Sage Cortez
It’s time for the 23rd episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event! Getting to the 23rd was quite an accomplishment on the part of the WWF, and I find it amazing that they were able to keep fan interest in Hulk Hogan going for so long. It speaks to the structure of their TV and the way they promoted their wrestlers that the formula didn’t get played out for such a massive amount of time. The best thing about these shows was the spacing. They didn’t need to inundate people with them or have them on every month. Just a few every year was all they needed. The goal was still to get people out to the shows.
– Taped to air October 14th, 1989, from Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio
Roddy Piper had a promo to open the show, it wasn’t that good. The MACHO KING followed and did a hell of a lot better! The Bushwhackers were also here, and I cracked up at their comments too. Surprised the WWF would put them on here. Ted DiBiase is there with ZEUS, and he’s not worried because he has the INSURANCE POLICY. Hulk Hogan’s ready for Zeus and DiBiase, YOU CAN’T BUY THE BELT MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR MAN!!!
Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura are the hosts once again, and Ventura makes an interesting Pete Rose reference in stating Cincinnati is the gambling capital of the world. That one nearly skipped past me!
MACHO KING (w/Queen Sherri) vs. Jimmy Snuka
Pre-Match Thoughts: Their house show match stunk, but I expect a lot better here. For starters, it’s on television. I also scoped out the time of the match and it was half the length. Sounds great! Before the match, the coronation of the Macho King is shown! Back to the promo area we go, for one with the Macho King. He says he’ll soil his hands with the likes of Snuka to prove he’s the greatest! This was great. It would be awfully hard to boo this guy, I must say. He even has the jobber patrol carrying he and Sherri to the ring! Snuka’s in the back with Mean Gene, and he says there is no royalty over this FREE MAN.
Match Review: Savage tries to attack Snuka to begin the match, hitting him with punches and knees until Snuka hits him with that chop of his. Superfly goes for Sherri now, only for Savage to attempt an attack and get caught. Snuka follows with a flying headbutt, and sends Savage out to the floor with an atomic drop. Snuka follows him to the floor and hits him with some chops, then sends Macho back inside. Sherri grabs Snuka’s foot so her guy can attack Snuka from behind, and Savage capitalizes with a bodyslam. A knee drop follows, which gets a 2 count. Savage sends Snuka over the top, and follows him out with BOMBS AWAY! Macho King throws Snuka back into the ring, which allows Sherri to choke Snuka with her purse. Her act is hilarious. Savage brings Snuka away from the ropes and gets a count of 2, then he knees Snuka from behind and it’s time for the WILD MAN COMEBACK. He hits Savage with headbutts and chops, and hits him with a clothesline too. He sends Savage upside down into the corner, and chokes Savage as he’s there. Sherri waits until the referee is gone, unhooks her charge, and hands him the LOADED PURSE. Snuka teases hitting Sherri, and Savage runs up from behing for a purse shot to the back. Savage then grabs tights on a roll up, and wins the match at 5:37!
After the match, Savage slams Snuka and heads up top for the FLYING ELBOW, but Snuka gets out of the way! He gets up and bodyslams Savage, then heads up top! For whatever reason, Sherri gets on top of Savage to prevent Snuka’s leap, and the crowd desperately wanted him to jump on Sherri. Instead, he does it, and merely chases her and Savage out of the ring instead.
My Thoughts: Lot better match as this was half the length with all the same stuff as their Toronto match. The post-match antics were better and got Snuka over to a greater degree, but it was hard for him to stay over as everyone could tell how old he was. Still, this was fine and not unacceptable at all. **.
Ted DiBiase (w/ZEUS) vs. Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: Before the match, the majority of the program between Hogan and Zeus was shown. They didn’t show the whole match from SummerSlam, but they showed everything Zeus did. DiBiase says he’s purchased Zeus, and he only buys the best! You know, pairing him with Zeus was the right thing to do. Unfortunately, Savage couldn’t take another job, so you’d think less of Zeus if you had watched SummerSlam do to him doing that job. Hogan cuts his promo on Zeus, telling him that he should have finished the job. He didn’t, BROTHER. He then turns his attention to the MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR MAN, and starts talking about stocks and shit. This was a very long promo. I noticed at the end that Okerlund was so tanned that he didn’t look like a white male. Like, at all.
