WWE Unforgiven 2002

RATING LEVELS: 

Curt Hennig – A “GOAT” show, as Perfect as possible

Watch It – A consistently good show worth watching in its entirety

Watch It…With Remote in Hand – 3 or more above-average ratings 

High Risk Maneuver – Mostly filler, inessential, but 1-2 good matches

DUDleyville – Zero redeeming qualities, chore to watch

Unforgiven 2002 - September 2002

Los Angeles, California

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Brock Lesnar is the WWE Champion and Triple H holds the freshly-minted World Heavyweight Championship coming into tonight's show. Lance Storm and Christian (the Un-Americans) hold the World Tag Team Championships, Chris Jericho is the recognized Intercontinental Champion (for the 5th time), Jamie Noble is still the reigning Cruiserweight Champion, and Molly Holly is the Womens' Champion. 

COMMENTARY: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler (RAW), Michael Cole and Tazz (SmackDown)

Unforgiven 2002 kicks off with a video package hyping tonight's double main event. In the build-up to the show, Triple H was awarded the World Heavyweight Champion by Eric Bischoff for no greater reason than because Bischoff believed RAW needed a top title (as Brock Lesnar had taken the Undisputed WWE World Championship to SmackDown after SummerSlam 2002). What's a bit silly about the video is that the show's basic premise (that TWO World Championships would be defended) is not really that novel when you consider that, a year earlier, not only were there two World Championships up for grabs (the WCW and WWE Championships), but there were five other titles on the line.

Kicking off the in-ring action we have an 8-man tag, Christian, Lance Storm, Test, and William Regal (aka the Un-Americans) taking on Booker T, Goldlust, Bubba Ray Dudley, and a lean and mean looking Kane. Goldust and Christian start things off while the crowd chants "USA" in support of the babyfaces. Lance and Bubba take over a few seconds later while the crowd awakes again with a short "Regal Sucks" chant for no particular reason. Test comes in and dominates Goldust a bit before the Bizarre One tags in Booker T, who cleans house and assists Bubba on a "Waassup" headbutt from the top and the teasing of a table spot. The Un-Americans break it up, though, drawing a big "We Want Tables" chant from the crowd as Test takes control in the ring and starts wearing down Booker. After eating some offense from Regal, we get a really good sequence between Christian and Booker, building up to a hot tag for the Big Red Machine that signals the beginning of the end for the Un-Americans. An 8-man brawl breaks out, but Booker T is able to land his scissors kick onto Test and pop the crowd with a Spinnerooni before getting hit with Christian's finish. Kane makes the save, but is hit with a super kick by Lance Storm for his troubles. The "finisher spamming" continues with Bubba hitting a Bubba Bomb on Christian and Goldust connecting wiith his kick-to-the-nuts before Test lands a big boot and Kane finally hits his patented chokeslam on Lance Storm. A frenetic, fast-paced 8-man that never gets boring, but also offers no curveballs, this match is nothing special, but the crowd's enthusiasm helps make it somewhat enjoyable. (2.5/5)

In a SummerSlam rematch, Chris Jericho defends his Intercontinental Championship against Ric Flair. While their previous bout was a briskly-paced, fairly well-structured back-and-forth contest, this one is a bit more story driven, starting off with Jericho busting out some familiar nods to the Nature Boy's signature selling and Ric Flair working hard to lock in the figure four. The build is there for this one to live up to their previous encounter, but the finish is too gimmicky to give the audience any feeling of satisfaction. (2/5)

...And we get another SummerSlam rematch next, Eddie Guerrero seeking to gain some revenge against Edge. Prior to seeing these two bouts, I never considered Guerrero and Edge to have in-ring chemistry, but they're fairly excellent together. Guerrero is stronger comparatively, but that's typically the case when Guerrero is on. I particularly like the way Guerrero starts thing off by stalling, then, once he takes control, wrestles with a mix of sneaky, behind-the-ref's-back tactics and unrelenting offense. Edge gets in some good hope spots, but sells a dazed, "concussed" status for the most part (which works well here). A very strong, believable finish that plays on a "blink-and-you-missed-it" moment from early on puts this one up a notch and makes it the early Match of the Night. (3/5)

Some explanation is necessary before our next bout, Chuck and Billy vs. Three Minute Warning. A few weeks prior, Chuck and Billy's wedding ceremony was interrupted by Eric Bischoff and his henchmen, Jamal and Rosey, as a show of blatant disrespect towards SmackDown's general manager Stephanie McMahon. In a lame attempt at art imitating life, Bischoff's homophobic and misogynist actions (this storyline was linked to the uncannily distasteful "Hot Lesbian Action" segments) drew protestors outside of RAW (the WWE-created I.O.W) that Bischoff lambasted as being a group of "angry lesbians." Cue Stephanie hitting Bischoff with a kick to the groin and Billy and Chuck delivering their finisher. So, yeah, their match at this show got plenty of build. Still, time has not been kind to either team, Three Minute Warning was a completely forgettable pairing of Samoans now known more for being Roman Reigns' brother (Rosey) and the future Umaga (Jamal). Chuck and Billy's wedding coordinator, Rico, arrives with Three Minute Warning and a brawl ensues once the Lifetime Partners get into the ring, Rico's interference allowing Rosey to take control of Chuck with a back suplex. From here, the heels maintain their dominance for a stretch while Gunn watches from the outside, unable to get a tag. Rosey does attempt an impressive moonsault from the second rope, but Palumbo gets the tag and Billy cleans house with forearms and fists. Moments later, though, Billy falls prey to a pop-up Samoan Drop from Jamal, a move he would later use as a singles competitor. Cole reminds the audience that, per the stipulation of the match, Stephanie McMahon is now forced to perform "Hot Lesbian Action" with one of the "lovely lesbians" that Bischoff has rounded up backstage. Had this match gone longer, I'd have even fewer kind words to say about it, but by not overstaying its welcome and wrapping up with a pretty fun flurry of action, I will kindly grant it a score in the ballpark of average. (2/5)

The World Heavyweight Championship is on the line in our next bout - Triple H defending against Rob Van Dam. What's a bit surprising here is that while RVD is certainly over, I wouldn't necessarily call this the "peak" of his popularity, with at least a portion of the LA crowd welcoming The Game with a respectful pop. In a bit of a surprise, the match begins with some actual wrestling, headlocks and counters, wristlocks and reversals. Van Dam rattles HHH with a slap to the face and his quickness, forcing Hunter to take a breather on the outside and regroup. At this point, RVD mocks Triple H's entrance, angering the Champion and taking him even more out of his "game," following it up with another big headlock takedown and a spin kick. From here, though, Van Dam gets a bit too confident, attempting a front flip to the outside but hitting the concrete for his efforts. Triple H capitalizes with a whip into the steps and follows it up a minute later with a slingshot in the ropes. Van Dam gets a hope spot in, but Triple H regains control via a textbook neckbreaker. Triple H attempts to get an RVD imitation in on the ropes, but RVD launches him off the ropes. Still, this is only a momentary change of pace as Triple H then locks in a sleeper. RVD breaks free, though, and lands a huge heel kick, evening the score and putting both men on the mat. RVD lands two more big heel kicks, an awesome cartwheel moonsault, a monkey flip, and his rolling thunder but only manages a two. RVD continues his assault outside and inside the ring, but can't put away the Cerebral Assassin. With the ref on the floor, RVD finally scores not one, but two should-be pinfalls. With Hebner incapacitated, though, Hunter hits a low blow and grabs a sledgehammer from under the ring. While one would expect this to lead to a predictable finish, kudos goes to the WWE for adding an extra element to the finish, a twist that effectively adds intrigue to RAW's top storyline and also protects Rob Van Dam. Overall, a pretty strong outing from these two that I'd even call one of the more underrated bouts in their respective careers. (3.5/5)

D'Lo Brown and Billy Kidman are backstage with one of the stars of Young and the Restless. Okay. 

Trish Stratus vs. the Women's Champion Molly Holly is next. The crowd is pretty indifferent to this match, popping for neither competitor's offense despite the women working hard and landing some respectable dropkicks and suplexes. When the action spills to the outside, Trish takes good bumps into the steps and barricade before getting locked up in a straightjacket submission back in the ring. From here, Trish gets some offense in, but it's not all pretty - some of the spots and bumps looking just a hair mistimed or telegraphed. With Stratus in a tree of woe position, Holly hits an impressive handspring splash, but it's not enough to seal the victory for her. The finish comes moments later and while it is well-executed, it still comes off as a bit anti-climactic, the match wrapping up just when an extra 30-40 seconds of back-and-forth action would've made it feel like a true, full story was told. Instead, it feels like they hit the fast forward button on the last minute. (1.5/5)

Bischoff is backstage with Three Minute Warning and, at this point, I am absolutely sick of this storyline. 

A video package shows how we got to our next match - Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle. While the purpose of this match is hokey (attacks on each other on Smackdown led to each suffering a Rikishi stinkface), when they get in the ring, they wrestle with serious intensity, giving the bout a "big match" feel by making this all about one-upsmanship. As one would expect, the match starts with rapid-fire catch-as-catch-can wrestling, Benoit and Angle jockeying for dominance. Cole and Tazz hype the athleticism on display in the match but venture into hyperbolic territory when they overstate how interested the crowd is (there is at least one moment when the gaze of the audience turns dramatically towards either a fight or bare breasts in the crowd). The final third of the match, though, is full of head-turning maneuvers, including an absolutely awesome sequence where Benoit and Angle trade over a half-dozen german suplexes, building to Benoit delivering a release german that looks like it could kill the average mortal. Unfortunately, the finish of the match doesn't necessarily work for me. While both guys are basically heels coming into the contest, Angle is the one the audience wants to boo more. By wrestling a clean fight throughout, the crowd ends up cheering the moves and not performers. Benoit and Angle are good enough to turn this into a plus when heel/heel matches often run the risk of crowd-killing, but the ending pulls the rug out from under a crowd that now cared who won. Very solid bout and probably the match of the night, but the fact that some people called this the best match of 2002 (or even placed it in the top 5) shows how the metrics have certainly shifted in 13+ years and I'm not even talking about the Benoit Tragedy. The fact is, as good as this match is (and it is very good), it doesn't carry the same importance and "Must See" cred of the previous month's Lesnar/Rock battle or the underrated and brutal Jericho/Triple H Hell in a Cell match from earlier in the year. (4/5) 

