The SmarK Rant for WCW Monday Nitro – 03.11.96
All the cool kids are watching Nitro on Monday nights, you know.
LIVE (after a one week break for a mini-series) from Winston-Salem, NC
Your hosts are Eric Bischoff, Bobby Heenan & Mongo. Funny how Bischoff keeps calling it “the Warzone”, considering what RAW would become less than a year later.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan v. The Giant
Mongo notes that, and I swear to all that is holy that I am not making this up, you have to see Giant in person to appreciate how big he is. Giant dumps Duggan and runs him into the post with ease, then hammers on the back with those frying pan-sized hands while Brian Pillman makes a nuisance of himself at ringside in his continuing efforts to get fired. Giant with a bearhug that Duggan escapes via biting, but Giant beats him down again. Bischoff talks about the ailing Jim Duggan Sr., who is apparently a legendary Irish taped fists champion. So…yeah. Duggan comes back with the three point clothesline and Giant takes a bloody impressive bump over the top rope off that, but lands on his feet and comes back in to finish destroying Duggan. Duggan escapes another bearhug with a headbutt this time, but knocks himself silly and lands on the floor. Duggan pulls up the tape from the mats and uses it to tape up his fists, which is quite the visual, but he goes after Jimmy Hart like a moron and it’s CHOKESLAM and goodnight at 6:23. Bischoff notes that Giant’s fists are like ’63 Chevy car doors. Well that’s more impressive than frying pans, I suppose. This was, dare I say, shockingly entertaining crap because Duggan was bulletproof and he just went out and took a beating for his artform. ** for the entertainment value.
And now, THE STEINER BROTHERS return. And then right away we get one of the all-time biggest dream matches.
The Road Warriors v. The Steiner Brothers
I’m guessing this show spanked RAW in the ratings like Giant chokeslamming Duggan. Hawk throws chops on Scott, but gets tossed around with a pair of suplexes while Animal talks shit from the apron. Was this supposed to be a Warriors heel turn around this time? Because I totally do not remember that, but they’re clearly heeling the past couple of shows. Hawk comes back with a neckbreaker and Animal powerslams Scott for two, but Rick comes in and suplexes the shit out of HIM. Top rope belly to belly and they are throwing BOMBS out there tonight. Scott with his own suplex on Animal and he hangs him in the Tree of Woe, but walks into a boot in the corner. Scott goes to the rear chinlock as this thing finally calms down for a minute and the Steiners cut off the ring. Rick pounds him with forearms on the ropes as Bischoff notes that it’s the most vicious crossface maneuver that you’ll see anywhere. Well, I mean…never mind. Hot to Hawk and he powerslams both Steiners, and the Doomsday Device on Rick follows, but Scott saves. It’s BONZO GONZO and now Animal gets tossed and Scott hits Hawk with a flying clothesline, but Animal clotheslines HIM off the top. Frankensteiner on Animal, but Hawk saves. Steiners with the flying bulldog on Hawk, but Animal nails Rick with the gauntlet and Hawk pins him at 10:09. This was the craziest shit you’re gonna see all week, with four big roided monsters suplexing the shit out of each other and absolutely no wrestling to speak of. It was AWESOME. And the best thing that the Warriors did during this run by far. ***1/2 Steiners of course stuck around until the bitter end, while the Warriors were gone soon after this. Can you imagine all the money they would have made feuding with the Outsiders? Jesus.
