogan’s arm, who then slams Bundy but hurts his own arm doing so. Psychology in a Hulk Hogan match, the holiday season really is magic!!

Bundy slams Hogan but misses an elbowdrop, and Hogan tries to Hulk Up but Bundy quickly cuts him off. Bundy sets him up for the Avalanche, for the ref gets in the way for some reason and he’s bumped. The ref gets taken out on a stretcher as we go to break. We return with Bundy pounding away on Hogan and a second ref already in the ring. Bundy chokes Hogan down for the splash, but it only gets two. He hits two Avalanches and even adds another splash, but of course Hogan no-sells all of that and finishes with you know what to retain.

Hogan poses afterwards, but Andre gets in and chokes Hogan to death. A bunch of midcard babyfaces run-in, but Andre no-sells all their stuff and casually sends everyone flying before finally letting Hogan go. This would set up The Main Event the following month, which is still the most watched wrestling TV show in American wrestling history. (And is the next show to be reviewed, by the way.) The match was surprisingly better than I expected, though still not as memorable as their cage bout at WrestleMania II. **1/2

Main-event: Koko B. Ware vs. Greg ‘The Hammer’ Valentine(w/ Jimmy Hart)

Quite the main-event, huh? Greg had recently gone solo, and found a new manager in Jimmy Hart. Koko starts in control, but that gets him nowhere as Valentine quickly cuts him off with an elbowdrop and goes after the leg. Valentine works him over for a while, until his former partner Brutus Beefcake joins us at ringside. That allows Koko to run wild for a bit and get a few nearfalls, but eventually Brutus is kicked from ringside and we take our final break. We come back with Greg still in control, before Koko slams him off the top. He makes the comeback, but Valentine catches him with a kneebreaker and the figure four is academic.

Beefcake then returns to save Koko from a beatdown, and he cuts some of Hart’s hair before they manage to run away and escape. Another match that wasn’t particularly bad, but there’s barely anything to care about here. 3/4*

A confident Bobby Heenan closes the show, saying he promises to make Andre richer than ever in 1988 and that he’s this close to signing a million dollar deal. Everybody’s got a price, after all, right?

Overall, quite the boring and skippable show. It did do a great job of making everyone wanna watch the big Hogan vs. Andre rematch the next month, plus the title matches weren’t bad, so I’ll give the show (a generous) four out of ten.

Don’t miss The Main Event next time, featuring the big rematch and two other title matches as we get closer and closer to WrestleMania IV. Feel free to use the comment section down below. And thank you for reading!

Here are the points for the show:

Tito Santana: 1/2 point for a fall + 1 point for winning + 1 point for retaining + 2 points for star rating = 4.5 points
Rick Martel: 1/2 point for a fall + 1 point for winning + 1 point for retaining + 2 points for star rating = 4.5 points
Hulk Hogan: 1 point for winning + 1 point for retaining + 2.5 points for star rating = 4.5 points
Greg Valentine: 1 point for main-eventing + 1 point for winning + 0.75 points for star rating = 2.75 points
King Kong Bundy: 2.5 points for star rating – 1 point for losing = 1.5 points
Jake Roberts: 1 point for winning
Nikolai Volkoff: 2 points for star rating – 1 point for losing = 1 point
Koko B. Ware: 1 point for main-eventing + 0.75 points for star rating – 1 point for losing = 0.75 points
Boris Zhukov: 2 points for star rating – 1 point for taking two falls (1/2 point for each) – 1 point for losing = 0 points
Sika: -1 point for losing

WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event #13 Review 11.28.1987

Welcome everyone to my review of the 13th edition of WWF’s SNME. This is the final show I’m going to review in 1987, and in 1988 I plan on adding something new. I will award points to the wrestlers, which I’ll get into detail when I get there, and in the end those points will the determine the winner of the 1988 ‘SmarkDown WWF Wrestler Of The Year’ award. Enjoy the review!

Before starting, here is the list of champions at the time:

WWF Champion: Hulk Hogan
Intercontinental Champion: Honky Tonk Man
Tag Team Champions: Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)
Women’s Champion: Sensational Sherri

The hosts are Vince McMahon & Jesse Ventura

Match #1: George ‘The Animal’ Steele vs. ‘Dangerous’ Danny Davis

George bites Davis to start, Davis runs away. Steele drop toeholds Davis, who runs away again, and back in uses some object behind the ref’s back multiple times to choke George. George finally catches him in a hammerlock, and Davis immediately kicks the ref for the DQ. George proceeds to eat the turbuckle as usual, as Davis attacks again and then runs away with George chasing. This was absolutely nothing. DUD

In the back, Jimmy Hart mocks Randy Savage and Elizabeth while Jim Neidhart laughs his ass off and makes me laugh too!

Meanwhile, Elizabeth says she’s fine from Honky Tonk Man’s last week, but Randy Savage is NOT! He’s about to enter the danger zone. “Elizabeth, down that aisle yeaaaah”!

