Sage Cortez
This should be quite a fun article to write. After Fall Brawl, WCW went back to their roots somewhat, providing good TV matches for people to watch. The lack of good storytelling still remained, but I don’t mind that so much. I’m completely unfamiliar with WCW at this time other than what I’ve watched leading up to this. Going to get right to it!
– Taped to air September 25th, 1993, on WCW Saturday Night, from Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia
Lord Steven Regal (WCW TV Champion, w/Sir William) vs. Ricky Steamboat
Pre-Match Thoughts: This was taped before Fall Brawl, so with that being the case, nobody brought the TV title out. That’s just how things had to be done. I’m excited to see these two continue having matches, but I expect this one won’t be as polished as the Fall Brawl match.
Match Review: Steamboat started things off with a sneak attack! He follows up with some chops, then beats Regal up in the corner. Steamboat throws Regal to the outside, then leaps off the apron with another chop. He rams Regal into the apron, then chops him from there again. Regal finally climbs back into the ring, and Steamboat rams him hard into the buckle. He takes Regal down with a kick to the chest, then suplexes him. Steamboat bites Regal for a while, then clotheslines him with the top rope. Steamboat’s headband is still on. He clotheslines Regal, then gives him two atomic drops. Regal’s selling is great. Regal then throws Steamboat down after Steamboat dodges a charge to the corner, so Regal’s able to go to work on Steamboat’s nose. He hip tosses Steamboat, then keeps hitting him with lefts to the nose. Eventually Steamboat catches him with a shot, but Regal rams him hard into the buckle. Regal stands on his face, and even after Steamboat gets up, he goes right back to that. Regal’s use of holds is so good too. He applies a cobra clutch of sorts, then pops Steamboat with an elbow. Back to the cobra clutch, until Steamboat fights out and back suplexes him. Steamboat fires off some right hands, then comes off the second rope with a cross body that gets 2. He then throws Sir William from the top rope onto Regal, and rolls Regal up for the victory after 10:04! After the match, he clears Regal and Sir William out of the ring, then puts on William’s bowler hat and takes his umbrella.
My Thoughts: This was pretty good, and I bet some people would find this better than the Fall Brawl match. The story they told was solid, and I liked the way the match finished. The crowd was really happy to see Steamboat win this one, and they really didn’t like Regal at all. **3/4, that was a good match. The more Regal matches, the better.
– Taped to air October 2nd, 1993, on WCW Saturday Night, from Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia
Arn Anderson and Paul Roma vs. The Nasty Boys (w/Missy Hyatt) for the WCW Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I suppose this is the rematch for Anderson and Roma. I didn’t care for the first match at all, but I’ll give this a fair chance. At the very least, it appears to be shorter.
Match Review: The match starts with Arn shouldering Sags down, and Sags leaving the ring as a result. Missy Hyatt is so distracting. Arn rolls Sags up for 2, then Sags retreeats to the corner. Knobbs makes a tag in, and Roma wants in there too. When that happens, they slug it out until Knobbs shoulders Roma down a few times. Roma comes back with a powerslam, and it gets 2. He hits Knobbs with a dropkick to send him to the outside, as the Atlanta crowd chants “whoomp there it is” over and over again as they tend to do. Arn makes a tag in and beats Knobbs up, then takes him down with a back elbow. Arn wraps Knobbs’ left leg around the post, then tags in Roma to jump on that leg. Roma drops an elbow on Knobbs’ leg, then it’s time for a commercial.
