Monday
Nitro #135
Date:
April 13, 1998
Location:
Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators:
Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, Larry Zbyszko, Mike Tenay
Reviewed by Tommy Hall
Tonight
is the go home show for Spring Stampede, but much more importantly
than that it's the night that the WWF won a round in the Monday Night
Wars. Over on Raw there was the first ever Vince McMahon vs. Steve
Austin match, but it should be interesting to see what Nitro was
offering that the fans decided wasn't good enough. Let's get to it.
The
Nitro Girls are in white to open things up.
The
announcers talk about the bat match on Sunday.
Scott
Steiner vs. Fit Finlay
Vincent
has the trophy with him again. I'm assuming it's some kind of a
bodybuilding trophy but WCW hasn't bothered to explain it yet.
Steiner immediately bails to the floor for encouragement from
Vincent. Back in and Steiner easily takes him to the mat and rides
Finlay over to the ropes.
The
belly to belly gets a face pop for Scott and there's the elbow into
the push-ups. Steiner goes to the floor to yell at Larry Hennig
(Curt's dad) before getting caught in an atomic drop from Finlay.
The rolling senton puts Steiner down again but Finlay misses a charge
into the buckle. A falling suplex from the top sets up the Recliner
for the submission from Finlay, making Steiner the WCW Alliteration
Champion.
Rating:
D+. I'm not wild on Finlay
being used for a jobber but it's better than having big names collide
and having them both come out looking lame. Steiner still isn't over
as a heel and the stupid trophy isn't going to make the fans boo him
any more. Nothing match here but Steiner looked pretty dominant.
Bret
Hart talks about getting screwed over again. Does he have ANYTHING
else he can talk about? This seems to be the first of a bunch of
sound bytes from Bret tonight.
Call
the Hotline to hear about....uh....wrestling stuff!
Lenny
Lane vs. Ultimo Dragon
Things
start fast with Dragon taking him over with a headscissors. Dragon
has his head slammed into the mat and the corners for good measure
with Lane in control. A sunset flip gets two for Dragon but Lane
chokes him on the ropes to keep control. We hit the chinlock on
Dragon but Lane lets go to yell at the fans. Dragon comes back with
the headstand in the corner and a kick to Lenny's back to take over.
Lane
avoids a spinwheel kick and sends Dragon to the floor, only to miss a
plancha to put both guys down. Lenny is up first and slams Dragon on
the floor but doesn't follow up. Back in and Dragon runs into a
powerslam for two and a bulldog gets the same. Lane tries a suplex
but Dragon slips over his back and hooks the Dragon Sleeper for the
submission.
Rating:
C+. This was much more
entertaining than I was expecting with Lane holding his own against
the Dragon until the end of the match where he got caught. Lane is
one of those guys that was talented but never got a chance to show
off. With more charisma, Dragon could have been a solid midcard guy
in WCW but he was always stuck around the cruiserweights or lower
card.
Bret
wants to be world champion.
The
announcers talk about the bat match again, this time for like two
minutes straight.
Roddy
is in the back and says he's tired of listening to Hogan and Nash so
tonight they're fighting each other. After that's done, he's coming
after Hogan himself. Hogan and Disciple get tired of listening to
Piper's rambling and run in to lay him out.
Here's
Giant with something to say. He knows Piper is going to be fine for
Sunday and lets the NWO know that he hasn't forgotten a thing Nash
has done to him. Very short here but it got the point across well
enough.
Johnny
Grunge vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Chavo
takes him to the corner to start but gets suckered in by a handshake.
Grunge takes over on the arm but Chavo spins out to twist on
Grunge's arm instead. Off to an armbar but Johnny fights up and hits
a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to take over. Chavo sends him head first
into the buckle and loads up a sunset flip, only to have Grunge sit
down on it for the big upset. The announcers treat it like what
everyone knew would happen.
Bret
doesn't like Hogan and Nash.
More
Nitro Girls, this time with bunny ears.
Here's
Nash with something to say. Apparently Hogan has run out the back
door instead of facing him here tonight. Since Hogan has bailed and
since Savage is nowhere in sight, how about Nash vs. Sting again this
week? This brings out Sting with the bat but no belt. JJ comes out
to hold them back but Sting says Nash can have the title shot.
Dillon says the match has to be in the main event, but Sting wants
the powerbomb reinstated. JJ isn't sure but eventually gives in.
Glacier
vs. Chris Benoit
Glacier
fires off some kicks to start but Benoit leg whips him down and
stomps Glacier in the corner. Glacier comes back with his kicks as
the announcers talk about Booker vs. Benoit for the TV Title at the
PPV with no time limit. A kick to the back of Benoit's head gets two
more but Benoit comes back with a hard chop. Benoit takes him down
with a German suplex as Tony compares Glacier's win/loss record to
Goldberg's. Glacier sweeps Benoit's legs out but Chris calmly waits
for him to come over and snaps on the Crossface for the submission.
Rating:
C-. The match was nothing of
note but Benoit looked great out there. The German looked great and
the ending was perfect. Benoit looked like he was toying with
Glacier out there which is what you want going into the title match
on Sunday. The more Nitro I watch I understand Benoit's fans raging
against WCW for never pushing him. He's just that good.