Match #2: ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart(w/ Jim Neidhart & Jimmy Hart)

So basically this is gonna rule, right? Savage immediately hits the ring to get revenge on the heels for the attack on Elizabeth, who run away. Neidhart and Jimmy corner Liz on the floor, which forces Savage to go after them and we take a break before the match officially starts.

Bret takes advantage of Savage being pissed, as he misses a charge and Bret pounds away in the corner. Savage comes back with an elbow that sends Bret into the apron, though, and follows with a slingshot that sends Bret flying into the railing for a crazy bump that makes the crowd go nuts. Savage gets distracted with Jimmy and Anvil, though, and when he goes for the flying double axehandle to the floor, Bret hits him with the megaphone.

Back in, Bret drops the leg for two. Piledriver gets two. He misses a charge, though, and Savage comes back with a flying axehandle for two. Bret gets two with a backbreaker, but then misses his middle rope elbow, and Savage necksnaps him for two. He charges, only for Bret to backdrop him over the top rope to the floor, with Savage hurting his knee on the way down. Liz checks on Savage, and we take a break.

We return with Savage in his sock and on one leg, as Bret takes him to school. Bret viciously stomps the leg, wrapping it around the post and dropping a knee as the crowd is getting worried. What a great story! Savage necksnaps him again, but he’s too hurt and unable to follow up with anything, which allows Bret to go after the leg again. He puts him in a half crab, but Savage makes the ropes. Savage crawls to the apron, Bret slams him back in, only for Savage to roll through mid-move for the surprising victory.

This match absolutely stole this show. Remember Bret Hart was nothing more but a tag guy at this point, while Savage was the second biggest star in the whole company, and they still managed to make people believe Bret could catch Savage. This was fantastic, and could’ve been an all-time classic had it gone a bit longer. ****1/4

Match #3: Hulk Hogan(c) vs. King Kong Bundy(w/ Bobby Heenan & Andre the Giant) – WWF Championship

They shove each other to start, and Bundy is in control. Hogan goes for a slam, but Bundy lands on top for two and Hogan’s back is hurt. Bundy misses a splash, though, and Hogan takes the big challenger down with a clothesline followed by a couple of elbowdrops for two. Bundy eventually catches him and hits the chinlock. Hogan fights out, hits the big boot.. but Andre trips him up and the ref calls for the bell. However, the ref then forces Andre to leave instead, and the match continues after the break.

We return with Hogan running wild, as he whips Bundy into all the turnbuckles. High knee but he misses an elbow, and Bundy pounds away. Bundy steps on Hulk’s back and puts him in the bearhug. Hogan escapes, only for Bundy to put him down again with an elbow. Bundy hits the Avalanche, followed by a splash, but Hogan of course sells none of that shit and Hulks Up at two. Bundy walks away, though, and Hogan follows for a slugfest on the floor. Hogan puts him back in, but Heenan grabs Hogan’s leg and Bundy wins by count-out.

This was watchable, but it didn’t make much sense to me personally. First of all, that Dusty finish wasn’t needed at all. Second of all, I don’t understand why Heenan would want that count-out win or why the heels would celebrate it, since Hogan retained the belt. Not even close to their decent cage match at WrestleMania 2. *1/4

Main-event: Bam Bam Bigelow(w/ Oliver Humperdink) vs. Hercules Hernandez

This was of course after Bam Bam was one of the highlights in the main-event match at Survivor Series. Hercules throws a knee and clotheslines Bam Bam twice, with the third one finally knocking the big babyface over the top rope. Hercules follows for a slugfest on the floor, and it’s a lame double count-out draw after only three minutes.

Bam Bam cuts a typical babyface “if you’ve got the guts” promo, and Hercules accepts. Two lame Dusty finishes in the same night is a bit too much, but okay. Bam Bam gets the better of Hercules, but misses a dropkick and Herc pounds away. He takes too long, though, and Bam Bam slams him and slingshot splashes him for the win.

This didn’t need to be overbooked all the way to hell, and Bam Bam needed a stronger, more decisive win in my opinion. It didn’t protect Hercules that much, either, as he was technically pinned in five minutes after only taking two or three moves. *

We close the show with Bundy challenging Hulk Hogan for a rematch at the next edition of SNME, in early January 1988. Hogan immediately accepts, saying he needs the rematch even more than Bundy does.

Overall, I’d say this show was fine, but mostly due to Randy Savage vs. Bret Hart. Make sure you check that out, the rest is skippable – Hogan vs. Bundy was literally done to set up another rematch later, Bam Bam vs. Hercules was needlessly overbooked and George Steele vs. Danny Davis was just nothing. This gets a five out of ten from me.

WWF Survivor Series 1987 Review

Welcome everyone to my (brief) review of the very first Survivor Series. Enjoy!

Before starting, here is the list of champions at the time:

WWF Champion: Hulk Hogan
Intercontinental Champion: Honky Tonk Man
Tag Team Champions: Strike Force (Tito Santana & Rick Martel)
Women’s Champion: Sensational Sherri

Your hosts are Gorilla Monsoon & Jesse Ventura

Match #1: Team Honky Tonk Man vs. Team Randy Savage

Team members:

Team Honky (The Honky Tonk Man, Hercules, ‘King’ Harley Race, ‘Outlaw’ Ron Bass & ‘Dangerous’ Danny Davis)(w/ Jimmy Hart & Bobby Heenan)
Team Savage (‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage, Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat, Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts, Brutus ‘The Barber’ Beefcake & ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan)(w/ Miss Elizabeth)

I won’t be doing play-by-play commentary as I usually do, because there are fifty wrestlers across four matches out there, and it’s pretty much impossible to follow everything.

For you trivia lovers out there, Hercules and Brutus Beefcake started the very first traditional Survivor Series elimination tag match in history. The first wrestlers eliminated were Jim Duggan and Harley Race, who were feuding at the time and got counted-out while brawling on the floor at 4:33.

Throughout the next few minutes, this was the order of elimination: Ron Bass by Beefcake via high knee at 7:01; Brutus Beefcake by Honky via Shake, Rattle & Roll at 10:51; Danny Davis by Roberts via DDT at 15:11; Hercules by Randy Savage via Macho Elbow at 21:04.

That left the IC Champ alone against Savage, Steamboat and Roberts, The babyface, particularly Savage, destroyed Honky until he got out of there for the count-out finish at 23:41.

Really fun opener with a hot crowd and a smart finish, as it wasn’t the time or the mach for Honky to get his comeuppance yet. ***1/4

Survivors: Randy Savage, Ricky Steamboat & Jake Roberts

Match #2: Team Sherri vs. Team Moolah

Team members:

Team Sherri (Sensational Sherri, The Glamour Girls [Leilani Kai & Judy Martin], Dawn Marie & Donna Christanello)
Team Moolah (The Fabulous Moolah, The Jumping Bomb Angels [Itsuki Yamazaki & Noriyo Tateno], Velvet McIntyre & Rockin’ Robin)(w/ Jimmy Hart)

The order of elimination in this match was: Donna by McIntyre via roll-up at 2:00; Dawn Marie by Robin at 4:00; Robin by Sherri via suplex at 7:00; Moolah by Martin via roll-up at 15:00; McIntyre by Kai via slingshot electric chair at 17:00; Kai by Yamazaki via high crossbody at 19:00; Martin by Nateno via flying clothesline at 20:00.

Kind of a weird match. It was mostly heatless, with the crowd absolutely dead for the most part and sometimes sloppy. However, it did get The Jumping Bomb Angels over as fuck, and they were unquestionably the highlight of this match. **1/2

Survivors: The Jumping Bomb Angels

Match #3: Team Strike Force vs. Team Hart Foundation

Team members:

Team Strike Force (Strike Force [Tito Santana & Rick Martel], The British Bulldogs [Davey Boy Smith & Dynamite Kid], The Killer Bees [B. Brian Blair & ‘Jumping’ Jim Brunzell], The Rougeau’s [Jacques & Raymond Rougeau] & The Young Stallions [Paul Roma & Jim Powers])
Team Hart Foundation (The Hart Foundation [Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart], Demolition [Ax & Smash], The Bolsheviks [Nikolai Volkoff & Boris Zhukov], The Dream Team [Greg Valentine & Dino Bravo] & The Islanders [Haku & Tama])(w/ Bobby Heenan, Jimmy Hart, Johnny Valiant, Mr. Fuji & Slick)

If one member of a team got pinned, his partner would also be eliminated. The order of elimination: Zhukov (Bolsheviks) by Santana (Strike Force) via flying forearm at 1:30; Jacques (Rougeau’s) by Ax (Demolition) via missed bodypress at 6:00; Demolition by DQ at 9:00; Santana (Strike Force) by Neidhart (Hart Foundation) via Bret’s elbowdrop at 12:00; Dynamite Kid (British Bulldogs) by Haku (Islanders) via superkick at 20:00; Valentine (Dream Team) by Roma (Young Stallions) via sunset flip at 24:00; Bret (Hart Foundation) by Brunzell (Killer Bees) via roll-through pinning combination at 31:00; Tama (Islanders) by Blair (Killer Bees) via sunset flip at 37:00.

Even though this match missed its peak by a few minutes, and it suffered a little bit from some weird booking decisions, this was technically flawless. Spectacular match that I personally believe, with more heat and better booking, had everything to be even better than it was. ***3/4

Survivors: Killer Bees & Young Stallions

Main-event: Team Hogan vs. Team Andre

Team members:

Team Hogan (Hulk Hogan, Bam Bam Bigelow, Don Muraco, Ken Patera & Paul Orndorff)(w/ Oliver Humperdink)
Team Andre (Andre the Giant, King Kong Bundy, Rick Rude, One Man Gang & Butch Reed)(w/ Bobby Heenan & Slick)

Order of elimination: Butch Reed by Hulk Hogan via legdrop at 3:00; Ken Patera by One Man Gang via splash (sort of) at 8:00; Orndorff by Rude via roll-up at 10:00; Rude by Don Muraco via double-team with Hogan at 11:00; Don Muraco by One Man Gang via splash at 13:00; Hulk Hogan by count-out at 16:00; King Kong Bundy by Bam Bam Bigelow via slingshot splash at 18:00; One Man Gang by Bam Bam Bigelow via missed splash at 21:00; Bam Bam Bigelow by Andre the Giant via suplex at 22:00.

Decent match elevated by a super hot crowd that was into everything. This was the Bam Bam show, whose comeback at the end of the match got a huge reaction. As far as the heels going over, it was fine as all the other matches had been won by babyfaces and Andre needed something after WrestleMania III. Not a good night for Hogan, who cried, complained and refused to leave the ring for what felt like an hour, despite being eliminated cleanly… and then, of course, beat up Andre (who did nothing wrong) and posed for 10 minutes despite losing. Bam Bam didn’t even get a standing ovation or anything, despite being the highlight of the match and almost coming back from a 1-3 disadvantage to win the whole thing. ***1/4

Survivor: Andre the Giant

Overall, this has to be a recommendation. The crowd is into pretty much everything, the wrestling is not bad at all, and there are a lot of interesting stories and characters around this show. A seven out of ten is what it gets from me.

Up next: Saturday Night’s Main Event 11.28.1987, featuring: Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy for the WWF Championship, Randy Savage vs. Bret Hart & more! Don’t miss that review, and thank you for reading this one!

WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event – 10/03/1987 Review

Welcome everyone to my review of the 12th edition of WWF’s SNME. I’ve been taking a look back at the history of the WWF on the Network recently, so I decided I’ll start posting reviews here on the blog. The weekly show I watch is Prime Time Wrestling, which is super fun, but for now I’ll just review PPVs and the occasional Saturday Night’s Main Event. Enjoy the review!

Before starting, here is the list of champions at the time:

WWF Champion: Hulk Hogan
Intercontinental Champion: Honky Tonk Man
Tag Team Champions: The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart)
Women’s Champion: Sensational Sherri

The hosts are Vince McMahon & Bobby Heenan

We get a small video package to start the show, with everyone involved in featured matches cutting a short promo.

Backstage, Mean Gene is with IC Champion Honky Tonk Man alongside Jimmy Hart. Honky, set to defend the belt against Randy Savage, says he wants to enter first despite being the champion. He’s the greatest champ ever, and he’s a real entertainer, not just some cheap imitation. He promises to hit Shake Rattle & Roll on Savage, and he’ll also steal Elizabeth from him.

Meanwhile, Randy Savage cuts a Randy Savage promo! Basically, he’s about to enter the danger zone yeaaaaaah.

Match #1: Honky Tonk Man(c)(w/ Jimmy Hart) vs. Randy Savage(w/ Miss Elizabeth) – WWF Intercontinental Championship

Hard lockup gets things started. The ref has to step in and separate them, which allows Honky to cheapshot Macho Man with a closed first that the ref misses. Honky pounds away, but Savage quickly cuts him off and necksnaps him on the ropes. Honky begs for mercy, and Macho Man chokes away. Whip into the corner and he drops a knee into the neck/throat. Honky begs some more, so Savage beats him up some more. Randy with a hard whip into the corner followed by an elbow. Meanwhile, Jimmy Hart goes afer Liz on the outside and Savage goes after him, which allows Honky to take over with a double axehandle from behind. Hot opener with some great heat so far.

Honky tosses him back in, and the crowd’s already clapping along and cheering on Savage to make his big comeback. Honky shoots him into the ropes, Savage with an elbow for a big pop. The way Honky took that bump really helped. Savage returns the closed fist from earlier with one of his own, but misses a second knee. Honky pounds away, and stops to taunt Liz. He hits a closed fist to the face of the middle rope, and leaves the ring to trap Liz between himself and Jimmy.

Savage comes in to save, however, and oh boy is he pissed. He goes up quickly and comes back down with the double axehandle off the top to the outside. He sends Honky back inside for more punishment, and Jimmy puts the champ’s foot on the ropes on a roll-up to save. Savage ignores him and hits a backdrop suplex, but this time Jimmy breaks up the pin by literally pulling Macho Man by the hair. Something tells me that’s not a very good idea. Savage keeps his cool and goes up, but AGAIN Jimmy gets involved and grabs Savage’s leg, forcing him to shove him away. Macho Man with another flying axehandle for the pin, and now Jimmy literally jumps inside the ring to break it up. That is finally enough to piss off Savage, who knocks out Jimmy with a right hand. Honky tries to take advantage with a sunset flip that doesn’t work, so he bails and takes Jimmy to the back alongside The Hart Foundation as we take our first break.

We return with Honky and The Foundation coming back to ringside. Back in, Savage takes back control until he misses a charge in the corner, and Honky quickly goes back to taunting Liz. Savage with a takedown for one, but Honky stays on top. A flying fist misses, however, and Savage comes back with a baaaaaaaaaaack bodydrop as Honky goes back to begging for mercy. Savage responds by choking him in the corner, and hits an elbow for two. Suplex gets two. Honky goes to the eyes to cut him, dumps Savage and distracts the ref so Bret and Neidhart can lay some shots on the floor. They throw him back inside, and an elbowdrop gets two. He goes for the Shake Rattle & Roll, but Savage backdrops him out. Macho Elbow and that’s probably it, but Bret Hart jumps in for the DQ.

A 3-1 beatdown by the heels follows, with Honky grabbing his guitar while the tag champs hold Savage. Honky goes for a shot… and Elizabeth gets in the way. Honky tells her to leave, which she doesn’t, so Honky shoves her down and she runs for her life. Honky turns Savage’s lights out with a shot to the head, but Liz comes back. And she brings Hulk Hogan with her. The heels beat up Hogan as well, until Savage gets back up to clean house with him. The future Mega Powers shake hands for the first time to end the segment. **3/4 Hot opener that the crowd was very much into.

Meanwhile, Mr. Fuji says Hogan is tired while Sika eats chicken. Oh brother, Hulkamania TRULY is in trouble tonight. Hogan says he’s gonna enter the jungle and he’s hungrier than Sika.

Match #2: Hulk Hogan(c) vs. Sika(w/ Mr. Fuji & Kim Chee) – WWF Championship

Kinda weird seeing Hogan work the second match of the card. On commentary, Vince wonders Hogan might lose after being attacked by Honky and the Harts earlier. Yeah, and I wonder Christmas might be in September this year… Sika pounds away by the ropes to start, and Fuji chokes Hogan with the cane from the outside while the ref forces Sika to break. Sika with more kicks and punches, Fuji with a shot with the cane. Sika misses a headbutt and Hogan gets all fired up, but Sika wisely takes a breather.

Back in, Sika charges right into a big boot like an idiot. I mean, Hogan was literally standing there waiting for him. Hogan drops an elbow, and stops to beat up Kim Chee who gets on the apron. That allows Sika to knock him over the top rope to the floor, though. Sika tries to take over on the outside, but Hogan quickly sends him into the post. He steals Fuji’s cane and wants to use it, but a number of refs take it from him as we take a break.

We return with Sika getting back inside and missing another charge like a complete geek while Hogan is LOOKING AT HIM AND WAITING, this time eating a turnbuckle. Hogan brings the moveset with a splash(!) that hits knees, and Sika chokes away. He rakes the eyes to distract the ref, which allows Fuji to choke him some more with the cane. Meanwhile, on commentary…

“Hulk Hogan has never met anyone like this”
Vince McMahon

I get it that you wanna create at least some drama, but please.

Sika grabs the chest for a hold, or a pec massage – depending on how you wanna look at it. And they actually tease the “drop the arm three times” pass out finish, which is just something else! Hogan somehow survives the power of THE DEVASTATING PEC MASSAGE OF DOOM, but Sika cuts him off and takes him down. He drops three headbutts on Hogan, goes for the cover, Hulk Up, slam, big leg, yadda yadda yadda.

Super basic Hogan match against nothing more than your heel of the month. 1/2*

Backstage, Paul Orndorff and Oliver Humperdink cut a promo. Basically, Bobby Heenan is a terrible person. Meanwhile, King Kong Bundy is confident.

Match #3: King Kong Bundy vs. Paul Orndorff

Bundy gets distracted with a cameraman as soon as the bell rings, and Orndorff jumps him to start. Well, duh. Irish whip into a dropkick, but Bundy holds on to the ropes and Paul totally misses it. Bundy pounds away, Orndorff gets two with a sunset flip, but Bundy stays in control. Bundy misses an elbowdrop, and Paul fights back. A flying elbow to the head takes the big man down, Orndorff with a fistdrop for two. Bobby Heenan gets a little hot and leaves his announcing position.Orndorff takes over as this time the dropkick connects for a nearfall. And oh shit, out comes Andre the Giant.

After a break, we return with a lockup that results in a slugfest while Andre stays at ringside. Bundy sends Orndorff into the corner, snapmare takedown followed by a kneedrop gets two. Orndorff fires back to make his big comeback, and manages to take the big man down once again. The crowd’s going nuts for Paul as he drops two elbows, but Bundy moves out of the way on the third one. Bundy hits the chinlock but misses a charge in the corner, as Paul takes over again. However, Andre grabs Paul by the pants from the outside, which sets him up for the Avalanche.

Well, so much for Onrdorff running through the whole family. And so much for his big babyface turn. *1/2 Watchable, but nothing more than that.

Meanwhile, The Hart Foundation are pissed that Jimmy Hart was taken out earlier. They mock the babyfaces for a while, at which point Mean Gene drops the mic and walks away. Sad how the interviewer back in the day had more personality than 98% of today’s wrestlers.

