May '97

Monday Night Wars May '96

Raw/Nitro May 5th

Monday Night Raw 5/5/97 (2.5 Stars)

Segment- Hart Foundation in-ring promo. Bret Hart praises his newly formed group of Owen Hart, British Bulldog, Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart as well Brian Pillman. Bret Hart says his group will rip apart Shawn Michaels and settle the score once and for all.

Match 1- Rockabilly def Ahmed Johnson via DQ

Match 2- Vader def Goldust

Segment- J.R interviews Goldust out of character as Dustin Runnels. It was claimed that Goldust was created in an attempt to escape his fathers shadow (Dusty Rhodes)

Match 3- Jobber, Jobber & Ahmed Johnson def Crush (Gauntlet Match)

Segment- Shawn Michaels in-ring promo. Shawn says he will return to the WWF as an in-ring performer at KOTR, set to take place one month later. Vince McMahon warns Shawn Michaels of the threats made by the Hart Foundation. Bret Hart says he doesn’t see a whole lot wrong with Shawn’s physical condition, so challenges him to face Jim ‘The Anvil’ Neidhart. Owen, Bulldog and Jim Neidhart all bum rush Shawn in the ring until L.O.D make the save

Match 4- Doug Furnas & Phil Lafon def L.O.D via Owen Hart outside distraction

Segment- Undertaker in-ring hyping PPV match with ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin

Segment- Sunny models ‘Austin 3:16’ merch

Match 5- ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin def British Bulldog

Analysis

Solid opening promo ahead of the upcoming PPV, IYH 15: A Cold Day in Hell, firmly establishing the newly reformed Hart Foundation while detailing their reasons for being here as well as their goals going forward. Rockabilly brought a guitar into the ring, but Ahmed Johnson used it instead causing the DQ. It then cut to backstage as the Hart Foundation stormed the area looking for Shawn Michaels. We then saw a short Ken Shamrock video package, detailing his personal life. Being a Shamrock fan, as well as an MMA fan, I found this segment interesting. He added that the reason he called out Mike Tyson was because, quite simply, the question was always asked. With Shamrock being atop of the MMA/UFC world, and Tyson his (boxing) he wanted to answer the question of who was tougher, as well as feeling that Tyson blamed others for his problems, before calling him a bully. Shamrock was now set to face another “bully” on PPV…Vader. Now THAT was a match I was looking forward to! Vader over Goldust. Not a bad match by any stretch of the imagination. But it was short. Post-match, Vader & Shamrock had an in-ring confrontation ahead of their no holds barred fight, set to take place on PPV. Mankind ran down to assist Vader but eventually Goldust broke things up. We then saw an out of character or 'shoot' interview between JR and Dustin Runnels. Dustin insisted that Goldust was created to become his own man and escape the shadow of his father, but anyone who saw him in WCW prior would have surely known this wasn’t always the case. Dustin Rhodes was already a thing in WCW, with a portfolio of classic matches to boot. Nonetheless, it was a very unique angle to get someone to switch up their gimmick. I legitimately tried to find the names of the first two enhancement talents working the Gauntlet match, but was unable to. Ahmed Johnson ran down as the final participant wearing a mask and a hoodie, catching Crush off guard and pinning him for the victory. Good segment announcing HBK’s return date. IF this was genuinely unknown amongst the casual wrestling fans at the time, which it very may have been because you, pre internet. This would have been pretty big news. It was a well booked segment in my opinion. Owen Hart caused the distraction, leading to Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon pinning L.O.D to win the match. Next we saw Shawn Michaels brawling with The Hart Foundation backstage, with Steve Austin running through a backdoor to join the fight! Taker cut a short promo ahead of his match with Austin. Nothing of note to add really. Taker basically said that it would be a cold day in hell for Austin. Because get it? The PPV was called a COLD DAY IN HELL! The main-event between Austin and Bulldog was good, although the finish was kind of flat and the constant PPV promos spoiled the match somewhat. I know I’ve said this 1000 TIMES! But when you have two guys who possess the abilities of Austin and Davey. If you’re putting them in the main-event spot. Give them 20 minutes and let them do their thing. Under any other circumstance this could have easily been considered one of the better raw main-events of this time period. It was still fine, because it was Austin/Bulldog. But it was an average match that easily had the capabilities to be a 3.5/4 stars affair. Anyway, Owen Hart and Jim Neidhart ran in-post-match, until L.O.D joined the action to even up the odds. Doug Furnas and Phil Lafon also joined the fray for some reason, until Shawn eventually made his presence known. Honestly, the ridiculous amount of run-ins ruined what could have been a decent segment. Even Vince McMahon alluded to this by saying “who’s fighting who” It was massively overbooked and completely unnecessary. Taker's music hit and he cleared the ring until only he and Austin remained. At least that bit made sense. Anyway, this is my summary for the show. Better wrestling than usual (although still not fantastic) but the angles weren't as well booked as they had been in previous weeks. I don’t always mind that as much, as cool down periods are still important, and it was a fun show for the most part and hyped IYH 15 just about as well as they could have. Knowing Shawn’s return date was cool, as were the Goldust and Shamrock segments. They weren't amazing but they fit the show and hit their points without being boring. Also, Bret Hart kept using the term “if you’ve got the jam?” I had no idea what it meant, but the amount of times he used it led me to believe he heard someone more ‘hip’ than himself saying it, resulting in him using the term like 10 times in one show. It still sounded really weird! Decent show overall, and I’m secretly glad they took a step back from the constant chaos, even if only for the selfish reason that having 1 million swerves and run-in’s (no matter how entertaining they are) makes it an absolute nightmare to review. Overall solid show! If they lost the multi man schmaltz at the end and opted to treat Bulldog/Austin with more care, it may have scored it a tick above average. But as it stands. It’s a 2.5 from me

