[2000-08-21-WCW-Nitro] Booker T vs Chuck Palumbo

[soup23]

Chuck tells Pamela he is the future of the business. A decent promo but he is pretty marbled mouth. Madden calls Pamela a tramp and Tony tells him thanks for adding nothing to that. You go Tony. Russo is the special guest referee so we have tons of bullshit. Russo even botches a quick count as it takes him a second to get into position. The action is ok but this is so played out and the announcers screaming at each other isn’t helping one bit. The Natural Born Thrillers come out and beat up Booker until Big Vito of all people makes the save. Nash runs in with a chair and hits Booker. Russo does a fast count and Palumbo is the champion? Cat comes out and says the match will continue. He send the NBT to the back. “I’m the commissioner, youre a writer” Fuck off. Bookend and Booker wins. Shit. ½*

 

[GSR]

A quick backstage interview where Pamela Paulshock says that, according to Vince Russo, Chuck Palumbo is walking out of here tonight as the new WCW World champion. Palumbo says that we’re looking at the future of the business and that the ‘Natural Born Thrillers’ have come a long way since the Power Plant. No longer are they going to wait for the opportunity to knock, they’re going to knock the door down and take what’s theirs.

 

The wrestlers make their entrances and there’s no sign of a referee when out strolls Vince Russo wearing the black and white stripes. So that’s why he’d been guaranteeing Palumbo would leave as the champ! As soon as he steps through the ropes they hug and I wonder how this is going to pan out? Vinnie Ru is throwing every punch with him and feeling every shot that he receives. Huge spinebuster, cover and Russo doesn’t even attempt to count the pin. You knew it was coming, but it doesn’t lessen how much it drains your interest. Great looking standing sidekick from Palumbo and now Russo can’t get down there quick enough, although Booker is able to kick out of the fast count. Rinse, repeat and so it continues. Harlem sidekick, Russo gestures for some help and here comes the rest of ‘the Thrillers’. ‘Roll the Dice’ by Reno and it’s four on one in their favour when of all people coming to Booker’s aid is Big Vito! As he and his stick clear the ring of ‘the Thrillers’, Kevin Nash has joined the action and looks like he’s going to blast Russo with a chair. This being WCW, it’s all a swerve and he nails Booker instead. Palumbo makes the cover and that clown Russo isn’t paying attention completely blowing the finish. When he finally realises what’s going on, he fast counts Booker’s shoulders to the mat and we have a new World champion. As the Thriller’s’ celebrate here comes ‘Commissioner Cat’ who’s now got Ms. Jones by his side. Tony Schiavone has the gall to call this dross “a breath taking segment!” ‘The Cat’ reminds everyone that Eric Bischoff made him the commissioner while Vince Russo is a writer. That means that they have the same stroke. Why the f*ck are they talking about writers??? The commissioner ejects ‘the Thrillers’ and says that as it wasn’t an official match, the belt remains with Booker T. Book tells him that he doesn’t want the belt back like that (“I didn’t pin this sucker!”) so ‘the Cat’ orders the match to be restarted, only with him as the referee this time, since Russo is a writer after all! The restarted match goes less than sixty seconds with Booker winning via ‘the Book End’.

 

Not the first time I’ve said it this year, but why should I invest in a match when the official is biased and not calling the bout fairly? This isn’t even the first time we’ve seen Russo doing the heel referee gimmick himself. What is it with that man constantly trying to get his mug on TV? Of all the people to help Booker though, it’s Big Vito? That if anything shows that it pays to be friends with the writer! Talking of which, in the last week between this and the Goldberg three way at New Blood Rising we’ve heard about writers, going against the script, wrestler’s not doing what they were supposed to and improvising. Is it any wonder this company died approximately six months later?