WWE Backlash 2000

WWE Backlash 2000

Washington, DC - April 2000

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Triple H was the WWE Champion, Chris Benoit was the Intercontinental Champion, Eddie Guerrero was the European Champion, Dean Malenko was the Light Heavyweight Champion, Crash Holly was the Hardcore Champion, and Stephanie McMahon was somehow the Women's Champion. Edge and Christian were the WWE Tag Team Champions at the time, enjoying their first reign.

The show begins with the WWE Tag Team Champions, Edge and Christian, defending the gold against Road Dogg and X-Pac, who had re-formed as DegenerationX and were now heels. Edge and Christian were also heels, but because they were entertaining, they had more crowd support in this match. The right team gets the W after about 10 minutes in a middling match. This is around the time when the term "X-Pac heat" was beginning to come into fashion as X-Pac, despite being arguably the best and most consistent worker in DX, had also been so overexposed that nothing he did was interesting. Partnering up with Road Dogg didn't help matters as all as the D-o-double-g was a horrendous worker. Looking back, X-Pac needed to freshen up his act but it never happened. Not a terrible match or anything, just nothing work seeking out. (2.5/5)

The WWE Light Heavyweight Championship is on the line next as Dean Malenko defends against Scotty 2 Hotty. Scotty 2 Hotty's gimmick is one of my least favorite of all time, but I can't deny that he had sound fundamentals. Dean Malenko, meanwhile, is notorious for being an iceman in the ring who could never get his actual personality into his in-ring character. This match comes across as Hotty wanting to prove he could hang with a wrestler's wrestler like Malenko, but it just feels slightly "off" in the WWE setting where light heavyweight wrestling had never caught on and the Attitude Era had made actual wrestling matches something of a rarity. To their credit, Malenko and Hotty (god I hate that name) do get the crowd invested by the end and there are some terrific spots, including an insane finish that sees Malenko get the clean W with a DDT counter to a superplex. In the Observer, Meltzer gave this 4 stars and while I wouldn't go that far, it was still an above-average match that might've gone a hair too long for me. (3.5/5)

After two matches highlighting some of the WWE's best and freshest talents in Edge and Christian and Malenko, it was time for a piss break match pitting Big Bossman and Bull Buchanan against The APA. As JR notes on commentary, this match was not going to be your classic "wrestling contest" like what we saw in the previous bout but rather an all-out brawl. Unfortunately, it doesn't really deliver at that level. Buchanan was noticeably green and, like the opener, it is a bit odd to see two teams that are ostensibly heels working against each other and even more surprising that the crowd cares about it. This was the magic of the WWE from roughly 98' through 2001 as nearly everybody on the card was over beyond the level they had any right to be. Forgettable match but at least it doesn't run too long. (1.5/5)

Next up - a six-pack challenge for the WWE Hardcore Championship as Crash Holly defends against Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Tazz, Hardcore Holly, and Perry Saturn. The WWE had not yet mastered multi-man matches the way they would with the Money in the Bank Ladder match a few years later, but this is still good, hardcore fun that plays to the strengths of the Hardy brothers especially but also the rest of these dudes, many of whom were no stranger to weapon-based wrestling. A madcap match that is wrestled with the unique stipulation that the only way the match could end was if Crash Holly was pinned or did the pinning. Its an interesting twist on what is usually a match built around everyone scrambling to pin anyone they can and there are moments that capitalize on that unique element - the Hardys arguing over who is going to get the pin and the clever finishing sequence most noticeably. This match isn't any sort of masterpiece but it makes any and every of the 24/7 Championship matches/segments of current times look like the steaming piles of shit that they are. (3/5)

The Big Show had debuted in the WWE in 99' after being one of WCW's biggest stars from 95' on, but had become a comedy wrestler by this point, impersonating various other wrestling stars. On this show, Big Show does his most famous impersonation, coming out as "The Showster" to the tune of "Real American" and wearing all of his real-life buddy Hulk Hogan's gear. I'm guessing that Hogan didn't take any offense to Big Show's imitation, but that's probably because Hogan benefited from having his name chanted by 20,000+ fans more than Big Show benefited from getting the cheap pop. Big Show's opponent is Kurt Angle, a guy that Show would work with again and again over the next half-decade. Here, Angle is working as the pinballing heel for the most part, selling for his much larger opponent and not even attemping the Angle Slam (a spot that he would pull off in future years as Angle became a more "serious" wrestler). Despite Big Show's career being a literal joke at this point, the right man wins as Angle was so entertaining that it didn't matter if he took an L to a legit monster. This is not a good "match," but it is one of the more well-known moments in Big Show's early WWE run and the crowd was hella into it. A hard match to rate but, in terms of entertainment value, its no worse than average. (2.5/5)

The next bout and the storyline that brought it to pass is not one that has aged particularly well -The Dudley Boys vs. Test and Albert (with Trish Stratus). The build-up for this match was all about Bubba Ray's infatuation with Stratus and his creepy desire to "get wood" around her by putting her through a table. Bubba's bizarre fetish was played to the hilt with both JR and Jerry Lawler inserting every possible innuendo possible to make it clear to the audience that this was some pseudo (or not so pseudo?) sexual thing. The Dudleys were known for working stiff and Test and Albert could dish it out as well as they could take it, but in what would become a recurring theme with the Dudleys, their matches were built entirely around table spots so, after a few minutes of good action, that seems like all the fans want to see. In the end, Test and Albert get the W, but its really just a bit of a misdirect as Bubba ends up hitting a neckbreaker on Test and then doing what everyone wanted to see - powerbombing Trish Stratus through a table and going into an orgasmic trance. It had only been a few years since the Owen Hart tragedy but Vince had no qualms having his commentators go into super-serious mode on commentary to play up Trish Stratus being potentially paralyzed by the bump she took. It is a very respectable and nasty looking powerbomb so kudos to everyone involved, but again, there's just something cringe-inducing about this entire storyline when you watch it 20 years later, the kind of thing that if you had this on your tablet screen on the gym while you were on a treadmill, you might fast forward through so that the people nearby didn't see what you were watching. The match itself was fine but not necessarily my style of action. The post-match got over huge with the live crowd, but again, isn't my sort of thing and wasn't even my sort of thing at the time when I was 16. (2/5)