WCW Nitro 5/5/5 (2 Stars)

Segment- Roddy Piper, Ric Flair & Kevin Grenne in-ring promo. Piper says he doesn't want any money to fight the Outsiders. J.J. Dillion interrupts, saying Roddy does in fact care about the purse, but he better show up as if he doesn't he would be in breach of contract, before adding that would be bad news for WCW.

Match 1- Konan & Hugh Morrus def Public Enemy

Cruiserweight Championship

Match 2- (c) Syxx def Rey Mysterio

Segment- Hollywood Hogan in-ring promo. Called out Sting…

Match 3- Lord Steven Regal def Meng via DQ due to outside interference by Kevin Sullivan

Segment- DDP/Mene Gene interview. Dallas says he enjoyed beating Savage at Spring Stampede. Randy interrupts before challenging DDP again.

Match 4- Jeff Jarrett def Alex Wright

Match 5- Glacier def Lizmark Jr

Match 6- DDP & The Giant Vs Harlem Heat doesn't officially begin due to outside interference

Analysis

Weird opening segment. Why did they have Piper say he doesn't care about money only for J.J. Dillion to immediately rebuke that fact? In my opinion, the whole 75 percent of the purse thing was yet another case of overbooking. Just say "we want the majority of the gate" and leave it at that. It was a simple enough concept without adding more layers in regards to Piper being hot about it!

Mess of a finish in the opener. Morrus suplexes Rocco Rock (Public Enemy) through a table with Konnan laying on top. All 3 bodies were strewn across each other, leading Schiavone to ask "Who got PINNED!" only for Larry Zbyszko to reply "everyone". A complete mess with Konnan & Hugh Morrus picking up the win. In my opinion, it was a ridiculous spot to even attempt in the first place! Syxx squashes Mysterio in seconds due to an NWO bumrush, leading to J.J. Dillon and Bischoff both coming out and attempting to restore order. Bischoff tells Dillon he has "No power" and as much as the flip flopping nature of who was actually in charge was slightly grating, this NWO segment as a whole was FANTASTIC. It was fast, efficient and they got the job done in the most logical way. They've dominated the entire program so far, and in kayfabe terms at least, that should have always been the point. Slight ratings bump for the first bit of NWO logic I've witnessed in MONTHS! I didn't understand the Meng/Regal/Sullivan beef, but then again I didn't watch WCW Saturday Night. Glacier fought off Mortis post-match, only to be attacked yet again by a 'mystery giant' Whoever could it be? Finally, during the main-event, Hollywood Hogan attacked DDP as the rest of The NWO worked over The Giant and Harlem Heat. Greene, Flair and Piper attempted to make the save yet got outnumbered. OK, so if the point of this show was to finally assert that The NWO could do whatever they wanted. Then the mission was very much accomplished. As previously stated, as much as the whole J.J. Dillion segment made zero sense (did he have authority or not) this was the first time I'd seen the NWO use the numbers advantage quickly and logically. They bum rushed poor Rey Mysterio right away while distracting the ref, because why wouldn't they! And the match was over in seconds. You may think that idea is stupid, but in its very essence, that's what The NWO was. A numbers mob. Anyway, I didn't hate the storytelling this week (even if it was illogical at times) but simply because I wasn't forced to sit through two hours of it, actually, that fact alone made me kind of enjoy parts of it even more. But at the end of the day, It was still ridiculously overbooked with far too many short and meaningless matches. Easy win for Raw this week.

In Your House 15: A Cold Day in Hell

Live from Richmond Virginia, the WWF brought us the 15th edition of In Your House. Fun fact, this was taped and broadcast live on Mother's Day.

Match 1- Hunter Hearst Helmsley def Flash Funk

Match 2- Mankind def Rocky Maivia

Match 3- Ahamed Johnson def Crush (Gauntlet Match)

Match 4- Ahmed Johnson def Savio Vega via DQ (Gauntlet Match)

Match 5- Faarooq def Ahmed Johnson (Gauntlet Match)

Match 6- Ken Shamrock def Vader (No Holds Barred Match)

WWF Title

Match 7- (c) The Undertaker def 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin

Analysis

Flash Funk was sadly missing his Funkets. Chyna had a heavy involvement in the first match, striking Funk from behind as well as rocking him with a punch to his jaw while the ref was distracted. The match was a little slow at times and the Pedigree to end it looked horrible. Post-match, Chyna picked up Flash Funk and dumped him out of the ring in an impressive display of strength. Footage was shown of Ken Shamrock being assaulted backstage by Mankind and Vader. Mankind/Rocky received mixed reviews. Personally I enjoyed it. Mankind bumped well for Maivia, with the pair having a fun albeit short matchup. Although a role change for 'Rocky Maivia' was desperately needed, as the fans had already started to turn on him.

Gorilla Monsoon escorted the Nation of Domination away from ringside ahead of Johnson's match with Crush. Johnson pins Crush clean, before Savio intentionally gets DQ'd, in an effort to weaken Johnson and injure him with a steel chair. Faaroqq walked to the ring wearing a sling before tossing it away, suggesting he was feigning the injury. This entire segment was what is sometimes referred to as "garbage time" Pointless filler nowhere near being worthy of a PPV broadcast. Then again, if I actually cared about the feud, perhaps it wouldn't have been so bad. As much as I would go on to enjoy Shamrock's WWF career, his match with Vader didn't work in my opinion. I'm unsure if it was the match stipulation that didn't work, or just the pairing itself. Many people enjoyed this one due to the stiffness, and the crowd seemed into it. But personally I found it lacked drama. Keep in mind, unless you were well versed in MMA/Shootfighting, it could have been difficult to fully appreciate many of the submission holds within the context of the match. WWF fans probably hadn't seen many matches end with an ankle lock before, so the finish may have seemed to come out of nowhere for the live crowd. This was Austin's first PPV main-event. The Hart Foundation along with their new recruit Brian Pillman, made their way to the seated ringside area for an up close view of the action. Pillman caused a distraction by prematurely ringing the bell as Taker was covered. Post-match the Hart Foundation attempted to jump The Undertaker, before Austin stole Bret Hart's crutch from ringside and chased them all away. Austin hits The Undertaker with a one final Stunner for good measure, but Taker no sold it, getting right back up, instead deciding to follow Steve Austin to the back. A small detail but it was still weird all the same. In short, this was a good way to end a bad PPV. Was this match alone worth the price of admission? Probably not. But for a C-Level PPV, it was certainly a fantastic way to end things. In summary, the main-event was good, and the Shamrock segment ok for what it was (even if I didn't enjoy it) Overall, a sub-par PPV. At least it was under 2 hours long (2 Stars)

Raw/Nitro May 12th

Monday Night Raw 12/5/97 (2.5 Stars)

Segment- Bret Hart heel promo. Bret Hart puts over The Hart Foundation before promising a "big surprise"

Match 1- Ahmed Johnson def Hunter Hearst Helmsley via DQ (1st Round- King of the Ring)

Segment- 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin in-ring promo. Austin says he will tear apart The Hart Foundation, starting with Brian Pillman.

Match 2- Scott Putski def Leif Cassiday

Match 3- Legion of Doom def PG 13

Segment- Mankind brings out Paul Bearer. Paul Bearer's face is covered in bandages. Paul Bearer gives The Undertaker one more chance to reunite, before threatening to reveal Undertaker's secret if he refuses.

Segment- Faarooq is announced as the new number one contender for the WWF Champion. Faarooq says that the WWF doesn't feel that black men are worthy to be in the premier positions before promising to win the title at KOTR.

Match 4- The Undertaker def Savio Vega via DQ

Match 4- The Undertaker def Savio Vega

Match 5- Rob Van Dam def Jeff Hardy

Segment- Dustin Rhodes discusses his Goldust character. Talks about his father and how he seeks his approval.

Segment- Undertaker promo. Undertaker tells Paul Bearer some things are better left alone, before adding he must now unleash a demon to help him battle

Match 6- Owen Hart & British Bulldog def, Philip Lafon & Doug Furnas, The Headbangers and The Smoking Gunns (Four Team Elimination Tag Match)

Segment- Bret Hart reveals his 'Surprise' Calls out Shawn Michaels before running him down. As Bret stands up to presumably reveal something about Shawn, he's superkicked back into his wheelchair. This leads to a mass brawl between The Hart Foundation and Steve Austin fighting alongside Shawn Michaels.

Analysis

The King of the Ring tournament started off with Ahmed Johnson picking up a DQ win over HHH, thanks to Chyna interfering. Scott Putski, son of Hall of Famer Ivan Putski, made what was claimed to be his WWF 'debut'. Putski had an impressive size but it was a very basic match and far too early during his second WWF run to comment. He had previously competed in the GWF as well as the WWF before this, so was far from being a rookie. Nation of Domination sent J.C Ice & Wolfie D aka PG 13 down to the ring, only to get squashed by The Legion of Doom. The next part of the show was intriguing as during the Mankind/Paul Bearer segment, Paul told us that Undertaker's parents were killed in a shocking moment!

