Sage Cortez
It’s the Survivor Series! This show was expected to do big business, and with good reason. It has been promoted extremely well, the lineup is really nice, and they’ve nearly completely shut Crockett out of doing any PPV business. There are only four matches, but the format is such that all of the matches should be lengthy. The location is also such that it is near many large cities, to draw in a big crowd. Let’s see what happened on that night!
– November 26th, 1987, from Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio
Huge sell out crowd for this one, which begins with Finkel introducing Jesse Ventura and Gorilla Monsoon! Nice introduction video after that. It has a highlight of many wrestlers on the card dishing out clotheslines, then Monsoon tells us that all of the matches will be elimination matches. Now, here come the wrestlers!
Honky Tonk Man (WWF IC Champion), Ron Bass, King Harley Race, Danny Davis, & Hercules (w/Jimmy Hart & Bobby Heenan) vs. Randy Savage, Ricky Steamboat, Jim Duggan, Jake Roberts, & Brutus Beefcake (w/Elizabeth) in a 10 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Obviously, Elizabeth is with Savage, but I’m listing all the managers at the end, and the captains at the beginning. The babyface team is as stacked with my favorites as a team can get, with the exception of Beefcake. The heel promo is pretty much a chaos zone. Everyone’s trying to talk over each other, but HTM has the microphone. THEY’RE GONNA PLAY A TUNE! HTM says that he’s going to give Elizabeth the Shake, Rattle, and Roll. Sure. HTM gets his own entrance, that was a nice bit and a great way to put even more heat on him. The babyface promo is given by Ricky Steamboat, at least at first. A video of Harley Race attacking Duggan is shown, and then the MACHO MAN makes his first appearance. GREAT PROMO TOO. Four of the five enter to Steamboat’s music, and Savage gets his own entrance, during which it is made obvious that he’s massively over. Here we go!
Match Review: This thing starts off with Beefcake and Hercules in the ring. Beefcake struts around the ring to some cheers, but Hercules takes him down. Quickly into a chinlock, Beefcake reverses, and puts a SLEEPER on Hercules. That was actual fast paced offense, and from these two, that’s something. Hercules breaks it, gets hip tossed, and then Beefcake gives some of those to Danny Davis and Ron Bass. Haha. He pulls Davis into the ring again, and then slams him. Roberts tags in, and launches Davis over his head. Here comes Savage, who rams Davis into Beefcake’s boot, and here’s Steamboat. He comes in the ring with a chop from the top rope, then tosses Davis into the corner, only to miss his charge. Race tags in, and gives Steamboat a shoulderbreaker. Steamboat blocks a whip to the corner with a chop, then Race tries to throw him over the top. He skins the cat, then has to do it again. After the second time, Steamboat throws Race over the top. Race comes back in, gives him a belly to belly suplex, and gets a 2 count. HACKSAW tags in, and this is a feud, so it’s a big deal. Hacksaw launches Race over the top rope with a clothesline, and now these guys are brawling on the floor. Naturally, they both get counted out at 4:33. Both teams have to pull these guys apart, Hacksaw calls Race a “son of a bitch” multiple times, and then they leave.
The match restarts with Bass and Roberts in the ring, and they exchange takedowns via hair pulling. Bass slams Roberts, and goes for an elbow drop, which he misses. Savage tags in, throws Bass into the corner, and elbows him. Savage covers for 2 after a knee drop, then slams Bass as well. He runs over and hits HTM with an elbow, but Bass clotheslines him and tags out. HTM is in, and bails out when Savage goes on the attack. Bass hits Savage with an elbow drop for 2, then Savage hits Bass with a running elbow. So many elbows. Savage gives Bass a backdrop, and tags out. Beefcake hits Bass with a high knee, and pins him at 6:58.
The next falls starts immediately after Hercules accidentally gives Bass an elbow drop. Beefcake slams Hercules, but Hercules comes back and goes to work. HTM tags in, and puts an armbar on Beefcake to slow things down. There was no reason to slow this down. Hercules switches in, gets punched in the face, but stops Beefcake from making the tag. So, HTM tags in, and pretty much nothing happens until Beefcake gives him an atomic drop. Beefcake throws HTM into the buckle, and tries to run the ropes, but Davis knees him in the back. HTM hits Beefcake with Shake, Rattle, and Roll, sending Beefcake out via pinfall at 10:47.
