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PeteF3

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Everything posted by PeteF3

  1. PeteF3
    Eddy's cutting a promo on Bischoff but still acting like the smarmy heel he's been for a year and a half, so the result is absolutely no heat. Not that anyone should buy this as any kind of legitimate main event elevation for Eddy, either.
  2. PeteF3
    This is a noble attempt but it shows the difference between WCW and WWF production. Even if it were done more promptly, I'm still not convinced this is a feud anyone really wanted to see.
  3. PeteF3
    Yeah, there's no way Disciple's head could be pried away from Hogan's rear end for that long without somebody noticing. All the '60s Batman iconography isn't doing much for updating Warrior's image for the late '90s.
  4. PeteF3
    That may have been part of it, but the main reason is that Heat was the A-show this week due to Raw's late timeslot.
  5. PeteF3
    Yeah, I liked this, too--probably my favorite overall Snow segment as it recalls the sitdown interviews of 1997 but Al remains true to his character, with plenty of exposition for fans who don't know the deal with Avatar or Leif Cassidy. That said, yes, this is months too late and it took way too long to get from Snow's first appearance to his first real match.
  6. PeteF3
    Good table-setter of a segment. This is probably going to be a show built on teases and subtlety as it aired something like an 11:30-1:30am timeslot, so there's no sense in giving away too much.
  7. PeteF3
    This felt like May all over again--that's a good thing, in case you were wondering. Vince has a master plan for Breakdown, but he doesn't get the chance to reveal it just yet.
  8. PeteF3
    I was actually getting into the action here, and thought it was about as good as I've ever seen Lance Storm look...but that ending, Jesus. First, Dawn Marie blows her interference spot, forcing Candido to stupidly get off Storm early for no reason. Then we get Tammy small packaging Storm for the win, with Tammy being the announced winner. Joey Styles doesn't try to justify this, just loudly yelling, "WE HAVE SEEN HISTORY!" Heyman seems to have entered his 1988 Dusty Rhodes phase of just trying to throw whatever shit at the wall he can to draw a reaction. Also, someone explain to me why Candido feels the need to be aping 1991-era Rick Steiner, please.
  9. PeteF3
    Pretty tepid brawl--ten guys in that little studio plus Bruno, plus Hales in the shark cage, and then Brandon Baxter later, just feels way too cramped. Weapons shots aside this is mostly worked by guys trying not to break nails. The post-match angle where Baxter locks himself in the cage with Stacy also doesn't feel as hot as it should.
  10. PeteF3
    I'm not really sold on a cassette tape as proof, either. Stacey puts an exclamation point on this segment with a knee to Baxter's groin. I like Brandon in this role but I agree, this needs to go somewhere.
  11. PeteF3
    Yeah, you kind of wish Hales had another heel threat on his side who was capable of standing up to Lawler. I like Travis but he's played out in that regard and it's hard to buy him as a true main eventer the way you could with Dundee or Idol. Hales continues to get more and more comfortable in this role, and while it may be a bit of an ego trip to book yourself as lead heel, you can't accuse him of booking himself to be overly dominant either.
  12. PeteF3
    We continue the storyline of Bret wanting to be friends with Sting despite being a heel, and he saves Sting from Hogan using the belt, telling Hogan "you gave me your word." The argument leads to a countout and then a pull-apart back in the ring. As Hogan challenges Bret to an impromptu singles match, smoke fills the ring (after a false start or two) and the NWO lies unconscious...except Hogan, cowering in the corner. Warrior will continue to demonstrate how selective his magical powers are in the weeks to come. I get why they felt the need to turn Bret, but making him a Hogan lackey did nothing but undermine the big showdown they had planned.
  13. PeteF3
    I dunno, I actually thought JJ was being an ass and was hoping Arn would verbally put him in his place like he did Deano. Still, this is definitely an angle that served as a point of difference with the WWF and the fact that Arn just walks away and says very little serves as a progression.
  14. PeteF3
    Good photo-op but I remember Bobby Heenan absolutely eviscerating WCW for how little they really milked this compared to what they could have done...and what the WWF no doubt would have done. McGwire was the biggest American sports story in 1998...figuratively and literally.
  15. PeteF3
    In fairness to the OP, Hogan's other partner wasn't the Disciple, it was Bret Hart. Wait...that's even WORSE because it just makes Stevie Ray stand out that much more. Ray can't even be bothered to appear at ringside to surround the Warrior. What exactly *is* Bischoff's status? His "suspension" was never lifted to my knowledge but apparently he's still signing contracts and making orders.