Match Review: Both guys lock up to get this going, and Zeus grabs hold of Hogan’s boot. The distraction allows DiBiase to land right hands, but they’re ineffective as Hogan comes back with some of his own. Don’t like that, if Zeus gets involved, it should matter. Hogan knocks DiBiase down with shoulderblocks, then Zeus trips Hogan, allowing DiBiase to attack from behind. That time it mattered. Or, it did until Hogan hit DiBiase with more punches and a back elbow in the corner. The referee has to pull Hogan off the challenger, which allows DiBiase to rake the eyes and knock Hogan down with a clothesline. Zeus chokes away at Hogan, and here comes JAKE ROBERTS to EVEN THINGS UP. That should neutralize the interference. Hogan now rolls DiBiase up from behind for 2, and DiBiase tries to come back with elbow drops that miss. Hogan tries to give him 10 in the corner, and while that’s going on, Virgil comes out from the back and steals Damien from Jake. Jake chases him to the back as DiBiase clotheslines Hogan over the top rope, and we go to a commercial!
Back from that commercial, we have DiBiase clearly in control and the crowd starting to get very mad about it. He clotheslines Hogan, and that gets 2. He suplexes Hogan after that for another 2 count, then goes up to the second rope for an elbow. Hogan barely kicks out at 2, and DiBiase goes to the chinlock for a while. Once Hogan gets out of it, both guys hit each other with clotheslines. Hogan gets up and tries to run the ropes again, only for Zeus to knock him down. DiBiase drops the fist a few times, then heads up top. DiBiase hits Hogan with a knee drop, and Hogan starts no-selling after kicking out at 2. Hogan hits DiBiase with three punches, a big boot, and Zeus gets in the ring! He hooks Hogan up for DiBiase to hit him, and DiBiase clotheslines Zeus on accident. Hogan wraps DiBiase up in a small package, and picks up the pin at 8:24.
Hogan and Zeus are about to go one on one for the first time, but DiBiase heads into the ring and hits Hogan from behind. He tells Zeus to BREAK HOGAN’S NECK, and Zeus does the silliest head twist that Hogan sells like death. BAH GAWD HE KILLED HIM. Funny that Hogan can stand up with a broken neck. DiBiase then slaps the MILLION DOLLAR DREAM on Hogan, which BREAKS HOGAN’S NECK EVEN MORE. BAH GAWD THEY BROKE HIS NECK TWICE. Jake Roberts rushes out from the back to make the save, but he can’t un-break Hogan’s neck, so what’s done is done.
My Thoughts: That finish was not so inspiring. As far as Survivor Series goes, this didn’t help matters at all. It was actually a bit difficult to decipher which wrestler DiBiase was supposed to be feuding with. On top of that, Hogan and Roberts aren’t so awesome as a super duo. It’s actually really strange to see Roberts come to Hogan’s aid. I haven’t seen either this show or that Survivor Series before, so it took me a bit aback. The match was nothing special at all. Hogan had started to look old and weathered, and there were some little things I really didn’t like. The match was very sloppy and I don’t think they got everything in it that they wanted to, either. Zeus also didn’t have impactful interference during the match, and wasn’t made to look that strong as he only beat up Hogan when Hogan was clearly tired in the eyes of the viewer. **1/4 here and I’m probably being generous.
Haku (w/Bobby Heenan) vs. Roddy Piper
Pre-Match Thoughts: Before the match starts, Vince is sure to put over that Rick Rude and Roddy Piper are feuding with each other. Heenan talks on behalf of Haku, whose role has changed now that he isn’t a king. He still has some legitimacy due to his size and believability in the ring, but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out he’s going to lose this match. Piper has a few things to say about the Heenan Family, I liked the promo a lot even though it was similar to the one that opened the show, which I didn’t like.
Match Review: Haku attacks Piper to start the match, but Piper returns the punches and gets the better of it with a backhand slap and clothesline over the top. Piper gives him a Thesz press from the apron, and gets back in the ring as the fans applaud him. Piper then turns his attentions to Heenan, and chases him into the ring! Heenan dives over the top to evade Piper, but Piper follows him and when Heenan falls down, Piper goes for a kick to the nuts. Instead Haku clotheslines Piper back into the ring, and hits him with a back elbow to the jaw. Haku uses a shoulderbreaker on Piper, it gets a 2 count. He drops the leg, and heads up top for the first time to try a flying headbutt that he misses. That looked like a HARD bump. Piper rams Haku’s head into the mat, and drops him with a flapjack. Piper follows that with a belly to belly suplex, which gets a 3 count at 3:02!
My Thoughts: I’ve never seen Piper use a belly to belly suplex. Fun match, but that was very short. Haku did a good job with the flying headbutt and flapjack bumps, he took those on his face and in truth I’m not sure how he could have done so without hurting himself. ** for a good effort and good moves.
In the back we have Zeus and the Million Dollar Man with Gene Mean, and DiBiase blames Roberts for his loss. That doesn’t make sense as that had nothing to do with DiBiase losing the match. Zeus said that Hogan won’t have anything to be thankful for on Thanksgiving, and we’re onto the next match!
Rick Martel (w/Slick, the Twin Towers, Jimmy Hart, and the Honky Tonk Man) vs. Tito Santana (w/Brutus Beefcake, Dusty Rhodes, and the Red Rooster)
Pre-Match Thoughts: There’s the Survivor Series hype match I’ve been looking for. Martel has a LOT of people at ringside here, more than I can remember seeing until the NWO came along. Also, I’ve noticed that the Barber was added to this Survivor Series match to give it some star power. I think it actually takes away from him to not be paired with Hogan. I find that more than a bit inconsistent on the WWF’s part to have established a new buddy for Hogan and yank him away so fast. Before the match, the Model and Slick had a promo on Martel’s feud with Santana, and Martel said he carried Santana’s “REFRIED BEAN BRAIN.” BAH GAWD. The Survivor Series teammates being at ringside were a surprise, by the way. Santana had some funny things to say, and didn’t resort to racism to do it. This feud went on for a LONG time. When Tito’s partners entered the arena, they had their own individual entrances. I have no doubt that it was with the purpose of gauging reactions. Dusty got the biggest.
Match Review: Following a familiar pattern, Martel attacks early, and Santana picks him up for an atomic drop and clothesline out to the floor. Santana rams Martel’s face into the mat, and sends him back inside. Martel comes back with some punches, but Santana tries a sunset flip for 2. He takes Martel down with an arm drag, and keeps him in it until it’s time for a cross body that gets 2. Martel rams Santana into the buckle, then he hangs him upside down in the corner and drops him. Santana then blocks a backdrop with a kick, and hits Martel a lot to gain control. He gives Martel a backdrop, and hits him with the FLYING FOREARM! Slick distracts Tito to break the cover, and now they tease a brawl between everyone at ringside!
After the commercial, Martel clearly has control of the match. Santana comes back with a hip toss, then misses a clothesline and flies out of the ring. Santana’s friends will him back to his feet, then Martel pulls him back in for a series of elbow drops. He puts a chinlock on Santana, but Santana gets out and they fight over a backslide with Santana getting the better of it for a 2 count. Martel tries to reply with a choke, then he goes for the BOSTON CRAB. Santana makes the ropes, and climbs up them to reverse Martel into a cover for 2. Martel still has control, and uses a backbreaker on his former partner. He heads up top, but Santana makes the ropes and shakes them until Martel gets crotched. Santana heads up the ropes for a series of punches, and that knocks Martel back to the canvas. He then rams Martel into the buckle 6 times, and takes him down with a big right hand. Santana goes to put Martel in the figure-four, and punches Slick when he gets on the apron, so that draws the Big Boss Man into the ring. Dusty heads in too, and obviously that’s going to lead to a double DQ after 9:41 of really good wrestling. The two Survivor Series teams brawl with each other, the crowd loving every moment of it. Of course, the babyfaces get the better of the fight and clear the ring.
