It’s the last month of 1998 and things are starting to pick up for Starrcade. The main story coming out of Nitro is kind of hard to pin down. Hall seems to be going to war against the NWO while Goldberg vs. Nash is just kind of happening in the background despite being allegedly the biggest match of the year. Let’s get to it.

Tony recaps some of the NWO stuff from Nitro and calls Dusty a great man for swerving Bischoff. Flair vs. Easy E is set for Starrcade.

Since Hogan has “officially retired”, we get a retrospective on his WCW career. Looking back….Hogan wasn’t all that good around this time.

We see Scott Steiner challenging Scott Hall from Nitro.

Here’s Scott Steiner with something to say. Steiner talks about going to Graceland and says he’s getting more women than Elvis could ever dream of now that he’s the head of the NWO. After insulting the fans, Steiner brags about Hogan passing the torch because they both have big arms. This brings him to Scott Hall because Steiner wants to hurt him. I’m assuming that’s the main event tonight.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Ciclope

Eddie takes out the knee to start and nails the slingshot hilo before sitting on the ropes to yell at the fans. Ciclope slides through the legs to the floor before coming back in with a mostly missing missile dropkick for two. Not that it matters as Eddie hits the brainbuster….and asks for the match to be stopped. The bell rings and we’re done with I think a no contest.

The LWO comes out and Eddie offers Ciclope a shirt, giving us a new member of the LWO.

We see Konnan winning the TV Title on Monday.

We see Page losing the US Title back to Bret Hart.

Renegade vs. Giant

Giant shrugs him off, shrugs him off again and then chokeslams Renegade off the top for the pin in a minute.

Post match Giant talks about beating up two imposters in one week. This brings DDP out through the crowd with a chair to lay out Giant. If the Giant Scum wants some, come get some. I guess that’s another Starrcade match.

Mike Enos vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Chavo has an early chat with Pepe before dodging a charging Enos and nailing him with a dropkick. A gorilla press goes as badly as the charge and Chavo dropkicks Enos to the floor, followed by a baseball slide and plancha. Enos shrugs it off and whips him into the barricade though before yelling at a fan about Goldberg. Back in and Mike works over the arm for a bit but gets caught by yet another dropkick.

Guerrero takes him to top for a hurricanrana, only to have Enos counter into a SWEET top rope powerbomb. That’s not enough for a cover though so Enos takes him up top again for a top rope fall away slam as Chavo is in big trouble. Since Mike isn’t that bright though, he picks Chavo up at two. Enos goes over and grabs Pepe for no apparent reason and lays him on the mat. He sets up a powerbomb onto the horse but Guerrero rolls him up for the pin out of nowhere.

Rating: C. Well this was a surprise. Enos was a good choice for a power guy that throws small people all over the place and then gets pinned because he’s not all that bright. Chavo actually looked like the weaker worker in the match which isn’t something you often have to say about him.

Konnan music video.

Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Villano V

Rey is sent into the corner to start but avoids a charge so Villano slaps him in the mask. A dropkick sends Villano out to the floor, setting up a great looking flip dive to take him down again. It works so well that Rey tries another one, only to be slammed down onto the concrete. Back in and Villano hammers away with a knee to the head and a backbreaker before slapping him in the face again. Rey reverses a whip into the corner but charges into the post. Villano’s top rope splash misses and it’s the Bronco Buster into the West Coast Pop for the pin for Rey.

Rating: C. Take Rey and any other high flier and let them fly around the ring for awhile. It’s one of those ideas that is always going to get a nice reaction and this one worked almost as well as anything else. It’s nice to have a match without the LWO stuff getting in the way too.

Post match Eddie comes out and says he’s tired of Rey wanting the title. It’s Juvy that should be going after the Cruiserweight Title and that’s what the LWO is going to do, but Tony says it’s Rey vs. Juvy next week for a shot at Starrcade. Eddie freaks out of course. I still have no idea what the idea of this story is supposed to be. Eddie forces Rey into the group he formed to keep Eric from controlling them and now Eric (or WCW in general) is giving Rey what Eddie doesn’t want. What does Eddie get out of keeping Rey on the team here?

We look at the contract signing from Nitro.

Chip Minton vs. Wrath

Minton was an Olympic bobsledder and wrestled a bit as well. Wrath easily throws him into the corner and stomps away before throwing Minton out to the floor. A suplex onto the concrete keeps Chip in trouble and a slingshot clothesline gets two. Minton comes back with a weak looking sunset flip for two and that’s about the extent of his offense. Wrath hammers away in the corner even more and the Meltdown (BIG pop) is good for the pin.

Rating: D. This was WAY longer than it needed to be and most of it was spent talking about Minton’s Olympic background (nothing wrong with that) and Wrath bouncing back from his loss. The whole appeal of Wrath was the undefeated streak and that just went away a few days ago. There isn’t much left to him now and going back to the squashes isn’t going to do much good.

We recap the Flair/Bischoff/Malenko stuff from Nitro.

Chris Benoit/Steve McMichael vs. Raven/Kanyon

Before the match Raven sits in the corner while Kanyon grabs a mic. Kanyon yells at him for putting his head through a window tonight and talks about Raven’s mother. The fans actually get tricked as Kanyon asks who is NOT better than Kanyon before we go to Arn Anderson leading the Horsemen to the ring. Benoit runs Kanyon over to start but gets caught in a sweet rollup for twp. They trade wristlocks until Kanyon takes him down and chokes away out of anger at Raven.

