Superstar Sleeze

Tito Santana vs Hercules - WWF MSG 12/26/86 Tito has been stuck in midcard purgatory since the Savage feud ended taking on a motley crew of Bob Orton, Harley Race, Butch Reed and Hercules. Credit has to go to @Loss for pimping this match because I would have skipped it otherwise. Besides the Hogan SNME match I don’t think I have ever seen a Hercules match. I have been watching a lot of WWF TV from summer and fall of 86. He is with Classy Freddie Blassie then Slick after he took over the contracts. He has long hair and is in a Greco-Roman ensemble. My wife was being a good sport and etching episodes of the Flower Shop with me and at the time he was trying to portray that he was the real Hercules from Mount Olympus even though his last name is Hernandez go figure. He definitely has Bruiser Brody’s look and mannerisms. Or to use Gen Z parlance he is giving Bruiser Brody. However, in this match and I believe SNME match he is with the Brain, his hair is shorn and he has his classic Chain and gone are Brody mannerisms. Honky Tonk Man fresh off losing a popularity contest has adopted the Mouth of the South Jimmy Hart excuse me Col. Jimmy Hart as his manager is loitering at ringside and jumps Tito with some of the weakest shots in history. We are going to pretend like he destroyed Tito’s knee. Tito puts on one of the best knee selling performances of all time basically wrestling this match crawling and on the mat while Hercules holds up his end up of the bargain with some great leg work. Like I said I have very limited experience with Herc, he is not Bret Hart working the leg but he he gets the job done and he is laser focused. It is all the good stuff, leg locks, crashing down on the leg, strikes, wrap around the Ring post. Tito does a great job ramping his comeback. First it is a punch from his back. Herc cuts off then a hair grab Herc cuts off. Finally he gets up and it is lunging / collapsing punches and headbutts. Excellent. Herc kneecrusher. Hercules goes up top and splash eats the knee which hurts Tito but levels the playing field. Awesome spot. Then the match goes from very good to great! TITO RAVENOUSLY ATTACKS HERC’s KNEE! It was amazing he was like a Pitbull dog. He never stood for more than like 30 seconds. Just lunging, punching, collapsing on Hercules knee. Excellent leg work by Tito all while selling his own knee. It has to been seen to be believed. FIGURE-4! The Brain rings the bell which fucks up Tito. Tito back in the groove but Herc eye rake slam BUT Hercules’ Knee gives out! I would have popped huge for a 3 count. Herc kicks off Tito on the Figure-4. Tito jaws with the Brain and Herc CRASHES DOWN on Tito with a knee for the 1-2-3! WOW WOW WOW Amazing Tito performance one of the best ever individual performances. Hercules holds up his end of bargain ends up doing some amazing selling as well. Bravo! **** 1/4

Hulk Hogan & George Steele vs Randy Savage & Adrian Adonis - WWF Boston 8/9/86 It is my favorite Rando team of Macho Man & Adorable Adrian vs my new favorite rando team of The Hulkster and The Animal. Savage & Adonis are fresh off their 1986 WWF MOTY against Tito and Bruno at MSG and now they provide comedy gold here. Don’t worry I won’t be writing this review in metered verse that took way too long for Harley and Lanny. Turnbuckle stuffing is everywhere! George says Hulk try it and he does. He likes it, Hulk-y really likes it! Heels try to jump the babyfaces but they eat turnbuckle stuffing and Hogan sends the Adorable One in for the ride using his scarf. We are off to a cracking good time. George The Animal Steele an embarrassment to his children but beloved by all others but isn’t that the fate of all fathers with a sense of humor. That dance he does just screams “Dad stop” but to everyone else it is funny, They got a lot of mileage out of Steele and Savage. Classic Memphis Savage but Hogan stops him from running into the double gozzle. Hogan and Adonis fucking ruled. Adonis was a total bump freak and the cherry on the Sundae was the crotch onto the railing that gave way!!! Awesome! If the heat segment was a bit hotter I think I would have went crazy high because this shine was unreal. Adonis drop toehold and Savage lays the boots to Hogan Bur he breaks free. Steele bites Macho Man in the chest but then Savage sends him flying into the buckle. They heat segment is tepid on George except Steele bites the arm of Savage who just clocks him. The heat segment on Hogan is too easy. Adonis rakes the eyes and gets two easy suplexes on the Champ. They kick back into gear for the finish. Adonis eats knees on a top rope splash. They whip the heels into each other Savage back drops Adonis HOGAN DROPS THE LEG! Good craic tons of fun they put on a show for Boston! *** 3/4

Harley Race vs Lanny Poffo - WWF MSG 6/14/86 O Handsome Harley who looked quite gnarly Had face to Leapin Lanny who looked quite dandy There were Suplexes Galore And Headbutts all the more But before he showed him the door Each had to be done on the floor! Harley knew no other way Then to make Lanny’s day Together they tumbled While Bobby grumbled A leaping Headscissors Oh My A second surely he must die Crashing onto the top rope Harley suplexed and cradled the dope. And now Leapin Lanny was not so dandy. But Handsome Harley Is really not so gnarly. *** 1//

From 2013 WWF World Tag Champs The British Bulldogs vs Heenan's Family (Studd/Bundy) - 5/17/86 Smart big man vs small man match that only lasts 5 or so minutes. The Bulldogs can only gain the advantage momentarily with quickness or with a double dropkick (I prefer their double dropkick to the RnRs or the Rockers). Bundy is more agile than Studd and is more entertaining to watch. I actually got King Kong Bundy's autograph when I was a kid when he did a local New England Indy (NWA New England, I believe). He is one big dude. Studd looks massive compared to the Bulldogs. Dynamite comes in illegally to put Studd in a sleeper and Studd tosses a ref for a DQ. Bundy tries to Irish Whip Studd into Smith, but he eats turnbuckles causing dissension in the Heenan Family. Was Studd supposed to turn babyface? If so, why, there is nothing, about Studd that makes him seem like a decent babyface.