My Thoughts: This was a very good match, needed a few more high spots to be a classic but otherwise it ranks with the best matches to air on Saturday Night’s Main Event. I enjoyed the heat and was very interested in the match due to how their partnership ended. I evaded watching their matches with each other for a long time and I think it was worth it. The tease of a brawl leading into the commercial and the way the match ended were with the deliberate purpose of garnering PPV buys, can’t complain much about it. I would have liked to see a pin one way or the other but that wouldn’t have made any sense. Martel was still finding his way as a heel and actually got a lot better at it, I think. ***1/4.
Once again we have a promo with Rowdy Roddy, who appears to be targeting the entire Heenan Family. Another good promo.
The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. The Bushwhackers
Pre-Match Thoughts: The Rougeaus have the best theme. Sad I won’t be watching them very much going forward as they’re leaving the company. This is also not one of the WrestleMania V rematches I’d want to see. The Bushwhackers were with Gene Mean, and looked positively crazy. That’s why they went in the WWE Hall of Fame! They were over huge with the crowd, as anyone can see by the crowd doing the Bushwhacker walk as the entered the arena. Shit, the next time I get up from this seat, I’m going to do that walk.
Match Review: The Bushwhackers rush the ring after their entrance and clear it of the Rougeaus, but Jimmy Hart is still in there and they chase him around only for both teams to have a tug-of-war over him. They pull Hart’s pants off and Hart gets left in his boxer shorts, and of course Hart runs back to the dressing room. The Rougeaus come back into the ring with an attack from behind, and a double clothesline to Butch. Raymond puts Butch in a Boston crab and Jacques drops a knee on Butch’s head, then lands a flying back elbow. Raymond tries to hold Butch in place, but Jacques hits his brother with a high knee and Luke makes the tag in. Luke hits Jacques with a running clothesline, and when Raymond comes in to break the cover, he elbow drops his brother. After a noggin-knocker, the Bushwhackers hit Jacques with the BATTERING RAM, then follow with the DOUBLE GUTBUSTER. Butch covers, and that gets the win for his team at 3:15.
My Thoughts: This match was miles better than their WrestleMania match, and was actually bordering on the acceptable. I laughed at the spot with Jimmy Hart and appreciated the clean finish. The match needed that to be the case. Sadly, these teams face each other again at the Royal Rumble and that match should be far longer. What did we do to deserve this? *.
Before the end of the show, we have an interview with Hulk Hogan where he talks about how Zeus jacked up his neck. He says his team of HULKAMANIACS WILL SURVIVE AT SURVIVOR SERIES. Well, now that he puts it that way, I have no doubt. Jesse and Vince go on to close out the show!
This show was a bit interesting in that it didn’t really have any long reaching consequences. Survivor Series was a self-contained set of angles, other than Ted DiBiase and Jake Roberts. I think it was an okay watch, there were some issues with how impactful these matches really were, but the WWF got the majority of their biggest stars on TV this time. It was a bit of a strange transition period before WrestleMania and people really couldn’t have been able to tell what the WWF had planned. If I didn’t know, this show would have done nothing to further that along at all. The Martel/Santana match was fun and ensured that this was worth tuning into. Next up, it looks like I’m going to write about the NWA from Clash 8 to Clash 9. While Halloween Havoc is in the middle of that, nothing I’ve planned to watch after that show had anything to do with the events of that show. See you guys then!
Wrestling Time: 29:59. The entrances took up more than usual, and the angle after the Hogan match was actually quite long.
Best: Tito Santana vs. Rick Martel. This was really good, a lot of fun to watch.
Worst: Bushwhackers vs. Rougeau Brothers by default. I hate watching the Bushwhackers.
Card Rating: 6/10. This was a forgettable show, with one good match between two guys who the WWF didn’t place much importance on.