Eric Bischoff makes his way to the ring (along with a pair of "lovely lesbians") to give Stephanie McMahon her punishment. This is a seriously painful-to-watch segment, insulting to the audience with how cloyingly and forcibly "R-rated" it tries to be without offering a shred of any sort of intelligent or even camp-quality drama. As one could easily predict, it ends with a big swerve that sees Bischoff end up with egg (or, to be more specific, a large man's butt) in his face. People talk about what era happened when - I might call this 1-month span of WWE the "Overuse of Cosmetic Make-Up Era." I'm going to go ahead and deduct a point for the terribleness of not only this segment, but all the backstage segments and video hype that helped filled up what seemed like at least a quarter hour of time. (-1)

Main event time - The Undertaker challenging Brock Lesnar for his WWE Championship. Unlike their most recent bouts, the fun of this one is that, while Taker was a respected vet and already an established Hall of Fame-level worker, he certainly wasn't at his peak of popularity or credibility. In his Bikertaker gimmick, he also didn't have the aura that the Deadman persona gave to his biggest matches. Meanwhile, Lesnar was still a rookie here, an absolute dynamo in the ring, but not yet The Beast of Suplex City that we know and love today. When Lesnar and Undertaker clashed in 2015, their matches needed to live up to their previous battles, but this match had no previous watermark to reach. Hell, it's not like Taker was coming off having 5-star matches at the previous few pay-per-views. If anything, one could've had fairly low expectations for this one going on. Fortunately, Taker wisely leads the match through a straightforward story that doesn't overrely on his own signature spots, granting plenty of opportunities for Lesnar to show that he is (at the very least) the Phenom's equal in ability, if not in experience and craftiness. Cole and Tazz continue to outshine Ross and Lawler by playing up the clash of styles - Taker's brawling against Lesnar's unmatched wrestling skill - and come off as credible because the match delivers exactly that blend of action. There are a number of nice sequences, but the second half will certainly not please everyone. An ultimately unnecessary run-in, at trio of ref bumps, and the addition of a chair into the mix (not to mention Paul Heyman's on-going interferences) reminds viewers that this match is every bit an "Attitude Era main event," which is why the ending is not only disappointing but somewhat confusing (how many other matches featured similar shenanigans and didn't end this way?). There were rumors at the time that Taker refused to "do business," but I'm not sure that was ever true. While there was no way to know that this match was Chapter 1 of one of the company's most epic rivalries of the decade, this was obviously designed to push what they knew would be one of the biggest feuds of the year. (3.5/5)

SummerSlam 2002 was one of the best all-around pay-per-views the WWE ever produced, so expecting the follow-up to achieve the same status is a bit like expecting to win the lottery in March after finding a pot of gold on your doorstep in February. Still, Unforgiven 2002 is not without its moments - the highly-entertaining-but-indecisive main event, a strong Angle/Benoit match, Guerrero and Edge topping their SummerSlam match, one of Trips' better non-stipulation matches I've seen against Rob Van Dam. Unfortunately, there's not much good to say about the rest of the card, which is heavily weighed down by the distasteful and unfunny Bischoff/Stephanie/HLA storyline. With a solid but not-so-special watchability score of 2.63-out-of-5, Unforgiven 2002 sits firmly in the territory of...

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

WWE SummerSlam 2002

RATING LEVELS: 

Curt Hennig – A “GOAT” show, as Perfect as possible

Watch It – A consistently good show worth watching in its entirety

Watch It…With Remote in Hand – 3 or more above-average ratings 

High Risk Maneuver – Mostly filler, inessential, but 1-2 good matches

DUDleyville – Zero redeeming qualities, chore to watch

Has it really been over a month since I reviewed a 2002-era WWE pay-per-view? Time flies when you're having fun watching WCW, I guess. I've seen this show end up on all sorts of "Best PPV Ever" lists, but have never watched it in full as one single piece. I'm curious to see how it holds up.

WWE SummerSlam 2002 - August 2002

Long Island, New York

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, The Rock holds the WWE Undisputed World Championship, The Un-Americans are the WWE Tag Team Champions, Chris Benoit is the Intercontinental Champion, Tommy Dreamer is the Hardcore Champion, Jamie Noble holds the Cruiserweight Title, and Molly Holly is the Womens' Champion.

COMMENTATORS: Michael Cole & Tazz (SmackDown), Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross (RAW)

SummerSlam 2002 kicks off with the WWE pay-per-view debut of Rey Mysterio Jr., his challenger being noneother than Kurt Angle. I've seen this match heralded as one of Mysterio's best ever (ditto for Angle) and there's ample reasons why. While Mysterio wasn't doing as many high-risk moonsaults in 2002 as he was in 97', he is still incredibly agile and innovative here, especially compared to the cruiserweights that WWE had offered in the past. Angle is an excellent "base" here too, keeping Mysterio grounded with an impressive array of suplexes. The chemistry these two had is off the charts, Angle seeming to relish in being able to play the "big man" for the first time in his career, tossing Mysterio with ease, while Rey is in his element playing the undying underdog who has to use his quickness and agility to outmaneuever the Olympic Gold Medalist. More than anything, though, what puts this match into Match of the Night contention (on what is an inarguably stacked card for its time) is the execution on display - there's no simply no wasted motion and no wasted minute, the only possible "flub" being in the closing sequence. I put "flub" in quotes, though, because while it may not be an absolutely perfect counter that leads to the finish, the sloppiness makes it all the more believable. Flawless choreography can stifle realism and many great cruiserweight matches suffer from it. This one does not. I still wouldn't hoist this one into the upper echelon of all-time great matches, but as an opening contest, it stands the test of time. (3.5/5)

Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross take over commentary duties for tonight's first RAW match, Chris Jericho vs. Ric Flair. Jericho's band, Fozzy, played a big role in the build-up here as Jericho was in full rock star heel mode and Flair interrupted the group's mini-concert on an episode of RAW a week or so prior. Naitch is in pretty great shape here, cutting a brisk pace with an in-his-prime Y2J, taking a big back body drop early on before taking control with some knife-edged chops. Jericho skins the cat but ends up eating even more chops before getting roughed up in the corner. Jericho takes control, though, delivering a neck-first drop on the guardrail before hitting a big forearm onto the outside from the top rope. Jericho continues his dominance with the help of some tape around the Nature Boy's neck and then lands a big vertical suplex before falling prey to his arrogance and getting tossed from the top rope. In a nice call back to the earliest portion of the match, Jericho gets back body dropped and then taken down again with a back suplex, but Jericho still has too much left in the tank and ends up nearly locking in the Walls of Jericho, which Flair wisely reverses into an inside cradle for 2. A bulldog later and Jericho seems to have it made, but face-plants onto the canvas with a missed Lionsault. Flair attempts a Walls himself, but Jericho reverses it into Flair's figure four finisher, attempting to end the match with some serious humiliation. Flair reaches the ropes, which only infuriates Jericho, who releases the hold and ends up on the receiving end of even more chest chops (and a low blow the ref doesn't catch). Flair locks in the figure four and ends up with the unexpected W. Not a bad contest and one that, due to Flair tapping while reaching the ropes, has just enough controversy to keep some credibility on Jericho. Not a classic, but certainly better than average and far from an embarrassment for a 50+ year old Flair. (3/5)

A comparatively slim Paul Heyman is back stage with a young, also comparatively slim Brock Lesnar, trying to hype him up for his World Championship match against The Rock. 

The action continues on the SmackDown side with Eddie Guerrero taking on Edge. In a cool spot early on, Edge ties up Guerrero in the ropes and hits him with a spear. On the second attempt, though, Guerrero escapes and Edge ends up on the floor, clutching his left shoulder. Eddie, smelling blood, rams him into the steel steps and keeps on the attack, hitting the damaged limb with stomps and forearm strikes before landing a clever "arm DDT" (not sure what it's called) from the top rope. Having given the crowd a solid opening, Latino Heat slows it down with a hammerlock, refusing to break the hold before kneeing Edge in the back like a true heel should. Unlike the first two matches, Eddie lets the heat build with extended submission holds, keeping the crowd engaged with hope spots here and there including taking a suplex over the top rope and onto the floor. Edge comes off the top rope with a huge splash to the outside but it's the follow-up move, a ridiculous face-buster/suplex thingamajig that really wows the crowd. From here, we get two excellent finisher-reversals and a well-timed false finish, kicking this match into high gear that peaks with Eddie landing a brilliant frog splash onto Edge's injured shoulder. While this would be a reasonable ending, we get something a bit more predictable to cap it off. As good as the opener, if not better. (3.5/5)

After an "Our Season Never Ends" ad, we're backstage with Jonathan Coachman and the Un-Americans, Christian and Lance Storm (the defending WWE Tag Team Champions) and their crony, Test. 