Junkyard Dog vs Terry Funk - WWF Championship Wrestling 2/15/86 It is the run up to WrestleMania, ahhhh remember when WrestleMania II, remember when WrestleMania Season was not a bore or chore neither do I as I was not alive yet. The main angles get put over on the SNME But this was a big upper midcard house show feud so to put on TV meant one of two things JYD was vanquishing Terrible Terry for good or an angle. Funk jumps JYD and Thats it for him and this is the JYD show. Funk is the perfect opponent for JYD because he will bump and stooge and do his comedy around a limited JYD. JYD punches and slams and the DoggieStyle headbutts. Funk careens and bumps along the railing. He eats the buckle and over and over again. The Mouth of the South tries to save, Funk caught in the ropes. JYD has the branding iron he has branded Terrible Terry But Dory “Not Yet Hoss” Funk (no Junior) attacks in a business suit taking off his cowboy boot and clocks JYD. They put the boots to JYD. Jimmy Hart rips off his clothes to show what a scrawny little pipsqueek he is and gets his licks In. Babyface midcarders save JYD. I like Dory Funk Junior a lot but this was not he is suited for his. He was so subdued and milquetoast when he attacked JYD should have felt hotter. They should have waited until Mania II to brand Terry. A solid TV angle now JYD has two Funks he has to worry about who will get as a partner!

Roddy Piper & Adrian Adonis in 1986 In the Summer of 1986, Adorable Adrian Adonis, coincidentally debuted his new look on a Piper’s Pit in early 86, had the hottest property in all of pro wrestling the Flower Shop! Here he established his alliance with the Macho Man where they would go onto have the 1986 WWF MOTY against Tito & Bruno at MSG in July. It was here where he dropped poison into the ear of Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff leading to the turn against Hulk Hogan. We pick up the story when Junkyard Dog a frequent Adonis opponent on Saturday Nights Main Event and on the house show loop wrecked the Flower Shop. Because of this heinous attack by JYD, on the August 9th episode of Championship Wrestling, Adorable Adrian Adonis has hired protection and it is the best protection money can but it is the #1 bodyguard in all the land, Ace Cowboy Bob Orton who will henceforth be known as Acey and wear a pink cowboy hat. Next week wouldn’t you know it is just so happens that Orton’s former employer Rowdy Roddy Piper returns and he wants his show back. When he gets some lip from Adonis he goes after Orton being called Acey and wearing a pink Cowboy hat. Piper asks him to return to his side. Orton says the money is too good with Adonis and Jimmy Hart. Piper gets mad and I Don’t think this the last they will hear from him. The next week things gets weird. As Piper decides to beat up a jobber with one arm behind his back and make a racist joke about Slick’s lips as Adonis calls him the most rudest superstar. Superstars replaces Championship Wrestling on 9/6 and now things are cookin’. Piper starts talking ratings fuck we have been talking ratings for 40 years and he makes some transphobic jokes. He says WWF executives have pulled the plug on the Flower Shop. Piper’s Pit is back next week to the roar of the crowd. The crowd has been lapping up Piper with a spoon since his return. He is over like rover. Next week Adonis interrupts the Pit says Piper is a weasel for going to the higher ups to get what he wants. He challenges Piper to a debate in two weeks on the 9/27 Superstars. Piper says youre on! FLOWER SHOP VS PIPERS PIT! 9/20 just shows some vignettes of each side getting hyped up. The big Flower Shop vs Pipers Pit Debate rather than make their cases themselves each brings in a star witness to give testimony about their show. Adonis brings on the impartial Acey Bob Orton donning his fetching pink cowboy hat. He trumpets a lot of Adonis has to say before that Piper is old hat as Adonis is wont to say and says it here they are 1995 Aka they are the future they are cutting edge. 40 years later trans rights are not doing so hot. Hot Rod brings out Magnificent Muraco Ok bringing out a heel to be your witness is a bad idea. Piper goes between mocking Adonis and Muraco. Muraco gets hot when Piper won’t pay attention to him. Then they get into surreal debate over trans rights in 1986. Where Muraco of all people makes the case it is a free county and Adonis can dress how he pleases. Then Piper makes the lame case WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN? I grew up on Goldust dude and I came out fine. The kids are going to be alright. Come to think of Piper feuded with Goldust. Just saying. Then the heels finally jump him. Muraco and Orton hold him as Adonis smashes a flower pot over his head. TREMENDOUS ANGLE! The Muraco & Orton team is born out of this. The next week Piper destroys the Flower Shop with a crutch and baseball bat and thus ends the run of the best pro wrestling talk show in history. RIP Flower Shop. Piper would go on to attack Adonis with his crutch on the next SNME. Look Piper was hemmed in here he had to make some jokes about Adrian Adonis ridiculous get up. The comment about Slick’s lips and bringing the children into it give me a break. Adonis looked goofy that is fair game. Adonis, Jimmy Hart and Orton knocked this out of the park even Muraco played his part well. Awesome week to week storytelling in a promotion that is not known for week to week storytelling especially in the 80s. This is the type of serialized story telling I wish they would go back to. Everyone remember Piper destroying the Flower Shop but the best segment is the week before with the Debate and the Adonis/Muraco/Orton attack. Definitely watch the whole thing week to week. Two thumbs up.

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage - WWF Boston Garden 5/24/86 Boston was the last city to get Hogan and Savage as I have covered their matches from Philly, Toronto, MSG and even Detroit. This is a doozy! Not as good as the January MSG match but my second favorite of the 85-86 series. This is the most Memphis match. Savage really gets on his bike and rides. Lots of stalling, jaw jacking, stare downs, spitting at each other. They just short of grabbing the microphone and cutting promos on each other and I thought they were in the Mid-South Coliseum. Hogan finally starts unloading with the heavy artillery you know the stuff and Atomic Drop sends the Macho Man outside good use of Elizabeth. Savage takes over on one of the chase scenes back into the Ring. Savage starts flying around hitting Double Axe handle bombs from every angle. Turns out the Boston Garden barricade is pretty easy to topple as Hogan explodes through it. Savage is pouring it on. MACHO MAN ELBOW! OH NO! HE ACCIDENTALLY HIT THE REVIVING ELBOW! HULK-UP!!! Savage sent to the outside and picks up Liz out of the way. Back into the Ring, Hogan clobbers the ref and Macho sends Hogan careening out of the Ring. Savage blasts him with the Championship belt off the top rope to the floor. The ref counts out Hogan out to give Macho Man the victory and a rematch that no one seems to like. Savage tries to abscond with the title but a bloody Hogan in White, Fireman Carries him back to the ring, retrieves the title, kicks his ass, sends him packing and poses. I can see if you’re really into Memphis style wrestling this being your favorite. Lots of Gaga early, strong Hogan offense But also strong Macho Man offense which isn’t always the case and bloody ending! Good shit too bad the rematch is panned. *** 3/4

Tito Santana vs Cowboy Bob Orton - WWF 8/9/86 Ace is donning the Pink Cowboy Hat as Gorilla he has recently taken a job with Adorable Adrian Adonis. They reference that it will be a rough job because Adonis has managed to antagonize everyone in the WWF: he was the impetus behind Orndorff’s turn on Hogan, he is Macho Man’s partner in crime inserting himself in Tito’s business, he has a personal feud with Junkyard Dog and Piper is set come back and wreck the Flower Shop. The Adorable One is the straw stirs the 1986 WWF drink. I was hoping to see the technical side of Tito who basically wrestles every match like his opponent owes him money and I figured in a 30 minute draw I would see a different side of him. I was right there was a few flares of fisticuffs But for the most part this is wrestled straight. What I found was the Bob Orton show and I liked it! I just think Tito was totally overshadowed by Orton. in a different time and place, Bob Orton could have been the top heel in a territory hell watching this he wouldn’t have been a bad NWA Champion. He has a little Funk, Murdoch in him. He can wrestle on the ground, he can brawl, he can bump & stooge. I thought this was a very Flair-Esque performance from him. The changing of strategies first with the drop toe hold. Then he tries fists. He does some high flying a flying headscissors! He cheats goes for the hair and the eyes. Just like Flair he is thwarted at every pass either Tito goes for the arm or lights him up with a punch. Besides ramming his forearm into the turnbuckle, HEY WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS CAST?, it was a very subdued and sleepy performance by Tito. Orton was bringing the energy and fun. His second attempt of the flying headscissors where he gets caught up in the ropes woke me and the crowd up. I loved his Funk esque bump into the barricade toppling it over. I think once he realized it was so easy to topple The barricade he made sure to ram Tito into it and a great transition to heat. I liked him hanging Tito out to dry. After that the chinlock got a bit long in the tooth. Tito wakes up at the end does some spirited leg work climaxing with a figure-4. I am a bit confused what Orton does when he is in between Tito’s leg I thought he head butted him in the balls but then they worked the abdomen he was nowhere close to the abdomen. They light each other up as they go to a draw. Good heated brawl as Orton takes a Murdoch esque bump face first between the bottom and middle rope letting his feet catch the bottom rope. Good craic. Flair, Funk and Murdoch are all more charismatic than Orton and also have better offense on top. However, it is a shame Orton didnt get a chance to prove himself on top because I think he had the tools to do it. It was not Tito’s typical match. It was not a bad performance per se but it was uncharacteristically lifeless except at the end with the leg work and the punching. It is a very good match but 30 minutes you have to be great if I will ever watch you again. *** 1/2

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Paul Orndorff - WWF Big Event Even though I love the heel turn angle, Mr. Wonderful has never been a draw for me. I often put off his matches but this was very good and I have high hopes for the rest of the feud I plan on watching the Philly series and have seen the SNME cage match already. I would argue this was the Hulkster’s first real feud in the WWF. Yes there was the Bundy angle but this feels different than Hogan vanquishing Giants or wrestling Terry Funk and Randy Savage. They got ~70k in Toronto for this match and this was the inspiration for going big for WrestleMania III. Very marquee and influential feud! I love that Orndorff opens with an underhanded clothesline as the ref is checking Hogan nice play off the Clothesline that turned him heel. Great scuffle on the mat. Hogan gets the best of it. Very energetic fisticuffs follow. Hogan gets the best of it and sends Wonderful packing. I love how they fake out us a couple times before actually going to heat. Though eventually transition leaves a little to be desired. I liked Hogan chasing the Brain but the stomp to the back of the head didn’t look impactful enough to warrant a transition. Good heat segment by Orndorff nice suplex on the outside good heel offense focused on the throat. He signals for the Piledriver back drop out, but no Hulk Up. Nice Fist from Top Rope by Wonderful and a back Suplex. That triggers the Hulk Up! HOGAN HIGH KNEE WIPES OUT WONDERFUL & REF! HE RAISES ORNDORFF’s HAND AND CLOBBERS HIM WITH A CLOTHESLINE! How does that taste, Mr Wonderful? Piledriver with booty shake but Heenan hits Hogan with a stool triggering the DQ. Orndorff has the title Bur Hogan sends him packing and retrieves the title. The feud is off and running! Thought this was a very good Hogan formula match we get a bit more shine and I loved the finish with Hogan hitting the Traitor Clothesline on Wonderful for revenge. Hope the Philly matches are just as good. *** 1/2