Main-event: The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart)(c) vs. The Young Stallions (Paul Roma & Jim Powers) – WWF Tag Team Championship

Anvil and Roma start. Anvil shoves him off the lockup a number of times to show off his strength. Roma works the arm, and brings in Powers for a double-team move to Neidhart’s arm. He goes ater the arm as well, but Anvil slams him off and tags in Bret. He runs right into a backdrop, though. Sunset flip gets one, and now they go after Bret’s arm as well. He manages to shoot Powers into the ropes, but a quick crossbody for a very close two almost surprises him. Off the ropes again, but this time Bret cuts him off with a HARD knee to the gut. Backbreaker and in comes the Anvil again. Anvil pounds away and distracts the ref, which allows Bret to come in for a cheapshot as Powers plays face-in-peril. Tag team wrestling never gets old.

The heels cut the ring in half, and in comes The Hitman with a knee to the back while Powers runs the ropes after a blind tag. Middle rope elbow to the back as the psychology kicks in. Bret with a headbutt and some choking. Back to Anvil for a double-team. Neidhart with a stungun and he bites Powers. Bret comes in, Powers leapfrogs but stops to sell the back in what was about to be a great touch… but then he tags in Roma anyway for the hot tag. Neidhart comes in and IT’S BREAKING LOOSE IN TULSA, as the babyfaces whip the champs into each other. Double dropkick sends Anvil flying, but Anvil still comes in to save after a powerslam. Meanwhile, the ref gets distracted with Powers, and that allows Neidhart to come in for the Hart Attack.

I don’t know if they were short on time or something, but that “hot tag” was super weird and kinda ruined the whole match. The heat spot was great, like most of the Hart’s matches as heels, and it totally deserved a better ending or at least some kind of hope spot for the babyfaces. They literally did three or four moves before walking into the finish. Still solid. **1/2

Mega Powers promo and a video package promoting the “Piledriver” album end the show.

Overall, an enjoyable yet quite skippable show, apart from the first meeting between the future Mega Powers. My overall rating for the show is 4 out of 10.

See you all next time for the review of the first ever Survivor Series. Feel free to use the comment section down below. And thank you for reading!

Rating The Champ: Yokozuna

Welcome to a new series on the website, called Rating The Champ. This will follow my prior World Title Series, where I reviewed each and every WWE Heavyweight Champion in history from Hulk Hogan’s first title win in 1984 all the way to the current days. Money in the Bank cash-ins will not be included for obvious reasons, unless it was a proper match (ie: Rob Van Dam at One Night Stand 2006). Royal Rumble and battle royales won’t be included as well.

In this new series, I will rate all the PPV matches from each and every WWF/E Heavyweight Champion in history. To be fair, since this is the WWF/E title, I’ll only rate their PPV matches in the WWF/E. In this edition, we’ll be looking back at the PPV career of the one and only, former WWF Champion, Kevin Nash.

1992

Vs. Virgil (Survivor Series) *

1993

Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (WrestleMania IX) ***
Vs. Hulk Hogan – WWF Championship (WrestleMania IX) DUD
Vs. Hulk Hogan – WWF Championship (King of the Ring) *1/4
Vs. Lex Luger – WWF Championship (SummerSlam) **3/4
W/ The Foreign Fanatics vs. The All-Americans (Survivor Series) **1/2

1994

Casket: Vs. The Undertaker – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) 1/2*
Vs. Lex Luger – WWF Championship (WrestleMania X) 1/4*
Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (WrestleMania X) **1/2
W/ Crush vs. The Headshrinkers – WWF Tag Team Championship (King of the Ring) 1/2*
Casket: Vs. The Undertaker (Survivor Series) **3/4

1995

W/ Owen Hart vs. The Smoking Gunns – WWF Tag Team Championship (WrestleMania XI) **1/2
W/ Owen Hart vs. The Smoking Gunns – WWF Tag Team Championship (In Your House I) **
Vs. Savio Vega (King of the Ring) 1/2*
W/ Owen Hart vs. The British Bulldog & Lex Luger – WWF Tag Team Championship (IYH 2: The Lumberjacks) *
W/ The British Bulldog vs. Diesel & Shawn Michaels – WWF Tag Team, IC & World Championship (IYH 3: Triple Header) **3/4
Vs. King Mabel (IYH 4: Great White North) DUD
W/ Owen, Razor & Douglas vs. HBK, Bulldog, Sid & Ahmed (Survivor Series) ***

1996

Vs. The British Bulldog (IYH 6: Rage in the Cage) 1/2*
W/ Roberts & Ahmed vs. Vader, Owen & Bulldog (WrestleMania XII) **
Vs. Vader (IYH 8: Beware of Dog) 1/2*
W/ Snuka, Vega & Funk vs. Vader, Faarooq, “Diesel” & “Razor” (Survivor Series) *

TOP FIVE

5. Diesel & Shawn Michaels (Triple Header 1995)

4. The Undertaker (Survivor Series 1994)

3. Lex Luger (SummerSlam 1993)

2. Survivor Series Match (Survivor Series 1995)

1. Bret Hart (WrestleMania IX)

Average rating per year

1992 – 1
1993 – 1.58
1994 – 1.3
1995 – 1.68
1996 – 1

Overall average rating

1.31/5

Don’t miss the next article here on Rating The Champ, where we’ll be looking back at former WWF Champion, Ric Flair.

