WWE Hall of Fame 2017

This is a gigantic presentation - so I'll be giving overall thoughts instead of play by play. DDP's speech by Eric was heart-felt, and they definitely planted the seeds for Eric to be back in the fold. They used his WWE theme, which is okay I guess. I liked the transition from the diamond dolls to the daughters and he got a huge ovation. I loved his "who'd he ever beat" line and thanking Johnny Ace for giving him the diamond cutter and Regal got some props with the cravate and Ron Reis gave him the idea for doing the cutter symbol before the move. Dusty got a lot of love as did Flair.

Cornette got a nice pop and it is pretty surreal to see him on WWE TV.  He stole the fucking show immediately by talking about how hopeful folks were for his speech and he'd try to keep it down to ending on Saturday night. Cornette really placed the RNR Express in history and made them seem like THE thing for their time and it was hilarious to hear him talk about Gibson's cock. Cornette truly got over how gifted Morton was as a babyface and talked about Ricky literally mouthing "HELP ME" and the fans would - so they'd just start a riot out of nowhere. He puts over the length of the RNRs vs. the Midnights being a feud that went on through 2011 and that in 2011, their hoverounds will have a double dropkick setting. Cornette talked about how the RNRs were considered such family that fans actually brought them their Christmas photos and on one side was Chris and on the other side was the RNRs - now that would've been a great photo to see. Ricky, as expected cut the better promo of the RNRs,  but Cornette was THE MAN.

Ricky Steamboat talks about Rick Rude and his work ethic and crazy workouts. He praised him...kinda for being a bit snug. Rick's son, daughter, and wife come down and his son is actually named Rick and he did his dad's intro promo perfectly. The central Florida sweathogs popped for that. Nattie introduces Beth, who talks about loving Owen's work and that making her want to be a wrestler. She thanks Nora/Molly Holly for helping pay her tuition to get trained and talks about how empowering she is - so I'm sure she'll go in soon enough. She puts over Candice Michelle as making her better and wow is it odd to see that as anything historic. She shows herself facing Mickie in her first match, and runs through Eve Torres's many accomplishments. She talks about Edge and he actually quoted JBL saying that he might smell like smoke, and she said well, that's because you speared Mick through a flaming table. Edge has de-aged a decade plus since retiring and has had a great life story since retiring. She puts over her kids and while she's a questionable entrant, this was definitely worth everything in the world for her, and why not do it? It's just a marketing hall of fame anyway.

Dana Warrior came out and God bless her, but her gigantic eyebrows are distracting. Eric LeGrand talked about how one day, maybe a spinal cord injury will be just like a torn ACL and puts over Christopher Reeve for being amazing and being an ultimate warrior...yeah wow, it's pretty shocking to see him dietied in every way. Eric wants to finish what Christopher Reeve started, and that is a noble goal.

Teddy actually gets the semi-main event slot and we see SHUCKY DUCKY QUACK QUACK BEING HIS THING. I had no idea he did that with Jindrak and no memory of him managing Jindrak. Teddy's tongue-twisted moments are put over and are amusing since they usually involve having to remember wacky WWE verbiage. The APA talks about how you couldn't do Ride Along with them and how Teddy was involved during the '60s and the civil rights issues. They talk about him being incredibly cheap - and bust out an invoice for all the money he owes them - $72,000! They talk about him being their driver with Godfather and being GOD-AWFUL and somehow managing to fail a sobriety test WHILE SOBER.

Teddy comes out in an amazing red suit and he tells the story of how he failed that sobriety test. Ron talks about how he was driving while black, and JBL had 82 beer cans and how he passed the test, got a ticket anyway and still found a way to get JBL and Ron to pay for the ticket. Teddy acted as a driver and that allowed him to be around the wrestlers. He ran errands, got jackets, and did anything he could to just look busy so he could stay in the back. He put up the ring for a while and debuted as a ref because the ref no-showed. His first match was a Texas death match and they bled, so he fled! He thanks the McMahons for giving him a chance as GM and he says he made it all work out before having fun with HOLLA HOLLA TAG MATCHES and GOIN' ONE ON ONE WITH DA UNDATAKA!

The Legacy inductees get a quick video. Kurt's video focuses on a lot of comedy. John gives a fine, but unspecactular speech about Kurt who comes out with his daughter. This is way too comedy-centric, with the tiny cowboy hat, the giant hair headgear, and then ending it in a milk bath. This wasn't really what it could have been - but it got him back in the fold. I don't really want to see Kurt wrestle in WWE and with this as their re-introduction of him, it's clear that they see him as either comedy or an authority figure once again. He was fine in that role in '04, but not amazing and I wonder how well that would work out for him.

WWE SD 3-28-17

The show starts off with AJ, in a new shirt, signing the contract with Shane. Not too much to this. James Ellsworth comes out and demands respect as she brings out Carmella to face Becky. Alexa and Mickie are on commentary bickering back and forth. And then everyone brawls mid-ring. Now we get a tag match with Nattie on commentary. Then more brawling and Naomi comes back. The Fashion Police chat with Bryan, who puts them in the battle royal. WM 14 clip shows Kane tombstoning Pete Rose, but it was credited to '97 instead of '98.