Big & Super Machine & Capt Lou Albano vs Heenan Family (Big John Studd, King Kong Bundy, Bobby Heenan) - WWF Big Event I watched this for Tag Teams Back Again WHOOMP THERE IT IS! Andre wrestled very little for the WWF after WrestleMania II wrestling a lot for New Japan. So this is a rare appearance for the Giant. Heenan in the pre match promo says the masks are coming off and Okerlund gets the crowd to chant Weasel. At first it looks like Andre is wrestling but it is Albano as Gorilla gets correct. Gorilla dont know their names: Big, Giant and Super Machine. Super Machine Can be differentiated from Big by Eadie’s very distinctive punches. Pretty basic match. Super Machine Cant body slam Studd but he knocks him off his feet with a clothesline. Big Machine knocks Bundy off his feet. Then the Heenan Family takes over. One heat segment per Machine each time Heenan tries unmask the Machine. I liked Bundy coming in and knocking into a Machine as they were revving up to get Studd back on top. Nice sliding knee by Studd on the apron as this was a good Studd performance. When Heenan loses control of Super Machine we get The Brain vs Captain. The match devolves as we get what we want Andre head butting Heenan, double noggin knocker on Studd and Bundy and generally putting a whipping on Heenan Family. Match feels incomplete like it ends abruptly. Studd & Bundy looked good in this.

WWF Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage vs Koko B Ware - WWF Challenge 11/16/86 Non-Title For the love of God tell me theres a long form match between these two either from Memphis or WWF because this rules! Savage jumps Ware in his ring attire before Koko can get in the Ring. Savage is usual Tasmanian Devil self running around like a madman not letting Koko breathe. Koko starts mounting his comeback with the prettiest punches you’ll see. He goes all the way up to the top. MISSILE DROPKICK TO THE MACHO MAN! Foot on the ropes! Koko charges and goes flying over the top rope crashing to the floor. Macho Man leaps to dive on him and Koko catches him in the breadbasket with a punch. They brawl on floor until they get counted out Excellent! I want more! *** 1/4

AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel vs Boris Zhukov - AWA 9/16/86 A return bout on ESPN as AWA has little in the way of heels. It is too bad they didn’t give us a random title defense against Buddy Rose as we get another Zhukov match in November and a Nord match this month. I thought this was about the same level as the July match. Zhukov is a solid wrestler he is going to do his part. Bock seems ill-suited for this role as much as I like him. He doesn’t have much in the way of offense to get a shine going or fiery comeback. Nick flusters Boris early evading him as Zhukov charges and misses. Classic 80s sequence but seen done better a bunch of times in Backlund matches. It is a shame Backlund wasn’t pushed in the AWA in 85-87. Bock works the headlock. Zhukov’s leg work is very good just as good as the arm work in the previous match. Bock is selling well. I liked the leg yank on the apron into the chops. Indian Deathlock was nice surprise. Good heavy blows by Bock to get out. I liked Zhukovs headbutts to take back over. He needs to tighten up that Full Nelson. Bock pushes off the buckles. Is it a double pin? No! Bock wins! Another good match but AWA is sad at this point. It is funny Bock/Hennig and Rockers/Rose & Somers both have Top 100 matches of all time in 1986 but the depth is not there to support week to week television. ***

AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel vs Boris Zhukov - AWA 7/15/86 Ahhhh pro wrestling from Las Vegas on ESPN but feels a lot different 40 years ago. Bockwinkel is wicked over at the Showboat. I believe this is his first televised defense of his AWA World Title which was awarded to him under a cloud of controversy as Stan Hansen was stripped of the title and it was awarded to Bock. Why not just make this match for the title? With the departure of Hansen and others since WrestleRock, AWA is getting real thin. Blackwell’s health is failing him. You have up and comers like Hennig and the Rockers and a green Scott Hall. The Rockers have great adversaries in Rose & Somers but the singles heels are pretty dire Larry Zbyszko, Boris Zhukov, Nord the Barbarian and Col. DeBeers. Zbyszko is legitimately good but more in a No 2/3 Heel he’s not someone who can carry a company on his back. Coming off WrestleMania, this is so simple in its execution. The opening headscissors and Full Nelson are but flaccid but the rest of strength is very well-worked as the headlock by Bock. I thought the Arm work by Zhukov is the highlight of the match as was Bock’s selling. Love a hammerlock slam and arm stretcher. Nice heavy blows by Bock as he starts his comeback. He is crowding Zhukov in the corner. The finish is Zhukov has his feet on the ropes but ref sees. Zhukov thinks he won Bock dropkicks Zhukov into Al-Kaisse and wins the match. Felt like they had another ten minutes in them. Bock after decades of working heel is well-suited for a shine or comeback which you can see him. I enjoyed the Arm work. They have two more television matches I might watch them. ***