Essa Rios (with Lita) challenges Eddie Guerrero (with Chyna) for the European Championship next. Essa Rios is an interesting figure in WWE history to me because I totally forgot that he was around for as long as he was, debuting in 1997 and making it all the way to 2001 (though I'm guessing he wrestled less than a 30 televised matches in those 3-4 years). Like the Malenko/Hotty match, there's just something slightly weird about seeing a WCW-like cruiserweight match on a WWE show even if the work itself is strong throughout. Rios is the least over performer in this match and its no surprise Lita would end up teamed with the Hardys sooner rather than later (with Rios disappearing off TV not long after this match). Guerrero and Chyna are the star act, though, even if Guerrero hadn't completely found his footing in WWE either, wrestling in tuxedo pants and trying out a new finisher in an airplane spin/neckbreaker combo that looked cool but could never be used against anybody other than a cruiser like Rios. Another good, above-average match on a show that had a number of them. (3/5)

Chris Benoit defended his Intercontinental Championship against Chris Jericho in the next match. Jericho cut a pre-match promo all about taking out politicians that sounded like it was written word-for-word by Vince McMahon. Rewatching Chris Benoit is not always easy, not just because of how his life ended but because Benoit, for years and years prior to his death, represented technical perfection and now, in 2021, that reputation of excellence might hold up in a vacuum but his matches do often suffer from not fully engaging the audience or telling the emotional story that a guy like Daniel Bryan is able to do while arguably performing at an even higher level in terms of wrestling acumen. Hell, having now re-watched a ton of Bret Hart's best work, I'm not sure Benoit ever really topped the Hitman or if he is that far ahead of a guy like Christian, who has proven to be his generation's Arn Anderson in some ways. While some of Benoit's matches no longer click with me the way they once did, this one absolutely delivered. Hard-hitting with some unreal spots and exchanges - including a crazy dive from Benoit onto the floor - and a finish that was all about building to their next match rather than delivering a definitive ending on a show that already had quite a few of those. I'm not sure this gets to "must see" level, but its close and, even without a strong ending, accomplished what it needed to in making both guys come across tough as hell. (3.5/5)

Main event time - The Rock challenging Triple H for the WWE Championship. Over on ProWrestlingForums, a reviewer called this The Rock's version of the famous Austin vs. Foley match from Over the Edge 1998. Its a bold comparison as that match was famously overbooked but also, in some ways, the best overbooked match of all time as Austin was up against every potential obstacle and still walked away with the belt. Here, The Rock has to deal with not only trying to beat long-time rival Triple H, but also Shane McMahon as the referee, Vince McMahon and Stephanie at ringside, and the all-night-cliffhanger of whether or not Steve Austin would be showing up to help (or, as JR notes on commentary, potentially cost The Rock the title as Rock and Austin had their own history to play off of). The audience is a bit cold at the start, noticeably chanting "We Want Austin" in the opening moments. I wrote about this phenomenon when I reviewed the Royal Rumble in 2002; Austin, even after the heel turn at WrestleMania XVII and The Rock's ascension, was enormously popular and almost untouchable in terms of live reactions. The Rock and Triple H work hard to get the crowd into their work, but nobody forgets that Austin is supposed to be involved and that we won't see a real finish until he shows up, which takes this match down a peg to me. The best spot is when The Rock delivers an uncanny Rock Bottom on both Triple H and Shane on a table on the outside, but I also love the late cameo by Patterson and Brisco. The roof blows off when Austin does show up, chair in hand, and decimates everyone except The Rock. In a nice moment that only further establishes Austin as the biggest star in a ring full of stars, the Rattlesnake isn't around for the actual finish, which sees Linda McMahon show up with Earl Hebner in tow. Linda slaps the taste out of Stephanie's mouth to a huge cheer and The Rock wins the title in a crowd-pleasing moment, celebrating in the ring until Austin shows up and tosses him a beer, both babyfaces enjoying that they've one-upped the McMahon-Helmsley regime. I'm not sure is this as "must see" as the Over the Limit match, partially because it is essentially a retread of that very match, but its still highly entertaining stuff even if does not cross the threshold of being an all-time great match. (3.5/5)

Widely considered one of the best WWE pay-per-views of its era, Backlash 2000 is a mostly strong show that offers plenty of variety even if some of the matches - the opener and APA tag match particularly - that don't quite work. Big Show/Angle and the Hardcore Championship match are fun in completely different ways, Benoit/Jericho is hard-hitting, the European and Light Heavyweight Championship matches seem out of place in a WWE ring but they're undeniably solid matches, and the main event caps off the show with tremendous star power and a memorable finish. With a Kwang Score of 2.77-out-of-5, this show gets...

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

WWE The Bash 2009

WWE: The Bash 2009

June 2009 - Sacramento, California

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, CM Punk was the World Heavyweight Champion, Randy Orton was the WWE Champion, the Colons held the Unified Tag Team Championships, and the United States Championship was held by Kofi Kingston. The Intercontinental Champion was Chris Jericho, Tommy Dreamer was the ECW Champion, Melina was the Women's Champion, and the Divas Champion was Maryse. 

The title of this show was a shortened version of The Great American Bash, NWA/WCW's long-running pay-per-view (and, prior to that, multi-date tour featuring wrestling matches and country music acts). This was the last Bash to appear on PPV, though the WWE did revisit it as a special edition of SmackDown in 2012 according to Wikipedia. 

The show kicks off with a Scramble Match for the ECW Championship. The Scramble Match, as a concept, had been the focal point of the Unforgiven 2008 show - a show that I got to attend with my buddies Adam, Tim, and Cy (shoutout) - here in Cleveland, Ohio. Anyway, Christian and Jack Swagger started the match off and, from there, were joined by Finlay, Tommy Dreamer, and Mark Henry, who had not yet entered his Hall of Pain run but was getting there. While I wouldn't call this match a revelation or anything, it was solid - which could be expected with the amount of talent and experience in the ring, Finlay and Christian specifically working as the glue to hold most every multi-man spot or sequence together. Unlike the Scramble matches I (only vaguely) remember from a year prior, this one was not heavy on pinfalls and title changes, which made sense and kept things believable - for example, Mark Henry quickly got a pinfall (and the title), but ended up getting pinned himself by Swagger when he got too ambitious and attempted an unnecessary splash from the top rope rather than just taking a random pinfall from one of his smaller opponent's finishers. Again, nothing really special here, but not at all bad. (2.5/5)