Booker T and Goldust make their way down the aisle for their battle with the aforementioned Christian and Lance Storm, the crowd giving them a respectable ovation (and booing the heels plenty). For whatever reason, Test does not arrive the villains, foreshadowing that he'll likely be involved later on. This one is worked pretty simply, but the crowd eats it up with a spoon and when you have four workers as good at the fundamentals as these four, it is no surprise that they can get the audience to pop big at the right times and stay engaged. There's a big over-the-turnbuckle spot out of Goldust early on that sets the stage for the Bizarre One to play face-in-peril, ultimately leading to the heels taking every advantage they can to stay in control and keep Booker out of the game. When Booker does finally get the hot tag, the Nassau Coliseum explodes for him and the closing 3 minutes do not disappoint with all sorts of twists-and-turns. Like the previous matches on tonight's show, this one is not an all-time classic, but it is definitely an above-average outing that shows how a hot crowd, a straightforward outline, and over characters can combine to make for a perfectly acceptable, arguably great match. (3/5)

The Intercontinental Championship is on the line in our next match - Chris Benoit defending the title against Rob Van Dam. This is what people are talking about when they describe this show as having a "stacked card." By my count, 5 matches in, we've seen at least 10 would-be/should-be/could-be/already are Hall of Famers perform. As one would expect, this is a highly, highly physical affair with Benoit getting his lip busted within the first few minutes. The story of the match is that the Wolverine is set on "kill mode" and goes after RVD's left arm repeatedly. To me, it's a bit of.a mixed bag, though - there are moments of genuine innovation and creativity that make me want to love this match (Benoit somehow delivering a trio of hammerlock-applied Northern Lights Suplex is insane) but there are also too many instances where things come off a bit "paint by numbers" (RVD's spill from the top rope as the precipice for Benoit's dominance). I'm also not a huge fan of the finish as one guy simply dominates the other for so much of the match that making such a miraculous comeback just doesn't make sense to me. Of course, such comebacks are commonplace in pro-wrestling (and RVD matches) so making a big deal of it seems nit picky, but in this instance, it was just too glaring to overlook. (3/5)

The Undertaker takes on Test in our next contest. The most commendable thing here is Taker's bumping, which is a bit surprising considering that this is around the time when he was arguably at his least popular among "smart" fans for not doing too much in the ring and really relying on lazy strikes and a not-yet-MMA-inspired moveset. I raved about Test's match against Brock Lesnar at the King of the Ring, but as this match is significantly less physical, it doesn't merit the same praise. Like the tag match earlier, the rest of the Un-American crew show up as expected to add an extra wrinkle, but not necessarily any sort of swerve, to the match. Easily the lowest point of the show and one that is definitely worth skipping over on a rewatch. (2/5)

A lengthy video package hypes up our next bout - an Unsanctioned Street FIght between the returning Shawn Michaels and his best friend, Triple H. The story coming into this one is that The Game welcomed Shawn back into the WWE on RAW, but ended up hitting him with a pedigree (and smashing his face into a car window) when he tricked him into believing that DegenerationX was reuniting. Michaels is back in action after 4 years, so the question was whether or not he was capable of producing a "shows topping" performance that lived up to his output in the 90s. Despite this being an "unsanctioned" match, both men get their usual entrances and Earl Hebner is around. After getting a bit of offense in, Michaels ends up the receiving end of some of the most brutal lower back attacks ever, including several well-executed backbreakers and an insane pair of sidewalk slams into a folding chair. Triple H also connects with a DDT onto a chair that busts Michaels open. Like the Benoit/RVD match, things are ridiculously one-sided for a lengthy strength, but at least in this one the babyface's retaliation is almost equally as brutal as what the heel put him through. While this makes the finish a bit more plausible, it also makes this the most Shawn Michaelest of Shawn Michaels matches ever, with the Showstopper somehow managing to kip-up, dance around, and blatantly no-sell any of the damage that Triple H had inflicted upon him. Meanwhile, Triple H pulls out his usual bag of tricks, essentially bleeding profusely and doing the kind of over-the-top bumps (one off the apron into the outside is barricade is noticeably silly) that he learned from watching his opponent for so many years. As a spectacle, the match is hard not to enjoy, especially for first-time viewers, but the more I re-watch the match (this had to be my 3rd or 4th viewing), the less impressed I am. Jim Ross does a hell of a job on commentary, though, hitting the exact right tone for one of the more overdramatic matches in WWE history and one that simultaneously celebrates the return of Shawn Michaels while completely destroying any legitimacy his 4-year back injury had built up with the audience. Entertaining as hell, but when the bell sounds, you'll need to turn your brain off to enjoy it as much as the Long Island crowd did. (3.5/5)

Howard Finkel takes the mic to promote himself. I totally forgot that this character turn ever happened. Trish Stratus interrupts him to the delight of the crowd, apologizing for slapping him in the face a few weeks prior and telling him that she never realized how sexy his voice is. The Fink makes an absolutely disgusting joke in reference to his wiener and Trish's puppies. Yuck. Lillian Garcia shows up to slap the taste of his mouth and kick him in the balls. Thankfully the segment doesn't last long.

Main event time - The Rock defends his WWE Undisputed Championship against "The Next Big Thing" Brock Lesnar. A video package hypes how we got to tonight's main event, including clips of Brock decimating Hulk Hogan. I wasn't following the product at the time but it is hard to believe anyone thought The Rock would be leaving with the title. Before the bell even sounds, Rocky tries to take the fight to Lesnar but Brock tosses him across the ring with a belly-to-belly. As the crowd chants "Rocky!" Brock continues to dominate, ramming The People's Champ in the corner and tossing him to the outside through the middle ropes. On the outside, Heyman gets involved early and often, wisely getting shots in against The Rock with the back turned to keep the heat on despite portions of the audience seemingly turning on The Great One with each passing minute. Lesnar is awesome here, too, unloading a flurry of high-impact offense and impressive strength spots. Shockingly, despite a warm reception for his entrance, the "Rocky Sucks" chants become noticeable once The Rock gets some offense in. There's a slight botch on The Rock's leg whip leading to the Rock's Sharpshooter, a move that only seems to amplify the audience's disapproval of the champ. A chair finds its way into the ring, but instead of getting booed for using it, the audience doesn't really react (or doesn't sound like it does), the cheers and boos for the blatant cheapshot drowning eachother out. Lesnar locks in a bear hug. A loud "Let's Go Lesnar" chant breaks out and Tazz can't ignore it on commentary as Cole mentions how Hogan was felled by the very same move. A low blow by the Rock draws some boos and his facial expression, a look of disgust at how the fans are treating him, is absolutely pitch-perfect - the exact opposite of whatever Shawn was doing in the previous bout. Ever the arrogant, self-driven warrior, The Rock is obviously rattled by the crowd, but continues his assault regardless, connecting with an imperfect Rock Bottom on Paul Heyman through the Spanish Announce Table. Lesnar, meanwhile, spends some time selling and, while his bumping is a bit over the top, it's at least warranted by the moment, the crowd on their feet for every second of the match and giving a tremendous reactions for the near-falls. Unable to put away Lesnar with his patented finisher, The Rock is distracted by his self-doubt and ends up eating a Rock Bottom himself. While they could easily go to the finish here, they postpone it to tease a People's Elbow and set-up a series of reversals and counters that make for the night's most satisfying and believable finishes. Anyone who prefers the "epic" of HHH/HBK over this match, a tightly-packed showcase of everything one could ever and would ever love about these two legends is an idiot. I want to say that this match would be better given 2-3 more minutes, but like a Ramones song, part of the brilliance is that there is nothing to edit out of it. Lean, mean, and riveting. (4.5/5)

With a strong 3.25-out-of-5 on the ol' watchability meter, SummerSlam 2002 may not be the highest scoring show I've ever seen, but it is certainly up there. Only Taker/Test falls below average, while the remaining 7 matches each have their merits. I have no question that, at the time of the event, Benoit/RVD and HHH/HBK wowed audiences considerably more than my scores for these particular matches would suggest - but time has not been kind to Shawn's over dramatic style and RVD's formulaic "take a beating for 10 minutes then hit a frog splash" match patterns. Fortunately, Edge/Guerrero, Flair/Jericho, and the hot opener all stand the test of time. The match of the night, though, is the main event, a landscape-altering whirlwind of a match that achieves everything and more that the previous bout attempted to do in what feels like half the time. A lengthy article could dig into each element on display - Lesnar's abilities being unlike any foe the Rock previously encountered and how that plays into the finish, the way Paul Heyman (even back then) may have been the business's last truly great manager, the Rock's uncanny ability to read the crowd and adjust his performance to play on their emotions, the symbolic "passing of the torch" that not only changed who the main event was but, arguably, what type of match the main events would now be, how the 50/50 crowd in this match predates the John Cena/Roman Reigns crises that have befallen today's WWE. Excluding all these talking points (but why would you?), the match itself is tremendous fun and captivating from beginning to end and easily one of the must-see matches of this era. With only one match in the below average range, I grant SummerSlam 2002 a....

FINAL RATING - Watch It All

WCW Spring Stampede 1997

WCW Spring Stampede 97' - April 1997

Tupelo, Mississippi

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan is the WCW World Champion, Dean Malenko holds the United States Champion, the Television Champion is Prince Iaukea, the Cruiserweight Champion is Syxx, and the Outsiders hold the WCW World Tag Team Championships. Akira Hokuto is the long-reigning Women's Champion, defending the title for the first time in several months at this show.

COMMENTATORS: Dusty Rhodes, Tony Schiavone, and Bobby Heenan

At the very top of the broadcast, Tony Schiavone explains that Scott Hall is absent, but that Kevin Nash will still need to defend the WCW World Tag Team Championships against the Steiner Brothers. 

In the ring, our opening contest features Ultimo Dragon taking on Rey Mysterio Jr. These two start things off with some technical wrestling while Heenan mentions the rumor that Mysterio was dating Jennifer Aniston at the time. In his book, Mysterio wrote that he's not sure where the rumor started but that it has no truth to it. Anyway, Dragon takes Mysterio out with a series of kicks that dazzle the audience, following it up with a unique head scissors and then an arm bar not dissimilar than the ones Alberto Del Rio locks in nowadays. From here, Dragon hits him with an awesome spinning crucifix drop and then a ridiculous powerbomb into a reverse powerbomb into the ropes, obviously aiming to wow the crowd and steal the show with his offense. The crowd remains firmly behind Mysterio as Dragon plants him with a devastating Running Liger Bomb and a tombstone piledriver. At this point, Dragon arrogantly doesn't take what should be a guaranteed three count, allowing Mysterio to get his bearings and bounce back with a heel kick from the ropes. Dragon cuts him off, though, hitting him with some seriously stiff kicks to the back and then a front suplex before locking in a deathlock/chinlock combo. Mysterio ends up on the outside after a surfboard, but buys some time by whipping Dragon into the guardrail. When Rey is able to lock in a sleeper, the crowd goes insane, finally getting to see the hero get some solid offense in. Rey then hits a somersault cannonball onto Dragon on the outside, but the match is interrupted (at least for the TV audience) by Lee Marshall getting a door slam in his faced by Syxx. When we come back, Mysterio hits a guillotine leg drop from the top, but can't follow it up with the necessary offense to stay in control, ending up back on the arena floor when Dragon dropkicks him off the top rope. Mysterio gets a second wind and attempts a moonsault from the 2nd rope, but Dragon blocks it with a dropkick. Dragon exhausts himself, though, by lifting Mysterio into an airplane spin, tiring himself and nearly costing himself the match when Rey hits his classic victory roll. Dragon hits an enziguiri but can't put Rey away, connecting with a frankensteiner on the top but unable to get the win because Rey puts his foot on the ropes. There's a tremendous series of reversals and nearfalls culminating in Mysterio locking in a victory roll with help from the middle rope. While I felt like the first half of the match was a bit too one-sided (I've seen it called an "Ultimo Dragon Masturbation Session"), once things got going and Mysterio got some offense in, this one was an absolute treat to watch and an excellent, fast-paced way to kick off the show. (3.5/5)

Backstage, the Steiners are trying their best to get into Nash's lockerroom and Scott Steiner ends up getting maced and handcuffed for his efforts.

