Sage Cortez
It’s finally time for another WCW PPV, and this one is Halloween Havoc 1993. They’ll be spinning the wheel and making the deal for the main event, but there’s a lot of other interesting matches on this. Steve Austin separated from Brian Pillman to face Dustin Rhodes for the US Championship, I’d like to check that out. The Nasties also lost their tag titles the day before. Let’s get to it!
– October 24th, 1993, from Lakefront Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana
This year’s Halloween Havoc opening video was especially corny. Like, man. It was also way too long and I felt weird while watching it. It made Tony Schiavone look like a complete creeper. Eventually he peeled his face off to reveal some kind of monster. Okay. Let’s move on. Of course, Tony and Jesse are our hosts.
The Equalizer and Harlem Heat vs. The Shockmaster, Ice Train, and Charlie Norris
Pre-Match Thoughts: This sounds positively horrible. Awesome that Harlem Heat has their regular music now. When I heard it, it made me happy. It’s incredible that Booker T had it for nearly his whole career. I want the Shockmaster to trip and fall over in the aisle. Anything other than a Harlem Heat victory would be unconscionable.
Match Review: So much mass in this ring and so many bad wrestlers especially at this point in time. Booker was the only one to ever be good, and he starts with Ice Train. When they lock up, Train runs him over. Booker tries a bodyslam, but Train slams him instead. Train also clotheslines him, so Stevie Ray tags in. Stevie gets rammed into the buckle, then Norris makes a tag in. Norris comes off the second rope with a chop, but Stevie goes to the eyes and Booker tags back in. Norris arm drags him, then the Shockmaster tags in. Oh boy. After some awful headbutts, he drops a leg on Booker’s left arm. Train gets back in and Stevie kicks him in the back, then Booker hits Train with a dropkick. Stevie tags in again, and they drop Train with a double side slam for 2. Equalizer finally tags in, and his shitty offense of face rakes and kicks is sold well. Train drops him with a facebuster, then he makes the tag out to Norris. These guys are so green. They do a collision spot that really sucks, so the Shockmaster tags in. Shockmaster runs Equalizer over a few times, then slams him while nearly falling down. Train tags in for a double elbow, then Norris chops Equalizer for 2. Norris misses a charge to the corner, so Equalizer hits him with a big clothesline. Stevie tags in, slams Norris, and covers for 2. Booker tags back in for a double clothesline, then knee drops Norris for 2. Booker hits Norris with a kick to the head for 2, then slams him. He goes up to the second rope, but his diving headbutt misses. Shockmaster makes the tag in and cleans house, but Booker attacks him from behind. Shockmaster puts Booker in a bear hug, then drops down with a slam that makes everyone look stupid due to inaction when the cover should have been broken. Of course, Booker eats the pin at 9:48.
The brawl after the match between Shockmaster and Equalizer was beyond terrible.
My Thoughts: This was not good at all, but the similarity to the Fall Brawl finish was incredible. I thought it could have been a lot worse than it was, and I never want to watch it again given the finish. I never ever would have expected that Booker would become a huge star. It’s funny how legends get their start. 1/2*.
So, Terry Taylor is going to be a second referee for the Rick Rude/Ric Flair match. Come on. What is this stipulation even needed for? I think it has the potential to make Flair look pretty bad. Or conversely, get him out of the match easily with a good excuse for losing.
Paul Orndorff (w/the Assassin) vs. Ricky Steamboat
Pre-Match Thoughts: Originally this was going to be Yoshi Kwan vs. Ricky Steamboat, but on the surface at least, we get something better. Kwan had interfered in a match where Steamboat could have beaten Vader and won gold. I’d forgotten about the Assassin coming out with Orndorff and managing him temporarily. This Steamboat match feels odd because he was just doing something better.