Next on the card was Rey Mysterio Jr. putting his mask on the line against the Intercontinental Champion, Chris Jericho, for Y2J's title. This one started off a bit slow and bland to me, but it simmers to a boil, heating up in its third act and really delivering the goods. Dave Meltzer gave this 4.5 stars in 2009, but I wouldn't go that  high on it. The chemistry is there and, by the end, we do get some innovative twists and turns (especially the clever double-mask finish), but I didn't find myself truly captivated until that last 5-6 minutes, with the first half of the match not delivering anything I found to be as thrilling. In some ways, because these two had so many matches in the years leading up to this, my view was tainted by the fact that it wasn't exactly a "fresh" match to me - remember, these two had wrestled on PPV and Nitro quite a bit 10 years earlier and proceeded to have random TV matches throughout the 00s - nor was the Mask vs. Title stipulation particularly intriguing as the outcome was easy to predict. Still, calling this any short of great is cutting it short, even if I don't think its an all-time Top 10 WWE Match, which is praise that I have seen heaped onto it elsewhere. I've even seen it called Jericho's best match and Rey's best WWE match - which also seems a bit hyperbolic when you consider both guys' resumes. Regardless, this one borders between "should-watch" and "must-watch," especially if you're a fan of either of these two. (4/5)

Dolph Ziggler has his first singles match on pay-per-view next - taking on The Great Khali, who he had stolen some victories over on SmackDown in the build-up to this show. Ziggler had been around the WWE for a couple years by this point, first as Chavo Guerrero's caddy and then as a member of the Spirit Squad. His series against Khali qualified as his first real "push" and watching the pre-match video and the match itself it does seem like Ziggler had the potential to be a big deal (corny ring name aside). Over the past 10 years, though, Ziggler's career has been a series of ups-and-downs separated by vast stretches of him just being there, usually in the midcard and usually making false promises about becoming the "top guy" he has never actually become. But enough about Ziggler, let's talk about this match - which is exactly what one would expect: a showcase for Ziggler's pinball bumping and selling, but also his heel tactics and cunning. With the match being No DQ, Ziggler tries to gain the upperhand with a chair, but even this is not enough to overcome Khali's size and power advantage. The finish comes when Kane shows up and inexplicably attacks Khali, giving Ziggler the easy pinfall victory. I don't recall where this storyline all leaded - I'm guessing a Khali/Kane showdown at the next PPV - but for what this was, it wasn't too terrible and established Ziggler as an opportunistic heel in under 5 minutes. (2/5)

The Colons were set to defend their Unified Tag Team Championships against Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes of The Legacy in the next match, but after being berated by Vince McMahon backstage for being a do-nothing GM, Teddy Long added Edge and Chris Jericho to the mix. This was some smart booking as this match, as is, really seemed to lack star power and probably would've been met with mostly crickets. The crowd chants for Christian at various points, which would've been undeniably cool but also would've essentially turned Edge babyface as there's no way the crowd wouldn't have been 100% behind the reunited E&C. The story of the match is more interesting that it probably has any right to be as the Colons and Legacy basically wrestle the first 8 minutes (of a 10-minute match) among themselves, neither team too eager to tag in the two former World Champions that are almost salivating to get into the ring and win the titles. The commentary on this show isn't too great - JR has zero chemistry with Todd Grisham (another reason the Mysterio/Jericho match is just slightly short of a full masterpiece in my eyes) - but here, they do a good job of making it clear that it will be game over for the Colons and Legacy if Edge or Jericho get a tag. When it finally does happen, the pop for the new champions is massive and feels like a big deal, instantly adding some credibility to the Unified Tag Team Championships (which were, for the next 9 months or so, treated like main event-level titles). (2.5/5)

Michelle McCool, accompanied by Alicia Fox, challenged Melina for the WWE Womens Championship in the next contest. This era of women's wrestling - from roughly 2006 through to 2014 - is completely ignored and forgotten by most fans as it was a real mixed bag. On one hand, you had Trish Stratus and Mickie James nearly stealing the show at WrestleMania 22 and, not too long later, Beth Pheonix could be relied upon to carry just about anyone on the roster to something passable. Michelle McCool's eventual team-up with Layla was entertaining. The drop-off from these talents was vast too as various talents who were far better suited to just be valets - Maryse, Maria, and the very green Bella Twins and Alicia Fox - were all put in the spotlight and, in many instances, just didn't have the skill or experience to win over crowds that were accustom to seeing women's wrestling as a joke. This match is not as good as most of the women's matches the WWE produces today - which is a great thing - but it is also not nearly as bad or botch-filled as one might expect. Melina and McCool's movesets aren't as sharp, innovative, impactful, or technically-sound as we routinely see from Asuka or Charlotte today and there still seems to be a clear expectation that they sprinkle their entrances and character work with not-so-subtle sexual overtones (see Melina's trademark split is the easiest example to spot) that, say, Becky Lynch and Bayley and Sasha Banks haven't had to or haven't felt forced to utilize but nothing feels overly choreographed either. McCool and Melina are selling the action well throughout. There is a genuine feel of competition and physicality and athleticism. There are actual submission holds. They don't get many minutes, but they make things count and there's a beginning, middle, and end to the match. This isn't a forgotten gem or anything, but its also not as embarrassing to watch as what the company was promoting and producing 5 years earlier, when it seemed most of the action was built around bras, panties, and bikinis. (2.5/5)

CM Punk defends his World Heavyweight Championship against Jeff Hardy next. This is one of the best feuds of the 00s and really put Punk on the map as a potential top guy. The story here is that Hardy had (finally) gotten his big World Championship victory at the previous show, Extreme Rules, by defeating Edge in a ladder match, but only got to hold the title for a minute because Punk cashed in his briefcase immediately after. Punk didn't turn fully heel, though, as he explained his actions as being fair play and, famously, that "nowhere in the contract does it say I can't cash in on Jeff Hardy." Still, it was clear that Punk was leaning heel and Hardy was the sympathetic figure - two roles that both are so good at playing that the only question was whether they'd have any chemistry in the ring. This match answered that question in the affirmative as Punk tries to keep things grounded and technical and Hardy tried to use his unorthodox offense to hit game-changer moves like the Air Hardy and the Whisper in the Wind. The character interplay in this match effects nearly every sequence as Punk does everything short of outright cheating to try to get the victory, including, at one point, pleading for the ref to pick up his count to disqualify Hardy outside of the ring. There are a bunch of clever finisher escapes and counters and a Dusty Finish when Hardy hits his Swanton, makes the cover, and gets a 3 count...until the referee reverses the decision because Punk's foot is under the bottom rope (which, in my view, it barely was). The match restarts and Punk fakes an injury, hobbling over to the corner to get a breather. As the referee checks on him and holds off Hardy, Punk wallops him with a stiff kick to the back to get himself disqualified...or was it an unintentional strike caused by blindness? Rating a match like this is difficult because the finish, by design, is meant to take the air out of a building. It was almost meant to turn the tide completely against Punk, who actually had his fair share of supporters in Sacramento. It effectively does both, but also means that, after viewing, you're left with the feeling that you've been ripped off. As that is the intention, the match is basically perfect - perfectly disappointing in that way. I'd still consider this, like Jericho/Mysterio, a match bordering between "should watch" and "must watch." (4/5)