We come back and Arn has a lock on Sags’ left leg, then Knobbs runs in there and throws Arn to the outside. Sags picks Arn up, but Arn posts him. Arn accidentally clotheslines the post, so now he’s hurt. Sags grabs Arn and posts him again, then Knobbs takes that arm into the railing. Knobbs hits Arn with a double axehandle from the apron, then puts him back into the ring. That took a while. Sags knee drops Arn’s arm for a 2 count, then puts a wristlock on him. Arn tries to power out, but Knobbs attacks him from behind. Knobbs tags in and drops some elbows on Arn for 2, then puts an armbar on him. The arm work continues for a while, and both Nasties are able to cut Arn off from the tag. I’m bored again. Knobbs drops an elbow on Arn for 2, then goes back to the armbar. Sags also picks Arn up for a hammerlock slam, which I haven’t seen in a while. On the second try, Arn counters with a reverse DDT! I love that move. Arn makes the big tag to Roma, who does a great ring clearing sequence with dropkicks and clotheslines. He slams the Nasties too, then throws them into each other. After a noggin-knocker, all four men are in there. Arn drops Knobbs with a SPINEBUSTER, then Roma lands the big splash from the top. Sags stops the cover by taking off his boot and hitting Roma in the head with it, then Knobbs covers for the win at 17:25.
My Thoughts: That match was extremely similar to the first one, but it was a little better. The heat sequence wasn’t as long or as boring. I think Roma was good in his appearances in this match, but the finish made him look stupid again. That being said, it was the finish everyone would expect. I hope these two teams don’t have more matches with each other because they don’t mesh as well as I’d like. **.
– Taped to air October 9th, 1993, on WCW Worldwide, from Disney Studios in Orlando, Florida
The Hollywood Blonds vs. 2 Cold Scorpio and Ron Simmons
Pre-Match Thoughts: Glad to see the Blonds on television again, but this bout is heavily misleading. It was taped all the way back in July! Regardless, I won’t pass up the chance to watch something that could be good. It’s also different than watching the usual guys that are on here. Simmons and Scorpio is a strange pairing. What happened was, Simmons confronted the Blonds after they had beaten up Marcus Bagwell. The way the ring spins around in this studio before the matches start would drive me nuts.
Match Review: Austin and Scorpio will start the match off. They lock up, and Scorpio goes to a headlock until Austin reaches the ropes. Austin reaches the ropes during a wristlock as well, then slaps a headlock on Scorpio and takes him down. Scorpio’s attempt to get up is met the same way, then Scorpio nails him with a dropkick when he’s finally able to. Austin leaves the ring, then Simmons makes a tag in. Austin pokes him in the eye, then tags in Pillman who does the same to Simmons. Pillman and Simmons trade shots for a while, with Simmons ultimately getting the better of it. Simmons then picks Pillman up and throws him into the corner, leading him to beg off and tag out. When Austin gets in there, he fakes like he wants to shake hands. Instead he kicks Simmons in the gut, then tries to suplex him only for it to be reversed. Simmons taunts Austin a bit, but Austin rams him into the buckle. Simmons comes back with a backdrop, so Austin wants to shake hands again. Austin pokes him in the eye instead, then tags in Pillman for a facebuster. Pillman goes to the second rope, but Simmons catches him and press slams him. Simmons heads up top himself, and flies down with nothing because Pillman moves out of the way. Austin tags in and knee drops Simmons, then the Blonds get in some double teaming. Pillman winds up in there again, and chokes Simmons with the ropes. Pillman goes up top, and Simmons hits him on the way down. Simmons drops Pillman with a facebuster of his own, then Scorpio makes the hot tag. He hits Austin with a lot of punches, a dropkick, and then a splash in the corner. A back suplex follows that, then Scorpio goes up top and his splash gets 2. All four guys are in there, and Scorpio has Austin rolled up. Pillman then clotheslines Scorpio, and Austin grabs the tights for the pin after 10:24.
After the match, the Blonds go to work for a while and beat up their opponents. Eventually Thunderbolt Patterson and Ice Train run down for the save. LOL.
My Thoughts: This wasn’t bad, but I really hated the way Simmons was made to look like an absolute idiot. Falling for the shake hands trick? Really? That’s so out of character for him and doesn’t make any psychological sense with the match and preceding angle they had. Anyway, this finish looked almost exactly like that in the previous match I watched. So, not going further than **1/2.
– Taped to air October 9th, 1993, on WCW Saturday Night, from Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia
Arn Anderson vs. Lord Steven Regal (w/Sir William) for the WCW Television Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: I’m really looking forward to this bout. These guys have styles that would seem to go together perfectly and for whatever reason I’ve never watched them wrestle before. Of course that means I’m extremely excited because they’re also two of my favorites.
