Monday Night Raw
Date: April 17, 1995
Location: Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, New York
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler

We’re coming up on the first In Your Hour next month but there is still a lot of time to fill in before we get there. That includes this week, which will see Bob Holly/1-2-3 Kid getting a Tag Team Title shot after last week’s win in a six man tag. Hopefully they come up with something bigger to draw me in to the pay per view so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Over the weekend, Sid was added to the Million Dollar Corporation.

Opening sequence.

Jean Pierre Lafitte vs. Duke Droese

Lafitte hammers away to start and kicks Droese into the corner but Droese is back up with a hiptoss. Droese knocks him to the floor and then drops a knee back inside. Lafitte drops him again though and hits a legdrop for two. With Droese tied up in the ropes, Lafitte gives him a running crossbody for a painful looking crash. Droese gets out and misses a charge into the corner before his sunset flip is blocked.

We take a break and come back with commentary talking about a poll about cheating on your taxes. A double clothesline gives us a double knockdown before Lafitte dives into a raised boot. Droese makes the comeback, including a powerslam, only to miss a top rope splash. Lafitte’s Cannonball finishes at 11:10.

Rating: C+. This worked well enough as a hoss fight, but I’ve always liked both of them. Lafitte was a good example of someone who knows how to wrestle his style rather well and that was the case here. Droese was someone with some size who could move well, but there was only so far you could go as a wrestling garbage man.

Bob Backlund is on the beach and promises to make a big impact. Get your dictionary!

We look back at Sid joining the Million Dollar Corporation. The idea is that DiBiase got Sid to attack Shawn Michaels so Bam Bam Bigelow could get the next title shot. I’ve heard worse continuity ideas.

Doink The Clown vs. Raymond Roy

Dink is here with Doink. The chase doesn’t go well for Roy to start as Doink catches him with a suplex. Doink starts working on the arm and drops an elbow for two. More arm cranking has Roy in trouble, followed by the Whoopee Cushion. Dink adds one of his own for the pin at 3:22.

Rating: C. This version of Doink is nowhere near as entertaining as the original villain, but there is something to be said about someone who is there for a pretty clearly defined purpose. Good guy Doink is a simple character who exists to make the kids laugh. That’s not a bad thing at all and it worked well enough, at least until it is done way too often.

We get the first In Your House report, with the WWF Title match between Sid and Diesel being made official. And you can win a house!

Tag Team Titles: 1-2-3 Kid/Bob Holly vs. Owen Hart/Yokozuna

Hart and Yokozuna, with Jim Cornette, are defending. Kid takes Hart down by the arm and holds on despite some flailing. Holly comes in to stay on the arm but it’s off to Yokozuna. Holly actually manages to take him down by the hair but Yokozuna sends him outside. A ram into the steps has Holly down and Hart grabs a suplex.

The double arm crank goes on but Holly fights out. The backslide is blocked though and we take an early break. We come back with Yokozuna using the laziest nerve “hold” I’ve ever seen. It looks like he’s taking Holly’s pulse. Thankfully it’s back to Hart for an enziguri but Holly rolls him up for two.

A double clothesline puts Holly down for two and we’re back to the nerve hold. Hart’s chinlock doesn’t last long as Holly gets up for a collision. The Kid comes in to fire off the kicks, including knocking Hart out to the floor. A dive off the top is pulled out of the air though and Yokozuna crushes Kid with a belly to belly suplex to retain at 15:51.

Rating: C. This was a match that made sense and was put together well enough, with Yokozuna eventually crushing the Kid because there was no other way it could have gone. At the same time, that nerve hold takes away some points as Yokozuna couldn’t have looked less interested. Hart and Yokozuna weren’t about to lose to these two, but at least the match was treated fairly seriously.

Undertaker doesn’t want you to drink and drive.

Henry Godwinn vs. Rich Myers

Godwinn starts fast with a wheelbarrow faceplant as commentary takes a phone call from….a cartoon pig named Cornfed. The pig (a detective from the series Duckman) thinks he could beat Lawler but is a big scared of Godwinn. The Slop Drop finishes at 1:50.

Commentary hypes up next week’s show to wrap it up.

Overall Rating: C. And this is what happens when you don’t have a ton of star power on one of these shows. While it wasn’t bad, it wasn’t a show that felt interesting or important in the slightest. I do like the idea of keeping a lot of the matches shorter though, as they only have about forty five minutes a week. Let them get some people out there and see if something sticks, as they can certainly use the help.

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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 24, 1995
Location: Louisville Gardens, Louisville, Kentucky
Attendance: 4,181
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Vince McMahon

We’re done with In Your House II and Diesel is still the WWF Champion, having beaten Sid in a not so great lumberjack match. Shawn Michaels won the Intercontinental Title from Jeff Jarrett in a far better match. Other than that though, we are on the way to Summerslam and that might not go so well. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a look back at Shawn Michaels winning the Intercontinental Title.

Opening sequence.

Shawn Michaels vs. Jimmy Del Ray

Non-title and Jim Cornette is here with Del Ray. Michaels starts fast by taking him down for an armbar but Del Ray is right back up. A springboard out of the corner doesn’t work for Del Ray as Michaels knocks him to the floor. Back in and Del Ray hits a quick DDT and takes over, including a boot rake to the eyes. Some hip gyrating sets up a (gyrating) neckbreaker for two on Michaels and we hit the chinlock. Del Ray misses a top rope splash and Michaels hits a running forearm. A superkick drops Tom Pritchard (who was apparently here too) and another finishes Del Ray at 5:19.

