WWE Survivor Series ‘88
November 24, 1988
Richfield Coliseum
Richfield, Ohio
The WWE returned to the greater Cleveland area for the 2nd annual Survivor Series. They had blown off the Hogan-Andre feud once and for all and the golden age of wrestling was finally starting to wind down. Oddly enough, growing up my mom tried to keep me from watching wrestling for a long time. After months of begging her, she finally let me rent a show from the local grocery store. This would be that show. I recently got to watch the full PPV broadcast of this show via the Survivor Series anthology. The coliseum video version is the most chopped up clipped show I’ve ever personally witnessed so I was very interested in the full broadcast.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Ultimate Warrior (co-captain), Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake (co-captain), Blue Blazer, Sam Houston, and “Jumping” Jim Brunzell vs. Honky Tonk Man (co-captain), “Outlaw” Ron Bass (co-captain), Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, Bad News Brown, and “Dangerous” Danny Davis w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
Example #1 of the difference between the clipped version of the show and the full PPV broadcast. This match is 2nd on the coliseum video version when in reality it was the opening match. Just not the same feel this year in terms of the heat on Honky Tonk Man. Warrior beating him at SummerSlam kind of took all the steam out of him once and for all. This is still a decent match though. The match gets down to Warrior against Bass and Valentine. Warrior pretty much squashes them both and is the sole survivor. **
10 Team Survivor Series Elimination Match
Demolition (Ax and Smash) (captains), Brainbusters (Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard), Fabulous Rougeaus (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau), Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov), and Conquistadores w/ Bobby Heenan, Jimmy Hart, and Mr. Fuji vs. Powers of Pain (Warlord and Barbarian)(captains), British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith), Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart), Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty), and Young Stallions (Paul Roma and Jim Powers)
Like last year’s version of this match, this is a true gem that has to be seen to be appreciated. Bell to bell action with some of the best tag teams of all time. It’s one of my personal favorite Survivor Series matches ever, and while it does slow down towards the end of the match it makes up for with the underdog story of the Conquistadores of all teams making it to the end, and of course, Mr. Fuji turning on Demolition turning them face, and joining up with the Powers of Pain in a clever double turn. I have to admit, when I first watched the show I thought it was Fuji turning baby face, but that wasn’t the case at all. Demolition became baby face tag team champions overnight. Loved that storyline, and really loved this match. A true classic that I may overrate a bit, but I don’t care. ****1/2
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Jake “The Snake” Roberts (co-captain), “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Tito Santana, Ken Patera, and Scott Casey vs. Andre the Giant (co-captain), Dino Bravo (co-captain), “Ravishing” Rick Rude, Mr. Perfect, and Harley Race w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan and Frenchy Martin
After his feud with Hogan ended, Andre began a storyline with Jake Roberts. The story was that he fears snakes, and so Jake began to antagonize the big man. This match was turning into a squash as Jake found himself in a situation where it was 4 on 1. He got a small measure of revenge by pinning Rick Rude with a DDT, but then Andre came in and viciously choked out Jake Roberts to the point where he was disqualified. I loved this angle because it showed how much vengeance Andre would show when he was backed into a corner. Just showed no remorse. Very believable. Despite being dq’d Mr. Perfect came in and pinned Jake giving the win to Dino Bravo and Mr. Perfect. **1/2
Main Event
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Randy Savage (co-captain), Hulk Hogan (co-captain), Hercules, Hillbilly Jim, and Koko B. Ware w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. Big Bossman (co-captain), Akeem (co-captain), Ted Dibiase, King Haku, and Red Rooster w/ Bobby Heenan and Slick
After SummerSlam, Hogan found himself in a feud with the Big Bossman in the famous attack on the Brother Love show. Slick paired the Bossman up with Akeem, who used to be the One Man Gang. Meanwhile Bobby Heenan tried to sell Hercules as a slave to Ted Dibiase, so those two had issues. This was a fun match that doesn’t get a lot of credit, but I’ve personally have to ask the question, what isn’t to like about it? It winds down to the Mega Powers up against the Twin Towers (Bossman and Akeem) and Haku. Hogan gets caught and handcuffed to the ring rope leaving Savage to fight 3 guys. Bossman gets counted out while he works over Hogan with a nightstick. Bossman then gets Akeem disqualified by attacking Savage. Hogan makes a comeback and manages to knock out Bobby Heenan and Slick, and Elizabeth pick pockets Slick and gets the key to the cuffs. Hogan gets un-cuffed and gets the hot tag from Savage and finishes Haku with the usual. The sports entertainment side of things was rather silly, but I’m a sucker for it if it makes SOME kind of sense. Hogan gives Elizabeth a big hug after the match and Savage doesn’t look happy at all. ***
Final Analysis: You could tell that the WWE was trying to go in a new direction. The Hogan-Andre feud was over and new fresh feuds were still in their infancy here. The Mega Powers were showing their first cracks here and an explosion was imminent. The point is, the company still had a nice direction and much of the roster had something to do and something to contribute.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
WWE SummerSlam '88
SummerSlam ‘88
August 29, 1988
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York
Continuing the wave of success on Pay Per View, Vince McMahon decided to add another PPV for the year. SummerSlam was added to the calendar and it would become the biggest even of the summer. In 1988 they were playing off of Savage’s title win at WrestleMania IV and it was a natural tag feud to infuse him into the Hogan-Dibiase-Andre saga. This is a nice example of long term, forward-thinking booking. Let’s go to the show.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and “Superstar” Billy Graham
Fabulous Rougeaus (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau) w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
The Rougeaus were coming off a heel turn where Jimmy Hart took the contract of the Hart Foundation and gave it to the Rougeaus. Silly, but effective. The Bulldogs were pretty much just passing their time before their eventual departure from the WWE not long after this. This was a hot opener. For years I only had the clipped coliseum video version of this. I recently got the full broadcast PPV anthology version released a few years ago. I always knew the match had to be a little bit better than the clipped version suggests, because it ends in a 15 minute draw, and I’m pretty sure it was clipped down to about 10-11 minutes or so. I was right, and the clipped version doesn’t do it justice. Both teams were working very hard for the MSG crowd here. ***
Bad News Brown vs. Ken Patera
Bad News Brown was getting a push so the outcome here was not in question. I liked the psychology of Patera trying really hard to get either the bear hug or the full nelson locked in on Bad News to try and win, but it wasn’t going to work. Brown eventually hits Patera with the ghetto blaster for the win. Not a good match, but I’ll give a little credit for the minimal psychology. ¾*
“Ravishing” Rick Rude w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. Junkyard Dog
Odd choice here as Rude was still in the middle of his white hot feud with Jake Roberts. You would think they would have a blow off match here, but times were different I guess. This would be Junkyard Dog’s last WWE PPV appearance before heading off to the NWA. Rude did his best here but JYD was pretty much un-carryable at this point. The end comes when Rude pulls down his tights to reveal another pair of tights with Sheryl Roberts face imprinted on them. This enrages Jake Roberts and he comes out to settle things with Rude but gets JYD disqualified for his efforts. ½*
Powers of Pain (Warlord and Barbarian) w/ The Baron vs. Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov) w/ Slick
The Powers of Pain came in with enormous popularity in 1988 and this was pretty much a match designed to get them over as monsters and prepare them for the inevitable feud with Demolition. The soviets got some token offense in, but this was pretty much just a squash match to put the Powers of Pain over. *
WWE IC Championship
Honky Tonk Man (champion) w/ Jimmy Hart vs. Ultimate Warrior
Most know the story here. This was originally going to be Honky vs. Brutus Beefcake. But Beefcake was “injured” by Ron Bass so this became Honky vs. a mystery opponent. He came out as the cocky champion, holding the title at this point for over a year, and said “bring out anyone!” Then Warriors music hit and the MSG crowd went absolutely apeshit. Warrior blitzed Honky and beat him in about 30 seconds. A joyful payoff to all of the months of Honky losing match after match by count out or disqualification just to save his title. ¼*
“The Rock” Don Muraco vs. Dino Bravo w/ Frenchy Martin
Bobby Heenan joins Gorilla and Graham on commentary for this match and hypes up the Mega Powers-Mega Bucks match later on. I guess this is a blow off to this feud here. Not much of a match, although the Coliseum video version has this clipped down to like a minute, and it’s actually a few minutes longer than that. Dino Bravo hits his side slam for the win. ½*
WWE Tag Team Championship
Demolition (Ax and Smash) (champions) w/ Jimmy Hart and Mr. Fuji vs. Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart)
As mentioned before, Jimmy Hart turned his back on the Harts and the idea here was he was scheming with Mr. Fuji to help the heel champions beat the Hart Foundation. That’s a simple story but a damn good one. I love this match, and it’s yet another match that has aged quite well over the years. They would have an even better match 2 years later, but this was almost as good, and the crowd was totally into it. The ending comes with Jimmy Hart throwing the megaphone into Ax and him blasting Bret for the 3 count to retain. I might have overrated this match but I don’t care I still love it today. ***3/4
Big Bossman w/ Slick vs. Koko B. Ware
Ray Traylor (Bossman) had just debuted so Koko gets the JTTS treatment here and it turns out to be a glorified squash match here to put Bossman over. Koko got some nice offense in the match, including a beautiful dropkick off the top rope. Bossman eventually overwhelms him. **
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. Hercules
Hercules doesn’t have Heenan here, leaving Gorilla and Graham to contemplate where he is. Turns out it was a subtle sign that Heenan was about to turn on Hercules and turn Herc baby face. Roberts of course as we saw earlier is still very much in his heated feud with Rick Rude. This was a decent match that sent the fans home happy as Jake got the DDT, the win, and Herc got the Damien treatment. *3/4
Main Event
Special Referee: Jesse “The Body” Ventura
Mega Powers (Hulk Hogan and “Macho Man” Randy Savage) w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. Mega Bucks (Andre the Giant and “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase) w/ Virgil and Bobby Heenan
It was a natural match and it was great booking. The ultimate payoff would be the inevitable Hogan-Savage break up and match at WrestleMania V, but first you need to build the relationship up and show subtle cracks in the armor and that’s exactly what they did. I guess you can’t get away with that kind of long term forward thinking today because it seems that stories now only go week to week, and maybe month to month if we’re lucky. Oh well, that’s just the old geezer in me longing for the old days I guess. Anyway, this match is what it is. Formula tag match. The end comes when Elizabeth takes her skirt off (don’t get excited guys, she has a bikini bottom on still) and distracts everyone involved. The baby faces make the comeback. Savage hits the elbow, Hogan hits the leg drop on Dibiase, and Jesse makes the very reluctant three count and all is right with the world. This has always been a feel-good match for me. ***1/4
Final Analysis: The show is still entertaining today. I can’t say that it is a well booked show overall, but nothing here really is detrimental to any storylines going on at the time, and no one felt like they didn’t get their money’s worth.
August 29, 1988
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York
Continuing the wave of success on Pay Per View, Vince McMahon decided to add another PPV for the year. SummerSlam was added to the calendar and it would become the biggest even of the summer. In 1988 they were playing off of Savage’s title win at WrestleMania IV and it was a natural tag feud to infuse him into the Hogan-Dibiase-Andre saga. This is a nice example of long term, forward-thinking booking. Let’s go to the show.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and “Superstar” Billy Graham
Fabulous Rougeaus (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau) w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
The Rougeaus were coming off a heel turn where Jimmy Hart took the contract of the Hart Foundation and gave it to the Rougeaus. Silly, but effective. The Bulldogs were pretty much just passing their time before their eventual departure from the WWE not long after this. This was a hot opener. For years I only had the clipped coliseum video version of this. I recently got the full broadcast PPV anthology version released a few years ago. I always knew the match had to be a little bit better than the clipped version suggests, because it ends in a 15 minute draw, and I’m pretty sure it was clipped down to about 10-11 minutes or so. I was right, and the clipped version doesn’t do it justice. Both teams were working very hard for the MSG crowd here. ***
Bad News Brown vs. Ken Patera
Bad News Brown was getting a push so the outcome here was not in question. I liked the psychology of Patera trying really hard to get either the bear hug or the full nelson locked in on Bad News to try and win, but it wasn’t going to work. Brown eventually hits Patera with the ghetto blaster for the win. Not a good match, but I’ll give a little credit for the minimal psychology. ¾*
“Ravishing” Rick Rude w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. Junkyard Dog
Odd choice here as Rude was still in the middle of his white hot feud with Jake Roberts. You would think they would have a blow off match here, but times were different I guess. This would be Junkyard Dog’s last WWE PPV appearance before heading off to the NWA. Rude did his best here but JYD was pretty much un-carryable at this point. The end comes when Rude pulls down his tights to reveal another pair of tights with Sheryl Roberts face imprinted on them. This enrages Jake Roberts and he comes out to settle things with Rude but gets JYD disqualified for his efforts. ½*
Powers of Pain (Warlord and Barbarian) w/ The Baron vs. Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov) w/ Slick
The Powers of Pain came in with enormous popularity in 1988 and this was pretty much a match designed to get them over as monsters and prepare them for the inevitable feud with Demolition. The soviets got some token offense in, but this was pretty much just a squash match to put the Powers of Pain over. *
WWE IC Championship
Honky Tonk Man (champion) w/ Jimmy Hart vs. Ultimate Warrior
Most know the story here. This was originally going to be Honky vs. Brutus Beefcake. But Beefcake was “injured” by Ron Bass so this became Honky vs. a mystery opponent. He came out as the cocky champion, holding the title at this point for over a year, and said “bring out anyone!” Then Warriors music hit and the MSG crowd went absolutely apeshit. Warrior blitzed Honky and beat him in about 30 seconds. A joyful payoff to all of the months of Honky losing match after match by count out or disqualification just to save his title. ¼*
“The Rock” Don Muraco vs. Dino Bravo w/ Frenchy Martin
Bobby Heenan joins Gorilla and Graham on commentary for this match and hypes up the Mega Powers-Mega Bucks match later on. I guess this is a blow off to this feud here. Not much of a match, although the Coliseum video version has this clipped down to like a minute, and it’s actually a few minutes longer than that. Dino Bravo hits his side slam for the win. ½*
WWE Tag Team Championship
Demolition (Ax and Smash) (champions) w/ Jimmy Hart and Mr. Fuji vs. Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart)
As mentioned before, Jimmy Hart turned his back on the Harts and the idea here was he was scheming with Mr. Fuji to help the heel champions beat the Hart Foundation. That’s a simple story but a damn good one. I love this match, and it’s yet another match that has aged quite well over the years. They would have an even better match 2 years later, but this was almost as good, and the crowd was totally into it. The ending comes with Jimmy Hart throwing the megaphone into Ax and him blasting Bret for the 3 count to retain. I might have overrated this match but I don’t care I still love it today. ***3/4
Big Bossman w/ Slick vs. Koko B. Ware
Ray Traylor (Bossman) had just debuted so Koko gets the JTTS treatment here and it turns out to be a glorified squash match here to put Bossman over. Koko got some nice offense in the match, including a beautiful dropkick off the top rope. Bossman eventually overwhelms him. **
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. Hercules
Hercules doesn’t have Heenan here, leaving Gorilla and Graham to contemplate where he is. Turns out it was a subtle sign that Heenan was about to turn on Hercules and turn Herc baby face. Roberts of course as we saw earlier is still very much in his heated feud with Rick Rude. This was a decent match that sent the fans home happy as Jake got the DDT, the win, and Herc got the Damien treatment. *3/4
Main Event
Special Referee: Jesse “The Body” Ventura
Mega Powers (Hulk Hogan and “Macho Man” Randy Savage) w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. Mega Bucks (Andre the Giant and “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase) w/ Virgil and Bobby Heenan
It was a natural match and it was great booking. The ultimate payoff would be the inevitable Hogan-Savage break up and match at WrestleMania V, but first you need to build the relationship up and show subtle cracks in the armor and that’s exactly what they did. I guess you can’t get away with that kind of long term forward thinking today because it seems that stories now only go week to week, and maybe month to month if we’re lucky. Oh well, that’s just the old geezer in me longing for the old days I guess. Anyway, this match is what it is. Formula tag match. The end comes when Elizabeth takes her skirt off (don’t get excited guys, she has a bikini bottom on still) and distracts everyone involved. The baby faces make the comeback. Savage hits the elbow, Hogan hits the leg drop on Dibiase, and Jesse makes the very reluctant three count and all is right with the world. This has always been a feel-good match for me. ***1/4
Final Analysis: The show is still entertaining today. I can’t say that it is a well booked show overall, but nothing here really is detrimental to any storylines going on at the time, and no one felt like they didn’t get their money’s worth.
