March '96

Monday Night Wars March '96

For ease of reading, I will now separate the shows into two different sections, as well as attaching my overall grade for each show.

Raw Mar 4th

Monday Night Raw (2.75 Stars)

Raw was going unopposed due to the NBA Playoffs, so had a chance to make a big statement. Would they make the most of the opportunity? The show opened with 1-2-3 Kid taking on Shawn Micheals in an entertaining bout. With The Kid and Shawn being on good terms, this one went back and forth and was allowed a good amount of time. Shawn won via pinfall. Goldust delivers a fantastic pre-recorded promo "directed by Marlena" as he turned his attention to Piper, mentioning how "excited" he got when watching Piper's Pit as a young man. Hands down the best segment Raw has produced during the Monday Night Wars so far! Hakushi lost his final WWF match to Justin "Hawk" Bradshaw (JBL) The reasons for Hakushi's time being cut short aren't clear. Regardless it was an unfortunate waste of talent and potential, as I, as well as others, enjoyed watching him in the ring. Bret Hart defeated Hunter Hearst Helmsley in the main-event. During the match, HHH slapped his hand on the mat 6 times whilst in a rest hold. It wasn't counted as a submission. My guess is he was trying to convey something to Bret along the lines of "You are hurting my arm, loosen up" The fact that Bret was reportedly upset over the build of his Mania match with HBK, combined with Shawn and Hunter being friends, makes this a mildly interesting note. The show ends with a somewhat entertaining Billionaire Ted skit. Good episode and easily one of the best WWF have produced so far, even if the main event took some wind out of the sails

Raw/Nitro Mar 11th

Monday Night Raw (2 Stars)

'Stone Cold' Steve Austin (no longer wrestling under his Ringmaster moniker) and Savio Vega, fought to a double count-out in a palatable opener. Mark Henry made his first WWF on-screen appearance when pre-show footage aired, showing him gorilla pressing Jerry Lawler. VKM promotes him as the world's strongest man and an olympian! Piper and Goldust have an in-ring segment moderated by Vince. Piper accepts Goldust's challenge and the Backlot Brawl is booked. The Godwins W/Hillbilly Jim defeat Jeremy Mead & Alex Porteau in a match soley served to promote the Mania tag-team tournament (Edit- the tournament was for the Vacant Tag Titles due to Smoking Gunns member Billy Gunn suffering a neck injury in February) HHH pinned a job-guy and it's announced he will take on the returning ULTIMATE WARRIOR at WrestleMania XII. Yokozuna/Taker Versus Owen/Davey was the main-event. Diesel comes out mid-match and assaults Paul Bearer, leading to Taker abandoning the contest on the hunt for the assailant. Vader ran in, causing the DQ. He was followed by Ahmed Johnson and Jake Roberts who tried to aid Yokozuna, prompting a mass brawl between the 6 men. Not the strongest episode from the WWF so far in the year of '96. Sadly next week doesn't sound much better either, with Taker/Tatanka penned in for the main-event slot.

WCW Nitro (3.25 Stars)

