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PeteF3

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  1. PeteF3
    Decent enough action from what we see, and the charisma difference between Billy and Bart is starting to show. Billy miscommunicates with Bart and shoves him right into a Bulldog powerslam, netting Owen & Davey Boy the tag titles. Sunny gives the Gunns a public dressing-down afterward.
  2. PeteF3
    Pillman is wearing a t-shirt with a gun captioned "I DON'T CALL 911." Foreshadowing! Brian offers some choice thoughts on the cesspool of drug abuse, battered women, and welfare recipients that is Philadelphia. This Bret-Pillman conflict is kind of weird, considering where Pillman would be in just about a month. Owen gives a pretty funny interview talking about how bitter and senile Bret has become in his old age--he and Pillman have some good chemistry. Bret is afraid of Austin, a position that Stone Cold comes out and supports. Vince, who has improved as an announcer by an order of magnitude already, has some great uncomfortable responses to the more off-color lines of both Pillman and Austin, including the great Austin quote above.
  3. PeteF3
    I preferred the first match between these two, but this is every bit the chunky potato-fest you'd want between these two. Regal looks like about the gutsiest bastard in the world, doing a quasi-Hulk-Up for Hash's kicks. I also dug how much the announcer marked out over the Regal Stretch--you actually felt like Hash was in danger.
  4. PeteF3
    Oya decides to spend the opening minutes working like a stalling Memphis heel, which is...interesting. I had trouble getting into this--basically Oya did some stuff, then Hayabusa did some stuff, then Oya did some stuff and won. It felt very disjointed--no real swings in momentum, it was just time for the opponent to take over, so they did.
  5. PeteF3
    I've said this before, but Tyler is one creepy, Children of the Corn-looking kid. Lori's no prize herself. Meanie looks like an obese Harley Quinn.
  6. PeteF3
    An unnamed former WWF wrestler had appeared earlier in the crowd disingenuously showing disappointment over WCW's WarGames loss, before pressing a button that dropped pro-NWO fliers all over the crowd. Now he's celebrating with the NWO in the parking lot. As they signed off, they'd reveal his new name as Syxx. Here, Giant plays a tape of Sting's rant that was played from the limo the previous week. I don't think the Giant was ever really a good fit for the NWO at all, but they promised a 5th member before having either Davey Boy or Waltman signed, sealed, and delivered, so they were desperate to do something. It did allow him to show off some more of his natural comedic personality, at least, instead of being BIG GROWLY MEAN WRESTLER. Still, it wasn't that much of a shock that he was also the first guy to get drummed out, and the awkwardness surrounding his turn and his ill fit with the group actually enhanced his split, by accident.
  7. PeteF3
    Sting raises a lot of good points even if I don't get the logic behind "going into seclusion" after the previous Monday as anything other than a plot contrivance. Of course this sort of thing was a lot easier in the days before social media, cell phones as anything other than a rich businessman's toy, and text messaging. That said, he's right about all the times he gave Lex the benefit of the doubt and carrying WCW. Effective promo, and now all really does look lost for the company.
  8. PeteF3
    Solo Cups! It's like a high school party.
  9. PeteF3
    Good TV match, though it must be noted that the heat machine was out in full-force for this, another Owen/Mero match at the end of a long taping cycle. Plus the match got overshadowed by 9 million people on commentary, including interjections from Pat Patterson and Gorilla Monsoon as there was as much focus on the "return" of Razor & Diesel as on the match. Mero looked really good here
  10. PeteF3
    Terrific match! Probably the #2 GAEA match of the year so far. Uematsu has fully taken over Sakie Hasegawa's spot as joshi's Ricky Morton, except she's already better offensively than either Morton or Sakie. Just full of energy. The pace is pure joshi but the layout is almost Crockett-esque, between the babyface double-teams and heel cut-offs, cheating, and double-teams of their own. There's also a crowd-brawling segue in here where Uematsu even gets to show off a bit of a mean streak, so maybe she's joshi's Brian Pillman instead. Loss mentioned that GAEA didn't make the set because they couldn't find a Lorefice/PUNQ/whoever rating higher than ***1/2. That's perfectly fair, as that's about where I'd top out on my ratings of the best matches of '96. It can't touch AJW's highs, but the young talent in the promotion seems to have lots more promise than AJW's, the crowds are hotter, and the action is more consistent if not nearly as high-end.
  11. PeteF3
    No idea who the other ladies are, but they actually take most of this. One of them (sorry, no indication given as to who was whom) does a lot of cool takedowns and leg work, and oddly enough KAORU has a greater advantage when both opponents are in together. Eventually they resort to actually shoving the referee on near-falls in lieu of doing traditional pin saves. KAORU looks to be on her way to putting one of them down with a la majistral, but the partner tips the cradle over and the handicappers actually pull off the upset (???) win. Hardly essentail viewing but a fun match with a surprise finish, which you don't always get in joshi.
