Superstar Sleeze

WWF Tag Champs Demolition vs The Rockers MSG 10/88 "Stay in one place" - Smash barking at Marty Jannetty and that encapsulates the beginning of the match. I had very fond memories of watching this five years ago and this remains the best Demolition match ever and one of the best WWF Tag Team matches of the era. I know I gave a crazy monster rating to one of the Jumping Bomb Angels vs Glamour Girls matches which I need to rewatch, but I think this is the WWF Match of the Year for 1988. This is the compressed version of the RnRs vs the Russians (well without the babyface title change) as this is one of the better speed vs power tag matches, but it is not just that. Demolition being outquicked is only one part of their match formula. The other is that the babyface always have to double up their moves. I love Smash barking "Stay in one place!" to Marty. It might be the most Darsow has ever added to any of his tag matches. I do like the wrinkle of Demolition matches where it does seem like from the outset that all the babyface teams will overwhelmed immediately only for face teams to find an initial way around it. In this case, it was the rapid arm work as they trapped Smash in their corner. They really made sure to move as quickly as possible. The crowd was really going bonkers for this and this was just a month before Demolition's babyface turn, which really shows how fast the Rockers got over. Marty does a quick FIP, but the real fireworks start when Shawn crashes and burns to the floor when Ax holds down the top rope. Demolition demonstrates a real singular purpose in attacking Shawn's lower back with the Boston Crab, sledges and bearhugs. This is the part of the match, which was psychologically sound, but it was Shawn that took it to the next level with great selling. What is so great about the Rockers is that their is not a huge gulf in talent between the partners. Shawn's FIP is as good as Marty's hot tag. Now we see that Rockers are not only keeping Demos outbalance with quick work, but lots of doubling up of their moves: double dropkicks, double slams, double clothesline. Rockers look like they are going to get the pin, but Ax breaks it up. Ref detains Michaels and Smash carries Marty over to be punched in the face by Ax for the pin. This has all the usual Demolition motifs: babyfaces initially overwhelmed, they use their speed & double team moves; heel transition spot; Demos beatdown; go home. This is definitely the best Demolition match because the Rockers are best suited for this role. The Rockers had the high-octane offense and the selling chops to really bring the best out of the Demolition formula. The arm-wringer beginning was amazing. I thought the transition to Shawn heat segment was awesome and a really great bump from Shawn. The finish sequence had me pumped. I was right with MSG thinking that the Rocket Launcher from the top by Marty was going to bring home the gold for the Rockers. Amazing match that really should be seen to appreciate a really good power vs speed match. ****1/4

Rick Martel & Fabulous Rougeaus w/Jimmy Hart & Slick vs Tito Santana & Rockers - Summerslam 89 It is Quebec's All-Star has been assembled to crush Tito Santana and his allies, The Rockers. If you add Dino Bravo, you would have a pretty badass Survivor Series Team. Also, they should have stuck Martel with Hart. He had all the other Quebecois at this point and he has the bitchin as all hell Quebec jacket. The story is cntered Ricky and Tito after the fallout from Wrestlemania V. From my understanding, they were running an angle around the horn where Martel would attack Tito from behind during his entrance. The referee would rule that the bout would have to take place later. Then Martel would usually win a short match (under minutes) by some sort of nefarious tactic. I was pretty disappointed to discover this because I was excited for a bevy of 10+ minute Tito vs Martel matches. At Summerslam '89, STRIKE FORCE EXPLODES~! The babyfaces start off hot with some double teaming. The Rockers slingshot Tito who does a cross body on Raymond and Martel. The Meadowlands is rocking for this match. The first bit of Martel we see if him high stepping while punching Marty. The announcers inform me he does a cartwheel, but the camera work is a bit shoddy. Gone are all the cool spots, in their place is a cocky heel with a great right. Tito gets the tag and Martel fucking dives out of the ring to tag Raymond. Tito gets distracted by Jacques allowing for Raymond to hit a high knee from behind.This is one of better Tito face in perils I have seen as everyone worked really well here. Ricky Martel helps do a double hotshot onto Tito and now he comes in. Tony is indignant about the abject cowardice of Martel while Jesse defends him. This is actually some pretty good stuff between the two. Tony blows every WWF announcer out of the water at this point as he sound genuinely excited about the product and makes you believe in all of Tito's hope spots. Jacques lets out a big "Woo-hoo" after a sweet dropkick. When Tito starts to mount a comeback on Martel, Jacques runs over and pulls his hair so that Martel can reestablish his advantage. "SUNSET FLIP!" by Tito and the crowd loves Tito. Raymond applies a Boston Crab and Jacques with a big knee drop on Tito as the crowd gasps, but it only gets two. . The crowd chants for Tito during the abdominal stretch. Desperation cross body by Tito for 2 on Jacques. Jacques accidentally hits a high-knee on Raymond while Tito got out of the way. Shawn is in and cleans house on all three men. Katie bar the door because a pier-six brawl has erupted. TITO BLASTS MARTEL WITH A FLYING BURRITO!!! In the confusion, Martel clobbers Marty on a rollup-attempt to win the match. It is clear that Vince had big plans for Martel as he is letting him pick up wins in the Tito feud albeit protecting Tito with the surrounding angle and Martel picked up the win here. This is a really fun popcorn match where the Nordiques play excellent dastardly heels who use every trick in the book to keep Tito down. Martel is reveling in besting his former partner Tito. However, one of these nefarious tricks backfires on the Nordiques allowing for the Rockers to come to aid of their friend. Tito getting to hit Martel with his finish was supposed to be the feel-good climax, but future booking plans necessitated that Martel be kept strong while Tito was beginning his descent down the card. Martel is a fun heel with all his antics, but do miss his big spots. This is one helluva performance from Tito and the Rougeaus really hit their stride in 1989 after some awful years. It is too bad tag wrestling was pretty much dead in the water in a scant few months. This is a fun match that people should check out if they never had. ****

WWF Tag Champs Demolition w/Mr. Fuji vs The British Bulldogs - MSG 7/88 If you told me, "Sleeze, there are going to be 3 extended heat segments in this match and you will like it" I would have said "Dont apply to work for Miss Cleo." But shockingly enough I liked this match a good deal. I would say it is one of the better Demolition matches, just falling short of Summerslam '88 match and about even with the Islanders match. This match really encapsulates what is said about Demolition forcing their opponents to work for their offense. There is a real sense of struggle and urgency in this match that you do not find in the Hart Foundation and Bulldogs matches. The beginning of the match really felt like four titans just blasting each other to get the victory. The Bulldogs controlled the more powerful Demolition by using wristlocks but were not afraid to throw some bows at the Demos. The Demos never just lay down and took the offense they made sure to get their shots in to let the Bulldogs know they were still there. Davey Boy ends up going to the outside and then getting run into the steel post. Ax gets a little lazy here with vulcan nerve pinch. Davey Boy was prone to an attack and would have liked to see Demolition press their advantage. When Davey Boy elbows out of a chinlock, Ax gives him some shots for good measure and then Davey Boy punts him on a telegraphed back body drop. It is little things like that convey a sense of struggle. Dynamite in and he and Ax miscommunicate on a clothesline and he hits his snap suplex, but he gets hit in the back of the head by Smash while running the ropes. His back gets ran into the apron and he becomes the Face In Peril. Smash suplexes Dynamite back into the ring. Dynamite with a wicked clothesline and here comes Davey Boy. Davey Boy hits one of his impactful dropkicks, but gets the back body dropped and again becomes the face in peril. The Bulldogs just can not sustain any offense against the powerful machine known as Demolition. Demolition is eating them up, but the Bulldogs are putting up more of a fight and are not just mailing this one in like the rest of 1988. At one point, Davey Boy just starts throwing shivers and actually gets a nearfall on Ax. It feels like a fight. Smash's backbreaker gets two. Smith gets his feet up in the corner. Dynamite in and he gets a wicked clothesline and a wicked flying headbutt. He takes the Bret Bump in the corner. It feels like the Bulldogs are wrestling like individuals and Demolition wrestles like a team and thats why the Bulldogs can not sustain offense. Davey Boy mows down Demolition by himself. He gets his running powerslam and the ref just stops counting at 2 and the crowd goes bonkers thinking the Bulldogs have won the title. The ref goes to break up an Ax/Dynamite fight only to get clobbered off camera. Smith has Fuji by the collar (better than the time Fuji just no sold all of Neidhart's punches) and Rougeaus come in and hit him with the cane allowing Demolition to pick up the victory. The Rougeaus interference set up the Summerslam match, but was there an rhyme or reason to it? This match more so than any other WWF tag matches felt like a fight, but again I wish Demolition would press the advantage in their heat segments. If they did that, I think I would rate them among the best of all time. I loved the sense of struggle the constant little shots each team gave each other. Another interesting thread that was woven through the match was that Demolition really wrestled as a team and the Bulldogs wrestled as individuals. You would often see one Bulldog attempt to overwhelm both members of Demolition because they got the dug into early hole by the heat segment. They could not escape from this vicious cycle. Since most tag matches have maximum 2 heat segments by drawing out to three it really demonstrated how the first heat segment can cause a perpetual cycle of the babyface team having to fight underneath. One of the better WWF tag team matches of the era and actually a contender for match of the year for WWF in 1988 because it was such a weak year for WWF. ***3/4

WWF Tag Champs Demolition w/Jimmy Hart & Mr. Fuji vs Hart Foundation - Summerslam '88 This is a battle between the two best in-ring generals of the WWF Tag Division: Ax & Bret. However, Bret proves that his will is indomitable and this is most definitely a Hart Foundation match. Demolition's trademarks of their opponents needing to double up, their early strength advantage, aimless beatdowns are nowhere to be found. Instead they are replaced by Bret and Anvil having their way with Demolition until Bret runs his shoulder into the post giving Demolition a focused attack. The beginning of the match is only interesting insofar that it sets the mood that the Hart Foundation is in control and the Demolition have no strength advantage. Anvil eats a knee while running the ropes ala the heel Hart Foundation. That is a short heat segment, before Bret's shoulder eats the post. Bret is a great sympathetic face in peril as the Demolition is relentless on his shoulder. This is the best Demolition control segment so far because their focused attack and being very active in it. Bret gets a clothesline for the false hot tag and then a boot to the face on a charge. Anvil is hot tonight! He dropkicks and slams Demolition at will clearing them from the ring. In my favorite spot of the match, Bret slingshots Anvil over the top rope onto Demolition on the floor. Anvil gets a running powerslam for 2. They do the Anvil slingshot into the corner and that only gets 2. A Bret backbreaker gets 2 and Ax saves. Fuji is on the apron and takes about 7 Anvil blows without flinching until Ax can finally hit Bret with Hart's megaphone. Way to make Anvil look like a chump, Fuji. Besides Fuji no-selling all of Anvil's punches, this was way better than I expected because I always thought Summerslam '90 match kinda sucked. The beginning could have been helped by using some of Eadie's touches. It was a blase shine, but the heat segments and the finish run was great. However, the heat segment and the stretch were all very entertaining and worked well. So far this was the Anvil's best performance. In a very weak in-ring year for the WWF, this is a match of the year contender. ****

WWF World Tag Team Champs The Brain Busters vs Hart Foundation - Summerslam '89 Non-title Non-title due to this match being signed before Busters' title victory. The Busters just loved to bump and sell for WWF beabyfaces. This is a very much a bump 'n' run and stoogefest from the Busters. Maybe, it was not Eadie's fault at all, (reference: I hated Demolition vs Brainbusters with a burning passion), it may just be how the Busters wanted to work. Like I am not a person to claim heels need to be a faces level because they really should not. The babyfaces should be better except the heels utilize nefarious tactics, but at the same time heels should not be out and out jabronis. I didn't mind this match as much because we do get a heat segment (on Anvil, weird, they probably wanted to shine up Bret Hart), but still the Hart Foundation gobbled them up. At first, I felt a bit hypocritical for enjoying this match a lot more than the Demolition matches especially after raising such a big stink. At the end of the day, I rather watch Bret Hart's offense than Demolition's offense (which is a totally fair point 2013 Martin, you dont need to defend yourself). I am going to disagree with 2013 Martin and say this is actually one of the better tag team matches from this era.. I would actually put it around the Summerslam '89 six-man tag in terms of quality (I did really enjoy Marte/Rougeaus vs Santana/Rockers, I should probably rewatch that). A lot of people call this heel in peril, but I still thought this was a shine through and through because it was fun. A heat/control segment plods more and is more of a breakdown to get ready for a run. This is an uptempo shine that the crowd popped for and the Busters really stooged for. I really liked how badly Arn wanted the tag out and really fought for it. Building to a tag before the hot tag is an underutilized device in tag team wrestling. When Bret Hart did the Rock N Roll/Rockers did the spot of skinning the cat out of the double top wristlock and decking both Busters, the crowd went fucking nuts. I mean I think it is one of those things because I have not watched this style in a while that really brought a smile to my face even though I have a million times, a million ways. Also, Tony Schiavone added a ton on commentary. He is so fucking good and he is right at home calling an Arn & Tully match. The Hart Foundation establishes the arm-based attack on both Busters each time they come in. The best spot of this segment really encapsulates Bret and something I never really thought about. Arn executes a drop toehold into a hammerlock, but rides high and Bret counters to a headlock. Bret just has this look on his face that was just like one big eye-roll and I immediately thought of Tenryu. Bret is amazing at displaying contempt for his opponents. He is one of the few wrestlers that is not only condescending on the mic, but is actually condescending in the ring also. Bret does an excellent top wristlock bridge transitions into the Busters double top wristlock spot that always gets a huge pop. Arn blindsides Bret, but this was not the transition as Bret is back on offense. However, Arn pulls Tully out of the way (way too telegraphed Arn was holding Tully's wrist forever) and Anvil eats the turnbuckles. We get the Anvil FIP, which is weird and no spinebuster. It is decent stuff, but you know it can be better. They do Arn's head collision spot and Bobby's facial expression that makes it. Then the Hart Foundation sliding knee on the apron is the transition. After watching basically every major Hart Foundation match, I marked out that Bret did that to Arn Anderson (I marked out all over again in 2018 because I forgot about it). I have watched this match twice before and I never even batted an eye. This time I was like "Of course that was the transition. That's genius!" Bret kicks some serious Tully ass and then runs through Tully. It is breaking loose in Tulsa and Anvil is slingshotted in (love that spot) and then slams Bret onto Tully. Heenan distracts the ref and Arn second-rope elbow costs Hart Foundation the match as AA gets the pin. The nice little touch is he uses Bret's arm to cover his head so that ref won't notice. This is a really fun match. I enjoy babyfaces blowing out the heels early so I was entertained. I know one of the things that people go after the Rockers for not having that money feud, but Hart Foundation did not have one from 1988-1991 that's pretty incredible. It was just how WWF tag scene was booked with Demolition going from POP, Towers, Busters, Colossal Connection, but they pretty much leave all the other tag teams to float in the wind. Long shine, a very blase heat segment, but a strong finish make this an easy thumbs up. ****

The Ultimate Warriors (Ultimate Warrior, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, The Rockers) vs The Heenan Family (Andre The Giant, Arn Anderson, Haku & Bobby "The Brain" Heenan) - Survivor Series 1989 Everyone is riding the white lightning in the opening promo. I have no clue how anyone could focus on a promo with Warrior grabbing their heads. He ends the promo with Shawn and Neidhart between his biceps. We need more gibberish promos (no, Bray Wyatt does not scratch that itch). I love the WOYAH~! This is a fun, WWF-style match and my favorite Survivor Series match (not that I have seen many). It is action-packed, but it tells a clear story and everyone plays their roles perfectly. Andre is the Heenan Family's big weapon and Gorilla even states to the effect that the Weasel can only hide behind the Giant if worse comes to worse only to have the Warrior summarily eliminate right at the outset via countout. The look on Arn's face says it all: "We're fucked." However, Arn and Haku make the best of it. They eliminate the Anvil in a decent segment with a crescent kick. Arn & Haku could have been a great tag team as they matched up with the Rockers well. I loved Warrior pacing up down the ring like a man possessed. Hidden highlight was Warrior actually propelling Shawn off the top rope while they were doing Rockers quick tag routine. I liked how the Rockers blocked the suplex with one catching the other and double superkick both Arn & Haku and friggin' Warrior just stands there ominously in the background. Heenan lived up to his moniker "The Weasel". He tags in when Marty is down, but when Marty hits him back he immediately hightails it out. I really liked the sequence that eliminated Marty: Arn blind knee during a criss-cross, Haku crescent kick (eliminated Anvil), Heenan gets some licks and pins Marty. Arn & Haku get trapped in Warrior bearhugs, but manage to get out and gain the advantage on Shawn. I am not a huge fan of lots of rope running in a match and WWF definitely has more criss cross sequences than any other promotion. Even though I don't like it, credit where credit is due this is all really friggin' great rope running by Shawn, Haku and Arn. I loved the Warrior-assisted Rocket Launcher on Haku, which I could believe was not a finish. Only for Haku miss a springboard reverse cross-body (it looked bitchin') and Warrior propelling Shawn off the top to securing a pin. We get our first taste of dissension in the Heenan Family during a sunset flip saying that Heenan was not helping. Arn is able to hit his spinebuster to eliminate Shawn. They do a short heat segment on Warrior, which is not Warrior's forte at all before Warrior sends Arn into Heenan on the apron. Gorilla press, splash, crowd is going wild and it is rubber pants time for Bobby Heenan. Heenan busts out the Ray Stevens bump in the corner and the fans lap up as Warrior revels in beating the Weasel after Wrestlemania V and all the shit he has put him through. This is a match that the WWF excels at the babyfaces dominate and the whole is a crowd-please affair. You see the Heenan Family lose their big weapon, but they pick off some easy fodder. Then you some great tag work before settling down into main event: The Brain & The Enforcer vs The Ultimate Warrior. They keep it short and sweet manage to pay off Heenan Family dissension and Warrior sending the family home happy. Great popcorn match! ****

The Rockers vs The Brainbusters w/Bobby The Brain Heenan - 3/89 SNME What a sprint! I am out of breath just having watched this. This is the match I was really looking for from these guys. Busters blindside early. Tully goes for the kill with his slingshot suplex and Marty counters, but Tully counters into a rollup only for Shawn to cross body block Tully while in the rollup. Busters try to whip the Rockers into each other they do a little do-see-do and knock the Busters out. Crazy good opening sequence as Busters powder. Shawn press slams Arn off the top and it ends up with the Busters taking synchronized superkicks. Shawn hits a nice headscissors on Tully. Arn gets one shoulderblock on Shawn, but Shawn gets a drop toehold on the next one. Heenan pulls down the top rope, which gets him ejected of course he hems and haw to great crowd heat. Marty actually starts the next segment and Marty goes for the atomic drop, but while hoisted up Tully tags Arn. Arn comes in and smashes Marty. Marty bumps great for that. Marty playing a much more active face in peril. Arn dumps Marty over the top onto the floor. I love when Arn desperately tries to grasp for the ropes on a sunset flip attempt by Jannetty. Tully/Jannetty get to do the bridge/backslide/leap for tag/reverse atomic drop sequence that always looks good. Arn in with a wicked spinebuster and Shawn makes the save. Arn attempts a Vaderbomb attempt and eats knees. Both teams tag. Tully bitches out for Shawn, who does a much better job on this hot tag as the crowd is rocking. Shawn attempts a suplex on Arn, only for Tully to sunset flip Shawn and Arn to blast Shawn. Marty retaliates by diving on Tully. They end up on the floor where they back body drop Tully onto Arn. The result is a double countout. The Rockers get back in the ring and give both Busters a double dropkick for the symbolic victory. This was such a great sprint as it was bell-to-bell action that got over both tag teams to a national audience. The Rockers played a great high-energy tag team that could not be stopped until the Busters started using underhanded tactics. The Busters worked a tough, rugged style, but worked hard to put over the Rockers. They worked some very intricate sequences for the 80s and they came off great. My favorite match of theirs by far and one of the best 80s tag matches from the WWF. ****

The Rockers vs The Brainbusters w/Bobby The Brain Heenan - 11/89 SNME 2 out of 3 Falls This is a pretty good match in the Rockers series. I would put it below the January MSG match and the barnburner 3/89 SNME match. There is dissension in the Heenan Family due to the Busters' loss of the tag belts and whether Heenan is meaningful to the success of the team. Marty gets wrist control and Tully tries to use some hair to get the advantage, but Marty keeps kipping up. Marty attempts a sunset flip, but Tully holds onto Arn and Shawn comes crashing down on Tully's back. The Rockers go up 1-0 quickly and Heenan is irate and berates the Busters. Heenan shoves Tully and realizes his mistake and powders. Rockers hit synchronized superkicks to start second fall and Heenan deserts his own tag team. Well soon he will fashion a new one out of his current clients in the form of the Colossal Connection. I am actually intrigued to watch some Colossal Connection matches. Rockers were really hit and miss with their double dropkick they did not always connect together, They were really good at the double kip-up. Lots of double teaming from the Rockers before Shawn gets dropped over the top rope on a headscissors. I like that transition spot so I dont mind seeing it 3 times, now. Tully gets pin to even it up. Marty tries to guard Shawn as he is gasping for breath. They clear Marty out and AA gets a wicked spinebuster for 2, but Marty saves. Arn does his knucklelock sequence and ends with Shawn being catapulted into Tully. Tully throws Shawn over the top rope onto the floor. Shawn is on jelly legs, but manages blocking being sent into the post on the apron. He hits a cross body block off the top for two. Arn in and he hits Marty to prevent tag. Marty punches Arn and his head rocks back and collides with Shawn's. That was a pretty well-done execution of that spot. Marty tags in after Shawn crawls under AA's legs. Marty is a house of fire, but gets caught by being outnumbered. Arn sets Marty up for the spike piledriver, but Shawn knocks Tully off the top and hits a cross body block off the top to win the match. This is the Brainbusters farewell as they finally put the Rockers over clean as fresh laundry. It was a fitting ending and pretty good much for the time allotted to it just under 10 minutes. I will say 2 out of 3 falls matches on SNME are a pet peeve of mine because multiple falls do not normally occur inside 10 minutes unless it is under these rules. It is the Rockers/Busters it is still a pretty good match. ***1/2

Mr. Perfect vs Ronnie Garvin - Boston 3/18/89 We are just 18 months removed from these two being World Champions in the other two major promotions. Weird and Tony Schiavone is on commentary but he is of course a natural at calling Garvin matches. As you can expect, I really enjoyed this match as I love watching Garvin. The front half of the match was the best part. Garvin just teeing off in a stand up battle and Perfect bumping like crazy for Garvin. There is a great Flair-esque exchange with Perfect chopping in the corner before getting obliterated by Garvin's chops. Some good comedy with Garvin kneeing Perfect in the tailbone and then two fingers right to the eyes Three Stooges style. Perfect works over Garvin's abdomen and then they do a headlock/top wristlock sequence that Perfect wins with hair pulling. Garvin's comeback is great per usual with tons of punches and chops. Garvin stomp! The finish is anti-climatic. They do the head collision. Garvin comes off with a crossbody and Perfect rolls through for the win. Fun match with a natural pairing of the hard hitting Garvin and big bumping Perfect. Their December 89 match from Nashville is supposed to be better, but I cant find it. ***1/4

Dynamite Kid vs Bret "The Hitman" Hart - 9/85 Landover Good opening sequence sees a quick criss cross sequence end with Bret Hart taking a catapult into the turnbuckle and bumping to the floor. Hart takes an atomic drop hard and then a snap suplex. Dynamite, oddly, goes for a chinlock, but Bret reverses into a hammerlock and Bret takes his own leverage bump to the floor. I see the chinlock was needed to get Bret to do his bump, I hate those sequences. They do the Stampede reverse of the wristlock, but Bret goes to do it: he just kips up and punches Dynamite. I liked that a lot. Bret hits the knee lift to start his heat segment. Everything Bret hits just looks so crisp. He was a big fan of the bodyslam on the concrete during his heat segments. Bret is actually pretty decent at working the crowd at this point, it just seems like no one cares because they just see him as a newbie. Dynamite and Davey Boy are perfectly capable of selling they just seem unwilling to do it like it is nuisance. Whereas, Bret actually takes the time to sell one of his own headbutts. The sunset flip by Dynamite gets a decent pop so maybe I spoke too soon. No one bites on the backslide. Bret does the attempted backbreaker/opponent flips/opponent hits backbreaker or bodyslam spot, which looks good. One of the reasons, Bret and Flair set themselves apart is because they already have whole matches developed unto themselves. They have multiple spots for their opponents to do to them, which takes the onus off less talented wrestlers. Bret is up first and ties Dynamite up only to take his throw himself in the ropes bump. Dynamite up with his hooking clothesline, hair pull/throwdown (Bret did it earlier) and Bret takes his patented bump chest first into buckle bump. Wicked sweet back suplex by Dynamite only get two follows that up with a second-rope kneedrop and only gets two. On a criss cross sequence, Dynamite trips over Bret and takes a header into the ropes. I have seen plenty of Bret matches and I dont recognize that as one of his spots. Is it a Dynamite spot? If so, it is a really good one. Dynamite takes the Bret leverage bump and while we are on replay we almost miss Dynamite winning with a reverse cradle. This was a pretty good sprint for 11 minutes. You could already tell Bret was main event material in the way that this was the total Bret show. Almost every spot was a Bret concoction that he would learn to craft into fantastic 30 minute affairs. Dynamite is a great offensive dynamo and holds up his end on selling. It isn't anywhere near the best Bret match, but it is an important match to show how many tools Bret already had in his arsenal in 1985. I completely agree with everything I wrote in this five year review. It is a quick-paced match that follows the usual formula and Bret looks like a major star in this. ***1/2

Bret Hart vs Mr. Perfect w/The Genius - 10/89 Primetime Wrestling This was a great TV match that highlighted two superstars that were definitely on the rise. I didn't feel like this was a AWA title defense, but more two hungry wrestlers looking to show each other up. Bret hiptosses Perfect to start who busts out his spin out bump. Perfect misses his drop toehold like in the MSG match, but this time Bret points it out and mocks him with some exaggerated applause. Then they work a side headlock, but they keep it entertaining with each wrestler pulling the other's hair liberally (my favorite part of the match). Perfect powders out and comes back. They run the same spot as from MSG where the ref tries to get a clean break in the corner and Perfect capitalizes with a cheapsot. Perfect with a vicious high kneelift. He chops away on Bret and they do a brief King of the Mountain. Perfect starts to mock Bret and Bret starts mounting his comeback, but ends up taking the Bret Bump to give Perfect a 2 count. Perfect biels him by the hair. Perfect goes on top only to get crotched. Here comes bump-a-rama. I love his oversell when Bret kicks the back of his leg. Perfect goes nuts with a reverse atomic drop sell that looks more painful than the actual move. Dolph aint got nothing on this guy Bret biels Perfect by the hair twice and second time Perfect posts himself. I love that payback spot! Bret starts to get frustrated as he cant negotiate the pinfall. Bret sends Perfect on the floor and they do some fighting outside. It really demonstrates how underutilized the area around ring was in the WWF when the NWA used it so effectively. Bret gets his reverse sunset flip, but Perfect pulls his trunks and pins Bret for the victory. This match was a lot of fun mixed comedy well throughout with all the hair pulling at the beginning and then Perfect overselling like a madman. I recall I really liked their April 1989 MSG draw but I have not seen that in five years (I wrote this review five years ago, but I re-watched it just now). The finish really encapsulated that idea with it being nip and tuck only Perfect was willing to go the extra mile and cheat to get the victory. ****

Bret Hart vs Ted DiBiasie - 3/89 Wrestling Challenge This felt like a NWA Touring title defense. As I have pointed out in the past, due to the compressed nature of the WWF style, each segment is shorter. This match had the feel that Bret was a plucky challenger and Ted the dominant champ rather than equals. Bret spent most of 1989 in singles action. Dont be fooled by the PPV tag team matches in 1989. When Bret was on the road, this was a test drive for his 1991 singles push. Vince saw something early with Bret, but this maybe Vince's greatest push because he did such a great job with the slow burn. DiBiase was on his way down, but was still a big deal and he just fashioned the Million Dollar Championship. Yet, this match went to a double countout thats a big deal. Bret starts off red hot and is looking to get DiBiase off balance early. He goes for a lot of big moves early thinking that this was his best chance to beat DiBiase was to catch him unawares early with Russian Legsweep, atomic drop, crossbody, small package. DiBiase, visibly flustered, takes a powder twice to collect himself and break Bret's momentum. I really liked the shine. Eventually DiBiase moves out the way and Bret does his crossbody of the ropes spot that always looks nasty and Bret milks it for all its worth. Great transition to heat and a great staple of Bret's stock bumps. DiBiase works his heat segment well pressing his advantage and showing his confident demeanor as the Million Dollar Champion. DiBiase even hit a elbow off the second rope that is more rare than a Flair success off the top rope. Ted delivers a fist drop and a vertical suplex gets 2. Bret gets his own vertical suplex, which is a good hope spot. DiBiase hits a belly to back suplex to quash that. A DiBiase backbreaker gets two; Bret grabs a small package for two again. It feels like DiBiase is in control, but Bret is not going away. I loved all the cradles. DiBiase gets another fist drop and he works an active chinlock. Double clothesline sends both men to the mat. Bret gets a press slam off the top. I feel at home, now. Bret executes his backbreaker/elbow combo for 2. Bret high knees the turnbuckle. Thus DiBiase goes to work over it with the Spinning Toehold inevitable he gets kicked off to the outside so Bret follows him out with a plancha. Slugfest ensues and a double countout results. Bret actually gets the better of Ted in the post-match antics, which indicates that Vince definitely had confidence in him. I think this is DiBiase's best match in WWF better than the Savage matches. There was some really great action here and an excellent story told by both men. Each man played their parts well as DiBiase looked so self-assured and Bret plays such a great, plucky face in peril. The finish sequence was beautiful as everything logically connected. ****

Hulk Hogan vs Big Bossman – Steel Cage Match March 18, 1989 Madison Square Garden Interesting note about this match is they actually had two steel cage matches in the same night, one at MSG and one at the Boston Gardens (two, 15 minute steel cage matches and 4 hour travel in between that is pretty ridiculous). That is just an incredible example of the schedule McMahon expected out of his wrestlers as he was looking to solidify his position as the national promotion of America. Bossman was managed by everyone’s favorit Jive Soul Brutha, Slick and tag partners with Akeem The African Dream. Bossman and Akeem had been the tag team feuding with the MegaPowers (Hogan & Savage) when the MEGA-POWERS EXPLODED~! Wrestlemania V was not for a couple more weeks so in order to keep Hogan busy until his GARGUTAN showdown with Savage they ran a Bossman/Hogan cage match series around the horn. This match is a one trick pony, but what a trick it is. The Superplex from the top of the cage. Tony Schiavone is on commentary here during his cup of coffee with the WWF in 1989 and is an upgrade over the usual hosts of schmucks at this point. The crowd is pumped to see Hogan and Hogan seems to be feeling it tonight. Hogan rips his shirt off and then promptly chokes Bossman out with it and biels him around with it. Hulk Hogan, True American Hero to the Masses, Everybody!!! My favorite Hogan face shine spot is when he irish whips a heel into the corner and follows right up with a reverse elbow. It is one Hogan’s best looking spots. The transition to Bossman heel offense is weak as he just stops Hogan from escaping and does an eye-rake (Hogan had eye-raked him by that point anyways). The reason for Hogan’s heel offense as a babyface can be explained is that how AWA babyfaces acted and Hogan’s first face run was in the AWA. The matches looks to heat up as Hogan and Bossman tussle from a top of the turnbuckles in surprisingly heated fashion and then Hogan actually takes a back bump off the top turnbuckle. Bossman, of course takes too long to capitalize on this and Hogan is able to recover and stop him from exiting, This leads to the iconic spot of the match and why the match is famous: Hogan superplexes Bossman off the top of the cage. It is one helluva spot and very smartly milk it for all it is worth with Tony losing his shit on commentary. The finish sequence is pretty exciting. Bossman hits his Bossman slam on Hogan and gets a chain from Slick choking him out with it. They do the double ram into the cage and then Hogan gets the chain and goes to town with it. Hogan is so great at making you want to see him hit Bossman with the chain. Bossman does a good bladejob. After the signature legdrop, the Slickster stops Hogan from leaving so Hogan dispatches of him and handcuffs the Bossman with his OWN handcuffs. OH THE HUMANITY~! Then it becomes a race between if Hogan can make it over the cage vs. Bossman gets uncuffed and going out the door. Hogan wins and goes over to the unconscious ref (Slick took him out I believe) and raises his own hand, which gets a chuckles out of me. Hogan forces Slick to eat steel. Heels powder, Hogan poses, crowd goes wild. The Superplex spot is great and the finish stretch is the usual big Hogan fun. Great match! ****

Rick Rude vs Roddy Piper - WWF 12/28/89 Steel Cage I've been meaning to watch this forever and it totally lives up to the hype. Rude was already a great wrestler at this point and this match had a ton of bells & whistles. Rude jumps Piper as he is entering the door. Once Piper hurls Rude into the cage back first, the match is on. Great bump by Rude there. We get Piper strapping Rude with his belt. We get Rude being crotched. Piper sending him head first into the cage. There is a weird delayed bladejob here. Like I said a lot of bells & whistles and I love that. Piper gets crotched and now Rude takes over. Piper yanks Rude back in by the trunk exposing his ass. Rude wrestles the rest of the match with ass hanging out. As Steve Austin would say, a lot of gaga. Rude hits the RUDE AWAKENING! Piper again mounts comeback. They do a simultaneous jump and instead of ruling it a draw they restart the match. Rude blasts Piper with a chair. Then in the spot of the match Rude hits a Top of the Cage Bombs Away Knee Drop! WOW! 1-2-NO! There are pinfalls in this match. Rude hits a piledriver for two. He wants another top of the cage Bombs Away Knee Drop, but Piper shakes the cage and he crotches himself on the cage. They dangle Rude by his feet and I bit hard on this as the finish. I really thought that was it and BANG! Heenan slams the door shut on Piper's face. Wow! Heenan gives the knux to Rude, but they end up in Piper's hand and he cleans Rude's clock for the real finish. Wow! As a person that loves big wrestling with all the trappings this had a ton of highspots and gimmicks. I LOVED IT! Wicked fun! ****1/4

Team Powers of Pain (Powers of Pain, British Bulldogs, Rockers, Hart Foundation& Young Stallions) vs Team Demolition (Demolition, Brainbusters, Rougeaus, Bolsheviks & Conquistadors) - Survivor Series '88 I thought this match improves on the '87 match as the storylines are much more interesting highlighting Demos/POP & Busters/Rockers as the next big feuds and the Impossible Dream Team of the Conquisatdors. I really enjoy the Conquistadors angle of this match. This was the Rockers & Busters first real big chance on a WWF stage and they really shine by differentiating themselves immediately from the WWF wrestlers. Right from the outset, the Rockers are pushing their speed element as how they will over come the stereotypical bigger guys with the Bolsheviks. Then Tully comes in and immediately starts pinballing off the babyfaces. Then when Tully has to face the prospect of Barbarian, he just struts 'n' strolls over to tag Volkoff. Fuckin Demolition aint gonna stooge for you. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Who gets the first real face in peril segment: Shawn where he delivered his typically great performance and Marty got to play the hot tag on a Conquistador. You could get a taste as a WWF fan what you were in store for with this new explosive team. After Zuhkov eliminates last year's Cinderella the Stallions, Shawn is able to prove he is the better wrestler pretty much overcoming him with ease, before tagging Marty in for a slingshot sunset flip to eliminate the Bolsheviks. Eventually the Rockers and Brainbusters erupts into a donnybrook that causes both teams to be eliminated as they fight to the back. This set up the hot feud that would take them through the first quarter of next year. The match was showcase for the Rocker's speed and selling and the Busters' bumping and stooging. Before we get into the other two overarching storylines of the match, I just wanted to talk about everyone else. The long-standing rumor is that the Rougeaus (#3 heel team on the depth chart) were eliminated early to avoid Dynamite doing unspeakable things to Jacques. Based on Bret Hart's recent visit on the Steve Austin show, he admitted Dynamite was a prick willing to take liberties in the ring. In this match, he was able to get his hands on the Rougeaus and nothing seemed stiffer than usual. I would say a clothesline he gave Tully was even stiffer. The Bulldogs were one team that gave kind of an uninspired performance. It was just a lot of offense, but none of it had any meaning and it just became a blur. Of course, they were on their way out having wrapped up putting Demolition over and with no future it explains their meandering performance in this match, but because of how long they were in there it just dragged for me. If you are a action-mark, Bulldogs were probably your favorite team in this match, but for me they did not give me any reason to care about them. The Hart Foundation were in a similar boat, but they not as showcased plus Bret is a way better seller thus was willing to give the heels a little bit. One of my favorite random moments from this match was Barbarian was coming out of an FIP and dissed Anvil by not tagging him and tagged Marty. It had me laughing. I liked the finish to Bret's elimination where he German suplexed Tully, but could not hold him and pinned himself. The Bullodgs finish was pretty good as well with Dynamite crashing and burning on a diving head butt attempt. These two teams provided great action, but without a storyline motivation were just kinda there. On the heel side, the Rougeaus did not get to show much due to their early elimination. 'Ol Nik looked great in this match busting a nice spinkick twice. Volkoff is not some great lost worker because he was a really solid hand that had a couple high spots hit them well and knew how to lay in his strikes. I definitely like Volkoff after seeing him a couple times. I do not get the Bolsheviks elimination of the Stallions as that could have a great way to give the Busters a good victory instead of the Bolsheviks who were going nowhere. Though maybe it was to make the Rockers look better. Much like the Stallions & Bees, the Conquistadors played the role of the jabroni team that no one thought would make it. Difference was I got sucked into rooting for the Conquistadors mostly due to Jesse's commentary. It is these two average looking goofs in all gold costumes with generic lucha masks constantly making mistakes but somehow always withstanding all this babyface offense. Jesse & Gorilla were amazed by their resilience. They always were the guys that kept slamming their babyface to close to the wrong corner causing them to take a hot tag, but they never did get pinned. Hell one of them attempted a somersault senton from the second rope, which was the high spot of the match. Now the reason the Conquisatdors stayed in were because after the Powers of Pain heel turn they wanted a team to put the POP over, but I would have lost my shit if they gave the Conquistadors a couple spots before biting dust due to some Fuji interference and a Barbie headbutt. Now the major story arc of this match is Demolition vs Powers of Pain. Demolition was the only heel team early on that got any offense in as they cutting off people, but their partners would lose the advantage. That is a Demolition hallmark. Barb and Smash went toe-to-toe for a bit. Smash tags out to a Conquistador for takes Barbie's big boot. The Ax vs Warlord encounter has a much bigger feel the commentary puts it over, the crowd erupts and the wrestlers are excited. Demolition double teams, but here comes Barb with a huge flying shoulder tackle. Barbarian had this strange penchant to headbutt a heel back into the heel corner letting him tag out. Barb does a little FIP, which is better than Warlord, but still nothing special. Finally we are down to Demolition & Conquistadors vs the Powers of Pain. Warlord posts his shoulder early and Demolition targets it, but Fuji keeps jumping on the apron so as to give a cane shot, but it would be in the plain view of the ref. So Demolition ignores him and the commentators are like that kooky Fuji. Smash goes to run the ropes, but tumbles through the middle rope not because he is a klutz, but because he has been sabotaged by Fuji. Demolition gets counted out, but Ax is hot at Fuji. Fuji has the gall to push Ax away with cane and when Ax turns his back he gives him a wallop. However Smash is back up and tosses him to Ax who bodyslams him and the crowd erupts and babyface turn completed. POP ignores the Impossible Dream Team of the Conquistadors and helps Fuji up and brings him to their corner. Fuji trips a Conquistador and a Barbie falling headbutt gets the win for a big pop. Heel turn in progress. Demolition returns to clear the ring and the crowd pops for them I don't think it will take much to complete POP's heel turn. The angle seemed random mostly likely due to me having not watched the TV. It made sense that Demolition was clearly over ought to be turned face, but it seemed strange that Fuji was just all of sudden hopping up on the ring. If they wanted to do the Fuji/POP in cahoots, why not just have Fuji trip Ax or Smash. I do not think it was the best way to turn POP heel, but the bodyslam was definitely effective in turning Demolition babyface. The Conquistador angle is a big sell for me. Great stuff. In a very weak in-ring year for the WWF, this is a MOTYC. ****

I've seen that match a couple times ten years ago its a pretty big come down from the amazing GAB match. Eventually all matches will be reviewed, its way down the list though.

