Sage Cortez
Another Survivor Series spectacular! This was not expected to be a big PPV hit, but it’s not like you can cancel the show. Ticket sales were really poor, and the attendance here was about 13,500. That’s a crowd the WWE would be cool with these days, but 1987’s show was in the 20,000 area, and they ran the same building. Didn’t exactly get that kind of support from Ohio this year. This is pretty much entirely built up on the Mega Powers facing the Twin Towers and their team. Perhaps this would be a show better referred to as Jobber Series, because the roster had thinned out to a point where they couldn’t put on this show without having the lowest of the low on the totem pole wrestlers in these matches. As such, this was expected to be a huge PPV flop. I have never seen anything from this card in full, so I set this up for me to be completely unspoiled. I’ve seen the results before, but I can’t remember something like that. The heel promo on the Survivor Series report was great, by the way. Check out the video below!
– November 24th, 1988, from Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio
Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura are our commentators tonight, and we transition straight into the first match!
The Honky Tonk Man, Ron Bass, Greg Valentine, Bad News Brown, & Danny Davis (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. The Ultimate Warrior (WWF Intercontinental Champion), Brutus Beefcake, the Blue Blazer, Jim Brunzell, & Sam Houston in a 10 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: It was great to have the babyface team run out full speed to the ring. Warrior and Beefcake are the captains of their squad. Brunzell looks like a total jobber now, so I suppose I expect him to be the first guy eliminated here. For this one, we have Warrior feuding with Honky, and Bass feuding with Beefcake. Before Survivor Series, HTM nailed Warrior with his guitar. The other members of the teams are thrown in. The heel side has a better cast of characters, and the babyface side has three good workers to carry the match. If we don’t get much Warrior vs. Danny Davis, this could be a solid match.
Match Review: The crowd gets juiced up for Warrior and Beefcake shaking the ropes, and the match will begin with the two former tag team partners facing off, Valentine and Beefcake. Beefcake tries to take the early advantage, but Valentine launches him into the knee of Davis, and Davis makes the tag in. Beefcake puts Davis in a sleeper, and he’s out already at 1:17! That was ridiculously fast. There is no justification for ever presenting Davis as a wrestler again.
Valentine takes the place of his fallen teammate, and nails the Barber with some hard elbows and a headbutt to the groin region. Valentine tries working the leg, as we can now see that there really are a lot of empty seats on camera that haven’t been lit up. Beefcake breaks free and the Blazer tags in, and Blazer does an awesome flying head-scissors. Out he goes, and Brunzell is in to no reaction at all. He puts Valentine in an armbar, but gets slammed. Valentine misses an elbow drop, it gets 1. Brunzell follows that cover with a dropkick, but Bad News tagged in behind his back and nailed him with a clothesline. He gives Brunzell a bodyslam, and follows that with a fist drop to the throat. Brunzell tries to throw him to the buckle, but he misses a charge and Bad News takes him out with the GHETTO BLASTER! Over for the pin, and out Brunzell goes at 5:13.
Beefcake comes in, catches Bad News by surprise, and Houston comes in with a quick tag. Houston runs into Brown’s boot at full speed, and Houston takes some hard bumps off punches to make Bad News look good. A leg drop only gets 2, and he follows that with a clothesline. Valentine tags in, and nails Houston with a running forearm, before tagging back out. Bad News decides to hold Houston in place for Valentine to hit the poor kid, but Valentine accidentally nails Bad News in the face. Bad idea! Bad News is super pissed by that, and pushes his partner. HTM and Bass rush in to break up the fight, and Brown’s done with this shit. So he walks to the locker room and gets counted out at 7:52.
Houston tries to rush in with a quick cradle, and it gets 2 on Valentine. He tries a sunset flip, but the Hammer blocks it and makes his exit. Bass is in for the first time, and he gives Houston a bodyslam for a 2 count. Houston tries to cradle him, and that also gets 2. Bass blocks a charge to the corner, and drills Houston with a clothesline for 2. After ramming Houston’s face into the mat, he covers again and it gets 2. Houston tries a springboard cross body out of nowhere, that gets 2 as Bass maintains control. He gives Houston another clothesline, and an elbow drop for 2. This part of the match is far quicker than expected. Houston should tag out, but Bass picks him up for a huge powerslam. He covers, and that’s Houston eliminated at 10:12.
Warrior comes in right after the cover, and he’s super pissed. He nails Bass with a clothesline, and picks HTM up for a huge choke lift and slam. That was really dangerous. He nails HTM with a flying shoulderblock, and turns his attention to Bass. He bodyslams him, and tags in the Blue Blazer for a rocket launcher. Down he comes, but Bass kicks out at 2. That should not have happened. HTM tags in, and Blazer hits him with a cross body for 2. He tries a monkey flip, and lands it on HTM. After a dropkick, HTM makes his exit. He made Owen look great. Blazer and Valentine botch a leapfrog as Valentine doesn’t duck, and the Blazer gives Valentine a gutwrench suplex to follow up. A knee drop gets 2, and they’re on to the next sequence. Blazer gives him a backdrop, and picks him up for a powerslam. Up top Blazer goes after that, and HTM pushes him down, causing Blazer to land on his knees. That looked like it HURT. Valentine puts his shin guard in place, locks on the figure-four, and that’s Blazer out at 11:22. I cannot believe all that happened over the course of one minute. Unfortunately, Blazer got hurt on the botched leapfrog, so he had to take some time off.
