Superstar Sleeze

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Dusty Rhodes - NWA Starrcade 1985 AND THE CROWD GOES WILD BECAUSE Dusty Rhodes stomps the ankle of the Nature Boy. Thats Pro Wrestling Magic, Daddy. Two of the biggest lies ever sold to us were Hulk Hogan and Dusty Rhodes were not good at that wrestling business. That was the purview of the Macho Man and the Nature Boy. Big Dust and Hulkster fire on the mic, but once the bell rang they were no go so that story goes. I am here to tell you that is a huge can of BULLSHIT! The American Dream and Hulkamania FOREVER! This is match coming off the big Horsemen break Dusty’s ankle in the Cage at the Omni. The ankle will be a target. The genius of this match is that they tease it three times before they deliver it in full. It creates that tension and that anticipation. It is extended shine for the Dream but in the back of you mind the Ankle, the Ankle is always looming. That’s great pro wrestling daddy. Big Dust opens up a can of whoop ass early. Punches and elbows. I love how he walked through that first right. Naitch feed, bump and run. He has a hungry babyface and he knows he needs to eat. Flair starts to make some in-roads in the corner and goes for the armpit punch NO he kicks the bad wheel! AMAZING SELLING BY DUSTY! Dusty powders and really milks it for all it’s worth. DUSTY STOMPS THE ANKLE OF FLAIR! Atlanta Comes Unglued! The leg work by Dusty is so damn good and so cathartic. Flair throws in some great hope spots for himself like the sleeper and getting press slammed off the top. OMG I would be remiss to mention the suplex battle early in this segment. Flair’s leg gives out on a vertical suplex and instead the Dream musters up the might to get him off. Incredible. This segment climaxes with Dusty trying to get the Figure-4 on Flair but Flair kicks him off. Dusty sells the ankle again. Two strikes! However Dusty roars back and is able to whip Flair into Flair Flip and bust him open on the outside. So we switch from the leg to attacking the cut. Love this changing of levels. Dusty gets a great near fall on a top rope crossbody but Tommy Young was out of position. Flair Flip Bleeding Running Across the Apron Up Top and Down into a Big Dust Fist! Dusty follows into the corner Bur punts the turnbuckle with the bad foot! Three strikes and youre out Daddy. Now we get the full throttle Nature Boy attack on the leg climaxing with the Figure-4. One of the most magical and moving Figure-4 reversals as Dusty calls upon the Omni and all of America to reverse the Figure-4. Flair chops and punches But they are having no effect. HULK-UP! Punches and elbows, clothesline! Flair presses Big Dust off of him onto the ref. Dusty finally gets the Figure-4. Here come the Andersons. He dispatches Arn but Ole sneak attacks him. New ref! Flair 1-2-NO! Dusty Inside Cradle 1-2-3!!! NEW WORLD CHAMPION! Wait? What? I thought the blow was at the July 86 Great American Bash. Fuck a Dusty Finish that is lame. Dusty Finish knocks this down a peg but man this was electric. I did think Dusty took a little too much of the match. Dont get me wrong it was entertaining But I would have liked to see Flair really get a chance to work that ankle. If it wasn’t for the Dusty Finish I would go 4 But cant do that. *** 3/4

Southern Heavyweight Champion Randy Savage vs Jerry Oski - Memphis 5/7/85 This is a match I have heard a lot about but wasn’t too interested in because I never heard of Jerry Oski but I am on a Macho Man kick and figured it was time to finally plop down and watch this bad boy and I am glad I did. This is a master class in how to work a compelling, effective heat segment with minimal high spots. Sounds like we might be missing 14 minutes of a 31 minute match But what we get feels like a complete match. Oski is working the Arm. Savage try as he might Cant really get much going against Oski who is a big muscle head type wrestler. Big in Memphis But would be average size in WWF. Savage tries to get something going with punches on the outside but Oski meets the moment. Abdominal Stretch. Tux distracts the ref and Macho Man throws him over the top rope and thus begins the master class. Excellent King of the Mountain. Savage is always changing positions. He throws Oski out, he goes out attack Oski, comes back in, brings Oski in and throws him back. Rinse lather repeat. This foments a sense of chaos and mayhem. Keeps both Oski and the viewer off balance and discombobulated. Secondly and this is the important part his grasp of control is tenuous at best. This creates a sense of tension. Can Savage hold Oski at bay? Can Oski surmount the mountain Savage has built for him to climb? Savage overreaches at one point and tries to bring Oski in with a suplex But Oski falls on top and gets a two count. Savage presses him off and his reaction is perfect. In desperation and he rushes outside and slams him into a post. Or Oski charges the corner and Macho Man evades sending Oski crashing to the floor where Tux Newman jabs him with the cane. Excellent heel work. Oski is competent but Savage is essentially wrestling himself. He is creating situations for Oski to succeed. Cant tell you one stock Oski high spot I could glean it was all Savage feeding. It was genius work. Savage feeds the Sunset Flip and throws him back outside which the announcer says must be the 8th time and I agree. Another Sunset Flip. You can feel the desperation from Savage as he goes for the piledriver. Back drop. Can Oski do it? Savage is fading. Oski misses the fist drop. Oski misses the elbow. MIDDLE ROPE MACHO MAN ELBOW! 1-2-NO! It is High Drama in Louisville! Macho Man thinks he has won after the knee drop. Oski O’Connor Roll! Do you believe in miracles? The real miracle is not Oski winning but how fucking good this match is as Savage basically is wrestling a broomstick. Everyone should study this match, masterful. ****

Nick Bockwinkel vs Randy Savage - Memphis 4/15/85 Im surprised this doesn’t have more hype in these parts as it is two of Top 25 wrestlers squaring off in a full match. It does NOT quite get to OMG Savage vs Bock levels but it was still very good. Macho Man burnishes Bock at the bell but in classic Savage fashion he eats a punch to the breadbasket diving off the top to the floor. It has been a minute since I watched me some Bock. Everything thing is snug and tight. Every blow is heavy. Ahhhh the glorious Bock King of the Mountain. Great bumping, feeding and selling by Savage. Macho Man goes to eyes. All his punches especially the wind up punch, trademark Savage Double Axehandle to the floor. Back suplex by Bock. Savage back to the eyes. Some floor brawling. Savage goes for the piledriver but back dropped on the concrete. Bock body slams him in, Savage foot on the ropes. Tux Newman puts his foot on the ropes a second time. Bock and ref distracted. Ballshot/Piledriver combo what a finish! Not a classic but still fun to watch these two tangle. *** 1/2

Jerry Lawler vs Randy Savage - ICW 3/24/85 WWE Vault hypes this as an Unseen Savage vs Lawler match from Cape Girdeau, MO, but doesn’t give a promotion or a date. Based on Cagematch, it looks like this happened in ICW (Poffo) and on 3/24/85 but feel free to correct me. They have 35 minutes of Savage and Lawler in 1985! What a find! One thing to make clear is due to sound quality and it was my turn to watch the baby I couldn’t make out what they were saying and like first 25 minutes there is a lot of stopping and grabbing a microphone. So your viewing experience maybe enhanced if you can hear what is going on. Tux Newman, who I had never heard of until reading our fearless leader @Loss Wrestling Playlists strolls out to support his Macho Man, Even though this is in ICW, Savage is playing the heel through and through. I affectionately call their 6/3/85 match the anti-work rate classic. This is definitely in a similar vein but not quite as good. What both excel at is really selling This as a sporting contest without it being shoot style. Each punch is sold exactly how a punch would be sold in a bare knuckle fight. Savage has that Tasmanian Devil energy. I love how cool & calm Lawler plays the opening. He is not being suckered into Macho Man’s game. He is here to wrestle by the rules and he is keeping it professional. Classic Savage getting on his bike and riding. Lawler embarrasses him at every turn in the opening. Reversing everything and having an answer for everything. This draws Tux out which leads to a lot of jaw jacking. The first punch scored goes to the King. Savage’s sell of this single punch is everything. The way rocks in the ropes and how he acts like a chump about it. Savage scores two great punches of his own in the corner. Lawler’s like Savage puts over the power of the punch. Lawler evens the score at two apiece But he rears back and charges in the third but it is a miss. Tux gets his cane to Savage unbeknownst to Lawler and when Lawler goes after Tux, Savage jabs it into Lawler’s abdomen. Now we are off to the races! Love Savage’s Baseball Wind-Up Punches on the floor! Bombs Away Double Axehandle to the floor! Lawler presses Savage off of him onto the floor. It is not a far drop as this ring is only like 2-3 feet off the ground. Lawler punch but he misses on the fist drop! Another Bombs Away Double Axehandle to the floor. The arena brawling is cool because you just see these silhouettes of the two of them punching each others lights out. Classic Savage bump as the King catches him in the breadbasket with a punch as he leapt from the top rope. Both men’s selling is terrific. They are capturing the grueling struggle of the fisticuffs. Macho Man eyerake as he looks to take back control. LAWLER HULK UP STRAP DOWN SAVAGE BEGS OFF! THE KING TEES OFF ON THE MACHO MAN AND LAWLER HURLS HIM TONYHE OUTSIDE! Lawler threatens to punch Tux But doesn’t do it because Savage saves. Big Punch, classic Piston Punches and fist drop ends it. Look at 35 minutes but only ten minutes of action it is a bit of a sell BUT like I said maybe if you can hear him you’d enjoy the first 25 minutes more. The last ten minutes are gold But I did think the finish was a bit anti-climactic. Everyone should check this out! *** 1/2

WWF Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage vs Tito Santana - WWF MLG 5/4/86 NO DQ I haven’t watched the MSG match in over 6 years. So I thought be fun to watch this one because I forgot the finer points of the MSG match and thus if they are the same I wouldn’t notice. Great use of Elizabeth right at the bell. Dragging her in front. Stymying Tito and popping him. Such a low down reprehensible thing to do. It comes back to bite him immediately as Tito catches him with a right to the breadbasket as he leapt off the top rope. It has been so long since I have since Tito works singles match. Give him Hell, Tito! Tito does just unloading with haymakers. Tito has such a great punch. He wallops Savage to the outside. He kicks his ass over the railing. Good outside the Ring brawling. Back in the Ring, Savage is clinging for dear life to the ropes to stop this onslaught. He digs his fingers into Tito’s eyes. That makes some headway. He throws Tito over the top rope. Again good use of the floor the Bombs Away Double Axehandle. Savage swarms attacking from all angles like usual. He misses a knee drop. Starts selling the leg and nobody sells the leg as good as the Macho Man but that doesn’t last long. I like how the rest of the heat segment. Savage’s control of the match seems tenuous. It feels like Tito is going to break out and open a can of whoop ass But Macho Man keeps cutting him off until the Holy Shit Bump of the Match Tito uses a steel chair to hit the Macho Man as he comes down with a Double Axehandle to the floor. The rout is on. Tito unloads as the Macho Man heads for the hills. He brings him back the hardway. They brawl more on the outside as Savage is busted open on the post. Absolutely amazing punch exchange! I watch so many bad ones in modern wrestling study these two punching the shit out of each other. Savage clocks the ref on the back swing. MEXICAN HAMMER! Love it! No ref! Awesome! Tito tries to wake the ref. Savage high Knee! O’Connor Roll w reverses and has the tights for the win. A very popular Savage finish. I’ll have to go back and read my MSG review to see how similar matches. I felt like they were similar quality. Really strong 80s brawl but not quite upper echelon. ****1/4

WWF World Tag Team Champions Dream Team vs British Bulldogs - WWF Boston 10/12/85 And I thought I had seen all the Dream Team versus Bulldogs matches. A rare feud where the TV Matches (Two SNME’s and WrestleMania II) were better than all the house show matches I had seen…until now…let’s take a look. Beefer Cuts & Struts out of a headlock. Bulldogs show off their explosiveness early running through the Dream Team and keeping them off balance. They work the arm on both men. The Hammer gets a Backbreaker and it is off to the races. Excellent heat segment on Dynamite Kid. Great work on the back. Valentine driving the knee into the back to consolidate. Great use of the Dream Team Double Team in the corner. Beefcake good use of the Bearhug and driving Dynamite into the corner. Dynamite starts peppering in hope spots like a snap suplex and wriggling out of the figure-4 and a good nut shot on the knuckle lock bridge sequence. The Dream Team keeps pouring it on. Watching Valentine work on top is always a treat. Lots of great Dream Team Double Teams. One of the better Beefcake performance. Hammer misses multiple elbows and Dynamite tags out. I love that Davey Boy gets a proper hot tag. A lot of time in the 80s they will quench the first hot tag so quickly and it is bummer. We get the classic explosive Davey Boy dropkick. A Missile Dropkick! RUNNING Powerslam! Great shit! Beefcake tries to contain Davey Boy But he keeps fighting through the offense. Bulldogs whip the Dream Team into each other. Most Bitchin’ Tag Team Finisher of the 80s Rocket Launcher Diving Headbutt. Ref distracted and The Hammer Drops The Hammer on the back of Dynamite’s head and Beefcake rolls over for the 1-2-3! Great tag match definitely on par with the TV Matches which I think I liked a bit more but this was a great old school tag awesome, awesome heat segment on Dynamite, I loved Davey Boys hot tag and the finish was really good too. It was nice to revisit the Hammer an all time great. ****

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Kamala - WWF Boston 12/6/86 Love their MSG series and this did not disappoint! Kamala is someone who I always love to watch but don’t seek out enough. I love Kamala tripping on the leapfrog whether a work or shoot either way to gets over the raw, untrained aspect of the gimmick. They really put over Kamala’s strength early winning those shouldertackle battles. Hogan Cant slam the Ugandan Giant yet. Kamala lots of his basic but effective offense the chops and thrust kicks and the like. He misses. Hogan starts throwing bombs But he can’t get the Ugandan Giant off his feet. He really throws a lot of heavy artillery at him and can’t get him down which I loved. Friday distracts. Wizard passes the Horn to Kamala who stabs Hogan in the forehead with it. Wicked Blade Job. Kamala just goes to work on the cut, chops and gnawing it. He even manhandles Hogan in a way you never rally see with the Double Gozzle. KAMALA SPLASH! 1-2-NO! I think I know Whats next! HULK-UP! It is a beauty too with the Hulkster covered in blood throwing those haymakers! BODYSLAM! DROPS THE LEG! Awesome! I like the No DQ match in MSG more but this is right up there with the first MSG match ****

WWF World Tag Team Champions US Express vs Dream Team - WWF MSG 8/10/85 It still smacks me as bizarre every time I see Barry Windham in a WWF ring and he had three separate tenured theres but he just doesn’t feel like he belongs. This is such great meat & potatoes tag team wrestling. Everyone should study this. This is how you work a tag match make it meaningful. Windham gets an early arm bar and immediately tags to Rotundo so he can crash down on the arm. It was the quick tags that I miss among other things. Valentine works a drop toehold but ends up back in the arm bar. Kitchen sink and Valentine gives the match to Beefcake and he promptly loses control of the match. We get the WWF heel in peril with headlocks. Love how Rotundo and Windham transition on the headlock they make sure it is a secure transfer. When Beefcake goes to the eyes, Windham doesnt play hero ball, he tags out as soon as Beefer Misses the elbow. Smart. Valentine gets the sliding knee on the apron to Rotundo. Excellent heat segment that gets better as it progresses. Lots of double teams. Lots of stiff forearm shivers by The Hammer. Valentine works a proto-BattlArts style they I love. Lots of good hope spots with the crossbody by Rotundo and the small package. Love the kick off of the Figure-4 as Valentine careens to the outside. The piece d’resistance of the heat segment was Valentine stepping on Rotundo’s back on a front face lock. That’s how you make the front face lock interesting! Love how it goaded BW in. Rotundo back drops out of a Valentine piledriver. Beefcake squanders control and BW is in. They do double face in peril which is a shame as I would rather Windham get the longer face in peril and his house of fire was so short. His punches up to a Valentine from his knees were a thing of beauty. I thought the finish was excellent which sealed the deal for me. Rotundo Airplane Spin into an emphatic FU! Break up the pin. Figure-4 attempt on Rotundo But BW leaps over Valentine for the sunset flip win. Terrific. It was different than a Southern style tag but still a meat and potatoes which was tight, no holes, AWESOME Valentine heel work and offense with a fun, electric and clean finish easy thumbs up! ****

Dream Team vs Tito Santana & Junkyard Dog - WWF MSG 4/22/85 Boy Oh Boy Greg Valentine! It has been a minute brutha! God I love me some Valentine and he was awesome in this. Obviously this is not as good as the night before when Tito teamed with Steamboat but this is still a good tag. Babyfaces clear the Ring as Tito is revved up and already hauling off and letting them fly in the Hammer. I love Valentine But I won’t forget about my boy Tito also great seeing him let those hammocks fly. JYD Headbutting Beefcake was fun. Throwing the Dream Team into each other. No Heel in Peril just fun shine. Beefcake drives Tito into Dream Team corner. Valentine takes over great Gutbuster to seal the deal. Beefcake powerslam. Valentine shoulder breaker. Ok then we get to to point why we are all here. VALENTINE JUST STOMPS THE SHIT OUT OF TITO’s LEG AND TITO RESPONDS BY REIGNING DOWN PUNCHES ON VALENTINE! The intensity, the heat. This is what wrestling is about. They do the whole Tito scrambles by Valentine to make the tag. JYD Double Noggin Knocker. TIMMMMBBBAAAHHH! JYD misses a Headbutt. We get a short heat segment on JYD but he tags Tito. Dream Team double teams Tito But JYD headbutts Beefcake. FLYING BURRITO! TITO GETS THE PIN ON THE HAMMER IN MSG! A pretty solid tag team match elevated by heat that only few like The Hammer and Tito can bring. *** 1/2

Review from 2013: The British Bulldogs vs The Hart Foundation - 7/85 MSG One of my favorite Bret spots is his leverage spot which results in someone taking a dive out to the floor. What I like about it most is that either Bret or his opponent could take it, which makes it one of the versatile spots in wrestling. Bret is definitely a big fan of the kneelift to set up his heat segments during this time period. Everything does even back in 1985 just looks so crisp. I know Bret prides himself on this, but I still cant help but compliment him on his ability to execute moves without being stiff. I like stiff wrestling as much as the next wrestling fan, but I think it is pretty nifty that Bret can make everything he do look so good without being stiff. Bret gives Davey a backbreaker so Anvil can deliver Demolition Decapitation. Wait, I thought this was the Bulldogs thread. Just on cue, here come Dynamite to bring the offense to this match with his nasty hooking clothesline and Davey Boy comes back in with a running powerslam. Now he takes the leverage move to the outside. After trading a couple Boston Crabs, they are just killing time to the curfew finish. This was an ok first match from these two "vaunted" teams of the golden era of the tag division. It was definitely action-packed, but it felt oddly directionless and unheated for a match involving Bret Hart. I always feel like Bret is more likely to have a boring match than a directionless match. At the same time, the Bulldogs seemed to keep things moving, but didn't bust out their big guns for the match. Recommended only if you are a completist, but arent all we. *** 1/4

[1986-09-22-WWF-MSG] Hulk Machine, Big Machine & Super Machine vs Big John Studd, King Kong Bundy & Bobby The Brain Heenan The Machines was the second biggest angle behind Hogan/Orndorff at this point in WWF so had to check one of their matches against my boys Studd & Bundy. Hogan erm I mean Hulk Machine is all fired up. He Bodyslams Bundy early! Electric. At first I thought I struggle telling the difference between Big Machine (Mulligan) and Super Machine (Ax) but I can tell Ax punches from a mile away. They both try to Bodyslam Studd but that ain’t happening. Ax is the speed of this match. He was flying hit a fucking cross body. Studd Bodyslam on Mulligan impressive. Classic Heenan Family mistake let Heenan in which means Hogan got to whip him and flip him in the corner. There’s another Super Machine slam attempt on Studd But he just collapses on him. The Hogan finish stretch is fun. You get the Hogan Bodyslam and Leg Drop clean finish. Honestly at 3am taking care of a baby my memory is a bit hazy of the middle to end but this was still fun. I think that’s wrap on Studd & Bundy for me now. ***

[1986-04-22-WWF-MSG] Hulk Hogan & Hillbilly Jim vs Big John Studd & King Kong Bundy Hillbilly Jim tries to Bodyslam Big John Studd. Who does he think is Hulk Hogan? Andre? Cmon brutha. Studd Bodyslams Jim. Hogan comes in and says Jim brutha let me show you how it is done. Except he eats two bodyslams. Until…HOGAN BODYSLAMS STUDD! HOGAN BODYSLAMS BUNDY! HAYMAKER TO THE BRAIN FOR GOOD MEASURE! IT IS A FULL BLOWN HO-DOWN AS HULKSTER & HILLBILLY SQUARE DANCE! HILLBILLY CARTWHEEL AND HOGAN JYD IMPRESSION!!!! THIS WAS FUCKING AWESOME! Rest of the match is solid but that was electric. Weird spot the transition to heat is Hogan tries to Bodyslam Studd but Studd hooks the rope. It felt weird because he already done did it. Good heat segment on Hogan Bundy was energetic good cut offs, Splash. Liked the Studd bear hug. Hogan hot tag to Jim but Jim doesnt show much. Couple punches and Bundy quells that small campfire Hillbilly had. Chinkock and Bearhug on Jim. Hogan gets the tag. He runs through everyone. Atomic Drop into Leg Drop on Studd. SICK! Heenan interferes seriously Hogan Cant get a clean pin on Studd in 1986 weird. Awesome bonus spot Hogan whips The Brain into a Bundy Avalanche! Watch the shine you’ll be pop pop poppin ! *** 1/4

OMG LOL I have already watched this. Guess I have always been a big Studd & Bundy guy. I echo all my comments. I liked Bundy teetering on the Hogan shoulder tackles But then cutting him off with a. Back elbow. Nothing else to add, keep the rating the same.