Rating: C+. Well, this was at least better than Michaels’ match against IRS last week, mainly just because it was shorter. Michaels is on a roll at this point and he shouldn’t be needing that much time to take out someone like Del Ray. Not a good match here, but less bad, and for this time period, I’ll take that.

Post match Michaels teases stripping, as he tends to do.

We look at Jeff Jarrett’s live singing debut, but there are accusations that it was NOT REALLY HIM. And yes, you’re supposed to be interested by this.

We look at Shawn Michaels beating Jarrett again.

We recap Bret Hart vs. Hakushi, who had some great matches.

Smoking Gunns vs. John Faulkner/Rick Stockhauser

The jobbers have matching tights so they might be a regular team. Faulkner’s headlock doesn’t last long on Billy but it’s off to Stockhauser for an elbow. Billy fights out of trouble with ease and Bart comes in for the left hands. The Sidewinder finishes in a hurry at 2:01.

Merchandise shill….for Jeff Jarrett gear.

Goldust is coming.

Fatu wants to make a difference in his hometown of San Francisco.

Waylon Mercy vs. Gary Scott

Mercy hammers him down at the bell to start and chokes away. A hard whip into the corner has Scott in more trouble and the sleeper finishes for Mercy at 2:02.

We go to the Summerslam Control Center, which turns into a recap of In Your House. Ah the days of pay per view replays. King Mabel is ready to come for Diesel next, because we have to see some horrible things from time to time.

Bret Hart vs. Hakushi

Hakushi has Shinja with him. We get a little weird before the match as Hakushi pulls out a Hart mannequin head. Uh, right. Hart goes after Shinja to start so Hakushi jumps him from behind. Back in and Hakushi’s Vader Bomb hits knees, allowing Hart to hammer away. The backbreaker connects and Hart slugs at the ribs. A whip into the corner is reversed and Hart goes back first into the post as we take a break.

We come back with Hakushi hitting a nasty kick to the face, followed by a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. A top rope headbutt to the back gets two and we’re off to the nerve hold. That’s broken up and Hakushi rolls him to the floor and we take another break. Back with Hakushi connecting with a Asai moonsault but Hart is right back up. They get back in for a backbreaker into a middle rope elbow, followed by the bulldog for two on Hakushi. Hart gets knocked down again but he avoids a top rope headbutt. The superplex into the Sharpshooter makes Hakushi give up at 16:24.

Rating: B. Match of the month on the show so far, which really shouldn’t be a surprise. They’ve been in the ring before and worked well together so it makes sense to give them a rematch. Hart can work well with anyone and Hakushi was ready to hang in there with him. Yes I’m as shocked as you are that Hart stole the show, as he was doing it time after time in this era.

Post match Hart beats up Shinja for a bonus. Cue Jean-Pierre Lafitte to steal the bag from before the match.

Dean Douglas has the Report Card, where he talks about the importance of knowledge. This was bad, but what else were you expecting?

Jerry Lawler yells at Shawn Michaels and doesn’t see much in his future. Michaels isn’t impressed to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event helped carry things here, but you could only expect so much when the focus was on Hart and Michaels. There are only so many talented stars on the roster at this point and this focused on two of the really good ones. They rest of the show was the usual collection of squashes, but Hart vs. Hakushi is worth a look.

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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 17, 1995
Location: Danville High School, Danville, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 2,700
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Vince McMahon

It’s the last Raw before In Your House and the big story is still Sid, who may or may not be scared of Diesel. Other than that, there is a lot of focus on Jeff Jarrett around here, which can’t be the best idea. We might get something else added to the show this week, though the card seems pretty full. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

IRS says Shawn Michaels is going to learn what it’s like to pay the tax man.

Shawn Michaels doesn’t seem worried.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Titles: Yokozuna/Owen Hart vs. Gus Kantarrakis/Jim Dimitre

Yokozuna and Hart, with Mr. Fuji and Jim Cornette, are actually defending here for some reason. Hart works on a wristlock to start and then flips out of Gus’ version. A clothesline and dropkick put Gus down and it’s off to Yokozuna for a wishbone. Hart trips Gus for the big leg from Yokozuna and the Sharpshooter finishes Jim at 2:57.

The In Your House Control Center runs down the card and focuses on the lumberjack match. The rest of the show gets some attention as well.

Jean-Pierre Lafitte vs. David Thornberg

Lafitte knocks him against the ropes to start and splashes him in the back. They head outside to keep up the beating, followed by a Cannonball for the pin at 2:31.

Fatu is back where he grew up and now he wants to make a difference. Sweet goodness what a lame gimmick. It’s a perfectly nice idea, but they couldn’t have been more ham handed with it if they tried.

For the third straight week, here is the With My Baby Tonight video.

Shawn Michaels vs. IRS

Ted DiBiase is here with IRS. Michaels, in the always awesome looking black trimmed with red, takes IRS down to start and works on the arm to send him outside. Back in and IRS bails to the floor again, with Michaels grabbing the tie. A headlock takeover lets Michaels grind away a bit, and it works so well that he does it a second time. IRS finally manages to send him over the top for a crash out to the floor and the pace slows down a bit. Sidenote: I know it happens a lot, but IRS is so drenched in sweat that I thought he was in a light blue shirt. My goodness man that’s insane.

Michaels’ comeback doesn’t last long as he misses an elbow, allowing IRS to grab a chinlock. We take a break and come back with the chinlock continuing, as it tends to do. Michaels fights up and slugs away but gets dropped with a clothesline. Back up and the superkick finishes for Michaels out of nowhere at 12:14.

