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PeteF3

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  1. PeteF3
    There was one exception in the Three Wise Men era: Zbyszko never aligned with a manager after turning, even though he was courted by all three. Bad News Brown was also manager-less, but of course his being a loner was a defining part of his character.
  2. PeteF3
    More early-'90s minutiae... There was some backstory given to Virgil getting a title shot. In the promos for the match, airing the previous week, Bret mentioned that as new champion he inherited Flair's commitments. Not that Virgil vs. Flair is all that less random of a title match than Virgil vs. Bret. I think the Beverlys were sort of supposed to be spoiled rich boys--'50s style blond bombers as mentioned, as crossed with Jim Cornette. They were given the hometown of Shaker Heights, Ohio for some reason. Shaker Heights is an affluent, ritzy suburb of Cleveland but I don't really see it as a nationally known city, so how the decision was made to settle on *that* as a gimmick hometown has oddly fascinated me for awhile. Coach was actually given sort of a burial on his way out. Mr. Perfect's final TV appearances as a wrestler were in the weeks following SummerSlam, but taped before. Coach wasn't with him (live, Bret came down and stole the IC belt and Coach chased him to the back, to cover for Perfect no longer being champion) and it was indicated on commentary that there was a backstage blow-up at SummerSlam with Perfect blaming Coach for his title loss. And that was it for him. (These matches are also notable for Perfect's back being so fucked up that he couldn't even finish with the Perfect-Plex.)
  3. PeteF3
    I think it's as simple as the fact that most of that area of the world was behind the Iron Curtain. Hard for a wrasslin' promoter to be allowed to flourish in that kind of economy.
  4. PeteF3
    '80s Japan-style, which sort of incorporates a little of everything. Tighter and generally more realistic than lucha and British but still theatrical. And more variety than the repeated American-style headlock/head scissors/armbar spots.
  5. PeteF3
    I also don't think it's an accident that one guy who survived an all-out promotional war--actually two of them--was prepared to be the Last Man Standing in the face of a national invasion later on.
  6. PeteF3
    They end up somewhere around "decent" after a terrible start, one that's already been written about here and in Mick's book. But the finishing stretch is pretty hot and the screwjob recreation is pretty glorious--this was the first time Montreal had been recreated in its almost-entire form, and it still feels kind of fresh. This was a pretty great swerve that can go in a number of different directions as we build toward WM--Rock now has a readymade program with the sympathetic Mick, while it's clear that Austin is going to have to scratch and claw his way into getting a title shot again. JR has one of his best calls ever, as he gets over Mankind throughout the match as a sympathetic, confused figure while not once telegraphing the impending double-turn (you hear that, Joey Styles?). All in all, a PPV that definitely is greater than the sum of its parts. And, just maybe, the last great WWF show for awhile, as Russo & co. would learn the wrong lessons from this event.
  7. PeteF3
    Yeah, this ain't no OTE '98 but it's a perfectly fine match with a good shock ending--actually two shocks, as Vince leaps out of his wheelchair to take out Mike Chioda. It was turning into a cliched spot at this point, but the twist of Vince coming out of his chair was good enough to make up for it. Of course, the Boss Man misses his run-in and we VERY awkwardly transition to a finish involving the Stooges taking out Austin with a fairly weak chairshot, but the point rings clear: Shane and Vince are back together and Austin's out of the tournament.
  8. PeteF3
    Pretty routine match, with Vince watching approvingly from his dressing room. Boss Man whacks Austin with the nightstick to draw a DQ, but Vince is unfazed as he does a number on Stone Cold after the bout. Interestingly, according to the Observer right before this show, Austin had vetoed two proposed angles: one where the Boss Man would lay him out to end Raw, and one where...Shane would turn on him as referee at Survivor Series. Vince clearly won that particular power struggle in the end.
  9. PeteF3
    Lots of funny stuff here. The "HBK!" chants from the crowd, Mankind trying to peek over Vince's shoulder to see what's on his notes, Gill marveling that he actually has his own video until the pyro scares him, and Mankind busting out that amateur pinning combo that I love so much. Match of the Night candidate.
  10. PeteF3
    Nice last-minute segment to hype the PPV, with the entire tournament roster getting a little showcase.
  11. PeteF3
    I liked the intensity at points and I liked Christopher having an answer to everything Lawler said, but by the end I was agreeing with Lawler: just get to the point, Christopher. The payoff isn't worth the build-up. I was hoping for something a little more personal and scandalous than, "Jerry's getting old."
  12. PeteF3
    Okay, we're at least going somewhere with this. There's nothing about Taz's character that would suggest why he'd be enticed by Douglas' offer of Francine, the Triple Threat, and money, though. All he should want is Shane's title.
