WWE SummerSlam 89'

 

SummerSlam 89' - August 1989

East Rutherford, New Jersey

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, Hulk Hogan is the WWE World Champion, "Ravishing" Rick Rude holds the Intercontinental Championship, and the Brainbusters, Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson, are the reigning WWE World Tag Team Champions.

COMMENTARY: Tony Schiavone and Jesse "The Body" Ventura

After a fairly excellent video package splicing wrestling action with traditional summertime tomfoolery (kids eating ice cream cones, a babe in a bikini), it is time for our opening contest, a non-title clash between The Hart Foundation and the reigning Tag Team Champions, Tully Blancard and Arn Anderson, The Brainbusters. This is a match where the "little things" add up to a sum far greater than the whole, as all four men do a tremendous job of throwing in extra snugness, extra pep, and extra energy to lift this match from being just average to being something significantly above it. From the very first sequence, one can tell that the Harts are coming in guns blazing, Bret working hard to out-wrestle the wily Blanchard and refusing to give his opponents a window to breathe. Referee Joey Marella doesn't take the night off either, cutting off various Brainbuster tags when he's not sure they're on the up-and-up, a nice twist to the formula of heels using trickery to get an advantage. Speaking about twists, unlike a traditional "face-in-peril" tag match, this one is all about showing the dominance of the Hart Foundation, who aren't above bending the rules themselves to maintain their advantage. Bret Hart is the star for his team thanks to the impressive variety of offense he delivers, but Neidhart keeps the momentum going and plays his role well. The real MVPs, though, are Anderson and Tully, bumping like mad, selling a ton, and doing the character work necessary to get over the fact that they are in over their heads against a fired-up face team. I do wish we saw more involvement out of Heenan and the finish seems a little bit lackluster (I would've loved to see the heels utilize something just a touch more sneaky to get the win - maybe a loaded boot?), but there's so much to love about this match that it certainly deserves a watch. (3.5/5)

There are all sorts of tracking issues on this for some reason, making me think maybe the WWE needed to transfer this over from the VHS copy that collected desk at the Flicks Video Rentals I went to as a kid. It kinda makes it funner to watch, though.

After some words from Dusty Rhodes backstage, it's time for him to hit the ring for his match against the Honky Tonk Man. The crowd is pumped for this, counting along with each punch Dusty plants in the corner. Rhodes applies what has to be the laziest ankle hold I've ever seen as the camera zooms in on his polka-dotted rear for some reason. A distraction from Jimmy Hart allows Honky to hit Rhodes with the megaphone behind the ref's back, the crowd's excitement effectively deadened. Honky applies a headlock, giving the Dream an opportunity to raise the crowd's enthusiasm again with his wiggling and calls for fan support. A nice, high impact ref bump wakes the crowd back up and leads to a good, if not unpredictable, ending. Not awful, but certainly nothing to search for. Bonus half-point for Honky's post-match promo and the Sean Mooney appearance. (2/5)

Demolition and "King" Jim Duggan are backstage, ranting and raving about how they plan to take down the incredibly large team of Andre The Giant, Big Boss Man, and Akeem.

The undefeated Mr. Perfect is already in the ring awaiting his challenge tonight, "The Red Rooster" Terry Taylor. Perfect is pretty brilliant here, not only in the execution of his wrestling, but in the way he mocks Taylor, getting over his cocky prick character with taunts and facial expressions every chance he gets. To his credit, Taylor is a very capable foil - jobbing, for sure, but throwing enough personality into it that it makes this more than just a squash match. I would've liked a bit more back and forth, personally. (2/5)

"Mean" Gene is backstage with Rick Rude and Bobby Heenan. I'm a sucker for these two on the mic, but it's just too short a segment to earn a bonus point.