Main event time - well, not really. Instead, it's John Cena vs. The Miz in a match that Cena promoted as being a "main event" because he's in it. He wasn't necessarily wrong about that, but whatever...The build for this match was based on The Miz coming out on Raw and challenging Cena for three weeks straight knowing full well that Cena was unable to respond to his challenge and then claiming victory by count-out. It was basically the exact same thing that Jericho did on Nitro in 97' or 98', only, in the end, Cena eventually showed up and this match was set. Many expected this match to be one-sided going into it, but The Miz was in the midst of his first major singles push and actually got some decent offense in. I liked how The Miz targeted Cena's neck as Cena had had surgery on it just about a year prior (a fact that the commentary team doesn't forget to mention either), but that, ultimately, Cena got to assert his dominance regardless as the much more credible worker. Simply put, this match told the exact story it needed to - Cena is The Man, but The Miz is not the scrub that he was 2 years earlier when this match would've been a complete squash. Still, these two would go on to have much better matches and The Miz would continue to develop a much more interesting mix of solid offense and brilliant, crowd-baiting shtick. For what it was, not a terrible match, just not close to either guy's best. (2/5)

And now, the actual main event - Triple H vs. Randy Orton in a 3 Stages of Hell match for Orton's WWE Championship. As I'm not a huge fan of either guy, the very idea of this match made me wonder if it would be me going through hell rather than the wrestlers, but this is actually a rather quick and tame trio of matches. It starts off with a straight-up traditional match and Triple H and Orton spend the minutes with Orton attacking Triple H's injured knee and both guys just trying to hit their finishers rather than actually having the kind of "physical chess game" that they both tend to do (and which tends to bore me to death). Triple H ends up getting himself disqualified, which is consistent with his Game character but still came off as a bit of a heel move and unsurprisingly drew some boos from the audience. Cole noted on commentary that Triple H and Orton had a Last Man Standing match on RAW just a week before this match (this explains Triple H's damaged knee), but also struck me as a perfect encapsulation as to why the WWE's B-level pay-per-views were always a tough sell and felt so unimportant (and still do). I genuinely wonder if the WWE put on actual PPVs today if they'd sell more than AEW's. Anyway, after getting himself disqualified, Triple H is down 0-1 but evens the score rather quickly with a pedigree on the arena floor as the next fall is a Falls Count Anywhere that goes nowhere. The final stage of hell is a Stretcher Match, which seems like a letdown compared to other matches that involved way more weapons and the Hell in a Cell. Stretcher matches are almost never good, or at least they aren't based on the few I've seen, but this one isn't all that bad - it just feels like a midcard match more than a fitting main event or satisfying "feud-ender." When you have to work around a stretcher, you're bound to have good spots and spots that don't work out so well and, like the Matt/Jeff Hardy Stretcher match from April of this same year, creativity can sometimes cost you more than help you if the stretcher itself won't cooperate. In this match, Orton's hangman DDT off the stretcher looks terrific, while bashing your opponent's head on the padded "bed" (and them selling it) is noticeably silly. Orton's Legacy bros eventually show up to prevent Triple H from pushing the stretcher passed the finish line and Orton ends up getting the victory by clocking Triple H with a piece of the floor rather than hitting his RKO, which would've been more definitive. Then, for no real reason, Triple H still reigns supreme at the end of the show by taking out all three guys with sledgehammer shots. This felt like a great opportunity for Triple H to give Orton a semi-clean win, but for whatever reason, we don't get that and the never-ending HHH/Orton rivalry continued on (though, to be fair, Triple H did take a step away from the WWE Title scene as he and MIchaels re-formed DX to take on The Legacy). This wasn't terrible and I probably liked it more than I would've the huge, bloated, overly long match that I was expecting, but it definitely didn't feel anything like the more gruesome and violent 3 Stages of Hell matches that came before it and definitely doesn't touch close to "must see" match territory. (3/5)

With an overall Kwang Score of 2.81-out-of-5, The Bash 2009 might not seem like a show worth seeking out, but there are at least two truly great matches in Mysterio/Jericho and Punk/Hardy on this show and the Tag Titles and Women's Championship aren't too bad either. What drags this show down, even more than the unremarkable Ziggler/Khali match or the underwhelming opener, is the lackluster main event, a 3 Stages of Hell Match that isn't bad but certainly doesn't live up to the standards of previous installments and feels very "PG" by comparison. 

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

WWE In Your House #2: The Lumberjacks

WWE In Your House #2: The Lumberjacks

Nashville, Tennessee - July 1995

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, the WWE World Champion was Diesel, the Intercontinental Champion was Jeff Jarrett, and the WWE Tag Team Champions were Yokozuna and Owen Hart. Alundra Blayze was the reigning Women's Champion but did not compete on the show.

In Your House #2 begins with a country western music video hyping tonight's show and its pretty good, almost worthy of an extra point but not quite as it needed at least one additional verse.

Opening things up, The 1-2-3 Kid takes on The Roadie. The Kid is not just the better worker, he's the only competent one in the ring for this as the future Road Dogg botches the first two spots. This is almost a 100% carry job by Waltman as he not only delivers the best offense, but somehow makes the Roadie look like a legitimate competitor when, up till this point, he was mostly just a manager if I'm not mistaken. Throughout the match there are cutaways to Jeff Jarrett backstage, cementing the irrelevancy of this match even as the Kid gets his fair share of cheers. Waltman's spinning heel kick and frogsplash are things of beauty and either could've finished the bout convincingly. Unfortunately, the match continues and The Roadie nearly paralyzes the Kid with a dangerous and poorly performed piledriver off the 2nd rope. It is an ugly, ugly ending. Points awarded for The Kid's miraculous work. (1.5/5)

After the match, The Roadie checks the mic for Jarrett's performance later on. We then cut to the heel lockerroom where Ted Dibiase, Tatanka, Kama, and Sid get on the mic to hype Sid's match against Diesel. 

King Mabel and Sir Mo take on Razor Ramon and Savio Vega next. This was the next phase in King Mabel's big push towards SummerSlam (where he'd face Diesel for the title) so he eventually gets the win after an unremarkable match. Ramon is charismatic enough to keep the crowd engaged and Mabel, while not the funnest worker to watch, does hit his big power moves with impact. Unfortunately, Vega and Sir Mo are basically dead weight, carried by Scott Hall's connection with the crowd and Mabel's undeniable presence. (1.5/5)

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Henry O. Godwinn follows. Godwinn was a heel at this point, which I forgot about. Godwinn is a wrestler that I've had to re-evaluate as I've seen more of his output as I used to think he was absolute dog shit but now recognize as a fairly decent hand who got stuck with terrible gimmicks. That's not to say he has some stellar resume of overlooked classics, but a match like this isn't nearly as bad as it might seem at first glance. Obviously it helps that he's in the ring with Bigelow, another big man who knew how to work and was over with the crowd, but its not like this is a carry job. Both guys brought the physicality and a surprising number of actual wrestling moves, including a nice DDT out of the Bammer at one point. This was the best match on the show up to this point, which isn't saying much. (2/5)

Shawn Michaels challenged Jeff Jarrett for the Intercontinental Championship in the next contest. Like his match at WrestleMania XI, this match is basically Shawn doing everything humanly possible to keep the spotlight on himself and pop the live crowd with incredible bumps and comebacks. I'm not sure why it doesn't click with me as the match is intense and both guys have a ton of energy and get plenty of time, but there's just something I can't quite put my finger on that makes the whole match seem disingenuous. Maybe its that I just don't buy Shawn as a babyface? Or that the match seems to go just a touch too long (its nearly 20 minutes but there's an extra minute or two at least of pre- and post-match fluff)? Whatever it is, I'm just not as high on this match as others, especially those who consider this to be a Top 10 Michaels match. A very, very good match but not one I would consider "must see." (3.5/5)

The WWE Tag Team Champions, Yokozuna and Owen Hart, take on The Allied Powers next. Bulldog and Owen start things off and, unsurprisingly, the action is very good as they had terrific chemistry. Yoko comes in and dominates Bulldog, though he is moving much slower than he was a year earlier. The former WWE Champ applies a nerve hold, slowing the match down to a halt only a few minutes in. Bulldog fights out but the heels cut the ring in half. Owen shines brightly in this match, executing so well with both his offense and his bumping. Luger gets the hot tag and wails on Yoko, eventually knocking him to the mat by press slamming Owen onto him. The Allied Powers hit a double clothesline on Yoko but only get 2 and a half as the match turns into bedlam. Yoko goes for a splash in the corner but Bulldog dodges it and the faces hit a double back suplex for a huge pop. Owen comes off the top, though, to break up the pin and Yoko hits a legdrop to retain. This was a good match for what it was and it protected Yoko tremendously to be paired with Owen. (3/5)

Main event time - Diesel vs Sid in a Lumberjack match. In the build to this match, Shawn Michaels had been turned babyface and had been powerbombed by Sid, with Diesel making the save Then, in May, Diesel nearly defeated Sid with a Jacknife but that match devolved into chaos as the Million Dollar Corporation and Bam Bam Bigelow got involved. Basically, the Diesel/Sid feud had run for months and months by this point and involved so many other wrestlers that they opted to end it with a full-on lumberjack match. The lumberjacks are mostly jobbers and forgettable gimmicks like Well Dunn and Mantaur, but Shawn Michaels, Razor Ramon, and Bam Bam Bigelow are also on hand to make this feel like a bigger deal. Sid and Diesel trade shots early with Sid getting sent to the outside and then tossed back into the ring by the babyfaces. Diesel hits an impressive bodyslam on Sid, forcing Sid to retreat into the arms of his fellow heels. As Sid gets back in the ring, he pulls Nash out and Diesel gets stomped on by the heels and, admittedly, it is quite a visual to see this many combatants all brawling on the outside of the ring for a minute, something very akin to the better pull-aparts we've seen over the years. Sid takes over on offense, mostly just pummeling the champ and hitting him with kicks to the gut. We get a quick glimpse of Erik Watts, who I totally forgot was in the WWE. Diesel regains control, dropping a couple of elbows before taking out a whole bunch of heels on the outside with a splash. Diesel comes back into the ring and hits his big leg drop on the 2nd rope before dropping Sid into the corner with a Snake Eyes. Diesel attempts to clothesline Sid over the top but gets pulled to the outside by the Men on a Mission. All hell breaks loose as the heels team up on Diesel and Mabel bodyslams Diesel onto the arena floor and then follows it up with a leg drop. Smart booking there as Mabel would challenge Diesel for the title at SummerSlam. They dump Diesel back into the ring and Sid retakes control but barely does any offense aside from a big boot off the ropes for 2. The crowd starts rallying as Sid goes for and hits the powerbomb but unwisely doesn't go for he immediate cover. What an idiot. He makes a lazy cover and only gets 2 having wasted so much time. Ugh. Sid goes for another powerbomb by Diesel predictably back body drops him and both men are down. Sid goes to the outside and inexplicably goes after the babyfaces even though he is hugely outnumbered. Shawn clocks him from behind with an axehandle off the top and Sid is sent back into the ring for the jackknife only for various lumberjacks to prevent it from occurring. Instead, Diesel ends up getting the W with a big boot. Jeez. What a sloppy way to end this match that makes pretty much everyone involved looked weaker. (1.5/5)

With a Kwang Score of 2.17-out-of-5, this isn't the worst show I've reviewed and it actually does have at least two good-to-great matches in the Intercontinental and Tag Team Championship bouts, but the opener is sloppy, Bigelow/Godwinn is not as good as it could've been, and the main event is about as bad as one would expect. 

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver

WWE SummerSlam 95'

WWE SummerSlam 95'

Pittsburgh, PA - August 1995

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, the WWE Champion was Diesel, the Intercontinental Champion was Shawn Michaels, the WWE Tag Team Champions were Yokozuna and Owen Hart, and the Women's Champion was Alundra Blayze.