Savage comes in and attempts to chase HTM, but Hercules is now the legal guy, and he beats up Savage in the corner. Hercules throws nice looking worked punches. Davis tags in, and he should get no offense whatsoever. He doesn’t, and HTM switches in. Savage gives HTM a shoulderblock, and Roberts makes the semi-hot tag. Roberts misses a charge to the corner, and now HTM is in control of him as well. Davis cheats by choking him against the ropes, and Hercules tags in to continue the heels punishment of Roberts. After a cover of 2, Davis tags in, and his offense is hilariously awful. Eventually, Roberts doesn’t feel that offense, and gives Davis a short clothesline. After that, he gives Davis the DDT to a raucous ovation, and pins him at 15:06.
Hercules charges in with a flying clothesline, which was perfectly timed. He lines Roberts up for a few elbow drops, nails them, and covers for a 2 count. Hercules and HTM do a double team attack, and taunt Savage to draw him into the ring. That allows them to do whatever they want to do to Roberts. After a fist drop, HTM covers, and it also gets 2. HTM puts Roberts in a chinlock, and the heat builds up even though this match has slowed way down. Jake gets out, gives HTM a knee lift, and is still unable to make a tag. Hercules comes in, and goes back to the chinlock. Roberts powers out again, and rolls over to Steamboat to make the tag! Steamboat hits Hercules with a bunch of stuff, nails HTM too, and the crowd is loving it. Steamboat heads up top, and down he comes with another flying chop. He slams Hercules, and makes the tag to Savage. Savage heads up top, and DOWN WITH THE FLYING ELBOW. It’s over for Hercules, at 20:56.
Three against one is pretty difficult for Honky, but he’ll have to figure it out. Savage misses a charge at him, but hits him with a running elbow after being whipped into the ropes. Steamboat tags in, and the crowd is glad to see HTM finally on the receiving end of a beatdown he’ll surely lose. Roberts tags in, and HTM tries a sunset flip only to be punched in the face. Savage comes back in, heads to the second rope, and down with a double axehandle. After a Savage bodyslam, he heads up top, and lands another axehandle. He gives HTM an atomic drop to send him over the top rope, and he’s had enough. Eventually the referee counts him out, at 23:38. Randy Savage, Jake Roberts, and Ricky Steamboat are your survivors!
My Thoughts: This started off really hot and simmered down into a nice, steady boil. If that makes sense. I think it does, and with these matches I like to break things down into portions. It’s unfortunate that the structure of the match forced the best heel worker in it out early. The effect on the bout wasn’t seen until the end, when HTM and Hercules were the two guys left. They had nobody on their team to put in the heavy work, and had been gassed out from working hard at the beginning of the match. The best workers on the babyface team were there the whole time, so this was an interesting contrast. Danny Davis was a good joke wrestler, but nothing more. Fortunately, the booking did not require us to believe that he could dish out a lot of punishment. I liked it quite a bit, and the end of the match culminated HTM getting some beatings that he’s deserved. The rest of the finishes were very good, and the babyfaces who were there at the end certainly could not have taken a finish, so the booking was nice as well. ***.
Before the next bout, we have a promo from the heel side of our main event. That’s Andre the Giant, Rick Rude, Butch Reed, King Kong Bundy, and the One Man Gang. Their managers are Slick and Bobby Heenan. These guys are massive, which lends the heel team a ton of credibility. Andre’s heel promos were always very creepy, due to his mannerisms, voice, and nasty teeth.
Dawn Marie, Donna Christanello, Sensational Sherri (WWF Women’s Champion), & the Glamour Girls (WWF Women’s Tag Team Champs, w/Jimmy Hart) vs. Velvet McIntyre, Rockin’ Robin, the Fabulous Moolah, & The Jumping Bomb Angels in a 10 LADY SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Alright, honestly…this match is going to be hell for me. The announcers can’t tell the Angels apart, so that’s my job, and to make matters worse their names are difficult to spell. I briefly considered skipping this match, but skipping a match on an event was the exact opposite of what I wanted to do when starting this series of reviews. So, I pledge to not do that if at all possible. Sherri and Moolah are the captains. The Glamour Girls are Leilani Kai and Judy Martin. The Jumping Bomb Angels will be known as Yamazaki and Tateno.