Akira Hokuto defends her WCW Women's Championship against Madusa next. A loud "USA" chant erupts before they even lock up as Akira takes control, tossing Madusa across the ring by her hair. Madusa is able to get some good shots in, though, connecting with some jabs before Hokuto ends up on top of her with a choke. Hokuto shows off some impressive strength by lifting Madusa with a chokeslam and then a bodyslam, but Madusa won't stay down for even a 1 count. Madusa draws huge cheers by taking off her outer vest and then hitting her opponent with a handstand head scissors take down in the corner. Minutes later, Madusa remains in control, hitting a big dropkick from the top and then nearly scoring the victory with a big german suplex. Distracted by Sonny Onoo on the outside, though, Akira is able to get the upperhand while Luna Vachon shows up and helps the heels snag a victory. Nothing much to see here, but this one didn't overstay its welcome and actually does give some credibility to the title by having three performers each vying for it. (2/5)

Steven Regal makes his way down the aisle to challenge Prince Iaukea for the WCW Television Title in one of his first pay-per-view contests in quite awhile. The lively crowd continues to add their voice to the mix, chanting "Regal Sucks" early on and drawing his attention away from the match at hand. Regal eventually gets serious, though, trading holds with Iaukea while Schiavone reports that Rick Steiner will have to face off against Kevin Nash one-on-one (as Scott Steiner has been arrested for attacking WCW security). The action in the ring is pretty repetitive until Iaukea connects with a crossbody. From here, Regal and Iaukea start cutting a solid pace and building a story of Iaukea trying to bring the fight to Regal, but His Lordship being just a bit too experienced to fall for anything the Prince tries. All the while, the commentary team talks about the nWo, which only makes the match seem more unimportant. A series of reversals leads to a hot finish, but this one ain't landing on anyone's Best Of (except maybe Iaukea's, I guess). A good post-match nudges this one well into average area, but not quite above it. (2.5/5)

Ric Flair joins "Mean" Gene to a huge ovation from the Tupelo crowd. Flair talks about his upcoming return to the ring and sells the hell out of the next big show, Slamboree, coming from Charlotte, North Carolina on May 18th. 

Public Enemy take on Mongo McMichael and Jeff Jarrett next. In the right settings and situations, I can enjoy all four of these guys - but a straight-up tag team wrestling match? It will take some hard work and inventive storytelling to hook me. Standard tag fare in the opening minutes before Jarrett takes a breather and cleverly takes a full 9 count before getting back into the ring and setting up Mongo to take control of Rocco Rock. Mongo hits a respectable tilt-a-whirl slam, while Jarrett and Grunge brawl on the outside. A street fight ensues as Mongo and Rock make their way to the stage area, where there are a variety of Old West set pieces. Grunge sets up Jarrett on the table and attempts an elbow drop, but Jarrett rolls away and Grunge ends up eating the floor. Jarrett goes for a crossbody back in the ring, but only gets a 2 count. After a few minutes of dominance, Mongo gets clothesline out of the ring and Jarrett comes in on the blind tag, dropkicking both opponents and revving up the crowd a bit. Jarrrett locks in a figure four but Rocco Rock comes flying from the second turnbuckle with the Halliburton brief case, allowing Grunge to make the cover. This one could've been way worse. (2/5)

"Mean" Gene is backstage with Harlem Heat and Sister Sherri. Okerlund explains how tonight's main event is a huge opportunity for Stevie Ray and Booker T as the winner of the 4 Corners Match will be granted a World Heavyweight Championship shot. This is, by the way, the classic promo where Booker T calls Hogan the N-Word and Sister Sherri nearly breaks character with laughter. Gene, ever the professional, doesn't seem to catch the slip, but Booker definitely realizes his mistake instantly. Bonuus point for this infamous promo. (+1)

Chris Benoit and Woman make their way down the aisle to challenge Dean Malenko for his United States Championship. Benoit and Malenko test eachother a bit to start things off before taking the match to the mat, with Malenko locking in an ankle lock and Benoit attempting to counter it rather than take a rope break. Like their Road Wild match months earlier, the crowd is not necessarily amped for this, but the technical wrestling, agility, and suprising strength on display are impressive. Malenko and Benoit don't rush a single submission sequence, spiking the match with small moments of intense action (a Malenko suplex, a stiff chest chop out of Benoit, the Crippler using his considerable strength to power out of a Malenko arm submission). Benoit hits an excellent release snap suplex a few minutes later, but the crowd doesn't really get loud until Jacqueline shows up and goes after Woman. In the ring, Benoit hits a ridiculous flying headbutt from the top while Jimmy Hart grabs the US Championship. Eddie Guerrero (with his arm in a sling) stops Hart from taking it backstage, bringing him back ringside. A split second later we get a huge suplex from the apron out of the ring, but the referee is more focused on the women brawling outside the ring to count anyone out. This also allows for Arn Anderson to show up to try to help his fellow Horsemen, which only draws out Kevin Sullivan (kendo stick in hand). For some reason, Anderson steps aside to allow Kevin Sullivan to come back and nail Benoit on the skull with it. The referee finally calls this one a DQ, but Hart still has the US title. In the post-match, Hart, Sullivan, and Jacqueline carry Guerrero off, trying to place the stolen title on his shoulder. Back in the ring, Dean Malenko wakes up Benoit and the two exchange knowing looks and have a quick word about an unnamed individual (Sullivan? Guerrero?? Arn???). A bit of a puzzling contest that I'm not in a rush to rewatch, but does make me very curious about how this whole angle played out. (3/5)

Kevin Nash arrives with Syxx, Ted Dibiase, and referee Nick Patrick for his WCW World Tag Team Championship defense against Rick Steiner. Rick barely gets Nash up for a belly-to-belly, but Big Sexy doesn't seem to help him out much for it, going up much lighter for Steiner's follow-up off-the-ropes suplex. Nash is able to take the upperhand, though, when Syxx pulls the top rope to bring Steiner to the arena floor and throws in some stomps to the Dog Faced Gremlin for good measure. Nash hits a big sidewalk slam, but only gets a 2 on it before Dibiase gets in his own extra shot. After a big boot, Nash hits an impressive Jacknife Powerbomb, but somehow Rick Steiner kicks out, a bit of a surprise considering how protected that finisher was (or at least should've been). Nash goes for a second one, but Steiner hits him with a low blow that, for some reason, Nick Patrick doesn't disqualify him for. Steinner pops the crowd with his bulldog from the top, but Nick Patrick makes a slow count. Steiner knocks the pesky Syxx off the apron and ends up eating a back elbow from Nash for his efforts. Meanwhile, Syxx struggles for minutes to take the turnbuckle off the corner in clear sight of Nick Patrick. Nash then drops him face first on the corner not once but twice in what should be the match's finish. In an interesting twist, though, Dibiase gets on the apron and tries to prevent Nash from dropping him a third time to no avail, leading to Dibiase walking out on his team as Steiner gets dropped onto the exposed steel for a fourth time. A second Jacknife Powerbomb later and Patrick, reluctantly, makes the count. Like the last match, this one ends raising more question marks than it answers, but as a segment, it is nicely done and keeps heat on Syxx and Nash, which is actually impressive when you consider how likeable Nash was. If you're looking for a wrestling match, look elsewhere...but as a segment, I found it to be a perfectly acceptable angle. (2.5/5)

Next up is the night's high-stakes four corners match pitting Lex Luger vs. The Giant vs. Booker T vs. Stevie Ray with the winner coming out as the number one contender for Hulk Hogan's WCW World Championship. Coming into this one I had fairly low expectations as Stevie Ray is easily one of my least favorite in-ring performers, plus, with the rules as they are, this is more like a standard tag match than a wild multi-man full of inventive sequences. Fortunately, Booker T has his work boots on and Luger's overness really boosts a mediocre match fully into "average at least" range. With no lagging restholds to be seen and even a handful of pretty cool moments (Booker T showing incredible agility by hitting The Giant with a scissor kick, the crowd losing their minds when the Harlem Heat members have to come to blows, and even "feel good" finish), this one exceeded my expectations and kept my interest from bell to bell. (2.5/5)

A promo for Slamboree plays featuring WCW's announcers.

Main event time - Randy Savage vs. Diamond Dallas Page. Before the match we get Savage and Liz walking around backstage, the Macho Man spouting off some incredible one-liners and looking very confident as he makes his way to the ring. Backstage, DDP and then-wife Kimberly share their thoughts with "Mean" Gene before making their entrance. The crowd is hyped for this too as Savage gets in a few more lines on the mic. Page goes after DDP with all sorts of fury, this match being a straight-up brawl from the first ring of the bell. Compared to Hogan, Savage is a god here, looking cowardly and tough at the same time. Both Liz and Kimberly come into play and we get a number of quality moments, including Savage landing an absolutely devastating elbow drop towards the end. Commentators are on point as well, doing a nice job of building up Page as an undying face that may be in his over his head against the considerably more seasoned Macho Man. Frustrated with his inability to put this one to bed, Savage takes out the referee with a piledriver and then continues his assault. This causes Nick Patrick to make his way down to the ring, an intriguing twist when you consider his actions earlier in the night. DDP miraculously hits the Diamond Cutter, a finish that is so well protected at this point that it is really glaring just how poorly the WWE has been handling their talent's finishers in 2016. Once again, the show ends with an absolutely awesome post-match, maybe my favorite since the prior year's revolutionary Bash At the Beach. I can not understand how this match, with all its bells-and-whistles and its straight-forward but visceral brawling only earned 3-and-a-quarter stars from Meltzer. Watching this back, as one piece that includes the pre-match promos and the post-match angle, I have no problem calling this a near-perfect presentation of a red hot feud. Highly, highly recommended. This is how you progress a storyline, keep both the winner and loser of the match looking great, and deliver a main event level match without needing to rely on  big title fight. (4.5/5)



With a "watchability score" of 2.9-out-of-5, Spring Stampede 97' is not as good an overall show as UnCensored 97' or SuperBrawl VIII, but its peak matches/moments (the main event, the Nash/Steiner match) is tremendous, captivating storytelling executed by characters that the fans are actually interested in. Writing this a few days removed from WWE's Fastlane show, I am even more impressed by the show.