  13. PeteF3
    Closer to Chad on this--I appreciated the different approach they took to this, laying this out like a heavyweight match but adding the high-flying for a little extra spice. Still, there were times when Juventud seemed out of it and beyond a point where he was just doing your wrestling-style "wasting time to set up a comeback" routine. The covered the blown or nearly-blown spots nicely and had some good nearfalls before the Rey win. Juventud seemed out of it, but Heenan seemed like he was on another planet, and Schiavone wasn't shy about expressing how he felt about the situation. Boy was the announcing bad.
  14. PeteF3
    Of course you can't cover everything, but I'm surprised no one touched on the weird Prime Time-only angle where Bad News Brown and the Brawler formed a NYC-based tag team, only for Bad News to turn on him after one match, leading to a TV blowoff.
  15. PeteF3
    I'm thinking late-'98 Henry is actually underrated--I marveled at how well he went up for the suplex and power slam and how generally good his timing was. But--he doesn't carry himself nor is he portrayed as a star, and that killed his perception for a long, long time. This is still as good of a match and segment involving '90s Henry as you could hope for. Rock gets his hands on Vince, post-match. A big deal, as Vince was always so protected and only the top guys got to lay a hand on him.
  16. PeteF3
    Shane still does his best to kill segments, but Vince manages to carry this--as does JR, especially with his righteous indignation when Vince sics the Boss Man on his son. Vince is pure Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood at this point, almost eerily so.
  17. PeteF3
    A small package on the floor! You know Mick called that spot and every falls-count-anywhere match should have a similar one. This is pretty fun, despite some cringeworthy-in-hindsight bumps and spots like chairs to the head. There may be a future in this whole Hardcore title business.
  18. PeteF3
    Mankind gets a shave, a haircut, and a pedicure, per Vince McMahon's orders. Mankind informs us that Vince is just a big cuddly teddy bear.
  19. PeteF3
    Straight to-the-point ad. Kane tires to shoot a fireball at the Undertaker, but UT used X-Pac as a shield.
  20. PeteF3
    It's really silly that they didn't at least get a TV main event out of this mini-angle. Now Jericho is off to feud with Bobby Duncum, Jr.
  21. PeteF3
    Too repetitive, and this would of course get more airtime than "With My Baby Tonight."
  22. PeteF3
    WAIT a second...after that last segment, now it's Luger/Nash vs. Hall/Giant and Bret vs. KONNAN? Does this make logic? Shouldn't Bret be facing Sting's friend who challenged him?? Mean Gene and the Brain are in the parking lot awaiting the "President," and even for an NWO fib it reeks of pathetic desperation that WCW would tease that this might actually take place. Oh, Loss already used the word "pathetic." Well, I concur. This motorcade entrance is dragged out to an absurd degree as Okerlund spends an eternity arguing with the Secret Service guys. Heenan really comes off terribly thinking that this is actually Bill Clinton, and not even in a gullible-heel type of way. WHY ARE SCHIAVONE AND TENAY GOING ALONG WITH THIS?? Limousines and an NWO promise = the truth now?? "Hail to the Chief" starts up and it's...Hogan. Wow, stunning. They sure fooled all of us. This is the biggest public display of Hogan insecurity since the Doomsday Cage Match. Clearly Ventura's gubernatorial victory got to him in a bigger way than anyone could have anticipated. Okerlund is out here for some reason--again, Mean Gene should not be interviewing NWO members. Hogan weirdly praises Jesse, maybe because he wants to be a hanger-on. After all the hype, we don't even get the name of Hogan's running mate that was promised. One of the worst and most bizarre segments of the year. WHY ARE THE ANNOUNCERS ALL TAKING THIS AT FACE VALUE??
  23. PeteF3
    We don't need any of that good-wrestling-in-the-midcard shit anymore, so the Wolfpac just end a match between Wright and Horowitz--it's gonna get worse before it gets better, folks. The Wolfpac's numbers are dwindling thanks to NWO Hollywood but the dire straits the group is in doesn't get in the way of their catchphrases. Nash wants Hall, Luger wants Bret, Konnan wants whatever. Bischoff promises to give the Wolfpack the "Black & White," which I'm guessing is another swerve.
  24. PeteF3
    Quite a big segment for Heat, and Vince is about the only guy good enough to pretty much shut the Rock down, as he does here.
  25. PeteF3
    Really awesome stuff here, and against all odds MPro actually feels a bit freshened up with Kaientai out of the picture--at least in isolation. I thought both of the babyfaces were pretty much done by this point, so to see them turn up here and still working seemingly as good as ever was one of the most pleasant surprises of the Yearbook. There are a hell of a lot of kickouts here but I never found this overindulgent--they knew when to have the big kickout and when to make it clear that Yakushiji was dead if not for a save. One of the best markout-worthy finishes of the Yearbook as well, as this had you thinking the underdog had a slim chance, then thinking this was going to be yet another youngster pushing the veteran to the limit before losing, before the youngster actually pulls a win out of his ass. Just about a perfectly-paced juniors tag match. Evil cigar-chomping Sasuke makes a cameo at the end.
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