Monday Night Raw – May 8, 1995: Bart Gunn Saved This Show
Monday Night Raw Date: May 8, 1995
Location: Civic Auditorium, Omaha, Nebraska
Attendance: 5,800
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
This is a bad time as it’s the go home show for In Your House but that means we’re coming up on King of the Ring 1995, which is one of the worst shows of all time. We have two matches announced for tonight: Bob Holly vs. Doink the Clown and Bart Gunn vs. Owen Hart. I think you can see the problems from here. Let’s get to it.
The opening recap looks at Sid and Razor from last week. This takes 45 seconds, not five minutes.
Opening sequence.
Lawler is WAY too happy that Bret Hart is having two matches at Summerslam.
Jeff Jarrett vs. Doink the Clown
Jeff’s Intercontinental Title isn’t on the line and Dink is in the big clown’s corner. Doink starts fast but Roadie grabs his foot, only to have Doink stomp on Roadie’s fingers. Roadie reaches for Jeff’s hand to break up a wristlock but Doink kicks the hand away. It’s not like the referee was going to do anything. Roadie’s cheating fails AGAIN as he can’t hold Doink up against the ropes, earning himself a Stunner. Just fire this goon already. Jeff finally takes over on his own as the announcers start making book references. Doink comes right back with a sunset flip for two and we take a break.
Back with Doink’s leg in trouble and Jeff slowly kicking away as the match slow down (not the worst thing). We hit the half crab but Roadie somehow screws up for a fourth time with the referee catching him holding Jeff’s hand. Doink grabs a DDT and a powerslam for two, followed by Dink taking a bite out of Jeff’s tights. It’s time for the Stump Puller (an odd leg submission) on Jeff but the referee is with Jarrett, allowing Roadie to get in a chop block for the save. Jeff slaps on the Figure Four for the submission.
Rating: C+. Odds are that was Steve Lombardi under the mask and it’s very clear that he was a better choice if you need a good match. Jarrett was more than fine in a role like this where you have him in a midcard match instead of having any kind of attention. There’s nothing wrong with just having a good wrestling match like this one, especially in the land of squashes that is 1995 Monday Night Raw.
The BodyDonnas are coming. This is Sunny’s national TV debut and she’s instantly a star with more charisma than any woman has ever had in the company to date and possibly ever.
Bam Bam Bigelow is sorry for all the things he’s done over the last few months and wants to get his hands on the Million Dollar Team.
Video on Sid vs. Diesel.
Vince brings out Sid and DiBiase for a chat. DiBiase was the one that told Shawn Michaels to hire Sid as his bodyguard because he knew Sid would turn his back on Shawn and draw Diesel into a WWF World Title match. There’s a great slap in Shawn’s face there as Ted is basically saying there was no way Shawn would win the title at Wrestlemania. Ted is ready to send Diesel to a rest home and Sid talks about an African lion. Promises of a powerbomb wrap this up.
Hakushi vs. Gary Scott
Hakushi starts fast with chops and kicks (because of course) followed by a gordbuster, all with Lawler drooling over the thoughts of this happening to Bret on Sunday. An abdominal stretch of all things sets up a springboard splash to put Scott away.
In Your House Control Center doesn’t tell us much. As for storyline stuff, Diesel says he’s ready for Sid and that’s about it. Todd runs down the card and that’s that. Other than that, there’s no replay. Unless that’s a pay per view company decree, I have no idea why the WWF would go with that move. Maybe they can’t make enough money due to the lowered price but it sounds like giving away money.
Owen Hart vs. Bart Gunn
A main event anywhere in the country, or maybe just on a Raw in Omaha. Bart quickly knocks him outside to start but Owen forearms him in the back because it’s just Bart Gunn. Owen is taken down again and it’s time to start in on the arm. Mr. Fuji offers a trip (it’s not like he can do anything else) and Owen takes it outside to send Bart into the post.
The enziguri gets two on Bart and we take a break. Back with Bart stopping a charge by raising a boot in the corner. That’s it for his offense (Or was it defense?) as Owen gets two off a clothesline. Cornette breaks up a superplex but Billy Gunn crotches Owen on the top, allowing Bart to grab a rollup for the fluke pin.
Rating: C. Bart Gunn of all people pinning Owen Hart aside, this was a fine way to set up the Tag Team Title match on Sunday as it’s not like they need much of a story since it’s just a rematch. The Gunns aren’t the most interesting team in the world but this gave them some momentum, which is really all they need here.
Todd and Stephanie (not that Stephanie) tour the house they’re giving away and it’s….a house.
Vince and Jerry, in front of a green screen of fans for some reason, wrap us up with Jerry promising that his mom will be at ringside.
Overall Rating: C. Now this was entertaining with two totally watchable matches and a build towards a few of Sunday’s matches. Above all else they let us have some wrestling instead of four squashes in forty five minutes. It’s certainly nothing great and no one would have thought much of it at the time but this was way better than most of the shows I’ve been sitting through in recent weeks.
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Monday Night Raw – May 1, 1995: It Just Keeps Going
Monday Night Raw Date: May 1, 1995
Location: Civic Auditorium, Omaha, Nebraska
Attendance: 5,800
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
Sweet goodness I might as well just do the rest of 1995 at this rate. We’re just past Wrestlemania XI (close enough) and we’re about two weeks away from the first In Your House, meaning it’s time for Diesel vs. Sid. Yeah like I’ve said many times, this really isn’t a good period for the company. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of Tatanka costing Bam Bam Bigelow the WWF World Title last week, causing Ted DiBiase to fire him. Bigelow fought back and said he quit, earning himself a big beatdown including a horrible powerbomb from Sid. Diesel ran out for the save and a Jackknife on Tatanka. Bigelow and Diesel shook hands to end the show.
Opening sequence.
We look at Sid powerbombing various people to send him into the main event.
Lawler has a contract for Bret Hart.
Allied Powers vs. George Anderson/Tom Hagan
That would be British Bulldog/Lex Luger. Anderson starts with Lex and gets hiptossed for trying to run the ropes. Bulldog comes in and eats a forearm to the face so it’s off to Hagan. As Bulldog beats on Hagan, I have to describe Tom’s attire, which looks like a birthday party store exploded. Anderson misses a charge and gets powerslammed for the squash pin.
We look at Jeff Jarrett cheating to retain the Intercontinental Title over Bob Holly on the Action Zone, resulting in the match being restarted. Holly got the pin but Jeff’s foot was on the ropes. Bob was named the new champion but the title was held up. Holly’s win isn’t considered an official title reign.
Bob Holly vs. Butler Stevens
Stevens takes him into the corner to start but gets armdragged and hiptossed for his efforts. A few knees to Bob’s ribs don’t do much and Holly’s high cross body is good for the pin.
We go to the In Your House Control Center with Todd Pettengill plugging the idea that the show is only $15. That really should be the selling point for this show: it’s 2/3 the length of a regular pay per view but only half the price. The big story here: Razor Ramon will be facing Jeff Jarrett/the Roadie in a handicap match due to a very real neck injury to the 1-2-3 Kid. Oh and they’re giving away a house in Orlando.
Mantaur vs. Sonny Rogers
Mantaur, the half man/half bull, has Jim Cornette with him. It’s the squash you would expect with Mantaur throwing him around, hammering away in the corner, shrugging off a comeback attempt and winning with a World’s Strongest Slam. They were just so lost at this point and Mantaur is a great example.
A cop from NYDP Blue accuses Man Mountain Rock of pretending to be a wrestler. Hey now he wasn’t horrible.
Sycho Sid vs. Razor Ramon
And no match as Sid jumps him through the pyro and destroys Razor in fantastic fashion. I remember watching this as a kid and thinking Sid was amazing for jumping through the pyro. Like, that’s crazy. Diesel makes the save.
Adam Bomb vs. Dave Sigfried
Bomb throws him around as you would expect and grabs a snap suplex. A clothesline breaks up Dave’s hiptoss attempt and Bomb lets this go a bit longer. Some really basic offense (clothesline, hiptoss, right hands) keep Sigfried in trouble and a top rope clothesline ends the goof.
Rating: D. I always liked Bomb so we’ll call this a little better than the normal dull jobber squash. He was a horrible talker or otherwise he might have been a good choice for a midcard power guy. But then he got squashed by Mabel at In Your House because KING MABEL could not be stopped.
Bomb throws his toy footballs into the crowd. That’s always going to work.
Razor gets medical treatment.
Hunter Hearst Helmsley is snooty and rich.
Men on a Mission vs. Bill Duke/Kevin Kruger
Mabel throws Kruger around (way too common tonight) and chokes him in the air. The jobbers’ double dropkick has no effect so it’s off to Mo for a change. A knee to the ribs drops Duke but Mo misses an elbow drop. It’s back to Duke as this squash just keeps going. We actually hit a chinlock for a bit before Mabel finally ends it with a belly to belly.
Rating: F. WAY too long here as it took the better part of five minutes to get rid of these goofs. Men on a Mission just wasn’t interesting as a heel team (or anything more than a comedy face team for that matter) but it was even worse when they turned Mabel into a monster heel for reasons of genuine stupidity.
Here’s Bret Hart to answer Lawler’s contract offer. Vince does Bret’s pose for a funny visual. Apparently Lawler thinks Bret signed to face Hakushi to get out of a match against Jerry at In Your House. Bret will fight Hakushi at In Your House but he’ll fight Lawler on the same night as a bonus. Pyro goes off to end the show.
Overall Rating: F. This was the kind of horrible show that you grew to expect around this time, which should tell you why no one talks about this era. I was bored out of my mind with most of these matches and it’s all building towards Mabel vs. Adam Bomb? That’s my big reward after all this? Nitro can’t come around to light a fire under Vince soon enough.
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Monday Night Raw – December 18, 1995: The Tennessee Invasion
Monday Night Raw Date: December 18, 1995 Location: Bob Carpenter Center, Newark, Delaware
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
We’re FINALLY past the nightmare that was the December taping cycle and In Your House V. Bret Hart retained the WWF World Title (shocking I know) and Undertaker beat Mabel in the casket match (shocking again) and that’s about it for anything of note from that pay per view. Tonight we have Razor Ramon vs. Yokozuna for Razor’s Intercontinental Title. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last night, including Diesel and Undertaker staring each other down to plant seeds for Wrestlemania.
Opening sequence.
Jeff Jarrett vs. Fatu
This is Jarrett’s return after a long absence. Fatu dances a lot and makes a difference by atomic dropping Jarrett out to the floor. Back in and a shot to the head has no effect on Fatu but Jeff sends him throat first into the ropes for the running crotch attack to the back of the head. Jarrett rams him into the steps and actually has some success as we go to a break. Jeff slowly beats on Fatu but dives into a punch to the ribs. Fatu hits a powerslam and corner clothesline for two until he crashes down and holds his shoulder. It’s time for the Figure Four but Ahmed Johnson comes in to jump Jarrett for the DQ.
Rating: D. It’s not a good sign when Jeff Jarrett’s big return match is put in the perfect kind of spot for him and the match wound up being this bad. Jarrett just isn’t interesting in the ring and he’s not interesting on the mic either. Other than that he’s just fine though. That ending seemed to be improvised though as Fatu looked hurt off the crash landing.
Ahmed beats Jarrett up and helps Fatu to the back.
Gorilla Monsoon says Diesel can get over Undertaker being named #1 contender. As for the Royal Rumble, Jeff Jarrett won’t be in the Rumble itself because he’ll be facing Ahmed Johnson.
The graphic for Razor vs. Yokozuna is really weird as Razor is in the middle and Yokozuna is off to the side with most of his left arm cut off.
Goldust wants to sleep with Razor Ramon.
We see a clip from last night with Diesel getting in Undertaker’s face about Undertaker being #1 contender.
Buddy Landel vs. Bob Holly
Landel is a Ric Flair knockoff/ripoff/tribute character and even had Flair’s 1992 theme music here. Holly armdrags him down to start but Landel takes it back to 1985 with every Flair move you can think of, even down to his mannerisms. Buddy keeps it on the mat and starts working on the leg before getting two off a backdrop. We FINALLY get to the comeback with Holly hitting right hands and a clothesline but he misses a dropkick, allowing Buddy to drop a jumping elbow for the pin.
Rating: F. I sat through almost seven minutes of these two boring the fans to death and the best I can get is an ELBOW DROP? They had no idea what to do to counter Nitro at this point and if the best they can do is back to back old school Tennessee style matches like they’ve spent the first half of this show airing, they deserve to get squashed.
To make it even better, it’s the Brother Love Show with Ted DiBiase. The topic tonight: DiBiase having his answer to Santa Claus with Xanta Klaus, who lives at the South Pole and steals presents from kids. Now he’s going to steal victory after victory (oh dear) because 1996 is going to be the year of the Million Dollar Team and the Million Dollar Champion.
Raw Bowl ad. Did they really think this was some brilliant idea?
Intercontinental Title: Razor Ramon vs. Yokozuna
Razor is defending and here’s Goldust to watch from ringside. The champ quickly knocks Yokozuna out to the floor to start and we look at Goldust during the lull. Back in and Razor hammers away with everything he’s got before having to avoid a sitdown splash. Yokozuna takes him down with ease and grabs the nerve hold because he already needs a break.
Razor gets up because it’s just a fat man nerve hold and hits some clotheslines. Back from a break with Razor having to fight out of another nerve hold. Razor fights up, stops a charge in the corner and hits the middle rope bulldog……as Undertaker comes out with a casket. Yokozuna panics and runs away because THESE TWO HAVE TO FEUD FOREVER.
Rating: D. Match of the night here until the horrible ending. Was anyone asking for another casket match between Undertaker and Yokozuna? Like, wasn’t the Undertaker’s spirit rising out of the casket and then Chuck Norris enough for us? Thankfully this didn’t go anywhere of note and Undertaker would move on to the main event and then his much better feuds in 1996.
Razor is actually flattered that Goldust likes him but he’s just into women.
And to wrap it up, Tell Me A Lie, a video tribute to Shawn Michaels who might never return.
Overall Rating: F. That might be the worst episode of Raw that I’ve ever seen. The first half of the show is spent on Jeff Jarrett and Buddy Landel, neither of whom could keep the fans awake let alone interested. After that we have an Intercontinental Title match with Razor bouncing off Yokozuna before Undertaker comes out for really not much of a reason.
I mean, there was the face crushing last month but Undertaker is getting a title shot at the Royal Rumble and is pretty clearly about to fight Diesel soon after that. Why do I need to see him with Yokozuna? Absolutely horrible show here with almost no effort, nothing interesting, and now I have Tell Me A Lie stuck in my head. Thanks Raw, for irritating me this badly.
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In Your House V: Seasons Beatings (2013 Redo): It Wasn’t THAT Bad
In Your House #5: Seasons Beatings Date: December 17, 1995
Location: Hersheypark Arena, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 7,289
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
In addition to the main event of British Bulldog challenging Bret Hart for the WWF World Title, this is the first In Your House to feature the Undertaker on the pay per view (he had wrestled in several post PPV dark matches already). It’s rather interesting that one of the biggest and certainly most unique stars in the company hadn’t appeared in the first four editions of a PPV series and I’m not sure why he hadn’t. Anyway tonight he faces King Mabel in his signature match: the casket match. Let’s get to it.
The opening video starts with various symbols of Christmas before transitioning to shots of the Hart Family splitting apart as well as the Bulldog pinning Bret Hart at Summerslam 1992 in a masterpiece.
Santa Claus is here handing out presents.
Jerry Lawler promises us a big surprise.
Razor Ramon/Marty Jannetty vs. Sycho Sid/1-2-3 Kid
The Kid is full heel now and a part of the Million Dollar Team. Goldust rubs his chest while watching Razor come to the ring. Marty and the Kid start things off with Jannetty scoring with an enziguri for two. Some shoulder blocks and a clothesline get the same on the Kid and Marty goes over for the tag, freaking the Kid out. An atomic drop has Kid in trouble and now it’s off to Razor for the showdown. The Kid bails to the floor for a second but gets a toothpick in his face back inside.
Razor is having a good time but a blind tag brings in Sid to take over for the Million Dollar Team. Back to the Kid for a kick to the face but Razor glares at him after some chops. Sid comes back in to pound Ramon down and get cheered by the crowd in a surprising reaction. Razor comes back with some right hands and a double clothesline puts both guys down. A double tag brings in Marty to run over the Kid again and a powerslam is good for two.
A front flip facebuster out of the corner gets two on the Kid and it’s off to a camel clutch of all things. We go to Todd Petingill in the crowd with Goldust who quotes movie lines and expresses his lust for Ramon. This goes on for several minutes but at least we’re on split screen. Goldust asks Todd to give Razor a letter. Back to the match and Marty punches his way out of the corner but his cross body is caught in a powerslam for two.
Back to the Kid for a bad looking slam and a better looking guillotine legdrop for two before it’s back to Sid. Ramon gets suckered into the ring but gets in a right hand to the Kid. Marty is turned inside out by a clothesline and it’s off to a chinlock. Kid comes back in to drop a leg and then bring Sid back inside for some shots to the back.
It’s the Kid in again but he misses a charge in the corner, allowing for the tag off to Razor as things speed up. The fallaway slam puts Kid on the floor but Sid breaks up the Razor’s Edge. Not that it matters as Razor hits a quick middle rope bulldog (his finisher before he was in the WWF) for the pin.
Rating: D+. Not a terrible match but it went on too long for what they were going for. Jannetty was an odd choice as Razor’s partner against DiBiase’s boys as he was basically fighting everyone himself, but it was all about the him vs. the Kid anyway. Nothing much to see here and not the best choice for an opening match.
Here’s Jerry Lawler in the ring with a present for the returning Jeff Jarrett. After sucking up to Jeff for awhile, the present is opened to reveal a gold record of Ain’t I Great, Jeff’s single from six months earlier. Jarrett brags about how great he is and it doesn’t make anything more interesting. The only thing of note is he enters himself in the Royal Rumble.
Dean Douglas vs. Ahmed Johnson
Douglas says he has a back injury and can’t wrestle, so here’s his prized student Buddy Landell.
Buddy Landell vs. Ahmed Johnson
This is actually a joke, as Buddy Landell is a Ric Flair ripoff and comes to the ring to Flair’s WWF music in a Flair style robe. Douglas hates Flair in real life (never mentioned here of course), so it’s supposed to be funny that Douglas is Flair’s teacher or something like that. Not that it matters as Ahmed, a muscular monster with one of the most intimidating looks ever, destroys Landell and beats him with a Pearl River Plunge (double underhook powerbomb) in 32 seconds.
Post match Johnson paddles Douglas with the Board of Education. This would be Douglas’ last appearance. Lawler interviews Johnson and calls him stupid, allowing Jarrett to break the gold record over Johnson’s head. Jeff also gets in a few chair shots and rams Ahmed into the steps a couple of times, but Ahmed no sells them and chases Jarrett off.
Todd gives Razor the letter from Goldust and Ramon is disgusted, because it’s 1995 and anyone gay has to be a heel right?
Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Henry Godwinn
This is a hogpen match, meaning there’s an actual hog pen with pigs and mud near the entrance and the winner is the first man to send his opponent into said pin. Why is this match happening you ask? Simply put it’s because Godwinn is a hog farmer so he associates with hogs. One note characters like him had a lot to do with the downfall of the WWF at this point, as there’s no interest to such characters, meaning there’s no reason to stick around and watch them. The guest referee is 1980s crowd favorite Hillbilly Jim.
Godwinn slops the ring announcer before the match starts for no apparent reason. Helmsley jumps Godwinn but is quickly sent to the floor for his efforts. Back in and Henry ties him in the ropes so he can rub more slop in Helmsley’s face. After nearly retching, Helmsley takes it back to the floor, only to be bulldogged face first into the steps.
They head up the pen with Henry being whipped into the gate but still managing to block a Pedigree attempt with a backdrop. Helmsley lands on the edge of the pen and kicks Henry down before dropping an elbow to the chest. Lawler makes Jeff Foxworthy style jokes about being from Arkansas as they head back inside where Godwinn hits a big wheelbarrow slam. Helmsley is whipped to two corners and out to the floor for another handful of slop. Henry hits the Slop Drop up by the pen but can’t follow up. Instead he charges at Helmsley and gets backdropped into the slop to end things.
Rating: C-. This actually wasn’t that bad as it was a regular match until the ending. Again though, why am I supposed to care? It’s the lowest level of comedy and storytelling possible, which doesn’t mean it’s necessarily bad, but we have no reason to care about either of these guys so why should I be interested in the match?
Post match Henry slams Helmsley into the pen for fun. That’s a nice idea as at least the fans get the (limited) payoff.
We recap Diesel’s change of attitude since he lost the world title at Survivor Series, which has seen him act much more aggressive. This was what he should have been doing as champion.
Diesel vs. Owen Hart
This is a revenge match for Diesel as Owen kicked Shawn Michaels in the head and put him on the shelf as a result. Diesel launches Owen into the corner to start and hits a big side slam for no cover. The arena is full of smoke from Diesel’s entrance. Owen comes back with some right hands but Diesel easily throws him to the outside for a meeting with Cornette.
Back in and Owen scores with a missile dropkick before going after Diesel’s knee to take him down. A spinwheel kick gets two on Diesel but he easily kicks Hart away to break up a spinning toe hold. Diesel comes back with a big boot and the Jackknife (“This is for you Shawn!”) but he takes his foot off Owen’s chest at two. The referee begs him to let it end so Diesel shoves him down for the DQ.
Rating: D+. The match was going along pretty well until the stupid ending. I understand that they’re trying to push Diesel as being more aggressive, but having him lose isn’t the way to go about doing that. This is Diesel’s third straight PPV loss which doesn’t make me think he’s a monster but rather a guy who can’t finish his opponents.
Here are Savio Vega and Santa Claus to hand out presents to the fans, but Ted DiBiase interrupts them. He says everyone has a price and calls them both into the ring. DiBiase doesn’t believe Santa can make it around the world in one night but he knows someone who can. Savio says he doesn’t have a price and says he believes in Santa.
However, this isn’t the real Santa. It’s really…..XANTA CLAUS, Santa’s evil brother from the south pole who steals presents from children. I wish I was making this up but I promise you it’s real. Xanta lays out Savio and leaves with DiBiase but Savio chases after them, only to get beaten up again. Vince: “SAY IT’S NOT SO!!!” Xanta is played by future ECW mainstay Balls Mahoney.
Mabel says he isn’t scared of the Undertaker, who has returned after having his face crushed by Mabel and Yokozuna. Tonight it’s a casket match, meaning you have to put your opponent in a casket and close the lid to win.
King Mabel vs. Undertaker
Mable now has a very stupid looking mohawk to go with his stupid looking gold and purple pajamas. He jumps Undertaker to start but Undertaker comes back with rights and lefts in the corner. Mabel takes him down with a Boss Man Slam but Undertaker pops right back up. A clothesline gets the same result but a slam keeps Undertaker down for a bit. Mabel goes up for a middle rope splash but Taker moves to avoid probably death. Instead a belly to belly and legdrop keep Undertaker down and there’s a splash for good measure.
Mabel and Sir Mo roll Taker into the casket but don’t shut the lid because they’re not that bright. Undertaker blocks the eventual lid closure as Mabel is dancing in the ring with his crown. Back in and Taker pounds away before kicking Mabel into the casket. Mo’s save is easily thwarted with a chokeslam and he gets thrown in as well. Undertaker takes back the necklace made from the Urn (don’t ask) and slams the lid shut for the win.
Rating: D+. This was about as perfect as you could get to end the Undertaker vs. Mabel feud but it doesn’t help that we had to sit through it for so many months. Thankfully Mabel was gone soon after this with his last notable appearance coming in January. Undertaker is a good force to have back in the company as he was probably the third most popular guy in the company at this point.
Post match Undertaker motions that he wants the WWF Title.
Jim Cornette walks us through Bret’s history with the Bulldog, who is married to Bret’s sister. Unlike in 1992 where the sister Diana was split on who to cheer for, she’s firmly in her husband’s corner tonight.
Bret says he’s making up for 1992 tonight.
WWF World Title: Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog
The much stronger Bulldog shoves the champion into the corner to start but Bret grabs an armbar to take over. Davey flips around a lot but ultimately takes Bret down by the hair like a true villain should. Back to the armbar by Bret as we take a look at Cornette’s tennis racket cover which looks like Santa Claus’ face. Bret gets two off a cross body and goes right back to the arm. Smith comes back with another hair pull before tying Bret up in the Tree of Woe (hanging him upside down in the corner) to stomp away.
Off to the chinlock as the fans are solidly behind Bret. They soon get bored of cheering for him though and start chanting for the then upstart promotion ECW. Vince informs us that the Undertaker has challenged the winner of this match for the Royal Rumble. After a Cornette tennis racket shot we’re in the third chinlock less than ten minutes into the match before the required chest first bump into the buckle gets two on Hart.
A backdrop puts Bret down for two more and we hit the chinlock again. At least this time he makes it a headlock as the fans chant USA, in theory for the Canadian champion. Bret comes back with a monkey flip and a bulldog to the Bulldog for two. A piledriver lays Smith out for two more but Bulldog crotches Bret on the ropes to break up a superplex. Bret falls to the floor and the fans want a table. Instead they get the champion being sent into the steps as Bulldog is in control.
Smith sends him hard into the barricade and Bret is busted wide open. Back in and Bulldog piledrives Bret down for a near fall before pounding at the cut on the forehead. The delayed vertical suplex gets the same and there’s a gorilla press slam for good measure. Bulldog channels his former partner the Dynamite Kid with a headbutt to the back for two. Smith seems to have hurt his knee though so Bret tries a quick Sharpshooter, only to have Smith break it up just as easily.
A hard shoulder puts Bret onto the floor so Smith can try to get some feeling back into his knee. Bret counters a suplex back inside into a rollup for yet another near fall before a double clothesline puts both guys down. They’re quickly back up and a backdrop puts Smith on the floor. Bret is ticked off now and dives over the top to pound away on Smith even more. Davey will have none of that though and powerslams Bret down on the floor to suck the life out of the crowd.
The protective mats are peeled back but Bret blocks a suplex by crotching Davey on the barricade in a nice callback to earlier in the match. Bret clotheslines him off the barricade and heads back inside where a backbreaker gets two. Now the superplex connects for two and an O’Connor Roll gets the same. In a really sudden finish, Bulldog charges into a boot in the corner and Bret cradles him for the pin. The look on Diana’s face makes the ending even better as it almost says “HOW DARE YOU KEEP THE TITLE!”
Rating: B-. This got WAY better in the end but the first ten minutes or so of this were pretty dreadful. Also the ending didn’t do it any favors as I was expecting a callback to the Summerslam 1992 match but we didn’t get anything close to it. Still though, good match and by far the best thing we’ve had on one of these shows in the last two shows.
Paul Bearer (Undertaker’s odd manager) and Undertaker are pleased that they get a title shot at the Royal Rumble. Diesel comes in and says it’s his shot. The giants stare each other down to end the show.
Overall Rating: D+. While this isn’t a good show, it’s WAY better than the previous two entries in the series. Bret is just better as champion as he can work with almost any style and get a better match out of most people. The rest of the card was pretty horrible, but things would be changing quickly around here which is the best thing that could have happened for the WWF.
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Monday Night Raw – December 11, 1995: GET TO JANUARY ALREADY!
Monday Night Raw Date: December 11, 1995 Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Attendance: 4,500 Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
It’s the go home show for In Your House V and thank goodness for that. This show will see Bret Hart facing Bob Backlund in a non-title match which could range anywhere from a great display of wrestling psychology to one of the most boring matches you’ll see this year. Other than that we’re probably in for some bad wrestling from one note characters. Let’s get to it.
Vince and the King talk about how Bob Backlund is spreading a disease called the crossface chickenwing and Bret Hart hopes to have the cure.
Shawn Michaels will talk tonight.
Opening sequence.
Owen Hart vs. Jeff Hardy
Owen has Yokozuna, Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji in his corner. A knee to the ribs puts Jeff down as we see Diesel watching in the back. Owen punches him in the ropes and a missile dropkick makes things even worse. Hart teases the Sharpshooter but decides to just cover Jeff to make him obsolete.
Post match Yokozuna hits a Banzai Drop to leave Hardy broken. Am I allowed to say that? Owen gives him a bonus Sharpshooter, drawing out Diesel for the save. I can always go with a fired up Diesel hitting people at a run.
Aja Kong vs. Chapparita Asari
Asari is rather tiny, especially next to the monster Kong. Things start fast with Asari handspringing into back to back mule kicks, only to be run over by a Vader style standing splash. A hard right hand to the face sets up a harder suplex to plant Asari. Kong goes a bit ahead of her time with a package piledriver for two as King makes fat jokes because men in wrestling are horrible people. Aja misses a splash but avoids the Sky Twister Press (it’s as cool as it sounds) and SMASHES Asari with a spinning backfist for the pin and a lot of blood from Asari’s nose.
Rating: B. This was a squash but sweet goodness Aja Kong looked amazing with those hard hitting shots. Asari was destroyed but when your two moves are a handspring mule kick and the Sky Twister Press, I can only be so critical. Kong probably would have been Women’s Champion after beating Alundra Blayze if Alundra wasn’t a week away from trashing the title on Nitro.
Todd Pettengill sits down with Shawn Michaels, who says he’s feeling better and his symptoms are going away. Shawn thinks he’s awesome but Todd cuts him off by saying he had a great career without being WWF World Champion. Michaels says he’s got goals to achieve but Todd mentions retirement and Shawn is done talking.
Ahmed Johnson vs. Rick Stockhauser
The spinebuster and Pearl River Plunge wrap up the jobber in about a minute.
Post match Johnson says he’s ready for Dean Douglas but calls himself a man of few words. No arguments there.
And now, the bizarre portion of our show. We go to a kid looking at a police lineup consisting of Razor Ramon, Yokozuna, Hakushi, another wrestler and a normal person in Santa Claus outfits. The kid identifies the one in the middle as the man who told him that smoking is good for you, all wrestlers are wimps and SANTA CLAUS ISN’T REAL. The wrestlers then procede to BEAT THE MAN HALF TO DEATH, including Razor loading him up for a Razor’s Edge on the concrete floor. “Happy Holidays from the WWF!”
Raw Bowl ad. I still have no idea why I’m supposed to be interested in a football themed show, but I could go for Freddie Blassie as a football coach every day.
Here are Ted DiBiase, Sid and the 1-2-3 Kid for a chat. DiBiase says they’re one big happy family and Razor isn’t going to get his hands on the Kid without Sid being right there waiting on him. Kid knows you don’t worry about the fans because all that matters is the money you make from winning. Sid is ready for anything Razor and Jannetty can do because he and Kid are family. The beating is going to be fun and Sid is going to enjoy it. That’s about it as this feud really isn’t doing much for me.
Bob Backlund vs. Bret Hart
Non-title. British Bulldog’s wife/Bret’s sister Diana Smith is in the audience. Bret takes it to the mat to start and Backlund bails to the ropes. A headscissors slows Bret down but he comes right back with a front facelock. We go split screen to see Lawler interviewing Diana Smith and she doesn’t have much to say, as usual. To be fair she wasn’t a performer and it’s not fair to expect her to be a great talker.
The dull wrestling continues as the lights seem to get dark, implying that the fans are leaving. We take a quick break and come back with Bob holding his back on the floor. Bob starts in on the arm with the chickenwing but Bret is quickly in the ropes. Lawler spends this section of the match talking about music as we hit the armbar on Bret.
A Fujiwara Armbar kills even more time and we hear about Frank Sinatra’s birthday. The armbarring continues as this is dying before my eyes. Not before the fans’ eyes as they’re likely asleep at home by this point. Another break takes us to Bret coming back with his usual but Bulldog comes in for the DQ.
Rating: D. For a pairing that should give you a dream match, these two really don’t put up great matches most of the time they’re together. Maybe it’s the styles being too similar, maybe it’s the expectations the match creates or maybe they just don’t have chemistry but for some reason these two know how to bore the heck out of the audience more often than not. I can go for a technical style such as their Survivor Series 1994 match but this was just boring.
Backlund puts on the crossface chickenwing as Bulldog stomps away a lot to wrap up the show.
Overall Rating: D. GET TO JANUARY ALREADY! This month and the build to this horrible pay per view feels like it’s been going on for eighteen yeas now and the show still isn’t interesting. We have a rematch from three years ago, an uninteresting tag match and Owen Hart vs. Diesel and a few other matches that didn’t get time tonight (and likely shouldn’t have). The show itself would be better than the TV this month but that’s really not saying much given how boring this stuff has been lately. Another bad show to add to the December pile.
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Monday Night Raw – December 4, 1995: Sign The Doctor
Monday Night Raw Date: December 4, 1995
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Attendance: 4,500 Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
We’re back to the same typing cycle thanks to the powers of a random number generator. In case you missed the last batch of shows, we’re coming up on In Your House V with new WWF World Champion Bret Hart defending against the British Bulldog. On top of that Shawn Michaels is out of action indefinitely with a bad head injury and things aren’t looking good. Let’s get to it.
The opening video looks at Dean Douglas vs. Razor Ramon and Marty Jannetty vs. Sid, both taking place tonight.
Opening sequence.
Bob Holly vs. British Bulldog
Holly starts fast and slams Bulldog and a dropkick sends him outside in a huff. Back in and Holly cranks on an armbar but Bulldog launches him off with ease. There’s the delayed vertical suplex so Bulldog can call himself the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be. Another dropkick gets Holly out of trouble because it’s not like he can do much else. A third dropkick and some right hands stagger Bulldog until he catches Holly on his shoulder for the powerslam and the pin.
Rating: D. Holly threw a great dropkick but he’s a wrestling racecar driver. I’m really not sure who thought this was a good idea, though calling him Sparky didn’t do him any favors. Holly is a good http://your-pharmacies.com hand in the ring and good for something like this but that gimmick was just death and everyone knew it.
We look back at Bob Backlund’s path of rage over the last week.
Lawler asks Backlund about his match against Bret next week, which will be non-title. That’s not cool with Bob and he snaps about not being able to reign over the plebeians. He goes on until we have to go to a break, which Backlund interprets as being finited.
Fatu vs. Brooklyn Brawler
Fatu makes a difference on Brawler’s spine with a backbreaker as Vince shills the WWF Hotline. See, there’s an investment of $1.49 for the first minute. Speaking of a minute, that’s about how long it takes for Fatu to finish Brawler with a top rope splash.
We go to Dok Hendrix for a Slam Jam but have to cut to Backlund beating up the sound guy for sending them to break.
Diesel has accepted Owen Hart’s open contract.
Intercontinental Title: Razor Ramon vs. Dean Douglas
Ramon is defending in Douglas’ rematch after Dean’s fifteen minute reign ended at the last In Your House. Dean jumps him during the entrance, which Vince refers to as using Razor Ramon tactics. Razor catches a cross body in the fall away slam, finally allowing him to take off his vest.
As the champ charges into a boot in the corner, we hear about an interview with Shawn Michael’s personal physician about his head injuries. Ignore the fact that we’ve seen probably half of it in various clips throughout the night. I can’t stand it when they give away the plot in the trailers. A whip sends Razor back first into the buckle and we take a break. Back with Razor caught in an abdominal stretch until he reverses into one of his own. Dean hiptosses his way out but gets caught in the Razor’s Edge for the clean pin moments later.
Rating: D+. Much like Holly, Dean was a good hand in the ring who was ruined by such a horrible gimmick. His talking was far better than his work between the ropes but when you can’t be yourself and have to be a completely new (and not great) character, the whole thing is destined for failure.
It’s the Brother Love Show with guest King Mabel, though Vince talks over Love’s introduction. Love asks about Sir Mo’s whereabouts but Mabel yells at him and promises to bury Undertaker at In Your House. Mabel doesn’t like being questioned but Love has a surprise for him. Cue a hooded man pushing a casket to the ring as Undertaker’s music plays. It turns out to be Mo under the hood and the casket is covered in graffiti. Mabel promises to crush Undertaker to end this very boring segment.
Razor says he’ll have Marty’s back and look out for the Kid.
The Raw Bowl is coming. That show was stupid.
Marty Jannetty vs. Sid
Sid has Ted DiBiase with him. Jannetty is all over him to start and actually gets him on the mat until Sid jumps up (work with me here) for a World’s Strongest Slam. Sid charges into a boot in the corner (the only way to deal with a monster) and a middle rope flipping cutter gets two. We take a break and come back with Sid in full control but Marty breaking out of a chinlock. DiBiase pulls Marty out to the floor and here’s the Kid for the cheap shots. This brings out Razor for the save but he goes after Sid for the DQ.
Rating: D. Marty was trying here but this was just a commercial for the pay per view tag match which means Sid wasn’t going to be trying. Razor vs. Sid would be a better match but Sid and Kid had a weird chemistry and worked as an oddball heel team. Of course it would have been better if Sid threw him around instead of just trudging through the match.
Sid powerbombs Marty post match.
We go to the Chino Medical Center to talk to Shawn’s doctor. Said doctor was very concerned when he saw Shawn collapse in the ring due to post concussion syndrome. It can take years for someone to heal and Shawn could be out significantly longer than expected.
Football players and boxers can never recover from these things and Shawn’s style makes it even worse. We see clips of Shawn’s big impacts and any future blows to the head could be life threatening. He might never get back in the ring again. This guy is either a real doctor or an amazing actor because this sounded as realistic as any such speech I’ve ever seen.
Back to Vince for a voiceover video speech about how awesome these wrestlers are but to remember they’re still humans. Apparently they all push the edge and Shawn has been living there for years.
Overall Rating: D-. Somehow that doctor’s speech was the best part of the show. The company really needs a boost of energy and taking Shawn off the show isn’t going to help things. The major problems here are the lack of interesting stories and characters. There’s MAKING A DIFFERENCE Fatu, the wrestling racecar driver and Marty Jannetty. How strong of a show are you going to have when your alternative is Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage?
Monday Night Raw – November 27, 1995: Be Thankful That It’s Over
Monday Night Raw Date: November 27, 1995
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Attendance: 4,500
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
Things have certainly changed a lot in a week as Shawn Michaels is now on the shelf with a head injury and Diesel is suddenly awesome as a much more realistic character. Tonight is more of a lighter show though as Undertaker is trying to get back the golden chain that Kama melted the urn into because that’s still a thing. Let’s get to it.
We open with a somber look back at Shawn’s injury.
Opening sequence.
Rad Radford vs. Ahmed Johnson
Radford (Louis Spicolli) hammers away to start and gets dropped with an elbow to the jaw. We cut to Bob Backlund walking around the crowd campaigning for President (thank goodness this wasn’t during the Trump campaign) as the guys head outside with Radford sending Ahmed into the apron. Back in and a scissors kick drops Rad and a spinebuster sets up the Pearl River Plunge to end this quick.
Lawler goes to talk to Ahmed and makes some lame you’re stupid jokes before Dean Douglas comes down to say the road to superstardom takes place in his classroom. Ahmed wants to go right now but nothing happens.
We get an update on Shawn, who was attacked by a bunch of thugs back in October, leaving him with a severe concussion. Things got even worse at Survivor Series when his head was banged up even more, setting up last week’s enziguri to really put him out.
Aja Kong/Tomoko Watanabe vs. Alundra Blayze/Kyoko Inoue
O…….k. Blayze is Women’s Champion and Kong is a monster who beat Blayze at Survivor Series. It’s a brawl to start and they actually CUT OFF THE MERCHANDISE PLUG. It’s Kong vs. Inoue to start with Aja running her over in the corner and hitting a splash for no cover. Instead it’s off to Watanabe who is quickly caught in a surfboard. Blayze comes in and is quickly ignored to talk about an online chat with Mr. Perfect. The fast tags continue as Kong suplexes Inoue for two as we take a break.
Back with Watanabe superplexing Inoue for two but Kong breaks up Blayze’s German suplex. Instead a missile dropkick puts Kong down but a second attempt misses, only to have Kong miss a middle rope splash. Kong blocks a powerbomb attempt so Vince starts talking about, for reasons I don’t want to know, Kong being an advocate of safe sex, though unlike Princess Diana, she won’t be on a Norwegian condom commercial. Lawler: “What are you talking about McMahon?” Kong backfists Inoue for the pin.
Rating: C. This didn’t go anywhere and was really just everyone bouncing around Kong. For some reason this never went anywhere as Kong would have one more match and then never be seen again. It was a cool change of pace but that doesn’t mean it’s something I’d want to see every week.
We recap Diesel destroying Bret and the referees on Sunday and his comments the next night.
Here’s Brother Love of all people to interview Bret Hart. This feels so totally out of place that I don’t know where to start but at least it gets Bret back on TV. Love talks about Diesel and of course won’t let Bret get in a word (Brother Love trademark). He brings up Undertaker, who he brought into the WWF (which feels like forever ago at this point) and Owen Hart as potential challengers but won’t let Bret respond. Bret finally grabs the mic and says he’s ready for Bulldog until Bob Backlund runs out to put him in the crossface chickenwing. Love and that piano music just do not need to be here and it shows badly.
Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. John Crystal
The announcers talk about Bret being attacked as Helmsley finishes with the Pedigree in just over a minute.
Owen Hart has put out an open contract for a match at In Your House.
Kama vs. Undertaker
And never mind as Kama is on crutches so we need a replacement.
Sir Mo vs. Undertaker
Undertaker still has his big gray mask on. Ring announcer: “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, THE UNDERTAKER!” For those of you unfamiliar with Mo, just picture the most worthless person called a wrestler this side of Eva Marie. Mo sends him outside to start so Undertaker grabs DiBiase by the throat, only to have Kama come over and save his boss. Vince thinks he sees Mabel coming down as we take a break. Back with Undertaker sitting up as there’s no Mabel in sight. Undertaker gets all ticked off and stares at DiBiase, which sends Ted and Kama bailing to the back. The chokeslam ends Mo with ease.
Rating: D-. Mo sucks and I don’t know what else there is to say here. This was a pretty lame bait and switch, especially when Kama never actually had his big blowoff with Undertaker. Kama would leave the company soon after this with the Royal Rumble being his last major appearance for over a year.
Post match Undertaker gets the chain back but Mabel and Yokozuna come out to steal it right back. Can we please get to Wrestlemania so Mankind can debut and make this interesting?
A preview of next week’s show wraps it up.
Overall Rating: D+. They really can’t string two good shows together these days. Last week was great and this week featured a total of nothing interesting, save for a decent women’s match that meant absolutely nothing. They hadn’t figured out the formula yet and it was showing badly. Nitro kicking into mega high gear would do wonders for Raw but we’re a long way off from that.
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Monday Night Raw – November 20, 1995: The Best One So Far
Monday Night Raw Date: November 20, 1995
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Attendance: 4,500
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
It’s the night after Survivor Series and the big story is Bret Hart ending Diesel’s year long reign as WWF World Champion. That means it’s time to get ready for the Royal Rumble in about two months but first we have to get through a major angle tonight. I’m sure you’ve seen this one before and it set up a lot going forward. Let’s get to it.
We open with a stills package on last night’s main event.
Opening sequence.
We look back at 1-2-3 Kid joining the Corporation last week, which resulted in Sid helping Kid win a Survivor Series match last night. Kid also cost Razor the Wild Card match.
Hakushi vs. 1-2-3 Kid
We get a phone call from Razor which is the forerunner to guest commentary. Kid grabs a headlock to give us a slow start as Razor calls the Kid small change. A dropkick puts Kid down and we hit the armbar as we hear about Barry Horowitz Americanizing Hakushi. Here’s Marty Jannetty for a failed run-in due to losing the Survivor Series match last night.
We take a break and come back with Kid grabbing a very modified cravate and kicking Hakushi in the head. A top rope splash gets two on Hakushi but he comes back with a cross body for a near fall of his own. Kid is knocked outside with a great looking kick to the head but DiBiase shoves Hakushi off the top, setting up a spinwheel kick to the head for the pin.
Rating: C+. These two always had good matches against each other and you really shouldn’t expect anything else given who was in there. The Kid was getting a strong push here and is so arrogant that it’s easy to hate him. Throw in DiBiase to do the talking and everything should work fine.
Post match DiBiase brags about his new investment but here’s Jannetty to try again. This time he just gets powerbombed on the floor by an invading Sid. Serves him right for messing with a good match.
Slam Jam time with Dok Hendrix freaking out over Survivor Series. The main event of the next pay per view is Bret defending his newly won title against British Bulldog. That means we get clips of Summerslam 1992 and comments from Bulldog saying he’ll win. On top of that we’ll be having a hog pen match with HHH vs. Henry Godwinn just because.
Diesel arrives.
Skip vs. Savio Vega
Savio hammers away to start and catapults Skip into the buckle. Skip comes back but here’s a surly Diesel to shove him down for what should be a DQ but just ends the match without a bell because the WWF is stupid sometimes.
Diesel thought about apologizing for beating down Bret after the match last night. For the first time in a year he slept like a baby and woke up with a smile on his face. A year ago he won the title and was turned into a marketing campaign by the bosses at Titan Tower. Diesel only cares about his family and friends (“That includes you Shawn Michaels.”) anymore. He’ll still slap hands but they better have a black glove on them. Diesel walks to the back and gets a quick hug from Shawn as Diesel is officially a tweener. As is so often the case, Diesel can bring the goods on the mic and the fun stuff is coming with him.
Shawn Michaels vs. Owen Hart
Owen doesn’t even get an entrance. Shawn grabs a hurricanrana and hammers away to start, only to be sent to the floor for a baseball slide. Back in and it’s a backbreaker into a chinlock as it’s time for a break. We come back with Owen dropping a leg for two and getting the same off a superplex. Shawn starts the comeback with the usual but Owen is smart enough to stay in the corner to avoid Sweet Chin Music. An enziguri drops Shawn but it’s too early for the Sharpshooter. Instead a clothesline puts Owen on the floor with Shawn skinning the cat…..and collapsing, drawing a no contest.
Rating: B. These two always worked well together but the match here was really just a backdrop for the major angle. This took Shawn off TV until the Royal Rumble and set up his huge comeback match to start his main event push in 1996. The angle worked really well here and there’s a reason this is remembered so strongly.
The fans get very quiet as we go to a break. Back with medical staff checking on Shawn and Vince in the ring as they give Shawn oxygen. We actually take a second break and come back with Pat Patterson asking if Shawn can hear him. Shawn’s eyes are open and the fans are all looking terrified. Even Owen is shaken up as we wrap things up.
Overall Rating: A-. This is one of the better episodes the show has ever had and possibly the best ever at this point. The Diesel promo changed a lot as he was almost instantly the top heel in the company, Shawn’s angle at the end is great and Bret is still waiting to make his return as the giant slaying hero. Things would get bad in 1996 but we’re looking at some awesome stuff for the next few weeks.
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Monday Night Raw – November 13, 1995: One Of Those Stupid Calls
Monday Night Raw Date: November 13, 1995
Location: Keystone Arena, Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
Attendance: 2,000 Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler
This is the go home show for Survivor Series and the card really isn’t the most interesting in the world. Bret vs. Diesel should be fun as always but the Survivor Series matches aren’t looking great. It’s just such a bad time for the company and there really isn’t much of a way around that. Let’s get to it.
We open with a look at the 1-2-3 Kid and Razor Ramon getting into a bunch of fights over the weekend. Therefore, Kid will still be guest referee for Razor vs. Sid later tonight but it will now be a non-title match.
Opening sequence.
Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Henry O. Godwinn
Henry is sent outside so Helmsley can spray his perfume. Godwinn grabs his slop bucket and slops himself, which sends Helmsley running away to end the “match”.
We go to Dok Hendrix for Slam Jam (meaning the Control Center) with a talk about the Wild Card match where no one trusts each other.
Video on Shawn Michaels, who has been having head issues but he’s not quite done yet.
Ahmed Johnson vs. Jake Steele
This is Ahmed’s Raw debut. Steele has a good look but makes the mistake of punching Johnson in the face. We get a quick statement from Shawn Michaels about being happy to team with Ahmed at Survivor Series. A spinebuster sets up the Pearl River Plunge for the quick pin.
Post match Ahmed says something about snapping off a piece of a G on Sunday and you can see Vince wondering how he screwed this one up.
We get a sitdown interview between Diesel and Bret Hart to hype up Sunday. Diesel thinks he’s the best right now while Bret thinks he never should have lost the title in the first place. When they had their match at the Royal Rumble it ended in a DQ and Bret never had a rematch. Bret thinks he was the best challenger Diesel ever had though Diesel seems to think it was Shawn.
For some reason Bret thinks technical wrestlers aren’t getting enough title shots but Diesel points out that he’s defended against Shawn and the Hart brothers. Both guys talk about their strengths as this is clearly just being dragged out to fill time. Bret thinks Diesel is walking around with his title and this FINALLY ends after nearly ten minutes.
And now, Vince McMahon and Jerry Lawler have a Karate Fighters match with Lawler cheating to win.
King Mabel vs. Roy Raymond
The bell rings and we go to comments from Undertaker, who is in shadows to hide whatever his crushed face looks like. Mabel stomps away in the corner and throws Roy around with a suplex. Raymond’s dropkick has almost no effect and the squash is capped off with a belly to belly to give Mabel the pin.
We look back at the 1-2-3 Kid and Razor having issues over the weekend.
Razor Ramon vs. Sid
Non-title but ignore the belt being held in the air before the bell rings. 1-2-3 Kid is guest referee and the fans still love him because this was taped before the heel turn. Sid has Ted DiBiase in his corner as part of the Million Dollar Corporation. A slugout goes to Razor but he eats a big boot to the jaw. We hit a headscissors of all things but Sid nips up (!) and grabs a chokeslam.
That means it’s time for a bunch of stomps instead of a cover, followed by some forearms to the back with Sid yelling at his own forearms. Razor comes back with a failed Razor’s Edge attempt as he’s backdropped to the floor, as is the case way too often. Now it’s Dean Douglas (Razor’s partner in the Wild Card match) coming out and we take a break.
Back with Dean stomping on Razor so Sid can drop him face first onto the apron. We hit one of the lamest chinlocks I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen Scott Steiner put on a reverse chinlock) but Razor gets underneath for an electric chair drop. Back up and Sid charges into a boot, setting up the middle rope bulldog for two. Razor gets Sid up for the Razor’s Edge but Kid pulls him down to set up the powerbomb with a count so fast I couldn’t even look at the video quickly enough.
Rating: D. Oh man Sid was falling apart at this point. They really had too much stuff going on here with Douglas just not needing to be involved. The Kid ending was as forecast as you could have asked it to be, assuming you weren’t in the arena. I really don’t get the idea of having this be a title change for the live crowd (of course it wouldn’t stand) while saying it was non-title in post production.
So yeah, Kid is Corporation now.
Razor tries to kill Dean to end the show.
Overall Rating: F. Total mess and waste of a show here as they were obviously out of content and trying to fill in the time with whatever they could before getting to the pay per view. The show was nothing short of a disaster though with bad wrestling, squashes and basically talking about three of Sunday’s six matches. Horrible show here and unfortunately that’s far too common in this era.
Monday Night Raw – November 6, 1995: Bret vs. Dental Hygiene
Monday Night Raw Date: November 6, 1995
Location: Keystone Arena, Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
Attendance: 2,000 Commentators: Vince McMahon, Dok Hendrix
We’ve jumped ahead again and now it’s time to get ready for the mostly forgettable Survivor Series 1995. The company is still running on Diesel Power as he’s held the title for nearly a year at this point but has a re-energized Bret Hart breathing down his neck and gunning for the belt. Let’s get to it.
We open with a clip of Ahmed Johnson slamming the nearly 600lb Yokozuna last week to make him a much bigger deal than he already was.
Opening sequence, featuring most of the roster in a fight on the roof of a very tall building. It’s certainly different.
Marty Jannetty vs. British Bulldog
Bulldog has Jim Cornette with him and this is due to Bulldog mocking Marty last week. Jannetty starts fast and smacks Bulldog in the face to set up a wristlock. It’s off to an armbar so we go to a chat with Cornette’s lawyer, who says Bulldog will get a shot at the winner of Bret vs. Diesel at Survivor Series. Bulldog comes back with the delayed vertical suplex and it’s time for the chinlock. Back up and Bulldog turns him inside out with a clothesline to send us to a break.
We come back with Bulldog slapping on another chinlock before sending him outside. Bulldog grabs a fourth chinlock in less than ten minutes to kill even more time. Thankfully it doesn’t last long as Marty misses a charge….to set up the fifth chinlock. Marty comes back again with a middle rope flipping cutter of all things (cool move too) and a DDT for two. Not that it matters as Bulldog hits the powerslam for the pin.
Rating: D-. Five chinlocks in a match that only ran about ten minutes. I don’t think I even need to go on at this point. Marty was actually the better of the two here as he seemed like he was trying but what are you supposed to do when you have someone who is clearly just there because he has to be?
A fake Bill Clinton will be at Survivor Series.
Bulldog is ready for his title shot.
Barry Horowitz and Hakushi talk strategy.
We look at Bam Bam Bigelow challenging the newcomer Goldust, which would happen at the pay per view.
Henry Godwinn vs. Terry Richards
Henry is finally face though no one cares yet. Richards on the other hand is better known as Rhyno. Some forearms to the back don’t have much effect as Henry throws him to the ground and rips at his face. The Slop Drop is good for the easy pin. Just a squash.
Cue HHH to jump Henry from behind and give him a Pedigree on the floor. With some white gloves on, HHH even pours the bucket of slop over Henry’s head.
It’s off to the Survivor Series control center with Undertaker promising to bury King Mabel and company and Diesel loving the rules of his match with Bret (No DQ/No Countout).
Kama vs. Tony Roy
Kama is part of the Million Dollar Team. Since this is just another squash, we get a phone call from Shawn Michaels to talk about his upcoming Wild Card Survivor Series match where the teams were “random”. Kama throws the jobber around like he’s nothing at all before finishing with a big right hand.
Rating: D. Kama was supposed to be this MMA style fighter but that’s not exactly what you can expect from the future Godfather. His punching and kicking were fine at the time but when you look back at it with a modern perspective of MMA etc., the whole thing looks more like a joke than anything else.
Jerry Lawler/Isaac Yankem vs. Hakushi/Bret Hart
The good guys have Barry Horowitz in their corner for reasons that aren’t important enough to explain. Bret and Yankem get things going with the future Kane pounding away in the corner and grabbing an early bearhug. It’s quickly off to Hakushi for the handspring elbow in the corner as I think I’d like to see a full Hakushi vs. Yankem match. Back to Bret to work on the arm as we’re waiting on Lawler to come in and take his beating. A sunset flip gets two on Isaac but he clotheslines Hakushi in the back of the head to take over.
Hakushi goes back first into the post and it’s finally off to the mulleted Lawler for two piledrivers. There’s no cover though as it’s off to Isaac for a whip into the corner as we take a break. Back with Isaac grabbing a Boston crab with Bret making the save. Jerry dives into a right hand to the throat and the hot tag brings in Bret. House is quickly cleaned and Bret gets the Sharpshooter on Yankem. Barry steals a chair away from Lawler but gets caught for the DQ despite not touching anyone.
Rating: C. Stupid ending aside, this was actually a nice tag match. Hakushi was one heck of a worker who just needed someone to do the talking for him. The idea of him hammering away on a big man like Isaac and trying to chop down a giant is rather intriguing but he wouldn’t be around much longer.
A preview for next week’s Raw, a commercial and another preview of next week’s Raw end the show.
Overall Rating: D. This was your standard horrible Monday Night Raw of its era as you could see the company really needing to get away from Diesel and get on to something fresh. The wrestling here was just above a disaster with that Bulldog vs. Jannetty match being a huge waste of time. They’re very lucky Nitro was starting to catch some steam at this point as they needed something to challenge them.
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