  16. PeteF3
    They almost lose the crowd early on because they don't get Austin's matwork, which I thought was a cool wrinkle well-explained by the announcers. But...it doesn't get over. And I can't really bitch about late-'90s Attitude Era crowds only popping for catchphrases because this was a hot crowd all night who popped for all the right spots and seemed to "get" wrestling as you expect a NYC crowd might. By the end, they're back into it, and all in all you can't really say they ripped anybody off. They had the opportunity to climax with a great main event to mark this as an all-time classic PPV--instead you "just" get a good solid main event that sort of pales in comparison to other WWF title matches over the past year in terms of action, drama, and theater. It's probably not any worse than the WM14 main event but lacks that match's real-life implications and sense of a sea change in wrestling history--so in the end, WM14 remains the superior show. Still, going in this match was going to have completely suck for this not to be a lock for #2 PPV of the year and maybe #2 show of the year overall, and it didn't do that.
  17. PeteF3
    A breakout match for both guys for sure. It's not as good as the Shawn-Razor series but it's a hell of a match in its own right. On the worse side, the pre-ladder action isn't that great, but it benefits from the looser restrictions, which means we get a lot more hatred and violence and blood than the previous ladder matches were allowed to show. There was some pretty ridiculously slow ladder-climbing, though as the match went on I thought they were able to cover for it fairly well with Triple H's (rather legit) bad knee and Rock not being able to see for the blood in his eyes. Outside of WM14, almost all WWF PPVs for the past 2 years had been characterized by weak undercards and saved by a strong main event--this definitely feels like one of the rare complete shows from the time period, with good stuff up and down the card.
  18. PeteF3
    Yeah, the Outlaws really can't bring the goods in the ring to back up their entrance--this match proves it, though Foley does his damnedest to try to make something out of it and get sympathy on himself by being absolutely brutalized. It's just that the NAO can't really sustain a compelling control segment. JR does a really good job of trying not to heel the Outlaws too much by pointing out that this match is the fault of McMahon and Kane, not them, but Gunn's post-match promo sort of ruins that. Kane appears in the Dumpster and brings a sledgehammer down, presumably on Mick's head, as JR loses it.
  19. PeteF3
    I liked the Dungeon Match a bit more because it felt more like a real fight in a gritty environment--I have no problem with going for wrasslin' over faux-MMA here but this is the type of match that's probably better served as a quick and decisive war as JR predicted. Instead, it's a bit more drawn-out. But man, what a balls-to-the-wall closing stretch. Shamrock was incredible here, probably his best performance in the WWF--maybe my personal favorite overall considering how low I am on the PWFG stuff. I expected WM14 to be a runaway winner for Major Show of the Year, but if I end up being higher on Austin-Undertaker than the other comments, then this show could find itself in contention.
  20. PeteF3
    Mankind decides that playing in traffic is a better idea than facing the New Age Outlaws with no partner, and is about to drag Cole out with him until Vince does what Vince does, and talks him out of it. Inspired by his past hitchhiking escapades and love for MSG, Foley is pumped to go into a falls-count-anywhere handicap match in a quest for MSG immortality.
  21. PeteF3
    Lawler: "I always knew Howard Finkle was a degenerate." Ross: "So what?" Yeah, no way that exchange wasn't a rib. Jarrett is now "Double J" only--a name change that hopefully doesn't stick. Really good little match, to end a relatively old-school-type feud. Jarrett still isn't that over but X-Pac is, and Finkle actually does a great job as cornerman leading the crowd into cheering on X-Pac's comebacks, and they work some fine near-falls in the closing stretch. Droz and the other people whom Jarrett had shaved coming out to ensure that he gets his hair cut was a nice finishing touch.
  22. PeteF3
    Well, it wouldn't be much of a mystery if Sable blabbed the partner's identity. Spoiler: it was Edge. This is too much talking for one Sable segment...I say that, but her dancing is even worse.
  23. PeteF3
    Probably Hales at his best--he's become pretty fully comfortable on-camera and the awkwardness is at a minimum here as he does a fine job of keeping up with a guy who can eat you alive if you can't talk. I also like how he's couching this as wanting to help Lawler as a friend, just to increase the mystery factor of it all--is Hales sincere, is Baxter working him, is this a plan between the two, or is he even being played by Stacy & Lawler?
  24. PeteF3
    There was some good promising stuff here but most everyone seemed like a shallow imitation of somebody else. Crazy Max = Kaientai (and boy did the commentary do them no favors in that regard), Dragon Kid = Rey Jr., Magnum Tokyo = Alex Wright, Ryo Saito brings to mind the ruthless spot-blowing efficiency of Sin Cara, etc. The coolest parts of this were Magnum's funky roll-ups and some of CIMA's offense. As for the rest...it's the same problem I have with most of the Toryumon I've seen in that they failed to really make me care who wins or loses.
  25. PeteF3
    "Pink tights...what a load of crap. This ain't no ballet class, son" ... Anyway, I *did* think this stood out, at least to the other BattlArts in '98, and actually think it's a good starting point for people as the style can be a bit obtuse for newcomers such as myself. This has tons of heavy-hitting suplexes but also some really well-done wrasslin' stuff to get your attention, like Otsuka busting out a somersault tope. One of my favorite BattlArts matches so far and maybe the best match on the Japan low-level indy scene this year.
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