Superstars of Wrestling – January 16, 1988 – They’re Talking About My Birthday
Superstars of Wrestling
Date: January 16, 1988
Location: Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Attendance: 8,500
Commentators: Bruno Sammartino, Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura
It’s another show here but we’ve got a new location at least. This is where the first TNA show took place but that was about fourteen years from now. This is six days before the first Royal Rumble but we’ve got a few weeks of TV to get through before that’s acknowledged, which will likely get on my nerves. Let’s get to it.
The marketing boss of the arena welcomes us to the show. That’s different.
As always, the announcers open the show and we get the opening sequence. Vince tells us who’s coming today.
Strike Force vs. Dusty Wolfe/Iron Mike Sharpe
Strike force are tag champions but this is non title. Martel starts with Sharpe and we get to something very special to me. As usual we get a voiceover from the Fink talking about an upcoming house show, this one at a high school on Wednesday night, February 3. That night, I was being born. Tito vs. Wolfe now and the champs’ dominance continues. Tito gets beaten down for a few seconds until it’s off to Martel who cleans house with dropkicks and Tito’s Figure Four ends this.
Rating: D. Boring match, but the announcement of the house show was really cool to hear. Strike Force is a team I’ve always liked and they were pretty underrated. For some reason despite holding the titles for six months, they’re viewed as transitional champions. I’ve never really gotten that.
UPDATE! With Craig DeGeorge!
Hogan vs. Andre II is announced for February 5, LIVE on NBC. We look at Mania III and the controversy over the slam. Not the famous one, the one early in the match. Andre jumped Hogan on a SNME and beat him down.
Van Van Horne vs. Greg Valentine
Yes, that’s the right name for the jobber. The squashing continues and we hear more about that February 3 house show. There’s a butterfly suplex for two and we hear from some fans if Brutus Beefcake should be allowed to cut hair. Valentine pulls up off a pin and drops an elbow. Figure Four ends this.
House show ads.
Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Tiger Chung Lee
Bigelow is the second biggest face in the company at this point. A bunch of headbutts, a bunch of forearms, a few slams, slingshot splash and we’re done.
Ron Bass vs. Rex King
Bass is an evil cowboy. He wears a black hat and names his rope. Scott Casey, a cowboy who wears a white hat, says that Texas doesn’t like Ron Bass. Ok then. Bass allows a few free shots before finishing with more or less a Pedigree minutes the arm trap.
Hogan and Bigelow talk about being all ready to face DiBiase and Andre.
We get a clip of Matilda being dognapped.
British Bulldogs vs. Gino Carabello/Brian Costello
Costello is a long running Superstars jobber. Take a guess as to what happens in this one. Smith powerslams him but doesn’t cover. Dynamite comes in for the delayed vertical and we cut to the platform for a shot of the Islanders and Heenan. Dynamite gets the pin with a belly to back superplex. Total squash.
The Islanders and Heenan have dog food. Heenan says Tunney knows where the dog is so go find him. The Bulldogs run off and Heenan says they’re innocent.
Don Muraco vs. Dave Wagner
It’s confirmed that Matilda’s whereabouts are known but not her condition. Not much contract so far until he clotheslines Wagner in the corner and pounds him down like he owes Muraco money. Muraco goes up and drives his knee into Wagner’s chest. Tombstone ends this squash.
Rating: D. Another dull match but seeing the tombstone in the 80s is interesting. Muraco wouldn’t be around a ton longer before he headed to the indies like the dreadful UWF. Other than that, there’s not much here but it’s a squash so what exactly was I looking for in the first place?
Bad News is coming.
Ted DiBiase vs. Brady Boone
DiBiase says he’s going to buy the world title. Boone gets some slams and the fans erupt. DiBiase was hated man. Ted slams him down, goes to the middle rope and falls backwards with an elbow for the pin. I like that.
House show stuff, including shows where DiBiase would team with Andre against Bigelow and Hogan. Ted would have the title at that point for all of one day.
The Bulldogs say Matilda is in bad shape.
Vince tells us what’s coming next week and that’s it.
Overall Rating: D. They packed in a lot of stuff but the announcement of Hogan vs. Andre II was bigger than anything else. The Bulldogs getting their dog back was a storyline development to end a quick story. Other than that though, there isn’t much going on at all here but we’d be getting to the tournament stuff soon enough.
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