Over to Nitro now as Eric announced there's a new TV champion (Lex Luger) following the Saturday night broadcast. The Giant pins Hacksaw Jim Duggan to kick off Nitro. In all fairness, it got more entertaining as it went on. Also, Brian Pillman was in the crowd causing a scene and was kicked out. The Steiner Brothers made their WCW return to a HUGE POP! They took on the Road Warriors in what was considered by many, a dream match between two of the stiffest teams around at the time. Chops, kicks and knees aplenty as The Road Warriors won a great bout after Rick was nailed with the gauntlet (spiked pad) What stood out to me was just how athletic Scott Stiener was for a man of his size. Best match of The Road Warriors WCW run so far and in my opinion, and how they should have been utilised. Tough, hard hitting, stiff matchups. New TV Champion Lex Luger retained following another good contest when he faced Alex Wright. During the match Eric mentioned "Johnny B. Badd wasn't up for it" and processed to take shots at Mero from commentary. Marc Mero (Johnny B. Badd) had quit the company following his match with Luger on the Saturday night show, allegedly stemming from strong objections to the ongoing angle with Kimberly. This would be clarified by Mero who interestingly claimed, it was his daughter who didn't like seeing him on TV with another woman who wasn't her "mom" WCW kicked up a stink and the pair parted ways. Back to Nitro anyway. Post-match, Luger yelled at Jimmy Hart for interfering. Maybe he's turning a new leaf? Hulk Hogan/Savage & The Booty Man defeated Ric Flair/AA & The Taskmaster in what was supposed to be a fun main-event brawl (Six man double-strap lumberjack match) If you thought last Nitro's main-event was a mess, then this really was! There was far too much going on, the rules were never actually explained (why would they be) and to me atleast, it really spoiled a strong show to this point. Some notes from the contest are as follows. The Giant and Giant Haystacks went at it. Oh the irony. The Lumberjacks were actually defined whilst wearing flannel and most importantly, Kimberly came out making confused faces? Nitro takes the point regardless, with both the widest discrepancy in quality between two shows I have recorded, and possibly the best overall TV I have seen so far, from either side! It's just a shame the main-event slightly spoiled things

Raw/Nitro March 18th

Monday Night Raw (2.5 Stars)

Jake The Snake gets counted out against British Bulldog as he chases Cornette around the ring. We get more HBK/Bret training footage where Bret said some very interesting things. He talked about how he was "pounded into the ground for 5 months" whereas HBK had a "Hiatus to rest himself from a little beating in Syracuse" However you want to interpret it, it sounded like he was saying how he actually felt at the time! Add in the fact the pair would go on to have real life heat, they clearly didn't like each other during this period! He also talked about HBK's "dancing" (with children) and said people are better looking up to someone like him (Bret) who actually has respect. Goldust defeated Fatu as VKM promoted Piper's Backlot-Brawl at Mania. We closed the show with Diesel pinning world famous jobber Barry Horrowitz which included the famous moment of Diesel seeing himself face up in a casket, as well as Bret pinning Tatanka W/Ted Di Biase in the main-event. Even if it seemed like Tantanka was paired with Ted Di Biase for no other reason than to make him a clear heel for the match, it was still a good finish to a very serviceable show. Although I must note that Vince referred to Tatanka as "Native American Tatanka" one time too many. The WWF closes with a message asking fans to share concerns to the FTC over Ted's merger of Turner Broadcasting and Time-Warner, due to his potential control of over 50 percent of broadcast outlets. Because it's not like Vince has ever tried to monopolize anything, right?

WCW Nitro (2.25 Stars)

Nitro started with The Giant and Loch Ness wailing on each other. Lex Luger came out as he was scheduled to face Loch Ness, and retained his TV Title via count-out, even though Loch Ness was never in the ring to begin with and the bell never rang? Hogan received some of the loudest boos I've heard so far, as he cut a promo with Savage talking about the Doomsday cage match, whilst never actually explaining what it was? Public Enemy (who have a hype entrance to be fair) lost to the Steiners in a decent tag match. The Booty Man pinned Arn Anderson while Bischoff ran over the so far unexplained Uncensored card. He told us that DDP will yet again face The Booty Man with the services of Kimberly, her Bingo winnings and his career all being on the line (I thought Kimberly had already left DDP and got her money back, so why this has happened has left me confused) I've made jokes about how many times they've ran this angle but it's just getting silly now. He also tells us that Sting and Booker T are scheduled to take on The Road Warriors, again as it's not explained why Booker T has replaced Lex Luger. The Road Warriors defeat The Nasty Boys due to a Steiner Brothers interference and Hogan/Savage versus Flair/Taskmaster ended in a DQ after Pillman jumped the rail causing a brawl. DoD and The Four Horsemen formed an alliance creatively named "The alliance to end Hulkamania" Zues now named Z-Gangster and a large white man (Robert Swenson) regrettably dubbed as the Final Solution were added to this new faction. WCW would change the name to the Ultimate Solution due to complaints, feigning ignorance over the name's ties to Hitler in the process. A much clearer episode of Raw wins the point against a messy and confusing Nitro. I really disliked Nitro's logic (or lack thereof) as it made Uncensored feel rushed and gave little explanation as to what may happen on the night itself. Eric himself would close the broadcast with the words "who knows how many men will enter the Doomsday cage on Sunday'' That's the point. No-one knew. Probably not even WCW