So I watched this Same video Charles says it is from 3/30 in Omni this says 3/29 Greensboro. We are clearly talking about the same match so I will let someone else decide the date and venue. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Ronnie Garvin - NWA 3/30/86 Omni Steel Cage Fantastic Handheld as someone not usually into fancams, this is worth going out of your way to see! Much better than the 3/1 match less cuts and easier to follow the narrative. WHAT A WAR! This is what you want from Flair vs Garvin. Just a dog fight from beginning to end. Pelting each other with stiff shots. The beginning of the match is each back the other into a corner just lighting each other up. Flair was trying to crowd Garvin in the crowd and Garvin was BELTING him back. The way Flair would lunge to close the gap or got for the throat or how Garvin would go for the hair. So visceral. Garvin grabbing that big banana nose and yanking was awesome doubly awesome because he demonstrated to Tommy Young what he just did. I will get to my one beef with the match. Just like on 3/1 Garvin hits the Hands of Stone early and Flair kicks out. Garvin had punched Flair in the run up and Flair was registering, Flair clearly bumped around 8 minute mark of the footage I watched like he got DECKED and then kicked out. Back to heaping praise on this… Garvin grabs a front face lock, Flair muscles him into the corner and BALLSHOTS him. This is what really separates this from 3/1 EXCELLENT Heat segment we starts with busting Garvin open by ramming and grating him head on the Steel. Then it is the heavy hands of Flair. Watch the punches and the way he takes him down beats the fucking shit out of him. When Garvin starts to No Sell the shots in the corner FUCK YES! They don’t jump to it early. Flair beats him back into another corner. Garvin no sells. Watch Flair RIP him down the ground. That was not a snap mare that was a RIP. He unleashes a fury of punches but it is Flair who tastes the steel for the first time. Then it is UNHOLY Testicular Violence! Garvin straight up punches him in the asshole and the dick it was like fuck. HOW THE FUCK DO FLAIR’s TRUNKS HOLD ON? I thought for sure we were going to see his junk fuck he yank that shit down. They do classic Garvin stands out of the atomic drop CLOCKS HIM WITH THE HANDS OF STONE! ELECTRIC! Flair gets his foot on the ropes. Pretty lame in a steel cage match. Great spot but they were in a tough spot because Garvin was not winning the title. The action kinda Peters out as their only play was to get to the Figure-4 to reheat and they do. Flair crotches him on the ropes. A little leg work and the Figure-4 and the heat is back. Garvin reverses the pressure and revs back up. Flair goes to escape again and again his trunks work overtime to stay in his body. Again the HANDS OF STONE! Again the foot on the ropes. Ugh. Take it home fellas Flair crossbody and Garvin knee buckles and he collapses under the weight of Flair for the win. Garvin makes sure to sell the knee. Normally I love that finish but if you’re going to use it I would have liked some more leg work. Three near falls with Hands of Stone was two too many. Cut out the first one that was fucking stupid. I like the second one. Go into the leg work. Make the leg work more extensive and vicious. Have Garvin make one final comeback but he whiffs on the Hands of Stone because of his leg, Flair crossbody Knee buckles and you have a 5 star classic. As is **** 1/2 because the violence and hatred and nastiness was so fucking awesome, this is exactly what you want Flair vs Garvin to be hard hitting and nasty. **** 1/2

Mid-South North American Champion Butch Reed vs Dick Slater - Mid-South 1/11/86 Mid-South was in a period of transition as Butch Reed a mainstay of the promotion would leave for Central States of all places to tag and then feud with Rufus R Jones. Dick Slater would be gone by April as would the man he would feud with Jake the Snake. Mid-South was gearing up for the big UWF re-brand. Slater has been trying to collect the bounty on Butch Reed set by Ric Flair and recently they had a match in Houston on 12/29 where Slater put up Dark Journey for 30 days which is always a tasteless angle. Here Slater goads Reed to put the title on the line against Dark Journey. About 10 minutes of action I don’t know if it is because Reed is going out the door but not a whole lot to this one. Reed power offense and punches control the beginning. He sets too early Slater takes over but nothing too fancy. Reed drives his face into the mat. Reed piledriver but feels out of place as that doesnt climax the segment But Reed back to punches. Double noggin knocker. Slater Figure-4, handful of tights in O’Connor Roll ref waves it off. Reed misses the charge in the corner and loaded Dark Journey shoe gets the win and title for Slater who was just a traditional champion to UWF re-brand. Fun finish decent match. ***