Kanyon stops to call the depressed Raven an idiot, allowing Mongo to run him over out of a three point stance. Steve misses a boot in the corner though and gets caught in something like a neckbreaker. The Horsemen take over with Benoit chopping the skin off Kanyon’s chest before stomping him down for good measure. Raven doesn’t do much so Benoit goes over to yell at him before Kanyon gets double teamed some more.

A backbreaker gets two for Chris but he charges into a boot in the corner. Not that it really matters as he takes Kanyon down with a dragon screw leg whip, only to miss the Swan Dive. Raven still won’t tag so Kanyon hits a powerbomb into a faceplant for two as Raven walks away after being tagged. That’s a countout as Benoit puts Kanyon in the Crossface.

Rating: C+. The idea here worked pretty well with Raven’s downward spiral into depression continues with him walking away from his only friend. Other than that the Benoit stuff was very good, but Mongo just wasn’t working out there for the most part. Thankfully he won’t be around much anymore.

We see Konnan winning the title again for some reason.

TV Title: Konnan vs. Disco Inferno

Before Konnan comes out, Disco says tha the and Konnan should hook up to make a music video of their own. Konnan comes out and does his catchphrases in retaliation. Feeling out process to start with neither guy being able to get the advantage. A fsuplex gets two for Konnan and the seated dropkick sets up a pull of the champion’s pants.

Disco gets back up and hammers away before getting knocked out of the air. A DDT sends Disco to the floor but he snaps Konnan’s throat across the top rope. Back in and the piledriver is easily countered with a backdrop, setting up the 1-8-7 for two on Disco. Konnan blocks the Chartbuster and an X-Factor sets up the Tequila Sunrise to retain the title.

Rating: D+. The ending was never in doubt but Disco was his usual decent self. Konnan was there for little more than to give the Wolfpack some popularity but he was only ok at best in the ring. The match wasn’t terrible but it was nothing I’m going to remember in about five minutes.

Scott Steiner vs. Scott Hall

The NWO Referee is calling this one. Hall jumps Steiner during the entrances to send him out to the floor. Back in and Hall stays on offense but the NWO Referee grabs the leg to give Steiner control. A takedown gives Steiner a few fast near falls before he just hammers away on Hall in the corner. Hall takes a pumphandle slam for two and the NWO Referee keeps up with the fast counts.

Steiner plants him with a tiger bomb for two with his foot on Hall’s chest before throwing on a sleeper. As expected Hall fights out of it and grabs a sleeper of his own but gets countered into a belly to back suplex. Both guys are down but it’s Hall up first and hammering away. The top rope bulldog gets a very slow two and it’s Outsider’s Edge time. Not that it matters though as the referee makes the save and takes the Edge in Steiner’s place. Steiner pops up and lays Hall out before putting on the Recliner as we go off the air with no winner.

Rating: D. This was more of a “we’re out of time so here’s something we promised without either guy having to do a televised job” thing than a main event. You knew something was up as soon as you saw the NWO Referee out there so it wasn’t like the ending came as a big shock or anything.

Overall Rating: C-. This was one of the decent episodes but it means next week is probably going to be horrible. The tag match was actually solid as they let the good workers run the match and just had Mongo in there to do basic power stuff and then leave. Not much to see here but it’s a pretty weak time for WCW.

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We close out November here with a fairly big show. The main event for tonight is Page defending the US Title against Bret Hart despite being banged up as usual. Other than that we’re heading towards Starrcade so we’re likely to get more build between Goldberg and Nash, which hasn’t really set the world on fire yet. Let’s get to it.

No Tenay tonight due to illness so Tony and Larry talk run down the card, including a contract signing for Nash vs. Goldberg. This brings us to Hogan on the Tonight Show on Thanksgiving night where he officially announces he’s running for President. He likes a flat tax apparently.

We go to the back and see the NWO limo arriving with Scott Steiner leading the way. They come out to the ring where Bischoff declares Scott Steiner as the new leader of the Black and White. Steiner says Hogan made it official in LA and talks about his physique for a bit. Tonight the first order of business is taking care of Scott Hall, so it’s Hall/a parnter vs. Steiner/Horace.

Nitro Girls.

TV Title: Chris Jericho vs. Konnan

Jericho is defending. Konnan sends him to the apron to start and Jericho immediately complains about a hair pull. Back in and we hit the armbar on the champion before Jericho comes back with a running clothesline. Konnan will have none of this being on defense stuff and hits a seated dropkick, only to be caught in a hot shot. A springboard dropkick puts Konnan on the floor and Chris follows him out with a great looking plancha.

Back in and Jericho dives into Konnan’s boot before a fisherman’s suplex gets two. The Lionsault gets two for the champion but the Liontamer is too close to the ropes. With nothing else working, Jericho tries to cheat by bringing in the belt. Ralphus’ distraction doesn’t work though and an X Factor onto the belt gives Konnan the title.

Rating: D+. Not much here but a title change is always a good way to fire up a crowd. It’s about time the Wolfpack got some gold. That being said, it’s a bad idea overall with the midcard scene picking up and now another title is locked into the NWO stories. Jericho didn’t do much here and unfortunately that’s likely to be a trend for him in the coming months.

The Wolfpack comes out to celebrate and we see Konnan’s music video.

Gene brings out Flair for a chat. Flair is in serious mode tonight and says that he’s talking like a man so Bischoff will hear it. Just because someone gets old doesn’t mean that they’re great. Flair lists off a bunch of names like Hogan, the Andersons, the Road Warriors and Wahoo McDaniel made Bischoff the man he is. Now Flair is mad at Windham for what he did last week, but he hates Bischoff. Flair wants a piece of Bischoff anytime anywhere.

Nitro Party winner.

Here’s Hall in an Outsiders shirt to say that he’ll fight the NWO on his own tonight. Kevin Nash comes out and says if Hall needs a partner, he’ll be Scott’s Huckleberry.

Raven/Kanyon vs. Scott Armstrong/Steve Armstrong

Raven is sitting in the corner to start against Scott and we appear to be in an angle instead of a match. Kanyon and Raven argue about Raven’s mom for some reason but Kanyon gets jumped from behind by Scott to really get things going. The brothers’ advantage is short lived though as Kanyon fights back with a nice faceplant but stops to argue with Raven. A Flatliner lays out Steve but goes to yell even more, allowing Scott to roll Kanyon up for the big upset.

Hour #2 begins.

Here’s Bret Hart for a chat with Gene. Bret says he’s badly hurt tonight and can’t face Page for the US Title tonight even though that’s what Bret wanted to do. This brings Page out through the crowd to say the word SCUM a lot and call Bret a liar because Bret issued the challenge in the first place. Hart doesn’t have his gear so he insists on it being a No DQ match tonight. Page agrees to what sounds like a ruse.

Cruiserweight Title: Billy Kidman vs. Eddie Guerrero

Kidman is defending. Feeling out process to start until Eddie makes the mistake of slapping the champion and gets dropkicked for his efforts. A headscissors puts Eddie down again and a dropkick sends him to the floor. Kidman is sent into the steps to give Guerrero his first advantage and crushes him between the steps and post for good measure. Back in and the slingshot hilo gets two as we take a break.

Back with Eddie cranking on the champ’s arm and wrapping it on the top. He gets crotched loading up the frog splash but blocks a top rope Frankensteiner. Back down and Eddie’s powerbomb is countered into a faceplant (duh) followed by the lifting powerbomb for two. Cruiserweights use a lot of powerbombs the more I think about it.

Guerrero comes back with a tornado DDT but ANOTHER powerbomb is countered into another faceplant. The champ drops Eddie with a superplex but the referee goes down at the same time. This brings out Juvy to help his boss but Mysterio comes out to dropkick Eddie (also his boss) in the back, setting up the Shooting Star to retain the title.

Rating: C. Good stuff as usual from these guys but I’m not sure where this story is going. We get that Mysterio hates being in the LWO and Eddie knows that Mysterio hates being in the LWO and will cost the LWO matches, so why does he insist on Rey being in the LWO and not use the LWO army to destroy Mysterio? At least the matches are good though.

Bam Bam Bigelow is here with a ticket.

Here are Eric Bischoff and Barry Windham with something to say. Eric talks about going to Cody, Wyoming where he heard a lot of people wanting Hogan to be President. We get a little campaign speech before Bischoff calls out Dean Malenko. He gets the Horsemen minus Flair on the stage and Malenko alone in the ring. Tonight it’s going to be Malenko vs. Windham and if Dean wins, Flair gets to face Bischoff. Dean says it’s on but Eric has one more idea: Dusty Rhodes is going to be guest referee. Big Dust comes out but Malenko won’t shake his hand.

Nitro Girls and Heenan at the booth.

Wrath vs. Bobby Blaze

Total squash with Wrath winning in less than a minute but the magic just isn’t there anymore.

Bigelow is still in the crowd.

Here’s Ernest Miller, flanked by Sonny Onoo, to issue his open challenge to the crowd. This brings out Perry Saturn who says that he’ll have a try. Miller says that Saturn is clearly weak due to losing to Sonny on Sunday, so he’ll have to beat Sonny to get a piece of the Cat.

Perry Saturn vs. Sonny Onoo

We get the karate poses from Onoo but Saturn plants him down with a powerbomb, only to have Miller break up the pin. The distraction lets Glacier run in with a Cryonic Kick to Saturn to give Sonny two. Miller throws in a chain to Onoo but Sonny takes the Death Valley Driver. Somehow he slips the chain into Saturn’s tights though and the referee sees it for a DQ, giving Sonny the win. Someone tell me why putting Saturn in this feud is a good idea. I’d love to hear this rationale.

We see Goldberg get out of a limo and come to the ring for the contract signing with Nash. Both guys sign with no issues and Goldberg doesn’t have to defend until Starrcade. Bigelow tries to jump the railing but it doesn’t go anywhere.

Mike Enos vs. Booker T

Booker easily takes him down to start and nails the forearm and a superkick. Enos catches him charging into a hot shot though before knocking Booker out to the floor with a clothesline. Another hot shot onto the barricade has Booker in trouble but he comes back inside with a spinwheel kick, the ax kick and the Harlem Sidekick, followed by a kind of spinebuster for the quick pin.

Bigelow is in the parking lot and wants Goldberg to come fight him.