The 2nd hour started off with a fun match between The Undertaker and Savio Vega, until the premature DQ. Savio whipped Taker with his belt post-match, as the rest of the faction worked Undertaker over. Jerry Lawler announced former ECW star Rob Van Dam as a part of the WWF roster. Sadly his opponent Jeff Hardy, was still very much a jobber, so provided zero offence. As such, this match served two purposes. To showcase Rob's split legged moonsault as well as his 'five star frog splash' Huge moment in history seeing these two face off for the first time, but without any of that knowledge, it was nothing more than a squash match. That said, it was one of the best squash matches I'd ever seen as it made RVD look like a million bucks (that's kind of the point of them anyway) while getting him instantly over with the audience! Even if a few marks who didn't quite understand how wrestling works, and decided to chant "You sold out" at poor Rob.

Dustin Runnels/Goldust says that he backed Goldust as a 'character' as well as backing himself and his family. He mentions his younger brother 'Cody' aka Cody Rhodes. Interestingly, the emphasis that was placed on not disappointing his father, was done in equal measure during a very similar promo Cody Rhodes would cut upon his return to the now WWE, April 4th 2022. Cody spoke about the massive weight of his father's legacy and how difficult it would be to live up to. Apparently, name-dropping Dusty Rhodes so much was a ploy on The WWF's part to try and snatch Dusty from WCW. But he was under contract so that wouldn't happen. Overall, I found this segment confusing as it was a complete contrast of the Goldust character. I understand they were going for a whole "breaking kayfabe/shoot interview" vibe. But who are we seeing in-ring? The quite frankly, kind of boring and overly emotional husband Dustin Rhodes/Runnels, or Goldust? The eccentric homoerotic dude in spandex freaking out his opponents? During the 4-way tag match, Paul Lafon held down Bradshaw's foot allowing him to be pinned. This would probably start a feud between those two teams. Owen/Bulldog & Headbangers were the final two teams, with British Bulldog picking up the win for his team. Bret's promo closed the show. This included the iconic moment of Bret being superkicked into his wheelchair by Shawn Michaels. Shawn did his best to fight off The Hart Foundation before becoming overwhelmed. Austin eventually made the save. The first hour was dull at times, but the second hour provided more than enough to make it a decent enough show overall. Rob Van Dam, the short yet fun and chaotic tag match as well as the final segment all being the highlights. Decent show overall. Although as usual, the segments bested the in-ring action.

WCW Nitro 12/5/97 (1.75 Stars)

Segment- Randy Savage in-ring promo. Savage calls out DDP.

TV Title

Match 1- (c) Ultimate Dragon def Juventud Guerrera

Segment- Flair, Piper, Kevin Greene in-promo for Slamboree. Interrupted by the Wolfpack via the titan-tron.

Match 2- Dean Malenko def Steve 'Mongo' McMichael

Match 3- The Wrath def Scotty Riggs

Match 4- Konnan & Hugh Morrus def Ice Train & Alex Wright

Segment- Eric Bischoff/NWO Sting in-ring promo. Sting takes down NWO Sting before Bischoff flees through the crowd.

Analysis

This night marked Bruce Buffer's WCW ring announcing debut. Kevin Nash would say the legendary ring announcer famous for his "LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!" line, really added a big match feel as well as much needed validity to WCW events. At the start of the show, we learned that Sting wanted to talk to Eric Bischoff one on one, mano e mano, at some point tonight. We also saw a fun opening match between Juventud Guerrera and Ultimate Dragon. It would have been even better if it had some context or if Juve (WCW's most losingest wrestler) seemed like somewhat of a threat, but we can't have everything I guess. Nash, Hall & Syxx referred to themselves as the Wolfpack for the first time during their promo. Green Bay Packers star Reggie White ran down and assaulted former Chicago Bears star Steve McMichael, handing Dean Malenko the win. The crowd popped hard for Reggie White chanting "Reggie…Reggie!" Yet the one or two moves Reggie White hit, didn't look good at all. The mystery right hand man of Mortis was revealed as someone dubbed as "The Wrath" Mortis and The Wrath had a mouthpiece called James Vandenberg. The Wrath squashed Scotty Riggs with a chokeslam before The Glacier made his presence known, starting down The Wrath. This whole angle was like something straight out of a comic book. Alex Wright left his tag team partner Ice Train mid match, possibly turning heel in the process, as he bragged about his body. I didn't really care either way. The Wolfpack were shown fleeing the backstage area after 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper had been assaulted. Sting/Bischoff closed the show. Eric Bischoff brought out nWo Sting instead of the actual Sting. Bischoff then attempted to humiliate Sting, by asking nWo Sting degrading questions while having him play along. The real Sting finally came down to confront the pair of them, before the show ended. Oh Madonna! I said it last week and I'll say it again, the only saving grace for this edition of Nitro was its short run-time. I didn't think I'd get as low as a 1.75 until that truly AWFUL AND POINTLESS final segment. I need another drink, point WWF.