We get Miz and Maryse doing a bit with Total Bellas and a D-Bryan dwarf. MizCena instructs everyone on how to eat. Miz and Maryse exit the costume and tell Cena that he'll leave WM with nothing left. He's just a circus act without WWE, and he's a big dumb animal and Miz will finish him. Miz says that after WM, he won't be the man and his entire life will be exposed as bullshit. Miz can be money, and this was proof. Mid-ring, Cena mocks Maryse for not being a good worker. Yeah, let's put Nikki against Manami Toyota.

Mojo, American Alpha, and Rhyno/Slater win a wacky ten man tag to determine...I guess really nothing since everyone will be in the battle royal. Luke Harper chats next to a light bulb and comes out with far better looking gear - non-beat up jeans and a black wifebeater. Bray puts Luke in a trance and wins after Harper gets a few minutes to shine. I don't think Harper should be THE GUY, but he should get more of a push, and be more protected than this. Orton says things while video effects play. Well, that's better than a tug of war - I guess.

WCW Spring Stampede 1994

This is one of my favorite shows of all-time, and there's a Wayback Playback for it - so let's have at it! WCW wasn't exactly on a hot streak here, as many of their house shows were cancelled before this show and Scorpio was fired after the Saturday Night tapings due to drugs. ECW was using WCW wrestlers as a make-good for When Worlds Collide being used by WCW, apparently, and Eaton and Arn had an ECW match that wasn't taped. Aaron Neville sings the National Anthem and Johnny B. Badd comes out in a bright red and white sequin cowboy getup. DDP is out in quite the ridiculous getup - a stogie, a GOOD GAWD vest, shades with fringe and a guy has a WE WANT CHRIS AND TAMMY sign. LOL.
 

DDP has a back brace with a zebra print side on it. Wowzers. DDP's fluffy mullet is something else, too. Long armbar from Badd after some actual exciting stuff. Nice series of dropkicks from Badd leads to DDP pulling him face-first into the buckle. The Chris and Tammy sign guy has a WHO BOOKED THAT sign, too. DDP gets 2 off a jackhammer, wow - I don't recall him doing that. A pescado hits by Badd and then a sunset flip off the top from Johnny ends it. Solid.

Bobby and Tony chat before Gene and Jesse chat and make jokes about him winning his WWF lawsuit. Michael Buffer is mid-ring for the TV Title match. Hearing him talk about Brian Pillman is something else. It's amazing to see Sir William and then realize A. he's STILL WRESTLING and B. he was the biggest actual draw in this match by far. Regal's cape is fucking amazing. Pillman starts with big overhand chops and punches in the corner via a sneak attack...and he's the face. So he'd fit right in in 2017. Regal begs off so Brian just kneels down and slaps the shit out of him. Awesome.

Pillman kicks his ass all around ringside and preps each side to cheer by saying he'll bring them over there and beat Regal up. Regal does a leg avalanche and then turns that into an STF seamlessly before crossfacing him. Bow and arrow by Regal is locked on snuggly. Nice elevated half-crab too - shockingly, Regal is good at this whole wrestling thing. Regal locks on...some kind of hold. Regal hits a nice, stiff boot. Pillman goes for a monkey flip as time comes close, which seems like a horrible move. Pillman goes for a crossbody and sends Regal out to the floor for a time expiration finish. Well, Pillman's plan was shall we say flawed. Okay, now the WHO BOOKED THIS sign is back and perfectly-timed.

 

Gene is backstage with Buck and Colonel Parker. Parker is such a perfect wacky Southern plantation owner act. Nasty Boys are out with NEW GEAR. Sorta. Saggs is Dusty's son in law and Knobbs is Hogan's buddy, so the Nastys are on about year 90 of their reign. Jack is out in flannel and a Superdad shirt. Well, this is something else. Knobs beats the fuck out of Jack with a pool cue. Jack hits him with the remnants of it a lot! Cactus clothesline sends his shirt up. Sags beats the fuck out of Jack with the cue right on the shoulder. Jack's ear is gone, so his head is taped up. Maxx and Knobbs walk and brawl a bit.

They brawl to the "concession stand", which is literally one table with a backdrop, about half a dozen pieces of merch up, and a goon in a green shirt holding up foam fingers. Nasty chair to Sags's head. Maxx tosses Knobbs through a table with shitty merch. Well, they did at least put prices by the merch - so 1 point for at least making it look enough like a concession stand, which is better than the 1995 Uncensored one with things like A STAND THAT JUST SAID HOT DOGS. The split screen cameras are now pointed at 99% the same thing. That's efficient. Sags brings up a thick, non-gimmicked table. Mick SUPLEXES THE TABLE RIGHT ON SAGS'S HIP! Knobbs HITS HIM WITH A SHOVEL! Saga and Mick break the table with sheer girth. Mick takes an ungodly sick bump off the ramp to the floor and would have gone splat if the camera was anywhere near him. Not even a replay for that. Jesus. Shovel to the head ends it. This was absolutely vile and stiff in a bad way - but very good for what it was. NO REPLAYS. Let's go to Jesse and Johnny B. Badd, covered in sweat, in his red and white sequined cowboy gear. He issues a challenge for the US Title and quotes Ali a few times.