Valentine attacks Beefcake from behind to start the next fall, and Ventura finally points out that these guys are former tag partners. Bass comes in, and gives Beefcake a knee to the gut. After a falling headbutt, he covers for 2. HTM is in again, facing the guy he feuded with all spring. After some of the most generic heel offense imaginable, he tags Valentine back in. It’s 3 on 2 in favor of the heels, who all attack Beefcake behind the referee’s back. HTM sets Beefcake up for the Shake, Rattle, and Roll, but Beefcake backdrops him out of it. Bass heads in, drops Beefcake throat-first on the top rope, and covers again. Of course, that gets a 2 count. HTM tags in and leaps off the top, but Beefcake hits him down low on the way down. He gives HTM an atomic drop, and follows that with a clothesline. Beefcake puts the sleeper on HTM now, and they tumble out to the floor. First outside action all match! Beefcake puts HTM in the sleeper again, and both those guys get counted out after 15:42.
Bass and Valentine nail Warrior with a double clothesline, as it is now 2 vs. 1. Bass nails Warrior with his best punches, but Warrior isn’t going to deal with this shit for very long. Valentine tags back in, nails Warrior with a back elbow, and it’s time for Warrior to make his comeback. Bass switches in, and Warrior nails both guys with a clothesline. He hits Bass with a double axehandle, and before Valentine can break the cover, Warrior covers for the pin at 17:28.
After Bass is deposited from the ring, Valentine tries to nail Warrior with a clothesline. He misses, and gets hit with the same double axehandle Bass got. Warrior goes for a cover, and picks up the win for his team at 17:51! The Ultimate Warrior is the sole survivor! His celebration after the match with him ranting unintelligble things into the camera fit the character so perfectly.
My Thoughts: I was into this far more than most. I’m glad to have seen the full thing rather than the clip special that was on the Coliseum Video version of this show. I was pleased with how almost everything turned out. In these matches, it’s obvious that everyone who loses clean isn’t somebody that has any kind of future in this company. I think the best performer here was Sam Houston. He did a lot to make his opponents look good. Originally Don Muraco was supposed to be in this match in place of Brunzell. Considering that Brunzell did nothing and Muraco would have done something boring, that’s fine with me. This match was engineered to put Warrior over and it worked. He went over very strong and the crowd was crazy for him. He obviously needed a better finisher, but otherwise his short burst of offense managed to light the building on fire. That makes the match a success regardless of whatever I think of it. It was pretty good, though! **3/4. Good start to the card, which was surprising given who was in this match, what it was for, and the status of the wrestlers involved.
Demolition (WWF Tag Team Champions), the Fabulous Rougeau Brothers, the Bolsheviks, the Conquistadors, & the Brain Busters (w/Mr. Fuji, Jimmy Hart, and Bobby Heenan) vs. The Powers of Pain, the Hart Foundation, the Young Stallions, the Rockers, & the British Bulldogs in a 20 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: This was the second, and last of these huge tag team extravaganzas. For whatever reason, Slick was not with the Bolsheviks for this match. My first assumption is that they decided they didn’t want him cornering losers, considering that the Twin Towers are getting a top heel push at this point. I can think of no other reason other than that he may have simply forgot, although I strongly doubt that. It’s obvious by the inclusion of teams like the Stallions and Conquistadors that this had to be the last of these 20 man matches. The Stallions were so far out of their tag team phase and had been doing jobs in singles matches for quite a while. Dynamite and the Rougeau Brothers also have their personal beef going on and I assume the WWF would not want them in the ring together. This format is hell for a reviewer, because this 20 man stuff is as fast paced as a match can possibly get.
Match Review: The buzz in the crowd for this one was obvious. It starts with Davey and one of the Conquistadors, and Davey slams him. Jacques tags in, and Davey press slams him onto Raymond. In comes Zhukov and Michaels, and Michaels gets rammed into the buckle. He backflips out of the corner, gives Zhukov a hip toss, and brings in Marty for their double chop move. Ax makes a tag in, and gives out his usual punishment, before tagging in Arn Anderson. YES! Marty backdrops him, and gives him a dropkick as well. Tully tags in, and they brawl until Marty gives him an atomic drop. Blanchard pinballs back and forth in the babyface corner, and tags out after a dropkick from Marty. Jacques heads in, and he misses a springboard cross body. Dynamite tags in, and headbutts him. HAHA. A snap suplex gets 2 for Dynamite, and Dynamite quickly heads out. Raymond and Powers are in now, and Dynamite tags back in. This is hilarious to me. Gorilla hints about a feud between these guys, and Dynamite sunset flips Raymond after a missed charge, which gets 2. Powers and Zhukov head in, and Boris is given a dropkick. Here comes Smash, and Jacques comes in for a great dropkick. The tags are so fast that sometimes nothing happens between them. Bret heads inside, and Jacques gives him a great flying back elbow for a 2 count. Raymond switches in, and Bret gives him a small package for 3 at 5:37! Great to see some payoff to their ongoing feud.