Hour
#2 begins so we hit the recap button.
Buff
Bagwell vs. Lex Luger
Before
the match Bagwell and Bischoff have something to say. Buff says the
one thing he can't do is predict the future. If he could, he would
have challenged Rick Steiner instead of Luger for attacking Bischoff.
Buff makes fun of Luger and Steiner's poses in a funny bit.
Bischoff says Hogan isn't here to take care of Rick because he's on
the Tonight Show. The idea of Hogan associating with Rick Steiner is
rather amusing.
Buff
pounds away to start after a quick posedown, only to have Luger run
him over with a shoulder. A dropkick puts Luger down and it's time
for more posing. Luger hiptosses and slams Bagwell down, sending
Buff out to the floor. In one of the only times I can ever remember,
Luger actually shows some humor by doing Buff's strut and pose,
complete with the big grin.
Back
in and Luger pounds away but gets caught by a swinging neckbreaker.
We hit the reverse chinlock with Luger looking more bored than in
pain. Buff lets go of the hold but misses the Blockbuster, allowing
Luger to do his usual sequence for the comeback. There's the Torture
Rack but Bischoff comes in for the DQ.
Rating:
D+. Of all the matches they
could start the second hour with, they picked this? As in the match
where the whole story is Bagwell has beaten Luger like five times
already? That's a good way to sum up WCW: yeah we know you've seen
this already, but here it is again because we don't have any new
ideas. Also, why was Buff Bagwell so protected? It's not as bad as
Norton but he was always losing by DQ or countout instead of pin or
submission, even to much bigger stars like Luger.
Post
match both Steiners run out with Rick and Luger standing tall.
Bret
Hart says Savage should get out of the NWO while he can.
The
Nitro Girls are in black now.
Heenan
is on commentary.
Cruiserweight
Title: Super Calo vs. Chris Jericho
Jericho
thinks Super Calo is Iaukea under a stupid looking mask. Calo denies
it in Spanish but Jericho insists it's the Prince. The referee
actually goes to check it, giving Jericho the cheap shot for an early
advantage. A big forearm puts Calo down and a suplex gets two for
the champion. Calo comes back with a cradle, only to get punched in
the mask to put him back down.
We
hit the chinlock for a bit before Jericho easily avoids a dropkick.
A gutwrench suplex gets two for Chris and we get a mini fit from
Jericho. Calo jumps over Jericho in the corner and gets two off a
missile dropkick. Jericho misses a charge and falls to the floor for
a BIG plancha from Calo. Back in and Calo misses the top rope
headscissors, allowing Jericho to hook the Liontamer to retain.
Rating:
C-. Jericho looked good in this
glorified squash. That's one of the problems with Jericho's reign:
he's beaten every big name in the division and there's no one left to
seriously challenge him. The biggest name he hasn't beaten is Ultimo
Dragon I guess and he's not even that big of a deal in division
anymore.
Post
match Jericho won't let go of the hold so Iaukea comes down.
Jericho: “They're twins!”
Bret
Hart respects a few people but Sting is the highest on the list. If
Sting ever needs him, just say the word.
Saturn
vs. Hammer
Kidman
tries to stop this from happening and is thrown away by both guys.
They slug it out with Hammer taking over with a clothesline. He puts
Saturn on the top for a slam before ramming Saturn's head into the
mat over and over. Saturn comes back with chops in the corner and
some high kicks to the head for good measure. Hammer escapes an
armbar with a belly to back suplex before lifting Saturn up into a
modified Gory Stretch to block a backslide. Not that it matters as
Saturn suplexes him down and hooks the Rings of Saturn for the
submission. Better match than I was expecting here actually.
Rocco
Rock vs. Goldberg
A
hard shoulder block puts Rocco down and a right hand does the same.
They trade elbows to the face before Goldberg launches him across the
ring. Rocco bails to the floor so Goldberg beats him up out there,
only to punch the post by mistake. Rocco whips him into the steps
and loads up a table in the ring. Goldberg pops back in and spears
him through the table (not a DQ for no apparent reason) and the
Jackhammer makes it 72 in a row.
Saturn
tries to get to Goldberg but Raven stops him. Goldberg beats up Sick
Boy and Kidman for fun. Saturn is next.
Video
on Goldberg.
Hour
#3 begins.
More
Nitro Girls, still in black.
Nitro
Party video.
Curt
Hennig vs. Yuji Nagata
Well
at least it's not Neidhart. Rude goes to the commentary booth but
says he has guests to take care of at ringside. Apparently Rude's
father is in the front row along with Larry Hennig. Yuji jumps Curt
while he's hugging his dad, earning him a Perfect beating. Nagata is
sent to the floor for a beating from Rude. We're in Minnesota
tonight so the fans are completely behind Rude and Hennig. Nagata
gets in a few kicks but Hennig shrugs them off and chops Yuji down in
the corner. Hennig sends him to the floor so Larry Hennig can reveal
a HENNIG RULES shirt. Back in and the PerfectPlex ends the squash.
Post
match Rude handcuffs Nagata to the ropes so the beating can continue.
Neidhart comes down well after they've gone and isn't even
acknowledged by the announcers.
TV
Title: La Parka vs. Booker T
They
lock up and head to the corner for a clean break. The fans chant
what sounds like Jesse as Booker backdrops La Parka down. Booker
kicks him down and clotheslines him out to the floor. Back in and
they clothesline each other down but Booker is up first with a
spinebuster. Part of La Parka's match is torn. A flapjack sets up
the side kick and the missile dropkick retains Booker's title.
Rating:
C-. Again the match wasn't bad
but there's nothing on this show that makes me want to keep watching
it. La Parka's hot streak is over as he's now just a jobber to the
stars. Booker got a nice win here just like Benoit did earlier which
makes both guys look good going into the title match. Simple idea
yet it's so rarely done today.
Post
match La Parka loads up the chair but Benoit comes out to stop him.
Booker offers a handshake but Benoit shoves him down instead.
Video
on Raven vs. DDP.
US
Title: Robbie Rage vs. Diamond Dallas Page
Page
runs him over and hits a quick belly to back suplex for no cover.
Rage's partner Kaos grabs Page's leg, giving Rage a cheap shot to the
champion's ribs. A nice looking springboard splash gets two but Page
crotches Rage against the post to stop him cold. Back in and a
running Diamons Cutter retains the title. Another squash.
Post
match Raven and the Flock come down the aisle with Raven yelling
about being stuck in ECW since Page wouldn't get him a job in WCW.
Page dives over the top to take the Flock out but they stop him from
getting to Raven.
Konnan
vs. Rick Steiner
Vincent
and DiBiase get in a shoving match before the bell which distracts
Rick (like that's so hard) to give Konnan an early advantage. Rick
comes back with something close to a low blow to send Konnan out to
the floor. Steiner follows and gets double teamed by Vincent and
Konnan, only to have DiBiase beat up Vincent to a big reaction. Back
in and Konnan hits his rolling lariat before putting on an armbar.
Konnan tries to jump over Rick in the corner but gets caught in a
powerslam for two. Rick suplexes him down again and the Steiner
Bulldog gets the pin.
Rating:
C-. Oddly enough Rick looked
pretty good here with his suplexes and throws. At the end of the day
though, it's really hard to get fired up for Konnan vs. Rick Steiner
in a four minute match. It's nice to see someone new pushed to fight
the NWO, but Rick Steiner is only going to draw so much interest.
Video
on Savage vs. Nash vs. Hogan.
WCW
World Title: Kevin Nash vs. Sting
The
announcers have spent all night hyping the fact that the powerbomb is
legal. If I know WCW, it probably won't even be used. Sting pounds
him into the corner to start and rains down right hands, only to try
to jump over Nash and get caught in Snake Eyes. There's the foot
choke in the corner followed by some knee lifts to the ribs. Nash
continues his slow pace by firing off elbows in the corner. Sting
comes back with some kicks to the ribs but can't slam Nash.
Off
to a neck crank on the champion before Nash elbows him in the face to
stop a comeback. A gutwrench slam gets two on Sting and Nash finally
calls for the powerbomb. Scratch that as we need a sidewalk slam for
two first. We hit the bearhug as the build to the big move
continues. It's not something you can say that often in a Nash match
but the psychology is solid here.
Sting
slaps Nash's ears to break the hold but can't drop him. Two Stinger
Splashes and a dropkick can't drop Nash so there's a third Splash.
Sting puts on the Scorpion but Savage comes in with a cast shot,
giving Nash two. Nash hits the powerbomb but Bret Hart pulls out the
referee for the DQ.
Rating:
C. Screwy ending aside, this
wasn't all that bad. They did a good job of building up the back
injury for Sting and you could see them setting up the powerbomb.
Sting has always played a good David to someone else's Goliath so the
result here was a surprisingly entertaining match.
Bret
holds off the NWO single handedly to end the show.
Overall
Rating: D+. I can't blame the
fans a bit for flipping over to Raw. Let's look at this for a
second: the first match of the second hour was built around the idea
of they've fought six times before, then the main event is a rematch
with another run-in ending. The most competitive match in between
there was Hammer vs. Perry Saturn and the rest were glorified
squashes. Nothing on here was fresh or new and the show felt like it
has for months: uninteresting and focused entirely on the NWO which
has been going on for nearly two years now.
Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com and head over to my Amazon author page with wrestling books for just $4 at:
http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6
Good review man!
ReplyDeleteMuch appreciated.
ReplyDeleteNo problems man.
ReplyDeleteMust be quite fun watching these episodically again?
Indeed. I watched them all as they aired but I haven't seen them in years.
ReplyDeleteSeems like Bret Hart pops up every 15 minutes during this show. No wonder people changed the channel.
ReplyDelete6/10
ReplyDelete"I'm tired of you B*TCHIN about that STUPID POWERBOMB!"
ReplyDeleteI remember almost falling down when Sting said this to Nash. lol. Sting never cursed so it was shocking.