Rating: C. It’s not a good sign when the part of the match that stands out the most is IRS’s sweating. As usual, IRS isn’t interesting in the slightest but he’s perfectly fine from a technical standpoint. That was the situation again here, with Michaels just shrugging off whatever was thrown at him and kicking IRS in the face for the pin.

Merchandise shill.

Isaac Yankem DDS, again with Jerry Lawler in his office, pulls out a child’s tooth, which is censored due to the pain involved.

Kama Mustafa vs. Billy Mack

I wonder if he’s related to Willie Mack. Mustafa, with Ted DiBiase, hammers away to start but spends too much time yelling at the crowd, allowing Mack to hit a missile dropkick. That’s it for the comeback, as Mustafa hits him in the face for the win at 2:02.

Vince McMahon brings in Diesel to introduce his lumberjacks. First though, Diesel insults Sid and suggests he’s a CHICKEN. He insists he’ll keep the title and brings out the midcarders extraordinaire as his lumberjacks. Some of them say what they have planned for Sid if he goes outside, including Shawn Michaels promising a little chin music (for some reason, I’ve remembered the way he said that line for thirty years). Sid comes out for the staredown but walks away. The lumberjacks and Diesel celebrate (for some reason) to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. What was the big draw here? Michaels had a perfectly watchable yet uninteresting match and then….here are the midcarders who will be watching the main event of the pay per view? That’s about it, and I’m going to need more than that to make the show worth a watch.

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Monday Night Raw
Date: September 21, 1995
Location: Memorial Civic Center, Columbus, Ohio
Attendance: 1,600
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler

It’s the go home Raw for In Your House and that means we are in for…well not much on the main event, which is already set. Other than that, we have another Razor Ramon vs. 1-2-3 Kid match as the two of them aren’t getting along. Finally, Men On A Mission are facing Owen Hart and Yokozuna for reasons of evil. Let’s get to it.

Here is last week’s show if you need a recap.

This is a special Thursday edition of the show, which wasn’t mentioned last week.

We open with a recap of last week, with the 1-2-3 Kid costing Razor Ramon a match against British Bulldog. Kid wants to be taken seriously so he’ll have to beat Razor again.

Opening sequence.

Razor Ramon vs. 1-2-3 Kid

During the entrances, we look at Razor attacking Dean Douglas in the classroom at Summerslam in case you want to be told what to expect here. Kid jumps him to start and fires off some kicks to put Razor on the floor. Back in and Razor goes with the power to take him to the corner for the super fall away slam. Razor chops away in the corner and tosses him HARD (with a great bump from the Kid) before working on the arm. A chokeslam gives Razor two but Kid manages to send him outside.

Kid hits a slingshot dropkick (over the top at that) and a spinning kick to the face gets one back inside (the foot on the rope helped). The sleeper takes Ramon down to one knee and we take a break. Back with the hold still on but Razor suplexes his way to freedom. The discus punch drops Kid and there’s the running corner clothesline. Back up and a collision sends Kid into the referee so cue Dean Douglas for a top rope splash to Razor. A VERY delayed cover gives Kid the pin at 10:33.

Rating: C+. Kid getting to bump all over the place worked and Razor gave him a ton of offense at the same time (I for one am shocked). The Kid winning makes a lot more sense and it is smart to let him move up the ladder a bit. Razor is more than a made man so this was a good example of helping bring someone up. Now just do it more often.

Dean Douglas grades the match, with the Kid getting a D (dumb), Razor getting an E (elevate, which Razor is trying to do by face Dean), Dean getting an A (because he’s nifty) and Razor vs. Dean at In Your House getting an N (no brainer).

Tatanka/Kama vs. Savio Vega/Bob Holly

Ted DiBiase is here with Tatanka and Kama. Vega cleans house to start before it’s off to Holly, who works on Kama’s ribs before it’s quickly off to Savio. The kick misses Tatanka but he distracts Holly so Kama can jump Vega. A double slam plants Vega as the referee takes FOREVER to get Holly out. Kama plants him down again and shoves Holly, who still doesn’t get how stupid it is to try to come in.

Vega is mostly destroyed in the corner but finally manages a shot of his own for a needed breather. Holly comes in and now is quite a bit more lethargic (he really isn’t that bright in this match), though a high crossbody does get two on Kama. Everything breaks down and Kama powerslams Holly out of the air (with a nasty landing) for the pin at 5:46.

Rating: C. This was an energetic match but Holly was hardly helping his partner most of the time. They were trying throughout though and that is always nice to see, especially in a nothing match like this one. Kama and Tatanka were pretty much just thrown together, but they did well enough all things considered.

Razor Ramon is ready to hurt Dean Douglas.

Wrestlemania: The Special is coming on September 30, featuring the two main events. That was a big deal.

Jean Pierre LaFitte vs. Brian Walsh

Jean shrugs off an early assault and stomps away as Bret Hart calls in to say he doesn’t like LaFitte stealing his gear over and over. Some shots to the face and chest have Walsh in more trouble as the slow beating continues. The Cannonball (Swanton) finishes Walsh at 3:17.

Rating: C-. Total and complete dominance here and that is how it should be. LaFitte wasn’t going to go anywhere because he’s a pirate of all things in 1995 but putting him in there with Bret is going to make it feel important. That’s the power of someone like Bret and the WWF knew just how big of a deal he really was.