Rating The Champ: Kevin ‘Diesel’ Nash

1993

W/ IRS, Martel & Bomb vs. Savage, Razor, Jannetty & The Kid (Survivor Series) ***

1994

Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (King of the Ring) ****1/4
Vs. Razor Ramon – WWF Intercontinental Championship (SummerSlam) **3/4
W/ The Teamsters vs. The Bad Guys (Survivor Series) **

1995

Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) ***1/2
Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (WrestleMania XI) ***1/4
Vs. Sycho Sid – WWF Championship (In Your House I) 1/2*
W/ Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Sycho Sid & Tatanka (King of the Ring) 1/2*
Lumberjack: Vs. Sycho Sid – WWF Championship (IYH 2: The Lumberjacks) 1/4*
Vs. King Mabel – WWF Championship (SummerSlam) DUD
W/ HBK vs. Bulldog & Yokozuna – WWF Tag Team, IC & World Championships (IYH 3: Triple Header) **3/4
Vs. The British Bulldog – WWF Championship (IYH 4: Great White North) *
No DQ: Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (Survivor Series) ****3/4
Vs. Owen Hart (IYH 5: Season’s Beatings) *1/2

1996

Steel Cage: Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (IYH 6: Rage in the Cage) **3/4
Vs. The Undertaker (WrestleMania XII) ***1/2
No Holds Barred: Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (IYH 7: Good Friends, Better Enemies) ****3/4

2003

W/ HBK & Booker vs. HHH, Jericho & Flair (Backlash) **3/4
Vs. Triple H – World Heavyweight Championship (Judgment Day) DUD
HIAC: Vs. Triple H – World Heavyweight Championship (Bad Blood) **3/4
Elimination Chamber Match – World Heavyweight Championship (SummerSlam) ***1/4

2011

Sledgehammer Ladder: Vs. Triple H (TLC) 1/2*

TOP FIVE

5. Bret Hart (Royal Rumble 1995)

4. The Undertaker (WrestleMania XII)

3. Bret Hart (King of the Ring 1994)

2. Bret Hart (Survivor Series 1995)

1. Shawn Michaels (Good Friends, Better Enemies 1996)

Average rating per year

1993 – 3
1994 – 3
1995 – 1.8
1996 – 3.67
2003 – 2.19
2011 – 0.5

Overall average rating

2.36/5

Don’t miss the next article here on Rating The Champ, where we’ll be looking back at former WWF Champion, Yokozuna.

Rating The Champ: Sycho Sid

1992

Vs. Hulk Hogan (WrestleMania VIII) DUD

1995

Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (In Your House I) 1/2*
W/ Tatanka vs. Diesel & Bam Bam Bigelow (King of the Ring) 1/2*
Lumberjack: Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (IYH 2: The Lumberjacks) 1/4*
Vs. Henry O. Godwinn (IYH 3: Triple Header) DUD
W/ HBK, Bulldog & Ahmed vs. Razor, Owen, Yokozuna & Douglas (Survivor Series) ***
W/ The 1-2-3 Kid vs. Razor Ramon & Marty Jannetty (IYH 5: Season’s Beatings) *

1996

W/ HBK & Ahmed vs. Vader, Bulldog & Owen (IYH 9: International Incident) ***
Vs. The British Bulldog (SummerSlam) *
Vs. Vader (IYH 11: Buried Alive) *1/2
Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (Survivor Series) ***1/2
Vs. Bret Hart – WWF Championship (IYH 12: It’s Time) ***

1997

Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) **
Vs. The Undertaker – WWF Championship (WrestleMania 13) *1/2
W/ Legion of Doom vs. The Hart Foundation (King of the Ring) *1/2

TOP FIVE

5. The Undertaker (WrestleMania 13)

4. Survivor Series Match (Survivor Series 1995)

3. Six Men Tag Match (IYH 9: International Incident 1996)

2. Bret Hart (IYH 12: It’s Time 1996)

1. Shawn Michaels (Survivor Series 1996)

Average rating per year

1992 – 0
1995 – 0.88
1996 – 2.4
1997 – 1.67

Overall average rating

1.24/5

Don’t miss the next article here on Rating The Champ, where we’ll be looking back at former WWF Champion, Kevin ‘Diesel’ Nash.

Rating The Champ: Bret Hart

1987

W/ Jim Neidhart & Danny Davis vs. The British Bulldogs & Tito Santana (WrestleMania III) ***1/2
Twenty Men Survivor Series Elimination Match (Survivor Series) ****

1988

W/ Jim Neidhart vs. Demolition – WWF Tag Team Championship (SummerSlam) ***
Twenty Men Survivor Series Elimination Match (Survivor Series) ***1/2

1989

2 Out Of 3 Falls: W/ Jim Neidhart & Jim Duggan vs. Dino Bravo & The Rougeau’s (Royal Rumble) **1/2
W/ Jim Neidhart vs. The Honky Tonk Man & Greg Valentine (WrestleMania V) **3/4
W/ Jim Neidhart vs. The Brainbusters (SummerSlam) ***1/2
W/ The 4×4’s vs. The King’s Court (Survivor Series) **

1990

W/ Jim Neidhart vs. The Bolsheviks (WrestleMania VI) N/R (no rating)
2 Out Of 3 Falls: W/ Jim Neidhart vs. Demolition – WWF Tag Team Championship (SummerSlam) ****
W/ The Dream Team vs. The Million Dollar Team (Survivor Series) ***3/4

1991

W/ Jim Neidhart vs. The Nasty Boys – WWF Tag Team Championship (WrestleMania VII) ***1/2
Vs. Mr. Perfect – WWF Intercontinental Championship (SummerSlam) ****1/4
W/ Piper, Bulldog & Virgil vs. Flair, DiBiase, Warlord & Mountie (Survivor Series) ***
Vs. Skinner – WWF Intercontinental Championship (This Tuesday In Texas) **1/4

1992

Vs. Roddy Piper – WWF Intercontinental Championship (WrestleMania VIII) ****1/2
Vs. The British Bulldog – WWF Intercontinental Championship (SummerSlam) *****
Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (Survivor Series) ****1/2

1993

Vs. Razor Ramon – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) ***1/4
Vs. Yokozuna – WWF Championship (WrestleMania IX) ***
Vs. Razor Ramon (King of the Ring) ***
Vs. Mr. Perfect (King of the Ring) ****3/4
Vs. Bam Bam Bigelow (King of the Ring) ***3/4
Vs. Doink the Clown (SummerSlam) **1/2
Vs. Jerry Lawler (SummerSlam) ****
W/ The Hart Family vs. Shawn Michaels & The Knights (Survivor Series) **1/2

1994

W/ Owen Hart vs. The Quebecers – WWF Tag Team Championship (Royal Rumble) ****
Vs. Owen Hart (WrestleMania X) *****
Vs. Yokozuna – WWF Championship (WrestleMania X) **1/2
Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (King of the Ring) ****1/4
Steel Cage: Vs. Owen Hart – WWF Championship (SummerSlam) *****
Submission: Vs. Bob Backlund – WWF Championship (Survivor Series) ***1/4

1995

Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) ***1/2
I Quit: Vs. Bob Backlund (WrestleMania XI) **
Vs. Hakushi (In Your House I) ****
Vs. Jerry Lawler (In Your House I) *1/2
Kiss My Foot: Vs. Jerry Lawler (King of the Ring) **1/2
Vs. Isaac Yankem DDS (SummerSlam) **3/4
Vs. Jean-Pierre Lafitte (IYH 3: Triple Header) ****
No DQ: Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (Survivor Series) ****3/4
Vs. The British Bulldog – WWF Championship (IYH 5: Season’s Beatings) ****1/2

1996

Vs. The Undertaker – WWF Championship (Royal Rumble) ***1/4
Steel Cage: Vs. Diesel – WWF Championship (IYH 6: Rage in the Cage) **3/4
Iron Man: Vs. Shawn Michaels – WWF Championship (WrestleMania XII) ****1/2
Vs. Steve Austin (Survivor Series) *****
Vs. Sycho Sid – WWF Championship (IYH 12: It’s Time) ***

1997

Final Four: Vs. The Undertaker vs. Steve Austin vs. Vader – WWF Championship (IYH 13: Final Four) ****1/4
Submission: Vs. Steve Austin (WrestleMania 13) *****
Vs. Steve Austin (IYH 14: Revenge of the ‘Taker) ***3/4
W/ Team Canada vs. Team USA (IYH 16: Canadian Stampede) *****
Vs. The Undertaker – WWF Championship (SummerSlam) ****
Vs. The Patriot – WWF Championship (Ground Zero) ***1/2
Vs. The Undertaker – WWF Championship (One Night Only) ****3/4
Flag: W/ The British Bulldog vs. Vader & The Patriot (Badd Blood) ***
Vs. Shawn Michaels (Survivor Series) ***3/4

2010

Lumberjack: Vs. Vince McMahon (WrestleMania XXVI) N/R (no rating)
W/ Team WWE vs. The Nexus (SummerSlam) ***1/2

TOP FIVE

5. Vs. Steve Austin (Survivor Series 1996)

4. Vs. The British Bulldog (SummerSlam 1992)

3. Vs. Owen Hart (SummerSlam 1994)

2. Vs. Owen Hart (WrestleMania X)

1. Vs. Steve Austin (WrestleMania 13)

Average rating per year

1987 – 3.75
1988 – 3.25
1989 – 2.69
1990 – 3.88
1991 – 3.25
1992 – 4.67
1993 – 3.34
1994 – 4
1995 – 3.28
1996 – 3.7
1997 – 4.11
2010 – 3.5

Overall average rating

3.62/5

Don’t miss the next article here on Rating The Champ, where we’ll be looking back at former WWF Champion, Sycho Sid.