SummerSlam 95' kicks off with a strong opener - The 1-2-3 Kid vs. Hakushi. Waltman had had a series of strong matches since joining the WWE in 93' and this is another one that deserves mention as Hakushi is equally game to dazzle the crowd. Highlights included an insane handspring dive onto the arena floor from Hakushi and a cool frog splash out of the Kid. I would've preferred a stronger finish rather than the counter-into-a-side slam that ends up giving Hakushi the win, but this was still an above average bout. (3/5)

Unfortunately, the show comes to a bit of a dead halt as Hunter Hearst Helmsley takes on Bob "Spark Plugg" Holly. The Bob Holly name never really added up to me as, if I remember correctly, he was originally just called "Sparky Plugg" (which would explain why there are two gs in Plugg), but then just went by his real name anyway. Regardless of all the name changes, he was just not over at all and the future Triple H wasn't over either. The crowd is dead for this because of that reason even though Helmsley and Holly try their best. There's just no chemistry between them and Helmsley, at this point in his career, wasn't a captivating in-ring performer and needed more interesting, more physical workers to pinball off of (as he'd eventually find in not only Foley but also Henry Godwinn in their underrated series). (1/5)

The Smoking Gunns took on The Blu Brothers in another stinker on this show. I'm guessing the idea here was to rebuild the Gunns after dropping the tag titles against Yoko and Owen at WrestleMania, but the Blu Brothers (Harris Twins) are boring workers and the Gunns weren't very entertaining either. The best thing that can be said about this dull match was that it only went 5 minutes or so but this really had no place being on a pay-per-view card, especially as the next couple bouts went quite long. (0.5/5)

The next match is one of the more memorable feuds from this era of WWE history - Barry Horowitz vs. Skip (with Sunny at his side). The build to this match was all about Barry Horowitz shocking the world by defeating Skip and then "going the distance" in a 10-minute time limit rematch. As Skip was never going to be a major heel, its not like losing to Horowitz was going to crush his credibility, though, at the same time, it never makes much sense to introduce a character just so he can lose to a jobber. Unfortunately, the WWE had also basically just run a similar storyline with the 1-2-3 Kid (who famously upset Razor Ramon on an episode of Raw) and was in desperate need of credible midcard heels who could actually get a reaction from the crowd - something Helmsley couldn't do yet - and Candido and Sunny could (plus, with Hakushi essentially turning babyface in this match and Jeff Jarrett leaving the company a month prior, the WWE's heel ranks were thinning rapidly). Horowitz is also just not that interesting of a worker while Skip and Sunny were a good act that could've been an interesting challenge for Michaels rather than just relegated to the lower midcard. Anyway, the match itself isn't too bad, but it goes a bit long to me. The crowd is into it, though, so I won't grade it too harshly. I'm not sure why this needed to go longer than 10 minutes when you don't even get a clean finish. (2.5/5)

The WWE Women's Championship is on the line next with Alundra Blayze defending the title against Bertha Faye. If the Barry Horowitz/Skip storyline is remembered as "feel good," this would be the exact opposite as Blayze puts over Bertha Faye, aka Rhonda Singh, aka the Monster Ripper, who was treated like a total joke rather than as the vicious monster she once was. Granted, Singh had let herself go by this time in her career and the WWE was never going to let her do the type of wrestling she had done in Puerto Rico and Japan, but if you're going to bring in someone who specializes in the viciousness that Singh was capable of, you really need to go all the way with it. Instead, Faye and Harvey Wippelman are a mean-spirited, unfunny comedy act and Blayze is essentially squashed in under 5 minutes. Another disappointing contest and its amazing that they got less time than the Gunns/Blu Brothers match or the Helmsley/Holly match, neither of which even had a storyline going into them as far as I could tell. (1/5)

The Undertaker vs. Kama in a Casket Match is next. The story coming into this match is that Kama had stolen the urn and melted it down into a gold chain that he wore around his neck and then, subsequently, attacked one of the Undertaker's fans (known as the Creatures of the Night). I'm not sure why this match goes close to 20 minutes, but the fact that it does makes this match very, very strange, almost like the Undertaker wanted to prove that he could put on a lengthier match with more back-and-forth action or wanted to (admirably) prove he could get Kama over as a legit monster. Unfortunately, Kama's booking prior to this really hurt that story from being told no matter how dominant he looks at times here. In the months before this match took place, instead of building up Kama with decisive victories over top talent, he was crushing jobbers but losing tag team matches and, at the King of the Ring, went to a time limit draw with Shawn Michaels when a victory would've been a tremendous boon. It also didn't help that, by this point, the Million Dollar Corporation no longer resembled anything close to a major threat (despite them basically dominating the top heel position for over a year, headlining both SummerSlam 94' and WrestleMania XI), giving this match a stale vibe despite it being surprisingly good. The crowd is very much into this, at least for most of it, and the Undertaker does bump and sell for his real-life buddy even if the finish itself is never really in question. There are some cool visual moments too, including a spot where both men end up in the casket and Kama escapes only to get dragged back in by the Deadman. The Undertaker also busts out a chokeslam and manages to get Kama up for the Tombstone, both impressive feats of strength. Still, this match could've used 2-3 less hope spot/cut-off moments as going 15+ minutes didn't play to either guy's strengths. (2.5/5)

If you didn't get enough of the Lawler/Bret Hart feud in 93', the WWE basically re-ran it in 1995 only with Lawler's evil dentist, Isaac Yankem DDS, in place of Lawler himself (or Doink depending on how you look at it). Like so much of what Bret and Taker had to endure, the failure of this match has a ton more do with the nauseating gimmicks and lame storyline than it does with what we actually get in the ring. Bret doesn't get a great match out of Yankem like he did with Nash - but its also hard to discount the effect of the lame evil dentist gimmick on the overall presentation. Bret works hard and while Glen Jacobs would have much greater success as Kane in the years that followed, its not like he's woefully terrible here. In fact, he's kinda just like Kane always is - a bit too bland for my liking. I'm not sure where Vince thought he could go with an evil dentist character but Yankem somehow made it another 9+ months with this act despite how paper thin and stupid it was. Lawler gets involved and the match eventually gets thrown out because Vince thought it was worth protecting Yankem even though Bret Hart was a multi-time former WWE Champion. Like the match that precedes it, this one goes a bit too long for me. (2.5/5)