The Rockers and Tito Santana take on The Fabulous Rougeaus and Rick Martel next. The Rougeaus' entrance theme is killer and Ventura calling Santana "Chico" at every opportunity helps this match start with at least a half-point bonus before the bell even rings. Martel and Jacques Rougeau are tremendous here, doing everything you'd want heels to do in a multi-man match, pulling out double-teams behind the ref's back, cutting the ring in half, doing blind tags, taunting their opponents and antagonizing the crowd every time they have the upperhand - and it all comes across so natural. Tito is very good as the face in peril, but his hope spots wouldn't rally the crowd so much if it wasn't for how vicious and calculated the heels' offense is, hitting him with more than a couple maneuvers that teams like The New Day should be cribbing right now. When Shawn Michaels finally gets tagged in, the crowd goes bananas, not so much because it's future Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels, but because they want to see Martel get his comeuppance and Tito has fought so valiantly to reach the corner. Pandemonium ensues in the ring, a surefire sign that the faces will likely get screwed, but there are enough twists and turns in the last 30 seconds that it totally works. Really fun match and, in my opinion, a touch better than the opener. (4/5)

A video package highlights the lengthy rivalry between The Ultimate Warrior and "Ravishing" Rick Rude. It closes off with a clip of Andre The Giant bringing Warrior to his knees on an episode of Superstars. This segues into a very brief promo out of the Warrior that is completely insane. (+1)

The Intercontinental Championship is on the line next, with "Ravishing" Rick Rude defending against The Ultimate Warrior. Rude's intro is always great and he does not disappoint here, revealing an incredible pair of tights featuring the Warrior's face on them. The ovation for the Warrior is tremendous, though, one could argue that they were just hype for Dusty Rhodes and even for the finish of the previous match. What starts as a squash match becomes something great as it continues and Rude, after taking a severe beating, ends up gaining the upperhand. The most praised aspect of this feud has always been Rude's selling, but what is not given enough credit is the clever ways the matches are laid out to keep Rude looking tough and keep Warrior's flaws well hidden. The finish, with its awesome and unexpected run-in, only suffers because the Warrior's finishing maneuver has always been a bit lackluster, an unworthy imitation of Hogan's legdrop. Thoroughly entertaining match that shows just how hot you can get a crowd without having to load up a match with three dozen high spots and just sticking to some basic-but-well-executed staples like piledrivers, a ref bump, and some out-of-the-ring brawling. (4/5)

After a small sampling of promos out of Rude and Heenan, Mr. Perfect, and Hot Rod, as well as a brief intermission, "Mean" Gene welcomes us back to the show and cues up a video package promoting tonight's main event. Excellent video recap showcasing the debut of Zeus and his unholy alliance with Sensational Sherri and "Macho Man" Randy Savage.

6-man tag action is next, Jim Duggan and Demolition vs. The Twin Towers and Andre The Giant. Like so many other bouts on tonight's show, what is a fully unspectacular match is raised by a passionate crowd and equally passionate announcing from Tony Schiavone. This is not a must-see contest by any stretch of the imagination and it certainly isn't a go-to match for fans seeking to understand the draw of Andre the Giant, but it doesn't eat up too much time and the finish keeps the crowd happy without hurting the 8th Wonder's credibility as the heaviest hitter of the bunch. (1.5/5)

Ted DiBiase is in the back to cut a promo about his match against Jimmy Snuka later in the show.

Back in the ring, "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin, who had been banned from wrestling and working as a referee, takes over for the Fink as guest ring announcer. He welcomes Hercules and then verbally bashes his opponent, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine for comedic effect. A wrestling match, but not much of one, ensues, Valentine distracted the whole time by Garvin on the outside of the ring. Nothing much to say about this one, which is passable, but not "PPV worthy." (1/5)

Backstage promo from Sensational Sherri, "Macho Man," and Zeus. 

Back in the ring, Ted DiBiase is awaiting his opponent, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka. Snuka comes in and immediately goes on offense, forcing DiBiase to take a break on the outside. DiBiase comes back in and locks on a super tight headlock, but the action takes a noticeable dip when there is an obvious mistiming on a leap frog. Superfly remains in control until DiBiase is able to land a huge stun gun, giving the Million Dollar Man an opportunity to capitalize with a follow-up suplex. DiBiase misses out on his patented back elbow from the second rope and Snuka takes over with some big fists and a headbutt, then attempts a diving headbutt from the second rope. Instead of making the pin, though, Snuka heads to the top rope for a big splash, but before he can launch himself, Virgil distracts him on the outside. DiBiase lands an axehandle on the arena floor and tosses Snuka into the ring post leading to a pretty lackluster finish that I'm not entirely sure was 100% kosher. Snuka leaping back on screen for the post-match is a tremendous visual, though, pushing this match slightly higher than it would deserve based on what goes on strictly between the bells. (1.5/5)

Here's a nice surprise - "The Genius" Lanny Poffo has a poem for us! Sadly, it is one of the least remarkable ones I can recall him reciting. Poffo even mentions Miss Elizabeth, spoiling the surprise that Hogan had alluded to in his pre-match promo (as if there was any doubt what "special surprise" he had in store for the heels).

Main event time - "The Macho Man" Randy Savage and Zeus, with Sensational Sherri, taking on Hulk Hogan and Brutus Beefcake. The previous year had seen Hogan and Savage take Andre the Giant and Ted DiBiase in a match I respected for being a spectacle, if not a mat classic. This one will need even more smoke and mirrors to keep me engaged as Zeus was an untrained performer and if Beefcake was trained, he should've asked for his money back. Before the match starts, Howard Finkel is informed by Hulk Hogan that he needs to welcome Hogan's special guest, the First Lady of Professional Wrestling, Miss Elizabeth (looking absolutely radiant here, by the way). The match begins and within the first minute it is obvious how limited Zeus is as a performer, busting out nothing but chokes and bear hugs while Savage provides the actual excitement via a flying axehandle and some menacing facial expressions. The crowd gets behind the Hulkster quickly, though, when Savage locks in a sleeper, drawing strength from their support. Surprisingly, Zeus gets tagged back in moments later. Unsurprisingly, he ties up Hogan in yet another bearhug and keeps him in it for a minute or so before tagging out so Savage can give the match some actual movement. The crowd pops big for Hogan escaping Savage's assault and making the hot tag to Brutus, who ends up on the receiving end of a loaded purse shot from Macho and having to face off with Zeus. Zeus lays in some more chokes, but at least throws in a press slam onto the top rope to mix it up before Savage tags in. A double clothesline spot leads to Hogan getting the tag and, though the Hulkster takes control initially, he ends up eating an elbow drop from Macho Man. Hogan no sells it, though, and we finally get our big showdown - Zeus and Hogan toe-to-toe in the center of the ring. This leads to a ridiculous sequence involving Zeus staggering and the return of the loaded purse, concluding with a crowd-pleasing post-match scene that ends like nearly every other pay-per-view from this era. While this match is decent fun (especially seeing Miss Elizabeth getting physically involved to give Sherri her comeuppance), the key word is probably "decent." Again, the spectacle and the spirited performances out of Savage and Hogan raise this one above where the in-ring action would put it on its own. (2/5)

With an overall rating of 2.5-out-of-5, SummerSlam 89' is actually more watchable than its score would indicate. The opening contest, the Rockers and Santana vs. Quebecers and Martel 6-man, and Intercontinental Championship matches are good-to-great and are given adequate time, while the underwhelming Snuka/DiBiase, Rhodes/Honky Tonk Man, and main event may not be too good, but they don't overstay their welcome. Mr. Perfect is fun to watch in a cameo squash and, helping to keep the show going, are vignettes and promos between every match that work far better than trying to script out convoluted scenes and segments (or, more likely, overloading the Network specials with the same advertisements ad nauseum) like we get on today's shows. While I wouldn't recommend this to every fan (it certainly helps if you have a nostalgic appreciation for late 80s/early 90s WWE), there are far worse shows to find on the Network.

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver