dawho5

Gino was really great. I really thought you did well with him. Lots of good things going on here, with KotR coming up, Hansen vs. Hogan, Windham/Tito (great team btw) against Fernandez/Rude. The Harts getting their revenge on Jimmy will be sweet as well.

Hacksaw/Doc is going to be awesome. Slater vs. Murdoch is a feud I can definitely get behind. I do wonder what Slater's real purpose is though.

This whole Embry angle just keeps getting better and better. I like how people are going all across the NWA from so many different territories now too. It didn't happen that much IRL, but I think it adds a nice twist to this project.

That cheating Stud Stable. Last two matches would have sent the fans home really happy.

Really good work on the angles you furthered here. Flair vs. Magnum should be a real test of where Magnum is. I want to see a technical masterpiece from St. Clair and Robinson, but somehow I don't think that's what we will get.

I liked the look of the last 3 matches on the card a lot. Pillman and Simmons is a great team.

Honestly, I planted 2 seeds that didn't get mentioned yet and referenced another in an interview. One of the reasons I write the way i do is because I can do that kind of thing. All three involve Chicky Starr btw, not like that should come as a surprise. I notice that Gene and rain do quite a bit of that as well in their TV write-ups and LowBlow will work in stuff like that too in seemingly innocent comments about a match.

Sloppy spotfest seems about right. I liked the early lucha stuff from Inoue and Yamada (when Yamada could execute it). But nothing ever stuck. If somebody wasn't in the process of eating a beatdown it was as if nothing had happened to them. I don't think I've ever seen Yamada this sloppy. Inoue seems to get knocked for a loop on the double dive, hitting her head on the railing, then landing on the back of her head right on top of Toyota's knee. I just wish somebody had sat somebody down in the early 90s in AJW and said, "Look, I know you want to go a million miles per hour out there. But can you just slow it down to about 750,000 or so?" These women are such incredible athletes and they can do so much, but they feel the need to go so fast from one thing to the next that nothing they do ever has any meaning. That's one reason I liked the early portions of the match where they were putting on the goofy lucha holds. They had to stop moving for a little bit and let things sink in. If they would just do some of that in the right spots as the match progresses, it becomes so much better. I agree with Pete on AJW's brand of joshi as a style. If you look at details it just hurts your head.

Great, great match that does fit the Flair formula, but I think Bret works within that formula really well. I loved the spot towards the end where they went through all of the roll-ups but did it in a really natural, smooth way and at a pace that made sense for two guys 20 minutes into a match instead of trying to do them really fast for effect. Not sure how either guy thought this didn't come off because I'd agree it's the best I've seen from both in 1991 (and probably 1990).

(Originally airing in Spanish on WAPA Channel 4 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This broadcast is translated to English where applicable.) The opening montage featuring highlights of Carlos Colon, Chicky Starr, Invader 1, Invader 2, Invader 3, Abdullah the Butcher, Hercules Ayala, Bam Bam and Dutch Mantell plays. Carlos Colon doing a cartwheel and coming up fists at the ready leads to the WWC logo as the music ends. NWA and Capitol Sports Presenta Los Campeones De La Lucha Libre Con Tus Luchadores Favoritos De Fama Mundial Rickin Sanchez and Hugo Savinovich sit smiling at the commentary desk in Coliseo Municipal Pedro Rodriguez Gaya De Catano. Rickin: Welcome to another great hour of World Wrestling Council action fans. Tonight we have another big one for you with a double main event. Hugo: Bruiser Brody is here!! Rickin: That's right Hugo. Chicky Starr was at least wise enough to keep his monsters separated by a week. Hugo: I keep telling you he's smart!! Rickin: I never doubted that. The team of Huracan Castillo Jr. and Miguelito Perez will be in action and join us at the desk. Abdullah Tamba will be in action as well. Hugo: Little Abdullah! I always love seeing him! Rickin: Owen Hart will have a singles match tonight. Al Madril will be Chicky Starr's guest in the Sports Shop. Hugo: Those two are ALWAYS fun to listen to!! Rickin: No comment. Los Invaders will be out to talk about Invader 3 challenging Bruiser Brody tonight among other thinigs. Barrabas will be out to tell us how we won't be seeing the NWA Six Man Tag Team Titles defended on TV no doubt. Hugo: AND how his team is going to advance in the tournament tonight! Rickin: Barrabas did everything but make sure Boyd and the Crusher will be one step closer to the NWA WWC Carribean Tag Team Titles after tonight when he had Bam Bam attack last week. In our main event we will see the wounded Rock and Roll RPMs take on the team of Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher to determine who moves on in that tournament. Hugo: Here's a hint, it's not going to be the Rock 'n' Roll RPMS! Rickin: We don't know that yet Hugo. But it's unlikely Tommy Lane has recovered fully from that brutal attack by Bam Bam last week. Owen Hart has started out towards the ring. The fans are still unsure of how to react. Hugo: I'm sure they'll start booing soon enough! He is a friend of Chicky Starr!! Rickin: One reason I dislike the way Chicky Starr handled that conversation. He's going to turn the crowd against Owen Hart for his own purposes. Hugo: Hart is a talented young man. I'm sure Chicky sees potential and just wants to guide him! Rickin: I'm 100% sure Chicky Starr's guidance is not a positive thing for anyone. Hugo: We'll see how it turns out for Owen Hart. It may go better than you think!! Rickin: I highly doubt it. The best thing that can happen to Owen Hart is Chicky Starr staying far, far away. Owen has reached the ring and referee Victor Quinonez is calling for the bell. Mr. Z vs. Owen Hart Owen is smooth and quick in the ring, keeping control of Z easily. He cuts off a comeback with a go-behind into a German suplex, bridging for the three count. Owen Hart by pinfall in 4:37 with a German suplex hold Rickin: Yet another display of technical prowess from the young Canadian, Owen Hart. He says he does it to make his father proud. Hugo: He has 4 sisters and 7 brothers! All of them older! Rickin: I can imagine with 7 older brothers it's easy to feel overlooked. What I see in the ring is a driven athlete who has really pushed himself to be his best. Hugo: He is a great pro wrestler already! Rickin: I just hope he realizes that any father would be proud of his accomplishments and doesn't go to far to prove something. Next up is Chicky's Sports Shop. Huracan Castillo Jr. and Miguelito Perez will be in action as well. Don't touch that dial. (Commercial Break) 0-8:30 Rickin: We now take you to Chicky Starr's Sports Shop. The intro to the Sports Shop plays and Victor walks to his normal spot with a microphone. Victor (wooden delivery): Now it is time to welcome the hottest wrestler and manager in the World Wrestling Council. Ladies and gentlement, here is the most exciting, most charismatic, best dressed man in Puerto Rico, Chicky Starr. Chicky walks on to the set grinning with his golf club in hand, spinning it absent mindedly. He sits down after grabbing the microphone on his chair. Chicky: Could have been a little more excited Victor, but you did a great job remembering your lines! Victor nods slightly with no change in expression. Chicky shakes his head, still grinning. Chicky: It's okay. You do the job I need you to do. I'm sure all of you fans at home are excited for tonight's show, my guest is none other than the Latin Lover, Al Madril! Madril walks in and greets Victor, who gives him a terse nod. Madril sits down and grabs the mic on his chair. Madril: I thought he did great man. I mean, we always tell him he's got to loosen up, but I think that's why he's good at his job. Chicky: Yeah, he probably thinks we need to maybe get a little more serious. Madril: I bet you do, don't you Vic? Victor doesn't react. Chicky: I think we should get down to business Al. You gave Hercules Ayala a submission match AND put the belt up?!? Madril: You're startin' to sound like that old guy, Sanchez. Chicky: I'd say he has a point. Hercules Ayala may be a musclehead, but he's no joke in the ring. And that reverse figure four is dangerous! Madril: There are ways around that.... Chicky: Even Ayala isn't stupid enough to come on the show right before the match again. Madril: How much you willin' to bet he don't come around? He's enough of a tough guy he just might want to prove a point. Chicky: Al, you can't- Madril: Look, we can come up with something right? You saw how mad he got the last time he got to talk right? Chicky: He could barely even get the words out, yeah. You got under his skin. Madril: Yeah, man. And like you say, he IS a musclehead. So let's figure somethin' out after the show. Chicky: Yeah, just try to not hand them huge advantages in the future okay? Madril: You really think I went too far? Chicky: Almost, I think we can make it work. Have you gone to see his buddy Victor Jovica in the hospital? Madril: I heard they let him out! Said somethin' about how he was old enough it didn't matter if his neck was hurt. Chicky: Hah. Who knew it would set Ayala off as much as it did? I'm sure Colon is mad too, but he's got other things to worry about. Madril: Pretty sure I don't ever want Brody or Abdullah after me. Those dudes are crazy! Chicky: Yeah, hard to keep on task though. Not the only ones that way. Next week my guests will be the Rock 'n' Roll RPMs. Victor, take us home! Madril: Yeah buddy, let 'em have it! Madril and Chicky get up and start walking out, talking. Victor (wooden delivery): That is the end of Chicky's Sports Shop. Feel free to change the channel whenever you like. Cut back to the arena. Rickin: That was- Hugo: GREAT!!! WOW!! Rickin: I was going to say interesting. Chicky Starr actually...agreed with me. Hugo: Sometimes you are smart!! Rickin: I'm not sure how to feel about his agreement or what you just said. Huracan Castillo Jr. and Miguelito Perez are getting a lot of cheers from the crowd. Hugo: Even after losing their tournament match!! Rickin: I'd say they proved themselves to be a very good tag team despite losing. Hugo: They did do better than I expected. Los Mercenarios had to get involved, something I didn't expect. Rickin: But not something you are upset about in any way. Hugo: Why would I be upset about that?!? Rickin: Castillo and Perez don't seem to be down about their loss. Hugo: No, they look fired up actually! Rickin: I'd say they are coming along as a team and individually. It looks like referee Tomas Marin is ready to start. there is the bell. Los Assassins vs. Huracan Castillo Jr. & Miguelito Perez Castillo and Perez show off their quick tags and teamwork as always. A clothesline from Castillo after being whipped to the ropes cuts off momentum by los Assassins. Perez grabs Assassin 1 while Castillo climbs up top. A Castillo missile dropkick gets the three count. Huracan Castillo & Miguelito Perez by pinfall in 5:15 with an assisted missile dropkick Rickin: Big win for those two young men, they needed to get some momentum going again. Hugo: They have lost their last two big matches! Boyd and the Crusher beat them on December 23rd and then Ron and Chicky Starr a few weeks ago. Rickin: Both under some questionable circumstances. Hugo: A loss is a loss! Rickin: At a certain point, yes that's right. I imagine Castillo and Perez will be looking for revenge on both counts soon enough. They will be joining us at the desk after the break and we will see Abdullah Tamba in action. Hugo: Not for very long! Rickin: Very likely he will steamroll el Tejano, yes. Don't go anywhere fans. (Commercial Break) 8:30-17:30 Rickin: We are back fans and I am joined by Huracan Castillo Jr. and Miguelito Perez. You two showed everyone you belong among the elite teams in the WWC a few weeks ago despite losing to Ron and Chicky Starr. Castillo: We always knew we were good enough to beat anyone. Things didn't go our way that night, but we can't let that stop us. Perez: That's right. We have to look ahead. We may not be high on the list of challengers for the tag titles when the tournament is over, but we can