Volkoff enters the ring to start the next fall, as does Roma for the first time. Roma comes in with an elbow from the top, and he does an amazing looking springboard cross body for 2. He jumped from a stand up to the top rope! Neidhart tags in and gives Volkoff a dropkick, then it’s Smash’s turn. Smash is given a clothesline, and it’s time for BARBARIAN. He’s over as shit, and they brawl for a little bit, only for the shorter of the two Conquistadors to tag in. Barbarian gives him a big boot, and brings in his partner, the Warlord. Bret Hart and Ax wind up in the ring after that, and he has his rush to the corner blocked. Tully comes in with an elbow from the top, but Bret responds with a clothesline. Michaels and Smash head in, and Smash catches a cross body attempt. They bring poor Shawn to the corner for a beating, and Volkoff comes in for a gorilla press into a backbreaker. He gives Michaels a knee to the gut, and in comes Arn with a…SPINEBUSTER. Best move in wrestling, but it couldn’t get the 3 count. The short Conquistador tags in, and they blow a spot. After a bodyslam, Marty makes the tag in, and here we go. He gives that short and fat one a powerslam, and the tall one tags in to get arm dragged. Marty flips through a hip toss, and bodyslams him for a 2 count. Volkoff heads in again, and Marty gives him a dropkick for another 2 count. Davey comes in with a bodyslam, it gets 2. Speaking of Davey, he’s looking HUGE. Tully is brought in for a backdrop, and drops the elbow a few times for good measure. He misses the fourth try, and Warlord tags in, as does a Conquistador. Warlord gives him a big press slam, and Ax comes in. The crowd is hyped for this showdown, and they trade bombs with each other. Warlord blocks Smash’s boot attempt, trips him, and tags out. Barbarian lands a huge kick, but Tully is able to make the tag in anyway. Barbarian drops him on the top rope, and it’s the Anvil’s turn. A big powerslam only gets 2, and Dynamite rushes in. He gives Tully a big clothesline, but gets dumped out to the floor. Back inside, Zhukov is ready for him, and gives him a bodyslam. He misses a knee drop, and here comes Powers. Powers gives Zhukov a backdrop, and follows that with a clothesline. After Powers does a springboard cross body, Zhukov reverses and the Stallions are out at 15:35. Lame finish.
Shawn Michaels enters the ring, and he’s mad about that elimination. He slams Zhukov, and lands a fist drop from the second rope. That got a 2 count. Barbarian is in again, and there’s a flying shoulderblock from him. Tully tags in, walks across the ring, and tags out. Didn’t want to face the Barbarian. That was great. Volkoff is in now, gets out, and Barbarian is ripe for some punishment by Demolition. Volkoff comes back in, and gets kicked in the face. Michaels and Zhukov are dueling now, and Marty flies in with a sunset flip on Zhukov for 3 at 17:19! That came out of nowhere.
Marty gets backdropped by a Conquistador, and that looked dangerous indeed. The other one tags in, and gives Marty a MONSTER backdrop. What a bump! Ax comes in and dishes out a bodyslam, and Arn comes in to have his face slammed into the mat. Davey is in again, and he gives a backdrop to a Conquistador. Blanchard is in again, and this time he’s going to fight. Bummed that we never got a proper match between the Busters and Bulldogs. Tully throws Davey into the corner upside down, and distracts the referee so that Ax can choke him. Smash is tagged, and goes to a neck vice for a few seconds. No resting please. The Conquistadors exchange tags, and the big one misses a charge. Neidhart comes in, and along with Bret, they give a backbreaker and elbow drop combo to that Conquistador. Michaels tags in and lands a dropkick, then Marty does the same with a flying back elbow. Dynamite gives his opponent a snap suplex, and follows that with a knee drop from the second corner, which gets 2. After a backbreaker, Barbarian tags in. Let’s get a fall in here shortly, please. He gives out a powerslam, then drops an elbow. blanchard accidentally tags in, and has to consult with Heenan about what to do. He quickly gets out of the ring after a kick down low, and Demolition decides to double team Barbarian. Smash puts the neck vice on Barbarian now, which slows the match way down for a time. They continue to work over Barbarian, which is foolish. It should have been one of the smaller guys. Barbarian tries to power lift his way out of the corner, but gets too close to his corner and they have to somehow make sure he wasn’t able to tag. That was not well thought out either. Arn switches in, gets kicked, and Barbarian gets out. Marty dropkicks the Enforcer, and lands another flying back elbow. Neidhart comes in with some big forearms, but gets caught and Blanchard comes in with a cross body from the top. It gets 2, and Blanchard tries the slingshot suplex, only for it to be reversed into a supled by Neidhart. Bret comes in and gives Tully a backbreaker, and an inverted atomic drop as well. Bret goes for a german suplex, and both guys shoulders wind up on the mat. Eventually, it is made clear that Blanchard eliminated Bret by getting his shoulder up right at the end of the count! Good finish, took place at 27:08.
Dynamite runs in after the fall, and he decides to give Tully a TOMBSTONE PILEDRIVER. Looked like he killed him, but it could only get a 2 count. Davey tags in, and the Bulldogs give out a double shoulderblock. Michaels rushes in, and in comes Arn. The Rockers and Brain Busters are now in the ring, and those four get disqualified for fighting too much at 29:00. That was fast! The Rockers gave the Brain Busters a double superkick to get them out of there, and that as they say, is that. Or so I thought. These guys brawled in the aisleway, and eventually the Brain Busters were chased to the back. Great stuff!
Finally it is an 8 man tag team match, with Demolition and the Conquistadors facing the Powers of Pain and British Bulldogs. The big Conquistador is in, and he gives Dynamite a rough knee. Little heads in with a forearm from the top, and decides to try a senton bomb, but misses. Big mistake. Warlord comes in for only the second time, which is crazy at this point. He sets the guy up for a big boot from Barbarian, and Davey comes in to give that Conquistador a delayed vertical suplex for 2. Davey tries a crucifix on Ax, but that gets 2 and in Smash comes. Davey gives him an arm drag, and Dynamite follows with a jawbreaker. Smash tags out, and Dynamite gives Ax a big clothesline. These clotheslines of his look like the worst move to take. Davey and a Conquistador enter the ring, and Davey gives that guy a big press slam. Davey follows with the running powerslam, but doesn’t cover. Why? Barbarian and Davey give the guy a double headbutt, and Ax switches in. Barbarian clotheslines Ax for 2, and Smash has to come in. He throws Barbarian to the outside, where he gets stomped a few times. They’re trying to rest without using any long holds at this point. Ax looks wiped out. Big Conquistador winds up in there with Davey, and Davey gets 2 after a double back elbow. Weird to see him and Barbarian doing all these double team moves. Dynamite tags in with a gutwrench suplex for 2, and a diving headbutt gives him a concussion as well as a 2 count. Why would anyone do that? Warlord tags in once again, gives out a bodyslam, and a leg drop as well. Gorilla and Jesse are burying these guys for not covering and killing time. It’s kind of dumb. Smash misses a charge to the corner, and Dynamite gives him a snap suplex. Dynamite heads up top, and misses a flying headbutt. That bump in that super hard ring…is dumb as fuck. Smash gives him a clothesline, and covers him for a 3 count at 36:18. Makes sense. Sadly, that’s the last time I’ll be watching Dynamite Kid, as that was the end of his WWF career. Going to miss his style of wrestling, that’s for sure. It crippled him, but it was very entertaining.
I’m worried about what’s going to happen to this match now that Barbarian and Warlord have to be in the ring all the time. Barbarian is our face in peril, but he gets out of there pretty quickly. The Warlord misses a huge charge to the corner, and Ax goes to work. Smash continues the punishment for a time, putting him in an armbar. Fuji gets on the apron, and says it’s time for something. I guess that’s the cue. Ax keeps the armbar on Warlord for a bit, and Fuji gets on the apron again. Silly stuff. Warlord gives Smash a shoulderblock, but Smash replies with a clothesline. We can see that Fuji is really angry, and when Smash runs the ropes, he pulls them down so that Smash tumbles to the outside. Unfortunately the crowd doesn’t really pick up on what this means at all. Some of the kids laughed at Smash. Ax walks over to Smash, and he asks the referee for a timeout. Demolition gets counted out to a huge cheer at 39:48, but Ax is pissed. He gets tapped with Fuji’s cane, and then Fuji hits him. He cracks Ax on the back with it, and Smash thinks that’s bullshit. The crowd gets super excited for Ax bodyslamming Fuji on the floor, so that’s half of the turn completed.
After Demolition leaves, the Powers of Pain walk over to Fuji and pick him up. What the fuck? This is really well executed, but many people in the crowd don’t understand. Now it’s a heel vs. heel tag match, with the Powers of Pain facing the Conquistadors. Fuji trips one of the Conquistadors to a cheer, Barbarian gives him a flying headbutt, and everyone cheers the Powers of Pain for their victory at 42:25. The Powers of Pain are the sole survivors!
The match is over, but the action is not. Demolition runs back down to ringside to some boos, and clears the ring of the Powers of Pain. This is surreal. Seeing a team being booed during their face turn is about as strange as it gets. The announcers did a good job getting over what was supposed to happen to the fans at home, at least. Excellent use of replay as well, they even had Jesse treating Fuji like a cheap shotter.