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Ronnie Garvin - NWA 3/1/86 Greensboro Fancam If you like Flair Flops and Flair’s ass this is the match for you. I am normally not a fancam guy but Flair vs Garvin is one of my all time favorite match ups and the 85 studio matvh is one of my personal favorite matches. The Superstars on the Superstation match is good but maybe their weakest match together. So it feels like I never got to see the blowoff to the 85-86 feud so I figured I watch this and the Cage at the end of the month before Flair transition to Ricky Morton for the spring and summer. It is a pretty good fancam all things considered they work a double Countout after ~30minutes of action theres 34mins of footage with pre and post match included. There is small clipping throughout. I got a kick out of him clipping the sleeper to the top wrist lock test of strength even in 86 they were like skip. So it can be a bit hard to follow the action and narrative. It is Flair vs Garvin we are here for the Fire Fights and there are some great ones that break out in the corner throughout the match. Two curious things happen Garvin nails him with the Hands of Stone TWICE and Flair kicks out TWICE. The first one was like 4-5mins into the footage. They invested so much on TV that Garvin had this punchers chance if he connects with the Hands of Stone he can be World Champ and then Flair kicks out twice smacked me as bizarre. Lots of Flair crowding in the corner and Garvin coming back and overwhelming him. Garvin worked the arm and even a Boston Crab later. Flair was throwing his short knee and heavy blows. I liked both transitions to Flair heat segments one being a desperation Headbutt to the gut it was almost like he collapsed into a lunging Headbutt and a great ball shot later. I wish we got more Flair on top. When he was on top he was vicious and his blows were heavy. Lots of your favorite standard Flair spots and we got juice. His third heat segment climaxed with the Figure-4. As the action spills outside more and more I am like this is going to a Double Countout which makes sense because I believe they come back around at the end of the month to do Steel Cage Matches because the Ring COULD NOT contain them! Garvin DECKS Flair back in the Ring after the match has been called off but Tommy Young Cant count the pin. Which makes it even weirder that they ran two Hands of Stone to kick outs. It would have made so much more sense to have Flair evade the Hands of Stone the whole match and the after the Double Countout DECK Him and the fans are like OH IF ONLY HE COULD HAVE CLOCKED BEFORE THE MATCH ENDED! Weird booking aside, the narrative was a bit hard to follow but it is Flair vs Garvin 34 minutes still breezed by. *** 1/2

Alright got 5 hours of Sleep as my wife took the baby. OMG how have I never seen the Ole leg breaking angle from the 1/1/86 Omni show Dusty break Ole’e leg using the protective brace and a figure-4. Road Warriors are accomplices in this escalating turf war. Arn Anderson narrates the clip and does an incredible job. Flair and Arn at the end are so INCENSED! God this is what pro wrestling needs not more talking back and forth, not more wrestling, MORE ANGLES!

Baby woke up fed changed and went back to sleep. Not as easy for me to go back to sleep. From 1/10/86 WCCW Sportatorium show it is John Tatum and Lance Von Erich but I am of course watching for Missy. I have seen a little Tatum. I have never seen Lance. Very very handsome fella. Surprised Vince didn’t pick him up. Missy and Sunshine brawl a bit so David Manning throw them out. I FF because I just want the angle. Lance spanks Missy after beating her man to add insult to injury. She flips out smacking and berating John Tatum around and Tatum sells it like a total emasculated loser. I hate when they smack Baby Doll around but spanking is in that gray zone. Missy should have done more to warrant it in this particular instance. Great job by Tatum being comfortable enough in his own masculinity to really put over the angle because this is great heel stuff. Mid-South 2/8/86 The House of Humperdink has fallen and Hot Stuff International is on the rise as Eddie Gilbert executes his revenge plot for Hump stealing Nightmare when Taurus Bulba attacks Hump. Bulba looks generic never seen him before. CWF 4/12 loved Barry Windham and Jesse Barr dressed as a woman getting one up on Luger and Bob Ropp dressed as the Mauruder, Windham socks the Maurauder and gets a roll of coins from Bart in drag. Great shit!

Thanks to Wrestling Playlists went down to a UWF/Mid-South May 87 Rabbit hole 5/10 - Hot Stuff International are the main heel act it is Eddie Gilbert managing a Russian I have never heard of and the green as grass Blade Runners. Korchenko wants to “bury” the Duggan under the Soviet flag. Bill Watts goes full Reganite on commentary. Doc saves but gets jumped. Skandor is going fire ball him but Duggan saves him blocks the the fireball with a chair. Sick. There’s a “Kill A Commie For Mommy” sign for Mothers Day. Classy. 5/17 - Korchenko wants to bury a jobber under the Soviet flag. This time Doc and DiBiase save (making his return from Japan). Bill Watts comes off commentary and reads Gilbert the riot act and bans the Soviet Flag. BILL WATTS IS WALKING TALL as Knocks Out each member of Hot Stuff International. Jim Ross loses his shit! Also Michael Hayes makes his re-debut on commentary announces the Freebirds are coming and denigrates the returning Ted DiBiase 5/24 - Hayes continues to dog DiBiase so Ted takes the match from Terry Taylor and brawls with Hayes as the show goes off the air. BILL WATTS CUTS A FIRED UP PROMO ABOUT WALKING TALL WITH DOC! HE IS COMING OUT OF Retirement NOT TO WRESTLE BUT TO FIGHT 5/31 - MONEY ANGLE Eddie Gilbert fake apologizes to Watts. Korchenko and the KOLOFFS from Crockett jump Watts BLOODY HIM AND BURY HIM UNDER THE SOVIET FLAG!!! Amazing! The show ends with the Fantastics brawling with the KOLOFFS and a shirtless head bandages BILL WATTS WALKING FALL WITH A BASEBALL BAT! There’s a Freebirds vs DiBiase & Taylor matvh I want to watch Even though this angle rules it only drew 11k at the Superdome Watts/DUSTY/Doc vs Korchenko & KOLOFFS, Flair/Morton and Hayes/DiBiase on the undercard that is disappointing. Great fucking angle!