Match Review: Arn wants to shake hands, but Regal doesn’t want to touch a dirty American. When they lock up, that’s exactly how he reacts. Arn pushes him into the ropes and they break clean, then Regal grabs onto his left arm. Arn reverses, and drops a bunch of knees on that left arm. Regal tries a full nelson, which Arn is able to reverse to his own. Regal trips him, but Arn pops him with an elbow and drags him back to the canvas. The crowd seems awfully patriotic. Regal trips Arn, but Arn puts a hammerlock on him with minimal problem at all. When Regal breaks it, he takes Arn down with a drop toe-hold and Arn reverses to a hammerlock again. Regal gets up and throws Arn to the outside, where Sir William can get in a jab with the umbrella. On the inside, a rolling senton from Regal gets 2. Regal goes to town on the left arm, and also headbutts Arn in the midsection. Regal knees Arn in the gut to block a charge to the corner, then drops Arn with a butterfly suplex for 2. Sir William gets in another umbrella shot, and a third one hits Arn in the head. Arn hits Regal with a forearm for 2, but Regal comes back with a neck crank. Arn tries a sunset flip when he gets up, but Regal blocks that and covers for 2. Back to the armbar now, until Arn makes it to his feet. He trips Regal and stomps him for a while, then misses a charge to the corner again. Arn hits Regal in the gut a few times, then trips him and kicks him there. Arn signals for the SPINEBUSTER, but instead he knees Regal in the gut for 2. One minute remains in the time limit, so Arn goes with a gutbuster for 2. Arn pounds on Regal, then Regal blocks the SPINEBUSTER. Arn blocks a powerbomb, then there’s the SPINEBUSTER. Sadly, the time limit expires at 15:00 right when the referee counts the cover.
My Thoughts: I don’t know exactly what to think of this, honestly. It could have been better, and I thought the timing of the finish wasn’t the best. Obviously I shouldn’t criticize too much given that these two did have a lot of special matches and I’m just a guy sitting here. The start was really good, I thought. Arn coming out on top of the younger guy when they’d trade holds made a lot of sense, but I don’t think this was anything more than ***.
Ricky Steamboat vs. Vader (w/Harley Race) for the WCW Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: There was an ongoing lawsuit about the “Big Van” portion of his name. Now it’s just Vader. I’m very eager to see how this turns out. I don’t know what compelled WCW to book matches like this on television, I think there was actual money in this one. I’m glad they did it though. Vader hadn’t been on television too much the last few months. I am HYPED.
Match Review: As we come back from a commercial, Steamboat’s in the middle of suplexing Race and putting a figure-four on him. As that’s going on, Vader splashes Steamboat to break the hold. Vader hits Steamboat with his standing splash, then beats him up in the corner. Vader hits Steamboat with an avalanche, then CHOKESLAMS him. Vader clotheslines him next, then throws him out to the floor where Race posts him. Vader walks out of the ring and press slams Steamboat onto the rail, then Race sneaks in another shot. Back into the ring now, and Vader picks Steamboat up and slams him. Vader goes to the second rope, and down he comes with a big splash. He drops an elbow on Steamboat, but has something wrong with his hand. There’s some great selling here by Steamboat. Vader takes a charge at Steamboat, but flies over the top and out to the floor. Vader gets back in there, goes to the second rope, and Steamboat clotheslines him on the way down. Steamboat hits him with some big chops as the crowd goes crazy, then kicks him in the gut. Steamboat knocks Vader down with a double chop, then takes Vader over with a suplex. A back suplex follows that, and Steamboat gets 2. An enzuigiri by Steamboat knocks Vader out of the ring, then Steamboat dives off the top rope with a dive onto both Race and Vader. Now Steamboat grabs the railing, and picks it up to crush Vader with! Back to the ring again, and Steamboat heads up top for a cross body that gets 2. Steamboat winds up on the floor when Vader kicks out, then climbs back in. Vader then accidentally clotheslines the referee, so Race hops in the ring to attack Steamboat from behind. Steamboat takes care of the old man, and throws him into Vader. Steamboat back suplexes Race, then Yoshi Kwan runs into the ring and Vader’s able to attack Steamboat from behind. Kwan bodyslams Steamboat, then Vader goes to the second rope. CACTUS JACK runs out with a SHOVEL, hits Vader in the back with it, and that’s the end of the whole thing. The match was 9:28.