Match Review: Sherri attacks McIntyre to begin the match, by ramming her face into some turnbuckles. Then she follows with a clothesline, but McIntyre comes back with a bodypress for 2. Moolah tags in, and goes to work. It’s hilarious. She forces Sherri to tag out, and in comes Donna. Moolah catapults her into the canvas, and tags in one of the Angels for a dropkick. She misses a second dropkick, and tags in McIntyre, who lands an elbow. After a dropkick, she gives Donna a bodyslam for a 2 count. This is moving quickly. McIntyre gives Donna a victory roll, and she’s pinned at 1:57.
One of the Glamour Girls rushes in to start the next fall, and I believe it’s Martin. McIntyre gives her a hurricanrana, then tags in Rockin’ Robin. Dawn Marie tags in as well, and slams Robin’s face into the canvas. Robin gives one of the Girls a bodypress and dropkick, as things keep moving quickly. After a big boot, Kai tags in Sherri, and she lands a dropkick. Marie tags in, and lands a double punch to the jaw. Haha. Robin gives her a clothesline, and a bodypress for a 3 count at 4:12. So, it’s 5 on 3.
Martin comes in, lands a bodyslam on Yamazaki, and tries a cover. However, Yamazaki impressively bridges out of the pin, and does a great rolling cradle for 2. Jesse loved that. After a pair of high knees, she lands a flying bodypress for 2. Here comes Tateno, who gives Martin a great arm drag from the top rope. Now Sherri tags in, gets elbowed, and given a double underhook suplex. The crowd is digging this. Robin tags in for the face side, and gives Sherri an elbow drop for 1. Sherri tags in Martin, who is summarily given a monkey flip. Sherri tags back in, and gives Robin a bodyslam. She gives Robin a suplex too, and that gets 3 at 6:55. Haha. That’s the most “Survivor Series” finish ever. A pin off of a suplex.
Yamazaki rushes back in, and Kai comes in as well, to give her a huge hair pull to knock her down. McIntyre tags in, gives out some kind of spinning cradle shit, and Martin comes in to get catapulted. Moolah makes her re-entrance, with a monkey flip. She grabs Martin and throws her around the ring, to the surprise of nobody. Martin covers for 2 after an elbow, then Moolah cradles for a 2 count. In comes Tateno, and Kai as well. Kaigets slammed down from the 2nd rope, but Tateno misses a dropkick. After a flying forearm given out by Kai, she tags in Sherri. Martin tags back in, as does Yamazaki, and Martin throws Yamazaki onto the apron. Then, she drags Moolah into the ring, only for the old lady to kick her ass and give her a clothesline. She slams Martin, and gives her a headlock takedown. sometimes, the moves in this match are moves for the sake of making moves. The Glamour Girls team up to give Moolah a double clothesline, and Moolah is out at 10:55. We’re evened up!
Martin and Tateno now clash, and I’m really hoping I got these two teams correct or this review is massively inaccurate. McIntyre tags in, and puts a Boston crab on Martin. That’s the first time a hold has been put on during this entire match. McIntyre then transitions into a surfboard, and let’s go for a dropkick. Sherri tags in, and gets dragged in. Sherri gives out a leg drop, and a somewhat dangerous looking piledriver. Kai tags in, and gives Yamazaki a double underhook suplex for 2. Like I said, this match is infurating. Mcintyre tags in, and gives Sherri a GIANT SWING! YES! McIntyre tries a springboard move into a victory roll again, and it gets 3 at 14:56!
Yamazaki tries a sunset flip from the second rope on a Glamour Girl, and it gets 2. Tateno tags in, and gives Martin a double underhook suplex for 2. Kai tags in, and Tateno gives her a hilarious looking bodyscissors. That was awesome. After yet another catapult by Kai, McIntyre tags in, and gives Kai a dropkick. McIntyre tries a third victory roll, but Kai drops her to the ground. Nicely done. That gets the pin at 17:24.
The Angels throw the Girls into each other, and then give out dual bodyslams. Then, they catapult Martin onto Kai. Ha. That was a nice move. Kai gives Tateno a bodyslam, and heads up to the top rope for a big splash, which she misses. Yamazaki tags in, and flies off the top rope with a bodypress for 3 at 18:38. That was extremely quick.