Brian Adams vs. Lex Luger

Feeling out process to start as Tony talks about the Mark Curtis Benefit Show last night. Luger runs over Adams with ease a few times but gets his neck snapped across the top rope to give not-Crush the advantage. A clothesline puts Luger on the floor so Vincent can earn his paycheck for the night. Back in and Luger makes a quick comeback and nails the forearm but Adams’ feet take the referee down as he’s loaded into the Rack. The NWO nails Luger with a chair and spike piledriver for two before we get Lex’s real comeback. He knocks Adams into the chair despite Adams putting the brakes on, setting up the Rack to win.

Rating: D. Just a dull match here without anything of interest. This is the same as the LWO but slightly less confusing. What exactly are we heading to with this NWO war? They’ve been fighting for over six months now and there’s nothing changing about any of the fights. At least Luger is beating the guys he should be beating though.

Barry Windham vs. Dean Malenko

If Dean wins, Flair gets Bischoff at some point. NWO member Dusty Rhodes is referee, Barry is in jeans and Dean is coming in with a bad knee. Dean wins an early slugout and we head to the floor for a chase but Dusty yells at Dean for a distraction, allowing Barry to take over. A gutwrench suplex and elbow to the jaw drop Malenko and Dusty is right in his face to ask if he wants to give it up.

Dean avoids an elbow drop and heads up, only to be slammed right down onto the bad knee. Some elbows to the knee have Dean in even more trouble and Barry slams the leg down on the apron. Barry stays on the leg with kicks to the thigh as Dean is in the ropes…..AND THAT’S A DQ??? Dusty calls for the bell and raises Dean’s hand as the announcers are in shock.

Rating: D+. The match didn’t have time to go anywhere but was much more about the angle than the action. It’s nice to see someone finally changing over to WCW as at times it seems WCW doesn’t even exist anymore other than as a place for the NWOs to fight each other. Also Dusty being in the NWO just didn’t work.

Post match Bischoff runs out to fire Dusty as the Horsemen come out to beat the tar out of Windham. Eric gets out before Flair can get to him.

Horace Hogan/Scott Steiner vs. Outsiders

The Outsiders do the Rock Paper Scissors to determine who starts against Horace. The NWO referee is in there as well. Hall nails the driving shoulders and puts on an armbar, only to walk into a hard clothesline. A hiptoss is countered into a chokeslam from Hall but it’s off to Scott Steiner. It’s Steiner with a muscle clothesline and a fast count is good for two. A butterfly suplex gets the same for Steiner on the other Scott but Steiner charges into a boot in the corner.

The middle rope bulldog gets two for Hall but the referee counts VERY slowly. Steiner comes back with a low blow but Nash saves Hall from some Horace choking. Back in and Horace stomps away and gets two off a backbreaker and splash. We hit the front facelock for a bit until Hall fights up and makes the tag to Nash. The NWO referee doesn’t count it but Nash comes in anyway and cleans house until Hall hits the Edge on Horace. No count of course so Nash Jackknifes the referee and a WCW referee comes in for the pin. Nash walks out as soon as the pin goes down.

Rating: D+. Another angle instead of a match here and Nash running off was interesting. I’m not sure where Steiner went after the hot tag but it fits the idea of the NWO wanting to run away from a real fight. The fans were really excited about the idea of the Outsiders being back together again, which is why I doubt it’s going to keep happening.

Goldberg barrels through the doors and heads outside to fight Bigelow. They go at it in the parking lot until security breaks it up. That’s not good enough for Goldberg though as he fights away and spears Bigelow down.

US Title: Bret Hart vs. Diamond Dallas Page

Bret is challenging and this is No DQ. Hart is in street clothes and isn’t sure about locking up to start. Page takes him into the corner but lets him go, allowing Bret to get in a low blow to take over. Choking and eye raking ensues until Page sends him into the corner for a hard stomping. Bret gets caught in the Figure Four around the post until the Giant makes the save. A chokeslam puts Page down in the ring and a chokeslam from the top rope (pretty much the same as a regular chokeslam) sets up the Sharpshooter for the knock out win, giving Bret the title back.

Rating: D+. This is a hard one to rate as it was exciting while it lasted but the match isn’t even four and a half minutes long with Giant being out there for about a minute and a half of that. Not much to see here though as this feud just keeps going. Hopefully this wraps things up though.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a show about setting up matches for the future which is what matters as we head into the biggest show of the year. The contract signing was nothing though and it felt more like the Outsiders reunion was bigger than anything with Goldberg. Flair vs. Bischoff looks more like the main event for Starrcade, despite it not even being official yet. It’s not a bad show, but it sets up stuff for the future which is a rare thing in WCW.

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This is a special one hour episode on a Tuesday. I guess three hours a week isn’t enough for all of the AWESOME action that you get on a Nitro so we get a bonus tonight. Hot dog indeed. Anyway there aren’t any announced matches and Tony just casually mentioned this so I can’t imagine it’s going to be much to see. Let’s get to it.

Nitro Girls.

Scott Norton vs. Kaz Hayashi

Chop, powerbomb, pin on Hayashi.

Disco Inferno vs. Scott Putski

The dancer takes him down with an armdrag but stops to dance, allowing Putski to hit a quick powerbomb for two. Inferno comes back with his usual array of neckbreaker, atomic drop and clothesline followed by the top rope ax handle for another near fall. Two sleepers get Disco nowhere and Putski nails a nice overhead belly to belly. Not that it matters as Disco pops up and hits the piledriver for the pin.

Rating: D+. Disco was a decent in ring worker and actually got something resembling a passable match here against Scott Putski of all people. It’s nothing great or anything like that but at the end of the day, why not try to make something happen here? Unfortunately no one is watching this though so it means nothing at all.

Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Tokyo Magnum

They trade lockups into a wristlock from Guerrero before some standing switches get us nowhere. Chavo puts on a headlock and gives Tokyo a wet willie to really make me feel stupid for watching this. A nice dropkick puts Tokyo down and it’s time to ride Pepe a bit. Tokyo comes back with some strikes and the Hennig necksnap before taking a dance break.

Magnum gets two off a moonsault but Chavo comes back with right hands and dancing of his own. A springboard bulldog and belly to back get two for Chavo and he hammers away even more. They strike it out again with Tokyo taking over, only to have Chavo block a hurricanrana and hit a good looking tornado DDT for the pin.

Rating: D+. This was an ok match but at the same time it was a lot of comedy that only some people were going to find funny. Tokyo was talented in the ring but the dancing gimmick was going to put a hard ceiling above his head. Chavo is continuing to get better in the ring though and that’s the most important thing of all.

Stevie Ray vs. Van Hammer

They stare each other down and hammer away in the corner as we’re firmly in power brawl mode here. Now they trade clotheslines with Stevie getting the better of it and throwing Hammer to the floor for a beating from Vincent. Hammer comes back in with a powerslam and belly to back but Stevie just kicks him in the face and hits the Slap Jack for a quick pin. Nothing match.

Prince Iaukea vs. Juventud Guerrera

Both guys fire off chops until Juvy takes over with a headscissors takeover. The Prince comes back with an elbow and legdrop as the uninspired wrestling continues tonight. Guerrera fights out of a headlock and quickly gets up top for a springboard missile dropkick to take over again. Back up and the Prince grabs a powerslam and belly to back for two more and they trade rollups. Guerrera blocks a dive with a boot to the face and they trade more rollups. Iaukea gets crotched and taken down by a hurricanrana, but here’s Mysterio to break up the 450 and allow Prince to hit a quick kick to the face for the pin.

Rating: C-. The back and forth stuff was nice here and FINALLY we get some storyline stuff on this show. Not that it’s going to mean anything but it’s better than just sitting there watching uninteresting matches. As you may have seen before, Iaukea does nothing for me at all and I’m getting sick of seeing him.

Horace vs. Wrath

They slug it out again to start until Wrath misses a charge in the corner. The brawl heads outside with Wrath taking over again before heading back inside where he nearly drops Horace on a sidewalk slam attempt. A Vincent distraction lets Horace get in a chair shot but he gets caught with his feet on the ropes. Horace takes too much time going up top and misses a splash, setting up a top rope shoulder and the Meltdown to end things.

Overall Rating: D. What in the world was the point of this? Seriously, there was practically no important storyline development, the biggest start to appear was….Juventud Guerrera maybe? It’s just a nothing show that could have been the C level show on the weekend like Main Event or something. Nothing to see here and I really do want to know why this existed.

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We’re on the road to Starrcade now with a main event of Kevin Nash challenging Goldberg for the World Title. The other main story coming out of last night was Hogan not appearing in the big battle royal for reasons that weren’t explained. Other than that we didn’t get the two big midcard matches we were promised because this is WCW and giving us angles instead of delivering advertised matches is a great idea. Let’s get to it.

The announcers talk about the battle royal last night and tell us to tune in to the Tonight Show on Thursday to see why Hogan wasn’t in the battle royal.

We get some stills of the battle royal as well.

Lex Luger vs. Mike Enos

They circle each other for a bit to start until Luger runs him over with a shoulder block. A headlock sends Enos to the floor as the announcers talk about everything other than the match. Back in and Mike drops him throat first across the top rope and nails a piledriver for two. We hit the chinlock on Luger followed by a nice powerslam for two more. Back up and Mike can’t hit a superplex, allowing Luger to hit a top rope clothesline and a superplex of his own. A powerslam sets up the Rack for the submission from Enos.

Rating: C-. Enos didn’t look all that bad here and Luger was actually doing more than just the usual for a change. It’s still not all that entertaining but it was better than a lot of the dull matches with guys like these two on Nitro. I’d still like the Wolfpack to actually do something of note instead of just having random matches of no consequence.

Goldberg shows up in a limo, followed by the Wolfpack in their limo. Konnan tells Nash that he’s next but Goldberg says that’s not a safe place to be. “Just ask your girlfriend.”

Gene brings out Kidman to talk about the situation last night where Rey Mysterio helped him win back the Cruiserweight Title. Rey comes out and Kidman offers him a title shot tonight due to Mysterio being back to his old style. Wasn’t he only away from his old style for six days and by force? They shake hands and say may the best man win but here are Eddie and his bodyguard to interrupt. Eddie says Rey is still a contracted member of the LWO so he needs to put the shirt back on. Guerrero pulls out a gigantic shirt that Rey is forced to put on, but he promises to make this right later.

Norman Smiley vs. Chris Benoit

Benoit is actually taken down pretty easily and kicked in the back, only to have him pop up and slap Norman in the face. They hit the mat for a bit until Benoit takes him into the corner and stomps away, only to charge into a knee to the ribs in the other corner. Smile does that spinning slam of his but Benoit comes right back with Rolling Germans, the Swan Dive and a Crossface for the fast submission. This was better than expected.

Nitro Party.

Stills of Hall vs. Nash which wasn’t a match.

Here’s the Wolfpack to celebrate their victory. Luger doesn’t like finishing second in anything but at least it was to another Wolfpack guy. Nash takes the mic and says he’s next and will be the 1 in 190-1. So Heyman stole his big promo from Kevin Nash? The Wolfpack leaves but Gene follows to ask about Hall. Nash can’t trust him because of what’s happened already, which makes sense. Goldberg comes by and says he’ll be the truck that runs Nash over. Nash: “Lay off the caffeine Bill.” Nice to see Big Kev so serious before his title shot.

Kanyon vs. Tokyo Magnum

Before the match we see Kanyon trying to get Raven to come out with him but Raven says Kanyon wouldn’t understand. Once in the arena, Kanyon yells at Raven to come out, allowing Tokyo to grab a rollup for two. A bulldog gets the same but Kanyon snaps off a Russian legsweep to take over. Tokyo gets two each off a sunset flip and small package, but a hiptoss is countered into the Flatliner to give Kanyon a fast pin.

Nitro Girls.

Glacier vs. Bobby Duncum Jr.

The cowboy takes him into the corner to start and shrugs off some kicks before nailing a headbutt to the ribs. More power shots such as a clothesline and shoulder drop drop Glacier and we head back outside for even more punishment, including a hard whip into the barricade. Back in and a top rope clothesline is good for two on Ice Dude but he comes back with his usual variety of kicks. A powerslam gets two for Glacier, only to have Duncum come right back with a running DDT. Duncum’s attempt to use his bullrope doesn’t work so he hits a Skull Crushing Finale for the pin. That’s not a good finisher for him.

Rating: D. Duncum is trying, but him going after the cowbell and bullrope shows how stupid WCW could be at the time. I know they’re a southern based promotion, but I got so sick of their OBSESSION with cowboys. Yeah we get it you have a bullrope and a big hat. DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT!

Giant comes out to talk about the battle royal last night. He wanted a piece of Nash but Nash needed an army to take him out since Big Kev won’t fight him one on one. Since that’s out of the question, Giant wants to know if Goldberg has the guts to face him tonight.

Hour #2 begins.

Saturn vs. Silver King

Before the match, Saturn tells Ernest Miller to jump him if he wants to. Why is this feud still a thing? A hard shoulder takes Silver King down to start followed by a drop toehold. Back up and a few kicks drop Saturn, setting up a slingshot splash for two. Saturn is bored by selling and nails a clothesline and superkick to send Silver King outside, only to draw out Sonny Onoo and Ernest Miller. After some lame trash talk, a German suplex and the Death Valley Driver end Silver King.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Kidman

Kidman is defending. Feeling out process to start with Rey sending him into the corner for an early Bronco Buster to a bit of a mixed reaction. Maybe the huge shirt is offputting. They trade headscissors takeovers with Rey’s taking both guys over to the floor. Back in and Rey hits a quick dropkick to the knee followed by something like a Fameasser for two.

Kidman is sent to the apron but comes in over the top with a top rope cross body for two of his own. The champion charges at Rey but Mysterio uses what would become the 619, sending Kidman flying out to the floor in a cool spot. A big springboard flip dive takes Kidman down but he’s able to dropkick Mysterio out of the air as they come back in. Kidman powerslams him for two before getting caught in the sitout bulldog for another near fall. That’s FINALLY enough to get the announcers to care about the guys in the ring instead of Nash vs. Goldberg.

Rey comes back again with a sunset bomb out of the corner but Kidman is right back as well with a running bulldog up the corner. The masked dude hits a superplex but West Coast Pop is countered into the short powerbomb in a great counter. Juvy and Eddie come out for a distraction with Kidman going after the latter, allowing Guerrera to hit the Juvy Driver on Rey, setting up the Shooting Star to retain the title.

Rating: C+. This was a nice back and forth match between these two but the LWO continues to go nowhere for the most part. It’s nice of them to have some kind of a story, but there’s only so much that they can do against each other. I’d love to see them get out of the division for a change, but this is WCW so that’s a very rare thing to see.

Here’s Bischoff for his weekly Horsemen address. He understands that Flair isn’t going away and asks for him to come out here right now for a showdown. Flair comes out for the staredown on his own and says he’s humbled by the reaction he’s getting here in Grand Rapids. Bischoff actually says Flair deserves this before saying they have to acknowledge that Bischoff runs the company. Flair will admit that Ted Turner is a great man but made a mistake in hiring Bischoff.

Eric brings up Flair bringing in Barry Windham but Flair has no authority to hire anyone. This brings out Barry who immediately hugs Flair. Bischoff thinks that Barry is going to turn on Windham, which might be an accurate prediction. Bischoff slaps Flair and gets jumped, only to have Barry hit Flair low. The NWO jumps the Horsemen as they try for a save and Horace works over Dean’s leg. Eric makes Bret vs. Malenko tonight.

Stills of Booker saving Stevie Ray from Konnan last night.

Booker T. vs. Konnan

Tony tells us that Horsemen have left the arena other than Dean. Nice teammates they are. Booker takes over to start with a wristlock but walks into the rolling clothesline. A clothesline and back elbow to the jaw drop Konnan and a pair of kicks but Stevie comes out and nails Konnan in the head with a slapjack for a DQ.

Stevie asks Booker where his head is but Booker says he doesn’t need his brother.

Gene brings out Bret Hart for a chat. Bret says that punk DDP stole a cheap win last night and wants a rematch. He’ll destroy Dean’s knee until Page accepts the challenge.

Nitro Girls.

Wrath vs. Kevin Nash

The idea here is simple: Nash is facing the ultimate streak at Starrcade so he’s challenging a smaller streak here. Wrath drives in knees in the corner and nails a bicycle kick to drop Nash with ease. A dropkick sends him over the top and out to the floor as it’s all Wrath to start. Nash comes back in with right hands and elbows in the corner but Wrath easily suplexes him down. Wrath gets two off a top rope clothesline but he charges into a boot in the corner. Side slam is good for two on Wrath and a shoulder gets the same on Nash. Kevin comes right back with a big boot and the Jackknife to end Wrath once and for all.

Rating: C-. The match actually wasn’t all that bad but the booking is pretty questionable. I fully understand the idea of having Nash beat a winning streak, but Wrath was a guy with potential and they just burned through it here. On top of that, Wrath dominated the match and Nash hit like two moves for the win in less than five minutes. This should have been a bigger deal than it was.

Gene brings out Chris Jericho for a chat. Jericho’s hair looks like he’s been subjected to static electricity experiments. However Jericho wants to be serious tonight. The Jericholics have disappointed him lately by not cheering loud enough. He’s their role model because he’s better than every single one of them. Gene brings up Bobby Duncum Jr. and Jericho can’t pronounce his last name. As Jericho makes fun of cowboys, Duncum walks out with a hogtied Ralphus. Jericho: “GET AWAY FROM HIM! HE’S A TRAINED KILLER!”

Scott Hall vs. Alex Wright

Jericho is still trying to untie Ralphus during Hall’s entrance. Hall says cut the NWO Black and White music. Tonight is going to be the final survey because the fans are all here to see the…..something I can’t make out. There are two factions in the NWO and Hall doesn’t care for either one of them right now, so send out Alex Wright so Hall can destroy him. After the toothpick throw, Alex flips out of a belly to back suplex but gets punched in the jaw and clotheslined out to the floor.

Alex actually pulls Hall outside for some right hands as the fans chant USA. Back in and a missile dropkick puts Hall down again but it’s time to dance. Heenan is LIVID over this as you can hear the manager in him trying to come back out. They slug it out a bit until Hall levels him with a clothesline and the Edge is good for the pin.

Rating: C. Far better match here than I was expecting as Wright got to show off here in a bit of a surprise. Hall being serious is a good thing though as I really didn’t care for the drunk angle. Hall is talented enough to put on entertaining matches with almost anyone so it was a waste of his talent to use that kind of a gimmick.

Nitro Girls.

Bret Hart vs. Dean Malenko

Dean is favoring his knee after the attack earlier. Bret goes right for the knee to take over and kicks away but Dean gets in a right hand and some stomps to take over. Dean tries a rolling cradle but the knee gives out and they roll to the floor. We take a break and come back with Tony telling us about a special bonus Nitro tomorrow with another hour. Oh freaking JOY.

Dean tries a suplex and the knee holds up for the most part but he can’t follow up. A small package is good for two on Hart as Tony actually gets a fact right: Windham wasn’t an original Horseman. Dean comes back with a sleeper which Heenan points out allows him to rest the leg. Bret fights out of it with a belly to back but Malenko keeps the hold on. They head outside for a few seconds before Dean chokes with the boot in the corner.

Bret goes right back to the knee to take over though and snaps the bad leg down. He grabs the leg again but gets enziguried down to give Dean a breather. Back up and Dean slams him into the buckle while hobbling across the ring. Nice touch. A superplex doesn’t work but Bret goes down to the apron to keep Malenko out of trouble. The leg lariat sets up the Texas Cloverleaf but Bret is right in the ropes.

They fall to the floor with Dean landing on the leg to keep him down. Bret tries to bring in a chair but the referee takes it away, allowing Malenko to nail a missile dropkick for a very close two. Malenko tries a leapfrog but can’t get the elevation and goes down again. Bret wraps the leg around the post a few times and nails a Diamond Cutter, causing the referee to stop it.

Rating: B. I was really liking this one and the ending actually makes it better. Malenko doesn’t have to do a clean or even dirty job here and goes down fighting the whole way. His comeback was great with the knee being sold the whole way through. But of course we couldn’t have Dean move up the card long term or anything like that as a result of a great performance like this.

DDP comes in to save Malenko’s knee but gets beaten down with a chair. Bret misses a chair shot to the knee but gets away from the Diamond Cutter. Page calls him Hitscum Hart as Bret walks away. We get a challenge for a rematch for the US Title next week.

WCW World Title: Giant vs. Goldberg

They fight into the corner to start and Giant kicks him in the side of the head. Chokeslam gets two and Goldberg hammers away with some kicks to the ribs. Spear and a delayed Jackhammer retain the title.