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Randy Savage - Wrestlemania VIII I will take this time to put over the greatest match that no one over talks about: Ric Flair vs Randy Savage - Great American Bash 1995...insane, chaotic brawl...that is top 100 match of all time. That's the Flair vs Savage classic everyone wants. A tale of two halves. I like to end on a high note so I am going to discuss the heat segment first. They both wrestled that portion of the match oddly subdued. Flair is at his best when he is showing emotion whether that be cocky or when he is an incensed lunatic. Where were the Savage hope spots? I know Savage likes to plan his match out in detail beforehand so I got to put the onus on him. Where was the fire? It just dragged. The offense from Flair was good and Savage selling was good. It just was not extraordinary. The shine beforehand was great. I liked Savage starting the match in the aisleway. He started red hot and the backdrop over the top was a great way to go into heat. Like I said a very uncharacteristically subdued heat segment. Once Savage started his comeback, this match started rocking. Is there anybody better at selling a swinging neckbreaker than Ric Flair. The press slam off the top got a massive pop! Flair must feel very validated. Savage drops the double axehandle from the heavens and Flair rams his head into the railing. We got blood! Savage is kicking ass. The HoosierDome is biting on every nearfall and desperately wants Savage to win. They really kick up the gaga going into the finish. Top Rope Elbow! Perfect pulls the Macho Man out. Heated confrontation (no bumps remember because of Lloyd's of London) but Perfect throws the knux to Naitch. He waffles the Macho Man. 1-2-NO! The HoosierDome breathed one helluva sigh of relief. Then we get Perfect jabbing Macho Man in the leg with the chair. Boy oh boy, you know what it is like when Savage has a leg to sell. He becomes the world's greatest hopscotch player. Sorry, I am just having a good time. Seriously, he is the GOAT at leg selling, Toshiaki Kawada is the only other who comes close. Now Elizabeth comes to ring in wow what a purple number, looking foxy as all get out. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Flair in his element working the leg and Savage is the God King of leg selling, the Liz drama, Perfect lurking and Heenan hollering, this is a recipe for high octane entertainment. FIGURE-4! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! High Drama in the HoosierDome! I love when Macho Man reverses the pressure that Hebner kicks Flair and Perfect's hands apart. I was never a fan of when Tommy Young did that when it was Flair and the ropes, but now that it is Flair and another person it makes sense and gets a big pop. I dont mind a cradle finish and I like that Savage got a punch in and a handful of tights (fight fire with fire, Savage aint no saint either), just could have been a little grander. Still from that Savage swinging neckbreaker to the finish this is a BARNBURNER! Flair kissing Liz and her slapping him relentlessly and then Savage bursting through was crazy and still one of my favorite moments of all time. The post-match promos are classics. Flair talking about re-assembling the team and Savage saying he only took the first, little piece from the Nature Boy and now he wants the whole thing. They both had that cocaine-fueled, crazed look in their eye that makes them the two greatest American wrestlers of all time. If this was JIP, match of the year contender. The heat segment is an anchor dragging it down, but that back half is incredible. Watch the Great American Bash 1995 match! ****1/4

When I first started the thread, I was screaming Dog Collar, Dog Collar, Dog Collar, but it seems as the thread has progressed people have remembered that the Dog Collar blows this out of the water and it is Top 100 match of all time. This is Piper's best WWF match, but I need to see the Rude & Perfect matches still. WWF Intercontinental Champion "Rowdy" Roddy Piper vs Bret "Hitman" Hart - WrestleMania VIII If there was ever a match that did NOT need blood it was this. Vince must let Bret believe he worked him because that has to be one of the worst hidden bladejobs in the history of the business. Who the hell ever gets color off a punch? At least hit a hard, metal object. They didnt really need blood to get the match over. They were having a heated babyface vs babyface match. Still, I thought the match was great and a really strong Bret performance. I have said many times, many ways that Bret is the King of the Face vs Face match, but more often than not thats playing the subtle heel. Here it is Piper playing the subtle heel. If I have a criticism of the match, it is that it is rushed, but it is Mania and there is a lot to get through. Tempers were already flaring in the back when Piper was treating Bret like a kid and talking down to him. Bret does that move where he bucks off his opponent onto the floor. Piper is hot. He feels he got shown up and spits at the challenger. Bret does a cheap move himself. He pretends he hurt himself on a dropkick (landed funny) and then rolls up Piper in a cradle. Piper hauls off and smack him good for that one. Piper finally takes control when Bret goes to fix his boot and suckerpunches him. This is where Bret gets busted open. Piper does a good job during his heat segment. He was never one with much offense, but it is short and heated and Bret is a great seller. Bret hits a great desperation elbow where he falls as much as he lunges at Piper. Then it is an abridged Five Moves of Doom, but he cant negotiate the Sharpshooter. He eats the foot. The ref gets bumped off a throw off a side headlock. Now Piper gets the bell. "What the hell use the bell!" Great Heenan line. Hot Rod goes soft before our eyes and decides against using the bell. It is 1992 for sure because they actually cheer when he tosses the bell aside! Piper goes for his sleeper, but Bret uses the Survivor Series 1996 finish here where he climbs the buckles and pushes off to pin Piper. Bret was always good at those creative pinfall finishes. It feels rushed at spots, but they pack a lot in there. It is a big moment for Bret to get a championship victory at Mania and a great sendoff for Roddy. ***1/2

WWF Intercontinental Champion Bret Hart vs Ric Flair - WWF 11/13/91 Man, Ric Flair just feels weird in the WWF. Both wrestlers are ring generals in the sense that they can have a match unto themselves. They have enough offense and spots that they can just plug another wrestler into their match seamlessly and not bat an eye. On this night, they went full Flair. There was even Bret "Total Package" Hart no selling in the corner, egging Flair to hit him harder in the chest as he pulled his straps down. I have often said Bret had the deepest offensive arsenal in North America in the 90s, but he did not get to show it off here. He mainly stuck to punching. He has a great punch and knows how to grind an opponent down. I think thats what this Flair match called for. Flair likes his firefights with Steamboat, Wahoo and Garvin. Bret does not chop but he does throw a mean worked punch. Flair has great hair to grab. Bret had a handful of Flair's bleached hair and he fire one off and you can see tuffs of the white hair come off. I dont really feel need to expound much more. It is a lot of the usual Flair spots and Bret is a great babyface who could punch his way out of trouble and could also sell his ass off. I did like the drop toehold into the Sharpshooter tease. The Flair bridge/backslide spot got a big pop. The Figure-4 vs Sharpshooter war was great. The ending was botched as you could tell Flair wanted to get over the top rope differently. They ended up and over the top. Perfect yanked Hart down from the apron and Flair wins by count out. Sean Mooney does a terrible job saying Bret slipped from the apron. Goddamnit, Sean. Killing the babyface and the heel there, brutha. For a lesser opponent, I would say this is a great Flair broomstick match. But this is Bret "Hitman" Hart you want a little more when it is two of the all-time greats locking it up. It is Flair by the numbers with a basic countout finish to protect both. Very enjoyable way to spend 20 or minutes, but not that BRET VS FLAIR match you really want. ***1/2

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Lex Luger - Wrestlewar '90 WOOOOOOOOOOOO! It doesnt get much better than this. The Nature Boy vs The Total Package. I am not going to rehash the backstory. It has been analyzed to death. I am going to echo many other sentiments when I say this is the exact right match to run except it should have been Flair as a face dropping to a heel Luger who runs roughshod over the territory as the new ace heel. Luger vs Sting at GAB '91 would have been something to write home about it. First 15 minutes: When Flair sells for Luger's flex that's my favorite moment of the match. I love this match and have seen it bunch. Flair thinks he has finally gotten one over on The Package. Only to turn around and see Luger no-sell and then flex and Flair just wilts. It is perfect. Ten minute shine. Luger looked great. Did Flair feed him? Sure as hell, but that big boy can eat! This is not a typical 80s Flair shine. I am seeing 90s Flair already here. What do I mean by that? There are a lot less short knees. A lot less chops. A lot less strategy changes. It is not Flair going for offense and being overwhelmed. Instead, he is opting for just outright feeding. It was a fun and energetic shine. The knucklelock spot was awesome. Luger carrying him back in on the powder was over like rover. The press slams were impressive. Those were really damn good press slams. Luger said in his pre-match interview: powerslam, torture rack. He was working the back with those slams and the bear hug. Great call on the transition to heat with Luger going for that home run clothesline, but whiffing and sailing over the top rope. I really liked his selling. Flair was masterful in playing King of the Mountain and using Woman to keep the advantage. Really good heel work from Flair, both on offense and character work. The kneedrops get him his first cover. Luger starts to fire up, but again he charges in with reckless abandon but this time eats the turnbuckles. Now Flair will settle in on the arm. Perfect pacing thus far just as I remembered. Have enjoyed the revisit. Second Ten Minutes: Flair is consummate heel here. Cocky and always cheating. Lots of hammerlocks with the feet on the ropes for extra leverage. Luger hollering out in pain. Lots of short punches to the arm or a thunderous chop to the chest. Whenever, the Total Package looks to mount a comback, he goes to the eyes. Lots of eye pokes even Woman gets in on the action with a eyerake. I thought Luger did a great job selling the pain and how disoriented he is from this. Luger's real comeback is amazing. The way he just goozled Flair coming out of the corner is electrifying. Flair tries to chop his way out of trouble, but it is 1990, we are in Greensboro, NC and the Total Package is ROARING! Luger actually works the leg by wrapping it around a ring post to set up the figure-4. We all know the opponent putting Flair in the figure-4 is a common spot, but it sometimes feels shoehorned. They actually build to it, but Luger fucking botches the figure-4. I am a huge Luger defender, but that was cringe-worthy. Then they get their signals crossed when Flair shouldertackles Luger and bowls him over, but Flair also takes a bump. They get back on track with a powerslam and Flair bouncing off Luger on a jumping elbow. I am not an execution mark, but those two are noticeable enough that they do mar the match enough along with the finish that I dont consider this is a tippy top great match like I do Starrcade 1988. The Finish: Was way better than I remember it. This match is actually less repetitive than I remembered to. They do go for another ten count punch and one more press slam, but I thought it was a barrage of press slam. Just one more aint gonna break the bank and actually fit well. Flair went for a lot of eyepokes thats for sure. It was that ten count punch that did Luger in as Flair hit his inverted atomic drop out of the corner. Flair was great on offense here. A lot more top rope stuff from here, he busted out the butterfly suplex, a really nice sleeper and then we went to school. All the classic Flair trappings going into the Figure-4. The Figure-4 was an electric moment with Sting out there on crutches. Flair was alternating between slapping Luger in the face and spitting at Sting. Thats a heel's heel. Sting's pep talk is great early 90s trash talk "Kick his you know what! DO SOMETHING!" Becky Lynch wants to talk about being The Man and Straight Fire. LEX FUCKING LUGER WAS STRAIGHT FIRE! Holy shit! What a comeback! Just perfect no-sells. The No-Sells can be one of the most effective tools in pro wrestling and Lex Luger was popping Greensboro like no tomorrow with it. You look into that crowd and every middle-aged woman was freaking the fuck out. Tons of great power moves. Woman gets involved. She needs to just haul off smack a bitch. Cmon those are some of the daintiest slaps of all time. Just go for it. Flair comes flying in with a high knee wiping out Luger and the ref. Something is rotten in the city of Greensboro. Luger continues his home stretch. Powerslam, but no ref. He is signaling for the Torture Rack. He racks up the Nature Boy, but the Andersons threaten the injured Sting and Luger opts to save his friend and ends up being counted out. Then the Steiner Brothers make the save. Where the hell were you? Wow! To me this is the quintessential wrestling match. When I think of wrestling, I think of the good looking, musclebound hero against the cocky, cheating villain. Has any match-up exemplified that more than Flair vs Luger. Yes, I hear the argument for Flair vs Kerry. I really do. For my personal tastes, it is missing the wrestling that the Kerry matches has and it is missing the levels and gear shifts that Starrcade 88 has. Starrcade 88 has an all time great finish. But in terms of what I think of when I think of as a match that is the essence of pro wrestling I think it is this match because how overboard Flair goes with the cheating and character work. Just how much a Superman Luger looks like in this overcoming all the cheating. Not the best match of all time, but when you watch it you go that's pro wrestling. ****3/4

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Lex Luger - NWA Capital Combat 1990 Everyone always says that Wrestlewar 1990 is The Last Stand of The Man, but this match is not too far behind honestly. Both matches plagued by some of the shittiest finishes in pro wrestling history. This match is the Greatest Hits of Flair vs Luger so I dont think it is in the same league as Starrcade '88 or Wrestlewar '90, but this is still every bit a great match. I am a bit confused on Luger's health. I thought the knee injury was a work and the staph infection/fever was a shoot. It seems the knee injury may have been a shoot too. He was definitely working hurt so kudos to him because he looked great in this match. I thought this match even moreso than the other two more famous ones made The Total Package look like Superman. There is a part after Flair has been busted open that he tries an inverted atomic drop and gets blasted by a clothesline. Then Nature Boy tries to ram his head into the cage, Luger blocks and rams his head into the cage. Then Flair just tries to hurl his entire body at Luger and just bounces off as Luger roars! It was amazing! Luger looked like a million bucks! I dont think I have ever seen Luger's clotheslines look so good. I am a big Luger fan, but he doesnt have the best clothesline even though he uses them a lot. In this match he was STEAMROLLING Flair. That shine was king-sized. This match was all action. The cage is one of those way too big Thunderdome cages that look impressive from a size standpoint but dont add much from the match. We get a short Flair heat segment when he kicks Luger in the head. He looks to go knee, but instead hits a kneedrop and then suplex. Luger NO-SELLS! No-selling is a type of selling people. It is a conscientious move that says "YOU CANT HURT STEEL" and pops the crowd. That is different from "not selling" which happens later when Luger blows off the knee work to hit a military press. It is just all down hill from here for Flair as he ends up getting busted scaling the cage. Then they go into that sequence I loved above. I love Luger after that primal scream and just killing it, hitting a superplex, BUT his knee is blown out on the move. Great short Flair heat segment. He is at his best when he is bloody and crazed. Up until the figure-4 I thought this match was amazing, but had seen it before (forgotten how good this was) and knew the finish sucked the big one. The Horsemen come out then Sting & El Gigante. Ole lifts the cage. Windham sneaks in as Luger has Flair racked. The need for a hot comeback while all this gaga goes on outside fucks Luger as he has to blow off the selling to have his comeback. There is a DQ in a steel cage match which is terrible. Horsemen beatdown in the cage, they get the cage lifted and Sting & Gigante save. Luger gets screwed over again. Sad. Ignore the finish, the first 90% of this match rocks and the match should be remembered as a fun action movie blockbuster and a game Luger overcoming a fever and delivering a helluva performance. ****

That opening promo was some weird meta-WWE shit. The internet fan (Seth Rollins) calling out the company (Baron Corbin) for the shitty product, low attendance & low ratings. So weird and so WWE. My take is we are purposefully making the show shitty! You guys just don't get it. They don't completely understand go away heat. This show was way worse than the one two weeks ago and that's why the overreaction crowd has no credibility with me. They fucked up the AOP just split them and push Rezar to the moon. They rushed and fucked up McIntyre vs Ziggler. Elias is the best WWE babyface just the total entertainment package. At least Rollins won. im so hyped for Facebreaker vs Armbreaker. I'm a six foot, 300 lbs, Samoan woman hell fucking yeah! That match is gonna rule! Pretty terrible week but go home shows are usually the worst. Only Nia's heel character is worth a damn...too bad her delivery is not better.

I dont think you had to be there for this. The first I watched it I was 14 in 2003 and it was probably my favorite match for years. I think certain matches just clicked with certain people. For me, I love the energy and the intensity. There is no blood, but brutha, when Flair jumps on Funk's back if that does not get your motor running, you might wanna get your motor checked is all Im saying. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Terry Funk - Clash of the Champions IX I Quit I am so glad I watched this at 14. The Ric Flair DVD collection came out in 2003 and never had I wanted something for Christmas so bad. Honest to God, I had a great childhood, but I dont remember one Christmas gift I got before 2003. Thats not an indictment on my childhood that's an indictment on the fact I just dont really care for material things. To me this represented everything I wanted: a chance to finally see everything I had read about. For me, this was my absolute favorite match on the set. I have probably not watched this match in 8 years, but you wouldnt have known because I was calling every spot before it happened and lapping it up with a spoon. Flair jumping on Funk's back by the guardrail gets me everytime. Pumping my fist in the air. Slamming Funk's head into the table and then of course the iconic spot when Funk slides across the table headfirst into the chair. It was a great brawl. Was it missing blood? Sure, but I thought they more than made for it with the intensity and stiffness of their shots. After the first heat segment when Flair goozled Funk, Goddamn! It was on like Donkey Kong! The way he rifled him with chops. Then Funk fell out of the ring before Flair was done with him. Flair gave chase. The look in Flair's eyes, boy, he looked like a Man possessed. Funk was selling like a million bucks for him. Funk was great on offense. Using the thumb in the eye early during one of their scraps on the mat gave him the advantage early. My all-time favorite pro wrestling insult has been and always will be "egg-sucking dog". I have no fucking clue what it means but I pop everytime I hear Funk say it. I love that is a thumb to an eye or a Gary Hart distraction that always get Funk the advantage. The microphone berating from Funk is awesome. Remember the wreck, remember your neck. A chance to say I Quit before the Piledriver and then bang! Piledriver. Flair is such an amazing verbal selling, the greatest of all time. I will say you know what didnt feel as big this go-around was the piledriver on the floor. I think there should have been more pause to add weight to it. Maybe even some Funk mic time. Flair comeback is glorious and just a showcase of what makes him great with all the vim and vigor you expect out of the Nature Boy. I love how when Flair grabs the foot of Funk and begins to drag it to the ropes the entire arena COMES ALIVE! You know you are fucking over when you can just drag a man by his foot and the crowd goes nuts. Funk delays the inevitable but Flair applies the Figure-4 and wins the match! Fun fact because I have only seen this on my DVD set, I had never seen the post-match! Great post-match. I knew Gary Hart berates Funk, but I never saw him kick Funk in the knee and then Flair jumps Hart. Here comes Muta & Nagaski only for Sting to save. Then Luger comes out tussles with a fan for the chair and waylays the faces. Excellent set up for the ill-fated Ironman tournament at Starrcade 1989. They really screwed the pooch with the double turn. They should have built to Luger as the number heel for at least all of 1990 if not 1991 too and then built to Luger vs Sting in either 1991 and 1992 as Sting's ascent. Luger should have been a money heel champion. In 2003, this was the greatest match I have ever seen. I dont I hold it in as high regard anymore, but still a mortal lock for the Top 100. I prefer this to the GAB match, which is excellent because this has the more decisive finish. The brawling in the GAB is more physical and bloody, this is more chaotic and with the bigger spots. Five Letters, Two Words, I Quit. *****

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Terry Funk - Great American Bash 1989 I have been blessed to have seen the best. Man alive, what the hell do you say about this match that has not already been said through the decades. I mean Goddamn. I love Flair's entrance reminds me a lot of Starrcade 1993. The way he clenches his fists and his face dripping with emotion. You know you were in for a treat. No wrestling, baby, this here is a fight to the death. Love the ringside brawling and love that Flair gets the lion share of this match. He has to earn it. Funk is ripping him with chops and punches, but to steal a phrase from the American Dream, "This is the lickin' you get for the lickin' you gave" and Flair opens a can of whoop ass on Funk. Funk gets a slight reprieve by pulling Flair into the post, but on this night Flair would not be denied. The vertical suplex from the apron to the floor was a spot you teased but these two deliver. Then there is the famous neck for neck psychology as Flair becomes an evil chiropractor trying to unscrew Terry Funk's head from his body. Everything Flair does directed at Funk's neck. Kneedrops and of course not one, but two piledrivers. Thats the lickin you get for the lickin you gave. Funk has been selling great from jump coming up with new ways to sell all this. We get the faces, the hands cramped and contorted, the spasms, the falling ass first out of the ring just every way Funk can put over that Flair has kicked ass and wrecked his neck. Here we go...after all this punishment doled out it is time for the Figure-4. Thats when Funk blasts Flair with the branding iron drawing blood. Now we kick it into the heat segment and that means going after Flair's injured neck (the famous piledriver on the table angle that set up this match). We get that very piledriver, but Flair is thankfully near the ropes. Funk gets the bright idea to really end Flair's career by piledriving him on exposed concrete. Talk about high drama. Flair backdrops out, phew. There is a great moment where Funk kinda just dives on Flair from the apron and nixes the head and neck. Flair just starts hollering and grabbing his ear. It is just classic awesome Flair selling. Here's a part I had forgotten. Funk refuses to win the match by pinfall. Instead, he repeatedly hits swinging neckbreakers on Flair, but is calling for him to submit. Gary Hart wants him to take the pinfall but he wont. It looks like they already knew they wanted to do the I Quit match. Flair finally breaks Funk's control by busting him open with the branding iron. Thats the lickin you get for the lickin you gave. Flair is rip roaring now. He comes in hot with a big high knee but misses. Up until Flair's branding iron shot, I remembered everything but I totally blanked on the finish. I thought Muta triggered a DQ. It is actually a clean finish. Funk goes for the spinning toehold, but Flair breaks free for the figure-4 and then Funk inside cradle and reversed for Flair to win. You couldnt go with a decisive blood feud finish, but it seems like an odd choice for the finish to be so technical. Still it was nice to Flair as a babyface get a win in his comeback match to a huge pop. So I am not going to decry the finish. Now Muta comes in and sprays Flair with the green mist. I am not going to go blow by blow but this may be the greatest post-match brawl in pro wrestling history Sting makes the save and it is just on like Donkey Kong. Flair looks like Father Christmas with the red blood and green mist as he cuts a killer promo to send us home. Easily a Top 100 match of all time. High energy, amazing selling, hard hitting, big time drama, huge babyface appeal of Flair making his comeback, this match has it all. *****

Road Warriors, Midnight Express & Dr. Death vs. The Fabulous Freebirds & Samoan Swat Team - Great American Bash '89 WARGAMES The forgotten Wargames pits the tag team division against one another. Jimmy "Jam" Garvin had just joined the Freebirds officially at the previous month's Clash where they won the World Tag Team Titles beating the Midnight Express in the tournament final. The Samoans managed by Paul E. Dangerously had started feuding with the Road Warriors as a means for the Freebirds to have a clear path to the vacant tag team titles. On top of that, Cornette & Dangerously were still feuding from the whole MX vs OMX deal. Dr. Death & Gordy had resumed their feud from the UWF. I have gone on record with my unpopular opinion that I am not a huge fan of Wargames. I find there is a lot of meandering and plodding at times. It reminds me a lot of Royal Rumbles. I think the 1991 & 1994 are the best ones I have seen, but I need to re-watch the 1987 ones. Are there any 1988 ones? I thought Michael Hayes on the outside was the most entertaining part of this match. He had to stop himself short of swearing at Bobby Eaton which was unintentionally funny. He balked at going in when he was supposed opting for the Samoans instead. When it came time for him to go in, "I have to go in?" "Yes" "Damn" that "Damn was perfect. Eaton & Garvin started it. I will say Eaton had some terrific punches throughout this match. Probably my favorite in-ring action was just watching Eaton punch people. He even had a good left jab at one point. I didnt think there was enough fun or heat during the opening segment. At one point, Garvin is raking his face against the cage and the next part Eaton was hitting Billy Robinson backbreakers. Wheres the consquence? The heel entrances besides Hayes did not do much for me. I will say the babyface entrances were great. Dr. Death was fired up and the military pressing of Gordy into the roof of the cage repeatedly was impressive. Both the Road Warriors entrances were terrific. Animal launching himself like a torpedo from one ring to another was insane. This is what Hawk was built for. Short bursts of offense and he just knocked it out of the park with all his lariats. Doomsday Device is aborted when Garvin says Gordy, but Hawk hits a flying clothesline and then repeated neckbreakers. Hangman's neckbreaker gets Garvin to submit. He was in their the longest, but I think Hayes would have gotten the most heat if he was the one to made submit. They do a post match beatdown on Animal before the babyfaces save again. Perfectly fine Wargames match. Besides the one minute of babyface offense thought it was pretty plodding especially the minute before the finish thats when the Royal Rumble comparison with deadweight came to me. I just dont think Wargames is for me. ***