If there's any match on this show that has a reputation for being worth checking out, it is definitely the next one up - Shawn Michaels defending against Razor Ramon for the Intercontinental Championship in a sequel to their WrestleMania X classic. There are many who believe this is the superior ladder match compared to their first, though the original will always have that distinction of being the company's "first" (even if it wasn't) kinda like how the second TLC match is technically better than the first with bigger spots and more twists and turns but the first is the one that gets name-checked more. The key difference in this match, aside from Michaels coming in as champion, is that while Ramon wasn't technically a heel, Vince was clearly positioning Michaels as the company's next top babyface, going ga-ga over him on commentary so much that even before Michaels was given that top spot one could predict a bit of a backlash (which reached its apex at the Survivor Series 96' show). Like he worked against Jarrett at the previous month's In Your House show, Michaels takes a huge and dangerous bump over the post and onto the floor, the kind of thing that you just did not see happening in the WWE or anywhere (and still don't see too often) and proceeds to pinball for Razor throughout. Unlike that match, though, it feels a bit more earned here because of the size difference. Speaking of Razor, his subtle heel work is brilliant here and, as other reviewers have noted, I like how there are multiple nods to the more famous spots from their first ladder match sprinkled throughout the match (including Shawn missing the big splash from the top of the ladder that he hit at Mania). Ramon works on Shawn's knee every chance he gets so the audience is naturally inclined to start rooting for Shawn even more as the underdog (even if his pre-match prancing and preening is remarkably too arrogant and cocky for a babyface in hindsight). A second ladder gets brought into the match, but they really don't do much with this new element, or at least nothing like what future wrestlers would do when multiple ladders started appearing. The first of two "botches" happens when Shawn delivers a poorly-executed superkick on Hall as he climbed the ladder. One would imagine this was supposed to be a big spot but ended up lacking the right "oomph" because, well, its probably damn near impossible to hit a great-looking Sweet Chin Music when you're trying to also balance on a ladder. Moments later, Razor ends up spilled on the outside and Shawn tries to retrieve the title but slips. Whoops. He climbs back up and gets the W around the 25-minute mark. Overall, a very, very good match, one of Hall's best performances, but not quite at the transcendent level that some fans claim it to be due to the predictable finish (which is telegraphed throughout the match by Vince's commentary and Razor working to get booed so that Michaels' victory is more crowd-pleasing). (4/5)

Main event time - Diesel defending the WWE Championship against Mabel. Coming after a match like Shawn/Razor, one has to consider that Vince was already planting the seeds for Diesel to get turned-on (not "turned on") by the fans as this match is just as boring as one would imagine. Kudos to Kevin Nash for working as hard as he could to give some excitement to this match by hitting a plancha early on, but Mabel's offense is weak and Diesel couldn't even get him up for what should've been a big bodyslam spot. Luger does a run-in and there's teasing of a Luger/Diesel issue, but Lex ends up helping Diesel and the match ends with a shoulder block. Bad in multiple ways. This would end up being Luger's last appearance in the WWE. I understand that Luger flopped in 94', but in 95', a heel turn could've made him relevant in a way tagging with Davey Boy clearly couldn't and wouldn't. In the end, Bulldog got that spot and while he was a better technician than Luger, he wasn't as big a name. (1/5)

With a Kwang Score of 2.0-out-of-5, SummerSlam 95' is only barely saved from being one of the worst WWE pay-per-views ever by a very strong ladder match and the magic of Bret Hart and The Undertaker, who take should-be guaranteed stinkers and make them quite watchable. Unfortunately, these matches also run at least 4-5 minutes longer than they should - as does the Horowitz/Skip match. Throughout the show, the crowd is undeniably hot, enough to explain why Vince was booking this style of show with ludicrous, one-dimensional characters that could only appeal to children. 

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver

WWE Survivor Series 94'

WWE Survivor Series 94'

San Antonio, TX - November 1994

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, Bret Hart was the WWE Champion, the Intercontinental Champion was Razor Ramon, and Diesel and Shawn Michaels were the WWE World Tag Team Champions. Bull Nakano was the WWE Women's Champion, having defeated Alundra Blayze just a few days before at an event in Japan. 

Survivor Series 94' kicks off with The Bad Guys (Razor Ramon, The 1-2-3 Kid, The British Bulldog, and the Headshrinkers) taking on The Teamsters (Diesel, Shawn Michaels, Jeff Jarrett, Jim Neidhart and Owen Hart). This match could've and should've been great, but because its used primarily - maybe even exclusively - to build up Diesel as the next WWF Champion and further his storyline with Shawn Michaels (the two would split soon after this and face eachother at WrestleMania XI), most of the talent in this match, namely the 1-2-3 Kid, Owen Hart, Jarrett, and a very over Bulldog, are underutlized. There's also some really silly shenanigans going on with the Headshrinkers beyond the fact that The Barbarian had been renamed Sione (his actual name) and was being treated like an entirely new wrestler despite maybe being on TV regularly from roughly 1988 through 1992 and then, in WCW, was also prominently featured under this name. No, the Headshrinkers were having issues with their boots that caused them to not be able to perform to their best ability. After Diesel eliminates nearly the entire babyface side single-handedly, Razor Ramon is left to fend for himself but an errant superkick causes dissension among the heels that leads to them walking out on the match. This match could've furthered some other interesting storylines, but this is all about Diesel and Michaels and that's a bit of a shame considering how much heat the Owen/Bulldog segment got and that guys like The Kid and Jarrett arguably deserved to be highlighted at this point in their WWE runs. (1.5/5)

Next up - Jerry "The King" Lawler and his team of wrestling little people vs. Doink and his team of little people in clown gear. This was supposed to be a comedy match but there was nothing funny about and, even in the 90s, when I would've been 10, I doubt I would've found much enjoyment in this sort of thing. A straight-up Jerry Lawler/Doink match would've been much, much better as both guys could actually work and then they could've utilized Doink's sidekick Dink in an interesting way. Instead, this was a "one note match" and that one note was sour. And it somehow went 16 minutes. I guess the little bit of Doink action keeps it from being a zero, but this was just not good. (0.5/5)

The WWE World Champion Bret Hart defends against Bob Backlund in a "Throw In The Towel" match next with British Bulldog serving as Bret's second and Owen Hart as Backlund's. This, like the Bret/Owen match from SummerSlam a few months prior, is a weird one to review and somewhat "notorious" in certain circles. Older fans tend to really dig this one, especially if they were old enough to understand the Backlund character and maybe even had seen him work in the late 70s and 80s. Fans like myself, who were just 10 years when this storyline happened, didn't have much knowledge of Backlund and mostly just felt like he was an old doofus. Then there's the issue that Backlund feels oddly "thrown in" to the ongoing Hart drama and the fact that this match ends up being almost the last chapter of their feud (though Bret and Owen would wrestle in a No Holds Barred match on RAW in March 95', one would think Bret would've wanted vengeance much sooner against Owen). Fans of technical wrestling, counters, and a grinding pace will enjoy this match, but at 30+ minutes and with a very, very, very long closing angle (it feels like Bret is locked in the chickenwing as Owen pleads for his parents to throw in the title for a good 10 minutes), its understandable why modern fans may not dig this nearly as much. If the SummerSlam cage match is a "must see once" type match, this is something slightly underneath it (and Dave Meltzer, in his original review, was even less glowing, giving this match just 2 stars). The live crowd is into this, no doubt, but that's mostly because of how over Bret is and how much Owen was hated. Ultimately, Backlund was a transitional champion anyway, which also rubbed me the wrong way as a kid. There are some excellent sequences in here, including the nasty bump Bulldog takes into the steps that incapacitates him, but I wouldn't consider this "Must See" even if that would be blasphemy to some longtime fans. (3.5/5)