Slamboree '97

Live in Charlotte, North Carolina. WCW brought us Slamboree 1997. WOOOO!

TV Title

Match 1- Steve Regal def Ultimate Dragon (c)

Match 2- Madusa def Luna Vachon

Segment- 'Macho Man' Randy Savage promo. Randy Savage calls out DDP.

Match 3- Rey Mysterio def Yuji Yasuraoka

Match 4- Glacier def Mortis via DQ

United States Championship

Match 5- (c) Dean Malenko def Jeff Jarrett

Match 6- Chris Beniot def Meng (Texas Death Match)

Match 7- The Steiner Brothers def Konan & Hugh Morrus

Match 8- Steve 'Mongo' McMichael def Reggie White

Match 9- Ric Flair, 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper & Kevin Grenne def The Wolfpack

Analysis

Steve Regal apparently no longer wanted to be referred to as a 'Lord' because the fans were booing him. This was all in storyline terms of course. It started off quite predictably with both men exchanging holds and chain wrestling for around 10 minutes or so. But once it got going, it was a highly enjoyable contest. Both men seemed to be working snug with each other, with neither holding back. Solid opener. According to the broadcast team, Madusa defeated Akira Hokuta for the WCW Women's Championship during a match in Japan, yet Akira would claim the match invalid for whatever reason. Point being, there was some 'controversy' over who was actually the champion. By the way, I'm using the word controversy in its mildest sense! A weird angle for sure but it was WCW after all.

DDP answered Randy Savage's call, only to be bum rushed by multiple C-Tier members of the NWO, including Vincent and Buff Bagwell. The Giant made the save. Yuji Yasuraoka was from Japan's WAR promotion (Wrestle Association R) where he wrestled for 4 years between 1996 until its closure in 2000. He would also wrestle on its reunion show in 2006. Anyway, his match with Rey Mysterio was really fun and quickly paced. Yuji looked good. Slightly sloppy during moments, but that's to be expected during these fast flowing high flying matches. Sadly for Yuji, WCW opted against offering him any kind of contract following his match with Mysterio. Mortis/Glacier intrigued me off the wacky characters alone. The Wrath blasted Glacier in the back with his staff, leading to Mortis and The Wrath working him over. World Karate champion Ernest Miller made the save with some sick looking spinning kicks. As an angle it did intrigue me, even if on some levels it was a bit naff. I've always maintained that while Jeff Jarrett may not have been the most exciting performer of all time, he was certainly one of the most technically proficient. I would challenge ANYONE to pick out a handful of "bad matches" he had been involved in. Jeff was just a solid, safe worker with an entertaining moveset. Not overly flashy but I've always enjoyed his matches. And his match with Dean Malenko was GREAT! My favourite match of the night so far. During it, Steve 'Mongo' McMichael stopped Debra aiding Jarrett any further. It quickly went south for Jarrett as he tapped the Texas Cloverleaf. The Texas Death Match was next (Submission or KO only) and this one was straight up weird. Meng lacked coordination at times. Not just in this match, but in general. To put it nicely, he just wasn't a very good wrestler. But at the end of the day, if you put two stiff workers in a "death match" it's hard to get it wrong. An OK segment, but it could have been much better had a more agile opponent been chosen for Beniot. A short and fun tag bout between The Steiners and Konan/Hugh Morrus saw the evening of name changes live on, as Konan (formerly Konnan) dropped a letter from his ring name. A small detail but a highly annoying one if you're trying to log matches and results. Konan turned on Hugh Morrus and The Dungeon of Doom following the loss. Steve McMichael/Reggie White was what was expected from this spot. I was just waiting for it to be over, and luckily it finally ended when Double J tossed a case into the ring for Mongo to use on White. Why Jeff was still helping Mongo I'll never know. Steve 'Mongo' McMichael could go at times, but he wasn't putting on a 5 star classic anytime soon, and worked better in a tag team when he could lean on his partner. Reggie White was literally just an NFL player with zero prior wrestling experience, other than appearing in a backstage segment at WrestleMania XI. This would be his first and final pro wrestling match. We witnessed an entertaining finish to the main-event as Ric Flair had Scott Hall locked in a Figure Four leg lock whilst 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper had Kevin Nash in a sleeper hold (the same one he used to beat Hogan twice) and Kevin Grenne body slammed Syxx. With all 3 members of the Wolfpack on their backs in one way or another, the referee counted 1,2,3. As an overall show, this was actually really fun! I had a great time watching most of this card, as it had some F'N awesome matches ( most of them being 3-4 stars) Only problem was that those matches had little build or consequence, which always hurts PPVs in my opinion, as they are meant to provide blow off moments for major feuds. In summary, fun as an overall show due to the strong in-ring action, but the lack of any blow offs or major moments made it seem more like a REALLY GOOD wrestling show (which to be fair, it was!) rather than a PPV level event. Anyway, final score (3 Stars)

Raw/Nitro 19/5/97

Monday Night Raw 19/5/97 (2 Stars)

Segment- 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin in-ring promo. Steve Austin says he had no interest in helping Shawn Michaels last week, and it was all about shutting down the Hart Foundation. Michaels confronts Austin, and the pair brawl. Owen Hart then issues an open challenge to Michaels and Austin for a tag-title match next week. Austin and Michaels both decline, saying they clearly don't get along.

Match 1- Hunter Hearst Helmsley def Crush (1st Round- King of the Ring)

Match 2- Bob Holly def Owen Hart

Segment- J.R sit-down interview with Mankind.

Match 3- Scott Taylor def Leif Cassiday

Segment- Hart Foundation in-ring promo. Bret Hart reveals his "big surprise" in announcing that Shawn Michaels is returning at King of the Ring, and so is he! Bret then challenges Shawn Michaels to a match at the upcoming PPV, before vowing that if he can't beat Shawn in ten minutes or less, he will never wrestle in the United States again. Shawn accepts the challenge.

Match 4- Rockabilly def Goldust

Match 5- Faarooq def Rocky Maivia

Segment- Hart Foundation shown assaulting Bob Holly backstage.

Segment- The Undertaker in-ring promo. Paul Bearer gives Undertaker 7 days to return to him, before revealing his dark secret.

Match 6- 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin def Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart via DQ

Segment- JR announces that Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels will in fact be forced to team up next week, taking on the Tag Champions.

Analysis

Hunter Hearst Helmsley replaced Vader (injured by Ken Shamrock at IYH:15, thus unable to compete) in the KOTR tournament. This was explained away by Gerald Briscoe who said that the referee failed to explain to HHH that the contest wasn't a no DQ match, so to avoid legal action the WWF had decided to give Hunter a second chance. Bob Holly/Owen Hart was a good match with the pair working well together. A big emphasis was placed on Bob Holly being the hometown favourite as Raw was live from Mobile, Alabama. Shawn Michaels was shown backstage with Ken Shamrock. Shawn said that Ken would be his favoured partner for his match against Owen Hart and The British Bulldog next week. J.R had a sit-down interview with Mankind. I could listen to Mick Foley/Mankind speak all day. Whether it's kayfabe or reality, he was and still is, highly captivating. He spoke about how he was accidentally kicked in the face as a child, and from that moment he realised he loved pain. Jerry Lawler claimed that Paul Heyman had prevented Rob Van Dam from wrestling on Raw, opting to keep him exclusively in ECW. In reality, Paul Heyman was experimenting with a heel turn for RVD, whereby Rob would claim to be better than ECW and deserving of a spot with either of the top two American promotions at the time (WCW and WWF respectively) Perhaps ironically, he would eventually be proved right. Bret took shots at Shawn’s knee injury, before claiming HIS injury was real. Shawn stated that he wants every member of The Hart Foundation handcuffed to the ring posts during their proposed match at the upcoming King of the Ring PPV, before making the infamous "sunny days" comments. Shawn said that Bret has been having some sunny days, in a reference to an alleged real life affair between Bret Hart and then female WWF star, Sunny 'Tammy Lynn Sytch' Goldust says that his wife and valet, Marlena, has a real name of Terri, before bringing out their daughter Dakota. This segment was very creepy as Goldust lay down on the mat before asking his daughter to say his catchphrase into the microphone. The actual match between him and Rockabilly wasn't much better if I'm honest, with these two segments combined encompassing a real low point of this show. The match would eventually be called off as Goldust blasted Honky Tonk Man in the head with his guitar, and suffered a loss via disqualification for some reason. Honky Tonk Man wasn't an official participant in the match so that part didn't make any sense. In the next segment, Ahmed Johnson called Faarooq a racist, before saying that Faarooq had a valid point in calling out the WWF for holding down black athletes. Stone Cold's ongoing search for a partner was broadcast throughout the night as he attempted to recruit Harvey Wippleman as well as Sable. Austin did exceptionally well bringing an element of comedy to his serious character without making it seem hokey or over the top. Faarooq prevented The Nation of Domination from attacking Rocky Maivia post-match. This yet again was teasing a coalition between the two sides. Ahead of Paul Bearer threatening Undertaker, the deadman responded to Faarooq calling him a "white saviour'' by saying that he's not white, and he's not black, he's simply the reaper of souls! I'm sure this sounded much cooler in his head than it did out loud. Although the stuff between him and Paul was genuinely chilling, especially if you knew how the angle would eventually develop. Austin over Neidhart via DQ in the main-event as a result of interference from Brian Pillman and The Hart Foundation. Shawn Michaels with the save before it was announced that Austin and Michaels would in fact team up next week to take on the Tag Team Champions. The pair brawled as Raw went off air. One few too many recaps, although it did help with the pacing of the show, preventing one million and one different things happening every minute. Yet overall, the in-ring aspect wasn't strong enough to bring a positive rating to the show. Although I did enjoy the segments and was left feeling eager for next week's episode, so in that regard at least, the show succeeded. However I was left feeling that the live crowd was somewhat shafted, as such a big emphasis was constantly being placed on next week's episode. As far as to what was actually broadcast, for the most part it failed to live up to expectations.

WCW Nitro 19/5/97 (2.25 Stars)

Segment- Ric Flair promo. Syxx interrupts and challenges Ric one on one.

TV Title

Match 1- (c) Steve Regal def Prince Iaukea

Match 2- Masahiro Chono def Dave Taylor

Segment- Sonny Onoo promo. Sonny Onoo says Masahiro Chono has a debt to pay, and he will make him pay for turning his back on him.

Segment- J.J. Dillon announces Nick Patrick has been reinstated due to calling the match at Slamboree impartially.

Match 3- Scotty Riggs def Mr Wallstreet

Segment- 'Mean' Gene introduces race car driver Mark Martin who announces a car giveaway.

Match 4- Stiener Brothers def Jeff Jarrett & Steve 'Mongo' McMichael

Match 5- Ric Flair def Syxx via DQ

Segment- Eric Bischoff in-ring promo. Eric says he's been looking for Sting as he wants to tell him something. Eric says Sting will never face Hogan one on one, before Sting pops up from under the ring and hits a Scorpion Deathdrop on Eric.

Analysis

Another hour long edition tonight. The announced main-event between Syxx and Ric Flair has huge potential to be something special…if it actually happens that is! Masahiro Chono walked out in NWO colours. Going forward it would be claimed that he was a part of the "international NWO" I had honestly completely forgotten all about his heel turn as it happened months ago and was hardly mentioned since. I was, however, looking forward to seeing who Chono's mystery partner would be next week. Nick Patrick refused to buckle to NWO member Mr Wallstreet, once again calling the match fairly and counting the 1,2,3 for Scotty Riggs. Not a fantastic match but an interesting development to the insufferable Nick Patrick angle. Kevin Greene intervened on behalf of the Steiners, stopping Jeff Jarrett from using the case, and using it himself on McMichael instead. I had zero interest in WCW restarting any kind of feud between Greene and McMichael. What I did have interest in however, was seeing Syxx and Flair have an actual wrestling match, but alas it wasn't meant to be. The Wolfpack immediately jumped Ric Flair and it ended via DQ. The segment involving the Wolfpack was ok, and Kevin Nash was absolutely drenched with Pepsi as the fans started throwing stuff into the ring. I have no issue with long term storytelling, so on the surface the DQ finish and assault on Flair works. What I did have an issue with however, was my faith in WCW actually pulling it off. Middling episode this week but it was marginally better than Raw on account of it being an hour shorter. Nitro finally wins a point.

Raw/Nitro 26/5/97

Monday Night Raw 26/5/97 (3.5 Stars)

Segment- 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin & Shawn Michaels in-ring promo ahead of their Tag Title match.

Match 1- Legion of Doom def Brian Pillman & Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart via DQ

Match 2- D-Lo Brown def Bob Holly

Segment- J.R sit-down interview with Mankind.

Match 3- Goldust def Jerry Lawler (1st Round- King of the Ring)

Match 4- Rocky Maivia def Flash Funk

Match 5- Ahmed Johnson def Vader

Match 6- Hunter Hearst Helmsley def Rockabilly

Tag Team Championships

Match 7- 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin & Shawn Michaels def Owen Hart & British Bulldog (c)

Segment- Paul Bearer threatens to reveal Undertakers secret.

Analysis

Great opening. Michaels and Austin showed they could co-exist, before LOD's music played ahead of their match against Brian Pillman and Jim Neidhart. HUGE POP from the crowd! This segment was booked perfectly. LOD confronted Michaels and Austin demanding a title shot "if they win" It may be a relatively small detail but LOD coming out when Austin and Michaels were in the ring together was absolute gold and put a huge smile on my face. Run-in schmohz from the Hart Foundation ended the first contest prematurely and led to Austin and Michaels running out in an effort to even up the score. Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels then fought amongst themselves due to a miscommunication amongst the frenzy. I was actually enjoying the tag match until it was called off, but I understand why it was booked this way. D-Lo Brown made his Raw in-ring debut before Jerry Lawler called Goldust a "flaming fag" as well as claiming he should have named his 3 year old daughter 'Target' because "everyone had a shot at it". Lawler eventually beat Goldust with his feet on the ropes, so I guess a Lawler/Goldust feud is on the cards. Yay? For some reason the Headbangers came out during the Rocky/ Funk Match, assaulting both men. Tim White allowed the match to continue, but Rocky Maivia capitalised and picked up the win. Sable molested, I mean, she advertised a King of the Ring inflatable chair…available for only 59.99! I'm sorry, but that seemed ridiculously expensive for a blow up chair. During his sit-down with Jim Ross, Mankind recalled the moment he saw Jimmy Snuka dive off the top of a steel cage, as well as how he hitchhiked to Madison Square Garden just to see that match. He then tells about the time he dived off his friend's roof in an effort to replicate the moment. After seeing this match, he allegedly travelled 800 miles to train under Dominic DeNucci, while sleeping in his car in-between lessons. Now it was time for something special! The tag match. This was four of the best in-ring workers of this period at the top of their game…WOW! High energy with a perfect finish. I loved the frequent tags and every move felt like it meant something! J.R was also on top form. It genuinely seemed like all four men were fighting for their lives. It takes a lot to get me truly invested in a segment doing these reviews, as it can seem laborious at times. But for 10 minutes, these four men made me forget what I was doing, and allowed me to enjoy wrestling. Put simply, go and watch this match! My favourite Raw main-event so far. During the final segment of the show, Paul Bearer revealed part of Taker's secret when he says that one more person died alongside his parents! Taker choked him out before dropping to one knee in-front of Bearer, seemingly changing his mind. The undercard matches were dull but the anticipation was well built throughout the night. The final two segments were both A+ with the main-event being truly excellent. It takes a lot to get me on the edge of my seat. But the end of this show did just that.

WCW Nitro 26/5/97 (2.25 Stars)

As Nitro returns to its usual two hour format, let's see if I can keep a track of everything…

Segment- 'Hollywood' Hogan in-ring promo. Hogan calls out Sting, before Bischoff informs him Sting isn't in the building.

Match 1- Juventud Guerrera, Super Calo & Hector Garza def La Parka, Ciclope & Damien

Match 2- Psychosis def Alex Wright

Segment- Sonny Onoo offers Madusa a title shot at The Great American Bash, but if she loses she can never wrestle for WCW again.

Match 3- Wrath def Mark Starr

Match 4- Konan def Villano IV

Segment- Sonny Onoo reveals The Great Muta as Masahiro Chono's opponent.

Match 5- The Great Muta Vs Masahiro Chono ends in a no-contest

Match 6- The Barbarian def Jim Powers

Segment- Jimmy Hart offers Chris Beniot a match against The Barbarian.

Match 7- The Giant def Johnny Swinger, Rick Fuller & Jerry Flynn

Segment- Lex Luger calls out Dennis Rodman and The Giant calls out 'Hollywood' Hogan

Segment- The Wolfpack calls out 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper and Ric Flair. Offer to put the Tag Titles on the line at The Great American Bash.

Match 8- Harlem Heat def Jeff Jarrett & Steve 'Mongo' McMichael

Segment- 'Hollywood' Hogan calls out Sting yet again, putting the World Championship on the line. Sting attacks both Bischoff and Hogan.

Analysis

A Mexican rules 6-man tag team match opened the show. Allow me to give a brief explanation of this actually meant. No tags were required as when somebody rolled out of the ring, they could be automatically replaced. Ciclope hit a senton bomb into the second row! I also learned that Hector Garza invented the Corkscrew Plancha. This would be Garza's televised WCW debut following WWF's working relationship with AAA coming to an end. A fun opening lucha bout that was given a decent amount of time. I also enjoyed the variation of the 'Mexican rules' as 6 man tag team matches are supposed to be chaotic anyway, and this stipulation only added to that. Sonny Onoo was busy making deals, as he offered to link up with Psychosis as well as telling Madusa she had to put her WCW career on the line in exchange for a title shot at The Great American Bash. We found out that Glacier arranged for Ernest 'The Cat' Miller to be ringside at Slamboree, for his own protection. Hugh Morrus continued his feud with Konan, as he was restrained as he attempted to get to him. Masahiro Chono turned his back on Sonny Onoo in order to align himself with The NWO. This angle hadn't been on-screen at all this month outside of Sonny Onoo calling him out, so that was a quick refresher. The Great Muta eventually turned on Sonny Onoo and joined The NWO himself, alongside Masahiro Chono. I didn't get the whole 'international NWO' thing. It made little sense to me as they never actually affiliated with the main on-screen faction, so what was the point? Jimmy Hart offered up Barbarian to Chris Beniot, as Kevin Sullivan was away. They tried to hype it up for next week but I guess fan interest in this one was pretty low. During the final match of the evening, Steve 'Mongo' McMichael left Jeff Jarrett as he went off to fight Kevin Grenne, who was on commentary, Double J then got double teamed, and it was all over. Better pacing this week, especially during the first hour. But the show gradually got worse and worse. Some fun surprises here and there, but nothing overly memorable. A lack of development in the Sting/Hogan feud didn't help things, although I'm at least somewhat grateful for that fact, as it could have been easily overbooked. Raw was always winning this week anyway, so the rating is almost a moot point.

Summary and final scores

Quick month with not much to report. Nitro was only an hour for the most part and neither Jim nor Kevin had a whole lot to say about this month. Apparently Ric Flair was arrested outside of a Chapel Hill Bar for public intoxication, eventually being released, only being made to pay a small fine. That's probably the most interesting thing that happened all month and it wasn't even on TV! WCW are still leading the way with the scores being, WCW 40-36 WWF with 9 draws.

MOTM: 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin & Shawn Michaels Vs Owen Hart & The British Bulldog (Raw is War)