Tag Team Titles: Men On A Mission vs. Owen Hart/Yokozuna

Owen and Yokozuna (with Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji) are defending and Mabel is carried to the ring, with the people carrying him cringing under the weight. Owen kicks away at Mo to start but charges into a powerslam so Mo can stomp away. Mabel comes in and nothing words for Owen, who is knocked out of the corner with ease.

Mo gets in a few more stomps but Owen gets away to bring in Yokozuna. As Owen sends Mo into the steps, the giants stare each other down but stop so Yokozuna can unload in the corner. We take a break and come back with Owen and Mo trying spinwheel kicks at the same time for a double knockdown.

The double tag brings in the giants, with Mabel winning a slugout and hitting a jumping (work with me) clothesline. Mabel throws Owen at Yokozuna and it’s Mo coming back in to slug away. Yokozuna clotheslines Mo down like he’s Yokozuna clotheslining Mo and hands it back to Owen. A cheap shot lets Mo get two of his own as everything breaks down. Owen drop toeholds Mo down and the Yokozuna legdrop is enough to retain the titles at 12:45.

Rating: C. I never would have bet on it but this was pretty decent. If nothing else, Yokozuna could still move well enough here and Mabel was slightly motivated, even after his main event run was dead. Owen was his usual self, so this was about as good as it could have been all things considered.

Diesel and Shawn Michaels are ready to win the Tag Team Titles.

Post break, Owen Hart/Yokozuna and company are still in the ring, with Jim Cornette promising to bring some more gold back at In Your House. They’ll make the Two Dudes With Attitude into the Two Fellas That Are Yellow. Cornette runs over the rules of the match (as you should) and promises that his men are ready to show how great they are. What happened the last time Shawn and Diesel were partners? They got in a fight, and how much worse will it be when they have titles to protect? Cornette: “In Your House, in your face and around their waists!” Great line to wrap this up as Cornette sold the match really well.

Jerry Lawler’s official prediction: Yokozuna wins the WWF Title.

A quick preview of Undertaker vs. British Bulldog for next week wraps us up.

Overall Rating: C+. They did what they could with what is basically a one match In Your House (Bret vs. LaFitte is a maybe at best) and that included a heck of a push for the Triple Header. Other than that though, there isn’t much going on for the show and it could be quite the mess to get through. At least it wasn’t a long build, which probably explains why is isn’t much of a show. They did what they could with what they had here, which is about as good as you can get.

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Monday Night Raw
Date: October 2, 1995
Location: Grand Center, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Attendance: 1,500
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler

I’m back to Raw as the WWF is on the way towards In Your House: Great White North. In this case, that means WWF Champion Diesel will be defending against the British Bulldog, which is as In Your House of a main event as you can get. Other than that, we are in that weird period between Summerslam and Survivor Series so this isn’t the hottest stretch. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Yokozuna accidentally splashing Owen Hart last week, allowing the Smoking Gunns to take the Tag Team Titles from them.

Here’s a quick clip of Lawrence Taylor beating Bam Bam Bigelow on the Wrestlemania Special from over the weekend, as we look at a match from about six months ago.

Razor Ramon vs. 1-2-3 Kid

This is billed as the last match between the two and that isn’t the most out there of possibilities. Two weeks ago, Dean Douglas helped 1-2-3 Kid beat Razor (which Kid didn’t see) so tonight it’s a fair fight. Razor sends him outside to start but Kid is right back in with the rapid fire kicks in the corner. The fall away slam gives Razor two, only to have Kid come back with another kick for two of his own.

Cue Douglas to watch in the aisle as Razor punches Kid down but he leaves as Kid makes the comeback. Razor hits one heck of a clothesline for the pin and yes it’s as out of nowhere as it sounds. Hold on though as Kid slaps Razor in the face and I guess we’re just going to keep going. Razor chops him in the corner and grabs the abdominal stretch. A charge in the corner hits Kid’s raised boot though and we take a break.

Back with apparently a third fall, as Razor powerbombed him for the pin during the break, only to have Kid want to keep going. The belly to back superplex sets up the Razor’s Edge, but Razor lets him go and grabs a small package to pin Kid, who is already out cold thanks to the superplex.

Rating: C-. This was a weird one as Razor more or less squashed him three times in a row with Kid only managing a few kicks. Commentary kept hyping up the idea of it being about respect, which worked well enough as Kid wouldn’t stay down despite clearly being outclassed. Odds are there is more to this in the future, even with this one sided beating.

Respect is shown post match but Kid grabs a rollup for two, with the referee just going with this. Kid tells him to hit the Razor’s Edge but Razor shakes his hand instead.

We look back at British Bulldog and Yokozuna wrecking Undertaker last week until Shawn Michaels and Diesel made the save.

IS OJ SIMPSON GUILTY??? Call in and vote, with your 50 cents a call going to help prevent child abuse. Eh it’s for charity so fair enough.

Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Barry Horowitz

Horowitz is fresh off beating Skip a few times so it’s pretty much the hottest time of his career. Helmsley takes him down into something like a cross armbreaker, allowing for a kick to the face. A takedown has Helmsley bailing to the ropes as Vince brags about last week’s Raw being the most watched in history. Helmsley’s curtsy sets up a suplex as Lawler talks about the Simpson case.

Back up and Horowitz grabs a sunset flip for two, which just seems to annoy Helmsley. As expected, this leads to a discussion of the Pope coming to the United States, and Vince would love for him to come to the charity show at Madison Square Garden. Horowitz gets an elbow to the face into an abdominal stretch rollup for two (Patterson and Brisco’s back grapple special in No Mercy) but the Pedigree finishes him off out of nowhere.

Rating: C-. This went a bit long but the good thing is that Horowitz felt like he could pull off the upset. That is what you get out of the wins over Skip, as Horowitz goes from a total loser to someone who just won a few weeks ago. At the same time though, Helmsley was still new and undefeated at this point so he wasn’t about to be in any serious jeopardy to anyone, let alone Horowitz.

PG-13 vs. Al Brown/Sonny Rogers

PG-13’s (they’re white rappers from Memphis) USWA Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line but they want the Smoking Gunns’ WWF Tag Team Titles. Rogers works on Ice’s arm to start but it’s a running dropkick/Russian legsweep combination to take him down. Wolfie D knocks Rogers down and dances a lot as Lawler talks about the Simpson case gain. Rogers gets away and brings in Brown to clean house as Vince still can’t remember which one is PG and which one is 13. The illegal Wolfie uses a distraction to hit a middle rope bulldog for two on Brown before an assisted splash finishes for JC Ice.

Rating: C. PG-13 looked decent in there for a team who was far better known for their gimmick than anything they did in the ring. It isn’t like they were ever going to be anything important in the company but the annoying rapping deal will always work to some degree. If they can have an ok squash at the same time, that’s even better.

CALL THE SIMPSON HOTLINE!

Bret Hart vs. Jean-Pierre LaFitte

Rematch from Bret’s victory at the most recent In Your House. LaFitte pounds him into the corner to start and a hard clothesline drops Bret again. A missed charge in the corner sends LaFitte crashing out to the floor, where Vince sends him into the steps. This lets Vince call the match a “demolition derby” for about the fifth time in less than three minutes.

Back in and Bret gets dropped throat first onto the ropes, setting up the chinlock. A heck of a clothesline keeps Bret in trouble and a top rope headbutt gets two. LaFitte’s Stinger Splash sets off the LET’S GO BRET chants but another clothesline cuts off another comeback (that’s working for LaFitte).

We take a break and come back with LaFitte missing the Cannonball but running Bret over for two more anyway. They head outside again with Bret being whipped hard into the steps, sending Lawler into euphoria on commentary (Lawler’s hatred of Bret was always funny). Back in and Bret is fine enough to start the comeback, with the Russian legsweep getting two. LaFitte grabs a Regal Roll but the Cannonball is cut off again. Bret superplexes him down and puts on the Sharpshooter for the win.

Rating: B-. The match got some time and while it wasn’t quite as good as their In Your House match, there is still something to be said about any Bret match going almost fifteen minutes. Not exactly a hidden gem, but Bret being able to get something out of a pirate in 1995 is pretty impressive. Good enough here, but Bret needs to move on to something more important.

Post match Lawler yells at Bret, who goes after him until Isaac Yankem jumps Bret from behind.

Post break Vince announces a cage match between Hart and Yankem at some point in the coming weeks.

Camp Cornette is ready for Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and Diesel next week.

Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and Diesel are ready for Camp Cornette next week.

The fans say OJ Simpson is not guilty by a margin of 51-49.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t the best show but the main event and setup for the cage match worked well enough. Bret going from fighting a pirate to fighting a king to fighting a dentist is about as 1995 as you can get but at least we didn’t have to deal with King Mabel. The rest of the show wasn’t much to see, though Razor vs. Kid was certainly something different.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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IMG Credit: WWE

In Your House 3: Triple Header
Date: September 24, 1995
Location: Saginaw Civic Center, Saginaw, Michigan
Attendance: 5,146
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler, Jim Ross

The title of this show refers to the main event, which is only one match. It’s Michaels/Diesel vs. Yokozuna/Owen Hart will all titles on the line. In other words if Diesel and Shawn win then they’re the tag champions but if Owen or Yokozuna beat Shawn or Diesel, the person with the pin gets the respective singles title. In other words, practically everything is on the line in one match so it better deliver. Let’s get to it.

The opening video talks about the Triple Header match and refers to Owen and Yokozuna as perhaps the greatest tag team in company history. To say that’s a stretch is the understatement of the year. Also keep in mind that Shawn and Diesel are former tag team champions.

The theme song talks about going home and being In Your House. Well you can’t say they’re being subtle at least.

Jim Ross’ prediction for the main event is Yokozuna winning the Intercontinental Title.

Savio Vega vs. Waylon Mercy

Waylon Mercy is……interesting. He’s based on Max Cady from the movie Cape Fear, but if you’ve never seen that, basically he’s a 6’7 man (probably more famous as Dan Spivey) who dresses like a very laid back southern gentleman but turns into a psycho when the bell rings. After the match is over, he’s right back to being the kindest man you’ll ever meet. The character had some staying power to him but a bunch of injuries forced him to retire just a few months after debuting the character.

Mercy offers a handshake to start so Savio dances a bit. Vega avoids a charge in the corner and cranks on the arm to start. Mercy is taken to the mat by the arm but comes back with a clothesline. We head to the floor with Mercy firing off chops and slamming Savio down before choking away back inside. A hot shot gets two for Mercy and he sends Savio into the corner but we cut over to Doc Hendrix in the back, saying that tag team champion Owen Hart hasn’t arrived yet.

Savio comes back with a hiptoss and some forearms but gets caught in Waylon’s sleeper. Vega is in big trouble but manages to send Waylon face first into the buckle to escape. A belly to back suplex puts Mercy down before Vega takes over with some right hands. Vega kicks Mercy in the face and bulldogs him down for two. A side roll gets another near fall but Mercy comes back with a brainbuster for two of his own. Savio gets a quick German suplex for two before hitting a spinwheel kick for the upset pin.

Rating: D+. The match wasn’t too horrible but what in the world was the point of having Mercy lose here? Mercy was about to start feuding with the WWF Champion but you have him lose to Savio Vega in the opener of a pay per view here? My guess is that Mercy was about to leave due to the injuries so get the value you can out of him beforehand.

Cornette, Fuji, Yokozuna and British Bulldog are panicking in the back because WWF President Gorilla Monsoon is saying the tag titles might have to be forfeited. Gorilla says the title match is happening tonight.

Sycho Sid vs. Henry Godwinn

Henry turned down an official spot on the Million Dollar Team and got beaten down, turning him face as a result. Godwinn even slopped DiBiase for good measure, but got powerbombed on the floor. Henry pounds away to start and slams Sid face first into the mat as JR drops the term slobberknocker, blowing Vince’s mind. Sid gets suplexed back in from the apron but Henry hurts his back in the process. He can’t pick Sid up for a slam and the Sycho takes over.

They head to the floor with Sid jumping off the apron with an ax handle to Henry’s bad back. Back in and some kicks in the corner have Henry in even more trouble and we hit the camel clutch. Sid jumps down onto the back to slow Henry down again before ripping at his face. There’s another camel clutch but Sid isn’t even pulling back, making this look ridiculous. Back up and Sid misses a charge into the corner and Henry starts pounding away. A boot to the chest sets up the Slop Drop (reverse DDT) for two but DiBiase makes the save. Dibiase trips Henry again and Sid powerbombs him for the pin.

Rating: D. Nothing to see here again but the fans were at least getting behind Henry a bit here. Sid was just worthless in the ring as he couldn’t even perform a rest hold properly. Then again when you’re that size you can do almost anything you want and the fans are going to buy it. Still though, not a good match here as the bad start to the show continues.

Post match Kama Mustafa comes out to help Sid and DiBiase try to slop Henry but Bam Bam Bigelow makes the save and pours the slop on DiBiase again.

Monsoon says that Cornette can find a substitute for Owen Hart and he’ll have a chance at the Intercontinental or World Title in the main event just like Owen would have. The tag titles would still be on the line.

British Bulldog vs. Bam Bam Bigelow

Bulldog has a match on Raw tomorrow night against Undertaker so the announcers spend most of the match ignoring Bigelow to talk about tomorrow’s match. Bigelow runs over Smith to start and then does it again for good measure. Bulldog bails to the floor and we go to a split screen to see Cornette recruiting Sid for the main event. Back in and Bigelow misses an elbow drop before being put in a quick chinlock.

Bigelow fights up but misses a headbutt, allowing Bulldog to hit a nice suplex. Bam Bam comes back with some clotheslines, only to miss a charge and fall out to the floor. Davey can’t suplex Bigelow back inside so Bigelow lifts him up for a crotching on the top rope. Smith goes after the knee and Bigelow is down again, giving Davey a nice target. Bulldog kicks away at the knee as the announcers speculate over who could be Yokozuna’s partner.

We get a leg lock on the mat as the fans try to get Bigelow back in this. Back up and Bigelow is sent into the buckle but comes back with an enziguri. He can’t follow up though due to the knee and Smith goes right back to the leg. We hit the half crab for a bit before a knee to the ribs gets two for the Bulldog. Off to the chinlock for a bit before Smith fails at a slam attempt, giving Bigelow a two count. Bigelow sits down to block a sunset flip attempt but the moonsault misses. Smith avoids a charge in the corner and hits a quick powerslam (standing instead of running) for the pin.

Rating: D+. Still nothing good here but it was WAY better than the previous match. Smith wasn’t much by this point but he was fine for beating up guys on a lower level than he was. Bigelow was pretty worthless here and would be gone in just a few months, which is probably the best result for everyone.

Here’s Bob Backlund who is thinking about running for President of the United States. He insults the fans for having a poor lexicon before talking about little victories in life, such as learning to read and write. Backlund introduces Dean Douglas for his match while praising him using words most fans don’t understand.

Dean Douglas vs. Razor Ramon

This is a result of Dean insulting Razor for losing the Intercontinental Title match at Summerslam and Ramon has bad ribs coming in. Razor goes right for him to start and clotheslines Douglas out to the floor. Back in and they take each other to the mat a few times with no one being able to get an advantage. Dean fires off some right hands but gets hiptossed over the top and out to the floor. We cut to the split screen again with Mabel looking at Yokozuna and Cornette looking thrilled. Nothing is official though.

Back in again and Douglas cranks on the arm, only to have Razor counter into a top wristlock. Dean flips out of a hammerlock but gets caught in the fallaway slam for two. Razor snaps Dean’s arm over the top rope before putting on an armbar. Back up and Dean’s sunset flip out of the corner gets two before Ramon clotheslines him down for the same. It’s a back and forth match so far and we hit the armbar again. Dean gets back up and avoids a charge to send Razor out to the floor.

Razor gets slammed on the floor and they barely break the ten count. A knee to the back sends Razor into the steps before Dean rams him back first into the post. Back in again and a top rope ax handle gets two for Douglas. Dean’s major flaw is really showing here: he’s a pretty generic in ring worker and doesn’t do anything particularly better than anyone else. He’s much better on the mic but it doesn’t help him in the ring.

Dean stays on Razor’s back before cranking on the arms for a bit. Some right hands to Razor’s bad ribs keep him in trouble and a gutbuster gets two. Off to a reverse chinlock but Razor eventually gets to his feet with Dean on his shoulders for an electric chair drop. Ramon pounds away and rolls through Dean’s middle rope cross body for two. Dean sends Razor into the referee to knock both guys down but Ramon comes back with a quick Razor’s Edge. No referee though and here’s the soon to be heel 1-2-3 Kid to count the pin behind Razor’s back. Ramon thinks he’s won and Dean rolls him up for a quick pin.

Rating: C-. The ending was more clever than a lot of others I’ve seen but it still wasn’t anything special. As I said, Douglas was a much better character than wrestler which makes these fifteen minute matches fairly dull to sit through. Razor continues to be at about the same level he’s been at for years while never really moving further up the card at all. He’s still very popular though so it’s not the worst thing in the world.

Shawn Michaels and Diesel talk about what it’s like with being in love with a girl when you’re younger but having it pulled away from you. That’s how they feel with Owen backing out tonight.

Jean Pierre LaFitte vs. Bret Hart

LaFitte is a 275lb pirate, more famous as one half of the Quebecers tag team, who has been stealing the sunglasses that Bret gives to fans and then stole Bret’s trademark leather jacket. Seriously that’s the whole story. Bret dives through the ropes to take out LaFitte to start and the brawl is on in a hurry. Jean comes back with right hands and takes it into the ring, sending Bret into the corner over and over. Hart avoids a charge and takes the pirate down by the arm.

Bret hooks the armbar but gets clotheslined down, sending Lawler into fits of glee. LaFitte stomps away as this is still in first or second gear. Bret gets pounded down in the corner before missing a charge into the post to damage his own shoulder. We get the required Bret chest first into the buckle bump as things speed up a little bit. Bret manages to backdrop Jean over the top to the floor but gets sent into the steps for his troubles.

Back in and Bret’s comeback is stopped via a spinebuster for two and we hit the chinlock. Bret fights up for about the fifth time and gets two off a sunset flip, only to be caught in a side slam. Jean gets two off a guillotine legdrop before loading up his Cannonball (Swanton) finisher. Hart rolls away at the last second and both guys are down as the fans are getting into this. The Sharpshooter is countered with Bret being kicked through the ropes, only to avoid a dive over the top from LaFitte.

Bret sends Jean into the steps before whipping him chest first into the buckle in a nice callback from earlier. A Russian legsweep gets two on Jean but he gets the boot up to block Bret’s middle rope elbow. Bret’s crucifix is countered into a rolling fireman’s carry senton but Hart gets a quick two off a rollup.

A bulldog is countered with Bret being sent chest first into the buckle again as Lawler is losing his mind on these kickouts. Jean’s top rope splash misses and a double clothesline puts both guys down. With both guys on the mat we get one of Bret’s favorites as he puts on the Sharpshooter from his back and turns it over for the submission.

Rating: B. This started slow but got much better by the middle. Bret continues to be able to have good matches with anyone he’s put in there with, which explains why he had such odd choices of opponents around this time. LaFitte was pretty much done after this match but it was a dead end character anyway.

Bret gets his jacket back post match.

British Bulldog will be Owen Hart’s partner. Gorilla approves this move, saying that Bulldog can win or lose the tag titles as well as win either singles title.

Tag Titles/WWF World Title/Intercontinental Title: Yokozuna/British Bulldog vs. Shawn Michaels/Diesel

All titles are on the line here with the person getting the fall winning the belt of whomever they pin. Smith and Shawn get things going by trading some weak hammerlocks. A backdrop puts Smith down and a clothesline sends him to the floor with Shawn skinning the cat to get back in. Yokozuna comes in sans tag but Diesel punches him out to the floor, leaving the good guys to rule the ring.

Yokozuna comes in legally now and Shawn gets down in a sumo stance in a funny bit. Shawn of course moves from a charging Yokozuna but runs into a back elbow to put him down. A big fat elbow misses and there’s the tag off to the world champion Diesel. Yokozuna gets dropped by a running clothesline but Bulldog gets in a cheap shot to slow Diesel down. Smith actually gets Diesel up for his trademark delayed vertical suplex for a two count but Diesel is right back up.

Bulldog can’t hit the powerslam and Diesel comes back with a corner clothesline to drop Smith. Back to Shawn who climbs onto Diesel’s shoulders for a huge splash, getting two. Smith pops back up and gorilla presses Shawn before crotching him on the top rope to send him to the floor. They head inside again for a BIG backdrop for two on Shawn and we hit the chinlock.

Shawn scores with a cross body but gets slammed down again, drawing in Diesel and allowing Yokozuna to come in for a nerve hold. Jim Ross (JR) asks a good question: why would Bulldog tag out? If Yokozuna gets the fall then Bulldog comes out with nothing. Shawn avoids the Banzai Drop and there’s the hot tag to Diesel.

The big man runs over the Bulldog and puts him down with the side slam. Everything breaks down with Smith being sent into Yokozuna with the fat man falling down onto him. Yokozuna breaks up a Jackknife attempt but Shawn superkicks him to the floor. Shawn breaks up a pin attempt by Davey but here’s Owen Hart who is immediately Jackknifed by Diesel for the pin and the titles. You read that right.

Rating: C+. This was a decent match until the stupid ending. Naturally this didn’t last and was overturned the next night, as it should have been. The fans popped for the finish but it was clear this wasn’t going to last at all. At least Diesel had someone he could work with here as both tag champions could hang in a power match with him. Shawn was his usual good self.

Jim Ross points out how ridiculous this is to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. This makes three straight bad shows to start this series. I promise things will get better but it’s going to take a little while to get there. This wasn’t anything special and only a few decent matches aren’t enough to make it worthwhile. Diesel just wasn’t working as champion as he didn’t have enough to carry the entire company. Shawn was popular but he was still several months away from a world title push. Things will get better though, I assure you.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: June 5, 1995
Location: Struthers High School, Struthers, Ohio
Attendance: 1,450
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler

So considering I can knock out a month of these old Raw’s in less than a day but I can’t stand the thought of watching these shows in a row (and because that’s boring), I figured I’d pick a random month from 1993-1996 and knock it out straight through. It makes as much sense as anything else and I could take care of four years of Raw in a few months. We’re coming up on the disaster that was the 1995 King of the Ring and will probably be seeing some qualifying matches. Let’s get to it.

One more note: before this taping, Chris Benoit had a tryout match but obviously wasn’t hired.

We open with a shot of the WWF Blimp, as flown by Kerwin Selfies. Now there’s a name you’ll almost never hear on WWE TV.

Bob Backlund is campaigning for President of the United States outside the arena. His campaign strategy: calling all of the voters lazy.

Opening sequence.

Savio Vega vs. Kenny Kendall

Savio is billed as a Caribbean Legend and pounds away at Kendall just as you would expect him to. Lawler makes fun of Savio having his name cut into the back of his hair as they botch what looked to be a side slam. Back up and a shot to the face sets up a cross between an abdominal stretch and the Black Widow to make Kendall tap.

Video on Diesel talking about him being the leader of the New Generation.

Ted DiBiase, Sid and Tatanka think they’re ready to take out Razor Ramon’s knee again.

The Bodydonnas (Skip and Sunny) are running some steps. This really is bad.

King of the Ring shirt ad.

Skip vs. Barry Horowitz

This is Skip’s debut and yeah this is all about Sunny. An armdrag puts Barry down and it’s time for some jumping jacks, only to have Barry get in a few shots. Skip plants him with a gutwrench suplex and drops a bad looking top rope legdrop for the pin. Not a good debut but Sunny was clearly a star.

King of the Ring control center with the brackets being revealed (save for the last match), possibly for the first time. Of note here: Todd Pettengill refers to the Roadie as the Road Dogg. Todd goes over a few possible second round matches and it’s no shock that this show bombed.

King of the Ring Qualifying Match: Owen Hart vs. British Bulldog

This is actually a dark match from In Your House and we have Gorilla Monsoon and Jim Ross on commentary. DANG that Raw crowd got ripped off. Bulldog works on a wristlock as Owen’s manager Jim Cornette yells as only he can. There’s the delayed gorilla press to send Owen flying and it’s back to the armbar.

Things get even worse for Owen as he misses a charge and goes bad shoulder first into the post. The very delayed vertical suplex sets up a chinlock on Owen as this has been one sided so far. Back up and Owen finally gets in a knee to the ribs and sends him outside as we go to a break. We come back with Owen hitting the spinwheel kick to the head, freaking Monsoon out even more than usual. Off to a sleeper as the announcers talk about the time limit, meaning we’re likely looking at a draw.

Three minutes left as Owen is catapulted head first into the turnbuckle. Davey slaps on a surfboard and yeah they’re definitely killing time here. The running powerslam hits but Owen gets his boot on the ropes for a surprise escape. Even Cornette looked defeated there. Davey gets two more off a fast crucifix and they trade near falls to get us to the time limit.

Rating: C+. I’m rarely a fan of a match where they’re clearly trying to waste time until the time limit runs out. At least you had guys in there with some chemistry and Bulldog had some good power displays so thinks weren’t a total loss. Both guys were good midcard acts here and they could wrestle a solid match like this so for once it’s nice to get a nice change of pace.

Jerry Lawler has stopped washing his feet to get ready for the Kiss My Foot match against Bret at King of the Ring.

Here’s Bret for a chat with Vince. Bret can’t believe he’s actually in a Kiss My Foot match and we go split screen to show Lawler putting his foot on the announcers’ table. Lawler makes jokes as Bret talks about losing a match against Lawler a few weeks back and having to explain it to his parents. Therefore, the rematch is dedicated to his family and fans and he promises to make Lawler kiss his own feet after winning.

Jean Pierre LaFitte vs. Jerry Flynn

Flynn is best known as the mulleted martial artist in WCW. LaFitte is of course a pirate. Jerry’s rapid fire kicks have no effect and Jean gets in a hard running knee to the chest. A flip dive over the top takes Flynn out again and the Cannonball (basically a Swanton) puts Jerry away with ease. Total squash.

It’s night outside and Backlund campaigns to an empty parking lot.

The announcers talk about Lex Luger vs. Yokozuna in a King of the Ring qualifying match (to replace Owen vs. Bulldog) next week and Lawler promises a training video. One of those is more entertaining than the other.

Backlund promises to be back next week too because Man Mountain Rock is going to be around.

A video on Luger vs. Yokozuna wraps things up. That Bodyslam Challenge is still great stuff.

Overall Rating: D+. Not great here but the Owen vs. Bulldog match was solid. Then again, were you really expecting anything else from them when they had some time? That being said, this is a REALLY bad time for the company and it’s easy to see how Nitro was able to gain so much traction so fast. Not a horrible show and again the fact that they’re in and out in 45 minutes helps a lot.

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

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And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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