Sage Cortez
After a short break, it’s time for another review! This time I’ll be watching Super Towns on the SuperStation. As with last year’s February special, it’s a lineup of what Crockett feels to be the best matches they can put on television. However, this time it’s done with clips taken from arenas around the country. Hence the name of the show. Considering it is that kind of show, I have no expectations heading into it. Let’s go!
It is stated right at the beginning of the show that Magnum TA is returning. Hm. This is being aired on February 7th, 1987, by the way. Then, Tony Schiavone hypes all the places these matches are taking place from. It’s truly national!
– January 10th, 1987, from the Civic Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Arn Anderson vs. Barry Windham (US Tag Team Champion)
Pre-Match Thoughts: This match sounds very interesting. There’s a scaffold above the ring, so I can only assume that the Skywalkers match was being run around the horn. Imagine taking that bump every night.
Match Review: Arn attacks Windham to start the match, but Windham gives him two dropkicks to clear the ring. That was quick. Back inside, and Windham latches onto Arn’s arm. Arn reverses, only to be given a back suplex. They then continue to fight over each other’s arms, with Windham putting Arn in an armbar. Arn gets out and misses a charge to the corner, then back to the arm we go. I nearly put down “back to the arn we go.” Easy mistake to make here! And now, we head to a commercial with Windham having Arn in a hammerlock.
Back from that commercial, Arn has Windham in a chinlock. Windham picks him up, and drives him into the corner, then slams him. Up top he goes, and he comes down with an elbow drop that misses. Poor Barry. Arn covers him for a 2 count, and I’ve gotta say, this match doesn’t have any heat. How sad. Arn cheats while having Windham’s arm locked up, grabbing the ropes. EVIL TACTICS. Arn elbows Windham to knock him out of the ring, then throws him into the guardrail. Arn suplexes Windham back into the ring, and follows that with the SPINEBUSTER. Over to cover, and only gets a 2 count. Windham reverses a suplex into one of his own now, and gives Arn a back elbow as well for a 2 count. Windham puts a sleeper on his opponent, but Arn ducks down and knocks Windham to the outside. Windham comes back in with a sunset flip, and it gets 3 at 15:05. After the match, Arn attacks Windham and gives him a gourdbuster.
My Thoughts: I didn’t like that finish. It was much too far out of nowhere, but again, it serves the purpose of getting Windham over strong. The fans weren’t into the match though, and it could have used some editing. Generally not a fan of canned reactions, but maybe one was needed here. ** for very pedestrian wrestling.
– January 24th, 1987, from the Armory in Washington, DC
Jimmy Garvin (w/Precious) vs. Brad Armstrong
Pre-Match Thoughts: I suppose this is a continuation of their Starrcade feud. Nothing wrong with that! Garvin’s entrance is still funny to me.
Match Review: Precious taunts Armstrong before the match, but it’s irrelevant as we’re underway. They lock up, and do one of those “both guys are too good to get outwrestled” bits. This one wasn’t so great. Garvin takes Armstrong down with a leg trip and locks his leg up for a short while, then Armstrong reverses it into a toe-hold of his own. And we go to a break.
We come back from that commercial with Garvin having Armstrong in a head-scissors. Schiavone tells a good anecdote about Garvin wanting no smoking in arenas during his matches because it gets in his hair. That’ll date a match, this being as old as when smoking was allowed in some arenas. Armstrong reverses to a hammerlock now, Garvin breaks it, and rams him into the turnbuckle. He drops Armstrong throat-first on the top rope, and puts a chinlock on him. Armstrong breaks it, and tries a comeback, but gets stopped by a Garvin knee to the gut. Garvin throws Armstrong to the outside now, getting a rest. With this low amount of work, who the hell needs a rest? Back inside, Garvin misses a charge to the corner, and gets hung up along the top rope. Armstrong puts the boots to him, and gives him a hip-toss as well. Follows that up with a dropkick, and beats him up in the corner. Armstrong charges into the corner after that, and Garvin throws him over the top rope to get disqualified at 8:19.
My Thoughts: This was extremely boring, and I’m quite surprised that it made television. I don’t even know what to say about that match. I didn’t care, and it was the opposite of an athletic showcase. DUD.
After that boring affair, a Rock ‘n’ Roll Express concert is shown. Yes, Morton sings. First thought was that it’s very bad. Second thought is that the ‘Piledriver’ album is quite a ripoff of this. That being said, a much better one. It was nice to get to watch this after the first two matches as it made for a nice break period where I didn’t have to pay a lot of attention.