World TV title: Lex Luger v. Alex Wright
So Luger is now TV champion after beating Johnny B. Badd on WCW Saturday Night, and Bischoff goes HARDCORE burying Marc Mero on the way out of the promotion. That was one ugly split. Luger was an odd choice to move the title onto, to say the least. Wright works the arm and takes him down with a flying headscissors, putting Luger on the floor. So just reading through the Observer from this point, and there was a focus group thing done by WCW where they discovered that people REALLY liked Alex Wright a lot, so suddenly his push was renewed again. Also, they LOVED Eddie Guerrero and workrate guys in general. Listening to the fans? What a bunch of marks. No wonder this company went out of business. Wright works on the back, but Luger dumps him to take over and gets a press slam and some punishment in the corner. Wright comes back with a bodypress, but Luger necks him in the corner and slaps him around in a show of sportsmanship. Wright keeps fighting back despite the quality bad-mouth getting laid on him, but then maybe he just didn’t understand English and thus wasn’t de-motivated like he should have been? Wright comes back with a missile dropkick and goes up again, but Jimmy Hart appears and pushes him off into a stun-gun from Lex that finishes at 6:36. Luger then goes through an elaborate routine where he yells at Hart for interfering, because he’s a good person and all. This stuff was all gold. **1/2
LUMBERJACK STRAP MATCH: Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage & The Booty Man v. Kevin Sullivan, Ric Flair and Arn Anderson
We’re in North Carolina so you can guess what the finish is going to be. There’s straps involved, but no one is actually strapped to each other, and it’s just a big schmoz with the faces beating on the heels. I should note that the Faces of Fear wearing lumberjack shirts might be the greatest thing ever. Just a whole lot of nothing and bullshit and Hogan beating on Flair with the strap. Big boot and legdrop finish clean at 6:23. DUD Gotta love how they’re building up to the unwinnable deadly Doomsday cage match at Uncensored by having the babyfaces destroy the heels week after week on TV. Yeah, they really seem worried.
Mean Gene interviews the heels as they rant and rave about nothing to close the show.
The Pulse
As usual, crazy great undercard and then hot garbage from Hogan and his cronies to end the show. But man please do check out that Steiners v. Warriors match on the Network or the YouTubes.
Nitro only won the ratings battle 3.2 to 2.9. And Raw would win the ratings for Shawn's first 7 shows as champ until Scott Hall showed up on Nitro. Just had to mention that for the morons who claim HBK wasn't a draw.
ReplyDeleteWatching these old Nitro shows have given me a new respect for Luger.
He was Bond, James Bond.
ReplyDeleteJames Bond.
ReplyDeleteHe was a super spy who spent a year in the Dungeon of Doom but really just wanted to have fun and shake his booty.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I got from it.
Love the Road Warriors vs Steiners match on this show.
ReplyDeletecan someone please explain to me what the booty man gimmick was suppose to be. like seriously, what was he in kayfabe terms or otherwise
ReplyDeleteCar door hands. Could be they just shrunk as the years passed.
ReplyDeleteOutsiders vs Road Warriors didn't even cross my mind. Shit that would have been big. The Steiners just didn't do it for me once Scott came back from his injury in 1997.
ReplyDeleteHogan used to give it to him in the ass.
ReplyDeleteHBK failed to draw on a lot more let els than just ratings.
ReplyDeleteAerobics instructor without the aerobics.
ReplyDeleteThat LOD v The Steiners is a great lost classic.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, they could've built Outsiders vs Steiners as a dream match, but WCW being WCW couldn't do the simplest thing right. As much shit we give TNA, one thing they normally get right is building up tag team dream matches.
ReplyDeleteBrutus "The Barber" Beefcake with a fetish.
ReplyDeleteYeah that Ric a Flair/AJ Styles vs. Hulk Hogan/Abyss match was pure gold.
ReplyDeleteIf bringing Scott's reviews back put Bayless' reviews on the shelf - I am unhappy. I want more 1987 WWF man.
ReplyDeleteLuger ended holding that fucking belt til like August.
ReplyDeleteI meant tag matches featuring established tag teams like they did AMW vs Dudleys, Dudleys v Wolves, Hardys v Wolves and even Dudleys v Steiners. Sure the latter was too late for that mach to be considered a dream match, but TNA tried to build it up as something special.
ReplyDeleteThe combined 6.1 rating in itself is big at this point. RAW was averaging about a 3.2 for 1995 and WCW Saturday Night was pulling a 2.0 routinely, so the competition was really starting to drive up the ratings, especially considering that these shows aired head to head in a lot of markets.