My Thoughts: Sometimes I don’t understand the booking of these shows. Sometimes I do. Fortunately, this match offered more of the latter. The only thing here that I really didn’t understand was that the Bulldogs were in it for so long when they were leaving the company right after the show. The rest all tied in together leaving them with 3 tag feuds going. You had Powers of Pain vs. Demolition, Rougeau’s vs. Hart Foundation, and Rockers vs. Brain Busters. Those are three solid programs. The other six, nobody really cared about them in any way. The Rockers, Bulldogs, and Brain Busters really stood out at the top performers. The Conquistadors were great fall guys after the double turn, as in theory there was no chance of the Powers of Pain getting cheered. They’re a dumb team and there’s no reason to hate them. However, they did get cheered very loudly. I applaud the use of the double turn here. It simply had to happen. The Warlord could not wrestle a babyface match, nor arguably a heel match. He was especially horrible here. The Powers of Pain couldn’t talk. Demolition could. Demolition was also getting cheers in some cities. The only problem with a double turn is that you really have to beat fans over the head with it beforehand. That didn’t happen on any of the TV before this. If you beat fans over the head with it after, eventually they’ll catch on. So, that’s what happened. I enjoyed this match well enough, but it slowed way down at the end. I didn’t like the way the commentary was burying wrestlers, even though they were telling the truth. I’m going to give this ***1/2. I won’t recommend it as it’s simply too long and there isn’t a big payoff at the end, but it’s really funny to see how the crowd reacts to the turn. The WWF did everything they could during the match to make them understand, but they could not understand. That’s what happens when the company books towards the lowest common denominator. Kids are not always going to understand. Good stuff though!
It’s a great chance for everyone in the arena to take a piss, as we have a Bad News Brown interview aired only for the fans at home. Sean Mooney asks him what happened, and Bad News says he smelled a conspiracy. He doesn’t care about these team events, and he wants the WWF Championship. They placed him on the card perfectly to keep him away from Savage, protected him with the finish…so yes, it is time to do that program. Good interview.
In the back, Mr. Fuji is in the back with his Powers of Pain! Fuji says that Demolition’s britches got too big. The master found two new clients who are going to demolish Demolition, he says. Barbarian says a few words, which makes it obvious that he needs a manager. Nothing wrong with that! Warlord is as roided up as I’ve ever seen a wrestler in the WWF. It’s unreal. This wasn’t a good interview, but the Powers of Pain definitely make better heels than babyfaces.
Before the entrances for the next match, we have Andre the Giant’s team in the back with Gene Okerlund. Heenan does a great job talking on behalf of his team, and the co-captain Dino Bravo has a few things to say as well. Why does he have a manager? Talking is about the only thing he can do. Andre gets a reminder of the snake, and he’s pissed!
Mooney is with the MEGA POWERS, who are bonded together, according to Randy Savage. Koko talks some shit, and Hillbilly Jim does too. Man, I really did not want to watch Jim wrestle here. I like how Hogan rips off Hercules gimmick by holding onto part of that chain. So transparent it’s ridiculous. I’m surprised they were able to sell this match with the lack of star power on the other side, but the Mega Powers are all you need, I guess.
Andre the Giant, Dino Bravo, Rick Rude, Mr. Perfect, & Harley Race (w/Bobby Heenan and Frenchy Martin) vs. Jake Roberts, Jim Duggan, Tito Santana, Ken Patera, & Scott Casey in a 10 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Roberts and Duggan are the captains of their team, which is jobberific. Unless Santana is going to work the whole match, I don’t know how this can possibly be any good. Casey was subbing for Brian Blair, which isn’t much of a sub. No disrespect to Casey but of all the guys on this show he’s the one wrestler who doesn’t make any sense to be part of it. The heel side on the other hand is stacked. Some of them are worn down, but it’s a very well put together team that carried legitimacy. Harley was looking old, but of course he wanted to get back in the ring after his injury and give it a go. Feuds here are Roberts feuding with both Andre and Rude, and Duggan feuding with Bravo after having a program with Andre.
Match Review: Patera and Rude will kick it off, with Patera using strength to push Rude back. He looks so flabby and old now. Rude decides to tag out, and Duggan leads a big “USA” chant as Bravo enters. He tags out quickly, and in comes Perfect with a double axehandle from the top. Patera picks him up and drives back to the corner, for Jake Roberts to get in there. He picks Perfect up while holding a wristlock, and it’s Santana’s turn. He gives Perfect an arm drag, a bodyslam, and has a charge to the corner blocked. Bravo heads back in, as does Casey for the first time. Casey hits Bravo with a back elbow, and the crowd could not care less. Bravo gives him an inverted atomic drop, and here comes Race. He gives Casey a belly to belly suplex, and follows that with another suplex. That scar on Race’s torso is huge.Rude comes in and bodyslams Casey, which gets a 2 count. Perfect tags in and clotheslines Casey, but Casey is able to tag out for Patera. Patera and Santana give Perfect a double back elbow, and Duggan comes in for the first time. He nails Perfect with a clothesline, and Andre rushes over to argue with the referee. Casey switches back in, and gives Perfect a bodyslam. He has a leg drop blocked, and here’s Rude. Rude gives Casey a clothesline, as we get into some Royal Rumble hype. Can’t wait. Rude misses a charge to the corner, and Santana tags in. He hits Rude with a flying chop, it gets 2. Duggan tags back in, and gives Rude a bodyslam. He misses an elbow drop, and the two men then collide in the center of the ring. Patera makes a tag in and bodyslams Rude, then takes him down for a count of 2. It’s easy to see who in this match is over and who is not. Patera misses a charge, gets hit with the RUDE AWAKENING, and that’s him gone via pinfall at 8:20.
Casey rushes in, and Race does as well to start the next fall. Race hits Casey with a dropkick (HUH?), and Bravo comes in once again. Casey gives him a backslide for 2, and Bravo gives him the SIDE SUPLEX. See you later Casey, you’re out at 9:29.
Santana and Perfect start the next fall, and Santana tries a small package, which gets 2. Duggan comes in again, and Andre winds up grabbing a hold of him. He headbutts Duggan, and didn’t even have to leave the apron to do it! Rude heads in and gets hammered with a clothesline, which allows Duggan to tag out. Bravo comes in as well, but Santana nails him with a cross body for 2. Bravo misses a charge to the corner, and Santana’s sunset flip gets 2. Bravo gets out of there, and here’s Race. He gives Santana a piledriver, but Santana kicks out at 2. After a clothesline, Race covers again for 2. Tito clocks him with the flying forearm, and that gets rid of Race after 15:25.
Andre enters the ring for the first time, to big heat. He grabs a hold of Santana’s neck, clobbers him with a chop, and sits on him a few times. Andre goes back to the choke, then Santana tries a sunset flip. Terrible idea, as Andre sits on him for the 3 count at 16:49. Great finish.
Duggan rushes in and gets Andre tied in the ropes, then Roberts takes his turn hitting him as well. The crowd is loving Jake choking Andre, but Andre gets the hell out of there, tagging in Rude. Rude launches Jake into the buckle, then does some gyrations to make the crowd angry. After doing it again, Rude tags in Mr. Perfect. The heels are up 4-2, which is bad news for Roberts and Duggan. Andre stomps on Jake behind the official’s back, but when Jake gets up, he and Perfect trade bombs. Bravo tags in, and gets clobbered. A lot. Jake gives him his short clothesline, and signals for the DDT! Rude clotheslines Roberts to break it, and gets in the ring. Duggan leads a chant for Roberts, who gets covered for a very close 2 count. Bravo comes in again, and he gives Roberts a piledriver. Is that the guy I’d want to give me a piledriver? No. He gives Roberts a bodyslam too, and misses a series of elbow drops. Duggan finally makes the tag in, and gives Bravo a backdrop. He gives Bravo 5 punches in the corner, and follows with a clothesline for good measure. 3 POINT STANCE time, but Frenchy Martin grabs a hold of Duggan’s leg. Bravo knocks Duggan to the outside, and slams him. Where is the DQ? Duggan grabs his 2×4, and takes care of it himself by hitting Bravo in the gut with that 2×4. Of course, he gets disqualified at 23:29. Laughed HARD at Duggan screaming out “BULLSHIT” after his elimination.
It’s 4 on 1, and there’s no chance of Jake winning this one. The heels put together a strategy, and it’s Perfect against Roberts. Jake clotheslines him, and gives him a knee lift as well. Like Jesse says, Perfect should get out of there. He does, and it’s Bravo’s turn. Bravo uses his strength to put Roberts on his knees, but Jake gets out of that and tries for the DDT. Bravo backdrops him, misses an elbow drop, and tags out. Jake tells Rude to kiss his ass and takes a break, and after a short time he gets back in there. Rude takes him down and knee drops him, then uses a stomach breaker. Surprising to see that move used for the first time so deep into the card. Jake takes those bumps into the turnbuckle really hard, that’s for sure. Rude bodyslams him after a few, and puts him in a bear hug. Well, this thing slowed way down. Rude heads up top, and lands a fist drop. Should go for the cover, but instead he gyrates over Jake. Rude then slowly walks over to his corner, but Jake sneaks behind him and pulls his tights down. There’s the DDT, and bare assed Rude gets covered at 30:52. Good booking.
Andre gets in the ring ASAP, and goes to work on Roberts with a choke. Don’t scare THIS GUY with a snake, that’s for sure. He looks like he’s choking Roberts to death, and eventually the referee disqualifies him for doing so at 31:46.
Of course, Jake has been murdered, so he’s out like a light. The look on Hennig’s face was great. He climbs in, tries for a quick cover, and gets a 3 count easily for his team after 32:08 of action. The survivors are Dino Bravo and Mr. Perfect! The bell rings, but Jake isn’t done. He chases Andre from ringside with the snake, and Andre walks very quickly to get the hell out of there.
My Thoughts: This was another match with positive finishes, but I don’t believe it was very well booked. They should have structured the match so that it wasn’t 4 on 1. Jake had to carry that portion for 10 minutes, which was awfully difficult to do. Santana could have done it, but he’s the only one on that team who could have. I like that Mr. Perfect picked up the win in that fashion. Other than that, I thought the match wasn’t any good. Andre did well in his role, but Race and Patera looked very bad physically. It was time for all three of them to go. This match was the type where one team obviously had to win, the heel team was so much stronger than their opponents. Another sign that the tag team format had to end as they were needed in the other matches. The roster didn’t need to be as big as it did at the start of the WWF’s expansion. *1/2, I don’t believe it could have been any better given the wrestlers involved. It needed a 20 minute Santana vs. Perfect segment to be better.
The Twin Towers, Ted DiBiase, the Red Rooster, & King Haku (w/slick, Virgil, and Bobby Heenan) vs. The Mega Powers (WWF Champion Randy Savage!), Hercules, Koko B. Ware, and Hillbilly Jim (w/Elizabeth) in a 10 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Before the match, the heels finally have a promo aired. DiBiase gloats about the size of his bank account, and says that Hercules is still his slave. I have an idea for this match…which would have been for them to immediately turn Hercules back heel and align with DiBiase to cost the Mega Powers their win. Yeah, that would have been really dumb. Boss Man is getting the biggest top heel push of anyone in this company since Andre, that’s how it feels to me. Of course, the Mega Powers are all that’s needed for this to look like a legitimate team, but Koko and Jim being part of it is hilarious. Talk about a gap in star quality. Someone has to take the falls! It’s bogus that Hogan is the only wrestler on the show who has to have his own entrance.
Match Review: DiBiase and Savage will get it going, and Savage gets clotheslined hard. DiBiase misses a charge to the corner, and Savage gives him his own clothesline. Hercules tags in and DiBiase runs around the ring, with Hercules giving chase, but DiBiase gets in the ring and tags out. The Rooster tags in, goes for a sharpshooter, but gets poked in the eye. Hercules clotheslines him, and here comes Koko. Koko misses a charge to the corner, and Haku comes in for a big chop to the throat. He slams Koko, but misses a leg drop, and Koko tags out. Hercules and Haku trade punches, with Hercules getting the better of it. Hogan tags in for the first time to a huge pop, and nails Haku with a running clothesline. Jim switches in, and he and Hogan give Haku a double big boot. Haku finds a way to tag out, and Rooster comes in. He fails at a bodyslam attempt, and Jim throws him to the canvas with his own slam. He kicks Rooster down low, tags in Koko, and Koko gives Rooster a powerslam for 2. Koko comes off the top with a missile dropkick, and gets a close 2 count off that. He tags in Hogan, who hits Rooster with a big boot. Savage tags in, comes off the top with a FLYING ELBOW DROP, and Rooster’s out at 6:10.
The babyfaces celebrate their minor victory, which is a nice touch. Nobody else did that! Heenan bitches like crazy at Rooster for being eliminated, as Haku climbs into the ring to face Savage. Hogan tags in very quickly, and Haku gives him a big dropkick. Hogan comes back with a clothesline in the corner, and a bodyslam. Hercules tags in, and he drops the elbow a few times for a 2 count. Haku responds with a back suplex out of nowhere, and Akeem switches in. He gives Hercules a bodyslam, but misses an elbow drop. Jim heads in, and gives Akeem a big boot. Akeem doesn’t go down, squashes Jim in the corner, and tags him with a clothesline on the way out. There’s a big splash, and Jim is out via pinfall after 9:54.
Koko runs in and dropkicks Akeem from behind, but tags in Hogan before anything can happen to him. Hogan rams Akeem into the buckles a few times, then Savage comes in with a double axehandle from the top. Hercules continues the effort to knock Akeem down, but he just can’t. Koko tags in, tries some punches, and a dropkick too. Akeem dodges a charge to the corner, and Boss Man tags in for the first time. Yes! He gives Koko the BOSS MAN SLAM, and he’s out at 11:45.
Hogan comes in to take the place of his eliminated partner, and we now have the big confrontation. Hogan gives Boss Man a clothesline, and an atomic drop, but Boss Man still won’t fall down. Even a clothesline in the corner doesn’t do the job. Hogan gives Boss Man a big boot, and signals for a bodyslam, which works! I thought Boss Man was going to fall on top of Hogan for sure. Boss Man gives him a spinebuster, and Akeem switches in. The Towers gives Hogan a double back elbow, and Boss Man hits Hogan with a leapfrog body guillotine. Poor Hogan. DiBiase tags in for the first time in a while, and he takes Hogan down with a clothesline. A few fist drops follow, they get 2. Hogan comes back with an atomic drop, and tags in Hercules. Time for DiBiase to get beaten down by his slave. Hercules gives him a backdrop, and a knee lift to follow. After some clotheslines, Virgil trips Hercules. Hercules grabs him, but DiBiase knees him from behind and rolls him up for 3 at 16:35.
It is now 4 on 2, until Savage rolls up DiBiase from behind for 3 just 22 seconds later! That was neat.
Savage and Haku will resume the action, with Haku landing a big chop and missing a diving headbutt. Savage tags out, and Hogan gets kicked in the throat. Boss Man rejoins the match, and bodyslams Hogan for 2. Haku and Akeem continue to work Hogan over, with Haku giving Hogan a suplex for 2. He puts a nerve hold on Hogan, which is a good way to slow this match down and get some heat. Boss Man eventually tags in, and he gives Hogan the BOSS MAN SLAM. He doesn’t go for a pin, and instead decides to head up top. He comes down with a big splash, but it missed. Of course it did! Savage tags in, and Slick trips him immediately. That was well done. Slick grabs a hold of Elizabeth, which Hogan notices. He hits that piece of shit, but Akeem and Boss Man attack Hogan from behind. They bring him to ringside, and handcuff him to the bottom rope! Oh no! Boss Man got counted out during all that mess, at 23:17. Great booking and great finish used to protect him.
Boss Man continues to beat up Hogan with his nightstick, as Haku works over Savage with chokes and the like. Savage attacks Akeem from behind, but Boss Man clobbers Savage with the stick. Damn, this is cheating shit. Akeem gives Savage a big splash, but because of Boss Man’s interference, Akeem gets disqualified. More good booking. Time of that was 25:01.
Akeem and Boss Man take their sweet time leaving, as it’s now Hogan and Savage against Haku. Haku hits Savage with a back elbow, as Slick taunts Hogan by dangling the keyes in front of him. Haku misses an elbow drop, and misses a dropkick as well. Savage goes for a tag, but as we know, Hogan is handcuffed. Haku walks over to Slick for a double team, and accidentally kicks Slick. He falls to the floor, and Hogan knocks down Heenan as well. Inside the ring, Haku gives Savage an inverted atomic drop, and now Elizabeth has the keyes to the handcuffs. Hogan gets unlocked, as his friend takes a bodyslam. Haku goes up top, and lands his huge splash for 2. That was a great move. Haku kicks Savage over to his corner, which was a mistake as Hogan tags in. Big boot, bodyslam, leg drop. That’s it at 30:11! The survivors are THE MEGA POWERS!
Hogan poses instead of helping out his injured partner, what a dope. He picks up Elizabeth for a celebration, and Savage shoots him a strange look. That closed the show!
My Thoughts: Hogan winds up the babyface in all this? Lusting after a wrestler’s manager and being an egomaniac gets you cheered? What a joke that is. That was really good stuff to finish the match. Great booking too. The manner of the finishes illustrates what they have planned for these wrestlers. DiBiase and Hercules weren’t doing anything important in the WWF’s eyes, so they could both lose on pins. The Twin Towers had to be protected, so they took a count out and DQ. One interesting thing about this match was that they were sure to put in some job guys to make the top heels and babyfaces look good. I thought that was interesting. The post-match was a great way to get WrestleMania build going. All in all, this was a nice match with great booking and a great finish. Nothing to complain about here! **3/4. They filled their time a lot better than the wrestlers in the last match did. The handcuff angle got a nice reaction and kept the match from becoming a massacre. Had to do something!
I suppose that the booking here would make Survivor Series the best booked card of the year so far. Not like there’s great competition there. The actual best card of the year (Clash 1) had a really stupidly booked main event. I really enjoyed watching this one even though the match quality wasn’t super high. Sadly, this PPV was not very profitable. I am also a little confused about some of the things that happened after this show. It really took them a year to push Curt Hennig? They made Haku a King only to have him to do jobs? I thought it was foolish how he jobbed to Hogan on the first SNME after being given the new gimmick. It is also surprising that Ted DiBiase stuck around so long when he was pushed so far down the card after his big feud with Savage. It is also nice to know that this secondary PPV had more lasting effects than SummerSlam. It was much more important. Next up for me, I’ll be reviewing SNME #18, which aired just a few days after this Thursday show. Andre the Giant vs. Randy Savage should do a good rating. Will the WWF continue down the road of breaking up the Mega Powers?
Wrestling Time: 2:02:35. That right there is a lot of wrestling. No dead space and filler, everything mattered.
Best: 20 man match. Unquestionably the best at that. It was a lot of fun.
Worst: Jake Roberts vs. Andre the Giant Survivor Series tag match. This wasn’t good and died when the majority of participants were eliminated.
Card Rating: 7/10. It was above average and I enjoyed it. Definitely worth checking out, and you can easily skip the third match if you really want to.
