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PeteF3

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  1. PeteF3
    The most notable thing about this show would be Rad Radford wrestling Chris Benoit, in an unprecedented WWF vs. WCW match. This isn't anything special, but Bret's command of the basics is so strong and chemistry with Davey Boy so good that even half-speed Bret vs. Davey Boy is still fairly enjoyable.
  2. PeteF3
    Another cool nostalgia card, as part of what's been a recurring trend in 1994 and '95. Stu gets Sinatra'd out of his speech on his own show--yeah, fuck you, Ed Whalen, you pompous egomaniac.
  3. PeteF3
    WHICH GUY IS STRONGEST IN JUNIOR HEAVY CLASS? Oh, I don't think there was much doubt about this going in. Liger does an awesome job of tearing Gedo's arm apart, in accordance with Loss' wishes. They go for a bit of the old Liger-Honaga magic here, but Gedo doesn't have Honaga's sleazy panache and doesn't execute a lot of his high-end offense, so this isn't as strong as those matches. It's a worthy enough finale, thanks to a long and fast-paced closing stretch, but this is another carrying performance by the night's clear MVP, Jushin Liger.
  4. PeteF3
    Pretty much a total showcase for Rey, and on that level it succeeds spectacularly, as he wows the crowd with some incredible moves and dives.
  5. PeteF3
    I actually really liked the low-key matworky aspects of this--a good way to reel in Ultimo's worst tendencies and allow Liger to guide him through a solidly built match. These two never overreach or overdo the bombs and near-falls, and the finish comes suddenly but off a cool reversal of la majistral. Not "legendary," but maybe the match of Ultimo's career nevertheless, though it does come off at times like a Liger carryjob--at least from a psychological standpoint.
  6. PeteF3
    I dunno. I'm watching the Yearbooks in order and I respect Hokuto and love the Kandori matches, but...I never quite saw a Best in the World ™ candidate, either. However rooted it was in real life, I do distinctly remember growing weary of the reoccurring "Hokuto suffers a crippling worked injury and tries to overcome it" story.
  7. PeteF3
    I think I mentioned this, but it really gets noticeable when they try the same "Just walk away" spiel on Luger. Was their goal just for Flair to never defend the title again?
  8. PeteF3
    If Ohtani of all people can't get Dragon to show some goddamn fire, then he's officially a lost cause. Well, I didn't hate this as much as I've hated other Ultimo matches but this wasn't much more than a bunch of whatever, either. I go into every one of these Ultimo matches with an open mind, waiting for him to show me something to make me reconsider him. And every time he comes close, some disaster happens to take me out of the moment. Either a horribly missed move, or the FUCKING NO-SELLING TOMBSTONE SPOT, which is on display in all its ugly glory here. To their credit, they had me mostly forgetting about that shit by the end of the match, but this all seemed pretty routine to me. Oh, and Dragon completely misses the skytwister press, to put an exclamation point on all this.
  9. PeteF3
    Pretty good match. Not as spectacular but maybe a little more fundamentally sound than the good but overindulgent Jericho/Ultimo match. Jericho hangs surprisingly well doing the mat-based stuff and Benoit knows how to reign in the worst tendencies of the style.
  10. PeteF3
    Naniwa levels Liger before the bell and drops him with a Frankensteiner off the turnbuckle, just to show that he's over the comedy bullshit and means business. Well, he does try the Crab Walk Elbow, because he just can't help himself, but that goes badly for him. These guys tie each other up in surfboards before leading to some damn good hope spots for Naniwa and even a credible near-fall, before Liger puts him down. Political maneuverings aside, I think Naniwa put on a much better match with Liger than Damian would have.
  11. PeteF3
    Jimmy John's and places like that aren't really out to convince you to eat their stuff then and there when they advertise in that manner. They're out to get you to *think* about their stuff. They don't seriously expect you to watch a Brock Lesnar match and then order up a sub from them...but they've planted themselves in your head, and maybe a day or two later when you're considering your lunch options, maybe that comes to mind before Subway does (and clearly not everyone shares the same opinion about the quality of their food). There's major value in getting customers to "pick what they know." Of course some places advertise more than others. Chipotle buys a lot of billboards but I've never, ever seen a TV ad and I've heard one radio spot of theirs in my life. Five Guys more famously doesn't advertise at all.
  12. PeteF3
    Hey, Naniwa's got the Kuishinbo Kamen gear on. Damian's weird in that he looks like a killer monster but wrestles a comedy style. This was...okay. It's my first time seeing Damian do his imitation shtick and it's not bad. And at 6:36 they do definitely keep this from going too long. But the actual strikes and wrestling sequences are really, REALLY loose and that gives this the appearance of a dance routine more than a match.
  13. PeteF3
    Big Dick Dudley grunts. Taz threatens Joey Styles. Beulah brings the HEAVENLY BODIES into her Box. I think Del Ray, like PG-13, may have been too sleazy even for an ECW environment. Bill Alfonso complains about Holiday Hell and how the massage parlors all shut down. Dances With Dudley serenades us with "Feliz Navidad" before trading glasses with Buh Buh Ray. Alfonso threatens to make Tod Gordon wear a toupee and Beulah put a bag over her head. The Pitbulls yell at the Eliminators. Jimmy Del Ray attempts to further explore Beulah's Box. Public Enemy yell at somebody as their time in ECW is rapidly approaching an end.
  14. PeteF3
    Austin is now in full Ringmaster mode. Mikey has some great spots here, and is by far the best guy in the match. Sandman's overly slow entrance almost kills this, but they do some creative three-way spots back when this stip still felt fresh. Mikey hitting a cross body on Sandman while also enzuigiri-ing Austin was a cool spot. That said, the match suffers when Mikey gets eliminated. There's some okay brawling but also a lot of meandering. Austin foreshadowing his future persona by mocking Sandman was really fun in hindsight. Woman does her beer-revival trick on Sandman, then we get some bullshit involving a bumped referee and brass knucks that I don't think was really necessary. The little nod to O'Connor-Rogers with the ropes at the finish was clever enough, I guess. Sandman regains the ECW title and Woman now has all the gold in ECW. This isn't a classic, but it sure beats the fuck out of the Night the Line Was Crossed.
  15. PeteF3
    God, I LOVED this. The match is actually really good, with the Horsemen and Sting working a primo heat segment--well, not "heat," because of course this crowd is behind the Horsemen 100%. Bischoff acknowledges the partisan crowd but also makes a ton of excuses for the loud booing, like that they're booing Randy Anderson for not allowing the tag to Hogan. Sure, Eric. Big boos for the Hulk-Up and pin, but the Horsemen strike afterward. Luger keeps Pillman from attacking Sting, and lets them triple-team Hulk. Then Savage runs in...and Sting pays him back for last week with a punch to the face! Savage and Sting are really good in the post-match, but Hogan is a whiner as usual and also seems pretty pessimistic about Savage's chances against the Giant next week. What a friend. Fan of the Year Award of course goes to that guy in the Braves cap who tears up the Hulk bandana before flashing the four fingers. An image that's stuck with me since this first aired, and I was happy to see it again.
  16. PeteF3
    I liked Pillman's promo more than everyone else here, and I think the idea that he was rambling and going on past his allotted time was done by design, giving things an "off script" feel. Still, the stuff referring to Hogan was the definite highlight. Orndorff is really good too--"I guess if you like carrying bags and chauffeuring Arn and Flair around, then I guess that makes you a Horseman!" That shuts Pillman up, temporarily. Of course the Horsemen quickly swarm Mr. Wonderful and spike him on the concrete with a piledriver. Heenan is great selling this. Of course beating up a heel wasn't going to turn this Charlotte crowd against Flair & co., but this was still a hot segment.
  17. PeteF3
    Yeah, I liked the work here too--in fact, I liked it quite a lot. But it's a total old-school, '70s-style match in front of a completely dead crowd probably in the middle of a long TV taping, which means it's basically the embodiment of everything the WWF was doing wrong in the face of Nitro. There's no way anyone here can compete from a star power or charisma level with a group consisting of Hogan, Savage, Sting, Luger, and Flair. Well, Bret can, but not the way he's been booked as champion.
  18. PeteF3
    Todd gushes over Shawn to an absurd degree, then "subtly" drops that Shawn hasn't held the WWF title yet. No idea what would get Shawn so upset. Late 1995 is marked by delusional babyfaces with persecution complexes. Really bad followup to last week's brilliant video.
  19. PeteF3
    Easily better than the October Dome match, that's not even up for debate. Not as good as the G1, but I do like how Mutoh's established the figure four as a legit finisher now. Kosh gets some good near-falls--and a few nice kickouts, including one on Mutoh's moonsault--and looks credible as a challenger, but Mutoh decisively puts him away.
  20. PeteF3
    Another awesome Southern tag involving TenChono. We get a FIP heat segment, some interference, some cheating, a hot tag and house afire sequence by Hashimoto, and even a heel miscommunication spot leading to the pin. Hirata pins Chono! Probably didn't do a ton for Hirata's career but it sure exposes the RWTL finish even more.
  21. PeteF3
    Yes, better and meatier match than the first one. Not only was there more matwork and psychology but even some of the big moves were better, like TAKA's great springboard dropkick and incredible miss on the spaceman plancha that sets up the home stretch. Unique finish too--TAKA blows out his knee on the missed dive and Tiger Mask takes it apart further, and eventually gets a leg submission.
  22. PeteF3
    The answer could very possibly have been Bret Hart. Bret wanted a singles push, and Herd had visions of pulling a Bischoff and trying to raid WWF talent, but concentrating on their best workers.
  23. PeteF3
    Sasaki, Ohtani, and Kanemoto just seem confused. Saito is back to his old Mr. Torture persona. Liger is indeed hamming it up pretty (intentionally) badly here.
  24. PeteF3
    Flair is glorious here.
  25. PeteF3
    Apparently Bullet Bob actually had a singles match against Jerry Jarrett the Monday before this--I had no idea Jerry had a match that late. (On the same card we also got Randy Hales vs. the Smoky Mountain Massacre).
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