Match Review: The Paula chants are loud, wow. Orndorff goes on the attack, then backdrops Steamboat and lands more forearms. Orndorff hits Steamboat with an elbow smash, but Steamboat gets up and cradles him for 2. Orndorff comes back with a clothesline, so Steamboat rolls to the outside. Orndorff then clobbers him and rams him into the ramp, where he slams him. Steamboat tries to run from the ramp to the ring, but Orndorff moves away from the dive and back suplexes him for 2. Steamboat goes to a hammerlock when he gets up, then a cross body gets 2 for him. Steamboat then wraps Orndorff’s arm around the post, and throws his body into the post as well. Stemaboat then throws Orndorff shoulder-first into the rail, and finally everything goes back in the ring. Steamboat drops some elbows on the arm, then tries to break Orndorff’s fingers. Orndorff gets out of that, then misses an elbow drop. Steamboat clotheslines him a few times, then a chop knocks Orndorff out of the ring. Steamboat follows and rams Orndorff into some steel steps, then the referee corrects Steamboat, which allows Orndorff to grab Steamboat and ram him into the apron. The two guys trade shots, then Orndorff throws Steamboat over the rail! Back in they go after a little more brawling, and Orndorff flies off the top with an elbow to the head. An elbow smash then gets a 2 count, after which Orndorff and Steamboat collide with each other. Orndorff trips Steamboat and tries to pin him, but Orndorff’s hands are on the ropes. The referee kicks his feet off them, so Steamboat covers for 2. Steamboat throws Orndorff out to the ramp, then heads up top for a chop. Steamboat follows up with an atomic drop that sends Orndorff into the ring, then comes off the top with another one of those chops to the head. After some covers that get 2, Orndorff drops Steamboat with a facebuster. Orndorff goes for the PILEDRIVER, but Steamboat reverses to a backdrop. Orndorff then bridges out of a cover, and Steamboat trips him for a slingshot into the buckle. Steamboat rolls Orndorff up for 2, then back suplexes him. Up top he goes again, but this time he comes down with a cross body. The Assassin gets on the ring apron and stops a winning count, then Steamboat shoulders Orndorff down for a 2 count. Another shoulderblock gets 2, then Steamboat nearly throws the referee over the top out of anger. While the referee is stuck in the ropes, Orndorff ducks and Steamboat dives over the top. Now Assassin reaches in his jacket and puts something in his mask, then headbutts Steamboat. Of course, Steamboat gets counted out after 18:36.
My Thoughts: This was a really good match, but I don’t understand why it was done with the intent of getting somebody like the Assassin over. It’s actually inexplicable. I was surprised by how good the match was given how many pedestrian efforts I’d watched of late. This was certainly not that. I thought both guys worked extremely hard, and Steamboat’s offense made the match feel like somewhat of a squash in a way. Yet he lost. ***1/4, don’t get the finish at all.
The British Bulldog vs. Lord Steven Regal (w/Sir William) for the WCW Television Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: Incredible the way they’ve used Bulldog to this point. They consistently scaled him down the card and now he’s down here. He did get one decent win over Vader, but other than that he hadn’t done much of anything. I wonder if these two will have good chemistry. Bulldog had wrestled in the US/Japan for a super long time so we can’t assume he was prepared to work with Regal. I nearly forgot to mention that TV title matches now had a 15 minute time limit.
Match Review: They lock up, and Regal finds Bulldog gross. Regal grabs onto a wristlock, but Bulldog flips out of that and reverses. Regal reverses as well, and puts Bulldog on the canvas. Bulldog kips up, and they keep things going until Bulldog breaks free. Regal trips Bulldog and goes back to the wristlock, only for it to be reversed once more. This is fun. Regal tries a hip toss, but Bulldog cartwheels out of it. Regal does the same to him, so Bulldog monkey flips him. Regal comes back with an arm drag, then we get some counters that go really well. Hard to describe them, but Bulldog winds up with an armbar as they go into the ropes. Regal applies a cravate, but Bulldog gets out and monkey flips him again. That wasn’t a good monkey flip. Bulldog decides to go to a surfboard, which isn’t what I expected to see today. Sir William distracts Bulldog, so Regal attacks the challenger from behind. Bulldog blocks a backdrop, then a cross body gets 2. Bulldog runs straight into a knee, so Regal covers for 2. Regal’s rolling senton gets 2, then he puts the knee on Bulldog’s belly and hooks up his head. That’s unique. Regal hits Bulldog with some European uppercuts to put him down, then goes back to that earlier hold. Bulldog tries a sunset flip and gets 2, but Regal gets up first and drops a knee on him for his own 2 count. Regal hits Bulldog with some elbows to the gut, and we’re near the end of this one I think. Bulldog gets up and clotheslines him, then misses a charge to the corner. Regal goes to a chinlock, and there are three minutes left. Bulldog powers to his feet, but Regal keeps hold of him with a cobra clutch. Bulldog gets out by putting Regal on the apron, but he gets hit once again. Bulldog then kips up, and rolls Regal up for 2. We have one minute left, and Bulldog nails Regal with a clothesline. He suplexes Regal after that, and picks him up for the POWERSLAM. Regal kicks out at 2, and Bulldog looks mad. Bulldog PILEDRIVES Regal, but the time limit expires during the cover and that’s it after 15:00.