 

Muta vs. Austin is up. Muta has his red getup while Austin comes out with Parker and both Jim and Pat chat about his allegedly huge cock. The Stunning Steve iron-on text is amazingly horrible. To build this up, Parker brought in guys like Pat Tanaka and Paul Diamond as Not Kato. Brilliant! Ab stretch by Muta. Headlock. Riveting. Brainbuster. Headlock. Dropkick. HEADLOCK. Austin locks on a loose headscissors.Thank God, we've got a hammerlock! Parker trips Muta and kicks him on the floor, revealing his bald spot. After a long abdominal stretch WITH LEVERAGE, we get a hiptoss, and then FINALLY a Muta elbow and then Muta tosses him over the top for a DQ.

Jesse interviews Dustin and this of course leads to Sting coming out to face Rude for the International Title with a ton of glitter on him and in a sequined black and silver jacket. Rude comes out just holding the belt up. He puts it on his shoulder and it looks a lot better there. He goes to tell the sweathogs to shut up, by Harley interrupts apparently representing Red Blazer Realty. Sting tosses Harley over the top, and I'm shocking he could take that bump here. Sting kicks his ass and begs off. Nick Bockwinkel is side by side with Heenan in a great bit of memory lane. 

Long front facelock spots lead to Rude hoisting him up and crotching him on the ropes. This isn't a DQ with the ref STARING RIGHT AT IT. Rude attacks the back and locks on a long camel clutch. Jim and Pat chat about how Rude cashed out a Lloyd's of London policy along with many other Minnesota guys who had "career-ending injuries" and magically came back to work. Electric chair by Sting leads to a back and forth...rimjob cradle that gets 2 for each. Long grounded sleeper by Rude. Rude releases the hold for...some reason to then punch him.

Rude gets his tights pulled down, then he eats a few atomic drops, a few inverted ones and sells them perfectly with half his ass hanging out before getting punched down. Rude takes a crazy ass over teakettle bump landing on his feet and knees for a backdrop. Ref's down, but Sting locks on the Scorpion and Sting TRIES TO WAKE UP THE REF - so he's actually showing a sign of intelligence for once. Harley and Vader jump him, but Sting gets his knee clipped. Vader goes for the finish, but Nick chats him up - so Rude has to kill time. Rude goes for the neckbreaker, but Harley misses and hits Rude. Sting is caked in blood and Rude is seemingly split open. Nick, I guess could stop Vader, the world champ on three nations, but not old man Harley.

Tony talks about Flair inviting Hogan to the show. But enough of that, it's time for the bunkhouse match. Buck's hair is astounding and I love all the KFC buckets being held up for Parker. Dustin runs down and lariats him over the top. Holy fuck, now that's a babyface! Dustin's white shirt with red text is about to get a lot more red fairly soon, I'm sure. Dustin's strategy of using a headlock in this bunkhouse match goes poorly and he misses a crossbody and goes to the floor. DUSTIN IS BLEEDING! Buck punches away with his gardening gloves and then hits a lariat on the ramp, leading to a Rikishi sell on the ramp by Dustin. Well, that probably hurt like a motherfucker. Dustin goes for punches, but misses due to the blood in his eyes.

Unlike Buck's punches when he got his eye poked, he actually throws good shots. Buck is also covered in Dustin's blood and of course, starts WORKING ON THE LEG. Dustin hits him with the baby powder, so I guess he wants to feel fresh in this bloodbath. Buck whips the shit out of Dustin's face and now Dustin's hair is covered in blood, too. Buck picks Dustin's leg up in the corner and just kicks him in the balls. Shattered dreams in '94...ish. Buck misses a kick and is stuck in the corner. This results in him getting kicked around a lot - and he'd sure have that happen a lot less if he'd stop holding onto the rope in various ways. Dustin wraps his belt around his hand and Buck blades. FLYING FISTDROP WITH THE BOOT!

Dustin destroys Buck's shirt and whips him. Big lariat sends him to the floor. CORNER BIONIC ELBOWS BY DUSTIN! I love that - that needs to be brought back, and put in the games ASAP. Bulldog hits and Parker gets suplexed. Dustin sends him over the top, so Buck hits a schoolboy here in this fight. Dustin has either a condom in his back left pocket or a weapon of some short. Buck hits him with knuckle dusters and STILL HIDES THE WEAPON IN THIS STREET FIGHT. Okay, that's either really stupid or him just being dastardly. Pat compares Buck to a drunk uncle at a wedding - well, he's not wrong.

Rude is interviewed by Ventura and Rude cuts a scathing, pissed off babyface promo on Harley and Vader. Regal and the Nastys separate them, and I could've done without seeing Sags without a shirt. Bobby, Tony, and Aaron Neville sit at ringside. Neville hasn't said a word here. We see the history of The Boss and Vader from SuperBrawl, with Vader in a new top. The Boss's getup just being black instead of light blue is amusing - and it's a better look than the Bossman. The Boss comes out and man is he big! Vader's giant pyro columns are awesome. Vader and Boss brawl and Harley holds Boss, but BOSS SIDESTEPS HIM AND VADER HITS HARLEY. Hell of a bump from Harley here.

Boss hits the palm strikes and some nice gut punches before a big boot. Stiff back and forth punches between them lead to a shortarm lariat on the ramp by Vader. Vader hits an over the top from the ramp to the ring world's strongest slam before running on the ramp and going for a splash, but Boss gets the knees up. Big lariat sends Vader over the top. Boss drops him gut-first on the guardrail. Corner avalanche hits Vader, who is busted open at the mouth. Big slam to Vader leads to Vader slugging away. They go for...I think a leapfrog, and Vader turns it into a backdrop over the top that really could've gone badly with a nasty landing on either the apron or necking himself on the rope.

Vader's eye is sliced open, and he gets 2 off a splash. Vader slugs away to the gut and face with punches in the corner. Boss back suplexes him down. Vader's eye is nasty now and he hits a stiff lariat. Vader goes for the pump splash, but doesn't look back and Boss hoists him up and just chucks him on his shoulder. Super DDT off the top by Boss gets 2. Falling sofa-esque shoulderblock by Boss gets 2. Take 2 leads to Vader powerslamming him off the shoulderblock attempt. Pump splash gets 2. VADERSAULT HITS AND GETS THE WIN and a huge pop. Vader has officially hit more moonsaults in this match than Angle ever did in his career.  Harley goes to hit Boss with the club, but Boss gets it and beats up both guys. Nick comes in to make peace. Vader yells that he is the man, and with this being prime Vader, he is THE MAN.

We get a graphic for Flair vs. Steamboat, but first, Nick is backstage with Boss and strips him of his name, billy club, and shirt - going point by point with Titan felt infringed on their rights I'm sure. It's actually amazing that WCW got away with this for FOUR MONTHS. Ray's selling of every part of this is absolutely perfect. Heenan goes from not being able to believe it to convincing himself it's right. Buffer walks around a bit and they hype up the prior Steamboat vs. Flair match in Chicago five years before. Steamboat breathing fire remains amazing.

Flair is out in black and white while Pat and Jim chat about Flair came off as the face in '89 due to having a bunch of women while Ricky just had his wife. Buffer has an earring in for God knows what reason and man does the black and white look incredible. Buffer's intros, when he got them right, does make the matches seem more important. Flair has the '92 to '94 WCW World Title that looks...okay, but not amazing. A guy has a WE WANT HOGAN sign next to the Chris/Tammy guy now holding up a PRETEND IT'S '89 sign.

Flair and Steamboat mat wrestle a bit, and while it's not super-fast it's fine. Steamboat's versatility allowed him to go into literally and division within the company and any part of the card and be just fine and credible in it. Heenan talks about how Flair trained with Verne and then they start slap fighting after a total wrestling-based exchange. Now it's heated and it's not just two friends going at it to determine the better man. Ricky's yellow and green getup is incredible and Steamboat hits a pair of beautiful headscissors out of the corner.

 Pat and Jim talk about what Steamboat's role would have been if he was active in the Monday night wars, and it's more likely he'd just do this - roam around any part of the card in either company and be fine. He'd have been very valuable in the WWF undercard to get guys over, but WCW had five billion guys in that role anyway. They chop away while a guy holds his wife tight during the chops - that's kinda romantic I guess.

Side headlock takes Flair down and he grinds away. Bobby talks about Ric buying drinks and meals for everyone, and Pat and Jim talk about what Flair must say to get women out of their clothes in public. Jim says it's probably "Hello, I'M RIC FLAIR!" Flair lands some nice chops and eats a hiptoss and a long headlock spot.

Shoulderblocks send Flair down, but Flair sends him out via a skit the cat leading to a cradle for 2. We get a full crowd shot and man is the building packed. Steamboat gets a long...kinda sideways noogie spot. Long front facelock from Steamboat. More chops lead to Flair begging off. Flair hits a crossbody and sends both of them over the top. Flair teases a piledriver on the floor, which Steamboat backdrops out of. Steamboat goes for a dive on the guardrail and misses. They fight up top and Steamboat hits a superplex for 2.

Steamboat hits chops on the apron and Heenan talks about how the superplex plays into Flair's broken back in the '70s. Steamboat is dominant here and it's a shift from the usual formula where he sells a ton. 20 minutes have gone by and Steamboat lands corner punches before a TON OF CHOPS. Flair grabs the tights and sends him to the floor. Flair avoids a sunset flip with a punch and goes for the figure four, but Steamboat locks it on! Steamboat grabs Flair's legs to add more pressure and gets several 2 counts.

Flair thumbs the eye because he's the heel of the 2. Back and forth bridges are a bit rougher than usual, which actually works n the story of the match's favor. Backslide gets 2 for Ricky. Flair begs off and the sky is blue. Ricky tells him "come on" and still falls for it - ha! Ricky chops him around the ring They go back and forth on suplexes in and out of the ring, but neither lands and Steamboat chops him from the ramp to the ring. Diving chop by Steamboat to the floor is met with a boot to the face.

Flair elbows him on the apron, but Steamboat hits the crossbody off the top. Steamboat hits the slam off the top, but he misses a superfly dive. FIGURE FOUR TIME FOR FLAIR! But Steamboat blocks it. A fan is in both the pink Sting shirt and hat, which look horrible. I love Flair slapping away when Ricky tries to sit up. Flair takes the knee out with a knee-based chopblock, which I haven't seen much. Steamboat gets a cradle off a figure 4 for 2 to play off the '89 series. The KVE backslide gets 2 and 30 minutes have now gone by. Superplex off the top hits and we get a double-down because the first superplex was off the middle rope, while this is off the top and thus a bigger fall.

Nick Patrick gets bumped to the floor and he gets up to still count 2 for the O'Connor roll. Ricky gets the double chickenwing for a back suplex double-down finish. Nick Patrick tells Bockwinkel that both men's shoulders were down. Nick Patrick raises Flair's hands and fans walk out. And that's that. No nothing here really. Flair clinging to the title for dear life is something else. Bockwinkel says that it's a draw and it was Steamboat's job to score a decisive victory within the confines of this one match, and he didn't do that. Fans hold up Einstein signs. Heenan sucks up to Nick and he gets called Sir Robert. A guy in a suit and trucker hat is something else.

WWE SD 3-21-17

The show begins with a recap of AJ and Shane before Bryan talks about Shane isn't like a regular McMahon - he sees this beating as a chance to set an example. AJ yammers for a while and says he'll wait for Shane tonight. Bryan makes Corbin-Orton for later. American Alpha vs. the Usos is pretty action packed and even gets a this is awesome chant. The Steiner bulldog only gets 2, but a superkick ends it and the Usos win the titles. Luke Harper rants for a bit and says scary things - he'll face Bray on SD next week. We get a Total Divas sendup with Miz as Cena and Maryse as Nikki mocking Cena for being so rule-centric and then says he'll "pop the question".

Baron vs. Orton is a pretty long, nothing match. Baron is not the guy to get an exciting match out of Randy. Dean shows up on a forklift to distract Baron, and the RKO ends it. Randy says stuff, but the lights go out and he's surrounded by guys dressed like Rowan. The Fashion Police come out with Tyler dressed like Nikki. Well, Tyler has no ass. Fandango is facing Cena and he has Nikki as backup. Double finishers to the heels and Cena wins. Not sure why TWO OTHER PEOPLE BEING IN THIS MATCH wasn't a DQ, but whatever. Every female brawls and Alexa stands tall. MizCena and Maryse mock Cena's Marine performance and Miz says he bought her a DIAMOND...Dallas Page Yoga DVD set! A car pulls up and AJ preps a beating, but it's Rhino and Heath. Shane comes out and AJ beats him up. Shane takes a nasty bump into the barricade, but Shane hits the flying elbow through the announce table.

Screens -
http://www.imagebam.com/gallery/ceanhia6ojkc4oyvurmrqbkfadx1ryv3

WWF In Your House - Canadian Stampede

This is a legendary show in some ways, and certainly has an all-time great crowd reaction. Opening video shows Bulldog hitting a sickening chairshot to Mankind, in a spot I don't remember. So a lot of good that did his brain. Jerry, Vince, and Jim Ross are dressed as cowboys looking insane. HHH is out to start the show with his woman to take up 20 minutes of airtime - oh how some things don't change. We see KOTR clips with HHH hitting a nasty pedigree ONTO a table, but not quite through it, Mick taking a nasty bump off of a Chyna toss, and then having a septre broken on him.

Mick runs wild with punches and a legdrop. Cactus elbow hits. Ass over tea kettle bump by HHH. HHH goes for an outside in sunset flip, but eats a mandible claw. HHH tosses Mick into Chyna to hiptoss Mick's knee right into the steps. And Mick needs a new hip for some reason. HHH chopblocks him a few times before locking on a figure four. HHH goes up top and gets crotched. They brawl out in the crowd for a countout.

We see the Hart Foundation in a parade, some festivities, and some sweet Hart Foundation shirts. TAKA comes out and then The Great Sasuke comes out too. Sasuke's gear looks solid. Mick and HHH brawl around. LOL at the THIS IS WORKRATE sign in the background. King works hard to get this over while Vince does nothing to help this get over...how even more things never change. Lots of matwork to start things off with TAKA grinding Sasuke down. Sakuke locks on a half crab. GIANT backdrop over the top to TAKA leads to a missed flying karate kick off the top. Sasuke hits a series of round kicks to the chest before hitting a nice back spinkick to the face in the corner. Giant springboard dive to the floor by TAKA gets him over huge instantly. TAKA hits a nice belly to belly off an irish whip for 2. TAKA hits a jumping running knee in the corner before a springboard dropkick sends Sasuke outside. Michinoku driver hits for 2. Splash mountain and the tiger suplex get the win. Great super-short match.

 

 

 Mick and HHH keep brawling, now with a shovel and some beer kegs. Recap of Ahmed being injured during one of his many injuries. Ginger facial hairless Paul Bearer looks odd, but is doing more Percy Pringle here. AMAZING facial expressions here. Vader has BULLY in his tron showing him bullying that interviewer. Vater is out followed by Taker's incredible intro. Bearer is so great hiding behind the apron from Taker. Lariat and a legdrop lead to some arm work by Taker and then a giant stinger splash. Old School hits and a bit boot sends Vader to the floor. Diving lariat off the top hits for Taker. Paul attacks Taker with this shoe. Vader goes up for the pump splash, so Taker just UPPERCUTS HIM IN THE BALLS, not a DQ, and a super chokeslam hits for 3. Tombstone hits and gets the win.  Well, that's over thank God.

NOD vs. DOA video package leads to a Harts vs. Austin recap video. Todd does the recap video for this and he is great at VO. Backstage, we see Team USA with Animal looking HUGE. Some group sings the Canadian national anthem. They don't bother identifying them, so this was wasted money. Fink has a cowboy hat on, because of course. Bruce, Stu, and Helen Hart are in the front row along with the Calgary premier. Goldust has pyro and his costuming remains top-notch. Ken Shamrock, UFC Asskicker coming out of the wacky house set is amusing. Hot chicks have KEN SHAMROCK ROCKS shirts on.

 Austin comes out and jawjacks with the fans. The faces come out and boy is this sad to see now. It's like the last gasp of true happiness for them all as a group. They milk Bret's intro perfectly. Bret puts the shades on Helen. Bret and Austin stare down and slug away - perfect. Bret hits an inverted atomic drop and hits the lariat. Austin low-blows Bret in the corner. MILLION DOLLAR DREAM BY AUSTIN! Shamrock runs crazy on Neidhart and the belly to belly leads to a tag out. Owen hits the enzuiguri on Goldust. Hawk hits a FLYING SPLASH OFF THE TOP for perhaps the first time in his career. Bulldog hits his powerslam, but Goldust breaks up the pin!

Time for Bret vs. Animal. Owen hits the leg lariat and gets all pumped up. Austin chairshots Owen's knee. Austin fights hard out of the Hart corner to a chorus of boos. Test of strength between Anvil and Animal. Shamrock and Bret go at it, and Bret was a mentor for Ken in wrestling. Goldust hits a nice lariat. Austin beats up the Harts at ringside. The Harts come in and Austin is pinned by Owen. Austin jumps in after hiding under the ring and gets arrested. The Hart family comes in to celebrate.

WWE SD 3-14-17

AJ-Orton recap leads to Bryan recapping the card to someone on the phone and AJ complaining to Bryan. Shane HASN'T ARRIVED YET, but Bryan is here to help. AJ addresses Shane mid-ring and wants A CONVERSATION TONIGHT. Riveting. Becky beats Nattie with the Disarmer. Cena Teen Choice Awards clips. Miz and Maryse cut a promo on Nikki and Cena, with Maryse blaming Nikki for screwing up her contract negotiations before. Nikki talks shit to them after running down and we're getting a mixed tag at WM thanks to Bryan making the match and being pissed at Miz for imitating - and doing it VERY POORLY. Well, his kicks are shit. Miz makes some incredible faces here and Bryan says that since he can't punch Miz, he'll have Cena do it.

Mickie faces Alexa in a solid little match. Mickie wins with a Mick kick - good to see her be given some credibility. Shane comes to the building and AJ jumps him and beats the shit out of him! Finlay saves him. This ruled! Mojo faces Dolph in a battle of guys no one can care about. Dolph leaves and loses via countout. Well, good - he had nothing to gain with a win. Bray goes through the debris and yells at Orton. Usos beat Alpha with a superkick before we see Shane go backstage and challenge AJ for WM. This wasn't bad - but did really hurt the in-ring action by focusing on Shane.

WCW Wrestle War 1992

The wayback playback begins with an amusing anti-steroids PSA of the Freebirds, with Jimmy jacked to...be less fat. Sting's squadron is run down alongside the Dangerous Alliance. The Wrestle War graphic is solid. Tony and Eric run down the card before JR and Jesse are shown for commentary. The freebirds are out in an ungodly bad outfit - and yet not as bad as their later glitterati getup. Taylor and Valentine are out with Taylor looking like a waiter. Michael has the world's highest pair of tights on. Lots of nothing. Atomic drop. Valentine misses a corner charge and we see Garvin in something resembling good shape - almost no gut.

Pat talks about chatting with Jimmy and him saying he's happily retired as a grandfather. Hayes hits a sloppy elbow for 2. BACK BRIDGE BY HAYES!? Hayes is a shockingly good babyface in peril. Doctor bomb gets 2 for Taylor while the figure 4 is broken up by Garvin. GARVIN COMES IN AND HE'S GOING NUTS! O 'Connor roll leads to a lariat and then a double lariat. DDT hits Taylor and he backdrops Valentine at the same time and the Birds win. Shockingly great match - everyone tried.

Eric and Tony chat about the match for a bit. Johnny B. Badd vs. Tracy Smothers is up, and that should be good. Tracy is YOUNG PISTOL "TRACY" - so they put the wrong thing in quotes. Quite the gold and silver jacket on Tracy. It's nearly as flamboyant as Johnny's getup. A woman puts a dollar in his kneepad - so he's basically a stripper too. Bring the kids!

The match begins and folks immediately head for the bathrooms and concessions. Johnny's gear has aged very well with both the cape and his in-ring garb looking fantastic. Arndrag into an armbar for Badd. Ross talks about, yes, TRACY'S COLLEGE FOOTBALL BACKGROUND! A few folks are dressed up in the front row. Snapmare and a chinlock by Tracy. Big flying sunset flip off the top gets 2. Kiss That Don't Miss DOES NOT MISS and wins. The Freebirds are backstage with Missy and Precious. Hayes dedicates the win to Lynyrd Skynyrd because of course he did. I love these US Tag Title designs, and I like that Hayes wants this, but also wants the World titles too.

Scotty Flamingo vs. Bagwell is up now. Let's not front-load the card too much! Marcus comes out in shiny silver pants and they look horrible. Scotty does a mini-stripper routine to take off his worn-out denim to show off the neon pink and green zebra print. Keep the denim on. Bagwell's gear could be gold-ish too. Slap fight! Bagwell's...respectable HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL BACKGROUND is discussed. Shockingly, this isn't making the crowd more excited. Scotty tries to face smash him, but can't. Bagwell hits a clotheslines and Bagwell does one little taunt over and over, which Pat points out is exactly like a game. Scott uses the tights to win.

Ad for Beach Blast has some surprisingly skimpy bikini babes in it. JYD and Simmons are up to face Cactus and Mr. Hughes, acting as a replacement for Abby. JYD comes in through the crowd with a white tux jacket and shirt, red bowtie and JEANS. We get another PSA from Brian Pillman talking about young athletes dying thanks to drug usage...yowza. Mr. Hughes comes out with Jack and this Mr. Hughes getup was a huge upgrade from "The Big Cat" Curtis Hughes. Cactus has a beaded shirt for some reason. JYD gets knocked off the ramp by Cactus. Cactus tosses him into the ramp and hits the elbow off the ramp. JYD has new gear, but can't move. Five thousand people come out to check on JYD. The fans chant for JYD, which is better than him wrestling. Fonzie tells Jack that the match hasn't started, so it won't be a DQ. Man did he age quickly. Simmons hits a big double-barreled lariat. Jack does the squeal bit. It looks like it'll be Hughes vs. Simmons.

Hughes eats a hiptoss and we hear about how he would always be in companies and out of them. Ross runs through football backgrounds before Jesse asks where Jack played defensive line. Ha! Wonky elbow by Hughes leads to some rope choking. Simmons hits the spinebuster, but Jack runs in, gets tackled, and then Simmons hits the forward chop block to end it. Todd Champion comes out FROM THE WCW SPECIAL FORCES and he has an Olympic rings logo on his gear. The Super Invader comes out with Herc's roid belly, Herc's pale skin, and bacne. Also, a red and black split outfit that looks horrible.

Herc does chops and a lariat. Herc looks short in there with Champion, which is even more apparent when he puts Todd on his knees for a test of strength. The invader's red and black outfit is punctuated by his NEON GREEN AND PURPLE glove. Long chinlock. Maybe the neon green stuff helps with that. Powerbomb hits it to end it - and it's a bit like the Canadian backbreaker into it. This was somehow only 5 minutes. Richard Morton comes out in a purple sequined jacket and purple and green tights. Big Josh comes out with his log ride theme. Josh won both the US Tag and World Six-Man tag titles in WCW.

The ENTIRE FRONT ROW LEAVES and then Josh hits a tackle. Outstanding punches and chops in the corner from Josh. OUTSTANDING RUNNING FOREARM SHIVER in the corner. Great selling off the inverted atomic drop - Josh sold it perfectly. Morton, the heel, is fighting from underneath. Corkscrew elbow hits and a nice Magnum-style belly to belly hits too. Earthquake splash ends it. This was stuff. Pillman vs. Zenk is up and we get a recap of their issues - which I saw before on the New Blood on the Block tape. Zenk's shirt is a bit ridiculous, but his overall attire is better than Brian's all-denim stuff. Pat and Jim joke about their clothes and how Zenk looks like a Florida retiree.

Tom Zenk retired and became a noted blogger of sorts and...outspoken to say the least about how shitty the WWF was. And then his site disappeared after he posted a Photoshop of Vince being fucked by a panda after the WWF name was changed. The WCW Light Heavyweight Title was very similar to the final WCW TV Title, and looked good. Great back and forth stuff here. Lots and lots of leg work. Jesse and Jim debate football for quite some time, with Jim putting over PIllman being a nose tackle and Jesse saying you should be Ron Simmons's size for that. Pillman misses a somersault senton on the leg, as ya do. We get a cool overhead camera shot of the ring, which mixes things up.
 
Zenk hits a backbreaker, but misses a running pump splash. Pillman works the knee for a bit. Pillman locks on a figure four and slaps him a bunch - I love that. Jim Ross talks about Lance Russell and Gordon Solie doing alternate commentary on the Hotline - well, that's something. Outside-in dive by Pillman leads to a slick powerslam for 2. Nice chops by Zenk, but a crucifix gets 2. Jesse complains about the LACK OF CHEATING HERE. A Pillman superplex is met with punches and Zenk overshoots off a crossbody and Pillman does a flip, which gets 2. Leapfrog exchanges lead to a...mid-air thing that I think was going to be a snapmare. Well, that didn't work. Giant flapjack by Zenk gets 2. Elbow misses and Zenk does Brian's own fakeout for a knee injury before Zenk hits a giant kick for 2. I love that spot - loved it on the New Blood tape and I love it now. Missile dropkick misses and Pillman gets a jackknife cradle for the win. Sloppy, but good-ish match.

Beach Blast ad. Another PSA, now from Larry Z - WRESTLERS ARE TOUGH, FOR REAL! Actually a darn nice promo wrapped in that PSA mixed in with a bit of that Morphoplex ad. Fujinami is back with WCW for this show, to team with Iizuki to face the Steiners. The Steiners are over like crazy here. Iizuka still wrestles and is in Suzuki-Gun now and uses the Iron Fingers in comedy matches. Scott botches the moonsault fallaway slam on Fujinami, but hits it on Iizuka. This is the same move that MATANZA uses now and it's crazy that Scott was doing it in '92. Flying elbow from Iizuka gets 2. Iizuka gets a Liontamer and then a regular crab. Scott goes to power out, so it's turned into a jackknife for 2. BUTTERFLY POWERBOMB GETS A HUGE POP! Flying elbow by Rick while Scott has him in a Canadian backbreaker busts up Iizuka's lip.

Fujinami comes in and takes it to basics. Headlocks and elbows. Half crab by Scott and Jesse talks about Iizuka bleeding on the outside. Fujinami puts Rick up on his shoulders and he holds him so Iizuka eats a nasty-looking belly to belly for 2. Iizuka stiffs him a few times and Rick's like fuck that and puts a headlock on. Fujinami works on the leg a lot while Iizuka does what he can to heal up on the apron, clearly in agony. SECOND ROPE LEG AVALANCHE by Fujinami. Iizuka's right eye is shut and Rick goes for a nose lock. Dickhead. Scott hits a tilt a whirl on Iizuka for 2. Scott locks on a double chickenwing and then a necklock. Scott just t-bones him with ease - like it's fucking nothing at all. Lesnar has nothing on him. Rick GRINDS THE NOSE WITH HIS KNEE. Dick! Over the shoulder corner charge by Rick slams his face into the second rope. Stiff pumphandle drop by Scott leads to an elbow.

Things slow back down a bit, thank God. Fujinami locks on an abdominal stretch. A front facelock gets a USA chant. Fujinami stiffs him, so Scott just tosses him down hard and tags Rick in. Iizuka comes in and kicks the fuck out of him as much as he can before Rick just powers HIM DOWN TO GET 2. Scott uses them as a post for a backflip and a double armdrag before Rick hits a double lariat. German gets 2 for Iizuka before they spike piledrive Scott. Iizuka hits a missile dropkick before Fujinami gets a sleeper and then the dragon sleeper. Scott boots him. Rick comes in to murder Iizuka with a lariat, shoulderblock and elbow. Belly to belly off the top hits to end it. Great-looking move and it's one they should really bring back.

Jim and Jesse chat before Tony and Eric chat. They aren't building the War Games cage, so I guess it will drop from the ceiling here. Sirens blare while they hype up War Games. They kill more time with the fans being shown and they send rocket pyro into the cage on the ceiling. Solid idea. Bad execution though. We get a series of screens explaining the rules. To be fair, they just fill this out with an explanation of EVERY COIN TOSS. THREE SCREENS OF GRAPHICS FOR THIS. Jeez.

The Dangerous Alliance comes out. Austin is sadly still in his ultra-'90s getup. Steamboat's got a busted up nose. Austin and Windham start off with tons of punches. Barry's falling DDT looks so slick. GIANT Paul E sucks chant breaks out. Steve goes for a monkey bar kick, but Barry hoists him up and flapjacks him. Austin's busted up and Barry's wrist tape is caked in blood - awesome visual. THE HEELS WIN THE COIN TOSS. Rude goes after Barry and he's ripped, tan, and intense. Rude has a brown eye on the back of his trunks. Subtle.

STEAMBOAT COMES IN TO SAVE HIS FRIEND! Chain of DDTs! Rana with punches by Steamboat. Arn comes in to fight with Barry, and they have great chemistry. Spinebuster to Steamboat!  Double half crab by Arn and Rude to Steamboat - I like that. Rude piledrives Steamboat. Steamboat gets tossed into the second ring, which is covered in blood. Dustin elevates Steve into the cage with an inverted atomic before lariating him down.

Arn has his head put between the rings while Barry humps away for some reason. Well, not even Arn can bat 1,000. Figure 4 by Steamboat. Larry comes in. Madusa goes up top and tosses the cell phone in. Sting chases her off, and boy is the cage sinking in with just her on it - and she ain't exactly heavy. Sting comes in with the facebuster and the press slams into the cage for Rudes. Love that spot - although Dr. Death did it best to Terry Gordy in '89. Madusa tapes up Bobby's right hand. Arn is busted open and in white - good man. Dustin is busted up and lost a battle to Freddy there. Jesus. Nikita runs in and teases issues with Sting playing off their past, BUT HE TAKES THE BULLET FOR STING. Great stuff there. Sting has the deathlock on Arn, but Eaton breaks it up. Nikita smashes Austin's face into the buckle, which is now red. Dustin's gear is red too. Flying elbow misses. Jesus. The ring is just covered in blood. They take the buckle off and Larry hits Bobby, who gets armbared by Sting and taps. The ring is caked in blood and torn apart - so it does truly look like a war has taken place. The heels bicker while Bobby asks Larry why he hit him with a hook.