work our way up with enough wins. Rickin: It's good to see you boys are willing to work for it. It's very easy to take shortcuts and be successful without working as hard. Perez: My father taught me better than that. He may not be our manager anymore, but I still feel like both of us have a responsibility to our fathers to do things the right way. Castillo: My father wasn't always a man who went by the rules. But he has told me how much he regrets some of the things he did. I know he would want me to at least try and get it right. Rickin: I know both of your fathers and you are both right. That's not to say either of you should be above letting your opponents know when they have crossed a line. Castillo: You don't have to tell me that twice! One thing I always admired about my father is his fire. If you push him too far you've got a fight on your hands. I got that from him and it's something that Boyd and the Crusher are going to find out sooner rather than later! Perez: Barrabas picked the wrong fight for his boys, I can tell you that much. We owe them and one thing I picked up from my father is that he always repaid his debts. Rickin: You're not going to knock them out of the tournament are you? Perez: I doubt we'll have to. If they win tonight they have los Invaders next. You think those guys are going to roll over for Bam Bam? Rickin: My guess is they will be ready for him. Castillo: And we don't need to sink to that kind of tactic. We can wait until we get them in the ring and prove our point then. Rickin: Thank you for your time gentlemen. We can hope you get your match with Boyd and the Crusher soon. Castillo: Thank you Rickin. Perez: Yeah, thanks. Hugo: They would get their match for sure if they cost Boyd and the Crusher their match tonight... Rickin: Like they mentioned, I don't think it's necessary. I think los Invaders can handle Boyd and the Crusher. That's if the RPMs don't win tonight. Hugo: We'll see if Bam Bam gets to them first. Rickin: There is that. Here comes Abdullah Tamba with Chicky Starr. Hugo: Chicky is looking a little less angry than normal with the crowd. Rickin: Perhaps he is trying to adopt an attitude more like Satanico had. It is something he mentioned. Hugo: Yes! That would do wonders for Chicky! Rickin: I'm not sure I agree. Hugo: I was sure you wouldn't! Rickin: *chuckles* Very clever Hugo. Abdullah Tamba is fast becoming a force to be reckoned with here in the WWC. Hugo: Thank you! And I think he could be a very successful wrestler anywhere! Rickin: I agree, he is the most dangerous man in the WWC not named Bam Bam, Bruiser Brody or Abdullah the Butcher. Referee Ricky Vargas is calling for the bell. El Tejano vs. Abdullah Tamba w/Chicky Starr Tamba is in control the whole match, using his size to dominate Tejano. A tope gives Tamba the countout victory. Abdullah Tamba by countout in 2:36 with a tope. Hugo: The flying elephant!! Rickin: It is an impressive sight. I can't imagine it feels good for the man getting hit. Hugo: That's the idea!!! Rickin: Yes, I suppose it is. Up next I'll be talking to los Invaders before Invader 3 takes on Bruiser Brody. We'll be right back. (Commercial Break) 17:30-23:00 Rickin: Welcome back fans. I've been joined by all of los Invaders. Invader 3 you have a very tough task tonight. Invader 3: Yes, Bruiser Brody is well-known here in Puerto Rico. He's big, strong and tough as nails. And on top of all of that the man is legitimately crazy. Rickin: And he has a manager who will stop at nothing to destroy los Invaders. Invader 3: Chicky Starr can bring in all the monsters he wants. He can come up with as many ways of forcing los Invaders and Carlitos Colon out of Puerto Rico as he wants. I have my friends to back me up and that's all I need. Rickin: Invaders 1 & 2, do you have any preference at all in who your opponents are in the semi-finals of the tournament to crown new NWA WWC Carribean Tag Team Champions? Invader 2: I would really like to say we have no preference at all. But neither of us feel that way. Invader 1: Both of us would love to get our hands on Ron and Chicky Starr at some point in the tournament. Rickin: To do that you will have to go through the winner of tonight's match. Invader 2: We've been training non-stop for that match and will continue to do so. Invader 1: We know that it will take us reaching the finals to even have a chance of seeing Ron & Chicky Starr. We won't let that distract us from our opponents, it's just fuel for the fire. Rickin: And if the winner happens to be the team of Boyd and the Crusher, do you worry about Bam Bam? Invader 1: Of course. But we have...some ideas on how to deal with that. Invader 2: I'm sure Barrabas will be happy to see what they are. Rickin: Back to Invader 3, have you thought of any kind of strategy that might help you against Brody? Invader 3: A few, but the key is mixing them up and keeping both Brody and Chicky Starr off-balance about which I'll be employing at what time. If they know what I'm going to do, it's over for me. Rickin: And if you should beat Brody tonight? Invader 3: Chicky Starr will have to find another man to intimidate Carlitos Colon with. Rickin: Thank you gentlemen for your time. Invader 1: It's always our pleasure Rickin. Invaders 2 & 3 nod along. Invader 1 & 2 head for the back while Invader 3 makes his way to the ring. Rickin: Invader 3 showing a lot of confidence. He's got the right idea about keeping Brody guessing. Hugo: Yeah, once he knows where you'll be...BAM! Rickin: Hopefully he can mix things up enough to not have that happen too often. Invader 3 is tough, but Brody is a monster. Hugo: It's hard to keep an opponent guessing all match. And if something starts working it's hard to get away from it! Rickin: I can see where that would happen. invader 3 also has to deal with the threat of the rest of Chicky Starr's friends coming out and interrupting. Hugo: I think he has friends of his own that will help out! Rickin: Yes there is that. Invader 3 has reached the ring and out comes Chicky Starr, leading Bruiser Brody to the ring. Hugo: Brody is looking wild tonight! Rickin: A little too wild maybe. He can't be pleased with what happened on Three Kings Day. Hugo: Nobody said controlling a man like that was easy! Do you think it makes this a more difficult match for Invader 3 if Brody is out of control?!? Rickin: Bruiser Brody is a very difficult opponent for anyone. I hope Invader 3 doesn't get too overconfident against him tonight. Hugo: Especially with Chicky in his corner!! Rickin: That does make Brody all the more dangerous. It's hard enough to wrestle a man like Brody without worrying about Chicky Starr on the outside. Hugo: Everything adds up! Rickin: It truly does. Ring announcer Eliud Gonzalez is finished with the introductions and the bell has rung, here we go. Invader 3 vs. Bruiser Brody w/Chicky Starr Invader 3 is able to use leverage to work the arm and keep Brody on the mat. Brody continues to break free and level Invader 3 with a shot or two, then get caught by Invader 3 and put back on the mat with different techniques. A late dropkick by Invader 3 pops the crowd when it sends Brody to the floor. A bullet tope by Invader 3 almost gets him a countout win. Brody gets his way and the match becomes a brawl around ringside. Chicky is knocked down by Brody when arguing with the big man about getting back into the ring. Brody beats the count, barely, and ends up hitting the big boot a couple of times for the 3 count. Bruiser Brody by pinfall in 9:24 after several running big boots Chicky tells Brody to continue the attack, but the big man gets out of the ring and stomps around ringside, threatening the fans. Chicky barely manages to herd Brody away from ringside. Rickin: It seems like Chicky Starr's hold on Bruiser Brody is tenuous at best. Hugo: I hope he can control him enough to keep him in the ring against Colon! Rickin: Maybe a slight miscalculation on Chicky Starr's part to sign that match. Hugo: Maybe... Rickin: We'll have to wait about three weeks to see. Our main event is next, the Rock and Roll RPMs against Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher. We'll hear from Barrabas first when he joins us at the desk. We'll be right back fans. (Commercial Break) 23:00-36:30 Rickin: Welcome back fans, I have been joined at the desk by Barrabas, along with Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher. Conspicuous by his absence is Bam Bam. Barrabas: We don't need Bam Bam to take care of the Rock 'n' Roll RPMs Rickin. Those two don't have a chance against a team this good! I know these fans wish that weren't true, but they will find out soon enough what wishing gets you. Rickin: If these two don't need Bam Bam then why did he make an appearance after the RPMs match last week? Barrabas: What does that have to do with Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher? I don't recall them being involved. Rickin: You have said before that the NWA Six Man Tag Team Titles would not be defended in Puerto Rico. I happen to know that earlier this week they were defended in Bayamon. Barrabas: Well it looks like the WWC's little plan worked. We didn't have a match for the titles for almost a month and had to defend them here in Puerto Rico. But they will NEVER be defended on television! Rickin: I think there are ways that can be forced as well. Barrabas: You tell Commissioner Pedro Castillo to do what he has to. The Puerto Rican fans will not see these belts defended on TV! Rickin: Bam Bam has been in some recent altercations with both Abdullah the Butcher and Carlitos Colon. Is that by design or just due to circumstances that Colon has become involved? Barrabas: Bam Bam is more than capable of taking on both Abdullah the Butcher and Carlitos Colon. Design or not, Colon now know he needs to fear Bam Bam! Rickin: What kind of chance do you give the Rock 'n' Roll RPMs against your team of Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher tonight? Barrabas: None. They are clearly the weaker team and these two men here have no mercy. They give no quarter. Something the RPMs will find out the hard way tonight. Rickin: Barrabas now leading his men to the ring, he seems very confident that his men will achieve victory. Hugo: He should, Tommy Lane will be an easy target! Rickin: He mentioned that he had not planned on Bam Bam going after Colon yet. I wonder if that tag match last week was somebody else's way of making that happen. Hugo: I think I know who!! Rickin: I would agree. The fans are not being kind to Barrabas, Boyd or the Crusher. Hugo: They don't like what happened last week anymore than you do. Rickin: Nor should they. Lane and Davis should be given a fair chance to win. Hugo: Life isn't fair Rickin. You have to take what advantages you can! Rickin: I imagine more than a few people think like that. Boyd and the Crusher are in the ring and here come the Rock and Roll RPMs. Hugo: Lane's ribs are taped up! Rickin: After last week they would have to be. Hugo: I hope all this crowd support they are getting can make that feel better! Rickin: It may not make the ribs feel better, but you can bet Lane will dig deep to keep fighting beacuse of the support. Hugo: Sometimes that can be a bad thing. What happens if there is something very wrong with your ribs and you need medical atention?!? Rickin: You have a point, but wrestlers have a lot of pride and they will fight through injuries because of it. Hugo: I tried that, didn't like it. An injury is an injury and should be taken care of! Rickin: I'm sure they tend their injuries very thoroughly once they reach the locker room. Hugo: Crusher and Boyd are attacking before the bell!! Rock 'n' Roll RPMs vs. Jonathan Boyd & the Crusher w/Barrabas Boyd and the Crusher immediately target Lane's injured ribs, which allows Davis to come back for his team. Both RPMs clear the Crusher out of the ring and work very quick tags (Lane not staying in long at all) on Boyd. The Crusher gets his turn and also gets worked over by the teamwork. Lane takes a few shots to the ribs from Crusher and Barrabas' team works his ribs over for a while. Lane finally is able to crawl through the legs of the Crusher and tag Davis, who comes back against both opponents. The numbers game catches up with Davis and Lane enters the fray, only to take a few shots to the ribs from Crusher. Things spill outside and Lane gets rolled back into the ring, Boyd rolling him up with his feet on the ropes for the three count. Jonathan Boyd & the Crusher by pinfall at 11:06 with an illegal roll-up Boyd and the Crusher aren't done, but Huracan Castillo Jr. and Migualito Perez are out to make the save. Rickin: If their chances were so good, why did Boyd have to use an illegal pinning combination to get that win? Hugo: You use whatever advantages you can! Rickin: The duo of Jonathan Boyd and the Crusher moves on to face los Invaders in the next round of the tournament. Those two semi-finals matches will be the first on the card February 22nd in Guaynabo. We will run down the card for that event before we sign off. But first we have some major news for our fans. Hugo: The champ will be here!! Rickin: He's not the champion anymore Hugo. Hugo: He'll always be the champion! Rickin: Ric Flair, former NWA World Heavyweight Champion, will be with us next week and we have a real treat for the fans. Flair will be facing Carlitos Colon in singles competition. Hugo: WOW!!! What a match!! Rickin: I will get the chance to talk with Ric Flair as well, which should be a treat. Hugo: He always has a lot to say! Rickin: Very true Hugo. As promised, the announced matches for February 22nd will be shown as we go off the air. Be sure to not miss next week's show. Bruiser Brody w/Chicky Starr vs. Carlitos Colon © for the NWA WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship Bam Bam vs. Abdullah the Butcher Hercules Ayala vs. "The Latin Lover" Al Madril © for the NWA WWC Carribean heavyweight Championship TNT vs. Gama Singh Ricky Santana vs. Owen Hart Jonathan Boyd & the Crusher vs. Invader 1 & 2 (semifinal 2) Los Super Medicos vs. Ron & Chicky Starr (semifinal 1)

Holy fast title changes Batman!

I liked the York Foundation work form the apron. Did Dustin have his awesome right uppercut from day one?!? Tony saying that Zenk was a guy who could win the World Championship made me very sad. Very, very sad. Zenk's FIP work wasn't actively bad so I'll not comment too much. Finish makes me wonder if Big Josh is Rick Steiner levels of stupid as a character. Matt Borne is so wasted on this gimmick.

If you want to embed the link you just paste it in and don't use the "link" feature.

I thought this was the best SWS match so far. Hara may be old and immobile, but he can deliver a lariat, headbutt and punch as well as ever. And Tenryu is great at selling everything. I do agree that Tenryu gives away too much as the "ace" of SWS. I also think his match structure leaves a lot to be desired. Maybe if it looked like his opponent cared about winning the match in the closing stretches instead of just trying to beat Tenryu to death it would look better. As it is, I may have issues with the structure, but the execution was really good (save the second powerbomb) on most everything. And everything was ridiculous amounts of stiff, which I fully expected from these two.

I like the big show to bring in the new format. Fantastics vs. Charland & Tonga sounds awesome.

I liked Luger being condescending, he pulled it off pretty well. Steiner was way over the top as a simpleton to the point where you wonder how that guy could have gotten past tying his shoe if it didn't work the first time. Steiner going over in the ring is a nice way to set up a challenger when you truly don't have a good one in line. I would agree that Luger is starting to become Flair-lite.

Really good studio match, probably one of the better actual wrestling matches with a real finish to come out of the Memphis TV studio. I liked Pritchard as the psuedo-babyface a lot. I can hope something like Embry/Lawler comes out of this even if the heat for it is all but gone.

Nice to see Lawler back in good form after the last few weeks. He is still talking about BJT and Jeff Gaylord though.

I think you need to get your refs some glasses.

Seemed fairly random, but I guess it goes somewhere. The hug afterwards was nice. I'm curious to see if Enos and Bloom look out of place in the WWF. They seem like a more WCW style of team.

I thought that leglock sequence early was just a massive waste of time. Takada only throwing a few token kicks and not bothering to try use his striking advantage more seemed off. I'll agree that things picked up, but too late to reel me back in.

I don't care for shootstyle tag either. That said, they did work this in an interesting way. Tamura didn't seem to know what to do with Boss, so he tended to give him to Miyato, who had much better luck. Anjo vs. Tamura was for sure the highlight. I liked Tamura getting pissed after the two knockdowns and coming after Anjo with a vengeance. Only for Anjo to roll out of the ring, charge back in and immediately cower into the corner when it was clear Tamura was coming right back at him. At the end they used the tags well to keep a guy in who was not as close to being submitted. That being said I will echo some of the above posters. I want the Anjo vs. Tamura match, not this tag stuff.

So you had an AWA and a NWA title match on one card? I'd say the fans got their money worth with those 2 alone.

Benoit and Matt Borne from the Portland days would be a great, great tag team. Benoit and Matt Borne the clown would just be bizarre. Not sure how the half-clown borne fits into this. Armand getting a NWA title shot is a big deal.

I actually thought Scott Norton brought something very necessary to this match. He gave the natives offense when it made sense to do so. I agree that Rick comes across as an asshole bully, but at the same time he was bleeding into Doc/Gordy territory when it came to guzzling his opponents. Neither Steiner ever got the idea that you have to give your opponent meaningful offense to create the idea they are a threat. The story of the match makes sense, what doesn't is that Steiner goes down after essentially taking zero offense before that sequence so quickly. And I will agree that Norton is not ever going to set the world on fire, but I'll take him over either Steiner brother. He's smarter than both combined as a worker.