Watched the 3/1/86 Memphis TV Angle The Return of Jerry Lawler thanks to Wrestling Playlists. It was a doozy. Every couple months Memphis would have one of these episode-long angles that are just so engrossing and are just money. 36 minutes of glorious pro wrestling angle development. Dutch clearly calmly explains the issues with Bill & Buddy why he had a falling out with these two jackasses who are full of themselves. Bill & Buddy have their side they are champions and Dutchman wasn’t pulling his weight. Bill & Buddy beat on some jabronis a little too hard a referee by the name of Jeff Jarrett tries to intervene and gets beat up. So his dad and Memphis wrestling legend Jerry Jarrett tries to make the save but Billy and Buddy go after his good eye. Dutch saves everyone and carries Jeff to the back…Jeff is a big boy and Dutch struggles. Lance is beside himself and in a way only Lance can be. I watched this mostly because it has been so long since I had Lance Russell in my life and he doesn’t disappoint. Jerry Jarrett is so broken up he can’t speak. Eddie Marlin says there is only one man can fix this situation and he knows he lost a Loser Leaves Town match in December 1985 to Bill Dundee but gosh darn it he is going to risk it all to get the Jerry The King Lawler back. Bill Dundee if you don’t like it sue me. They are able to get Lawler on the phone Lance puts his microphone up to the receiver so we can all here. Lawler and Dutch hit a home run that things have gone too far and they will team together at the Mid-South Coliseum. Now this sets up the 3/3 match which I am not sure if we have. The 3/10 is the classic which is covered in this thread. Memphis explains the little stuff Lawler is going to cancel his bookings and they explain Billy Travis is rookie of the year but against Bill and Buddy you don’t need the rookie of the year you need the King, daddy! Dundee is great at the end to take this all home. Lance won’t interview so Dundee yanks the mic out of his hand and says he is going to sue every single one of them for all their worth if they can get Nixon out of the White House he is shutting this place down. Amazing Stuff. They don’t make em like they used to.

WWC Universal Heavyweight Champion Carlos Colon vs Stan Hansen - WWC 3/14/87 Steel Cage They go three for three in 1987 with MOTYCs. This could be the greatest feud of all time. Six months of awesome hate-filled kickass pro wrestling. No need for context here, it is the Steel Cage blow off match. Hansen tries to enter the Cage and Colon immediately pounces and is kicking ass right off the bat. I am starting to get into Colon more and more. The camera work is excellent throughout the match. Colon leaves himself open on a 10 count punches so Hansen ball shots him. Hansen surprisingly doesnt get much offense in this match but here he bloodies Colon. He is always trying to leave the cage. It is the heel mentality, Colon wants to inflict punishment, Hansen wants to get the fuck outta there. I love how Colon pulls the hair to keep Hansen from escaping. Colon really opens up. The Round Off! Toe Touch! Mule Kick Ballshot! Yes Yes Yes! Hansen blasts with the Lariat But when he tries to go over the top he gets crotches! Love testicular violence in a match so primal. Colon harkening back to the 4th singles match attacks the leg with gusto! Hansen’s selling is off the charts. He is throwing every limb he can to try to fend off Colon to no avail. He desperately is crawling to escape but there is no running from Carlos Colon. Who slaps on the Figure-4 and the crowd goes wild. The heels I assume charge the cage But the babyfaces run them off at the pass. It is a huge MELEE! Carlos says Welp I kicked Hansen’s ass try to go kicks some more heel ass and casually walks out the door and inserted himself into the fray. The finish is a bit anti-climatic. It would be nice if it was a bit more emphatic. That said I love how this married the vigorous leg work of the last match with ultra violence of the Bullrope with a Colon victory! This match was so primal. Colon was great on top But Hansen made this match. He is the ultimate bully roughhousing when he is on top but as soon as he gets punched in the mouth his true colors show and he has a yellow streak a Mile wide. Loved this feud I think this was my favorite of the series. A must see series for all wrestling fans!!!! **** 3/4

From 2013 the famous St. Jean Baptiste Massacre Match a 5 star angle The Rougeaus vs The Garvins w/Precious? - St. Jean Baptist Massacre Montreal 1985? Thanks to Dave Musgrave! This was a pretty wicked beatdown the Garvins gave the Rougeaus. Precious lays some smack talk on Jacques and Ronnie sprays hair spray in Jacques' eyes. Ronnie and Jimmy Garvin are the strangest brother combination in pro wrestling. They gang up on Raymond and Jacques Sr. comes in. It feels like AWA in a good way to me. As the fans pop huge for Jacques Sr., they want to see the old hero save his sons, but the Garvins sell for the elder Jacques, but he goes after Precious. The Garvins attack him and give him a double bodyslam. Then they do the what I believe is the Rougeaus finish. They put Jacques Sr in a Boston Crab and drop a knee drop on him. At some point Jacques blades and Jacques Sr. does a stretcher job. Montreal is friggin hot to see the Garvins get their just desserts. The Garvins definitely did a number on the local heroes and then they cut a local spot promo with Jimmy Garvin just lambasting Ontario and Ronnie says they annihilated the Rougeaus. After, the beatdown and promo just like the rest of 1985 Montreal I want to see Garvin get their asses kicked by the Rougeaus. A five star angle!!!

The following review is from 2013 and I really should rewatch it to give a proper rating but until I can find the time *** 3/4 sounds fair The Rougeaus vs The Garvins w/Precious - Montreal 7/15/85 Jimmy Garvin looks just so friggin sleezy. That is really saying something in pro wrestling. Garvins seem to be taking this affair lightly until the Rougeaus come out and they try to keep them out. The Rougeaus overwhelm the Garvins and just unload on them. They even do the row your boat spot! Raymond looks awesome and is throwing huge right hand bombs! He piledrives Ronnie Garvin! Jacques with a fist drop and a second rope knee drop and Ronnie is gushing blood. The crowd is going crazy for the Rougeaus and Ronnie making them look a million bucks. Jacques chucks Jimmy Jam off the top rope and melee ensues. The Rougeaus spike Ronnie on his head! Jimmy puts Ronnie's foot on the rope to save him. Ronnie starts to fire back and hits a leaping headbutt to tag in Jimmy. Jimmy bumps around for the Rougeaus in a more overtly dramatic way. Ronnie grabs his tights and pulls him down. Jimmy is able to grab a reverse chinlock. This makes sense the Rougeaus are fuckin hot. The Garvins are just trying to break their momentum and you see them going back to the chinlock. Jimmy gets a knee lift for 2. They censor Ronnie's blood. Ronnie and Jacques are going at it while Jimmy has Raymond in a chinlock. Jimmy and Raymond collide pretty wickedly in a fast criss-cross. Both tag out, Jacques with a standing dropkick on Ronnie. Jacques dropkicks both Garvins. Jacques rams Jimmy's balls into the post a couple times, but Ronnie slugs Jacques Sr. The ref calls off the match. O Fuck You! He disqualifies the Rougeaus?!?!? Double Go Fuck Yourself! After WWF match after WWF match this match kicks so much ass and is such a breath of fresh air. I assume most people here would like this match better than the Rockers matches as this way more violent and a very heated brawl. It is really energetic and action-packed. It never lets up. I think the Rockers matches has its own high points and is a very different match. I like this match a lot, but I think I would put the Rockers match over this. However, this is incredible brawl and I wish we had the blowoff because this is just another primer. I am not going to say where were these Rougeaus because WWF was not conducive to bringing this out of their performer. I wish the Rougeaus would had some spots in the NWA territories because they are kick ass vengeful babyfaces. *** 3/4

WWC Universal Heavyweight Champion Carlos Colon vs Stan Hansen - WWC 2/28/87 Well this fucking ruled! Thanks to @El Boricua for the excellent background. Colon beat Hansen in a Texas Bullrope match while felt like a feud ended but Hansen’s manager Ckicky Starr organized an ambush with Hansen on Chicky’s talk show segment. For those who haven’t seen Carlos Colon, he is black and there a clear Racial component to this beat down with Hansen hogtieing him and riding him like a horse. Carlos becomes a recluse but eventually the babyfaces cajole him to make a comeback. He breaks Chicky Starr’s leg with a figure-4 and now he is out for Hansen. Excellent! The most traditional of their matches so far But I may like this one even more than their Bullrope. Colon is all over Hansen so start attacking before he could get his chaps off. Pelting him with punches and everything he got. Brawl on the floor, attacked with the Bullrope. Hansen starts trying to mount a comeback But Colon keeps pouring it on. I loved Hansen scooping him off the Round Off into a Bodyslam but Colon just keeps coming. Finally Hansen double legs him and knees him low to finally gain an advantage, short but energetic Hansen control segment follows. Love the transition to Colon back on top. Hansen misses a charge and knee slams into the buckles. Colon like a shark with blood in the water attacks the leg. Hansen is able to fend him off but as he uses knees to keep him at bay he misses into the canvas and this is opening Colon needs to really zero in on the knee. This does NOT feel like Heel In Peril. This is some of the most upbeat limb work I have ever seen. It was fiery and it was exhilarating to watch. Colon wanted to break off his leg and beat with it. Very rarely is a babyface working a body part so exciting. I loved the receipt on the knee to the balls we get to here and a mule kick to the balls! Hansen is giving one of his best selling performances of all time. He is a very underrated seller. He is full on wounded bear. Doing everything he can to stave off Colon’s relentless attack, eye rakes, wild bear paws, hurling a chair at Colon but nothing can stop the onslaught of Colon. Colon puts Hansen in the Figure-4 twice. Second time as Hansen makes it to the ropes, Colon beats him to it and he starts to use the ropes as leverage to break Hansen’s leg. OH HELL YEAH! The ref looked poise to DQ Colon but Hansen cracks Colon with a crutch most likely Chicky Starr’s to trigger the DQ. The tussle over the crutch but Colon gets a hold of it send Hansen packing and even starts attacking refs. He is UNHINGED! Hansen knows how to get the Owner of a Promotion OVER! Damn now I wish we got Hansen vs Verne! My favorite Colon performance so far! This is up there for some of my favorite limb work of all time. Reminded me of when Tito learned the Figure-4 to break Valentine’s leg. This was FUCKING AWESOME! **** 1/2

Sid Vicious vs Kevin Nash vs Ron Harris - WCW Thunder 1/26/00 Steel Cage Thunder two days after Sid beat Nash for the WCW title on Nitro in a fun finish. The Commissioner Big Sexy Kevin Nash strips Sid of the Title because he beat the wrong Harris Brother in the Roadblock match. It seems like he awards it to himself but it doesn’t seem like that recognized But rather the title is in abeyance. I can’t believe I am watching Ron Harris at 430am. Effectively a Handicap match, Powerbomb is outlawed and Sid must beat Nash. They double team Sid some good punches by Nash and throwing him into the Cage. Sid hulks up and Sid’s offense looks better at this point of his career than any other. He was teeing off. Big Sexy Ballshot. More cage work on Sid. Sid hulks up again CHOKESLAMS a Harris Twin and uses the Crossface to beat Big Sexy to win the World Title again immediate tap out. They put Sid over twice it was the right call they want all in. The booking was banal and the matvh was a basic as possible but at least the babyface went over strong. Nothing to go out of your way to see.