As we’re down to a 2 on 1 situation, this shouldn’t be long either. Martin is now in, and slams Yamazaki’s face into the canvas. She tries a fireman’s carry, and merely drops Yamazaki onto the canvas for a 2 count. That would hurt, I think. Martin is then dropped on her ass, and Tateno tags in. Yamazaki slams Martin, and Tateno comes in with a knee drop from the top rope. Then, they give Martin a double backdrop, and Jimmy Hart’s pissed about that. He gets on the apron, and Yamazaki dropkicks him. Tateno lands a flying clothesline from the top, and gets the pinfall win for her team at 20:17. Your survivors are the Jumping Bomb Angels!
My Thoughts: This was an interesting match, and quite entertaining as well. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it a great match, because it wasn’t. It was an exhibition of the best moves that each wrestler could do with no thought put towards structure. Everyone got their stuff in, and it made for a great way to kill 20 minutes. **1/2. Looking forward to the tag team match at the Royal Rumble, now. Those four were clearly the best four workers involved in this contest. This show is moving on very nicely, and although there are only four matches, it has been a joy to watch.
The Hart Foundation, Demolition, the Bolsheviks, the New Dream Team, and the Islanders (w/Jimmy Hart, Mr. Fuji, Slick, Johnny V, & Bobby Heenan) vs. Strike Force (WWF Tag Team Champions), the British Bulldogs, the Fabulous Rougeau Brothers, the Young Stallions, & the Killer Bees in a 20 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: When one man is eliminated, his tag team is eliminated. Pretty straight forward! The heel interview has too many people on camera, but at least the only manager on camera is Bobby Heenan. Otherwise, this would be absolutely ridiculous. The Bolsheviks are missing, because they’re singing the Soviet anthem to get people in the crowd fired up. Neidhart and Heenan are the only ones who get mic time, at least until Jimmy Hart shows up for his third match of the night! What a hard worker! Ventura is hilarious when trying to make Monsoon stand up for the anthem. Now, the babyface team has their own promo. Strike Force talks, and they aren’t spectacular out it. Good team spirit, though. There are FAR too many people on the ring apron. Some of the lighting in the arena went out, so the production quality of this match is interesting.
Match Review: The match starts with Volkoff and Martel, and Martel cradles him for 2. Volkoff comes back with some kicks, and a choke-lift. After a bodyslam, Volkoff tags in Zhukov, who misses an elbow drop. Martel gives him a dropkick and bodypress for 2, then a backdrop. Santana tags in, as Ventura buries both members of Strike Force. Ha. Santana hits Zhukov with the flying forearm, and pins him for the fall at 1:45. The Bolsheviks are out!
Ax rushes into the ring after the pin and commences a beatdown on Santana, culminating in a bodyslam. He misses an elbow drop, and Jacques Rougeau tags in. Jacques gives Ax a flying back elbow, then Dino Bravo tags in to be dropkicked. Here come the Killer Bees for some quick double teams, then Davey Boy tags in, as well as Smash. Santana tags back in, whips Smash into Dynamite’s boot, and Dynamite Kid tags in. Smash does something similar, and here comes Haku. He headbutts Dynamite, forcing him to tag out. Eventually Brian Blair comes in, as does Neidhart. This is absurd. Neidhart is given a drop toe-hold, and here comes Paul Roma. Looks more like a bodybuilder than a wrestler. Neidhart slams him, and here comes Smash. Smash bodyslams Roma, and tags in Ax for another bodyslam. Haku switches in, and gives Roma a clothesline. Tama tags in for the first time, and trades bombs with Roma, who shortly tags Powers. Tama tags in Smash, Smash tags in Ax, and I can hardly keep up. Powers gets bodyslammed, and tags in Jacques. Ax has his backdrop attempt blocked, and Jacques misses a springboard cross-body. Ax heads over to pin, and it gets 3 at 5:49. The Rougeau’s are eliminated, and Raymond never entered the match!
Dynamite comes in, and snap suplexes Ax, forcing him to tag out. Tama enters, and hits Dynamite with some clubbing blows until Powers tags in. Powers misses a charge to the corner, and it’s Neidhart’s turn. Neidhart lifts Powers in the air, and tags in Haku who gives him a double axehandle from the top for 2. Roma tags in, Haku misses a charge, and Ax tags in as well. Roma eats Ax’s boot, and finally Valentine makes his first appearance. That took quite a while. Valentine gives Roma a shoulder-breaker, getting 2. He also gives Roma a suplex, also for 2. Bravo makes the legal switch, and gives Roma a gutwrench suplex. He follows with a leg drop, gets 2, and here comes Smash. Blair enters too, and Smash misses a charge to the corner as well. That has happened so many times now. Dynamite gives Smash a clothesline for 2, and then gets kicked in the throat. Smash puts Dynamite on the ring apron, and they beat him up, but Smash pushes down the referee. That gets Demolition disqualified at 9:11.
Now, Bret Hart enters for the first time, which is hard for me to understand. He gives Dynamite a huge piledriver for 2, and that should have been worth the pinfall, I believe. The piledriver is an awesome move that should be taken more seriously. Dynamite and Bret fight in the corner, until Bret misses a full speed charge into it. Powers tags in once again, and gets kicked so Bret can make his exit. Tama tags in, and hits Powers with a flying clothesline. After a bodyslam, he tries a pump splash from the second rope, and misses. Martel re-enters, and gives Tama a backdrop. Martel is definitely over, here. He gives Tama a dropkick too, and goes for the Boston crab, in the heel corner. Neidhart clotheslines him from behind for 2, then his charge to the corner is blocked by Martel’s boots. Santana tags in, and hits Neidhart with the flying forearm for the closest of 2 counts. Great save by Bret, who came off the second rope with an elbow. That allows Neidhart to pin Santana for 3 at 12:04! Strike Force out this early is a big surprise, and this is some modicum of revenge for Strike Force having taken the Hart Foundation’s titles.
Roma comes into the ring, and tags Powers pretty much immediately. He misses a dropkick, and Haku comes into the ring with a dropkick of his own for 2. We’re down to 6 on 6, which is good because I can now see the action inside the ring much better. Valentine blocks a sunset flip, and gives Powers a bodyslam. He lands a forearm for 2, and tries to pin Powers again, only for his balls to land on Powers knees. That sounds very gross. Neidhart tags in and gives Powers a rope assisted clothesline, then Haku gives Powers a savate kick and backbreaker. After the 2 count, Valentine tags in again, and they land a double chop on Powers for 2. Powers suplexes Valentine, but still can’t tag out! Hart tags in, gives Powers a backbreaker, and Tama gives him an elbow drop from the top rope. Bret also gives Powers a suplex, which gets 2 yet again. Powers finally tags out, and it’s Roma who he tagged. Neidhart tags in as well, as the match is beginning to slow down, slightly. Valentine bodyslams Roma, and for whatever reason heads to the top rope, for a clubbing blow. Ha. It gets a 2 count. Hart tags in once again, and misses a dropkick. Dynamite tags in, and business should pick up. Bret gets launched into the turnbuckle for 2, and given a back suplex as well. Roma tags back in, and misses an elbow drop. Laughed hard at that. Blair and Haku tag in, and Blair is sweating despite doing very little. He backdrops Haku, and Davey tags in now. He headbutts Haku, which is pointless because of his hard head that all Islanders have, according to wrestling logic. Powers tags in once again, and misses a charge to the corner. Time for this sequence to be over, I think. Bret gives Powers a headbutt, causing him to tag out. Davey is in, and gives Bret a press slam. The crowd liked that. Haku tags in, and is dragged in by Davey. Davey gives him the RUNNING POWERSLAM, for a 2 count. Damn. Dynamite tags in, and they set Haku up for something big. Davey suplexes Haku, and Dynamite lands a legit flying headbutt on Haku. Dynamite gets the worst of it, gets kicked in the face, and pinned at 19:57. That flying headbutt was so idiotic, he landed flush with Haku’s head. No wonder Dynamite is in a wheelchair.
Roma gives Haku a dropkick upon entry, and another for a 2 count. Haku slams him, and tags in Bravo. Powers tags in as well, and Powers gets caught on a monkey flip attempt, with Bravo turning it into an inverted atomic drop. Valentine comes in, and drops Roma throat-first on the top rope. Good job. Neidhart comes back in, and he lands a chop for 2. Bret tags in, and slams Roma into the corner. I like when that happens. The babyface team kind of sucks at this point. The Stallions and the Bees…are not my two favorite teams. Bravo gives Powers a backdrop, then gives out a SIDE SUPLEX. Valentine switches in, and goes for the FIGURE-FOUR, only to be kicked away. Roma tags in, and gives Valentine a sunset flip from the top rope for 3 at 23:39! Great move.
Brunzell and Neidhart are now in the ring, and Blair tags in soon after. He hits Neidhart with an elbow, then tries a small package, which gets 2. The Bees give Neidhart a double elbow, and Brunzell lands a high knee for 2. Bret tags in, and things settle down a bit. The Bees work on the leg for a bit, then tag in Roma to do the same. Heenan is getting hilarious heat at ringside. Bret nails Roma with a hard punch, and tags out, bringing Tama in. After a headbutt, he brings in his partner for another double elbow. Haku slams Roma, and misses a leg drop. Brunzell tags in, and slams Haku in reply. After a leg drop, he covers for 2. Then he hip tosses Haku, and Bret switches in. At least three of the teams left have strong workers, and the fourth is athletic. Roma slams Bret, and heads up to the second rope for a fist drop, which he lands for a 2 count. Bret trips him, gives him a back suplex, and covers for 2. Haku and Tama take turns in the ring, and Haku misses a charge to the corner. Roma tries an arm drag, but can’t regain any control. Haku dropkicks him, and in comes Neidhart, to do the same! That gets 1. After a powerslam, the Anvil covers for 2, and Bret tags in again. So many tags in this match! Roma finally tags out after rolling between Bret’s legs, and Brunzell is the man in the ring. He hasn’t been in very much. After a collision, the referee gets distracted, and Brunzell goes for a bodyslam. Tama dropkicks Bret so that he lands on top of the Killer Bee, but Brunzell reverses into a cover at 30:27! Didn’t see that coming, but the Hart Foundation is out.
Haku attacks Brunzell as he celebrates, then Tama comes in with a double axehandle from the top. Tama puts Brunzell in a head vice, a smart hold considering the situation. Good psychology. Tama then hits Brunzell with a stiff elbow, and Haku comes in. He gives Brunzell a shoulder-breaker, getting a 2 count. Monsoon shouldn’t point out that wrestlers do their moves incorrectly, especially when they aren’t incorrectly executed. Haku has Brunzell in a nerve hold, controlling the match. When Tama heads in, he does the same thing. He prevents Brunzell from making the tag, switches out, and Haku is given a sunset flip for 2. Crowd bought the finish there. Haku replies with a suplex for 2, and the heat is building. Surprising considering that by any metric, these three teams are probably the ones with the least heat or fan backing. Brunzell makes the tag out to Powers, who gives Haku a backdrop. Roma is in, and gives Haku a powerslam for 2. Powerslams are great transition moves. Haku misses a rush to the corner, and Roma brings in Blair. Tama gives Blair a flying back elbow, and a bodyslam as well. After missing an elbow drop, Brunzell tags back in. He gives Tama a nearly botched backdrop, and a slam to Haku. He rams their heads into each other, and gives Tama his dropkick for 2. We have to be nearing the end. The Young Stallions decide to deal with Haku, and of course, that leads to the Killer Bees using their ridiculous gimmick when the referee’s back is turned. Blair puts his mask on, sunset flips Tama, and gets the win for his team at 37:14. The Killer Bees and Young Stallions are the survivors!
My Thoughts: Lot to go over here. I’m surprised that the two weakest babyface teams were the ones to finish the match. The Islanders did the best job of any team, I believe. They’re a very underrated team, and could perform in either a heel or babyface role. It’s unfortunate they weren’t around longer. As is usual with a match like this, a lot of people get sacrificed without being able to contribute much. The Rougeau’s were one example, as were Strike Force. My lone complaint was that this match was slightly longer than it should have been, but I understand that time had to be taken up so that everything would be timed perfectly. I’d give this ***3/4. Everyone should watch it once, so it’s recommended as well. No memorable finishes, so that’s a minor mark. Ultimately, the babyfaces needed to go over because of how the main event was supposed to go. You’ll also notice that a few falls taken were supposed to set up a set of house show matches. Before and after this show, Strike Force faced the Hart Foundation, and the Islanders feuded with the Bulldogs. Lastly, I have to say that the Killer Bees mask gimmick absolutely sucks, and I’d love to not see it again.
It’s time for a Ted DiBiase vignette. Yes! He craps on everyone who enjoyed Thanksgiving, and COUNTS HIS MONEY. This is a compilation of his greatest hits. Good way to get this guy over here time to recharge before the main event. Great way to get the fans in the arena an intermission period.
Cool pilgrim hat that Ventura was wearing upon return from the vignette. His Thanksgiving spirit is strong! After he and Monsoon are done talking up the main event, Craig DeGeorge has to interview Honky Tonk Man over at the interview platform. He gets major heat, and he also challenges Hulk Hogan. That’s not a good idea.
Andre the Giant, Rick Rude, Butch Reed, King Kong Bundy, and the One Man Gang (w/Bobby Heenan & Slick) vs. Hulk Hogan (WWF Champion), Don Muraco, Ken Patera, Bam Bam Bigelow, & Paul Orndorff (w/Sir Oliver Humperdink) in a 10 MAN SURVIVOR SERIES TAG TEAM MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: Muraco as a babyface replacing Superstar Billy Graham…I’m not cool with that Both of these teams are enormous in their own ways. Many muscled guys, and some fat wrestlers as well. I have seen this match in full before, but it has been quite a long time! The babyface team is now interviewed by Gene Okerlund, who looks like a midget compared to these monsters. Why was Hogan carrying the American flag to the ring? He needed a louder pop? Is it because Andre is a dirty foreigner? I don’t get it.
Match Review: Muraco and Rude will start the match. Muraco appears to be on a cycle at this time, and as such, he’s a lot harder to beat up. He boots Rude in the chest, and tags in Orndorff for an elbow from the top rope. Hogan tags in as well, and he gives Rude a clothesline and a trio of elbow drops. Bam Bam tags in for the first time, and after Hogan slams Rude, Bam Bam hits Rude with a flying headbutt. The fans LOVE Bigelow. Bigelow also gives Rude a press slam, then brings in Patera. Stupidly, Patera allows Rude to tag out, and here’s Reed. Reed gets clotheslined, bodyslammed, and taken down into a pin for 2. Muraco tags in and lands a dropkick, then tags in Orndorff. So many tags. Orndorff dropkicks Reed a few times, then forces Reed to miss a charge to the corner. Hogan tags in, he and Orndorff team up for a double clothesline, and Hogan DROPS THE LEG on Reed. That’s Reed out at 3:06.
The next fall starts with Andre confronting Hogan. Oh boy. The crowd is hyped for this confrontation, but Hogan tagged out when slapping hands with Patera. Amazing. That makes Hogan look so cowardly. Andre leaves as well, and we now have Patera in there with Bundy. Bundy gets hit with a clothesline, and Orndorff tags in. Gang tags in as well, for the first time. Gang and Orndorff brawl over in the corner, and Orndorff misses a charge to the other corner. Here comes Rude, who gets clotheslined by Mr. Wonderful. Orndorff also slams Rude, and drops an elbow for 2. Muraco tags in, gives out another clothesline, and Gang finds his way in. Patera does after Gang misses a rush to the corner, and Patera takes Gang down with a bodypress for 2. Didn’t expect that! Patera lands a high knee on a charge to the corner, and Gang takes over with a thumb to the eye. The heels beat up Patera thanks to a distraction provided by Gang, then Gang puts a front face-lock on Patera. It’s rare to see this much heat for any WWF match. Both men hit each other with a clothesline, Gang falls on top, and gets the pin for his team at 8:45. Weird finish used to protect Patera, there.
Hogan enters the match after Patera’s elimination, and he gives Gang a clothesline in the corner. Bigelow tags in to huge cheers, then he and Hogan give Gang a double big boot. Bigelow and Gang collide in the middle of the ring, and both guys switch out afterward. Rude and Orndorff fight, and Orndorff gives Rude a suplex and elbow. Then, Orndorff follows with a backdrop, and signals for the PILEDRIVER. Bundy nails Orndorff from behind, Rude rolls Orndorff up from behind, and gets the pin at 10:25. That was a short fall.
Muraco rushes into the ring during Rude’s celebration, and gives him an atomic drop. That was smart. Muraco follows with a clothesline, and tags in Bigelow to continue the bout. Bigelow suplexes Rude, and tags in THE HULKSTER. Hogan gives Rude a high knee, and brings in Muraco, who gives Rude a powerslam. He covers, and gets 3 at 11:20! Ventura has given away a lot of these finishes, I’ve noticed. Too many short, sneaky comments from him.
Bundy heads in and tries a knee drop on Muraco, but misses. Muraco goes to work on that leg, which is quite a good idea. Now that Rude is out, this thing has to slow down some. Muraco tries a bodyslam of Gang, and fails, which gets Gang a 2 count. Close call. Gang tosses Muraco into Andre for a headbutt, then lands a BIG SPLASH. That gets Gang a pinfall at 12:56. The slow build to Hogan vs. Andre continues!
Bigelow tries a sunset flip on Gang, but Gang sits on him. Ouch. Bundy tags in and gives Bigelow a clothesline that culminates in Bigelow doing a somersault sell, for a 2 count. That made Bundy look so good. Gang heads in again, and begins to choke Bigelow. Bundy makes another tag, and gives Bigelow a hard knee. After these guys switch in and out for a while, Andre makes an entrance! Bigelow tags out, and here we are. The entire match has built up to this, and Hogan brawls with Andre to the crowd’s delight. Hogan gets the better of it, and rams Andre into the turnbuckle a few times. Hogan goes for a clothesline, but Bundy trips him and pulls him out of the ring. Hogan slams Gang on the floor, but he’s been out there for quite a while. Unfortunately, Hogan gets counted out after slamming Bundy on the floor as well. Time of that was 18:05. What a downer!
Bigelow now has to take on three enormous men. Bundy decides to enter the ring first, and he gets nailed with a clothesline. Bigelow drops an elbow for 2, and follows that up with a big headbutt for another near fall. After a dropkick by Bigelow, he trips Bundy to the ground, and drops an elbow on the leg. Bigelow then forces Bundy to miss a charge, and he hits Bundy with a SLINGSHOT SPLASH for the pin at 20:32! It’s no exaggeration to say that this crowd loved Bigelow as much as Hogan. He’s keeping people from leaving to beat traffic all on his own!
Gang heads back into the ring, with every intention of finishing the match off. He clotheslines Bigelow for 2. Gang rams Bigelow into Andre’s boot, and then heads up top. That wasn’t smart. He misses a big splash, and Bigelow covers for 3 at 22:52.
Andre heads in after the fall, and puts a beating on Bigelow. Is anyone surprised? He has to go over Bigelow massively strong. Bigelow rolls away from Andre for a little bit, but he has to be completely gassed. Eventually, Bigelow misses a charge to the corner, and Andre smashes him in that corner. Andre gives Bigelow a weak looking double underhook suplex, and covers for the victory at 24:07. The sole survivor is Andre the Giant!
Of course, to wrap things up, Hulk Hogan must run in. He bashes Andre in the head with his title belt, and Andre subsequently makes his exit from ringside. Hogan poses in the ring, and that suffices for sending the fans home happy. That’s the show! Or is it? We cut to Gene Okerlund in the back, and he’s interviewing Andre and Heenan for the PPV audience. The crowd in the arena cannot see this promo, so their happiness is not destroyed in any way. As we know, they’re building to a singles rematch between Andre and Hogan. Now, after that promo, for real…that’s the show!
My Thoughts: Considering the wrestlers involved in this match, it comes as a surprise that this was the best match on the show. However, by my standards, it certainly was. I’d slap a **** rating on this match and recommend it as well. Any match engineered to get this much effort out of these enormous wrestlers, is a good match in my book. It furthered along a lot of storylines, and only one of the finishes wasn’t clean. That’s exactly what I need to see out of my Survivor Series matches. Bigelow was really over, and I’m looking forward to figuring out why that didn’t last.
With that in the books and being an obvious financial success in comparison to Starrcade, the WWF has established a distinctive edge financially and competitively that would last for quite some time. Their product is better in most facets at this time. They have better production, better booking, and make far more money. I feel bad for JCP, because all things considered, Starrcade should have been a success. They had the right matches made, but programming against the WWF was the end of their hopes. Fortunately, they have another PPV card coming up, and I’ll be checking that out soon. As far as Survivor Series goes, the concept was excellent, and booking was engineered to make sure that people were happy to have spent their money watching the show. That’s something every wrestling company should strive for. Without happiness, why watch? Next up for me after this excellent Survivor Series, is SNME #13.
Wrestling Time: 1:45:16. This show had to be heavy on wrestling, and it was light on celebrity interactions and bullshit. That’s a big bonus for me.
Best: The main event. Was an excellent match despite the limitations of some of the workers.
Worst: HTM’s interview before the main event…I guess? This show was great!
Card Rating: 9/10. This was a top echelon show, but not many people consider it to be one. I do.