Hulk Hogan & Andre The Giant vs King Kong Bundy & Big John Studd - WWF SNME 11/1/85 I watched this about 5 years ago when I watched all the 85 & 86 SNMEs which I really enjoyed. I didn’t do a full review at the time and I wanted to do one now. Outside of somehow including Roddy Piper, this was the biggest match WWF could offer in 1985. Quite literally the biggest. When Hulk Hogan is the smallest of the four guys, those are some big fellas. Hogan repeat their awesome routine from 9/7/85 Boston. Hogan nothing doing on the shoulder tackle so he goes High Knee but can’t get the Bodyslam. Unlike Boston he keeps slugging away. This is all about the babyface shining. Andre chokes Bundy. Studd comes in and doesn’t take the Atomic Drop well. Andre wipes out a ref on a back swing this sends us to break. Hogan and Andre are running away with this. Except Andre ends up getting caught in the ropes, Studd trips Hogan and BUNDY SPLASHES HOGAN! Heenan Family attack Hogan & Andre and the ref calls for the bell. Hogan clears the Ring and Andre says he didnt get enough. It is fun but feels incomplete like it was just getting cooking. There’s a Hogan/Andre Vs Heenan Family from Philly that I have my eye on.

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs King Kong Bundy - WWF Boston 10/12/85 Now this is the good stuff not as good as WrestleMania II Bur a fun house show main event. Heenan is now Bundy’s manager. Hot start. Bundy comes out firing. Hogan tries to mount a comeback But gets Bodyslam on a charge. A taste of his own medicine .Hogan and the crowd was fired up for this one. Hogan has a mini-shine throwing haymakers and dropping bows. He goes for the Bodyslam too early. Even though he was calling for and really put in some extra moves. Bundy is still too big. We get the chinkock again too bad. Loved the Avalanche -> Splash as a near fall. HULK-UP! SECOND AVALANCHE! NO-SELL! INJECT IT IN MY VEINS! BODYSLAM! 1-2-3! HELL YEAH! *** 1/2

LOL! Of course I have watched this match before. Yes it is very chinlock-y and a bearhug BUT I loved the opening Hogan goes for shoulder tackle gets knocked down. He gets smart and takes Bundy down with a High Knee! I popped for that quietly of course theres a baby sleeping. I liked that Bundy’s offense started because Hogan went for the Bodyslam after that. Loved the Bundy finish stretch Knee Drop, Splash, Elbow Drop and TWO AVALANCHES! (it is funny I came to post that I wish Big John Studd that something like that and I already posted it in 2017 lol) Great Hulk-Up! I love the Running Bionic Elbow! Wish he kept that. Bundy feels the loss coming so he uses the Megaphone to draw blood and force a rematch the next month. Nice to see Hogan clock Jimmy Hart. I was a bit harsh on this. I am going *** 1/4 the WrestleMania II match ruled but a good first match in the series.

[1985-11-25-WWF-MSG] Andre The Giant, Hillbilly Jim & Capt Lou Albany vs Big John Studd, King Kong Bundy & Bobby The Brain Heenan @Ricky Jackson was besides himself when I told him like 10 years ago I had never seen a Hillbilly Jim match and I know I’d seen one maybe two when I did an SNME rewatch but I think is my first review of a match he is in. Couldn’t find the October MSG tag where it is Andre & Jim versus Bundy & Studd. So skipping to the November MSG match with the managers. Unfortunately my daughter woke up for feeding & diaper change between the match ending and this review and I have already forgotten most of the match. There was a lot of jostling early you may describe it as Colossal. Andre did most of the heavy lifting. Jim tried to slam Studd but Heenan saved. Besides a Jim punch I don’t think I saw him do anything. Andre didnt really feel cooperative in this match. Studd and Bundy clearly wanted to move to taking over in the corner but Andre wanted to work a double noggin knocker. But anyways this is all immaterial the whole point of this match was to see Heenan take his licks. Andre rocks him and Albano makes him take a Ray Steven’s Flip. Ref forces The Brain to make contact with The Giant even though he tagged which was lame. Fun battering ram spot on the heels. They whip Studd and Bundy into each other. Big boot by Andre to the Brain wish he did the SITDOWN splash. I like all these guys well jury is still out on Jim but no need to watch this one.

Andre The Giant vs King Kong Bundy - WWF MSG 9/23/85 The Colossal Jostle! What a great name for a match! It is very befitting of this match. Based on commentary, Andre has a cracked sternum ala Bundy and I presume his running buddy Big John Studd although Bundy is still managed by Jimmy Hart here. I wonder if Hart was bummed he wasn’t getting the main event of WrestleMania II. You really understand how huge Andre is standing next to Bundy as he makes the 400 pounder look normal size. Awesome super heavyweight wrestling. Everything is heavy, in the corner, up against the ropes, body on body claustrophobic wrestling. Andre is out for blood. Bundy is targeting the sternum. Bundy is more spry of the two so he is the one bumping. Great choke and Headbutt by Andre. Bundy really sells well. Loved Bundy going for the sternum. They pad time with an Andre armbar - head scissors. Bundy takes a Colossal Jostle Tumble to the floor that is the highlight of the match he looked a bit pissed about that. Bundy gets his heat working the sternum. He goes for the Avalanche ANDRE BOOT UP! SITDOWN SPLASH! It is all over but Big John Studd comes out to break it up. Andre staves off both behemoths with a steel chair. If only Andre had a big yoked strapping lad to team with against these giants…fun super heavyweight clash or should I say a Fun Colossal Jostle! ***

Hulk Hogan & Junkyard Dog vs Hoss & Terry Funk - WWF Boston 3/8/86 I have seen the SNME match but I didn’t do an in depth review but my recollection was it was pretty good. I thought this was even better. Dory Funk Jr and Hulk Hogan locking up and trading blows is still so surreal to me. This is a total Gaga match so your mileage may vary I don’t think every spot hit but there were more hits than Misses. Terry Funk and I don’t always share the same sense of humor but I thought the being so woozy after head butting JYD that he tried to tag Hogan only for Hogan to tag him with a punch was good craic. I loved the opening with Hogan ramming Terry’s head into the buckle while JYD had the chain around Hoss’ throat. Hogan doing the JYD bark/growl always gets me. Hogan gets the craic. It is Terrible Terry running the ropes at weird times, saving Hogan when he means to save his brother, getting caught in electrical cords. If you love Terry Funk, it is the Terry Funk show through and through. It is hard to overshadow Hogan but he does. I wish the Funks got more heat on the Hulkster and JYD. There were times like Funk grabbing two conjoined chairs and ramming into Hogans injured back (King Kong Bundy angle) and the branding iron. JYD missing his own Headbutt leading to some classic Hoss European Uppercuts. Each time the babyfaces would get right back on offense and never let the Funks get sustained heat. The finish is pretty sick the Funks have JYD lasso’s choking him and Hogan smokes Terry the clothesline for the win. It was a fun match and it has been a while since I watched something so heavy on the Gaga. If you’re a Terry Funk fan uou gotta watch this. *** 1/2

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage - WWF MSG 2/17/86 Lumberjack I thought this was still very good but a comedown from January. There were more wrinkles in January and no Elizabeth felt weird when she was so essential to the first two matches. Hogan was really hamming it up in this match which was fun. He beats Savage pillar to post early back suplex. The babyface lumberjacks let him beat up Savage on the outside. Double Gozzle a Savage staple and a Bearhug. Hogan’s WrestleMania II opponent is a lumberjack and Bundy trips Hogan. Hogan Cant help but get a lick in only for Macho Man to go for the eyes. He comes crashing down on Hogan’s injured back they must have run the Bundy SNME angle as Hogan’s back is bandaged. Macho Man does the smart thing and throws Hogan to the wolves. Muraco holds Hogan for not one but two Avalanches against the Ring post. Solid heat segment with Savage hurling his body against Hogan’s back. Unfortunately Savage hits the Reviving Elbow on Hogan and the Hulk Up that ensues does him in. One of the Lumberjacks trip Savage and the Leg Drop is All She Wrote for the Macho Man! A very fun easy breezy trilogy that I highly recommend. Top notch character work from both men in all three matches. *** 1/2

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage- WWF MSG 1/27/86 Like I said before I have seen this trilogy before and my recollection was the all hovered around very good but never got to great. Not sure if I am just in good mood because after an hour of battling I finally got my daughter to sleep but I thought this was a great balls to the wall match. I hazard to say maybe even their best ever. Elizabeth gets some flowers from an adoring fan and this pisses Savage off. He accuses Fink of giving them to her and that pops me. Hogan charges the Ring but Mach Man still in his robe pounces. Classic frenetic Tasmanian Devil energy. I love the choking him with his own shirt and beating with his own Championship belt. Elizabeth begs for him to have pity. This is what put the match over the top for me Elizabeth played a role in 3 out of the 4 momentum swings. Macho Man takes his eye off the ball because of Liz and this allows The Hulkster to recuperate. This is Hogan at his very best. Wearing Macho Man’s sunglasses while mocking bsseball windup style punch. Just having total fun out there by being a total ham. He busts Savage open on the post. Now Elizabeth is pleading for Hogan to stop and this allows Savage to turn the tide. Classic Bombs Away Doubke Axehandles from every which way, great floor work. He hits the Macho Man Elbow but it is accidentally the Reviving Elbow! HULK-UP~! Great high octane Hulk Up just running through Savage at every turn. Hulkster goes to smash Savage into the post one more time but yet again Elizabeth pleads with the Champion and Savage is able to shove Hogan into the post get back into the Ring. For the second straight month at MSG, The Macho Man beats the Champion by Countout. If only there was a match type that would prevent Countout, maybe one where the Ring is surrounded by other wrestlers whose job it is to throw you back in. Perhaps we will see a lumberjack match next month. This match ruled! All killer no filler. Frenetic pace awesome character work and great use of Elizabeth double thumbs up! ****

Thanks Brutha appreciate it!

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Randy Savage - WWF MSG 12/30/85 A pretty famous MSG trilogy that I have seen before but not reviewed. Savage was on a meteoric rise from debuting in the Summer to his first challenge in September. Now he gets Hogans first trilogy at MSG since Muraco in the Spring. None of the Hogan/Savage matches I have seen ever quite get to great But they are always good fun. The through thread in this is Savage is a yellow belly who keeps hiding behind his woman, Elizabeth. He showboats to start. Hogan throws him off forcefully on the lock up. Hits his poses and then blows a kiss at Elizabeth this gets Macho Man all fired up. He is off his game as Hogan steamrolls him. First powder and hid behind Elizabeth. Macho Man starts cheating to get opportunities But missed the rope straddle and also gets caught on the Crossbody. Hogan sends him to the outside with an Atomic Drop and a Backbreaker for #2 and 3 hide behind Elizabeth. Savage gets caught jawing with the fans so Hogan slugs him. Savage attacks Hogan as he gets into the ring. Double axe handles abound including the patented one to the floor. Hulk Up! Big boot sends Macho Man to the floor BUT this time Hogan moves Elizabeth always a great spot. Savage hits the Big Elbow but only gets two. As he argues with the ref, Hogan charges But wipes out the ref. Macho Knee to the back and then he cracks the Champ with his own Championship Belt to the get the tainted Countout victory to set up the rematch. They packed a lot into 10 minutes this was go go but while staying true to their characters and telling a story based on who they are. Good stuff. *** 1/2

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs King Kong Bundy - WWF WrestleMania II Steel Cage Holy shit how has this match been slept on for all these years. This rules. I came in thinking I should watch this because it is one of the few WrestleMania main events I never watched. Who am I to doubt the Hulkster; he crushed it in this match! I have honestly not see much of Bundy and just never felt like watching it. I have always been a Big John Studd guy but this better than any Hogan/Studd match I have seen. I have seen the SNME angle to set this up and Hogan has his ribs bandaged. Red hot start Hulk Hogan just going for broke with his trademark punches and I love that he choked him with his own straps. Hogan goes for the cage ram but gets caught in the ribs. For once I am ok with Hogan going over board with the selling. Bundy great rib work and power moves. He struggles to get out the cage because he is so damn fat. He rips off the bandage and chokes him with it. Then ties him up. Hogan gets yanking him back. We get a cool mini comeback where Hogan rams Bundy into the cage busts him open and works the cut. However his back gives out under sheer weight of Bundy in the big Bodyslam attempt. The big Bundy splash in the corner that injured the ribs! Bundy splash! Is this the End of Hulkamania? Bundy charges splash but HOGAN EATS IT AND SAYS MUTHAFUCKA ILL TAKE SOME MORE! HULK UP! INJECT THIS SHIT IN MY VEINS! HELL FUCKING YEAH! BUNDY CHARGES AGAIN…THE HULKSTER SLAMS KING KONG BUNDY! LEG DROP! The Brain is impeding The Hulkster! Bundy up top but Hogan sends him falling TIMMMMBBBBAAAAHHH! Hogan wins and to the winner goes the spoils ramming the Weasel into the cage. HULKAMANIA LIVES FOREVER! **** 1/4

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Rowdy Roddy Piper - WWF MSG 2/18/85 I could find all these obscure Flsir matches on YouTube but couldn’t find Flair vs Dusty from Starrcade 85. Decided to watch this match instead. I have seen it many times before as made at least not one but maybe two WWE DVD Sets. It was the precursor to WrestleMania on MTV to set up the biggest franchise in the history of pro wrestling. Hogan vs Piper. It is better than I remembered and I am not a huge Piper guy. The opening brawl was red hot and exactly what you needed. These two looked like they wanted to kill each other. Hogan throwing those big haymakers looked great. Wished the transition to heat was a bit more impactful as usual Hogan oversold. He acted like Piper like shot him. I don’t know where the narrative Hogan doesn’t sell comes from dude sold way too much. Loved the Hogan finger wag on the Sleeper. Even though I knew it was coming. I popped for it But quietly my daughter is sleeping on my lap. Priorities people. Hogan bashing Orton cast into the post was fun. Ref bump. Wonderful/Piper double team. They see Cyndi Lauper they stalk her but Mr. T saves. Thus the main event of WrestleMania is set. ***** angle not much of a match But as a piece of business this was pretty choice. ***