– January 30th, 1987, from the St. Louis Arena, in St. Louis, Missouri
Brad & Bart Batten vs. The MOD SQUAD for the Central States Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I don’t know what the fuck I’m supposed to do with this. I can’t tell these two challengers apart at ALL. And it’s from a different territory that I know nothing about. I’m stuck shrugging my shoulders here. It’s even worse because Schiavone and Crockett won’t tell you their names. The Battens look like pencil pushers who work out a lot. You know the weird uncle from Napoleon Dynamite? THAT GUY.
Match Review: So, I guess Bart Batten rolls up Spike for a 2 count. According to the commentary team, the winner of this will get an invitation to the Crockett Cup. Bart puts a headlock on Spike, who tags his partner Basher, and they get taken down by Bart, who gives them a headlock and head-scissor combo. Brad runs in and they give the Mod Squad a double dropkick, then things normalize. Basher comes in after the ring is cleared, and gets a wristlock placed on him. The Battens give him a double dropkick for 2, and one of them gives Basher an arm drag as well. I CANNOT tell these guys apart unless their name is stated, and it’s not like I have a blurry copy of the show. I just can’t. After a cross body and arm drag, I’m in the same predicament. I feel disgusted with myself for watching this. Honestly. The Battens make a tag, follow it up with a double team flying back elbow, and we go to a commercial. Thankfully.
Spike is in with one of them after the commercial, and drives his face HARD into the mat. I guess this is Bart. Basher tags in now, and gets his face rammed into the buckle. Spike tags in, and gives Bart a clothesline for a 1 count. Basher tags in, draws Brad into the ring, and the Mod Squad gives him a double stomach breaker. Cool move. Spike puts a chinlock on him now, but Bart comes out of it quickly and gives him an extremely fake looking backslide counter to a backdrop. Come on guys. Bart gives him a sunset flip for 2, Spike comes back with a bodyslam for 2, and Bart responds with a small package for 2. That was nowhere near as quickly timed as I made it sound. Both guys run into each other with a clothesline, and the tag is finally made to Brad. Brad flies in with a couple of dropkicks, showing more ability than his brother in my opinion. They run the Mod Squad into each other, and try a rolling cradle for the slowest of 2 counts. Spike takes a tumble to the outside now, and Brad tries to suplex Basher back into the ring. Spike grabs Brad’s leg, Basher falls on top of him, and gets the pinfall victory for his team at around 12 minutes.
My Thoughts: This match was perfectly fine, but at the same time it was infuriating. Twin tag teams are not my favorite thing in the world, let’s put it that way. *3/4, and I’m never going to watch this again.
After all that, Paul Jones has an interview on the behalf of his NWA Tag Team Champions, Rick Rude & Manny Fernandez! It’s quite alright. They’re ready for any challenge.
– January 16th, 1987, from the Sportatorium in Hollywood, Florida
Ivan Koloff & Vladimir Pietrov vs. The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express
Pre-Match Thoughts: First time seeing Pietrov. Also, the location of this match is very indicative of one thing. That Florida, amongst other territories, are merely becoming an extension of Jim Crockett Promotions. Everyone knows that’s what happened in the first place. Gibson and Morton are beginning to look a little weathered at this point. Bad for them. Pietrov is enormous and not experienced, so they’ll have to lead him around. No expectations as far as that goes.
Match Review: They do some ridiculous looking strength segments with Pietrov, getting over his POWER. During a test of strength, Morton runs in to help Gibson, punching Pietrov in the gut. Pietrov puts Gibson in a bear hug now, and tags in Ivan, who rakes away at Gibson’s face. Gibson gives him a backdrop though, and follows with a dropkick. In comes Morton, and he gives Ivan a bodyslam. Then the Express exchanges tags, and Morton puts a chinlock on the former WWWF Champion. Ivan then misses a charge to the corner, and Morton comes off the second rope with a clothesline for a 2 count. Gibson tags in now, and rolls Ivan up for 2. He puts a front face-lock on his Russian foe, but Pietrov makes a blind tag, and begins to beat up Gibson. He gives him an awful looking backbreaker, and follows with an elbow. Ivan tags back in, and they give Gibson a sloppy double back elbow. Ivan gives Gibson a much better looking backbreaker for 2, and puts a bear hug on him. With the referee distracted, the Russians double team Gibson, and Pietrov gives him a suplex. I would NOT want that guy giving me a move like that one. He puts a bear hug on Gibson again, and with the referee distracted again, Ivan chokes Gibson with their steel chain. Ivan drops a leg now, and it gets another 2 count. Ivan then tries to run over Gibson, but gets crotched on the second rope, and Morton tags in.
He’s a house of fire, and gives Ivan a backdrop. He gives him a cross body for 2, and now Gibson goes to fight with Pietrov. Morton puts a sleeper on Ivan, Pietrov grabs the chain, and hits Morton with it. So of course, the Russians are disqualified at 8:57. After the match, they continue to beat up Morton, until Gibson steals the chain and clears the ring.
My Thoughts: This was yet another subpar match. I can’t imagine that Dusty was too happy with how this TV special turned out. 1/2* would be a fair rating for the match. Pietrov doesn’t belong in the ring, and it seemed like the guys were just playing it out for the finish.
Hey, a Crockett Cup plug! Exactly what we needed.
– January 29th, 1987, from the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California
Dusty Rhodes vs. Tully Blanchard (w/JJ Dillon) for the NWA Television Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: It’s easy to see why JCP fell apart when they went cross country once a month. I mean, that’s just crazy. This should be decent at the very least, but with Dusty these days, I’m not sure of that. I really need to watch a decent match somewhere in here. Apparently, JJ Dillon has put up a 10,000 dollar purse.
Match Review: Tully stalls for time right from the very beginning, but Dusty lands an elbow on him. I HATE Dusty’s elbow shtick. I mean, seriously now. It’s lame. They exchange blows now, with Dusty getting the better of it and knocking Tully down. Tully takes a break on the outside, but when he gets back in the ring, Dusty puts him in a headlock as we go to commercial.
We come back with JJ pulling Tully out of the ring. That subsequently leads to Dusty pulling them both into the ring, and they get hit with a bunch of elbows. Lame. JJ leaves the ring, but Tully is still cowering away from the challenger. Tully pulls him into the turnbuckle to put an end to that, and he goes to work. With the referee distracted, JJ chokes Dusty, and then Tully slams Dusty. Up to the second rope he goes, and down with an elbow drop. It gets 2. Dusty misses an elbow drop of his own, and he misses a charge to the corner as well. However, he catches Tully as the champion leaps off the second rope, and gives him a hip toss. Unfortunately, Tully takes a bump into Tommy Young. Dusty gives Tully a slingshot suplex, so now he’s stealing guys finishers. What a dick. Arn Anderson runs in to attack Dusty from behind, and wakes up Tommy Young as well. Barry Windham comes down to the ring to do something about Arn, and prevents the cover from being counted. He knocks Arn out of the ring, and starts fighting with Tully. Tommy Young rings the bell, and I guess we have a disqualification after like 9 minutes.
Dusty wins the match, but Arn and Tully beat him up with a shoe until Dusty starts bleeding. Ha! Windham comes into the ring to make the very necessary save, and I suppose that’s it. The poor crowd didn’t even get to see their guy get a halfway decent win.
My Thoughts: So, the Horsemen definitely got their heat back. It wasn’t a spectacular match, but it seems as if this show is merely for the purpose of getting people out to the arena, and moving stuff along. It did relatively well at the first of those things. * for a dull match, with Dusty being a guy I can hardly stand to watch anymore.
So, it seems that this is what everyone was waiting for. The Magnum TA interview. He’s happy to not be a complete quadriplegic. He’s also happy that Nikita Koloff turned. He doesn’t say that he’s going to be coming back into the ring or anything like that, though.
– ??????, from Charlotte Coliseum, in Charlotte, North Carolina
Nikita Koloff (US Champion) vs. Ric Flair in a No Disqualification Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: No date on this one! It’s a match we’ve seen before, but I’m hoping for something even better.
Match Review: So, our two combatants lock up, and it is apparent that more people are cheering Nikita these days. They do some chain wrestling bits, and then Flair drives Nikita back into the corner to chop him. Nikita doesn’t sell it, so Flair takes a breather. Flair comes back in and tries a hip toss, but Nikita reverses it into one of his own. Then he slams Flair, and Flair takes another rest. Flair and Tommy Young have a shoving match outside of the ring, then Flair slowly walks back into it. Nikita puts a headlock on him, and gets shot into the ropes to reverse another hip toss. Another bodyslam follows, and Nikita tries an elbow drop, which misses. Flair follows with a piledriver, which is apparently illegal in North Carolina, but it’s no disqualification! Nikita no sold it. Well, damn.
After a commercial, Nikita appeared to have a leg lock on Flair that had just been broken up. He misses another elbow drop, and it turns out that he’s able to suplex Flair into the ring as Flair’s on the apron anyway. A cover gets 2. Flair pulls Nikita outside of the ring now, but Nikita is the one to ram Flair into the post. Excellent. And of course, there’s blood! Inside the ring, Nikita punches him 5 times in the corner, to a great cheer. He shoots Flair over the turnbuckle to the apron now, but Flair tries a sunset flip into the ring. Nikita blocks it and punches the champion in response, then Flair tries a come back, but Nikita isn’t going to deal with that. Nikita tries the SICKLE coming out of the corner, but unfortunately, he gives it to Tommy Young. Flair then tosses Nikita over the top rope, but Nikita comes back in quickly, and lands a SICKLE from the second rope. He goes over to cover, but nobody’s around to make the count. So, Tully Blanchard runs down to the ring, and attacks Nikita. Tommy Young comes back in the ring, but Flair only gets a 2 count. Flair misses an elbow drop, and they do a cross body sequence to knock both men over the top rope. That looked very dangerous. Tully attacks Nikita again, and this time Tommy Young is awake. Check the stipulation though! He counts both men out at around the 15 minute point, and here comes Dusty Rhodes to take care of his buddy. They each land clotheslines on the two heels, and Nikita celebrates with the world title, but he’s not the champion.
My Thoughts: This was nowhere near as good as the Starrcade match, but it was alright. The work was okay, but it felt like a lot of it was cut out during the commercial. I’ll live with that. **3/4 for a decent affair, and the best match on this show so far. It was entertaining, at least! Unfortunately, it seems that over time Nikita was pushed down the card. It seems that there were good reasons for that though.
– January 29th, 1987, from the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California
The Road Warriors (w/Paul Ellering) vs. The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette & Big Bubba) in a SKYWALKERS MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Yeah, one more of these is exactly what we needed. Seriously! Imagine taking a bump off that scaffold every night for a month or so. I wouldn’t do it, but obviously the match drew in some decent houses. This scaffold does not look as tall as the one from Starrcade, thankfully. It may be deceiving though.
Match Review: Eaton doesn’t climb up, until Condrey gets up there that is. Man, I’d pass on this. Eaton won’t even stand up, but Condrey, Hawk, and Animal are. So, after a lot of stalling, Cornette uses the house mic to taunt the Road Warriors. Animal slams Eaton’s face into the scaffold as Hawk fights with Condrey, and who knows when something crazy is gonna happen. The first thing is that Eaton bleeds, I suppose. He quickly throws powder into Animal’s face, and heads over towards Hawk to try double teaming him. Unfortunately, Eaton is the one who gets attacked by Hawk, until Condrey throws powder in Hawk’s face. Animal is hanging on by his upper body, once we notice that, Cornette throws his tennis racket up for Eaton to hit Animal with. Nice addition there. Condrey hits Hawk with it as well, but Animal grabs the racket and goes to town on Eaton. Eaton decides to climb down the scaffold, and he does the monkey bar climb. Animal stomps on his hands repeatedly, until he falls to the canvas. Hawk and Condrey play monkey bars now, and Condrey merely falls straight down to the canvas, it looked like a mistake. So, the Road Warriors win after a couple minutes worth of time.
My Thoughts: What a waste that was. I’m glad nobody got hurt this time, but the finish was clearly botched, and nothing of note happened. I don’t think there’s much of a way to sugarcoat this. It wasn’t good. DUD.
So, to be quite honest, that felt like a complete waste of time. There were a lot of bad matches, and worst of all no good ones. I’m sure people were happy to see good, competitive matches, but I can only come away from this with disappointment. I don’t want to waste words on it, so I’ll just say they could have had a better TV special. Next up, I’ll be reviewing some stuff from the NWA’s February, March, and April months. I want to get it out of the way for all the WrestleMania stuff!
Best: Ric Flair vs. Nikita Koloff. The best, but not too great.
Worst: Road Warriors vs. Midnight Express. The worst of a bad bunch.
Card Rating: 2/10. I’ll never watch this again, and you don’t need to.