My Thoughts: This was a hell of a lot of fun, and even though it was a typical Vader match, it was better than a lot of them because he had the right opponent. I really enjoyed that. Steamboat’s selling was perfectly in place, as was his comeback. Vader did some great work here as well. I really liked the rail spots as well. ***1/4.
– Taped to air October 16th, 1993, on WCW Saturday Night, from Center Stage Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia
Ricky Steamboat vs. Vader (w/Harley Race) for the WCW Championship in a LUMBERJACK MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: I don’t recall seeing many lumberjack matches in WCW, so this was a weird gimmick match choice. This was supposed to ensure that the match wouldn’t end the same way the previous week’s match did. The lumberjacks I see are Sting, the Shockmaster, Arn Anderson, Maxx Payne, the Equalizer, Harlem Heat, Col. Rob Parker, Sid Vicious, Davey Boy Smith, and Dustin Rhodes.
Match Review: Don’t know why they called this a human cage match. When they lock up, Vader shoves Steamboat hard into the ropes. A second time he shoves Steamboat to the outside, and Harlem Heat throws his ass back in the ring. Vader beats Steamboat up, then clotheslines him. Vader splashes him in the corner, then there’s another clothesline. Vader corners Steamboat again, then throws him out to the floor. Back into the ring he goes, so Vader suplexes him for 2. Vader clotheslines Steamboat over the top, then tries to follow him out and crashes into the rail. Both guys get thrown back into the ring, then Steamboat tries a sunset flip that Vader blocks. Vader misses the butt splash, so Steamboat gives him four of those. Maybe five. The way Jesse makes fun of the Shockmaster all the time is too good. Sid gets on the apron to distract the referee, but Vader accidentally takes out his manager. Steamboat DDT’s and splashes Vader, then puts him on the top rope for something. Oh boy. He DDT’s Vader from there, and slaps a figure-four on him. Vader makes the ropes, misses a charge to the corner, and Steamboat chops away at him. Vader comes back with his own punches, but Steamboat gives him a back suplex for 2. A big splash gets 2 for him, but Vader comes back with some headbutts. He slams Steamboat, rips his mask off, and goes to the second rope for a clothesline. Vader goes to a chinlock, then transitions to an armbar. After that, he takes Steamboat down with a Samoan drop that gets 2. Vader misses a splash, so Steamboat goes up top and flies down with a chop to the head. He dropkicks Vader too, then goes up top again for a cross body that gets 2. Steamboat goes to the apron and slingshots in with another chop, but misses a charge to the corner by running into a big boot. Steamboat does get in some right hands, but Vader stops him with one big shot and clotheslines him again. Vader looks a little winded. He back suplexes Steamboat, which gets 2. Vader clotheslines Steamboat out to the apron, and we nearly get a fight between lumberjacks. Vader throws Steamboat to the outside again, and this time Harlem Heat stomps on him. We get another near brawl, but when Steamboat gets to the apron, he goes for a sunset flip that Vader blocks again. Vader’s butt splash misses again, as this match has fallen apart for the most part. Steamboat tries ANOTHER sunset flip, but this time Vader sits down on him. I’m slightly annoyed right now. Vader slams Steamboat again, then says the match is over. He goes to the second rope for the Vader Bomb, but Steamboat moves. Steamboat goes to the second rope for a double stomp, then chops away until his cross body takes them both to the outside. The lumberjacks fight over throwing Vader back in, and while that’s going in, Sid sneaks into the ring and POWERBOMBS Steamboat. Vader splashes, covers, and that’s gonna be it after 18:37.
My Thoughts: Sadly, that wasn’t as good as the first match. The obvious reason why is that both guys got tired from working a match together earlier on this taping. Towards the end, everything slowed way down and I felt like they didn’t have such a good vibe going. I also really don’t like the finish. You mean to tell me that nobody else saw what happened? No way. **3/4. Honestly, I really thought this was going to be four stars.
– Taped to air October 23rd, 1993, on WCW Saturday Night, from Columbus, Georgia
2 Cold Scorpio and Marcus Alexander Bagwell (w/Teddy Long) vs. The Nasty Boys (w/Missy Hyatt) for the WCW Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I watched a match between these four recently and it was pretty good. Will this one be? Only one way to find out. I’m interested to know why WCW would do a match like this right before their PPV. Also, why is Teddy Long there now? I’m super confused.
Match Review: Scorpio and Knobbs lock up, and Knobbs goes straight to the eyes. He rams Scorpio into Sags’ boot, then Scorpio dodges a charge to the corner and hits Knobbs with a spinning heel kick. He slams him as well, then a STANDING MOONSAULT gets 2. He takes Knobbs down with a drop toe-hold, then slaps an armbar on him. Bagwell tags in, and they hit Knobbs with a double facebuster. I guess Long is mentoring these two. Bagwell shoulderblocks Knobbs for 2, then armbars him. He drops a leg on that arm as well, then tags in Scorpio for a leg drop from the second rope. Bagwell gets back in there, but Knobbs knees him in the gut and tags out. Sags enters and beats Bagwell up, then bites him. That’s gross. Bagwell comes back with a flying back elbow for 2, then brings in Scorpio for a double elbow and double dropkick. Scorpio dropkicks Sags again, then goes up top for a big splash that misses. Knobbs decides to grab Scorpio and throw him over the top from the apron, then he rams Scorpio’s back into the apron. Sags hits Scorpio with a chair too, then switches in for a double axehandle. Knobbs tags in for an elbow drop to the back, and that gets 2. He gutwrench suplexes Scorpio, then drops a leg on him for another 2 count that Bagwell breaks up. Knobbs puts an abdominal stretch on Scorpio, but when Scorpio hip tosses him out of it, he’s easily able to tag out. Sags drops a few elbows on Scorpio, then whips him hard into the buckle for 2. Sags puts a bear hug on him, which Scorpio gets out of with headbutts only to be trapped again. Sags then shoots Scorpio into the ropes, but Scorpio drives him backwards into the canvas. Scorpio hits Sags with an enzuigiri, and there’s the tag. Bagwell has clotheslines and slams for both opponents, then cradles Knobbs up even though he isn’t the legal man. All four guys are in there, and Sags takes out Scorpio with a shoulderblock. Knobbs is still not the legal guy, so Sags jumps off the top with a double axehandle onto Bagwell. Sags goes for the cover, but he picks Bagwell up. Huh? I HATE that. Sags picks Bagwell up for a slam onto a chair, but Long grabs the chair. Scorpio then dropkicks his partner on top of Sags, and Bagwell gets the win for his team at 14:44.
My Thoughts: That’s a pretty obvious one day title switch. They gave it away when Schiavone said there was going to be a rematch at Halloween Havoc no matter what. The thing was, in the process they made Scorpio and Bagwell look pretty weak. Given that the Nasties would have won if they merely covered him, one assumes that’s all they’d have to do at Halloween Havoc. Just don’t pick him up. **1/4, I don’t think anyone cared much.
WCW was a complete trainwreck creatively, and I think that’s clear to see when I don’t review any of the angles. Fact is, there really weren’t any. It’s hard to watch a company’s stuff when they’re in that state and that’s why I took a few months off doing it. It was just too boring. Next up for me, it’s Halloween Havoc 1993. I’ve heard some good things about that show, so one can hope that it gives me some interesting things to watch and think about.
Best: Vader vs. Ricky Steamboat.
Worst: Why was Rick Rude not on any of this shit?