My Thoughts: My question about Bulldog working Regal’s style was answered quickly, as the match started out fast and the two appeared to have good chemistry. I don’t think the match finished all that well and the finish was weak, but I liked what I saw. I don’t really know how they messed the powerslam spot up, but they did and that’s how things go sometimes. **3/4. This show has started pretty well all things considered. Especially with it being a 1993 WCW show and all that.
It’s time to SPIN THE WHEEL AND MAKE THE DEAL. I don’t see a Coal Miner’s Glove match on there this year. Vader is out there for the spin, and this year the wheel is obviously rigged. It slowed down SO MUCH before the Texas Death Match.
Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes for the WCW United States Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: These guys had a match with each other at Halloween Havoc ’91 and I liked it a lot. Neither man is anywhere near as green as they were then, so it’s really interesting for me to see how this is going to go. I assume that Dustin will retain his title, but I don’t remember and don’t really know. That always makes things more fun. I believe the story was that Col. Robert Parker got Austin the title shot. Dustin kind of looked bad physically. Jesse called him gay due to his outfit.
Match Review: Austin smacks Rhodes in the face to start this off, then they lock up and tumble into the corner. Austin slaps Rhodes again, then rolls to the outside. When he gets back in, he trips Rhodes and tries for a Boston crab only for Rhodes to swing him off. We nearly get a test of strength, but I guess not. Now Austin nails Rhodes with a back elbow, and hits him on the back of the head a few times. Austin covers for 2, then picks Rhodes up and slams him. Rhodes comes back with some punches, then Austin blocks a back suplex and puts a headlock on him. Austin shoulders Rhodes down, then Rhodes comes back with a nice dropkick. Austin fires up to his feet and hits Rhodes with some chops, then misses a charge to the corner and flies over the top rope. That was a big bump. When Austin gets in there, Rhodes goes straight to work on Austin’s presumably gimpy knee. Rhodes goes to a knee-breaker, then drops some knees on that leg. Time for a toe-hold, then Dustin locks that leg up until Austin makes the ropes. Austin then goes to the eyes, and kicks Rhodes in the balls. Don’t see that happen much in those days. Austin takes Rhodes down and drops his non-injured knee on him, then his cover gets 2. Austin slams Rhodes next, then drops a really big knee on him for 2. After some punches and slaps, Rhodes comes back with his own and backdrops Austin. Rhodes clotheslines Austin for 2, then says it’s the end. He goes for the BULLDOG, but Austin crotches him on the top rope. That was interesting. Austin slinks over to him and Rhodes winds up in tree of woe position, so Austin kicks away at him. Those were stiff. Rhodes rolls Austin up for 2, and a cradle also gets 2. Austin goes for the STUN GUN, but Dustin punches him a lot to stop it. Austin rolls out to the floor and Rhodes gives chase, but Austin grabs him for a weak spinebuster when they get in the ring. He covers Rhodes for 3 with the feet on the ropes, but the referee saw it. So, Austin then looks for Dustin’s title belt. While he’s doing that, Rhodes rolls Austin up for 3 at 14:24. Now Austin finds the title belt more easily and waffles Dustin with it to bust him open. Austin decides to leave with the title too, just as Rick Rude did.