Bam Bam Bigelow runs in post match but Nash comes out for the save. Goldberg goes after Nash and security separates them to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was an entertaining enough show but I’m not interested in Starrcade so far. Goldberg vs. Nash just doesn’t feel like a big showdown main event but it’s what we’re getting no matter what. The Jackhammer to Giant was very impressive and Malenko’s match was good so it’s a watchable show but in a bad time for WCW.

Remember there’s the extra Nitro show Tuesday and no Thunder this week.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Clash of the Champions at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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We open with Larry Zbyszko on commentary instead of Heenan. As always we hear about all of the goings on at the moment, including Nash, Page and Hart.

We see Bret attacking Malenko and Benoit on Nitro.

Booker T. vs. Norman Smiley

We actually get a handshake to start and Booker breaks clean in the corner. Smiley takes him into the corner and pops Booker with some uppercuts before slapping him in the face. A slam sets up a chinlock on Mr. T. but Booker fights up and hits his running forearm and some kicks to the face. Smiley avoids an elbow drop and dances a bit, only to get nailed with the Harlem Side Kick, setting up the 110^th Street Slam for the pin.

We see Page challenging Bret on Monday.

Opening sequence.

We see Scott Steiner and Buff Bagwell beating up “Mrs. Steiner” from Nitro.

Disco Inferno vs. Scott Hall

We look at Scott Steiner beating up Chris Adams for no apparent reason.

World War 3 ad.

Kaz Hayashi is looking for a tag partner for Sunday.

More clips of the TV Title match from Nitro.

Kidman vs. Rey Mysterio

Kidman vs. Eddie Guerrero

Eddie stomps away in the corner to start but Kidman comes back with a quick dropkick for two. Guerrero bails to the floor before dropping to his knees to ask for some mercy back inside. Another dropkick sends Eddie back to the apron and Kidman stomps away instead of buying into the waiting any longer. Eddie uses a jawbreaker to escape a sleeper but the second attempt works a bit better.

This time Eddie suplexes his way to freedom but gets superplexed off the top when he tries the frog splash. Like many a schmuck before him, Eddie gets faceplanted out of a powerbomb. Kidman loads up the Shooting Star but dives on the bodyguard and Rey Mysterio instead. Larry: “WHY DID HE DO THAT???” A powerbomb gets two on Guerrero but the bodyguard distracts Kidman, allowing Eddie to get a rollup pin with his feet on the ropes.

The announcers mention that Kidman has a return clause and will get the shot on Sunday. We see Kidman losing the title to Juvy on Nitro as a bonus.

Clip of a new game coming soon: Ocarina of Time.

Video on Hall vs. Nash.

Scott Norton vs. Scott Putski

Speaking of dull squashes, we have this by the numbers squash. Vincent interferes to start, Norton destroys him with various power moves including clotheslines and headbutts, setting up the powerbomb for the pin in less than two minutes.

We see Hall vs. Nash from Nitro.

We see the Hogan campaign stuff from Nitro.

Kaz Hayashi tries to get Disco Inferno to be his partner on Sunday when Saturn comes in and offers to do it instead.

The Cat vs. Super Sensei

Sonny Onoo says that Sensei is a two time World Karate Champion so this should be an easy workout for Miller. Before the match starts, Kaz Hayashi runs in and gets beaten down until Saturn makes the save. Who decided this feud needed so much TV time?

We get a quick history of World War 3.

Alex Wright vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Before the match we get a rant from Alex demanding respect from the crowd. The bell rings and Wright quickly armdrags Chavo down before hammering away in the corner. The announcers start talking about Bigelow being a career mercenary as Chavo takes over with an armdrag of his own and a dropkick.

Prince Iaukea vs. Kanyon

After Kanyon does his usual schtick, Iaukea jumps him on the floor to get things going. They head inside with Kanyon nailing something resembling a reverse powerbomb before stomping away. The middle rope suplex back inside gets two for Kanyon and a bulldog is good for the same. Prince comes back with a sunset flip but Kanyon just plants him with a double leg Fameasser for two. Iaukea grabs a quick Samoan drop but has a suplex countered into the Flatliner for a fast pin.

Saturn vs. Wrath

This could be interesting. Saturn grabs an armdrag into an armbar to start followed by a nice springboard kick to the face. Wrath heads to the floor for a bit but Saturn is right on top of him with a nice dive. Back in and Wrath just pounds on him before nailing a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Some hard right hands and stomps have Saturn down in the corner and a belly to back suplex gets two.

A flying forearm sends Saturn flying into the ropes and Wrath chokes away. Back up and Wrath misses a charge into the corner and walks into a t-bone suplex. Cue Sonny Onoo and Ernest Miller as Saturn nails the frog splash for a close two. Sonny offers a distraction and Miller kicks Saturn down, setting up the Meltdown for the pin.

We look at Bam Bam Bigelow debuting on Nitro.

Bret Hart vs. Konnan

After Konnan hits all of his catchphrases, they slug it out in the corner with Konnan taking over. They quickly head outside with Hart being rammed into the steps and barricade. Back in and Konnan gets beaten down, only to have Stevie Ray get in a shot with the slapjack. A low blow headbutt has Konnan in even more trouble and the Sharpshooter is good for the win for Bret.

Rating: D. Whatever man. Just end this awful show already.

One more note: there’s no show on November 26 so the next episode will be December 3.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Clash of the Champions at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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