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The SmarK Rant for Monday Night RAW–08.07.95

The SmarK Rant for Monday Night RAW – 08.07.95

So, randomly after weeks of breakneck additions to the RAW catalog, they just suddenly stop in August of 1995. They didn’t even show the last couple of episodes before the break where Monday Nitro debuted! Which is really weird because it’s not even the end of the taping cycle. And according to those who know, there’s no plans to add the rest at this point. So I guess I get to move onto something else. What an incredibly strange programming strategy they have.

Also, by popular and understandable demand, I’ve been paring down the writers on the blog tonight, and I feel pretty crappy about it.

Taped from Louisville, KY

Your hosts are Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler.

WWF tag team titles: Owen Hart & Yokozuna v. Razor Ramon & Savio Vega

So Vince announces that Gorilla Monsoon is the new President of the WWF and Summerslam will now feature Shawn v. Razor in a ladder match. The babyfaces control Owen to start as Savio works a headlock and Vince notes that you can’t defend the titles with a defensive posture. But that’s kind of the whole…never mind. Ramon works the arm, but gets caught with a massive cheapshot from Yoko and Owen DDTs him for two. Neckbreaker gets two. Owenzuigiri gets two. The champs do the illegal switch and we take a break. Back with Owen tossing Ramon and Yoko goes to the nerve hold. Owen with a leg lariat for two as Vince gives the match his highest praise: See saw matchup back and forth! Ramon fights back with a suplex on Owen and makes the hot tag to Savio, who puts both heels down with kicks and cleans house. Razor trips up Owen, but Yoko destroys Savio with a samoan drop and legdrop at 14:13. Well that was kind of stupid on Ramon’s part. This was fine, but these guys had no chemistry together and just felt like filling time. **1/4

Meanwhile, Dean Douglas gives Ramon & Savio a grade of “TT” for “Terrible Twosome”. I know he got marginally better, but these promos are just death.

Meanwhile, Lawler continues hanging out with Isaac Yankem.

MAKIN’ A DIFFERENCE FATU v. Tony Devito

Like really, they couldn’t even give him a new NAME or haircut or anything? How lazy can you be with a repackage? Who are the ad wizards that came up with this one? Fatu headbutts him down and stomps away, then gets a powerslam and Ace Crusher before finishing with the flying splash at 2:40. Ironic that he was making a difference because I couldn’t see any difference.

Summerslam Insider with Todd. Is Stridex even a thing any more? Gorilla introduces himself as a fan friendly President, but then signs Alundra Blayze v. Bertha Faye for the show. That seems like a contradiction.

Diesel v. Sir Mo

Uh…what happened to the Kama squash they were promising before the break? The show is 5 minutes short this week, so something must have happened to force them to cut it. Who the hell knows with this company. Mo pounds away in the corner to start, but Diesel gets a corner clothesline for two. Mo comes back with more punching and a leg lariat for two, but Diesel slams him and even the heat machine can’t get excited about this match. Diesel puts him out of the ring with the big boot and they even manage to botch that spot, and now of course Mabel comes down to cause a distraction. Mo tosses Diesel in the midst of all this excitement, but Shawn also wanders out to stare Mabel down as we take a break. Back with Mo working on Diesel’s back with a rear chinlock. Diesel makes the comeback with the sideslam and big boot, and then finishes with an ugly Poochiebomb at 9:00. Mabel comes in for the beatdown, but Shawn chases him off with a dropkick that actually gets high enough to hit Mabel in the face. Mabel runs Shawn into the post, however, to get his revenge. Man, Shawn looks like he just got beat up by 12 marines! ½* He was seriously the only thing making these shows watchable at this point.

Next week: Shawn Michaels v. Jerry Lawler! Of course, this assumes that WWE Network ever starts adding these shows again. If not, it’s been fun, as terrible as the past year of product has been.

I guess we’ll see you at the Mall of America next…

Comments

  1. Very strange, but this is why I did not re-up. Would it be the worst thing for them to just advertise a month ahead what's coming up next? Or offer even a half-hearted explanation for why this is the stopping point?

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  2. Well a hundred episodes of Nitro will certainly keep me busy and my $10 a month has been justified hundreds of times over, but for those who aren't cuckoo-nutso hardcore fans like us, I can see why they'd get sick of the Network and leave.

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  3. "Who are the ad wizards that came up with this one?"

    Was that a "Stand Up and Win" reference.....if so bravo

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  4. Who all got the axe? I hope the dude who does Worldwide survived, he is by far the best writer behind Scott here. He should be recapping Raws.

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  5. Who knows. We've all stopped answering the phone.

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  6. Even those who arrange and design bloggeries are under considerable economic stress in this period in history.

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  7. Mo was just straight-up one of the worst all-around wrestlers to ever hit the Big Two- fat-looking but just enough to make him slow and ugly instead of dominatingly-huge, uncharismatic, a bad worker, and with a bad outfit. It says something when MABEL can get re-hired a half-dozen times but Mo effectively vanished forever when the two were let go.

    What's scary is that Mo & Oscar got just as fat as Nelson Frazier was before he died.

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  8. How many of their old PPVs are up at this point?

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  9. You're right, Mo was a weird case where he had a bad look AND was a bad worker. And even when he became Mabel's manager during this period, he wasn't that much of a good manager either.

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  10. Sure I was a mark, but I loved Gorrilla's fan-friendly president act and instantly made him a million times more likable than Jack Tunney.

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  11. Not sure why the Kama match was cut. Was reading another review and Sid did a call-in during the mach. Maybe he said something Vince didn't like?

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  12. Also the booking of Mabel was great here. Because you'd think the Shawn and Diesel could deal with Mabel here and send him running, but Mabel ends up destroying both guys himself. I don't think WWF ever booked a heel as strong as Mabel here. I wish Shawn would learn that lesson a year later and allowed Vader to get heat on him.

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  13. "And according to those who know, there’s no plans to add the rest at this point."

    "I'm free." - Genie

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  14. Every WWE library PPV except for the international ones have been up since launch.

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  15. The Ghost Of Meekin's MoobsSeptember 14, 2014 at 2:40 AM

    Remember this is a wrestling blog so expect a swerve and political maneuvering. Bayless will be cut for getting too over. Scott's new dream team of Meekin, Rockstar Gary, QOTD guy and some bloke's girlfriend will be the new main event.

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  16. Well that's pretty fucking awesome still. I of course bought all those giant Collection DVD Sets when they came out, but it's nice to have the option of IYH and KOTR and stuff like that. Canadians can still just lie and say they're American and it works, right?

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  17. Wonder if we will ever get the Jim Crockett Sr. Tag Team Tournaments.

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  18. All the international PPVs are there except parts of One Night Only and the UK VHS version of SummerSlam '92 with the bonus matches.

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  19. Fuck Bayless. He needs to start pulling his weight.

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  20. Come on, Scott. You know you need to make a post with a listing of who was cut. And you need to do a message saying "We wish them all the best in their future endeavours."

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  21. I think Mabel vs Shawn could have actually worked. Makin a difference Fatu continues to be the dumbest repackaging ever. It's exactly the kind of character people with no knowledge of the culture would give someone. see Men on a Mission.

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  22. It's a Seinfeld reference.

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  23. I'm pissed we didn't get that Shawn vs. Mo blowoff! Come on, Vince!

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  24. YankeesHoganTripleHFanSeptember 14, 2014 at 6:11 AM

    "But Vince I want to hit him with the ladder." :"No Shawn, our sponsors think that's to violent" Shawn takes a suplex from the apron to the floor instead.

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  25. Agreed. Its funny never watched these old RAWs because I would overseas but you hear people rightly mock the fact that Mabel headlined the second biggest ppv of the year. But his actually booking was incredible.


    The should have booked Sid this way. Turns on Shawn, kills people for two months, wins King of the Ring, kills more people, faces Nash at SS.

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  26. YankeesHoganTripleHFanSeptember 14, 2014 at 6:14 AM

    I agree it would have been Shawn vs Taker at 26 like epic.

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  27. $20 says Shawn could get it to ***

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  28. The guy who does Worldwide is the next A+ star in this business. He just needs his chance at the title of Raw recapper. It's too bad Scott's stable is holding him down and he's stuck jobbing out to Worldwide.

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  29. YankeesHoganTripleHFanSeptember 14, 2014 at 6:17 AM

    I'll take that bet only if Shawn agrees to take a suplex to the floor.

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  30. I only kept the Network for Nitro, but unless they start adding more episodes, I'm canceling. I don't watch the current product, I don't watch PPVs, and $10 a month is too much for NXT alone.

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  31. YankeesHoganTripleHFanSeptember 14, 2014 at 6:19 AM

    To be fair Fatu did make a difference. He ran over Austin with a car and Stone Cold was never really the same.

    ReplyDelete

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