My Thoughts: This just didn’t work for me as well as the last two matches did. I also thought the finish was weak, just like the last two matches. Seems to be a trend here. I’m sure these two could have had a better match as well. It just didn’t flow as well as it could have. I thought Austin’s injury detracted from the match a little bit, and Dustin’s body language really made me think he was going to lose. **1/4.
The Nasty Boys (w/Missy Hyatt) vs. 2 Cold Scorpio and Marcus Bagwell (w/Teddy Long) for the WCW Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I’ve grown tired of typing out Bagwell’s long middle name. The title change to put the titles on Scorpio and Bagwell was a total joke and I hated it. Of course, everyone with a brain had to think the Nasties would regain their titles. If Bagwell and Scorpio get a chance to do their thing, this could be really good. Missy chopped all her hair off. That’s weird. I don’t like babyface managers because they so often distract from the accomplishments of the wrestlers.
Match Review: The Nasties grab the belts, but Bagwell and Scorpio then hit them with them. Bagwell then grabs Missy and kisses her, which gets the crowd amped up. Big “whoomp there it is” chant after that. Sags and Bagwell start the match proper, and Sags works him over in the corner. Sags drops a knee on him, then Knobbs tags in for an elbow drop. Sags makes another tag in, and the Nasties miss a double big boot, so Bagwell dropkicks them both. Then Scorpio flies off the top with a gigantic cross body on them both, and they clear the ring with clotheslines. This crowd is HYPED. Scorpio then does a sick plancha after leaping off Bagwell’s back, which takes the Nasties out again. When the match restarts, it’s Knobbs and Bagwell in there. Bagwell takes Knobbs down with a drop toe-hold, then Scorpio tags in for a leg drop. Scorpio does a victory roll type roll-up for 2, then takes Knobbs down with an armbar. Knobbs ducks under a double clothesline, so they take him out with a double shoulderblock for 2. Bagwell slaps the armbar on as well, then a Thesz press gets 2. Sags makes a tag in, but Bagwell hip tosses him. Scorpio gets in as well, and they take Sags down with a double hip toss and double elbow drop that gets 2. Scorpio has an armbar on Sags, who forearms him a lot to break it. Scorpio flies off the second rope with a clothesline on a botched move, then dropkicks Sags and goes back to the armbar. Bagwell gets in there and keeps it up, but winds up trapped in the wrong corner and gets worked over. Knobbs and Sags wreck the guy with a stun gun, then Missy slaps Bagwell as hard as she can. She meant that one. Sags then back suplexes Bagwell on the floor, which is quite rare to see. Knobbs suplexes Bagwell when he’s back in the ring, and that gets 2. Sags tags in for some hard shots to the back, then slams him. Sags drops a leg on Bagwell for 2, then Knobbs gets in there for some elbow drops. Knobbs goes to a chinlock, then Sags drops an elbow too. He throws Bagwell hard into the corner, then drops a leg on his crotch. Ouch. Sags spits on Bagwell too, then Knobbs makes a switch in with the referee distracted to cut Bagwell off from any offense. Knobbs drops a leg on the back of his head, then puts a bear hug on him. After a tag, Sags gets in there and levels Bagwell with a clothesline for 2. Knobbs makes another tag, but Bagwell blocks the backdrop by pulling hair and driving Knobbs into the mat. Bagwell makes the tag, but the referee doesn’t see it at all. So, the Nasties go for a double team, but Bagwell dodges a charge from Knobbs and hits Sags with a clothesline.
The tag is made, and Scorpio goes crazy in there. He hits the guys with wheel kicks, dropkicks, every kind of kick. Scorpio then splashes Knobbs in the corner, and a moonsault press gets 2 as Sasgs elbow drops his partner. Missy gets on the apron again, but this time Long goes over to grab her. Sags grabs Long, so Bagwell gives Sags and Missy a noggin-knocker. Scorpio boots Knobbs in the face at the same time, then hits him with the 450 SPLASH. Now Sags hits Scorpio with his boot as the referee clears the ring, and Knobbs covers for the victory after 14:41.
My Thoughts: I loved this, the finish didn’t bother me at all either. This was really well done. The action was good, they kept the crowd heated for the whole time, and there was no downtime at all. That’s pretty much what I want in a tag match. As for the finish, it was repetitive, but that makes sense in the context of wrestling. When you have a killer move that works, always use it. As for the negatives, they could have done a little more with Scorpio’s turn on offense. That’s about all I can think of. ***1/2. If you don’t like this on any level I’d find that strange.
Sid Vicious (w/Col. Robert Parker) vs. Sting
Pre-Match Thoughts: Apparently the winner is the FRANCHISE PLAYER OF WCW. After their poor Halloween Havoc ’90 main event, I am just not interested in this at all. Sid and Parker had an interview before the match, which made me happy. It’s funny that Parker’s character would be such a wimp, look how tall he is. It’s the fuckin’ Tennessee Stud. I don’t mind Sid’s matches because there’s so much less work for me to be doing.
Match Review: There’s a Sting superfan at ringside. Like, wow. Sid attacks Sting from behind, then goes straight to a choke. Sting picks Sid up and slams him, then hits him with a clothesline and Sid winds up on the apron where he gets clotheslined again. Sting suplexes Sid back into the ring, then Sid rolls out to the floor. Sting follows, and knocks Sid over the rail. Now they brawl in the crowd, with Sting eventually walking Sid back to the rail and throwing him onto it for some kicks. Back in we go, and Sting goes up top for a flying clothesline that gets 2. Parker grabs Sting as he runs the ropes, so Sid is able to CHOKESLAM Sting. Sid throws Sting hard into the corner a few times, and HE RULES THE WORLD BROTHER. Parker gets to choke Sting for a while, then Sid drops Sting with a side slam. After more choking by Parker, Sting rolls out to the floor and gives chase until Sid attacks him from behind. Sid hits Sting with the weakest of chairshots, then picks Sting up and drops him throat-first on the rail. Into the ring they go, and Sid goes to a chinlock. Sting fights out, but Sid powerslams him for 2. Sid goes to a bear hug, but Sting fights out of it only to get hit with a big boot. Back to the bear hug, and when Sting gets out this time, he trips Sid and chokes him for a little bit. Sting drops Sid with a facebuster, then hits him with the STINGER SPLASH. Sting does another one, then knocks Parker off the apron. Sid attacks Sting from behind, then Parker grabs Sid’s leg for some reason and trips him. WHAT? Sting covers, but Sid kicks out at 2 and notices what’s going on. Now Sid’s pissed. He grabs Parker, so Sting runs up from behind on Sid and rolls him up for the win at 10:44.
After the match, Parker apologizes and says that he was confused by Sid and Sting fighting on the ropes. Sid believed him. Lame.
My Thoughts: This was one of the best matches of Sid’s whole career, I think. I don’t know what they were going for at the end, but this felt like a main event. The way it was laid out, the heat, and the pace all made it feel like the most important match on the show. I believe they tried to make it seem like Parker was just an idiot who didn’t have any bad intentions, which sounds totally stupid. Anyway, Sid got fired right after this for stabbing Arn Anderson. More on that in a future article. **1/2. This was good.
Ric Flair (w/Fifi the Maid) vs. Rick Rude for the BIG GOLD BELT
Pre-Match Thoughts: There are going to be two referees and Terry Taylor is one of them. You know something’s going on with that. They didn’t have an official sounding name for this title yet, so this is what they had to deal with. I didn’t much care for their Fall Brawl match, so I’m not really looking forward to this at all. Rude hadn’t worked very much on television leading up to this.
Match Review: Looks like Taylor will be on the floor. Flair attacks, then quickly backdrops Rude. He suplexes Rude as well, which gets 2. Flair clotheslines Rude in the corner, which I’ve never seen him do before. Rude then blocks a charge to the corner, and heads up top for a knee drop that misses. Flair gives him a knee-breaker, then locks on the FIGURE-FOUR until Rude makes the ropes. Flair wraps Rude’s leg around the post, then clips him and drops an elbow on the leg. Interesting start to this match. Rude grabs Flair’s tights to toss him out of the ring, but Flair comes back in with a sunset flip attempt only for Rude to sit down and grab the ropes. Taylor knocks Rude’s hands off them, so Flair covers for 2. Flair and Rude then do a cross body spot where both guys go over the top, and Rude nearly gets killed. Flair hits him with big chops, then goes up top for a flying clothesline all the way to the floor. I like this new Flair. Flair goes up there again, but Rude hits him in the gut on the way down. Rude grabs a chair, but Taylor stops him from using it. They’ve been on the floor for a LONG time. Rude rams Flair into the rail, then he clotheslines Flair with the top rope as they’re on the apron. Rude picks Flair up and slams him, but somebody is bleeding. Rude slaps a chinlock on Flair, then Rude walks over to Fifi and swivels his hips at her. Rude goes up top, and flies down with a big right hand for 2. Back to the chinlock, until Rude jumps on Flair’s back. Rude then throws Flair upside down to the corner, and clotheslines Flair off the apron. Rude suplexes Flair into the ring, then goes up top again for another right that gets 2. They trade shots for a while, until Rude goes to the eyes and clotheslines Flair for 2. Rude goes to a bear hug, then drops to the canvas for repeated 2 counts. This got slow all of a sudden. Flair puts a sleeper on Rude, who drives him into the corner. Rude heads up top again, but this time Flair moves out of the way and drops him with a neckbreaker. Heh. Now Flair goes to a backslide and gets 2. Flair suplexes Rude, then heads up top for a flying nothing that Rude gets his boot up for. Rude then throws Flair into the referee on accident, and clotheslines Flair. For some reason Taylor doesn’t cover immediately, and when he gets in there, Flair throws Rude into him. Rude goes for the brass knuckles, but Flair back suplexes him this time. Flair grabs the knuckles for himself, then clocks Rude with them. Now he covers and gets the pinfall at 19:56, but Randy Anderson saw what happened and disqualified Flair. Whoops.
When Flair takes the title, Rude takes Fifi with him! Eventually Flair catches up to Rude and hits him from behind, then puts a FIGURE-FOUR on him as they’re on the ramp.
My Thoughts: Two ref bumps, really? I didn’t really care for this and I don’t know exactly why the matches between these two weren’t very good. They didn’t seem to have very much chemistry, and Rude wasn’t in his best physical shape anyway. With Flair having to do the majority of the work, it made for matches that felt long and boring. That’s my take on it. The finish was absolute garbage. A cameraman had taken the brass knuckles and had to give them back to Flair at the end. **, I’ll be glad to see Flair move on.
Cactus Jack vs. Vader (WCW Champion, w/Harley Race) in a TEXAS DEATH MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: I’m looking forward to this match so much. With Cactus having taken hellacious bumps in their previous matches, it’s obvious he’d do so here as well. Also, if you’ve read Foley’s books, you know he had somewhat of a death wish here. He didn’t seem to mind if he got injured or not. For people who don’t know the rules, there’s no disqualification, a thirty second rest period between falls, falls count anywhere, and a ten second count after the thirty second period. If you don’t get up then, you lose. I don’t know why this is a non-title match.
Match Review: Cactus meets Vader on the ramp, and it’s time to get it on. They trade punches for a while, and Vader rips his mask off. He accidentally clotheslines the post, so Cactus rams that arm into the rail. Cactus grabs a chair to hit Vader with, and Vader comes back with some sickening punches. Cactus bites Vader in response, and hits him with somebody’s camera. Cactus grabs a chair and wallops Vader on the head with it, getting a huge cheer. Finally we go into the ring, and Cactus runs straight into a big boot. Vader clotheslines Cactus, then gets in some punches to the nose. Vader clotheslines Cactus onto the ramp, but Cactus suplexes him onto the ramp! Cactus is bleeding from those punches, and it’s quite a lot. Cactus then picks Vader up and back suplexes him on the ramp, and he refuses to cover so far. Race has a chair, but Cactus knocks him down as well. Cactus has the chair and hits Vader with it a few times, as they then tumble underneath the stage. Now what? Cactus gets back on the stage and walks towards the ring, and now Vader’s busted open too. This rules. Cactus hits him with a clothesline, then covers and gets 3! Time for the rest period and count. If Vader gets up, Cactus has a plastic…cactus. He nails Vader with it to knock him off the ramp, and Vader topples over as Cactus ELBOW DROPS HIM FROM THE RAMP for the fall. Vader barely makes it to his feet, then drags Cactus off the ramp. Now they fight their way back towards the ring, and back onto the ramp as Cactus rams Vader into the steel steps. Cactus has a table now, and he throws it into the ring. Cactus tries to whip Vader into it as it lies in the corner, but that’s not gonna happen. Or wait, it does and Vader falls into the table big time. Cactus covers for 2, then picks the table up and throws it into Vader. They go out of the ring again, and Cactus does his sunset flip from the apron, only for Vader to block it. Vader’s butt splash misses, then Cactus suplexes him onto the rail. Cactus then charges at him and misses, hitting his head on the concrete. This is CRAZY, even for now. Vader picks Cactus up and backdrops him over the rail, then grabs a chair and hits Cactus HARD on the back of the head. HARLEY HAS A FUCKING STUN GUN. YES. Vader picks Cactus up and slams him, then he goes up top for who knows what. THE VADERSAULT. He covers for 3, and it’s time to count again. Somehow Cactus gets up, at which point Vader clobbers him again. Back to the ramp they go, and Cactus starts biting the champion. Vader then picks him up on his back, and drops backwards, nearly crushing Cactus to death. That’s the worst sound for any bump I’ve ever heard. Vader then CREAMS Cactus with the chair, and follows that up with a DDT onto it. A doctor comes down to examine Cactus, and Vader’s not okay with this at all. He pushes everyone off the ramp, then takes the doctor bag and throws it way down the ramp. Now what? Vader pins him, and we get a weird bit where Cactus gets up quick and DDT’s Vader on the chair. Now the referee counts both guys down, and Harley breaks out the STUN GUN to make sure Cactus stays down. That’s cool and terrible at the same time. Mercifully, the match ends at 15:57 and Vader wins.
Cactus gets up after Vader leaves, then drops Harley with a double-arm DDT. Guess he deserved that. That’s the show!
My Thoughts: I like that finish and don’t at the same time. It’s always funny to see someone break out a weapon like that to ensure a match goes the way they want it to. It’s taking things to another level. This was a hell of a brawl, and to some people it doesn’t really hold up. I am not one of those people. The violence in this match was unbelievable. The unprotected chair shots aren’t any fun to see now, I should say. Especially knowing what happens to somebody’s brain. I can’t think of much in this match that was wrong with it other than the finish. They told a great story, and it showed how strong and crazy both guys were. I’ll go with ****1/2. I was surprised when both guys bled given the restrictions the big two companies had on it. Sadly, everyone in the next ten years tried to top that match, and the body and injury count was high as a result.
What was up with the booking on this show? It was crazy the way nearly every match had a screwy finish. Only the opener was immune to this plague. It felt like Dusty Rhodes went into overdrive. I liked the show quite a bit even though nothing was outright great until the main event. There were solid matches here and a lot of hard work. I was surprised to see the Sid/Sting match turn out so well, I really thought it would suck. Other than that, almost everything surpassed my expectations. I’m not that eager to see what’s ahead for WCW because for some insane reason they did a stand-alone BattleBowl PPV card. Next for me are WWF matches leading to Survivor Series!
Wrestling Time: 1:59:06. Nearly a full two hours. Not having frilly entrances will do that.
Best: Vader vs. Cactus Jack. This isn’t surprising.
Worst: The Equalizer and Harlem Heat vs. The Shockmaster, Ice Train, and Charlie Norris. Also not surprising.
Card Rating: 7.5/10. This was a good show, I liked it a lot. Your mileage may vary.