  12. PeteF3
    This was on FLIK's recommended GAEA list and you can see why, as it involves a major joshi star against a top-quality worker. Yamada blitzes Nagayo at the start, and is about to go for the Gory Special Bomb in the early going. Nagayo rolls through with a neat counter and applies an anklelock and...gets the tapout at 1:51?? And it's a one-fall match, too. Both women say something on the mic afterward. Is this part of a deeper story? Nagayo jobbing out the AJW worker? Weird. I guess the big story comes afterward, as Nagayo introduces Akira Hokuto to the audience, in what was probably seen as a big deal at the time.
  13. PeteF3
    "Kane the Undertaker" was a name that only existed in matches and segments that were taped before Survivor Series, including a few squashes and an Update. He was already just "The Undertaker" by the time Survivor Series aired live.
  14. PeteF3
    I was underwhelmed by this. This WarGames felt more like a contractual obligation than a logical booking move. It's not the worst of the '90s WarGames or even close, but the highlights are pretty scattered. Ric Flair going nuts and low-blowing everyone is the high watermark, as well as seeing Farmer doing a pretty authentic Sting impersonation even if it draws "WE WANT STING" chants. Good heat for the post-match but it, like a ton of upcoming Savage beatdowns, goes on for too long. It's no wonder Savage wanted out of this program.
  15. PeteF3
    Just the finish here, but it's good chop-down-the-tree stuff and the SLAM! Gigantic, monster pop for that. Nick Patrick has a loooong conversation with him while Savage is busy with Hogan and the Outsiders, and he's ganged up on and pinned.
  16. PeteF3
    Was this part of the PPV or on Main Event beforehand? Seems way more effective to run it on TV. A terrific recap, in any case. "WCW WarGames, a match that has been part of its tradition, now becomes a part of its survival."
  17. PeteF3
    Goddamn I want to see this ladder match.
  18. PeteF3
    This starts off slow, but Tenryu is so good at projecting a character, and putting over the idea that he's making Takada come to him, that it doesn't matter. This turns into a war, like a worked version of Rutten-Funaki, with both guys beating some fire and passion into the other. The stand-up strike exchanges have turned into a cliche in Japan but the chop vs. kick battle really works here, enhanced by the nasty cut over Tenryu's eye. The ending *does* come off a little nonchalant, and again reminds one of Pancrase, though I doubt that was the intention. Still a terrific match that lives up to its dream match billing.
  19. PeteF3
    Dreamer's had 16 concussions in 14 months, and somehow isn't a vegetable today. Pretty much a total puff piece, but an effective one. "Mr. Dreamer, your promotion appears to have the momentum of a runaway freight train--why are you so popular?" Even the editing seems like it was done by ECW in-house. Missy has fallen apart quickly--sheesh.
  20. PeteF3
    Francine and Shane Douglas are in an indoor pool talking to Gary Wolfe's personal trainer about the extent of his neck injury. Fonzie reveals the reason why Joey Styles grew a moustache. D-Von wanted to turn the Dudleyz hardcore--and now Buh Buh Ray officially seems to be a threat. Big Dick Dudley grunts. Shane and Francine have moved to the ocean. Lance Wright hawks a t-shirt. More antics from JT and Guido by the Rocky statue. Brian Lee is teaming up with the Eliminators. Steve Williams stares into the camera. Taz is going to beat some fear into somebody. Divine Brown is back, and her opinion of Stevie Richards hasn't improved. Lance Wright has an unfortunate run-in with a boom mic--"Now I know how Missy feels." Alfonso rants about Johnny Smith. Don't expect headlocks and drop toe holds from the Gangstas. A drugged-out-looking Lori Fullington wants Sandman to die. Teaming up Doc & Gordy again seems like a strong selling point for an ECW show, I must admit. I like Perry Saturn's motivation, too.
  21. PeteF3
    Stick it to the censors! I think they were still hoping to run that Pillman vs. Shane match, as we're rapidly nearing the ECW-WWF working relationship.
  22. PeteF3
    I do like the idea of DiBiase as "The Boss," but I question if he really fits in with this group. No Giant, which of course is a faux pas and a sign that the booking was both brilliant (the fake Sting angle) and chaotic at the same time. Also in an old-school touch for a new-school angle, this is naturally cut behind a steel cage, as all pre-cage-match promos should be.
  23. PeteF3
    There was JUST enough doubt here (the canned-sounding Sting dialogue, the weird robe that the real Sting never wore, the rain) to have us think that maybe it was a fake Sting--but we didn't know for SURE it was fake. And even if it WAS fake, was that kayfabe fake or "Sting wasn't available for the angle" fake? So many intriguing questions coming out of this, and such brilliant execution all throughout the night. We established the NWO was in the parking lot already, we established there was a 6th man, Nick Patrick may or may not have been involved with this, etc. Hard to believe this is WCW we're even talking about.
  24. PeteF3
    Loved Patrick putting Gene in his place. We get highlights (or the entire match) from a brilliant finish the previous week, as Patrick disqualifies Luger for bumping into him on the opening lock-up, leading to the chase and stolen squad car. Meanwhile, the Outsiders, Hogan, and Giant are plastering flyers over cars in the parking lot, while DiBiase is talking to someone inside a limo. Hmm, can't be any of the 4 other members of the NWO...
  25. PeteF3
    Not having seen WarGames I do hope Arn does something to live up to the fire-and-brimstone promos he's cutting.
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