Countdown to WrestleMania XXVIII - Top 50 Greatest WrestleMania Matches of all time
Since I’ve been doing the recaps of a lot of the early WrestleMania’s I thought I would just give you the quick list of my Top 50 WrestleMania matches of all time. I tweeted them last week, but here is the full list.
50. WrestleMania XIV – WWE European Championship – Triple H vs. Owen Hart
49. WrestleMania XXI – Undertaker vs. Randy Orton
48. WrestleMania VII – Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty) vs. Barbarian and
Haku
47. WrestleMania III – 6 Man Tag Team Match - Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) and Danny Davis vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Tito Santana
46. WrestleMania XII – Undertaker vs. Diesel
45. WrestleMania XXIII – WWE World Championship – Batista vs. Undertaker
44. WrestleMania XXII – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Rob Van Dam vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Ric Flair vs. Finley vs. Matt Hardy vs. Lashley
43. WrestleMania IV – WWE Championship Tournament Finals – Ted Dibiase vs. Randy Savage
42. WrestleMania XXII – WWE Championship – John Cena vs. Triple H
41. WrestleMania XXIV – WWE Championship – Triple Threat Match – Randy Orton vs. John Cena vs. Triple H
40. WrestleMania XXVII – Undertaker vs. Triple H
39. WrestleMania II – WWE Tag Team Championship – Dream Team (Greg Valentine and
Brutus Beefcake) vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
38. WrestleMania XX – Chris Jericho vs. Christian
37. WrestleMania XXVI – WWE Championship – Batista vs. John Cena
36. WrestleMania XXIV – Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair
35. WrestleMania XVII – No Holds Barred – Vince McMahon vs. Shane McMahon
34. WrestleMania XV – WWE Championship – Rock vs. Steve Austin
33. WrestleMania XVIII – Rock vs. Hulk Hogan
32. WrestleMania XXIV – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – CM Punk vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Carlito vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. John Morrison
31. WrestleMania XVII – Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle
30. WrestleMania XVII – Undertaker vs. Triple H
29. WrestleMania XIV – WWE Championship – Shawn Michaels vs. Steve Austin
28. WrestleMania XXVI – WWE World Championship – Chris Jericho vs. Edge
27. WrestleMania V –WWE Championship – Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan
26. WrestleMania XX – Handicap Match – Rock and Sock Connection (Rock and Mick Foley) vs. Evolution (Randy Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair)
25. WrestleMania VI – WWE Championship and WWE IC Championship – Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior
24. WrestleMania XIX – Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho
23. WrestleMania XIX – Rock vs. Steve Austin
22. WrestleMania XXIII – WWE Championship – John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels
21. WrestleMania XXII – Hardcore Match – Edge vs. Mick Foley
20. WrestleMania XXIV – WWE World Championship – Edge vs. Undertaker
19. WrestleMania XX – WWE Championship – Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle
18. WrestleMania XIX – WWE Championship – Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar
17. WrestleMania VIII – WWE IC Championship – Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart
16. WrestleMania XI – WWE Championship – Diesel vs. Shawn Michaels
15. WrestleMania XXI – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Edge vs. Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Kane vs. Christian
14. WrestleMania XVI – WWE Tag Team Championship – Triple Threat Ladder Match – Dudley Boys vs. Hardy Boys vs. Edge and Christian
13. WrestleMania VII – Career Match – Randy Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior
12. WrestleMania VIII – WWE Championship – Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage
11. WrestleMania XXVI – Streak vs. Career Match – Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
10. WrestleMania XXI – Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle
9. WrestleMania XVII – WWE Championship – Rock vs. Steve Austin
8. WrestleMania XXV – Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
7. WrestleMania XVII – WWE Tag Team Championship – TLC Match – Dudley Boys vs. Hardy
Boys vs. Edge and Christian
6. WrestleMania XII – WWE Championship – 60 Minute Iron Man Match – Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels
5. WrestleMania X – WWE IC Championship – Ladder Match – Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels
4. WrestleMania III – WWE IC Championship – Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat
3. WrestleMania XIII – Submission Match – Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin
2. WrestleMania XX – WWE World Championship – Triple Threat Match – Triple H vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shawn Michaels
1. WrestleMania X – Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart
50. WrestleMania XIV – WWE European Championship – Triple H vs. Owen Hart
49. WrestleMania XXI – Undertaker vs. Randy Orton
48. WrestleMania VII – Rockers (Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty) vs. Barbarian and
Haku
47. WrestleMania III – 6 Man Tag Team Match - Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) and Danny Davis vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Tito Santana
46. WrestleMania XII – Undertaker vs. Diesel
45. WrestleMania XXIII – WWE World Championship – Batista vs. Undertaker
44. WrestleMania XXII – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Rob Van Dam vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Ric Flair vs. Finley vs. Matt Hardy vs. Lashley
43. WrestleMania IV – WWE Championship Tournament Finals – Ted Dibiase vs. Randy Savage
42. WrestleMania XXII – WWE Championship – John Cena vs. Triple H
41. WrestleMania XXIV – WWE Championship – Triple Threat Match – Randy Orton vs. John Cena vs. Triple H
40. WrestleMania XXVII – Undertaker vs. Triple H
39. WrestleMania II – WWE Tag Team Championship – Dream Team (Greg Valentine and
Brutus Beefcake) vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
38. WrestleMania XX – Chris Jericho vs. Christian
37. WrestleMania XXVI – WWE Championship – Batista vs. John Cena
36. WrestleMania XXIV – Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair
35. WrestleMania XVII – No Holds Barred – Vince McMahon vs. Shane McMahon
34. WrestleMania XV – WWE Championship – Rock vs. Steve Austin
33. WrestleMania XVIII – Rock vs. Hulk Hogan
32. WrestleMania XXIV – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – CM Punk vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Carlito vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. John Morrison
31. WrestleMania XVII – Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle
30. WrestleMania XVII – Undertaker vs. Triple H
29. WrestleMania XIV – WWE Championship – Shawn Michaels vs. Steve Austin
28. WrestleMania XXVI – WWE World Championship – Chris Jericho vs. Edge
27. WrestleMania V –WWE Championship – Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan
26. WrestleMania XX – Handicap Match – Rock and Sock Connection (Rock and Mick Foley) vs. Evolution (Randy Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair)
25. WrestleMania VI – WWE Championship and WWE IC Championship – Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior
24. WrestleMania XIX – Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho
23. WrestleMania XIX – Rock vs. Steve Austin
22. WrestleMania XXIII – WWE Championship – John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels
21. WrestleMania XXII – Hardcore Match – Edge vs. Mick Foley
20. WrestleMania XXIV – WWE World Championship – Edge vs. Undertaker
19. WrestleMania XX – WWE Championship – Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle
18. WrestleMania XIX – WWE Championship – Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar
17. WrestleMania VIII – WWE IC Championship – Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. Bret Hart
16. WrestleMania XI – WWE Championship – Diesel vs. Shawn Michaels
15. WrestleMania XXI – Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Edge vs. Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Kane vs. Christian
14. WrestleMania XVI – WWE Tag Team Championship – Triple Threat Ladder Match – Dudley Boys vs. Hardy Boys vs. Edge and Christian
13. WrestleMania VII – Career Match – Randy Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior
12. WrestleMania VIII – WWE Championship – Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage
11. WrestleMania XXVI – Streak vs. Career Match – Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
10. WrestleMania XXI – Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle
9. WrestleMania XVII – WWE Championship – Rock vs. Steve Austin
8. WrestleMania XXV – Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
7. WrestleMania XVII – WWE Tag Team Championship – TLC Match – Dudley Boys vs. Hardy
Boys vs. Edge and Christian
6. WrestleMania XII – WWE Championship – 60 Minute Iron Man Match – Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels
5. WrestleMania X – WWE IC Championship – Ladder Match – Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels
4. WrestleMania III – WWE IC Championship – Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat
3. WrestleMania XIII – Submission Match – Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin
2. WrestleMania XX – WWE World Championship – Triple Threat Match – Triple H vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shawn Michaels
1. WrestleMania X – Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart
WrestleMania IV
WrestleMania IV
March 27, 1988
Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino Convention Center
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Here is a show that not a lot of people like. It has been called “WrestleMania Bore.” The theme of the show was to decide the undisputed WWE Champion via a 14 man single elimination tournament. Andre the Giant finally got his rematch with Hulk Hogan and won the title from him. The only problem is that he gave up the title to the “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase immediately afterwards which prompted President Jack Tunney to vacate the title and put it up for grabs in this tournament at WrestleMania. Like I said, not a lot of people hold this match in much regard. I personally have a special fondness for this event. This was the first ever pro wrestling video I have in my collection, and I have always appreciated that this event has a certain charm to it. I am well aware, that I am in the minority on that front.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, and Bob Uecker (battle royal only)
20 Man Battle Royal
Not quite the same heat that the battle royal had at WrestleMania II with the participation of NFL players, but this was an easy way to get a bunch of people a WrestleMania pay day. I am a sucker for battle royals, I’ll be honest. This one is okay, as the match dwindles down to Bad News Brown, Bret Hart, and Junkyard Dog. Bad News and Bret are the two heels so they conspire and get rid of JYD. Just when we think that Bad News and the Hitman are gonna split the purse money, Bad News hits Bret with the Ghetto blaster and eliminates him. Bret is understandably pissed and comes back in the ring and takes out Brown, and smashes the trophy that was awarded to the winner. This was essentially Bret Hart’s (and Jim Neidhart by default) face turn, and was supposed to result in a big singles push (according to Bret). The push never happened though (at least in 1988). **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
“Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase w/ Virgil and Andre the Giant vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan
Allegedly, Dibiase was supposed to win this tournament and the championship. Like a lot of rumors in professional wrestling, I never really know what to believe. Anyway, this is a decent enough opener. Dibiase wins when Andre nails Duggan and pins him. Dibiase moves onto the Quarterfinals. **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Dino Bravo w/ Frenchy Martin vs. “The Rock” Don Muraco w/ “Superstar” Billy Graham
One thing that became a running WrestleMania joke between Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura was the reference of Dino Bravo “setting the bench press record” with help from Ventura. It started as Jesse sort of denying it, and by WrestleMania V Jesse is simply annoyed that people keep talking about it, and at WrestleMania VI Jesse just says “thank you.” Okay, so maybe you have to watch the shows to be as impressed as I am with the running joke. Or maybe I’m nuts. Either way, this match was just a power vs. power match. Not a whole lot to it, Muraco wins by DQ when Bravo puts the ref in the way when Muraco was going after him. ¾*
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Greg “The Hammer” Valentine w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
This would be Ricky’s last match before heading to brighter days in the NWA where he would have this little trilogy of matches with some guy named Ric Flair. I hear the matches are pretty good. Speaking of good matches, this match is pretty good too as you would expect from two very good workers like Steamboat and Valentine. Match is back and forth. One problem that a lot of people have with this show is the crowd is very apathetic to say the least. Even still, the match ends when Valentine reverses Steamboats high cross body block and rolls through it and gets the pin. ***1/2
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. “The Natural” Butch Reed w/ Slick
Most fans were probably thinking (and drooling) over the prospect of a Savage-Steamboat rematch in the quarterfinals. Steamboat once said too that he had been out of action for a few weeks and when he came back he saw the pairings before the show and immediately thought the same thing that he would get to return the favor to Savage from WrestleMania III. Well no such luck there. The outcome of this match wasn’t in doubt. Savage hits the flying elbow and gets the pin. **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Bam Bam Bigelow w/ Oliver Humperdink vs. One Man Gang w/ Slick
Big man vs. big man here. Bigelow of course is one of the most athletic big men you’ll ever see, and One Man Gang works hard for a guy his size. This match is a train wreck though. Bam Bam gets some nice offense in to keep it from DUD territory, but OMG gets a count out win after Slick pulled the ropes down and Bam Bam tumbled over. ½*
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. “Ravishing” Rick Rude w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
These two had one of the best and hottest feuds ever, but for some reason, the matches were never really outstanding. I think they had a couple decent ones at some MSG shows, but overall, the in-ring work during the feud lacked a little bit. This match is no exception. Just a long boring match that ends in a 15 minute time limit draw. *1/4
Ultimate Warrior vs. Hercules w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
This would be the Warrior’s PPV debut. These two were feuding and apparently it began when Warrior snapped Hercules’ steel chain. Pretty much what you would expect from these two as neither is really known for producing technical masterpieces in the ring. Warrior wins by getting the shoulder up on a double pin spot. You could tell that Warrior’s star was rising though as he had one of the biggest crowd reactions of the night. ½*
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant w/ Ted Dibiase and Virgil
The idea of this tournament was that because Hogan and Andre were the previous two champions they would both get first round byes, and face each other in the 1st match of the 2nd round. Andre was pretty much done at this point in his career so he didn’t have a lot to give. Hogan was set to go film his movie “No Holds Barred”. This match didn’t have the benefit of 90,000 fans to carry it here, and therefore it was not very good. The match ends in a double disqualification after both men hit each other with chairs. ¾*