FINAL RATING - Watch It All...with Remote in Hand

Daniel Bryan vs. CM Punk (Over The Limit 2012)

CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan

Over The Limit 2012 - May 2012

I highly doubt I'll ever go back and watch the full Over The Limit PPV from 2012, but Daniel Bryan's retirement announcement definitely inspired me to watch this heralded classic from yesteryear. While I'd watched this match years ago via YouTube, the beauty of the WWE Network is that you can actually go back and catch a match like this on a much bigger screen, with much better sound, no ads, and no distractions.

Given ample time (over 25 minutes) to show their stuff, this match takes place close to a year after CM Punk made headlines with his famous pipebomb promo. He comes into this match as the reigning WWE World Champion, while his opponent, Daniel Bryan, was seeking another run with a top championship after unceremoniously dropping his World Heavyweight Championship to Sheamus in 18 seconds at WrestleMania 28. The feud with Punk also featured some storyline involvement from AJ Lee and Kane, but, thankfully, neither make an appearance here.

Instead, what we get in this match is an out-and-out wrestling bout. If ever there was a WWE-produced pro-wrestling match where it genuinely seemed like two guys trying to defeat each other, this might be it. Bryan and Punk trade stiff shots left and right, apply more submissions than one could reasonably see in a year's worth of watching RAW, and counter each other's best offensive weapons in clever, inventive ways. The crowd is hot as well, with sizable portions of the North Carolina crowd cheering for Daniel Bryan, still a heel at this time. Meanwhile, CM Punk, who definitely comes in as the clear babyface, does an excellent job of subtly adding some heel elements to his character here - pouting a bit when he can't score a pinfall and keeping a figure four applied nearly to the 5-second count when Bryan has the ropes. Neither guy cheats, so neither guy is truly villainous, but their willingness to hit each other with vicious knees and kicks make it clear that this is serious business, not the "fun and games" that a John Cena or Hulk Hogan or even Rock might bring to a title match. 

Placed on a WrestleMania card, this goes down as one of the greatest Mania matches ever...but there is something missing that keeps it from the perfect 5-out-of-5 score. That intangible element isn't the crowd (which is pretty hot) and it may not even be that this match occurred in an almost disgusting midcard position on a show headlined by the aforementioned Cena taking on "People Power" Era GM John Laurenaitis (the breather match separating the two was Ryback vs. Camacho, BTW). No, what prevents this match from attaining that nearly impossible, flawless rating is the somewhat unfortunate, not quite satisfactory ending. Having hit each other with so many amazing maneuvers, to have the end of the match come in a way where the loser essentially beat himself (and not his opponent) is a bit of a downer. Throwing Kane or AJ Lee into the mix would've sunk things lower, but for a match this intense and awesome, it deflates things a bit when the ending feels a bit like a cop-out, an unnecessary attempt to keep both guys strong when, after the performance they put on in the previous 25 minutes, there was no need to worry about how fans would perceive either combatant. 

Highly recommended. (4.5/5)

WCW UnCensored 97'

RATING LEVELS: 

Curt Hennig – A “GOAT” show, as Perfect as possible

Watch It – A consistently good show worth watching in its entirety

Watch It…With Remote in Hand – 3 or more above-average ratings 

High Risk Maneuver – Mostly filler, inessential, but 1-2 good matches

DUDleyville – Zero redeeming qualities, chore to watch

WCW UnCensored 97' - March 1997

Charleston, South Carolina

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan is the reigning WCW World Champion, the Outsiders are the WCW World Tag Team Champions, the United States Champion is Eddie Guerrero, Prince Iaukea is the Television Champion, and Syxx is the WCW Cruiserweight Champion.

COMMENTARY: Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, and Dusty Rhodes

Eddie Guerrero defends his United States Championship against rival Dean Malenko in tonight's No DQ opener. Guerrero and Malenko made a name for themselves in the US through their matches in ECW a couple years prior, so I came into this match expecting great things. While I wouldn't go as far as those that call this their best match, it is no worse than really, really good. Guerrero was not yet a full-fledged heel, but he does a ton of tiny things to play that role here without outright spitting in the face of the audience or completely changing his moveset to include blatant cheating. Instead, he attacks with more viciousness, milks the unfriendly crowd responses for noticeable beats, and throws in some taunts and facial expressions to make it clear that his beef with Malenko has gone beyond friendly competition. Malenko, to his credit, doesn't just play a plucky do-gooder to foil Eddie's heel tactics (which would've been an easy call to make), he stick to his Iceman gimmick but throws in some as-yet-unseen glimpses of seemingly having fun being on the attack (for example, stealing Eddie's frogsplash and then pulling up Eddie's head before getting the assured W). In terms of in-ring (and out of ring) action, there are a ton of excellently-executed maneuevers on display, including Eddie taking a nasty guardrail bump ribs-first from the top rope, Malenko following it up with a fireman's carry into the same rail, Guerrero hitting a series of sharp dropkicks to Malenko's knees, a tremendous tornado DDT, and even more finish theft. Unfortunately, a screwy finish (albeit one that does show some quality storyline follow-through) leaves this one with an undefinitive ending, but in terms of kicking off the show, this does the trick. (3.5/5)

Roddy Piper is in the back and he is fired up! His matches with Hogan, especially the one he had a month prior at SuperBrawl, were not great, but promos like these are why he was still an invaluable piece of WCW's success at the time. Piper sells the hell out of tonight's main events as well as his partners, the Horsemen's Mongo, Benoit, and Jarrett. (+1)

The Ultimo Dragon vs. Psychosis is next and Mike Tenay joins in on commentary for it.  The crowd is pretty much dead for the entire match, reacting to a few things here and there, but not even popping for some of the more high-risk stuff that Psychosis dishes out (including a huge leg drop from the top rope that draws crickets). Dragon is clearly the heel, but Psychosis doesn't do much to muster crowd sympathy, at one point even trying to use the ropes to assist him on a pinfall attempt. Dragon busts out a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, but the same spot had been used before so the crowd is indifferent. Psychosis hits a super plancha over the top rope onto the floor and follows it up with a slingshot leg drop. Dragon gets in a handspring back elbow to the guardrail then an Asai Moonsault for good measure. Back in the ring, Dragon gets a 2 from another moonsault before there's a nifty powerbomb-into-a-sunset flip sequence for another nearfall. Both guys take a bad landing from a superplex attempt which is followed by Psychosis getting 2 from a frankensteiner from the top. Dragon hits an awesome running Liger Bomb and then a ridiculous tornado DDT, wrapping this one up with a devastating Tiger Suplex. After a somewhat slow start, Dragon and Psychosis tried their best to wake up the audience by pulling out a mind-numbing number of suplexes, reversals, and aerial attacks, but this one just never captured the crowd's interest. (3/5)

Diamond Dallas Page comes out and cuts a decent promo (but overuses the word "acknowledge" by at least 2). His challenge to "Macho Man" Randy Savage is eventually answered as Savage and Liz join the scene, leading to one of the all-time great nWo/WCW angles - Savage revealing Kimberly's spread from Playboy. Page is irate, but what really makes his blood boil is when Kimberly walks out, tears in her eyes, spray-painted and looking like she was thoroughly victimized by the New World Order. Now, at no point is there any suggestion that Kimberly was "violated" by Savage or any other nWo member, but this matters not - like an old school biker exploitation film, the hero's "girl" has obviously been degraded and humiliated and shit is officially on. Bonus for Liz's involvement too as her being a willing participant in the humiliation of DDP and Kimberly just makes things even more personal and dark. Excellent segment. (+1)

Back in the ring, it is time for what appears on paper to be a terrible match - Glacier vs. Mortis in a Martial Arts Match. Surprisingly, though, Glacier and Mortis do an outstanding job here, partially because they don't even bother to play up the meaningless stipulation. Speaking of "Martial Arts Matches," Tony claims early on that this is the first of its kind...despite the fact that Meng and Jim Duggan wrestled one at UnCensored 95' two years earlier. Whoops. Anyway, Mortis (aka Chris Kanyon) amazes the announce team considerably by showcasing a number of relatively innovative maneuvers, including a front-flip clothesline that is extra impressive considering he's over 6 feet tall. Glacier, to his credit, takes an awesome back bump on the outside at one point, proving that even if he wasn't the most fundamentally sound performer on the roster, he was willing to work hard to draw reactions and tell a story through nothing more than hard-hitting, stiff action. There a number of believable nearfalls at the end of the match, though, I'd still argue this one goes just a minute or so too long. I'm not necessarily sure I agree with the ending, but we do get the debut of Wrath (Bryan "Adam Bomb" Clark) in the post-match, which continues the storyline. Considerably better than any previous Glacier match I've seen. While not in any sort of running for MOTN, it's still a bit of a "sleeper" match for me, especially if you have any sense of nostalgia for these ludicrous, Mortal Kombat-inspired characters. (3/5)

Before our next match we get video footage of the Outsiders' attempted murder of the Steiner Brothers. Tony Schiavone explains that while footage like this would typically lead to someone pressing charges (and potentially being sentenced to decades behind bars), the Steiners have opted to "settle it in the ring." Network Nugget of Awesomeness! (+0.5)

In a return bout from January's Souled Out show, Buff Bagwell is challenged by his former American Males partner, Scotty Riggs, in a Strap Match. I actively disliked their match at Souled Out, but will give credit where its due for this one. Right from the start, Riggs whips the hell out of Bagwell and the Buff Daddy does a nice job of showing just how painful the lashes are. On offense, Buff doesn't do much more than choke, pose, and cut direct-to-camera promos, but it fits his dastardly character to not do much of anything besides bask in his own villainy. Bagwell misses on a Blockbuster attempt, allowing Riggs to take control for a brief stretch toward, clotheslining his nemesis, hitting a big powerbomb, and connecting with a missile dropkick. The finish comes from a very nasty backdrop spot that leaves Riggs in a hangman position and with what appears to be a thoroughly damaged lower back. A definite step up from their Souled Out match, which isn't saying much but definitely warrants some recognition. (2/5)

The New World Order are in the back and they proceed to cut a completely nonsensical promo of one-liners that don't make any sense when paired side-by-side. Noticeably absent is Dennis Rodman, which makes me wonder if this promo was shot live or if it was filmed earlier in the day. Regardless, nothing truly consequential is said, but its fun to see Nash, Hall, Savage, and Hogan together.

Harlem Heat vs. Public Enemy in a No Disqualification, Texas Tornado Rules match is next. Within the first minute, Johnny Grunge is lacerated from one of the 4-5 objects that are utilized in this match, namely a trash can, a trash can lid, a toilet seat, a street sign, and a baking sheet. The use of the toilet lid is particularly pleasing to Dusty Rhodes, whose commentary in this one is one of its strongest selling points. In terms of "suspense," this match has absolutely none - you are basically just watching guys waffle each other for 10+ minutes, which, at first, pops the crowd, but then bores them and leads to a loud "Tables" chant. Booker still manages to get some his signature offense, a testament to how much stronger of an individual character and worker he is than anyone else he's sharing the match with. Sister Sherri gets involved a ton too. There's a huge table spot towards the end that sees Rocco Rock come flying with a somersault legdrop while Johnny Grunge just delivers an awkward and lazy back splash (really he just falls over) onto Stevie Ray, but the actual finish doesn't come until Jeff Jarrett and Mongo McMichael show up (they were scheduled to face PE before they got recruited into the main event). Again, Rhodes commentary carries this match into watchable/average territory. (2.5/5)

Having heard from Piper and the Horsemen and the New World, it is now time to get some words from Team WCW - Scott Steiner, The Giant, and Lex Luger. Scott Steiner is surprisingly articulate here, but still full of roid-fueled anger. The Giant's mix of barely audible whispers and full-on shouting makes anything he's saying hard to decipher. Finally, Luger closes things out with a long-winded speech about how this match is bigger than just wrestling - it represents the good and bad of society as a whole. No bonus points given, but I do love the fact that this PPV has been full of promos and not just video recaps, which is what we seem to get from the WWE these days.

The Television Championship is on the line in our next match - Prince Iaukea defending against Rey Mysterio Jr. Right from the bell these two guys begin to cut a breathless pace, Mysterio delivering a pair of cannonball splashes (one in the ring and one out of it). Iaukea catches him with a springboard powerbomb a couple minutes later, then hits a big crossbody to the outside as well. There's a somewhat awkward split-legged moonsault by Rey at one point as Iaukea lies super close to the ropes. A springboard moonsault gets a 2 as Mysterio ends up in trouble when he misses a follow-up senton. The crowd is growing restless at this point, certainly not behind Iaukea but definitely not popping crazy for anything Rey is doing either. At minute 15, the referee calls it, but the crowd is more confused than anything as there was "5 Minutes Remaining" or "1 Minute Remaining" calls, a move that completely spoils what should be a very classic storyline (and one that WCW used to do really well years earlier during Regal's TV Title reigns). Iaukea and Mysterio agree to add some time on the clock, but it doesn't take long for us to get our definitive ending. Overall, a bit disappointing due to the lack of crowd interest and the glaring mistake of not playing up the time factor by both the in-ring performers, the timekeeper, and even the commentators as well. No worse than average, but certainly not as great as most of the other Rey matches I've reviewed recently. (2.5/5)

Sick commercial for Spring Stampede featuring the Horsemen riding through the old west. I'm tempted to give this show yet another half-bonus point, but I think I've given it enough at this point.

Main event time - Team Piper vs. Team WCW vs. the nWo in a match that, based on what Michael Buffer announces, I can't really describe the rules of. First in the ring are Chris Benoit, Scott Hall, and The Giant, in a situation not dissimilar to the Royal Rumble or War Games. Schiavone clarifies things a bit, detailing that this match will be fought in 5-minute rounds, with three more teammates joining at the end of every round (except for Team WCW, who are understaffed by one member). Anyway, The Giant pretty much dominates the scene, tossing Benoit around with ease and generally no-selling anything that Hall tries to hit him with. Hall finally makes some ground by leaping onto Giant and locking in a sleeper, but eventually the big man is able to toss him off in an impressive feat of strength. Benoit eats a chokeslam but for whatever reason, Hall breaks up the count (which, gladly, the commentators note as being a mistake). Before the first round can end, though, The Giant accidentally stumbles over the top rope as Jeff Jarrett, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, and Lex Luger. Jarrett goes on a mini-tear, but its Luger who comes in with the more impressive offense, press slamming Double J and Randy Savage in short order. Well before its been 5 minutes, Steve "Mongo" McMichaels, Kevin Nash, and Scott Steiner all make their way down the aisle, filling up the ring with, by my count, 6 former or future WCW World Champions. Unlike a Rumble, the number of big spots on display is respectable - guys getting hoisted up for powerbombs and hit with all sorts of signature moves. Jarrett is tossed and, soon after, Mongo goes over as well, leaving Benoit and Piper as the last members of the team. As Piper makes his way down the aisle, Scott Steiner is tossed as well, giving the nWo a huge advantage as "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan has yet to make an appearance. As the crowd chants "We Want Sting," Dennis Rodman and the WCW World Champion make their way down the aisle with supreme confidence, milking in the jeers from the audience. Back in the ring, Piper and Savage brawl outside of the ring, Piper using a steel chain to add extra impact to his shots. Meanwhile, the Outsiders team up on Benoit as Hogan finally rolls into the fight. As expected, Piper and Hogan come to blows, Hogan playing the cowardly heel until Savage comes along to save him from Piper's onslaught. Piper flies over the top rope as the announcers claim that Rodman made the assist (though, this is unclear on the actual video), making this a 4-on-2 battle. Benoit fights valiantly, but ends up the victim of a Razor's Edge and gets tossed over the top soon after. Outside of the ring, the rest of the nWo dismantle Piper, who refuses to stay down. As Piper is carried off, Lex Luger is left for dead, beaten down in the corner by all four members (plus Rodman) of the heel team. Luger gets a tremendous second wind, though, cleaning house and racking Savage (who gives up almost immediately). Luger then tosses Kevin Nash over the top and racks Scott Hall as well, eliminating everyone but Hulk Hogan in a matter of seconds. The crowd goes absolutely crazy, but Rodman hands a can of spray paint to Savage who runs in and takes out the Total Package just as he has Hogan hoisted up in his finisher. In the post-match, Luger suffers even more humiliation by getting spray-painted and slapped in the face by Rodman in the center of the ring. As expected, trash starts flying in the nWo's direction as they make their exit....but the show's not over yet! Sting is in the house, flying down from the ceiling and taking out all the nWo members with his trust baseball bat. A huge lemonade hits him square in the face, but Sting can't be stopped by the crowd's garbage or the nWo as he hits Nash, Hall, and Savage with reverse DDTs. He then points his bat at Hogan, clearly etching in stone that it is the Hulkster he wants. Months in the making, Sting and Hogan finally come to blows and the Stinger hits him with the reverse DDT as the show goes off the air. Overall, a surprisingly solid, star-studded main event match capped off with one of the best post-match segments in the nWo/WCW saga, which is no small compliment. (4/5)


With an absolutely solid "watchability" score of 3.29-out-of-5, UnCensored 97' is almost impossible not to enjoy from start to finish. While not quite a "Curt Hennig Level" collection of matches, there's not a single dud on the card. Malenko/Guerrero may not be an all-time classic, but it kicks the show off well. Mortis/Glacier and the Texas Tornado Tag Match overachieve while, between nearly every bout, there is a purposeful, engaging promo or video to keep the show's momentum going. The main event (and its excellent post-match) would seem like a clusterfuck on paper, especially when you consider WCW's track record for "innovative" multi-man matches (think the Doomsday Cage or BattleBowl), but in this case, the match absolutely works, providing everyone save Mongo and Steiner a chance to shine and actually show off their specific brand (for example, Benoit comes out of things looking tougher than a $2 dollar steak while Luger comes across as a huge threat to Hogan's World Championship). All in all, if you're looking for a WCW/nWo-era show featuring practically every huge star WCW had at their disposal as well as a number of popular midcard acts, UnCensored 97' checks the boxes.

FINAL RATING - Watch It All 

NWA Starrcade 84'

I

Starrcade 84' - November 1984

Greensboro, North Carolina

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Ric Flair comes into tonight's show the reigning NWA World Heavyweight Champion, Wahoo McDaniel is the United States Champion, Tully Blanchard is the TV Champion, Dusty Rhodes and Manny Fernandez are the NWA World Tag Team Champions, Jesse Barr holds the Florida State Championship, Mike Davis is the Junior Heavyweight Champion, Black Bart is the Brass Knuckles Champion, and Ron Bass is the Mid-Atlantic Champion.

COMMENTATORS: Gordon Solie and Bob Caudle

Starrcade 84' kicks off with the night's Junior Heavyweight Championship match, Mike Davis defending the strap against Denny Brown. If those names don't scream "PPV Worthy," I don't know what does...Anyway, neither one looks like your modern cruiser, but Solie and Caudle do clarify that they are under 230 pounds. The action is decent, with some well-executed technical wrestling on display, but this ain't a Pillman/Liger match, overachieving and revolutionizing the industry. A solid, textbook finish ends in the most bizarre fashion, though, when Denny Brown is declared the winner despite Mike Davis clearly making the pinfall. A replay is supposed to clarify the confusion around the finish, but it only irritated me as, in this instance, neither guy gets a shoulder up and, to me, you must then award the victory to the guy on offense. Absolute shit ending. (0/5)

Next up, Mr. Ito takes on Brian Adidas. The Japanese Terror is more agile and technically proficient than he appears at first glance, while Adidas is essentially a "Tom Zenk Light," with less explosive offense, a less impressive physique, and even less charisma than the Z-Man. I liked the airplane spin, but this one is pretty dull. (0.5/5)

The Florida State Championship is on the line in the next contest - Mike Graham challenging Jesse Barr. The second gen-er Graham is the former champion, which gives some purpose to this match, but his spirited performance is what really gives this one a sense of mattering. Barr sells the danger of the figure four well, but both guys also do an excellent job of showcasing how punishing a simple side headlock can be. There's other great mini-moments in here (Graham backhanding Barr and Barr's bump from Graham's atomic drop), but what makes me push it above average is the quality finish, one that keeps both the victor and the loser looking credible. (3/5)

Viewers are treated to a video of Dick Slater and Ricky Steamboat getting destroyed by JJ Dillon, Black Bart, and Ron Bass. This is pretty key (and is played again later) as at least three matches on tonight's show have links to this angle.