ReplyDeleteI suppose you could say that - by leaving before the Outsiders came around - the Road Warriors LEFT MONEY ON THE TABLE.
ReplyDeleteDont worry. WrestleMania III will be up tomorrow and I will be back with Superstars/Challenge/House Shows, etc as well. Just had a busy week.
ReplyDeleteLeave the man's Etch A Sketch abilities out of this.
ReplyDeleteHBK was known as being a horrible draw as champ in 96.
ReplyDeleteI watched this episode a few weeks ago and was blown away by the Steiners/LOD match. Outside of LOD vs the Brain Busters, that's the best LOD match I've ever watched.
ReplyDeleteMr. Ass but PG. Shake shake ya booty
ReplyDeleteHe didn't lose his smile. He just shook it away.
ReplyDeleteAs a kid, I didn't get why his finisher was the High Knee.
ReplyDeleteMy best guess: His finisher was the High Knee, that sounds like hiney, which is another slang term for 'butt', like booty. Given that and his predilection for shredded pants, I think they just decided to run with an ass based gimmick.
ReplyDeleteLove this show!
ReplyDeleteThey complained to Bischoff about all the jobs ND left. Vince promised them the world again and soOn they were jobbing again lol
ReplyDeleteAwesome. Talk about the amazing crowd and heat, the lighting progressively getting darker in the dome, and the fine fine ring carts. So awesome! And midgets!
ReplyDeleteHe wouldn't even bring it to the ring with him half the time
ReplyDeleteBut we got them against the Boriquas and Godwinns instead, so we're okay right? Droz addition? Drug addict storylines? Shaved hair, new ugly outfits and Skanky??
ReplyDeleteI always thought he was an 80s Jazzercise guy.
ReplyDeleteShawn had Diesel, Warrior, Vader, Ramon, Johnson, Taker. and so many more during that first month as champ. Business DIED outside of house shows the moment his boys left.
ReplyDeleteBrother Bruti was already used by WCW when he arrived as Hogan's buddy in 94 so I bet they did a word play, the Bootay. Idk lol.
ReplyDeleteWell Andre shrunk as he aged, so maybe you're on to something...
ReplyDeleteIL always up vote a mocking of a champion who forfeited a WORLD fucking title because he was sad about not drawing, asked to job, and missing his friends in Atlanta
ReplyDeleteMan, the days of being a young mark. Back when I first watched this show, I totally bought into Duggan standing a chance, because that taped fist gimmick (as laughable as it was) really did make it seem like he could beat anyone.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely LOVE that Steiners/LOD match. No dead spots, just non-stop action. I'm 99% sure it's the last great match the LOD had.
ReplyDeleteThis.
ReplyDeleteThe Doomsday Cage is like my favorite match of all time. It is hillarious and yet exactly what young markish me wanted.
ReplyDeleteA WORLD title that's...a prop. That's why he gave it up...because he didn't really fight for it. And he'd get it back whenever he wanted to because...its a prop. A MacGuffin. Only real world value it has is the raise it usually gives you. That's it. Jesus people.
ReplyDeleteA Steiner Brothers set is long overdue. Greatest tag team ever.
ReplyDeleteIf a set were ever to exist I would hope for at least one match from NJPW and that one match they had against the Harts in WWE
ReplyDeleteThe pinnacle of all wrestling is when we were kids.
ReplyDeleteHell yeah. Vader/Bam Bam and Benoit/Liger are classics. Would also throw in Hase/Sasaki and Muta/Sting from the Supershows.
ReplyDeleteA Hall of Fame induction and a Blu-ray would be a dream for next year.
1. Until I saw LOD on the Best of Nitro set, I had totally forgotten, that they were in WCW in 96.
ReplyDelete2. Can you believe, that only 3-4 months later the invasion of the Outsiders and nWo began? Was there ever such a drastic change in direction like from Hogan vs the Dungon to nWo vs WCW?