klunderbunker
Welcome to My (And Not Sly's) House
WWF House Show
Date: November 24, 1987
Location: Madison Square Garden
Attendance: 17,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Alfred Hayes, Nick Bockwinkel
I didnt realize this when I picked it but this is a mere two days before the first ever Survivor Series. Its the final show before that as this is on a Tuesday and the PPV was on Thursday and there was no show Wednesday. Thats rather cool and itll be fun to see what they do to hype a show like this. This is one of my favorite eras so lets get to it.
Savage says hes going to get back at Honky Tonk Man for shoving down Liz.
This was on the MSG Network which broadcast these shows weekly. It even has a theme song and an opening video.
Why in the world is Nick Bockwinkel here? Hes a heel either way. He says Liz got in trouble for leaving the kitchen. Awesome guy there.
Frenchy Martin vs. Ultimate Warrior
Martin would be a manager by Mania and Im surprised he wasnt already here. Warrior is brand new and I cant imagine hes been around long here. Ultimate Warrior has music and gets a pop so hes known at least. The referee has a tattoo on his arm. When do you ever see that? Bockwinkel wants to know why Warrior is in face paint, thinking its some psychological issue. Warrior having mental issues? NAH!
Warrior gets a leap frog and were firmly in squash territory here. Martin yells at the crowd a lot as Nick refuses to talk to Gorilla about what Gorilla wants to talk about. Frenchy hides on the floor which gets him nowhere other than on to the floor. Nick calls him the Road Warrior. Warrior slams him badly, probably hurting his shoulder as Frenchy has to hit the floor to grab a rest. Back in the ring a standing clothesline ends it.
Rating: D+. Well lets see. It was too long, it was dull, Warrior injured the guy, the fans didnt pop for the ending and the match was a long squash. This was Warriors MSG debut apparently and not exactly a good sign of things to come. Warrior clearly didnt care about the safety of his opponents, which is a common criticism of him.
Womens Tag Titles: Jumping Bomb Angels vs. Glamour Girls
YES! Ok so the Glamour Girls are the champions and are the stereotypical women from the 80s. The Angels are INCREDIBLE and can move as well as any man on any roster youve ever seen. Theyre like a luchador from the glory days of WCW. One of them (the announcers dont actually say which) flips forward to avoid a clothesline and hits a dropkick and spinning forearm for no cover.
Off to the other (their names arent mentioned yet) as they beat on Lelani Kai (the Glamour Girls are Kai and Judy Martin) who is like GET ME OUT OF HERE. Off to Martin who takes a pair of high knees and some dropkicks before the other Angel (their names are never mentioned by the announcers either) comes in off the top with an arm drag/wristlock. By that I mean she was tagged in, went to the top and grabbed Martins wrist and pulled her down in an arm drag. This is incredibly fast paced stuff and remember: this is 1987.
Martin finally gets a big boot to take down the one in pink but she Matrixes out of the cover. Monkey flip to Martin sets up a sunset flip to send her to the floor. Kai comes back in and tries a firemans carry. The one in black jumps down and hits a dropkick and tags out. The speed here is incredible. Senton back splash misses though and its Kai in control finally. Ok apparently the one in pink is Itsuki and the one in black is Tateno. Got it.
The Glamour Girls double team Tateno while the referee is distracted. A sunset flip by Tateno is missed also. I guess the referee is out to get some popcorn or he reached over to pet his cat. Figure Four neck lock goes on by Martin but a leg drop misses and its off to Kai again. The announcers have no idea what the Angels names are. The Girls switch out without tagging which is always cool for a heel to do. Little things like that will do wonders for heels as far as heat goes.
Piledriver/powerbomb attempt by Kai is reversed into another sunset flip for two. The referee misses the tag out by the Angels which I always like. Another Matrix bridge to escape a pin by Kai. Martin throws on a Sharpshooter of all things and Tateno is tapping like a likely sober lady. That wouldnt mean anything for about six years though Itsuki has to break it up.
She keeps using that Matrix move to get out of pins which is a thing for her I guess. Hot tag to Itsuki and the crowd is WAY into it. She beats the hell out of Martin, including a middle rope clothesline for two. Its two because Kai comes in and kicks the referee. Why that isnt a DQ isnt explained and Gorilla isnt sure either.
Stereo dropkicks miss but ones from the top dont (when would you EVER see that in the 80s? They were dead on too and Kai went flying). Martin comes in and breaks it up as the referee didnt see it anyway. She busts out a POWERBOMB and puts Kai on top for the pin. Why is that noteworthy you ask? Tell me, when did you ever see a powerbomb regularly used in America in the 80s? If you say before 1989 you would be wrong, because Sid was the first known wrestler to use it as a regular move. Theyre busting it out in a house show in 87. I told you this was way ahead of its time.
Rating: B. Damn fine tag match here, genitalia not mattering. The Angels would beat the Glamour Girls in a Survivor Series match in two days before getting a title shot at the Rumble which was more or less their coming out party. No one remembers the Angels or the tag titles because no one cared about womens wrestling at the time and as a result, the Angels have probably less than ten WWF matches ever. Find them though and remember theyre in the late 80s. Incredible stuff.
Paul Orndorff vs. Rick Rude
These two would be in the main event Survivor Series match. This is a return match as these two had been feuding for awhile. Orndorff had quit Heenans stable and was feuding with everyone in the Heenan Family. Orndorffs manager is Oliver Humperdink, who probably wont live to see the summer this year. Orndorff pulls him to the floor immediately and the brawl is on.
Back in the ring and Rude is knocked into the ropes which he falls through, getting his leg caught. Orndorff grabs a cord and wraps it around Rudes throat. Rude is just a step ahead of a comedy heel here as he wouldnt become a serious guy for a year and a half. Bockwinkel freaking over the cheating is funny stuff. Atomic drop and a clothesline put Rude down.
Rude finally gets a knee up to stop Pauls momentum. Its so hilarious to hear Bockwinkel defend Heenan as Heenan was Bockwinkels manager for the better part of eternity back in the AWA. Rude takes over with his basic offense including a chinlock. Heenan jumps on the mic and talks about how he hasnt been doing anything wrong at all. Gorilla calls him out on it and Heenans rant is hilarious stuff.
While still in the chinlock Orndorff stands up and drops Rude backwards into an electric chair. Bockwinkel calls Gorilla out for his hypocrisy about picking on heel managers rather than face managers and Gorilla more or less blows him off. Rude takes over again and hits his punch off the top rope. Were maybe seven minutes into this and Gorilla is talking about the twenty minute mark. I guess hes just thinking ahead as there hasnt been any clipping here.
Paul makes his comeback and hammers away to more or less no reaction. Back drop puts Rude down and pulls Rude up off a pin which all of the commentators agree was a bad idea. Clothesline hits and its time for the Piledriver. Heenan gets up on the apron and gets knocked down by Rude. He distracts Paul again and Rude rolls him up with the tights to end it.
Rating: C. Total run of the mill 80s match here which was just ok. Ive never been a fan of Orndorff and this was just average, which is probably why I never was that big on him. Rude winning like that is fine as it keeps heat on him and it has Orndorff lose again which would eventually lead to him turning heel again and rejoining Heenan. Totally basic match.
Bolsheviks vs. Killer Bees
Slick is with the Russians here. The national anthem is one of the best ways ever to draw heel heat. Bockwinkel wants to talk about the size of Zhukovs head for some reason. The Bees put their masks on because they like to be annoying. Blair has longer hair so I think thats him with the hair sticking out of the back of the mask. The Russians say take the masks off or were leaving. Let the stalling begin.
The referee is threatening them with a DQ if they dont get in. The bell rang so I guess this is part of the match. There go the masks but theyre in the tights of the Bees, which makes me think well be seeing them later. Apparently the winners of this get a shot at Strike Force, the tag team champions. Weve been stalling for four minutes now and FINALLY we get Brunzell vs. Boris.
Boris blocks a hip toss but walks into a head scissors to take him over. Id expect a lot of tags by the Bees. They work on the arm of Zhukov who is in trouble early. Nikolai comes in sans tag which really just gets Boris in more trouble than he was already in. Heres Volkoff in legally now and I still think those trunks will eat him one day. A double elbow takes him down for two.
They start in on the arm of Volkoff as well and then shift over to the hamstrings and the legs. Zhukov comes in and its still all Killer Bees. The Russians have had nothing at all here. Slick is going to file a complaint about the referees. They work on the hamstring even more as they couldnt be more clearly stalling without holding up a big old neon sign that says WERE STALLING!
Volkoff comes in with an atomic drop but loses control on a slam. A front facelock goes on as we shift the momentum over to the Russians. Its Blair getting beaten on here if youre interested. Gutwrench suplex gets two for Nikolai. Zhukov mostly gets a suplex on Blair but its partially botched. How do you manage to botch a vertical suplex? Its one of the most basic moves in the sport.
Back to Volkoff for some choking. Double teaming stops Blair from tagging as were well over fifteen minutes into this now. The Russians hammer away even more and knock Blair and Brunzell to the floor. We have a random bell which is waved off as the Bees put the masks on and switch off. Brunzell (everyone but the referee gets this somehow) comes in without a tag and gets a dropkick for two. The referee gets distracted and the legal man comes in with a top rope cross body to win it.
Rating: C-. This is a fine example of a long match not necessarily being a good match. It went WAY too long when you could legitimately pull out 10 minutes out of this and its the same match. Theres a lot of basic work including about 8 minutes of nothing but hamstring work on Zhukov. Boring match for the most part but nothing horrible.
Intercontinental Title: Honky Tonk Man vs. Randy Savage
Big time blood feud here as Honky had recently shoved Liz and become the evilest man alive. This is in the era where people would pay to see Honky get beaten up and the pop for the announcement of the title being on the line here shows that. Absolute eruption for Savage and he immediately clears the ring and chases Honky. Just a basic elbow to the head of Honky gets a huge pop. This guy was MONEY.
Honky tries to run and Savage is like oh hell no and we hit the ring for awhile. Hart finally interferes to save Honkys life and he gets in some offense. Sunset flip doesnt work though and its right back to Savage in control. Hart gets involved again and Honky can get a megaphone shot to the ribs to get a breather and a two count. Crowd is totally behind Savage here.
Its clear that Honky has a very limited offense, but thats the point here. Hes pushed as a completely inferior wrestler that somehow always leaves with the title. Thats why he drew so well: people would pay to see him potentially lose the title and get his ass kicked by popular guys. Savage misses a corner charge and Savage goes out to the floor.
Honky gets some back work in and leaves Savage out there for awhile. Hart gets in some shots as Savage falls to the floor again. With Savage down Honky goes to the floor after Liz. Savage attempts to kill him but gets caught by Hart. Honky accidently nails him but Jimmy is able to get up in time to prevent the elbow. Savage is sent to the floor again and goes after Jimmy. The megaphone is dropped and Savage hits Honky with it but it knocks him into the ring and its a count out win for Honky. Big BULLSHIT chant from the crowd.
Rating: C+. The crowd ate this up with a spoon and it was probably the major match on the card here. Good stuff with the idea being to have Savage beat up Honky and then lose in the end on a technicality which is exactly what they did. This worked very well and it did its job perfectly. Good match although nothing technically worth anything.
Savage pops him with the (not fake) guitar post match.
No mention at all of Survivor Series which makes me think this was broadcast later on like they did with SNME.
Jimmy Hart and Danny Davis say theyll take care of Jake Roberts. Ive never heard Davis talk I dont think. He has a very thick New York accent.
During the transition between the two guys during which we see the announcers for a bit, Demolitions music is playing for no apparent reason. Its intermission so maybe this is live.
Jake says hell hit a DDT on Davis.
Strike Force says theyre the new champions but theyll prove they should have the belts here against the Hart Foundation.
DiBiase, also brand new, says that hes not worried about Ivan Putski. He shouldnt be either as Putski was old in 84 and over the hill in 85.
Jake Roberts vs. Danny Davis
Davis is a former referee that is just now getting good enough to be a jobber. Theres no Jimmy Hart here for some reason. Davis stalls like a Memphis man which he isnt. They have to do this because theres no one in the arena that thinks Jake will have any issues once he gets his hands on Danny. The fans however dont like the idea of wasting two minutes on hiding in the ropes though so theyre not very pleased.
They lock up but Jake wont punch him for some reason. More locking up and more stalling. Danny wont do a test of strength as were about three and a half minutes into this and the high point has been a tie up. Jake gets a knuckle lock (half a test of strength) and tortures Danny with it for a bit. One arm slam by Jake as were just killing time here. More stalling, this time on the floor. Danny gets in his jobber offense for a minute or so until Jake gets bored and DDTs the hell out of him to end it.
Rating: F. This got 8 minutes. Do I need to explain why this was boring as all hell? I dont think so.
Damien goes on Davis post match. They do a semi-injury angle where Davis might have a bad neck.
Tag Titles: Strike Force vs. Hart Foundation
This should be good. Nice reaction for the champions which makes me happy as Ive always been a fan of this team. Strike Force got the titles recently and this is their rematch. We hear a bit about the Dungeon as Hart vs. Martel starts us off. Bret takes him down to start and has control early on. Martel makes a brief comeback and we get the double switch to Jim and Tito.
Neidhart takes the straps down for some reason and we get a surprisingly decent mat sequence. Tito grabs a headlock to take over as they definitely have a lot of time to work with as theyre going pretty slowly here. They really like headlocks here and its back to Martel vs. Hart with Martel using said hold. Small package gets two as were getting close to boring here.
Anvil works on Tito now with a chinlock. Nothing any good going on here at all. Elbow drop misses as we talk about Jimmys stable for awhile to fill in time. Off to Bret and Tito now with Bret and the Foundation in control. Martel gets the hot tag, lands some punches and then is sent to the floor to give the Harts control all over again. Were going to be here for awhile it seems.
Bear hug by Anvil goes on and of course that doesnt end it. Tito screams at Martel to get going and that does nothing. Bret and Anvil hammer away with absolutely nothing of note happening. Martel gets an OConnor Roll for a two count as Im so bored here. Its not the bad bored but the going on too long bored, which is far worse as theres nothing to make fun of for a change.
Martel gets a leg hand in to a charging Hart but Anvil makes the save. Tito comes in and the referee is cool with the lack of tagging. Heel miscommunication sends Hart to the floor and its off to Tito. Flying forearm gets two as Bret saves. Boston Crab, the hold that won the titles for Strike Force, cant go on but Strike Force rams them together. Another attempt at the Crab results in a megaphone to the back of Martels head and its a DQ. Oh blast it all.
Rating: D+. Far too long here for a cheap finish but it wasnt that bad. This is another example of where long doesnt equal good. These two never had a great and mighty blowoff match so this is more or less the best youre going to get. Good match but too long and a bad ending bring it down.
The Harts beat down Strike Force post match because they feel like it. This happening to the peppy Strike Force music is funny for some reason. Tito gets some belt shots to the head to save his team.
Ted DiBiase vs. Ivan Putski
Pre match DiBiase says he was thinking about buying MSG but the Knicks made him change his mind. Great way to get heat. Nice nostalgia pop for Putski and thats all hes going to have here. Putski is an OLD guy and is beyond worthless at this point. Hes only 46 here but he looks about 60. Hes also tiny, standing about 58.
Top wristlock to start us off by Putski so DiBiase runs. Ok so he runs a lot. This is going to be a squash once we get going but we cant seem to get there. DiBiase would be top heel in about a month and a half which is kind of odd given how he is here. Polish Hammer, Putskis finisher, hits and DiBiase hits the floor but isnt out at all. DiBiase gets a powerslam out of nowhere as his one move to win it. Not a squash actually. Im surprised. No rating as this flew by and was just there to make Ted look good, which it mostly did I guess.
Bam Bam Bigelow vs. King Kong Bundy
No Hogan or Andre I guess as we have like six minutes left. This was a big match I guess as Bigelow was a pretty big deal at this point. As you know, if youve seen one battle of the giants youve seen them all. Corner splash misses for Bundy and an elbow gets two for Bigelow. Bigelow is sent to the floor quickly as were just getting ready for the ending here. Bundy misses a splash (and lands on his knees, not his chest, meaning theres no real reason for him to be stunned) and Bigelow gets one of his own to end this quick. Total nothing match and just a way to send the fans home happy.
Overall Rating: C-. This was watchable but it went on a bit too long. I cant imagine sitting in the crowd for this as it seemingly never ended. The two long tag matches would have been better live I think but theyre still a bit much here. Its definitely not a bad show but nothing you really need to see. The taping schedule must have come into play as there wasnt a word mentioned of the PPV in two days. Weird but whatever. Maybe this was aired after the show. Anyway, nothing that bad here but just a house show really.
Date: November 24, 1987
Location: Madison Square Garden
Attendance: 17,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Alfred Hayes, Nick Bockwinkel
I didnt realize this when I picked it but this is a mere two days before the first ever Survivor Series. Its the final show before that as this is on a Tuesday and the PPV was on Thursday and there was no show Wednesday. Thats rather cool and itll be fun to see what they do to hype a show like this. This is one of my favorite eras so lets get to it.
Savage says hes going to get back at Honky Tonk Man for shoving down Liz.
This was on the MSG Network which broadcast these shows weekly. It even has a theme song and an opening video.
Why in the world is Nick Bockwinkel here? Hes a heel either way. He says Liz got in trouble for leaving the kitchen. Awesome guy there.
Frenchy Martin vs. Ultimate Warrior
Martin would be a manager by Mania and Im surprised he wasnt already here. Warrior is brand new and I cant imagine hes been around long here. Ultimate Warrior has music and gets a pop so hes known at least. The referee has a tattoo on his arm. When do you ever see that? Bockwinkel wants to know why Warrior is in face paint, thinking its some psychological issue. Warrior having mental issues? NAH!
Warrior gets a leap frog and were firmly in squash territory here. Martin yells at the crowd a lot as Nick refuses to talk to Gorilla about what Gorilla wants to talk about. Frenchy hides on the floor which gets him nowhere other than on to the floor. Nick calls him the Road Warrior. Warrior slams him badly, probably hurting his shoulder as Frenchy has to hit the floor to grab a rest. Back in the ring a standing clothesline ends it.
Rating: D+. Well lets see. It was too long, it was dull, Warrior injured the guy, the fans didnt pop for the ending and the match was a long squash. This was Warriors MSG debut apparently and not exactly a good sign of things to come. Warrior clearly didnt care about the safety of his opponents, which is a common criticism of him.
Womens Tag Titles: Jumping Bomb Angels vs. Glamour Girls
YES! Ok so the Glamour Girls are the champions and are the stereotypical women from the 80s. The Angels are INCREDIBLE and can move as well as any man on any roster youve ever seen. Theyre like a luchador from the glory days of WCW. One of them (the announcers dont actually say which) flips forward to avoid a clothesline and hits a dropkick and spinning forearm for no cover.
Off to the other (their names arent mentioned yet) as they beat on Lelani Kai (the Glamour Girls are Kai and Judy Martin) who is like GET ME OUT OF HERE. Off to Martin who takes a pair of high knees and some dropkicks before the other Angel (their names are never mentioned by the announcers either) comes in off the top with an arm drag/wristlock. By that I mean she was tagged in, went to the top and grabbed Martins wrist and pulled her down in an arm drag. This is incredibly fast paced stuff and remember: this is 1987.
Martin finally gets a big boot to take down the one in pink but she Matrixes out of the cover. Monkey flip to Martin sets up a sunset flip to send her to the floor. Kai comes back in and tries a firemans carry. The one in black jumps down and hits a dropkick and tags out. The speed here is incredible. Senton back splash misses though and its Kai in control finally. Ok apparently the one in pink is Itsuki and the one in black is Tateno. Got it.
The Glamour Girls double team Tateno while the referee is distracted. A sunset flip by Tateno is missed also. I guess the referee is out to get some popcorn or he reached over to pet his cat. Figure Four neck lock goes on by Martin but a leg drop misses and its off to Kai again. The announcers have no idea what the Angels names are. The Girls switch out without tagging which is always cool for a heel to do. Little things like that will do wonders for heels as far as heat goes.
Piledriver/powerbomb attempt by Kai is reversed into another sunset flip for two. The referee misses the tag out by the Angels which I always like. Another Matrix bridge to escape a pin by Kai. Martin throws on a Sharpshooter of all things and Tateno is tapping like a likely sober lady. That wouldnt mean anything for about six years though Itsuki has to break it up.
She keeps using that Matrix move to get out of pins which is a thing for her I guess. Hot tag to Itsuki and the crowd is WAY into it. She beats the hell out of Martin, including a middle rope clothesline for two. Its two because Kai comes in and kicks the referee. Why that isnt a DQ isnt explained and Gorilla isnt sure either.
Stereo dropkicks miss but ones from the top dont (when would you EVER see that in the 80s? They were dead on too and Kai went flying). Martin comes in and breaks it up as the referee didnt see it anyway. She busts out a POWERBOMB and puts Kai on top for the pin. Why is that noteworthy you ask? Tell me, when did you ever see a powerbomb regularly used in America in the 80s? If you say before 1989 you would be wrong, because Sid was the first known wrestler to use it as a regular move. Theyre busting it out in a house show in 87. I told you this was way ahead of its time.
Rating: B. Damn fine tag match here, genitalia not mattering. The Angels would beat the Glamour Girls in a Survivor Series match in two days before getting a title shot at the Rumble which was more or less their coming out party. No one remembers the Angels or the tag titles because no one cared about womens wrestling at the time and as a result, the Angels have probably less than ten WWF matches ever. Find them though and remember theyre in the late 80s. Incredible stuff.
Paul Orndorff vs. Rick Rude
These two would be in the main event Survivor Series match. This is a return match as these two had been feuding for awhile. Orndorff had quit Heenans stable and was feuding with everyone in the Heenan Family. Orndorffs manager is Oliver Humperdink, who probably wont live to see the summer this year. Orndorff pulls him to the floor immediately and the brawl is on.
Back in the ring and Rude is knocked into the ropes which he falls through, getting his leg caught. Orndorff grabs a cord and wraps it around Rudes throat. Rude is just a step ahead of a comedy heel here as he wouldnt become a serious guy for a year and a half. Bockwinkel freaking over the cheating is funny stuff. Atomic drop and a clothesline put Rude down.
Rude finally gets a knee up to stop Pauls momentum. Its so hilarious to hear Bockwinkel defend Heenan as Heenan was Bockwinkels manager for the better part of eternity back in the AWA. Rude takes over with his basic offense including a chinlock. Heenan jumps on the mic and talks about how he hasnt been doing anything wrong at all. Gorilla calls him out on it and Heenans rant is hilarious stuff.
While still in the chinlock Orndorff stands up and drops Rude backwards into an electric chair. Bockwinkel calls Gorilla out for his hypocrisy about picking on heel managers rather than face managers and Gorilla more or less blows him off. Rude takes over again and hits his punch off the top rope. Were maybe seven minutes into this and Gorilla is talking about the twenty minute mark. I guess hes just thinking ahead as there hasnt been any clipping here.
Paul makes his comeback and hammers away to more or less no reaction. Back drop puts Rude down and pulls Rude up off a pin which all of the commentators agree was a bad idea. Clothesline hits and its time for the Piledriver. Heenan gets up on the apron and gets knocked down by Rude. He distracts Paul again and Rude rolls him up with the tights to end it.
Rating: C. Total run of the mill 80s match here which was just ok. Ive never been a fan of Orndorff and this was just average, which is probably why I never was that big on him. Rude winning like that is fine as it keeps heat on him and it has Orndorff lose again which would eventually lead to him turning heel again and rejoining Heenan. Totally basic match.
Bolsheviks vs. Killer Bees
Slick is with the Russians here. The national anthem is one of the best ways ever to draw heel heat. Bockwinkel wants to talk about the size of Zhukovs head for some reason. The Bees put their masks on because they like to be annoying. Blair has longer hair so I think thats him with the hair sticking out of the back of the mask. The Russians say take the masks off or were leaving. Let the stalling begin.
The referee is threatening them with a DQ if they dont get in. The bell rang so I guess this is part of the match. There go the masks but theyre in the tights of the Bees, which makes me think well be seeing them later. Apparently the winners of this get a shot at Strike Force, the tag team champions. Weve been stalling for four minutes now and FINALLY we get Brunzell vs. Boris.
Boris blocks a hip toss but walks into a head scissors to take him over. Id expect a lot of tags by the Bees. They work on the arm of Zhukov who is in trouble early. Nikolai comes in sans tag which really just gets Boris in more trouble than he was already in. Heres Volkoff in legally now and I still think those trunks will eat him one day. A double elbow takes him down for two.
They start in on the arm of Volkoff as well and then shift over to the hamstrings and the legs. Zhukov comes in and its still all Killer Bees. The Russians have had nothing at all here. Slick is going to file a complaint about the referees. They work on the hamstring even more as they couldnt be more clearly stalling without holding up a big old neon sign that says WERE STALLING!
Volkoff comes in with an atomic drop but loses control on a slam. A front facelock goes on as we shift the momentum over to the Russians. Its Blair getting beaten on here if youre interested. Gutwrench suplex gets two for Nikolai. Zhukov mostly gets a suplex on Blair but its partially botched. How do you manage to botch a vertical suplex? Its one of the most basic moves in the sport.
Back to Volkoff for some choking. Double teaming stops Blair from tagging as were well over fifteen minutes into this now. The Russians hammer away even more and knock Blair and Brunzell to the floor. We have a random bell which is waved off as the Bees put the masks on and switch off. Brunzell (everyone but the referee gets this somehow) comes in without a tag and gets a dropkick for two. The referee gets distracted and the legal man comes in with a top rope cross body to win it.
Rating: C-. This is a fine example of a long match not necessarily being a good match. It went WAY too long when you could legitimately pull out 10 minutes out of this and its the same match. Theres a lot of basic work including about 8 minutes of nothing but hamstring work on Zhukov. Boring match for the most part but nothing horrible.
Intercontinental Title: Honky Tonk Man vs. Randy Savage
Big time blood feud here as Honky had recently shoved Liz and become the evilest man alive. This is in the era where people would pay to see Honky get beaten up and the pop for the announcement of the title being on the line here shows that. Absolute eruption for Savage and he immediately clears the ring and chases Honky. Just a basic elbow to the head of Honky gets a huge pop. This guy was MONEY.
Honky tries to run and Savage is like oh hell no and we hit the ring for awhile. Hart finally interferes to save Honkys life and he gets in some offense. Sunset flip doesnt work though and its right back to Savage in control. Hart gets involved again and Honky can get a megaphone shot to the ribs to get a breather and a two count. Crowd is totally behind Savage here.
Its clear that Honky has a very limited offense, but thats the point here. Hes pushed as a completely inferior wrestler that somehow always leaves with the title. Thats why he drew so well: people would pay to see him potentially lose the title and get his ass kicked by popular guys. Savage misses a corner charge and Savage goes out to the floor.
Honky gets some back work in and leaves Savage out there for awhile. Hart gets in some shots as Savage falls to the floor again. With Savage down Honky goes to the floor after Liz. Savage attempts to kill him but gets caught by Hart. Honky accidently nails him but Jimmy is able to get up in time to prevent the elbow. Savage is sent to the floor again and goes after Jimmy. The megaphone is dropped and Savage hits Honky with it but it knocks him into the ring and its a count out win for Honky. Big BULLSHIT chant from the crowd.
Rating: C+. The crowd ate this up with a spoon and it was probably the major match on the card here. Good stuff with the idea being to have Savage beat up Honky and then lose in the end on a technicality which is exactly what they did. This worked very well and it did its job perfectly. Good match although nothing technically worth anything.
Savage pops him with the (not fake) guitar post match.
No mention at all of Survivor Series which makes me think this was broadcast later on like they did with SNME.
Jimmy Hart and Danny Davis say theyll take care of Jake Roberts. Ive never heard Davis talk I dont think. He has a very thick New York accent.
During the transition between the two guys during which we see the announcers for a bit, Demolitions music is playing for no apparent reason. Its intermission so maybe this is live.
Jake says hell hit a DDT on Davis.
Strike Force says theyre the new champions but theyll prove they should have the belts here against the Hart Foundation.
DiBiase, also brand new, says that hes not worried about Ivan Putski. He shouldnt be either as Putski was old in 84 and over the hill in 85.
Jake Roberts vs. Danny Davis
Davis is a former referee that is just now getting good enough to be a jobber. Theres no Jimmy Hart here for some reason. Davis stalls like a Memphis man which he isnt. They have to do this because theres no one in the arena that thinks Jake will have any issues once he gets his hands on Danny. The fans however dont like the idea of wasting two minutes on hiding in the ropes though so theyre not very pleased.
They lock up but Jake wont punch him for some reason. More locking up and more stalling. Danny wont do a test of strength as were about three and a half minutes into this and the high point has been a tie up. Jake gets a knuckle lock (half a test of strength) and tortures Danny with it for a bit. One arm slam by Jake as were just killing time here. More stalling, this time on the floor. Danny gets in his jobber offense for a minute or so until Jake gets bored and DDTs the hell out of him to end it.
Rating: F. This got 8 minutes. Do I need to explain why this was boring as all hell? I dont think so.
Damien goes on Davis post match. They do a semi-injury angle where Davis might have a bad neck.
Tag Titles: Strike Force vs. Hart Foundation
This should be good. Nice reaction for the champions which makes me happy as Ive always been a fan of this team. Strike Force got the titles recently and this is their rematch. We hear a bit about the Dungeon as Hart vs. Martel starts us off. Bret takes him down to start and has control early on. Martel makes a brief comeback and we get the double switch to Jim and Tito.
Neidhart takes the straps down for some reason and we get a surprisingly decent mat sequence. Tito grabs a headlock to take over as they definitely have a lot of time to work with as theyre going pretty slowly here. They really like headlocks here and its back to Martel vs. Hart with Martel using said hold. Small package gets two as were getting close to boring here.
Anvil works on Tito now with a chinlock. Nothing any good going on here at all. Elbow drop misses as we talk about Jimmys stable for awhile to fill in time. Off to Bret and Tito now with Bret and the Foundation in control. Martel gets the hot tag, lands some punches and then is sent to the floor to give the Harts control all over again. Were going to be here for awhile it seems.
Bear hug by Anvil goes on and of course that doesnt end it. Tito screams at Martel to get going and that does nothing. Bret and Anvil hammer away with absolutely nothing of note happening. Martel gets an OConnor Roll for a two count as Im so bored here. Its not the bad bored but the going on too long bored, which is far worse as theres nothing to make fun of for a change.
Martel gets a leg hand in to a charging Hart but Anvil makes the save. Tito comes in and the referee is cool with the lack of tagging. Heel miscommunication sends Hart to the floor and its off to Tito. Flying forearm gets two as Bret saves. Boston Crab, the hold that won the titles for Strike Force, cant go on but Strike Force rams them together. Another attempt at the Crab results in a megaphone to the back of Martels head and its a DQ. Oh blast it all.
Rating: D+. Far too long here for a cheap finish but it wasnt that bad. This is another example of where long doesnt equal good. These two never had a great and mighty blowoff match so this is more or less the best youre going to get. Good match but too long and a bad ending bring it down.
The Harts beat down Strike Force post match because they feel like it. This happening to the peppy Strike Force music is funny for some reason. Tito gets some belt shots to the head to save his team.
Ted DiBiase vs. Ivan Putski
Pre match DiBiase says he was thinking about buying MSG but the Knicks made him change his mind. Great way to get heat. Nice nostalgia pop for Putski and thats all hes going to have here. Putski is an OLD guy and is beyond worthless at this point. Hes only 46 here but he looks about 60. Hes also tiny, standing about 58.
Top wristlock to start us off by Putski so DiBiase runs. Ok so he runs a lot. This is going to be a squash once we get going but we cant seem to get there. DiBiase would be top heel in about a month and a half which is kind of odd given how he is here. Polish Hammer, Putskis finisher, hits and DiBiase hits the floor but isnt out at all. DiBiase gets a powerslam out of nowhere as his one move to win it. Not a squash actually. Im surprised. No rating as this flew by and was just there to make Ted look good, which it mostly did I guess.
Bam Bam Bigelow vs. King Kong Bundy
No Hogan or Andre I guess as we have like six minutes left. This was a big match I guess as Bigelow was a pretty big deal at this point. As you know, if youve seen one battle of the giants youve seen them all. Corner splash misses for Bundy and an elbow gets two for Bigelow. Bigelow is sent to the floor quickly as were just getting ready for the ending here. Bundy misses a splash (and lands on his knees, not his chest, meaning theres no real reason for him to be stunned) and Bigelow gets one of his own to end this quick. Total nothing match and just a way to send the fans home happy.
Overall Rating: C-. This was watchable but it went on a bit too long. I cant imagine sitting in the crowd for this as it seemingly never ended. The two long tag matches would have been better live I think but theyre still a bit much here. Its definitely not a bad show but nothing you really need to see. The taping schedule must have come into play as there wasnt a word mentioned of the PPV in two days. Weird but whatever. Maybe this was aired after the show. Anyway, nothing that bad here but just a house show really.