Paul Jones' Zambuie Express takes on Assassin #1 and Buzz Tyler next in a match being fought under Elimination Rules. Old school wrestling fans will remember Elijah Akeem being the former Leroy Brown, who actual held the NWA Television Championship for a brief period in the early 80s. Both he and his partner have tremendous size, but not much else based on this match. Ditto for Buzz Tyler, who is energetic, but not mesmerizing in terms of what he presents in-ring. Assassin eliminates Kareem Muhammed first, giving the faces a 2-on-1 advantage, but before that somewhat counter-intuitive story can be told, the other Zambuie Expresser is announced as having been counted out. Worthless match. (0/5)

Dusty Rhodes shares some thoughts. Not an all-time great promo, but solid. 

"The Raging Bull" Manny Fernandez takes on Black Bart for Bart's Brass Knuckles Championship. I'm not sure why the title even exists, especially when neither guy utilizes brass knuckles, but whatever. Fernandez is red hot with the crowd, fully backing him in this impressively violent slugfest. Fernandez is a bloody mess within minutes, which Solie explains as being the effect of having so much scar tissue on his forehead. Bart ends up bleeding a bit as well, coming back into the ring with his head sliced open after getting knocked to the outside. The finish comes from a JJ Dillon screw-up. I would've liked to see some actual weapons gets used in this Anything Goes match, but this one wasn't too bad. (2/5)

Gordon Solie announces to the viewer that its time for a 7-minute intermission. In that time we hear from Ricky Steamboat, who delivers an intense, serious, very articulate and sportsmanlike promo before getting some words from his opponent tonight, Tully Blanchard.

A Tuxedo Streetfight (where the Loser Must Leave Town) is next between longtime rivals Jimmy Valiant and Paul Jones. A year earlier, Valiant was in his "Charlie Brown" guise, which was my first time really watching him in action. The crowd is still hugely into him and fully in support of every dastardly thing he does to Jones. Not really a match, but the entertainment-level is pretty high in this one, with the story starting in comedic fashion and escalating pretty quickly to gory violence. The surprise finish made me intrigued as to how the rest of the storyline went. (2.5/5)

Ric Flair is backstage with Tony Schiavone. He talks about the $1 million prize on the line in tonight's main event. Like the Rhodes promo, Flair is more calm and collected than in his usual interviews.

Mid-Atlantic Champion Ron Bass defends against Dick Slater next. Good, intense back-and-forth action here with some actual wrestling (a breath of fresh air compared to the previous three matches) and some even better play-by-play out of the commentators. Textbook bulldogs, suplexes, bodyslams, and leg drops on display with Slater's selling reminding me of Dean Ambrose at times. A reasonable DQ finish is followed by a crowd-pleasing post-match. Good match, but not a great one. (2.5/5)

To hype the next match, we get the national anthem. Odd to hear it in the middle of the show.

Keith Larson tags up with Ole Anderson to take on Ivan and Nikita Koloff in the next match. The story coming into this match is that Larson and Ole are teaming up to help their buddy Don Kernodle get revenge on his former tag partner Ivan Koloff and Ivan's nephew, Nikita. When the match begins, the faces clear out the heels early and proceed to focus on attacking Ivan's left arm without a half-dozen wristlocks (as well as a purposeful bodyslam-with-the-arm-behind-the-back by Ole Anderson, one of my all-time favorite maneuevers). Overall, a mixed bag of a match featuring some good moments (Nikita's impressive bear hugs on the sizeable Ole Anderson) and some bad (anytime Larson's in the ring). It also runs a bit too long for my taste. Extra half-point for the finish, which dissatisfies the crowd to the point of actually pelting garbage into the ring. That's the kind of heat you just don't get in the WWE these days. (2/5)

The Television Championship (and $10,000) is on the line in the next bout, fought under strict "No Run/Title Changes Hands on DQ," with Ricky Steamboat challenging the incumbent titleholder, Tully Blanchard. From the sound of the bell, this one kicks off with loads of high energy, intense action, Steamboat eventually cut off by Tully attacking his previously damaged ribs. After trading holds for a bit, there's a great sequence in which Tully does a tremendous job of building suspense by refusing to lock up with Steamboat, slapping him in the head and spitting in his face but never letting the hero in close enough to tie him up. When the audience finally gets to the pay-off (two leapfrogs followed by a snap powerslam off the ropes), it propels the match to its climax, when Tully gets busted open. From here, Blanchard plays his character perfectly, flustered but not yet out of tricks or ready to give up, miraculously kicking out of a number of nearfalls, including a swinging neckbreaker and perfectly-executed dropkick. Blanchard's resiliency isn't ignored by the commentators, either, which adds credibility to both men's efforts. The final third is not mind-blowing storytelling (the "roll of quarters in the trunks" bit would be unfamiliar to very few fans), but expectations are wisely subverted a bit by having Steamboat inititally survive Tully's first cheap shot. Overall, a great match that needed just a bit more time (and maybe some brawling on the outside or involvement by JJ Dillon) to put it up a notch higher. (4/5)

"Superstar" Billy Graham makes his way to the ring for his opportunity to capture the United States Championship from Wahoo McDaniel. If the previous match was a near-classic, this one is a near-zero, the only reason to watch being to see how impressive Graham's physique is this late in his career. Essentially, this is a battle of two lumbering vets who simply slug eachother, hit some chest chops, and bump, but don't seem too interested in telling a real story, building suspense, or doing anything that will actually make the crowd feel like they've seen something special. A lazy match with an all-time lazy finish. (0.5/5)

Main event time - Dusty Rhodes challenging "Nature Boy" Ric Flair for his NWA World Heavyweight Champion. Joe Frazier is serving as the referee, making this the second Starrcade in a row to feature a special guest referee in the match. On the Network version, Rhodes arrives to some very weird ambient funk music while Flair is introduced with his classic theme. Flair gets a fairly impressive pop, which makes some sense because, based on his ring work in this contest, he is not really at his peak heel persona yet (this being pre-Horsemen). Rhodes is popular, but surprisingly comes off as the aggressor for the majority of the contest, putting the champion on defense and in somewhat of an underdog light. Rhodes dishes out some pretty impressive offense throughout, including a figure four, two press slams (one from the corner), and a vertical suplex. Flair's work is limited to chest chops and a sleeper, but the match does at least go into "third gear" once the two combatants make their way outside (where Dusty ends up a bloody mess). Unfortunately, Frazier calls the match a few minutes later due to the cut above Rhodes' eye, awarding the match (and its $1M prize) to the Nature Boy in a thoroughly deflating ending. The recurring theme of awful, cowardly match finishes on this show really hurts what was already only an average-at-best contest. (1.5/5)

After a recap by our commentary team, Ric Flair shares his thoughts backstage, followed by the only saving grace of the entire last 30 minutes of this broadcast, a spirited, angry promo by a bandaged Dusty Rhodes. Bonus point for at least giving us *one* really good backstage interview in this match (and Tony Schiavone getting shoved). (+1)

With an average "watchability" rating of 1.77-out-of-5, Starrcade 84' is up there (or down there?) with Clash of the Champions 32, Starrcade 94', and SuperBrawl V as one of the worst shows I've ever sat through. Only Steamboat/Blanchard is worth checking out, the main event being one of the most disappointing finales to any card I've watched in my Network viewership. Old school apologists might argue that my disdain for this show is based on not fully being aware of the "context" of the show or that I came into watching it with too much of a "modern eye." While that may be true to a degree, there's no "context" that can help the fact that the Zambuie Express match ends with a pinfall and a countout, that the opener's finishing spot is more confusing and frustrating than intruiging, that Wahoo and Billy Graham don't half-ass their way through a terrible contest that makes a mockery of the United States Championship, that the little bit of momentum this show might pick up at certain points is ruined by "intermissions" full of unimaginative, unremarkable promos. 

FINAL RATING - DUDleyville

NWA Starrcade 83'

In the spirit of full disclosure, I should start this review (and viewing stretch) by admitting the mega-wide omission in my viewing that is the NWA/early WCW. 

Growing up, I was a fairly massive wrestling fan. I watched WCW in the 90s, but the WWE (then WWF) was what I obsessed over. The local video store provided me with plenty of Rock n' Wrestling-era WWF, but barely anything from WCW (at least until Hogan jumped ship in 94'). Even once I could find cheap bootlegs of classic NWa shows (or watch a ton of it absolutely free on YouTube or DailyMotioon), I never had the patience. Shallow as it may be, a large part of that comes from the production quality. For someone who grew up a WWF fan, where every star wrestler had a custom theme song, choreographed entrance, and pyro, where the commentators were as cartoonish as the competitors, and where the arena itself was lit up to show massive crowds waving homemad "Hulk Rules" signs, watching 80s-era NWA/WCW (hell, watching most of the 90s-era NWA/WCW) is like stepping into a smoky, dank dive bar after spending a full day at Disneyland.

And so this year I plan on righting that wrong and learning a bit of the history I've been so willfully ignorant of for so long. What better place to start than NWA/WCW's first closed-circuit supershow....

Starrcade 83' - November 1983

Greensboro, North Carolina

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into the show, Harley Race is the NWA World Champion, The Briscos hold the NWA World Tag Team Championships, Greg Valentine is the United States Champion, and The Great Kabuki is the NWA Television Champion. Now, because is the NWA, there at least two dozen recognized regional champions at the time, but as the previously mentioned titles are the only ones defended on the card, I'm going to stick to just mentioning those.

COMMENTATORS: Bob Caudle and Gordon Solie

Starrcade 83' kicks off with a tag contest pitting The Masked Assassins with Paul Jones versus the team of Rufus R. Jones and Bugsy McGraw. Not a ton to say about the action, but the crowd is certainly into it. Jones and McGraw do loads of dancing and jiving between their strikes, making them a pretty fun team to watch. While certainly not actively bad at any point, this isn't a barnburner either. Fortunately, the match doesn't overstay its welcome and ends in an impressively straightforward and believable fashion. By today's standards, this wouldn't deserve placement on pay-per-view, but I'm not going to knock it too much when it's obvious by the crowd responses that they were entertained. (2/5)

Tony Schiavone is backstage, announcing that he'll be getting words from the challenger of tonight's main event later. Its pretty nifty to see Piper, Flair, and Steamboat behind him shooting the shit.