Uncensored '96

Eddie Guerrero showed his versatility in his opener with Konnan as he embraced a more mat based style. The match was slowed down quite a lot to accommodate Konnan. No one is entirely sure what happened, or what was supposed to happen during the finish. Some people say he was hit in the nuts during an attempted leap-frog, some say it was a rana gone wrong with Eddie hurting his groin. Regardless, not as good as it could have been, but still ok. Belfast Bruiser defeats Lord Steve Regal via DQ after the Blue Bloods interfere. I preferred this match to the first, even if I may be in the minority. Although the DQ slightly spoiled it. Col. Rob Parker defeated Medusa in a "match" that never had to happen. It was truly terrible and just about passed as a pro wrestling match in the first place. It was short at least. This took place because Medusa ran in during Parker's wedding with Sherri, just in case you were wondering. It was said that 'The Booty Man' was a spy in the DoD, working for Hogan, during his victory over DDP. Another match I really couldn't care less about and 15 minutes was 10 minutes too many. Kimberly looked cute in her tutu, which is the only positive thing I can say about this one. The Giant defeated Loch Ness, and it was never going to be Savage Vs Steamboat, so it's only fair to judge it for what it was. It was still really bad. The Giant rolled out the way of a Loch Ness finish (essentially an elbow drop) for a counter big boot, leg drop, 1 2 3. Over in a couple of minutes. The card has really fallen off a cliff ever since the end of the second match! Sting/Booker T take on Road Warriors. It's still not explained why he's not competing with Lex Luger? Anyway, this one HAS to be good to give this show some much needed positive momentum. It's a slight improvement on the previous 3 matches, but I still found myself drifting in and out. It kind of fell apart and felt disjointed mid way through, but picked up towards the end and had a hot finish. Luger beats on Animal backstage as he bumped into him, leading to Stevie Ray handcuffing him. Stevie ran out and blasted Hawk with a chair, allowing Booker T the pinfall for his team! The doomsday cage is next. If it's good, the PPV is kind of salvaged. If it sucks, I will be forced to agree with the overwhelming negative reviews it has claimed. Ric Flair & Arn Anderson, Taskmaster & Lex Luger, Barbarian & Meng along with Z-Gangster & Ultimate Solution walk out and step into separate cages stacked on top of each other. Hogan and Savage walk out alone and have to fight through the layers, 2 on 2 at a time. Hogan/Savage battle Flair/AA on the top layer of the cage. This match was a mess, obviously. It never would have worked anyway and they didn't even keep the gimmick of the match going as Hogan climbed down some scaffolding midway through the contest. I thought the whole idea was to escape the levels of the cage one by one? Ultimate Solution and Z-Gangster drag Hogan & Savage back to the final cage, only for "The Mega Powers'' to win anyway. This was a PPV that was/is universally panned, and now I understand why. Outside of the first two matches and the average tag match, everything else sucked! I'm in two minds over whether it's as bad as IYH IV, which is still the worst card I have seen to date. Because it was longer and made less sense, it is! The only saving graces being the first two matches and the visual stimulation of the bizarre and wacky stipulations. Even with all that said, my rating is still VERY kind to only put it on par with the WORST SHOW I'VE EVER SEEN (1.75 Stars)

Raw/Nitro March 25th

Monday Night Raw (2.5 Stars)

The final stop on the road to Wrestlemania begins with HBK introducing his mentor, Jose Lothario. Shawn then defeats Leif Cassiday (yet another Al Snow incarnation) Cassiday was teaming with Marty Jannetty at this time under the name New Rockers. HHH defeated Aldo Montoya in a surprisingly good match. VKM interviewed Undertaker and Paul Bearer and we saw an excellent hype video ahead of the Iron man match. It gave off an authentic vibe and was produced well. To be fair, that's something the WWF/E have always excelled at. They have truly excellent production values! Finally Owen Hart/Ahmed Johnson ended in a DQ after a British Bulldog interference. Out comes Vader and it's a 3 on 1 assault until Yokozuna and Jake Roberts make the save. The show ends with the Slammy winning music video showcasing Bret's WWF career so far. A short and sweet episode that did a good job of promoting the major PPV matches, with some decent action sprinkled in for good measure. Even if I would have preferred a straight match between Owen and Johnson.

WCW Nitro (2.75 Stars)

The fall out to the messy and ridiculous Uncensored PPV started with Bischoff informing us 3 titles will be on the line! Randy Savage defeats Belfast Bruiser in an interesting choice for an opening contest but a good one nonetheless. Flair and his ladies are introduced as Ric cuts a promo on The Giant and Lex Luger. The sound quality wasn't great and it could be hard to understand Flair when he got going at the best of times, but that was the general idea I think. Konnan defended his U.S Title against Mr J.L in another good bout. I actually preferred this to his match with Eddie at Uncensored. It seemed to flow slightly better. The Booty Man continued his winning streak with a victory over Disco Inferno. His new valet, Kimberly aka "The Booty Babe" was at ringside. Sting and Lex Luger successfully defended their tag titles against American Males. I wasn't crazy about this one, but it was nice to see Sting & Lex Luger back together. Ric Flair also retained his World Title after it ended in a no contest due to interference by AA and Taskmaster. The Giant pulled off a beautiful splash of the top rope and Flair hit one of the stiffest low-blows I've ever seen! Nitro narrowly wins the final point of the month thanks to the main-event and a strong undercard.

WrestleMania XII

The biggest card of the calendar year was live from the "Pond" in Anaheim. Bodydonnas defeated The Godwinns during the pre show, winning both the tag tournament and the championships. There is no way for me to watch this match as I don't have the footage although I would have liked to. The main card kicked off with a six man tag. Vader, Owen Hart and British Bulldog defeated Ahamed Johnson, Yokozuna and Jake The Snake Roberts. The finish was exciting even if nothing else was. It also felt underwhelming as an opener for a card of this magnitude. Next was the Backlot Brawl, where Goldust would attempt to flee in his car. This was done very well as it looked as if Goldust was actually fearing for his life when he escaped in his gold cadillac. The match would go on throughout the night. They showed footage of Piper chasing Goldust on the freeway which was a nod to the infamous O.J Simpson/ Bronco incident. This was good in the same vein of modern day cinematic matches. You can't view it as a pure wrestling match, but it was still entertaining! Steve Austin defeated Savio Vega. Tim White would get knocked out, Austin beat Vega with his Million Dollar Championship, which is probably (kayfabe) the most painful belt to get hit with. Ted Di Biase poured Pepsi on the ref's face to wake him up and Austin won with a sleeper hold. This was a really well worked match and I enjoyed it. HHH jobbed for THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR! It's always funny seeing Warrior blow up after his entrance and frantic work style. Other than that and Warrior no-selling a pedigree which is ironic, given the retrospective careers of both men, there is nothing to see here. Marc Mero appeared backstage in a HOLY SHIT moment! He was working as the "Wildman'' and brawled with HHH after he noticed Hunter mistreating Sable, who also appeared on WWF TV for the first time that night HHH's escort. Great WrestleMania moment! Sable's WWF tenure was interesting in itself. Remember how I said Marc Mero's daughter was upset seeing her dad with other women on TV? Well Sable, was Marc Mero's wife and stepmother to his child at the time! When Mero was offered the first guaranteed contract in WWF history, as an added stipulation he requested that his wife (Sable) travel with him everywhere. Even to his initial contract signing! When Vince saw her, she was instantly signed alongside Marc Mero as his valet. She would even go on to be considered a 'sex symbol' in her own right, and gain immense popularity with WWF Raw viewers. Taker defeated Diesel (obviously) As a side note, Undertaker's WrestleMania winning streak wouldn't be acknowledged as a selling point until Mania 21, and it would only be recognised by Taker for the first time at X8 after his match with Ric Flair, where he would hold up 10 fingers signifying 10-0. This was a great match that had it all. Well paced, great psychology and the false finishes would have had you jumping out of your seat at the time. Two experts of the game putting on a show, pure and simple. I'd even rank it above the match Diesel had with Bret at Survivor Series. Piper and Goldust arrive back to the arena and make their way to the ring. I have no idea why Goldust chose this as his final destination if he was truly trying to escape, but maybe he took a wrong turn and it was purely coincidental. They made their way back into the arena and Goldust was revealed as a cross-dresser. Piper unofficially won the brawl. He didn't actually pin Goldust, but he exposed him as a "deviant" and his music started to play. How very 1990's. Next is the 1 hour Iron Man match. I already know a lot about this one and don't look forward to sitting through an hour of no pinfalls. But I have only seen it once when I was 13 so I'll pour myself a beer and watch the show in full as intended. HBK hit 2 superkicks in overtime to win via pinfall, and here are my thoughts. Shawn and Bret had such good chemistry it was almost ironic. This is probably because they genuinely didn't like each other and were both great workers. Think of Lawler and Dundee back in the day. Bret looked genuinely pissed off and almost played heel with his mannerisms at times when he realised the crowd were cheering for Shawn. Allegady, HBK potato's Bret and was also upset about him no-selling the arm that he was working for a good portion of the match. These claims are unsubstantiated but as I've already stated, these guys clearly didn't like each other, so things may have happened during the contest. Finally, Shawn yelled at Hebner to "get that piece of shit out of my ring" (Bret Hart) That's when the heat began, from a historic standpoint at least. Although there's not always a specific timestamp as to when two people who generally dislike each other, start to do so. "The boyhood dream has come true" is still one of the best calls in Pro-Wrestling and as a total package, the match was excellent! Summary

Thanks to the hour long Iron Man match, this was a heavily condensed card (only 5 in-ring main card bouts, 6 including the cinematic backlot brawl) but looking back on how the WWF operated during this time period, that was probably intentional as the depth of in talent wasn’t at its highest. Yet overall, this was a fairly enjoyable edition of WrestleMania. It had a bit of everything, as a supercard should. Shawn Vs Bret wasn't my cup of tea, but it was still technically excellent, even if the decision to have zero falls during an HOUR LONG IRON MAN MATCH BAFFLES ME TO THIS VERY DAY! Taker/Diesel was probably the Undertakers best WrestleMania match to this point, the Backlot Brawl was highly entertaining and ‘Stone Cold‘ was even on the card! That only leaves the opener which was...well, it was really bad, but hey nothing else was, so hopefully you see where I’m going with this. Of course by modern day standards it’s not the most exciting Mania of all time, and retrospectively with some fantasy booking shenanigans, I even think that certain superstars could have been pushed with singles matches further up the card. Overall, I will judge it based on my expectations of what a Mania card should be and the hype and expectations that go with it, as opposed to how I'd judge regular PPVs. Final score (2.75 Stars)

Summary and scores

The WWF heated up during the Road to Wrestlemania, with a solid PPV to close the month and some very watchable episodes of Raw. Nitro and WCW are still wildly inconsistent, although WCW did offer us one of the best TVs between either brand to date (11/3) We also finally started to see WWF embrace some "attitude" with the Goldust stuff. The scores are WCW 15-7 WWF with 4 draws

Match of the Month: Bret Hart Vs Shawn Micheals (WrestleMania XII)

Honorable mention: The Steiners Vs The Road Warriors (Nitro)