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Ted Dibiase vs. Don Muraco w/ Billy Graham
With Hogan and Andre being eliminated, the booking really starts to unfold here, with Dibiase being booked as a top heel. Nice little match here that Dibiase gets a clean win and is made to look real strong here. **1/4
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Greg Valentine w/ Jimmy Hart vs. Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth
Two great professionals here go at it, and they put together a decent match. The main problem here of course, as usual, is the time restraints with so many damn matches on the same show, but this is decent enough. Savage reverses a figure four leg lock into an inside cradle and gets the win. **1/2
WWE IC Championship
Honky Tonk Man (champion) w/ Jimmy Hart and Peggy Sue vs. Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake
Peggy Sue is actually Sensational Sherri with a wig. This match suffered a little bit from the aforementioned apathetic crowd. Put this match in the Silverdome and you wouldn’t be able to hear yourself think there was so much fun in this match. Not great from technical standpoint by any stretch, but I really love Honky’s heel tactics and Brutus plays right along with it, and Jimmy Hart ties it all together on the outside. Match ends when the ref gets knocked out by Jimmy Hart and Honky gets disqualified. Jimmy Hart gets a haircut for his troubles though from Brutus. Sue me; I liked the sports entertainment aspect of it. *3/4
6 Man Tag Team Match
Islanders (Haku and Tama) and Bobby Heenan vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Koko B. Ware
The storyline here was that Heenan and the Islanders dog knapped the Bulldogs mascot Matilda. They are pissed, so Heenan comes out in a dog protection outfit. Just brilliant comedy from Heenan. Heenan gets the win when the Islanders slam him onto Koko for the pin fall. Match started off really hot, and slowed down, but still has some comedy value. *3/4
WWE Championship Tournament – Semifinals
Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. One Man Gang w/ Slick
The Gang is coming off a bye so the storyline here is very obvious. Savage against all odds for a shot at the finals. Decent big vs. little match here but these two guys would have better matches against each other. Savage wins by disqualification when OMG hits him with Slick’s cane. They sold the storyline and Savage gets to the finals against Dibiase. *1/2
WWE Tag Team Championship
Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel) (champions) vs. Demolition (Ax and Smash) w/ Mr. Fuji
This would be the beginning of Demolition’s two year run at the top of the tag team division. Demolition being sold by the commentators as dominant heels, and the champions are perceived as true underdogs. Watching this match you never get the feeling that Strike Force has a shot, and that is what I like about this match. Sometimes the fact that something is predictable is a GOOD thing. The match ends when Ax hits Martel with Fuji’s cane and Smash makes the pin. This would be the first of 3 tag title reigns for Demolition. Very solid match. **1/2
Main Event
WWE Championship Tournament Finals
Ted Dibiase w/ Andre the Giant vs. Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth
*Rated #43 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
One of my favorite matches ever here and underrated for the story that it told. Savage has wrestled 3 times already, and Dibiase only 2 coming off a bye. Dibiase has Andre in his corner. So the odds are very much stacked against Savage and they just make that fact obvious. Great storytelling! Andre is wreaking havoc on Savage early which prompts Miss Elizabeth to even the odds and get some help. The help comes in the form of Hulk Hogan. That match continues and things look bad for Savage, but when Andre distracts the ref, Hogan comes in and hits Dibiase with a chair, and Savage hits the flying elbow for the WWE Title. This is an underrated match, mostly because there is an overall disdain for this show. ***3/4
Final Analysis: I totally understand why most people don’t find this show very appealing. As I said earlier I find that this show has a certain charm to it that I can’t explain. Randy Savage is also one of my favorite wrestlers of all time and this is his big moment. This is also a very well booked show. I mean if you’re gonna have Savage win this tournament, then booking it exactly how they did, is the right thing to do. Yes it would have been nice to see Savage-Steamboat part 2, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the booking made complete sense. What can I say? I like this show a lot!
March 27, 1988
Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino Convention Center
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Here is a show that not a lot of people like. It has been called “WrestleMania Bore.” The theme of the show was to decide the undisputed WWE Champion via a 14 man single elimination tournament. Andre the Giant finally got his rematch with Hulk Hogan and won the title from him. The only problem is that he gave up the title to the “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase immediately afterwards which prompted President Jack Tunney to vacate the title and put it up for grabs in this tournament at WrestleMania. Like I said, not a lot of people hold this match in much regard. I personally have a special fondness for this event. This was the first ever pro wrestling video I have in my collection, and I have always appreciated that this event has a certain charm to it. I am well aware, that I am in the minority on that front.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, and Bob Uecker (battle royal only)
20 Man Battle Royal
Not quite the same heat that the battle royal had at WrestleMania II with the participation of NFL players, but this was an easy way to get a bunch of people a WrestleMania pay day. I am a sucker for battle royals, I’ll be honest. This one is okay, as the match dwindles down to Bad News Brown, Bret Hart, and Junkyard Dog. Bad News and Bret are the two heels so they conspire and get rid of JYD. Just when we think that Bad News and the Hitman are gonna split the purse money, Bad News hits Bret with the Ghetto blaster and eliminates him. Bret is understandably pissed and comes back in the ring and takes out Brown, and smashes the trophy that was awarded to the winner. This was essentially Bret Hart’s (and Jim Neidhart by default) face turn, and was supposed to result in a big singles push (according to Bret). The push never happened though (at least in 1988). **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
“Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase w/ Virgil and Andre the Giant vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan
Allegedly, Dibiase was supposed to win this tournament and the championship. Like a lot of rumors in professional wrestling, I never really know what to believe. Anyway, this is a decent enough opener. Dibiase wins when Andre nails Duggan and pins him. Dibiase moves onto the Quarterfinals. **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Dino Bravo w/ Frenchy Martin vs. “The Rock” Don Muraco w/ “Superstar” Billy Graham
One thing that became a running WrestleMania joke between Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura was the reference of Dino Bravo “setting the bench press record” with help from Ventura. It started as Jesse sort of denying it, and by WrestleMania V Jesse is simply annoyed that people keep talking about it, and at WrestleMania VI Jesse just says “thank you.” Okay, so maybe you have to watch the shows to be as impressed as I am with the running joke. Or maybe I’m nuts. Either way, this match was just a power vs. power match. Not a whole lot to it, Muraco wins by DQ when Bravo puts the ref in the way when Muraco was going after him. ¾*
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Greg “The Hammer” Valentine w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
This would be Ricky’s last match before heading to brighter days in the NWA where he would have this little trilogy of matches with some guy named Ric Flair. I hear the matches are pretty good. Speaking of good matches, this match is pretty good too as you would expect from two very good workers like Steamboat and Valentine. Match is back and forth. One problem that a lot of people have with this show is the crowd is very apathetic to say the least. Even still, the match ends when Valentine reverses Steamboats high cross body block and rolls through it and gets the pin. ***1/2
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
“Macho Man” Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. “The Natural” Butch Reed w/ Slick
Most fans were probably thinking (and drooling) over the prospect of a Savage-Steamboat rematch in the quarterfinals. Steamboat once said too that he had been out of action for a few weeks and when he came back he saw the pairings before the show and immediately thought the same thing that he would get to return the favor to Savage from WrestleMania III. Well no such luck there. The outcome of this match wasn’t in doubt. Savage hits the flying elbow and gets the pin. **
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Bam Bam Bigelow w/ Oliver Humperdink vs. One Man Gang w/ Slick
Big man vs. big man here. Bigelow of course is one of the most athletic big men you’ll ever see, and One Man Gang works hard for a guy his size. This match is a train wreck though. Bam Bam gets some nice offense in to keep it from DUD territory, but OMG gets a count out win after Slick pulled the ropes down and Bam Bam tumbled over. ½*
WWE Championship Tournament – First Round Match
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. “Ravishing” Rick Rude w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
These two had one of the best and hottest feuds ever, but for some reason, the matches were never really outstanding. I think they had a couple decent ones at some MSG shows, but overall, the in-ring work during the feud lacked a little bit. This match is no exception. Just a long boring match that ends in a 15 minute time limit draw. *1/4
Ultimate Warrior vs. Hercules w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
This would be the Warrior’s PPV debut. These two were feuding and apparently it began when Warrior snapped Hercules’ steel chain. Pretty much what you would expect from these two as neither is really known for producing technical masterpieces in the ring. Warrior wins by getting the shoulder up on a double pin spot. You could tell that Warrior’s star was rising though as he had one of the biggest crowd reactions of the night. ½*
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant w/ Ted Dibiase and Virgil
The idea of this tournament was that because Hogan and Andre were the previous two champions they would both get first round byes, and face each other in the 1st match of the 2nd round. Andre was pretty much done at this point in his career so he didn’t have a lot to give. Hogan was set to go film his movie “No Holds Barred”. This match didn’t have the benefit of 90,000 fans to carry it here, and therefore it was not very good. The match ends in a double disqualification after both men hit each other with chairs. ¾*
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Ted Dibiase vs. Don Muraco w/ Billy Graham
With Hogan and Andre being eliminated, the booking really starts to unfold here, with Dibiase being booked as a top heel. Nice little match here that Dibiase gets a clean win and is made to look real strong here. **1/4
WWE Championship Tournament – Quarterfinals
Greg Valentine w/ Jimmy Hart vs. Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth
Two great professionals here go at it, and they put together a decent match. The main problem here of course, as usual, is the time restraints with so many damn matches on the same show, but this is decent enough. Savage reverses a figure four leg lock into an inside cradle and gets the win. **1/2
WWE IC Championship
Honky Tonk Man (champion) w/ Jimmy Hart and Peggy Sue vs. Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake
Peggy Sue is actually Sensational Sherri with a wig. This match suffered a little bit from the aforementioned apathetic crowd. Put this match in the Silverdome and you wouldn’t be able to hear yourself think there was so much fun in this match. Not great from technical standpoint by any stretch, but I really love Honky’s heel tactics and Brutus plays right along with it, and Jimmy Hart ties it all together on the outside. Match ends when the ref gets knocked out by Jimmy Hart and Honky gets disqualified. Jimmy Hart gets a haircut for his troubles though from Brutus. Sue me; I liked the sports entertainment aspect of it. *3/4
6 Man Tag Team Match
Islanders (Haku and Tama) and Bobby Heenan vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Koko B. Ware
The storyline here was that Heenan and the Islanders dog knapped the Bulldogs mascot Matilda. They are pissed, so Heenan comes out in a dog protection outfit. Just brilliant comedy from Heenan. Heenan gets the win when the Islanders slam him onto Koko for the pin fall. Match started off really hot, and slowed down, but still has some comedy value. *3/4
WWE Championship Tournament – Semifinals
Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. One Man Gang w/ Slick
The Gang is coming off a bye so the storyline here is very obvious. Savage against all odds for a shot at the finals. Decent big vs. little match here but these two guys would have better matches against each other. Savage wins by disqualification when OMG hits him with Slick’s cane. They sold the storyline and Savage gets to the finals against Dibiase. *1/2
WWE Tag Team Championship
Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel) (champions) vs. Demolition (Ax and Smash) w/ Mr. Fuji
This would be the beginning of Demolition’s two year run at the top of the tag team division. Demolition being sold by the commentators as dominant heels, and the champions are perceived as true underdogs. Watching this match you never get the feeling that Strike Force has a shot, and that is what I like about this match. Sometimes the fact that something is predictable is a GOOD thing. The match ends when Ax hits Martel with Fuji’s cane and Smash makes the pin. This would be the first of 3 tag title reigns for Demolition. Very solid match. **1/2
Main Event
WWE Championship Tournament Finals
Ted Dibiase w/ Andre the Giant vs. Randy Savage w/ Miss Elizabeth
*Rated #43 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
One of my favorite matches ever here and underrated for the story that it told. Savage has wrestled 3 times already, and Dibiase only 2 coming off a bye. Dibiase has Andre in his corner. So the odds are very much stacked against Savage and they just make that fact obvious. Great storytelling! Andre is wreaking havoc on Savage early which prompts Miss Elizabeth to even the odds and get some help. The help comes in the form of Hulk Hogan. That match continues and things look bad for Savage, but when Andre distracts the ref, Hogan comes in and hits Dibiase with a chair, and Savage hits the flying elbow for the WWE Title. This is an underrated match, mostly because there is an overall disdain for this show. ***3/4
Final Analysis: I totally understand why most people don’t find this show very appealing. As I said earlier I find that this show has a certain charm to it that I can’t explain. Randy Savage is also one of my favorite wrestlers of all time and this is his big moment. This is also a very well booked show. I mean if you’re gonna have Savage win this tournament, then booking it exactly how they did, is the right thing to do. Yes it would have been nice to see Savage-Steamboat part 2, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the booking made complete sense. What can I say? I like this show a lot!
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Survivor Series '87
Survivor Series ‘87
November 26, 1987
Richfield Coliseum
Richfield, Ohio
Coming off the heels of the insane success of WrestleMania III, the next logical step was to put together another PPV to draw a truck load of money. It was a brilliant business decision on multiple fronts. They played off of the controversial 2 count early on in the Hogan-Andre match. Bobby Heenan and company claimed it should’ve been a 3 count and that Andre was the uncrowned champion. This of course left the fans clamoring for the biggest rematch of all time. But you don’t just make the rematch; you draw it out for all it’s worth. The other reason this show is a brilliant business decision, is to rub crap in your competitions face. In a total dick move, McMahon scheduled this for Thanksgiving night 1987. Not a big deal, except that Jim Crockett Promotions had their annual Starrcade event on thanksgiving. The cable companies were none too pleased with this, and it was the last time it happened, but Crockett was overwhelmed here, as the WWE was an unstoppable force at this point. After recently watching this show, it has aged quite well.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Honky Tonk Man (captain), “Outlaw” Ron Bass, “Dangerous” Danny Davis, “King” Harley Race, and Hercules vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage (captain), Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, and Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake
Brilliant choice for an opener as you have the most unpopular heel at the time (Honky Tonk Man) with his band of guys against 5 of the most over baby faces not named Hulk Hogan at the time. In other words, the crowd was batshit crazy for this match. Honky was in the middle of his 18 month IC Championship reign here and the crowd HATED him. It gets down to Honky against Savage, Steamboat, and Jake. Brilliant booking as those were the 3 guys that Honky had been feuding with for much of 1987 and they all took turns beating him up until finally he got knocked out of the ring. He then took the cowards way out and ran back to the dressing room leaving the three survivors. This match was super-hot, and one of my personal Survivor Series favorites. ***3/4
10 Lady Survivor Series Elimination Match
Sensational Sherri (captain), Donna Christanello, Dawn Marie, and the Glamour Girls (Judy Martin and Leilani Kai) vs. Fabulous Moolah (captain), Velvet McIntyre, Rockin’ Robin, and the Jumping Bomb Angels (Noriyo Tateno and Itsuki Yamazaki)
This would be the first time we would see women in this concept match until the 1995 Survivor Series, but these ladies put their working boots on so to speak and put on a pretty decent match. In particular, the Jumping Bomb Angels impressed everyone in the crowd with their high flying ability, something that American wrestling fans had never seen from the ladies. The style is quite common place in Japan, but it was foreign to the American fan base. The match spilled down to the Bomb Angels and the Glamour Girls, and the Angels survived. They would go onto get a nice little run in the WWE, but women’s wrestling still wasn’t near as popular as it would become. This was solid though. **
10 Team Survivor Series Elimination Match
Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) (captains), Demolition (Ax and Smash), Islanders (Haku and Tama), Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Dino Bravo), and Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov) vs.
Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel) (captains), Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and “Jumping” Jim Brunzell), Young Stallions (Paul Roma and Jim Powers), British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith), and Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau)
Yes, we have 20 men in this match, and it is great. Nonstop action. The only difference in this concept is that if one man gets eliminated, the entire team is eliminated. This is of course when the WWE actually pushed tag team wrestling, so we have a lot of talent here. The Hart Foundation had recently lost the WWE Tag titles to Strike Force, but got their revenge in this match by eliminating them. The match came down to the Harts, and Islanders vs. the Bees and the Stallions. The Harts were surprisingly eliminated, and then the Bee’s did their mask switching gimmick and were able to pin the Islanders. Odd booking as they put the Bees and Stallions over but neither really did anything, while other teams in the match would go onto great things, notably the Harts and Demolition. Odd booking aside, this is one of the best survivor series elimination matches you’ll ever see. ****1/4
Main Event
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Hulk Hogan (captain), Bam Bam Bigelow, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff, Ken Patera, and “The Magnificent” Don Muraco vs. Andre the Giant (captain), One Man Gang, King Kong Bundy, “Ravishing” Rick Rude, and “Natural” Butch Reed
This was just such a tease. The rematch between Hogan and Andre was inevitable, but this match teased it, and the match itself was a tease within the tease. Tremendous booking here. Hogan eliminated Reed early and then high fived Ken Patera which the ref viewed as a tag. Andre was waiting for Hogan to stop celebrating, but the ref force Hogan out. Andre didn’t even want to bother with Patera, so he just tagged out. Just left the fans begging for more. Finally the showdown did happen albeit brief. Hogan eventually had to deal with the Gang and Bundy on the floor and got himself counted out leaving Bam Bam to face off against the 3 monsters. Bam Bam looked like a force eliminating both Gang and Bundy, but ultimately got beat by Andre. You would be hard pressed to find better booking anywhere. Just perfection. ***1/2
Final Analysis: The length of the matches limits this to a 4 match show but all 4 matches deliver both from a workrate perspective, but more importantly a booking perspective. The show progressed storylines and left fans clamoring for more and willing to pay for the blow offs. The Hogan-Andre match did happen, on free TV, and did a monster rating. Nothing earth shattering happens on this show, but it’s just a good show, that once again, the theme with a lot of the 1980’s, has to be seen to be truly appreciated, particularly that 10 team match.
November 26, 1987
Richfield Coliseum
Richfield, Ohio
Coming off the heels of the insane success of WrestleMania III, the next logical step was to put together another PPV to draw a truck load of money. It was a brilliant business decision on multiple fronts. They played off of the controversial 2 count early on in the Hogan-Andre match. Bobby Heenan and company claimed it should’ve been a 3 count and that Andre was the uncrowned champion. This of course left the fans clamoring for the biggest rematch of all time. But you don’t just make the rematch; you draw it out for all it’s worth. The other reason this show is a brilliant business decision, is to rub crap in your competitions face. In a total dick move, McMahon scheduled this for Thanksgiving night 1987. Not a big deal, except that Jim Crockett Promotions had their annual Starrcade event on thanksgiving. The cable companies were none too pleased with this, and it was the last time it happened, but Crockett was overwhelmed here, as the WWE was an unstoppable force at this point. After recently watching this show, it has aged quite well.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Honky Tonk Man (captain), “Outlaw” Ron Bass, “Dangerous” Danny Davis, “King” Harley Race, and Hercules vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage (captain), Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, and Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake
Brilliant choice for an opener as you have the most unpopular heel at the time (Honky Tonk Man) with his band of guys against 5 of the most over baby faces not named Hulk Hogan at the time. In other words, the crowd was batshit crazy for this match. Honky was in the middle of his 18 month IC Championship reign here and the crowd HATED him. It gets down to Honky against Savage, Steamboat, and Jake. Brilliant booking as those were the 3 guys that Honky had been feuding with for much of 1987 and they all took turns beating him up until finally he got knocked out of the ring. He then took the cowards way out and ran back to the dressing room leaving the three survivors. This match was super-hot, and one of my personal Survivor Series favorites. ***3/4
10 Lady Survivor Series Elimination Match
Sensational Sherri (captain), Donna Christanello, Dawn Marie, and the Glamour Girls (Judy Martin and Leilani Kai) vs. Fabulous Moolah (captain), Velvet McIntyre, Rockin’ Robin, and the Jumping Bomb Angels (Noriyo Tateno and Itsuki Yamazaki)
This would be the first time we would see women in this concept match until the 1995 Survivor Series, but these ladies put their working boots on so to speak and put on a pretty decent match. In particular, the Jumping Bomb Angels impressed everyone in the crowd with their high flying ability, something that American wrestling fans had never seen from the ladies. The style is quite common place in Japan, but it was foreign to the American fan base. The match spilled down to the Bomb Angels and the Glamour Girls, and the Angels survived. They would go onto get a nice little run in the WWE, but women’s wrestling still wasn’t near as popular as it would become. This was solid though. **
10 Team Survivor Series Elimination Match
Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) (captains), Demolition (Ax and Smash), Islanders (Haku and Tama), Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Dino Bravo), and Bolsheviks (Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov) vs.
Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel) (captains), Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and “Jumping” Jim Brunzell), Young Stallions (Paul Roma and Jim Powers), British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith), and Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau)
Yes, we have 20 men in this match, and it is great. Nonstop action. The only difference in this concept is that if one man gets eliminated, the entire team is eliminated. This is of course when the WWE actually pushed tag team wrestling, so we have a lot of talent here. The Hart Foundation had recently lost the WWE Tag titles to Strike Force, but got their revenge in this match by eliminating them. The match came down to the Harts, and Islanders vs. the Bees and the Stallions. The Harts were surprisingly eliminated, and then the Bee’s did their mask switching gimmick and were able to pin the Islanders. Odd booking as they put the Bees and Stallions over but neither really did anything, while other teams in the match would go onto great things, notably the Harts and Demolition. Odd booking aside, this is one of the best survivor series elimination matches you’ll ever see. ****1/4
Main Event
10 Man Survivor Series Elimination Match
Hulk Hogan (captain), Bam Bam Bigelow, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff, Ken Patera, and “The Magnificent” Don Muraco vs. Andre the Giant (captain), One Man Gang, King Kong Bundy, “Ravishing” Rick Rude, and “Natural” Butch Reed
This was just such a tease. The rematch between Hogan and Andre was inevitable, but this match teased it, and the match itself was a tease within the tease. Tremendous booking here. Hogan eliminated Reed early and then high fived Ken Patera which the ref viewed as a tag. Andre was waiting for Hogan to stop celebrating, but the ref force Hogan out. Andre didn’t even want to bother with Patera, so he just tagged out. Just left the fans begging for more. Finally the showdown did happen albeit brief. Hogan eventually had to deal with the Gang and Bundy on the floor and got himself counted out leaving Bam Bam to face off against the 3 monsters. Bam Bam looked like a force eliminating both Gang and Bundy, but ultimately got beat by Andre. You would be hard pressed to find better booking anywhere. Just perfection. ***1/2
Final Analysis: The length of the matches limits this to a 4 match show but all 4 matches deliver both from a workrate perspective, but more importantly a booking perspective. The show progressed storylines and left fans clamoring for more and willing to pay for the blow offs. The Hogan-Andre match did happen, on free TV, and did a monster rating. Nothing earth shattering happens on this show, but it’s just a good show, that once again, the theme with a lot of the 1980’s, has to be seen to be truly appreciated, particularly that 10 team match.
WWE's Best PPV Matches of 2011 DVD
Best WWE PPV Matches of 2011 DVD Compilation
Picked this up the other day on recommendation from a friend. Full disclosure, I’m not the biggest fan of the current product of the WWE. I am a fan of great wrestling matches though, and based on some of the reviews for some of the matches last year, I figure this would be worth the money. I’m leaving out two matches in this review, and that is Cody Rhodes vs. Rey Mysterio and Triple H vs. Undertaker from WrestleMania XXVII, just because I plan on reviewing that shot eventually anyway. Those are also the only two matches I had seen before this so I wasn’t too interested in reviewing them anyway right now.
Royal Rumble 2011
January 30, 2011
WWE World Championship
Edge (champion) vs. Dolph Ziggler
I was very pleased with this match. This was a nice chance for Ziggler to prove that he belongs on the main event stage with a seasoned veteran like Edge. I’m also a big Edge fan, and I also enjoy Vickie Guerrero. This was a very good match, just a little too overbooked for my liking, but Edge not supposed to be using the spear was a nice touch. Ziggler did in fact prove he belonged. He didn’t look out of his element at all on the big stage, which is a good sign for WWE for the future. Edge of course would have his career cut short a few months ago due to his neck injuries. Edge won the match with an impaler. ***3/4
Elimination Chamber 2011
February 20, 2011
WWE World Championship – Smackdown! Elimination Chamber Match
Edge (champion) vs. Big Show vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Wade Barrett vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Kane
I love the elimination chamber gimmick, but like other gimmick matches, it has been run into the ground, because you know you have an entire PPV dedicated to the gimmick at the same time every year. Not a lot different than TLC matches, Hell in a Cell matches, etc. Anyway, this one is pretty good. I liked that McIntyre and Barrett were perceived to be big powerhouses in this one and it meshed nicely with the monsters Big Show and Kane. And with all of that, Edge and Rey snuck through to the end, and had themselves a nice little one on one match to finish the match when Edge pinned Rey. Elimination Chamber matches are very hard to mess up. ***3/4
Extreme Rules 2011
May 1, 2011
WWE World Championship – Ladder Match
Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio
As mentioned before, Edge was forced to retire after WrestleMania XXVII, and thus vacated the World Title. The match was a natural, Edge’s last opponent in Del Rio, against Edge’s best friend in Christian. I absolutely loved this match. Just a fun brawl using a lot of innovative ladder spots. The annoying slow-climbing was kept to a minimum. You still had the usual annoying contrived ladder spots that take forever to set up, but the emotion was there, and the crowd was with them every step of the way. As a Christian fan, it was nice to see him finally get the big title, after I had so much hope for him back in 2005 before he left for TNA. Alberto Del Rio also made a believer out of me in this match as well. Edge and Christian celebrating in the ring was a fantastic moment. Great match. ****1/4
Capitol Punishment 2011
May 31, 2011
CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio
I watched this match and couldn’t help but think about their match at WrestleMania XXVI and think that it was such a lost opportunity. This match could’ve been their WrestleMania match that was kept criminally short. What I really loved about this match was CM Punk not letting Rey get his usual contrived 619 spot, and cutting him off at every turn. Rey had to get the 619 around the ring post out of nowhere, which made for a much more believable spot. Punk finally hits the GTS and gets the pin fall. Fantastic match. ****
Money in the Bank 2011
July 17, 2011
Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Miz vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Jack Swagger vs. Alex Riley vs. R-Truth vs. Evan Bourne
Seen one money in the bank match you’ve pretty much seen them all. A lot of ladder matches and a series of high spots. Like other gimmick matches, it has been completely run into the ground. I liked the idea of everyone grabbing a ladder to start the match and then going after each other to start, but that brings up another thing that annoys me about these matches and that is there are just too many damn wrestlers. Miz did a nice job selling a knee injury, but it was mixed in with a bunch of contrived spots. The spots look great, but the match just doesn’t flow that well. Case in point is Evan Bourne’s shooting star press spot onto all of his opponents off the ladder onto the floor. It looks awesome, but really, all of the guys somehow gather around THAT spot just for Bourne to hit that move? With my ranting aside, I did like the finish of Del Rio ripping off Rey’s mask causing him to lose sight of the briefcase and worry more about people seeing his face (even though we already have). Del Rio wins money in the bank in a nice match. I have to give credit for the insane spots and bumps, but from a storytelling and psychology point of view, it isn’t that great. ***3/4
Money in the Bank 2011
July 17, 2011
WWE Championship
John Cena (champion) vs. CM Punk
Here we go! This match is the main reason I did get this set. I love Chicago crowds, and this was one of the best crowds ever. Just sheer raw emotion. This match had an old school feel too it, and it had two of my favorite wrestlers in it. The match was back and forth, non-stop action. Cena’s facial reactions when he just couldn’t put Punk away are priceless. Cena also needs to get a lot of love for really putting Punk over as an equal. This is something that Batista and Undertaker failed miserably at doing in previous feuds with Punk. After watching this match, you come away thinking that CM Punk is a main event threat and will be for life now. Cena has a lot to do with that, and his critics don’t give him enough credit for that. The storyline going into the match is CM Punk’s contract expires so if he wins the title he could leave WWE with the title. They of course reference the Montreal screwjob, and sure enough, Vince McMahon came out to screw Punk, but Cena wouldn’t let him. When Cena gets back in the ring, Punk hits the GTS and gets the pin to the shock of many and to the dismay of McMahon. Kind of a silly finish and it drags the match down a little bit, but with all of that said, this is your 2011 Match of the Year. ****1/2
SummerSlam 2011
August 14, 2011
WWE World Championship – No Holds Barred Match
Christian (champion) vs. Randy Orton
I’ve seen some really good reviews for this match, but I have to admit I have had my doubts. I’m not the biggest fan of Randy Orton as I find his style kind of annoying. I am a big Christian fan however, so I had some hope for this match. I wasn’t disappointed. This was an excellent match, as both guys told a great story. This was a great brawl with Christian trying desperately to prove that he can beat Orton on his own. Creative finish as Orton hits the RKO on the steel steps with Christian coming off the ropes. Outstanding match. ****
Night of Champions 2011
September 19, 2011
WWE World Championship
Randy Orton (champion) vs. Mark Henry
This would be Mark Henry’s finest moment of his 15 year career. It’s actually a pretty good match, and maybe the best of Henry’s career. He gets over as an unstoppable monster here, and I absolutely love the finish. Orton goes for the RKO and Henry literally swats him away like a fly and then hits him with the World’s Strongest Slam for the pin fall. ***
Night of Champions 2011
September 19, 2011
Triple H vs. CM Punk
This was on its way to being an all-time great match, and then the silly overbookings of run-ins occur and totally deflate my attitude towards this match. It’s not the fact that Triple H went over here, it’s just that unlike his match with John Cena, Punk looks like he’s small time, and all the match served to do is escalate a feud between HHH and Kevin Nash and somehow we’re all supposed to forget that we saw this feud in 2003. ***1/2
Hell in a Cell 2011
October 2, 2011
WWE Divas Championship
Kelly Kelly (champion) vs. Beth Phoenix
This is how much I paid attention to the product over the last few years. I didn’t even know that there was a difference between a Divas champion and a Women’s champion. I’m not a big fan of women’s wrestling, but this one wasn’t horrible. Phoenix ends up winning the title after a pretty decent women’s match. *1/4
Hell in a Cell 2011
October 2, 2011
WWE Championship – Triple Threat Hell in a Cell Match
John Cena (champion) vs. CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio
The hell in a cell gimmick came into play here for the ending, but this is a prime example of a match that has no business being in a hell in a cell match because it makes no sense. It makes these matches seem less important. Like I said, the finish put the cell in play, but if you’re gonna be PG there isn’t much need for a gimmick like this especially when you’re not even going to be utilizing the brutality of the Cell, and I’m not just talking about no blood (though that helps). Anyway, as a regular triple threat match goes, this is very good. I love the cat and mouse game they played at the beginning of the match and the ending was good too with Cena finding himself locked out of the cage brilliantly by Del Rio who uses a lead pipe to beat Punk while Cena is just forced to watch. ***3/4
Vengeance 2011
October 23, 2011
WWE World Championship
Mark Henry (champion) vs. Big Show
This selection was clearly made for one reason and one reason only. The ring collapsed when Henry hit Big Show with a superplex. This was decent little power vs. power match. Match ends in a no contest when the ring explodes. **
Final Analysis: This was definitely worth the money. Excellent compilation of matches by the WWE. If you want a nice snapshot of WWE 2011, this is definitely a good dvd set to get. I would’ve liked to have seen Cena vs Punk part 2 from SummerSlam, but I can’t complain too much
WrestleMania III
WrestleMania III
March 29, 1987
Pontiac Silverdome
Pontiac, Michigan
WrestleMania officially became a household name and international spectacle right here. They set an indoor attendance record of 93,173. Many have doubted that figure, and I really don’t know myself, but either way this was a sensational atmosphere and one way or another, there were a lot of people in the Silverdome on that day. It’s an event that hits on all cylinders and a lot of people argue it is the single most important show in pro wrestling history. I’m not sure about that, but if you call yourself a pro wrestling fan, then you should witness this show at least once.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura. They would be joined by Bob Uecker, Mary Hart, and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan at various points in the show as well.
Can-Am Connection (Rick Martel and Tom Zenk) vs. “Magnificent” Don Muraco and “Cowboy” Bob Orton w/ Mr. Fuji
Good choice for an opener, as it got the huge crowd on their feet. Can’t argue with 4 good workers and true professionals. Martel and Zenk were the pretty boy babyfaces while Muraco and Orton were the devious heels with their devious manager Mr. Fuji. Just a fun simple tag team match which the Connection ultimately get the win with a little schoolboy trip double team move. Excellent way to open a big show like this. **3/4
Hercules w/ Bobby “The Brain Heenan” vs. Billy Jack Haynes
Before the match Gene Okerlund did an interview with Herc and Heenan. Heenan called Billy Jack Haynes, Billy Jerk Haynes. One of my favorite little verbal exchanges between Heenan and Okerlund. I do miss Heenan. The match told a nice story as this was billed as a battle of the Full Nelsons. Very nice psychology here as both guys tried to slap the full nelson on. The match ends in a double count out, but Hercules gets the last laugh by nailing Haynes with his steel chain. Haynes does a nice blade job for effect. I’ve always liked this match, as both guys worked hard to sell the story. **1/2
6 Man Mixed Tag Team Match with midgets
King Kong Bundy, Lord Littlebrook, and Little Tokyo vs. Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid, and Little Beaver
I don’t find midget matches at all entertaining. I suppose that they have some fan base that has been carved out for them, but it has never been my cup of tea. This match was ok in the sense that they were telling a nice story about how midgets should not under any circumstances be in the ring with giants like Bundy or Hillbilly. That’s how the match ends, as King Kong Bundy ends up getting his team disqualified because he squashes Little Beaver, which is entertaining in a sick way. Ventura’s commentary also sells the sick comedy of it too. ½*
Crown Match
“King” Harley Race w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan and Fabulous Moolah vs. Junkyard Dog
JYD at this point in his career had definitely seen better days, but he was still insanely over. Harley is one of the best workers of all time. This match basically consisted of Race taking a bunch of insane bumps in a futile effort to get a good match out of the JYD. Race would win with a belly to belly suplex. The stipulation of the match was that the loser must bow to the king. JYD obliges and bows, and then nails Race with a chair. Not a very good match, but it was entertaining for what it was. *1/4 for Harley’s efforts here.
Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) w/ Johnny Valient and Dino Bravo vs. Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau)
Strange booking here as this was the payoff for Beefcake and Valentine breaking up as a team and Beefcake turning face, but they end up winning the match. It was a decent little match, but wasn’t given much time. As expected, Valentine and company turn on Beefcake and Beefcake would turn baby face for the remainder of his time with the WWE. *3/4
Hair vs. Hair Match
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. “Adorable” Adrian Adonis w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
This was a super white hot feud and the crowd was absolutely totally into. This was also Roddy Piper’s “last” match as he would go into retirement for a couple years. It really wasn’t his last match as he would return, but the 90,000 in the Silverdome didn’t know that. This is just a really super fun match. Not great, or even good from a technical standpoint, but for sheer entertainment value alone it is excellent. Piper puts Adonis to sleep, and Brutus Beefcake comes out and creates his barber gimmick here by getting revenge on Adonis by cutting his hair. ***
6 Man Tag Team Match
Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) and “Dangerous” Danny Davis w/ Jimmy Hart vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Tito Santana
*Rated #47 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
This match came about mainly through Danny Davis. This was the first “evil referee” storyline. Davis screwed over Tito Santana in his match vs. Randy Savage a little over a year before this match and cost Tito the IC Title. A year later, he screwed the Bulldogs out of their Tag Titles vs. the Hart Foundation. You can tell that the crowd was very anxious to see Davis get a major ass kicking here, and he does. He takes a tombstone piledriver by Davey Boy and sells it like its death. This is an action-packed 6 man tag that I’m very fond of. The match ends when Davey Boy gets blasted by the megaphone and Davis getting the fluke pin. ***1/2
“The Natural” Butch Reed w/ Slick vs. Koko B. Ware
This was pretty much filler for the card and nicely placed on the card to bring the crowd down a little bit before some big matches to close the show. Reed was clearly going to go over here, and apparently Slick had some feud going on with Tito Santana. So after Reed won, Santana came out and beat up on Slick. Not much more to add here. *
WWE IC Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (champion) w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat w/ George “The Animal” Steele
*Rated #4 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
This match is universally loved and rightfully so. It might have been the most influential match of the 1980’s when you hear how much it is revered by the likes of Chris Jericho today. It’s a picture perfect match. Non-stop action from bell to bell. Two of the best of all time going at it for almost 15 minutes, not stopping for a moment. False finish after false finish until Steamboat reverses a slam into an inside cradle for the thrilling 3 count and title win. Add to that the picture of agony as Savage and Elizabeth ride away on the ring cart with Savage’s head buried in his arms in disbelief. A lot of people have rated this the greatest match of all time, and many more have rated it the greatest WrestleMania match of all time. I can’t argue. It is as close to a perfect match as you can come to. *****
Jake “The Snake” Roberts w/ Alice Cooper vs. Honky Tonk Man w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
I feel bad for anyone that has to follow that last match up, but if anyone can, it is two great pro’s like these two. A very simple storyline here. Honky blasted Jake with his guitar, and Jake wants revenge. Doesn’t get much simpler than that. Fun little match here as once again, the crowd is totally into it. The match ends with Honky cheating to win with his hand on the ropes. But you can’t send the fans home like that so Jimmy Hart gets the Damian snake treatment and the crowd is thrilled. Not a great match, but again, it told a story, it served its purpose. **
Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and “Jumping” Jim Brunzell) w/ “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs. Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff w/ Slick
I always get a kick out of “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan interrupting Volkoff’s singing of the Soviet national anthem because this is the land of the FREE. Just funny. This was another filler match to bring the crowd down a notch before the big main event. Decent match though as it is another quick standard formula tag match. The match ends when Iron Sheik has Blair in the camel clutch and Duggan comes in and nails him with his 2x4. Always one of my favorite spots, but here it gets the Bees disqualified. **
Main Event
WWE Championship
Hulk Hogan (champion) vs. Andre the Giant w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
This is the true meaning of main event. It is arguably the biggest match of all time. I wouldn’t argue with anyone that wanted to say that. Is the match a technical masterpiece like Steamboat-Savage? Absolutely not. But listen to the crowd when Hogan slams Andre. That’s what pro wrestling is about. That is the ultimate payoff. Not much more I can say here other than it’s a must see match on a must see show. **1/4
Final Analysis: As I said, this is a must-see show by any wrestling fan. There have been better shows and better WrestleMania’s in my opinion, but I’m hard pressed to find more important WrestleMania’s. The wrestling is brutal at times, but the storytelling is superb almost across the board. It’s a well booked show too as it blew off major storylines, and became the genesis of other storylines for the future, which is exactly what you want out of a super show like this. This gets my highest recommendation.
March 29, 1987
Pontiac Silverdome
Pontiac, Michigan
WrestleMania officially became a household name and international spectacle right here. They set an indoor attendance record of 93,173. Many have doubted that figure, and I really don’t know myself, but either way this was a sensational atmosphere and one way or another, there were a lot of people in the Silverdome on that day. It’s an event that hits on all cylinders and a lot of people argue it is the single most important show in pro wrestling history. I’m not sure about that, but if you call yourself a pro wrestling fan, then you should witness this show at least once.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura. They would be joined by Bob Uecker, Mary Hart, and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan at various points in the show as well.
Can-Am Connection (Rick Martel and Tom Zenk) vs. “Magnificent” Don Muraco and “Cowboy” Bob Orton w/ Mr. Fuji
Good choice for an opener, as it got the huge crowd on their feet. Can’t argue with 4 good workers and true professionals. Martel and Zenk were the pretty boy babyfaces while Muraco and Orton were the devious heels with their devious manager Mr. Fuji. Just a fun simple tag team match which the Connection ultimately get the win with a little schoolboy trip double team move. Excellent way to open a big show like this. **3/4
Hercules w/ Bobby “The Brain Heenan” vs. Billy Jack Haynes
Before the match Gene Okerlund did an interview with Herc and Heenan. Heenan called Billy Jack Haynes, Billy Jerk Haynes. One of my favorite little verbal exchanges between Heenan and Okerlund. I do miss Heenan. The match told a nice story as this was billed as a battle of the Full Nelsons. Very nice psychology here as both guys tried to slap the full nelson on. The match ends in a double count out, but Hercules gets the last laugh by nailing Haynes with his steel chain. Haynes does a nice blade job for effect. I’ve always liked this match, as both guys worked hard to sell the story. **1/2
6 Man Mixed Tag Team Match with midgets
King Kong Bundy, Lord Littlebrook, and Little Tokyo vs. Hillbilly Jim, Haiti Kid, and Little Beaver
I don’t find midget matches at all entertaining. I suppose that they have some fan base that has been carved out for them, but it has never been my cup of tea. This match was ok in the sense that they were telling a nice story about how midgets should not under any circumstances be in the ring with giants like Bundy or Hillbilly. That’s how the match ends, as King Kong Bundy ends up getting his team disqualified because he squashes Little Beaver, which is entertaining in a sick way. Ventura’s commentary also sells the sick comedy of it too. ½*
Crown Match
“King” Harley Race w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan and Fabulous Moolah vs. Junkyard Dog
JYD at this point in his career had definitely seen better days, but he was still insanely over. Harley is one of the best workers of all time. This match basically consisted of Race taking a bunch of insane bumps in a futile effort to get a good match out of the JYD. Race would win with a belly to belly suplex. The stipulation of the match was that the loser must bow to the king. JYD obliges and bows, and then nails Race with a chair. Not a very good match, but it was entertaining for what it was. *1/4 for Harley’s efforts here.
Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) w/ Johnny Valient and Dino Bravo vs. Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau and Raymond Rougeau)
Strange booking here as this was the payoff for Beefcake and Valentine breaking up as a team and Beefcake turning face, but they end up winning the match. It was a decent little match, but wasn’t given much time. As expected, Valentine and company turn on Beefcake and Beefcake would turn baby face for the remainder of his time with the WWE. *3/4
Hair vs. Hair Match
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. “Adorable” Adrian Adonis w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
This was a super white hot feud and the crowd was absolutely totally into. This was also Roddy Piper’s “last” match as he would go into retirement for a couple years. It really wasn’t his last match as he would return, but the 90,000 in the Silverdome didn’t know that. This is just a really super fun match. Not great, or even good from a technical standpoint, but for sheer entertainment value alone it is excellent. Piper puts Adonis to sleep, and Brutus Beefcake comes out and creates his barber gimmick here by getting revenge on Adonis by cutting his hair. ***
6 Man Tag Team Match
Hart Foundation (Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart) and “Dangerous” Danny Davis w/ Jimmy Hart vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) and Tito Santana
*Rated #47 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
This match came about mainly through Danny Davis. This was the first “evil referee” storyline. Davis screwed over Tito Santana in his match vs. Randy Savage a little over a year before this match and cost Tito the IC Title. A year later, he screwed the Bulldogs out of their Tag Titles vs. the Hart Foundation. You can tell that the crowd was very anxious to see Davis get a major ass kicking here, and he does. He takes a tombstone piledriver by Davey Boy and sells it like its death. This is an action-packed 6 man tag that I’m very fond of. The match ends when Davey Boy gets blasted by the megaphone and Davis getting the fluke pin. ***1/2
“The Natural” Butch Reed w/ Slick vs. Koko B. Ware
This was pretty much filler for the card and nicely placed on the card to bring the crowd down a little bit before some big matches to close the show. Reed was clearly going to go over here, and apparently Slick had some feud going on with Tito Santana. So after Reed won, Santana came out and beat up on Slick. Not much more to add here. *
WWE IC Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (champion) w/ Miss Elizabeth vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat w/ George “The Animal” Steele
*Rated #4 on my Top 50 WrestleMania Matches of all time*
This match is universally loved and rightfully so. It might have been the most influential match of the 1980’s when you hear how much it is revered by the likes of Chris Jericho today. It’s a picture perfect match. Non-stop action from bell to bell. Two of the best of all time going at it for almost 15 minutes, not stopping for a moment. False finish after false finish until Steamboat reverses a slam into an inside cradle for the thrilling 3 count and title win. Add to that the picture of agony as Savage and Elizabeth ride away on the ring cart with Savage’s head buried in his arms in disbelief. A lot of people have rated this the greatest match of all time, and many more have rated it the greatest WrestleMania match of all time. I can’t argue. It is as close to a perfect match as you can come to. *****
Jake “The Snake” Roberts w/ Alice Cooper vs. Honky Tonk Man w/ “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart
I feel bad for anyone that has to follow that last match up, but if anyone can, it is two great pro’s like these two. A very simple storyline here. Honky blasted Jake with his guitar, and Jake wants revenge. Doesn’t get much simpler than that. Fun little match here as once again, the crowd is totally into it. The match ends with Honky cheating to win with his hand on the ropes. But you can’t send the fans home like that so Jimmy Hart gets the Damian snake treatment and the crowd is thrilled. Not a great match, but again, it told a story, it served its purpose. **
Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and “Jumping” Jim Brunzell) w/ “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs. Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff w/ Slick
I always get a kick out of “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan interrupting Volkoff’s singing of the Soviet national anthem because this is the land of the FREE. Just funny. This was another filler match to bring the crowd down a notch before the big main event. Decent match though as it is another quick standard formula tag match. The match ends when Iron Sheik has Blair in the camel clutch and Duggan comes in and nails him with his 2x4. Always one of my favorite spots, but here it gets the Bees disqualified. **
Main Event
WWE Championship
Hulk Hogan (champion) vs. Andre the Giant w/ Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
This is the true meaning of main event. It is arguably the biggest match of all time. I wouldn’t argue with anyone that wanted to say that. Is the match a technical masterpiece like Steamboat-Savage? Absolutely not. But listen to the crowd when Hogan slams Andre. That’s what pro wrestling is about. That is the ultimate payoff. Not much more I can say here other than it’s a must see match on a must see show. **1/4
Final Analysis: As I said, this is a must-see show by any wrestling fan. There have been better shows and better WrestleMania’s in my opinion, but I’m hard pressed to find more important WrestleMania’s. The wrestling is brutal at times, but the storytelling is superb almost across the board. It’s a well booked show too as it blew off major storylines, and became the genesis of other storylines for the future, which is exactly what you want out of a super show like this. This gets my highest recommendation.
WrestleMania II
WrestleMania II
April 7, 1986
Nassau Coliseum
Uniondale, New York
Rosemont Horizon
Chicago, Illinois
LA Sports Arena
Los Angeles, California
Yes you read that right. Vince had a very unique idea that he tried once (this show) and never tried again. He held a show in three different locations, in three different time zones. It was certainly different, and I can’t fault him for trying it. It created some booking problems, as I will go into later, but it was unique to say the least. This of course was the long awaited sequel to the highly successful first WrestleMania. This gravy train was going to keep rolling and once again, this show was littered with celebrities to really make WrestleMania seem bigger than your ordinary wrestling event. Ray Charles sings “America the Beautiful” which is still the best rendition of that song in WrestleMania history for my money. Anyway, let’s go to the event.
Uniondale, NY
Commentators: Vince McMahon and Susan St. James
Note: To this day I still really didn’t know what contribution Susan St. James had on the Hollywood industry, so I had to Google her while watching the show. Apparently she was one of the stars on the TV show “Kate and Allie”. Okay then.
“Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff vs. “Magnificent” Don Muraco
Good choice for an opener, but the match itself wasn’t that great in practice. I’m watching this show on the Coliseum Video anthology set from 1997, and they played off of the fact that Orndorff was the one that got pinned in the main event of the first WrestleMania. Nice little touch for continuity, something rarely seen in today’s product. Sadly, the pre-recorded comments are the highlight of the match, as the action spills out to the floor for a very lame double count out. ¼*
WWE IC Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (champion) vs. George “The Animal” Steele
Randy Savage was coming off his IC title win just a month before this over Tito Santana, and was going to be in for a very long reign. On top of that he was clearly a rising star. This would be the first in an endless series of matches between these two over the next year. The story is that George is infatuated with Miss Elizabeth, Savage’s manager. Can’t say I blame him. It is sad to watch a lot of these shows. Savage and Elizabeth are both no longer with us. This match was ok and actually proved to be rather historic. The Animal is one of only 3 wrestlers I’ve ever seen kick out of Macho Man’s big flying elbow. The other two being Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior. It doesn’t matter as Savage gets the cheap win with feet on the ropes to retain the title. Steele is a slug though and even Savage can’t carry him here. ¾*
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. George Wells
Really no doubt about the result here. Roberts had just recently made his debut, and clearly was a rising star, and one of my personal favorites. Just a standard Jobber to the Stars (JTTS) match as Jake hits the DDT and wins the match. After the match Wells takes the “Damien treatment” with big python wrapped around his neck. This served its purpose as it put Roberts over a devious heel, which set up nicely for his feud with Ricky Steamboat that would dominate 1986. ¾*
Boxing Match
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. Mr. T
This would be the big blow off match to this feud. From everything I’ve read from different biographies and such, Mr. T was an absolute pain in the ass to deal with. The ironic thing here was Piper was a golden gloves boxer in his younger days, and you could tell here as Piper had to really try to make Mr. T look respectable. With all of that being said, Piper carries this 4 rounds and it was pretty entertaining. I can’t really rate this as a boxing match, so I’ll rate it on an entertainment scale and give it. ** The fight by the way ends in the 4th round when Piper bodyslams T and gets disqualified. Entertaining crap.
Chicago, IL
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, “Mean” Gene Okerlund, Cathy Lee Crosby, and “Big Cat” Ernie Ladd (for the battle royal)
WWE Women’s Championship
Fabulous Moolah (champion) vs. Velvet Mcintyre
This is a total squash match as Moolah beats Velvet in about 20 seconds. I really have nothing to add here. DUD
Corporal Kirchner vs. Nikolai Volkoff
This is supposed to be a flag match, but really it’s just a standard singles match. Another horrific match as the Chicago portion of the show doesn’t start well at all. Kirchner wins and apparently he could have done something with the Soviet Flag, but just took the United States flag, waved it a couple of times, and left. ¼* for the patriotism, -1/4* because I’m not going to give stars for patriotism so. DUD
20 Man Battle Royal
This is one of the more famous battle royals as it featured 10 NFL players and 10 WWE Superstars. The most notable NFL player is future WWE Hall of Famer William “The Refrigerator” Perry. He comes out to a very large ovation, as the Bears were just coming off their Super Bowl championship. This was a good battle royal, as battle royals go, and it has the historical significance to go along with it. The outcome was never in doubt, as Andre the Giant was in the match and battle royals were his thing. He last eliminated Bret Hart in a very nice moment for Andre. **3/4
WWE Tag Team Championship
Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) (champions) vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
*Rated #39 on my Top 50 WrestleMania matches of all time*
These two teams had great chemistry together. They actually had an even better match on Saturday Nights Main Event not too long before this. This was just an excellent tag team match with a very unique “wtf finish” to it, as Davey Boy rammed Valentines head into Dynamite’s head and pinned him. Crowd loved as the Bulldogs celebrated their new tag team titles with Ozzy Osborne. Like a lot of these matches from the 80’s it has to be seen to be appreciated. ***3/4
Los Angeles, CA
Commentators: Lord Alfred Hayes, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, and Elvira
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Hercules
More strange booking here, as these two were just sort of thrown together. I watched a Ricky Steamboat shoot interview a few years ago, and he alluded to the strange nature of the booking himself. It’s Ricky Steamboat, and as we saw at WrestleMania, he can make just about anyone look like a million bucks. Another Steamboat match that could have used a little more time. Steamboat tried really hard here, but it wasn’t going to follow up the previous match. Still watchable though as Steamboat wins with the high flying cross body and gets the win. Decent match. **1/2
“Adorable” Adrian Adonis vs. Uncle Elmer
Uncle Elmer is a big fat farmer, and Adonis is in his cross dressing days wearing dresses and spraying perfume. This match is Adonis trying to carry this match with some nice bumps, but there was no way to carry Uncle Elmer to anything good. ¼* for Adonis trying his best.
Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana vs. Terry Funk and Hoss Funk
Hoss Funk is actually Dory Funk, Jr. This is a forgotten little gem of a match, which aged well on a show that doesn’t age too well. Just a really fun formula tag team match that the crowd was totally into. The match ends with the heels winning after nailing JYD with the megaphone. Another match that has to be seen to be appreciated and a match that I’ve personally appreciated the more I’ve viewed it. ***1/4
Main Event
WWE Championship – Steel Cage Match
Hulk Hogan (champion) vs. King Kong Bundy
This is a classic example of the “Hogan formula.” McMahon was basically printing his own money with it. Big monster heel Bundy attacks Hogan and “injures him.” Hogan rehabs and promises revenge. Throw the two in a cage, and make millions. The match wasn’t great, but it was, again, a “Hogan formula” match, and the fans ate it up. Match is back and forth until Hogan rams Bundy into the cage and he blades (on camera). Bundy comes back and hits Hogan with his big splash but Hogan hulks up with the superman comeback that he made famous and escapes the cage to retain the title. Fun match. **1/2
Final Analysis: As mentioned before, this show suffered from some glaring weaknesses. Matches seemed thrown together, and other matches weren’t given a lot of time. The biggest drawback though is other than the Piper and Hogan matches, there really were no major feuds happening on this show. Still, this isn’t the worst WrestleMania ever and it does have some pretty decent matches.
April 7, 1986
Nassau Coliseum
Uniondale, New York
Rosemont Horizon
Chicago, Illinois
LA Sports Arena
Los Angeles, California
Yes you read that right. Vince had a very unique idea that he tried once (this show) and never tried again. He held a show in three different locations, in three different time zones. It was certainly different, and I can’t fault him for trying it. It created some booking problems, as I will go into later, but it was unique to say the least. This of course was the long awaited sequel to the highly successful first WrestleMania. This gravy train was going to keep rolling and once again, this show was littered with celebrities to really make WrestleMania seem bigger than your ordinary wrestling event. Ray Charles sings “America the Beautiful” which is still the best rendition of that song in WrestleMania history for my money. Anyway, let’s go to the event.
Uniondale, NY
Commentators: Vince McMahon and Susan St. James
Note: To this day I still really didn’t know what contribution Susan St. James had on the Hollywood industry, so I had to Google her while watching the show. Apparently she was one of the stars on the TV show “Kate and Allie”. Okay then.
“Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff vs. “Magnificent” Don Muraco
Good choice for an opener, but the match itself wasn’t that great in practice. I’m watching this show on the Coliseum Video anthology set from 1997, and they played off of the fact that Orndorff was the one that got pinned in the main event of the first WrestleMania. Nice little touch for continuity, something rarely seen in today’s product. Sadly, the pre-recorded comments are the highlight of the match, as the action spills out to the floor for a very lame double count out. ¼*
WWE IC Championship
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (champion) vs. George “The Animal” Steele
Randy Savage was coming off his IC title win just a month before this over Tito Santana, and was going to be in for a very long reign. On top of that he was clearly a rising star. This would be the first in an endless series of matches between these two over the next year. The story is that George is infatuated with Miss Elizabeth, Savage’s manager. Can’t say I blame him. It is sad to watch a lot of these shows. Savage and Elizabeth are both no longer with us. This match was ok and actually proved to be rather historic. The Animal is one of only 3 wrestlers I’ve ever seen kick out of Macho Man’s big flying elbow. The other two being Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior. It doesn’t matter as Savage gets the cheap win with feet on the ropes to retain the title. Steele is a slug though and even Savage can’t carry him here. ¾*
Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. George Wells
Really no doubt about the result here. Roberts had just recently made his debut, and clearly was a rising star, and one of my personal favorites. Just a standard Jobber to the Stars (JTTS) match as Jake hits the DDT and wins the match. After the match Wells takes the “Damien treatment” with big python wrapped around his neck. This served its purpose as it put Roberts over a devious heel, which set up nicely for his feud with Ricky Steamboat that would dominate 1986. ¾*
Boxing Match
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. Mr. T
This would be the big blow off match to this feud. From everything I’ve read from different biographies and such, Mr. T was an absolute pain in the ass to deal with. The ironic thing here was Piper was a golden gloves boxer in his younger days, and you could tell here as Piper had to really try to make Mr. T look respectable. With all of that being said, Piper carries this 4 rounds and it was pretty entertaining. I can’t really rate this as a boxing match, so I’ll rate it on an entertainment scale and give it. ** The fight by the way ends in the 4th round when Piper bodyslams T and gets disqualified. Entertaining crap.
Chicago, IL
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, “Mean” Gene Okerlund, Cathy Lee Crosby, and “Big Cat” Ernie Ladd (for the battle royal)
WWE Women’s Championship
Fabulous Moolah (champion) vs. Velvet Mcintyre
This is a total squash match as Moolah beats Velvet in about 20 seconds. I really have nothing to add here. DUD
Corporal Kirchner vs. Nikolai Volkoff
This is supposed to be a flag match, but really it’s just a standard singles match. Another horrific match as the Chicago portion of the show doesn’t start well at all. Kirchner wins and apparently he could have done something with the Soviet Flag, but just took the United States flag, waved it a couple of times, and left. ¼* for the patriotism, -1/4* because I’m not going to give stars for patriotism so. DUD
20 Man Battle Royal
This is one of the more famous battle royals as it featured 10 NFL players and 10 WWE Superstars. The most notable NFL player is future WWE Hall of Famer William “The Refrigerator” Perry. He comes out to a very large ovation, as the Bears were just coming off their Super Bowl championship. This was a good battle royal, as battle royals go, and it has the historical significance to go along with it. The outcome was never in doubt, as Andre the Giant was in the match and battle royals were his thing. He last eliminated Bret Hart in a very nice moment for Andre. **3/4
WWE Tag Team Championship
Dream Team (Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) (champions) vs. British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith)
*Rated #39 on my Top 50 WrestleMania matches of all time*
These two teams had great chemistry together. They actually had an even better match on Saturday Nights Main Event not too long before this. This was just an excellent tag team match with a very unique “wtf finish” to it, as Davey Boy rammed Valentines head into Dynamite’s head and pinned him. Crowd loved as the Bulldogs celebrated their new tag team titles with Ozzy Osborne. Like a lot of these matches from the 80’s it has to be seen to be appreciated. ***3/4
Los Angeles, CA
Commentators: Lord Alfred Hayes, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, and Elvira
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Hercules
More strange booking here, as these two were just sort of thrown together. I watched a Ricky Steamboat shoot interview a few years ago, and he alluded to the strange nature of the booking himself. It’s Ricky Steamboat, and as we saw at WrestleMania, he can make just about anyone look like a million bucks. Another Steamboat match that could have used a little more time. Steamboat tried really hard here, but it wasn’t going to follow up the previous match. Still watchable though as Steamboat wins with the high flying cross body and gets the win. Decent match. **1/2
“Adorable” Adrian Adonis vs. Uncle Elmer
Uncle Elmer is a big fat farmer, and Adonis is in his cross dressing days wearing dresses and spraying perfume. This match is Adonis trying to carry this match with some nice bumps, but there was no way to carry Uncle Elmer to anything good. ¼* for Adonis trying his best.
Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana vs. Terry Funk and Hoss Funk
Hoss Funk is actually Dory Funk, Jr. This is a forgotten little gem of a match, which aged well on a show that doesn’t age too well. Just a really fun formula tag team match that the crowd was totally into. The match ends with the heels winning after nailing JYD with the megaphone. Another match that has to be seen to be appreciated and a match that I’ve personally appreciated the more I’ve viewed it. ***1/4
Main Event
WWE Championship – Steel Cage Match
Hulk Hogan (champion) vs. King Kong Bundy
This is a classic example of the “Hogan formula.” McMahon was basically printing his own money with it. Big monster heel Bundy attacks Hogan and “injures him.” Hogan rehabs and promises revenge. Throw the two in a cage, and make millions. The match wasn’t great, but it was, again, a “Hogan formula” match, and the fans ate it up. Match is back and forth until Hogan rams Bundy into the cage and he blades (on camera). Bundy comes back and hits Hogan with his big splash but Hogan hulks up with the superman comeback that he made famous and escapes the cage to retain the title. Fun match. **1/2
Final Analysis: As mentioned before, this show suffered from some glaring weaknesses. Matches seemed thrown together, and other matches weren’t given a lot of time. The biggest drawback though is other than the Piper and Hogan matches, there really were no major feuds happening on this show. Still, this isn’t the worst WrestleMania ever and it does have some pretty decent matches.
Friday, February 10, 2012
WrestleMania I
WrestleMania I
March 31, 1985
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York
This is where it all began! Vince McMahon’s vision came to fruition on March 31, 1985. The event has truly become a spectacle today, as every show is in a big stadium nowadays. The first one was shown on closed circuit television in arena’s and theaters throughout the country. It really was a big risk that McMahon took, but it provided a huge reward.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura
Tito Santana vs. Executioner
This was a good choice for an opener, as Santana is a pro’s pro and very popular so he got the MSG crowd hot. Executioner is a masked man. It’s Buddy Rose for those wondering. He is very bland, but this match served its purpose, which was to get the crowd hot, and put Santana over. Tito wins by submission with a figure four leg lock**
King Kong Bundy vs. SD Jones
Another match that had a very clear cut purpose and it paid off very well. King Kong Bundy was to go out there and look like a complete monster. He squashed SD Jones in about 20 seconds, though the WWE would say “9 seconds” for years which served as sort of a record. Nowadays it’s a cliché as recent WrestleMania’s have had a quick squash match like this booked every year. The match is a DUD but I give it a bump up for the historical significance. ¼*
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Matt Borne
Matt Borne is of course the original Doink the Clown. He played the evil, cool Doink, not the lame one that came later. Steamboat is of course in the prime of his career and therefore can get a watchable match out of just about anyone. Borne is a good wrestler in his own right. Really too bad that this one didn’t get more time, but again, it served its purpose which was to get Steamboat over. Good little match. **1/2
David Sammartino vs. Brutus Beefcake
For some reason, they gave this match a lot more time that could’ve been better served for other matches on this card. This was an ok match but pretty bland and boring. Pretty much was there to give some face time to Bruno Sammartino. Match ends in a lame double DQ which makes me continue to ask the question “Why was this match given so much more time than other matches?” *1/4
WWE IC Championship
Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (champion) vs. Junkyard Dog
Oddly enough, Valentine was in the middle of a really hot feud with Tito Santana at this time, so I’ve always wondered why they didn’t add that match to this show instead of this one. This one is decent enough, Valentine gets the cheap win with feet on the ropes, but Santana comes out to protest, and beat up on Valentine, and JYD wins the match by count out. Titles of course cannot change hands on count outs. Would have much rather seen Valentine-Santana. This was an ok match. *1/2
WWE Tag Team Championship
US Express (Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo) (champions) vs. Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff
Windham and Rotundo would see better days in the future when they leave WWE for the NWA, but they were a good tag team, and Sheik and Volkoff were very much over as evil foreigner heels. This was a fun little match but suffers from what a lot of matches suffer from, which is lack of time. The match ends when Sheik nails Windham with Freddie Blassies cane and we have new tag team champions. Coulda used a few more minutes. *3/4
$15,000 Bodyslam Challenge
Andre the Giant vs. Big John Studd
The idea here was that Big John Studd told Andre the Giant that he would give him $15,000 if he could bodyslam him. If he couldn’t then Andre would retire. Not really much doubt here. This was a decent match considering the size and lack of mobility of both men. Andre would of course bodyslam Studd and win the match. He took the bag of money and began throwing it out to the crowd before Bobby Heenan, Studds manager, intervened and took the bag. ½* for the match plus an extra ¼* for the historical context. ¾*
WWE Women’s Championship
Leilani Kai (champion) vs. Wendy Richter
This match is the epitome of the Rock n’ Wrestling era which was an insane moneymaker for Vince as the WWE took a huge step towards pro wrestling dominance with this partnership with MTV at the time. Kai was the champion and in her corner was the great Fabulous Moolah. Richter was the challenger and in her corner was pop star Cindy Lauper. You have to consider the times here. The match itself isn’t great or anything, but it really is a nice “mark out” moment and the crowd loved every second of it. Richter ultimately wins the match and the title. 3/4 * for the match, bump it up another ¼* for, once again, the historical nature of the match. *
Main Event
Hulk Hogan and Mr. T vs. Rowdy Roddy Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff
This was the big match. Hogan and T hosted Saturday Night Live the night before this show. It had celebrities galore. Great New York Yankee manager Billy Martin served as the special ring announcer. Liberace and the Rockettes served as special time keeper, and the greatest of all time Muhammad Ali served as a special referee. The match delivered as it was the match of the night. Mr. T’s clear limitations were nicely mitigated because he was in the ring with 3 true professionals in Hogan, Piper, and Orndorff. The match ended with Bob Orton hitting Orndorff with his cast and Hogan getting the pin. Just a simple, tag team match, that sent the fans home extremely happy. ***
Final Analysis: If you’re a fan who likes to see great wrestling, then this show isn’t for you. The wrestling is not very good, hasn’t aged that well. I try and rate this event, however, the same way a lot of NFL fans rate Tim Tebow as a Quarterback. In other words, I try and keep the historical value in perspective when watching this show. I wouldn’t recommend this show unless you’re really interested in seeing the genesis of WrestleMania.
March 31, 1985
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York
This is where it all began! Vince McMahon’s vision came to fruition on March 31, 1985. The event has truly become a spectacle today, as every show is in a big stadium nowadays. The first one was shown on closed circuit television in arena’s and theaters throughout the country. It really was a big risk that McMahon took, but it provided a huge reward.
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura
Tito Santana vs. Executioner
This was a good choice for an opener, as Santana is a pro’s pro and very popular so he got the MSG crowd hot. Executioner is a masked man. It’s Buddy Rose for those wondering. He is very bland, but this match served its purpose, which was to get the crowd hot, and put Santana over. Tito wins by submission with a figure four leg lock**
King Kong Bundy vs. SD Jones
Another match that had a very clear cut purpose and it paid off very well. King Kong Bundy was to go out there and look like a complete monster. He squashed SD Jones in about 20 seconds, though the WWE would say “9 seconds” for years which served as sort of a record. Nowadays it’s a cliché as recent WrestleMania’s have had a quick squash match like this booked every year. The match is a DUD but I give it a bump up for the historical significance. ¼*
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Matt Borne
Matt Borne is of course the original Doink the Clown. He played the evil, cool Doink, not the lame one that came later. Steamboat is of course in the prime of his career and therefore can get a watchable match out of just about anyone. Borne is a good wrestler in his own right. Really too bad that this one didn’t get more time, but again, it served its purpose which was to get Steamboat over. Good little match. **1/2
David Sammartino vs. Brutus Beefcake
For some reason, they gave this match a lot more time that could’ve been better served for other matches on this card. This was an ok match but pretty bland and boring. Pretty much was there to give some face time to Bruno Sammartino. Match ends in a lame double DQ which makes me continue to ask the question “Why was this match given so much more time than other matches?” *1/4
WWE IC Championship
Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (champion) vs. Junkyard Dog
Oddly enough, Valentine was in the middle of a really hot feud with Tito Santana at this time, so I’ve always wondered why they didn’t add that match to this show instead of this one. This one is decent enough, Valentine gets the cheap win with feet on the ropes, but Santana comes out to protest, and beat up on Valentine, and JYD wins the match by count out. Titles of course cannot change hands on count outs. Would have much rather seen Valentine-Santana. This was an ok match. *1/2
WWE Tag Team Championship
US Express (Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo) (champions) vs. Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff
Windham and Rotundo would see better days in the future when they leave WWE for the NWA, but they were a good tag team, and Sheik and Volkoff were very much over as evil foreigner heels. This was a fun little match but suffers from what a lot of matches suffer from, which is lack of time. The match ends when Sheik nails Windham with Freddie Blassies cane and we have new tag team champions. Coulda used a few more minutes. *3/4
$15,000 Bodyslam Challenge
Andre the Giant vs. Big John Studd
The idea here was that Big John Studd told Andre the Giant that he would give him $15,000 if he could bodyslam him. If he couldn’t then Andre would retire. Not really much doubt here. This was a decent match considering the size and lack of mobility of both men. Andre would of course bodyslam Studd and win the match. He took the bag of money and began throwing it out to the crowd before Bobby Heenan, Studds manager, intervened and took the bag. ½* for the match plus an extra ¼* for the historical context. ¾*
WWE Women’s Championship
Leilani Kai (champion) vs. Wendy Richter
This match is the epitome of the Rock n’ Wrestling era which was an insane moneymaker for Vince as the WWE took a huge step towards pro wrestling dominance with this partnership with MTV at the time. Kai was the champion and in her corner was the great Fabulous Moolah. Richter was the challenger and in her corner was pop star Cindy Lauper. You have to consider the times here. The match itself isn’t great or anything, but it really is a nice “mark out” moment and the crowd loved every second of it. Richter ultimately wins the match and the title. 3/4 * for the match, bump it up another ¼* for, once again, the historical nature of the match. *
Main Event
Hulk Hogan and Mr. T vs. Rowdy Roddy Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff
This was the big match. Hogan and T hosted Saturday Night Live the night before this show. It had celebrities galore. Great New York Yankee manager Billy Martin served as the special ring announcer. Liberace and the Rockettes served as special time keeper, and the greatest of all time Muhammad Ali served as a special referee. The match delivered as it was the match of the night. Mr. T’s clear limitations were nicely mitigated because he was in the ring with 3 true professionals in Hogan, Piper, and Orndorff. The match ended with Bob Orton hitting Orndorff with his cast and Hogan getting the pin. Just a simple, tag team match, that sent the fans home extremely happy. ***
Final Analysis: If you’re a fan who likes to see great wrestling, then this show isn’t for you. The wrestling is not very good, hasn’t aged that well. I try and rate this event, however, the same way a lot of NFL fans rate Tim Tebow as a Quarterback. In other words, I try and keep the historical value in perspective when watching this show. I wouldn’t recommend this show unless you’re really interested in seeing the genesis of WrestleMania.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Big Ten Recap -- Week 3 -- Brian Meyer
Big Ten Recap – Week 3
Yet another mixed bag from the Big Ten this week. The conference season is just around the corner, as teams make the final preparations for the race to the Rose Bowl.
Results Saturday
Purdue 59 Southeast Missouri State 0
Michigan 31 Eastern Michigan 3
Iowa 31 Pittsburgh 27
Penn State 14 Temple 10
Minnesota 29 Miami (OH) 23
Nebraska 51 Washington 38
Wisconsin 49 Northern Illinois 7
Notre Dame 31 Michigan State 13
Army 21 Northwestern 14
Indiana 38 South Carolina State 21
Illinois 17 Arizona State 14
Miami (FL) 24 Ohio State 6
Illinois: The Illini got the signature win for the conference this past week. The defense played outstanding against a pretty solid Sun Devil offense. Arizona State was very effective against Missouri in their previous game. This is a big win for Illinois, as they haven’t had much luck in recent years outside of the conference. With Ohio State looking as bad as they did, I don’t think it is out of the question to consider Illinois as Wisconsin’s biggest threat in the Leaders division. Next Game: Vs. Western Michigan
Indiana: The Hoosiers finally got a win, albeit against FCS Southeast (South Carolina State). It’s not crazy to say that this might be the only win Indiana gets all season long. I guess we never really know, as anything can happen in conference play. Indiana gets another chance to pick up a non-conference win next week, in a winnable situation. Next Game: At North Texas
Iowa: Oh boy, what a comeback! I was almost ready to stick the first nail in the coffin, but towards the end of the 3rd quarter I started thinking about Michigan’s insane comeback vs. Notre Dame last week, and also Auburn’s late game heroics over the past 2 years. This was the biggest Iowa comeback in school history. The light switch seemed to just turn on for Junior Quarterback James Vandenberg. I still maintain that this team is going to be playing Wisconsin in Indianapolis for the first ever Big Ten Championship game in December. If they play like they did in the 4th quarter, that may come true. Next Game: Vs. Louisiana-Monroe
Michigan: The question the media was asking all week was how does Michigan get up for Eastern Michigan after the big emotional win over Notre Dame last week? After a slow start, the Wolverines answered that. Michigan still has a lot of question marks on the defensive side of the football. Teams like Nebraska and Wisconsin are going to eat them alive. They have a tough little test against Brady Hoke’s former team next week in the Big House. Next Game: Vs. San Diego State
Michigan State: The Spartans teased me a little bit last week by handling a lesser opponent in a manner that they were supposed to. They follow that up with this abortion of a performance. Notre Dame toyed with Michigan State from the opening kickoff to the end, and Sparty had no answers. If this is any indication of how Michigan State is, then we need to look at last season as a mirage. Just a dismal performance. Next Game: Vs. Central Michigan
Minnesota: Like Indiana, the Gophers finally got in the win column. This was a very good win for a team that desperately needed it. Miami (OH) is a solid MAC team who had some attributes that had given Minnesota problems over the first couple weeks. Now they have the tricky North Dakota State Bison coming to town with legions of fans. This is as close to an in-state rivalry game that the Gophers have, and recent years has proven that to be true. With that said, there is ZERO reason the Gophers should not be able to beat FCS Midwest, at home, and get to .500. Next Game: Vs. North Dakota State
Nebraska: The Huskers played the Huskies for the 3rd time in less than 12 months. Nebraska had a lot of problems slowing down the Washington offense. Trend or Mirage? Taylor Martinez was throwing the ball very well, and the Husker offense looked excellent. I’m concerned about the strength of a team, at home, getting trounced. Huskers won, and the offense looked good, but there are some concerns in Lincoln. They have a 2 game road trip. At Wyoming next week, and then the big game, potential preview of the inaugural Big Ten Championship game, at Wisconsin in 2 weeks. Next Game: At. Wyoming
Northwestern: Northwestern took a step backwards losing on the road at Army. This is a disappointing finish for a team that had an excellent chance of going 3-0 before conference play. The win at Boston College is losing its shine as well, as BC continues to lose. Pat Fitzgerald will get two weeks to regroup, they are off next week, and then it’s conference play. Next Game: At Illinois (Oct 1)
Ohio State: Pathetic! Next Game: Vs. Colorado
Penn State: For the 2nd year in a row the Nittany Lions struggled with Temple. Temple hasn’t beat Penn State since Joe Paterno was 15 years old. It almost happened on Saturday, but Penn State pulled it out. They’re still trying both Matt McGloin and Rob Bolden at quarterback. Both of them suck. This is a problem. PSU will be relying on their defense to carry them through. There is no evidence that suggests this team will get anywhere near a conference title. Next Game: Vs. Eastern Michigan
Purdue: The Boilermakers got an FCS team to beat up on. Good for them. They still aren’t very good. Opportunities present themselves, and Notre Dame comes to town for their annual tussle. If they can pull off the upset, they will be 3-1 going into conference play. Not a bad position to be in, in terms of beating your rival. Irish looked good on Saturday, so I don’t see that happening. Next Game: Vs. Notre Dame
Wisconsin: 3 Patsies, 3 beat downs. A 4th one will happen next week against South Dakota. Then the big game in 2 weeks at home against Nebraska. Not much more to add here, the Badgers are a solid team, and are the only team that hasn’t shown any weaknesses over the first 3 weeks, albeit against weak opponents.
My Week 3 Big Ten Rankings:
1. (1) Wisconsin
2. (2) Nebraska
3. (6) Illinois
4. (7) Michigan
5. (9) Iowa
6. (3) Ohio State
7. (4) Northwestern
8. (5) Michigan State
9. (8) Penn State
10. (10) Minnesota
11. (11) Purdue
12. (12) Indiana
Around the country: Finally saw Oklahoma. Good win for them, on the road at the Doak in Tallahassee. Herbstreit said it best “Don’t think this stadium has been this loud since Chris Weinkie was Quarterback.” He was absolutely right. Really tough to quantify how good the Sooners are, as Florida State was overrated to me. My first national rankings will be unveiled in 2 weeks. The team to keep your eye on though, is Stanford. Andrew Luck is the real deal, and they have a balanced attack. They are also pretty solid on defense as well.
Yet another mixed bag from the Big Ten this week. The conference season is just around the corner, as teams make the final preparations for the race to the Rose Bowl.
Results Saturday
Purdue 59 Southeast Missouri State 0
Michigan 31 Eastern Michigan 3
Iowa 31 Pittsburgh 27
Penn State 14 Temple 10
Minnesota 29 Miami (OH) 23
Nebraska 51 Washington 38
Wisconsin 49 Northern Illinois 7
Notre Dame 31 Michigan State 13
Army 21 Northwestern 14
Indiana 38 South Carolina State 21
Illinois 17 Arizona State 14
Miami (FL) 24 Ohio State 6
Illinois: The Illini got the signature win for the conference this past week. The defense played outstanding against a pretty solid Sun Devil offense. Arizona State was very effective against Missouri in their previous game. This is a big win for Illinois, as they haven’t had much luck in recent years outside of the conference. With Ohio State looking as bad as they did, I don’t think it is out of the question to consider Illinois as Wisconsin’s biggest threat in the Leaders division. Next Game: Vs. Western Michigan
Indiana: The Hoosiers finally got a win, albeit against FCS Southeast (South Carolina State). It’s not crazy to say that this might be the only win Indiana gets all season long. I guess we never really know, as anything can happen in conference play. Indiana gets another chance to pick up a non-conference win next week, in a winnable situation. Next Game: At North Texas
Iowa: Oh boy, what a comeback! I was almost ready to stick the first nail in the coffin, but towards the end of the 3rd quarter I started thinking about Michigan’s insane comeback vs. Notre Dame last week, and also Auburn’s late game heroics over the past 2 years. This was the biggest Iowa comeback in school history. The light switch seemed to just turn on for Junior Quarterback James Vandenberg. I still maintain that this team is going to be playing Wisconsin in Indianapolis for the first ever Big Ten Championship game in December. If they play like they did in the 4th quarter, that may come true. Next Game: Vs. Louisiana-Monroe
Michigan: The question the media was asking all week was how does Michigan get up for Eastern Michigan after the big emotional win over Notre Dame last week? After a slow start, the Wolverines answered that. Michigan still has a lot of question marks on the defensive side of the football. Teams like Nebraska and Wisconsin are going to eat them alive. They have a tough little test against Brady Hoke’s former team next week in the Big House. Next Game: Vs. San Diego State
Michigan State: The Spartans teased me a little bit last week by handling a lesser opponent in a manner that they were supposed to. They follow that up with this abortion of a performance. Notre Dame toyed with Michigan State from the opening kickoff to the end, and Sparty had no answers. If this is any indication of how Michigan State is, then we need to look at last season as a mirage. Just a dismal performance. Next Game: Vs. Central Michigan
Minnesota: Like Indiana, the Gophers finally got in the win column. This was a very good win for a team that desperately needed it. Miami (OH) is a solid MAC team who had some attributes that had given Minnesota problems over the first couple weeks. Now they have the tricky North Dakota State Bison coming to town with legions of fans. This is as close to an in-state rivalry game that the Gophers have, and recent years has proven that to be true. With that said, there is ZERO reason the Gophers should not be able to beat FCS Midwest, at home, and get to .500. Next Game: Vs. North Dakota State
Nebraska: The Huskers played the Huskies for the 3rd time in less than 12 months. Nebraska had a lot of problems slowing down the Washington offense. Trend or Mirage? Taylor Martinez was throwing the ball very well, and the Husker offense looked excellent. I’m concerned about the strength of a team, at home, getting trounced. Huskers won, and the offense looked good, but there are some concerns in Lincoln. They have a 2 game road trip. At Wyoming next week, and then the big game, potential preview of the inaugural Big Ten Championship game, at Wisconsin in 2 weeks. Next Game: At. Wyoming
Northwestern: Northwestern took a step backwards losing on the road at Army. This is a disappointing finish for a team that had an excellent chance of going 3-0 before conference play. The win at Boston College is losing its shine as well, as BC continues to lose. Pat Fitzgerald will get two weeks to regroup, they are off next week, and then it’s conference play. Next Game: At Illinois (Oct 1)
Ohio State: Pathetic! Next Game: Vs. Colorado
Penn State: For the 2nd year in a row the Nittany Lions struggled with Temple. Temple hasn’t beat Penn State since Joe Paterno was 15 years old. It almost happened on Saturday, but Penn State pulled it out. They’re still trying both Matt McGloin and Rob Bolden at quarterback. Both of them suck. This is a problem. PSU will be relying on their defense to carry them through. There is no evidence that suggests this team will get anywhere near a conference title. Next Game: Vs. Eastern Michigan
Purdue: The Boilermakers got an FCS team to beat up on. Good for them. They still aren’t very good. Opportunities present themselves, and Notre Dame comes to town for their annual tussle. If they can pull off the upset, they will be 3-1 going into conference play. Not a bad position to be in, in terms of beating your rival. Irish looked good on Saturday, so I don’t see that happening. Next Game: Vs. Notre Dame
Wisconsin: 3 Patsies, 3 beat downs. A 4th one will happen next week against South Dakota. Then the big game in 2 weeks at home against Nebraska. Not much more to add here, the Badgers are a solid team, and are the only team that hasn’t shown any weaknesses over the first 3 weeks, albeit against weak opponents.
My Week 3 Big Ten Rankings:
1. (1) Wisconsin
2. (2) Nebraska
3. (6) Illinois
4. (7) Michigan
5. (9) Iowa
6. (3) Ohio State
7. (4) Northwestern
8. (5) Michigan State
9. (8) Penn State
10. (10) Minnesota
11. (11) Purdue
12. (12) Indiana
Around the country: Finally saw Oklahoma. Good win for them, on the road at the Doak in Tallahassee. Herbstreit said it best “Don’t think this stadium has been this loud since Chris Weinkie was Quarterback.” He was absolutely right. Really tough to quantify how good the Sooners are, as Florida State was overrated to me. My first national rankings will be unveiled in 2 weeks. The team to keep your eye on though, is Stanford. Andrew Luck is the real deal, and they have a balanced attack. They are also pretty solid on defense as well.
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