Johnny Weaver and Scott McGee take on Kevin Sullivan and Mark Lewin (with Gary Hart) in the next bout. McGee connects with a couple of dropkicks on Sullivan early on, popping the crowd, before Weaver comes in and locks on a headlock. Its noticeable how much more energy this match has compared to the opener, the wrestlers bouncing off the ropes and breaking up the standard headlock/wristlock offense with lots of quick tags and big strikes. Speaking of strikes, what's most notable about this match is the consistency of the story told. The referee is distracted several times (allowing the heels to team up behind his back), but the minute he has things in order, the heels cleverly go out of their way to act like upstanding rule-followers, making their tags blatant and on-the-level. The ultra-bloody post-match earns serious bonus points from me too. Also, like the opener, this one didn't run a second too long, which means a ton to a viewer like myself that has no natural inclination to care about the competitors involved. (3/5)

Tony Schiavone is in the back with Greg Valentine, Harley Race, and the Brisco Brothers. Race cuts a short, serious promo about how he knows Flair's shortcomings and will take advantage of them.

Carlos Colon vs. Abdullah the Butcher is next. Gordon Solie explains that the feud between these two began in Puerto Rico, but that they need to settle it here because it has been banned overseas. Neat concept. Abby dominates early on and looks noticeably more spry and energetic than in any of the matches from the 90s I remember him from. Colon ends up in possession of a fork (?) that Abdullah pulls from his pants, bloodying the Butcher within the first 3 minutes of the match. Abdullah is able to kick out of a pinfall attempt and end ups taking out the referee with an elbow drop soon after, which prevents Colon's figure four attempt from ending the match. A run-in by Hugo Savonivich leads to an Abdullah victory in a match that ends before it ever really gets started. (1.5/5)

Next up - Wahoo McDaniel and Mark Youngblood vs. Bob Orton and Dick Slater. Unlike the previous couple of matches, this one actually features some wrestling holds, some "suplays" (in the words of Gordon Solie), and a match structure that modern fans will be familiar with (the classic "face-in-peril-to-a-hot tag" story). Orton's the most interesting worker to watch here, at least to these modern eyes, as it really is remarkable how much his son moves likes him at times. While Youngblood is passable in his role as the least experienced hand fighting to stay alive against two vicious, crafty, rule-bending heels, he can't muster the sympathy that, say, Dustin Rhodes did in a similar position in the early 90s (though, admittedly, very few have ever been comparable to Rhodes in that department). Adding an even more "modern" flair to the match is Orton's use of the outside barricade to gain an advantage over his foe, the kind of straightforward heel tactic that is underemphasized today, but, 30 years ago, comes across as a legit difference maker. The match runs a few minutes long for me, but its also the first bout of the night that seems to actually matter. (2/5)

Ric Flair is in the back with Jay Youngblood and Ricky Steamboat. Flair gives an understated promo pretty removed from the type of interviews he's known for. Youngblood and Steamboat give an equally serious and somewhat monotone promo. Cut to Dusty Rhodes in the audience, but technical difficulties prevent the audience from hearing much of anything he says. Eeesh. 

The NWA Television Title and Charlie Brown's mask are on the line next - Charlie Brown (aka Jimmy Valient) challenging Gary Hart's The Great Kabuki. Brown comes at him with a head-of-steam to start the match off, sending Kabuki to the floor and tossing him into the guardrail and the steel post before busting out a chair. After hitting him with not much of anything resembling wrestling, Brown locks on a sleeper in the center of the ring, bringing Kabuki to the mat. Kabuki claws his way out via an eye rake, but gets locked up again when Brown dodges a backhanded chop. Hart breaks the hold by draping Kabuki's foot over the bottom rope and the face-painted martial artist is able to get control, clamping on a claw and bringing the level of "wrestling" utilized in this match to a low that I don't think I've seen outside a Torrie Wilson/Stacy Keibler match. The crowd is into this, though, which just goes to show how different presentation, audiences, and expectations were 30 years ago compared to today. Throw this same match in a ring in 2016 and there's no way a WWE crowd would be impressed by a bout that, literally, contains nothing more than clotheslines, ugly-looking low-elevation spin kicks, multiple sleeper holds and claws, and a match-ending elbow drop. Despite going under 10 minutes, it feels like it goes at least 3 too long. (.5/5)

Dog Collar Match time - US Champion Greg Valentine taking on "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. From the first minute, the intensity in this match is off the charts as the two combatants do an excellent job of selling the dangers of their predicament. What sets this match apart from any other brawl, though, is the number of incredible visuals it provides - within the first 4 minutes, the audience has been witness to more depravity than in any chain match I've ever seen before. Valentine is a bloody mess early, but when he takes control he goes right after Piper's previously damaged ear, causing the entire left side of Hot Rod's face to look like roadkill. While I've criticized some of the previous bouts on this show for their lack of actual wrestling, this one, which features little more than punches and chain whips, works because the animosity between the competitors comes across as realer than a wrestling match. In fact, when Valentine goes for a pin, it seems almost weird, a sudden reminder that this, in fact, is an athletic contest, not just two guys mercilessly wailing on eachother. As the brawl continues, Piper surviving several more pinfall attempts and eventually finding himself in a Valentine sleeper, there is a sense of repetitiveness rather than an escalation, though. The ending of the match comes across as a bit lackluster, Valentine seemingly "giving in" more out of exhaustion than being the beaten man. This point is driven home even more with the postmatch beatdown he gives to Piper, an incredibly violent attack that has the crowd on their feet and screaming. When Piper gets back on his feet and swings the chain, it is an awesome moment that, sadly, gets cut away from too soon. I've seen this match heralded as an all-time classic, but I'm not sure the story of the match is as riveting as the individual moments and scenes that can be cherry-picked from its entirety. A very good, very violent match, but one that lacks a definitive finish and doesn't really escalate beyond the immediate barbarity of its first few minutes. (4/5)

After some words from Ric Flair and others, the World Tag Team Championships are on the line as Jack and Jerry Brisco defend the straps against the team of Jay Youngblood and Ricky Steamboat. As someone pretty unfamiliar with the Briscos ring work beyond what I've read about them over the years, I was surpised by their charisma, believing them to be far more "old school" and stoic than they are here (Jerry, in particular, does a great job of riling up the crowd early on). The action on display isn't exactly riveting at first, but the crowd is into things enough to keep this one hot. As the match enters its last third, things pick up noticeably as Steamboat shows some excellent face-in-peril spirit before busting out some strength spots that today's fans will certainly recognize. Good bout that starts slow but ends strong. (3/5)

Jimmy "Charlie Brown" Valient, Roddy Piper, and Dusty Rhodes all get a bit of promo time, Hot Rod's being the most memorable, as we prepare for tonight's main event.

Ric Flair gets a grand entrance for his showdown with NWA World Champion, Harley Race, inside a steel cage. Gene Kiniski is serving as guest referee for this. Flair applies a headlock early, the crowd loudly in support of the Nature Boy and popping pretty big for Race missing a headbutt. Race takes over a few minutes later and shows off some simple-but-vicious offense, laying knees into the head and throat of Flair and throwing in an old-school "fall back" piledriver for good measure. What really impresses me about Race is how intense his strikes are, how effective his offense comes across despite being the opposite of flashy or innovative. Even his pinfall covers look stiff, like it really does take tremendous energy for Flair to get a shoulder out from under Race's considerably large frame. Unfortunately, Kiniski's involvement in certain points of the match taint things a bit for me. Essentially, Kiniski attempts to hold both men back from attacking their opponent in the corner, but ends up becoming a de facto tag partner to each in consecutive spots. Maybe this was a common occurrence back in the day, but to these eyes, it is as bizarre as watching Mike Chioda help set up The Miz for a Doomsday Device from Dean Ambrose. Flair gets back on offense and, by this point, both men are bloody messes, having been busted open by the unforgiving walls of the steel cage. Flair and Race exchange a series of stiff shots and closed fists, angering Kiniski and causing him to break up the fight multiple times. Fortunately, Solie does a nice job of explaining why Kiniski is so eager to get this one back under control, noting that Kiniski respects "what's on the marquee" (wrestling) and wants this match to be fought under the rules and regulations of the sport. Race escapes a figure four attempt but considerable damage has been done as Race is unable to capitalize on a vertical suplex attempt. Moments later, Race again falls prey to his own fatigue, hitting Naitch with a headbutt from the ropes, but unable to make the cover quick enough to win the match. A second vertical suplex attempt (this one successful) gets kicked out of again by Flair, who looks to be an absolutely beaten man. Kiniski gives Flair some time for a breather, pulling Race off of him when he begins stomping on him on the edge of the ring. Flair then connects with a big suplex of his own before crash landing on an elbow drop attempt. This leads to a somewhat wild ending, with Kiniski ending up on the mat but alert enough to make the pinfall count on a Flair crossbody from the top. The post-match celebration is an incredible sight, the crowd going crazy and Flair being hoisted up by the company's top babyfaces in the center of the ring. As an overall contest, I enjoyed this one just as much as the more-often heralded Dog Collar Match, largely due to how intense Race is and how hot the crowd is. Kiniski's ref work leaves much to be desired (aside from being too actively involved the match, he was slow as molasses when getting in position), but Solie and Caudle do a great job of covering for him on commentary. Extra half-point for Flair's in-ring victory speech, a brief but touching and emotional moment, and the less emotional, but considerably "meatier" backstage interview (with cameo from Dusty Rhodes). (4/5)

Like the first WrestleMania, Starrcade 83' doesn't quite hold up as an all-time great show, but it is not without its merits, earning a decent watchability score of 2.5-out-of-5. The Dog Collar Match comes across as brutal today as it probably did when it first aired. The main event can still raise goosebumps. The Briscos and Steamboat are a blast to watch too. Unfortunately, every other match is dated filler with only small moments of excitement that fans like myself, who are not really invested in the stories of a Jimmy Valient or a Mark Lewin, will be intrigued by. Recommended for fans already familiar with the era from whence it came or those that, like me, are seeking to broaden their knowledge of the sport's history.

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuever