The Deadpool (Shaggy 2 Dope, Vampiro & Violent J) (w/Raven) vs. The Filthy Animals (Eddie Guerrero, Kidman & Rey Mysterio Jr.)
After being on the house shows and Thunder for months, management suddenly decided to push Vampiro and have the Insane Clown Posse alongside him. How funny. Now I’ve not seen much WCW TV in the month of August (as a lot can happen within a month), so I’ll take this for what it is. I love the idea of the Filthy Animals. Although you can argue that they should be wrestling each other and that’ll be better. But nevertheless, they are a cool team.
Eddie Guerrero is over with the bikers and gets a lot of the first part of the match. He is dominant at first, getting an advantage over Vampiro before the ICP cut him off. Violent J throws some decent strikes and does a mean body slam on the outside floor. The ICP show off some of their wrestling background which is masterfully guided by Eddie during this heat section. Rey gets involved at some point, where Vampiro’s size comes to light as he LAUNCHES Rey around the ring. While the match is a little repetitive and lacking any good tag teases, this is well done as a competent match. Deadpool as a Unit solidly performs their roles as heels. They felt like a unit compared to the Filthy Animals. I can imagine some will be disappointed by this but the Animals worked to their opponents and got a solid 3 star bout out of them. And that to me is a better sign of a wrestler’s ability than having a 3.5 match with another top wrestler. Kidman didn’t do too much but he did get the finish, hitting a shooting star press on 2 Dope for the three count. ***
And oh, Raven was here.
WCW World Tag Team Title Match: The Triad (Bam Bam Bigelow & Kanyon) (c) vs. Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray)
Harlem Heat are united because they have nothing else for Booker T and Stevie Ray was stuck in the dead NWO B&W stable with Horace Hogan and Vincent.
This was very stop-start with some action, then stalling. Rinse repeat. And this happened when Booker T and Kanyon were in the ring too. The commentators said it was the Triad attempting to set the pace. That’s a fine explanation but it didn’t make it any less boring. The crowd revved up several times (their version of cheering) in order to liven the wrestlers up a bit which only slightly worked. The pace proves further problems as the match progresses on as the momentum is slightly stunted. And Kanyon and Bigelow’s heel work, outside of the occasional double team move, is lacklustre. Booker T has got some dynamic offence but the crowd didn’t bite on it before he was cut off more. Mike Tenay had a great comment about Booker T needing to readjust to tag team rules after Bigelow caught him posing. The finish comes rather quickly with Booker T hitting a powerbomb and then a tag. Steviee Ray goes wild and the crowd goes mild. DDP comes down to the ring but Bigelow is thrown into him. And a big missile dropkick by Booker T finishes the job. No sustained heat or momentum killed this dead, but that was as a result of the work so it was just. **
The Revolution (Dean Malenko, Perry Saturn & Shane Douglas) vs. The West Texas Rednecks (Barry Windham, Bobby Duncum Jr. & Curt Hennig) (w/Kendall Windham)
There is some decent talent here. The Revolution is an attempt to give the younger midcarders over which never did work for various reasons. The Rednecks aren’t really that but they are a good midcard group nevertheless. This started out quick with Saturn daring them to come in the ring, calling them ladies. This has a brisk pace to it with a lot of tags in and out. A lot of punches and kicks with some holds exchanged in the middle of it all. Most of it is competent, but didn’t leave much of an impression on me outside of basic appreciation. But for what it's worth, Duncum Jr and Douglas are maybe the more interesting wrestlers in the match because of a few flashy moves, like Duncum’s float over suplex. The finish comes when tag rules are abandoned and the Revolution isolate Duncum Jr and hits him with a Death Valley Driver for the win. The match continues one with a post match brawl which the Revolution win also. A tad nondescript but ultimately solid. **3/4
Buff Bagwell vs. The Cat (w/Sonny Onoo)
Buff Bagwell did black face in the lead-up to this. That’s all I know. Or need to know. This match shockingly (well it’s not) got the best reaction thus far, and that’s because of the Cat’s heat mongering. He constantly rattles the fans, playing on the obvious racial dynamics, wearing Confederacy gloves. The crowd calls him “Pussy Cat” which I’m sure we are all grateful for. The wrestling is bad. Mundane and cheap. Not worth the play by play. This peaks with the crowd interaction. Buff wins. 1/2*
Apparently Buff Bagwell got the finished changed last minute and these two had a proper fight over it. Fucking WCW man.
WCW United States Heavyweight Title No Disqualification Match: Chris Benoit (c) vs. Diamond Dallas Page
I low-key love the juvenile build. DDP talking shit about Benoit’s mother is about as good a reason for this match as what WCW usually comes up with in this era. While this is No DQ, this isn’t a WWF No DQ match with wild crowd brawling. This was worked rather straight with DDP working over Benoit like he normally would. Benoit would fire back before getting cut off again in a traditional wrestling way. The laxed rules came up when DDP punched Charles Robinson and took his belt to whip Benoit. I’m sure some of the choking spots will be in awkward taste now but Benoit firing up was pretty cool. Multiple Germans follow but none can finish DDP. Kanyon shows up and pushes Benoit off the top. Benoit throws DDP into Kaynon but then comes Bigelow. Big splash gets a two count. This is all happening while The Revolution watches at the back, staying away. Benoit is put over VERY strongly as he is able to outsmart the Triad and beat DDP without help. Good booking to make Benoit a little more elevated by having him beat DDP in the manner he did. The Revolution was put over here in a big way. Good match. ***1/2
Sting vs. Sid Vicious
There is a fake win streak story with Sid which is so lazy because he’s been defeated many times on the house shows (By Sting). The thing is with this match is that Sid is probably a little slower and less cool than he is in some of his earlier runs. But that’s come with him being more safer and smooth-er. But anyone who likes Sid isn’t looking for a clean Sid. Sting brought a lot of energy with his performance however. His movements are explosive and he can make anything exciting. That made this worth seeking out despite its poor reputation as did that GREAT finish. Sid caught Sting mid-stinger splash and slammed him with the powerbomb. A good way to put over Sid for a bigger spot. Although Sting is set for the title next month…**1/2
Goldberg vs. Rick Steiner
This is a sign that Goldberg is still a star in WCW. And should be used better. The fans love him still, he’s still got great charisma. There is a lot of wasted time with him in WCW though. On the other side of the ring, there is Rick Steiner who has had a little bit of a push over the summer. He’s put the boots to Goldberg as of late and its time to pay. Rick is just as much of a brute to provide a decent obstacle for Goldberg. Steiner cheated with a low blow and hit Goldberg with the leg brace for a bit of a dull heat section (also where was the DQ). Goldberg sells briefly but goes home with his great array of moves to win. **
Hardcore Match: Dennis Rodman vs. Randy Savage
One of Savage’s last matches. He’d come back in January 2000 and be done after that until the TNA match. But this is essentially his last hurrah. And he’s tasked to guide the celebrity to a safe match. Rodman hits a few clotheslines which Savage bumps for and sells well. One issue that occurs is that Rodman doesn’t seem to know he’s a face by the way he interacts with the ref and his general mannerisms. Macho is then turned into the babyface after Rodman decks the ref. Honestly, this lost me pretty quickly. This went roughly 12 minutes and a lot of it is cheap brawling. This thankfully came to a close when Gorgeous George came down to the ring and gave Savage a chain which he used. I had no patience for this obviously. 1/2*
WCW World Heavyweight Title Retirement Match: Hulk Hogan (c) vs. Kevin Nash
One thing I’ve noticed from the video packages (which are terrible and short), is that they keep saying “Sturgis” instead of the PPV Name. Seems like a bad marketing choice since they will need to advertise the PPV aspects in order to gain money from it. Now onto the build. They hot shot this so much that within three weeks, Savage beat Nash for the title, Hogan won the title and Nash challenged him before turning heel. All on a month's notice for a retirement match that might last a few weeks. Nash is a WOAT booker. And this match did nothing for me. Nash is a terrible babyface and a terrible heel.He is a bad promo, can’t book, not a very good wrestler, can’t do anything but smirk and say a witty line. How people don’t rate him lower than they do is a wonder. Now this isn’t nearly as a disaster as the Bulldog match is in 1995 but it’s boring. It’s Nash offence, Nash offence, and more Nash offence until Hogan makes the comeback which is nostalgic led at best and finishes. Welp. *
Comments
Post a Comment