The Million Dollar Team of Tatanka, King Kong Bundy, Bam Bam Bigelow, and The Heavenly Bodies took on Lex Luger, Mabel, Adam Bomb, and The Smoking Gunns next. Somewhere in here there was a good match to be had, but this was just tedious. Part of the problem is that they kicked things off with Luger and Tatanka, arguably the two guys that the fans wanted to see square off most, which caused the match to peak right out of the gate. Mabel got some shine here but was still a year away from his brief monster push, eliminating one of the Heavenly Bodies before getting counted out. Bigelow eliminated Adam Bomb, a guy whose gimmick I always thought was cool but was destined to lifetime midcarderdom (at least before his own brief monster push in WCW in 2000 or so?). Speaking of Bigelow, its unclear if he was already pencilled-in to main event WrestleMania but looking back, if he was, one would've thought Vince would've let him dominate this match even more. The heels went up 3-2 and then eventually 3-1 with Lex Luger as the sole survivor for his team. Its really hard to think of someone who fell off from being a SummerSlam and WrestleMania main eventer to a complete nobody more than Luger from 94' to 95'. Here, he doesn't even get the big hero victory that one might think he'd get, taking the L to Bundy. Maybe Bundy was the original choice to face Lawrence Taylor and Vince realized that match would be a disaster? Who knows. This wasn't good. (1/5)

Main event time - The Undertaker vs. Yokozuna in a Casket Match with special guest ringside enforcer Chuck Norris. Taker and Yoko's match at the Royal Rumble some 10 months earlier is widely regarded as a horrendous affair, but I gave it an "average" rating of 2.5-out-of-5 stars because I found it to be the "funnest 15 minutes on the show," wacky and silly and entertaining on a show that featured such hum-drum matches as Tatanka/Bigelow and Ramon/IRS. Unfortunately, Chuck Norris shows about as much emotion and interest in the proceedings as Robocop did at that one WCW pay-per-view. The Undertaker and Yokozuna had decent chemistry, but Yokozuna was no longer the monster heel he'd been a year earlier having now been beaten by Bret Hart. To be fair, the WWE kept Yoko strong in the months, rarely having him lose and usually by DQ or count-out, but the aura was mostly gone and never came back. The Deadman, meanwhile, was as popular as ever after taking several months off earlier in the year. Norris's eventual involvement is a real letdown but I'll give some credit to Yoko and Taker as they go much longer than they arguably had any reason to and attempted some big spots. This isn't a total disaster or anything but its not good and I'm not surprised it would be quite awhile before either guy was back to wrestling in the main event. (1.5/5)

With a Kwang Score of 1.6-out-of-5, Survivor Series 94' is difficult to recommend. The best match on the card is Backlund/Hart, but its also a divisive match, one that many fans and reviewers have called dull and boring and overly long in the past. Bret and Backlund's technical prowess - especially compared to the rest of the card - stands out as unique but doesn't quite measure up to "must see" level, preventing this show from really even being in High Risk Maneuver. 

FINAL RATING - DUDleyville

WWE WrestleMania XI

WWE WrestleMania XI

Hartford, CT - April 1995

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Diesel was the WWE Champion coming into the show, Jeff Jarrett was the Intercontinental Champion, and the Smoking Gunns were the WWE Tag Team Champions. Bull Nakano was the Women's Champion but did not appear on the show.

Some have called WrestleMania XI the worst Mania ever and a quick look at the card is really all you need to see to understand why. Of course, WrestleMania IX has a similar reputation but, while that show didn't feature a single "must see" match, there were some entertaining angles that played out on the show and some good performances out of Bret Hart, Mr. Perfect, and Doink (Matt Borne), as well as a Headshrinkers/Steiner Brothers that, if you squint, really does resemble the type of hard-hitting action these teams delivered in the NWA/WCW years prior. Of course, WrestleMania IX also features one of Hulk Hogan's most notorious and hated moments of spotlight-hogging and an abysmal Giant Gonzalez/Undertaker match. 

WrestleMania XI opens with Lex Luger and The British Bulldog taking on The Blu Brothers (aka the Harris Twins with long hair). The purpose of this match was to kickstart the show with a pair of beloved babyfaces wrestling a standard tag match against a pair of unlikable heels...but this just feels like a match you'd see on an average episode of Raw from around this time and is definitely a waste of star power. This match goes just under 7 minutes but feels longer because its tedious. The most notable moment of the match might be how little is made of Luger hitting one of the Blu Brothers with his flying forearm, which, a year or so prior, was treated like a gunshot finisher and was the basis of a major storyline. The fact that Luger doesn't get the pin either really makes it clear how little Vince saw in him at this point. How could anyone ever blame for Lex for leaving the company when he had gone from a SummerSlam and WrestleMania main eventer to jerking the curtain in a meaningless tag match? (1.5/5)

Next up - Jeff Jarrett vs. Razor Ramon for Jarrett's Intercontinental Championship. After years of watching wrestling and offering critiques of thousands of matches, I'm just gonna say it: Scott Hall's overness and ability was about 90% charisma and 10% in-ring talent. The guy was undeniably cool and, paired against the right opponent, could put on a good match...but paired against an average worker or even a slightly-above average worker like Jeff Jarrett, well, more often than not you get a dull, slow contest. This is that. People would likely call this "good for 95'," but look over at some of the matches WCW was offering around this time or ECW and this pales in comparison to what guys like Austin, Johnny B. Badd, Pillman, and Regal were doing around that same time (let alone what Flair and Savage were offering in the main event). Its not that they don't work hard, its more that nothing they do seems fresh or even truly heated. Is it possible that Ramon was sour that he wasn't going over for the belt? Is it that Jarrett's style never really did click in the WWE? Whatever the case, the result is the same: a forgettable, average match with glimmers of goodness that are almost immediately forgotten with the deflating finish. (2.5/5)

We head backstage next for a continuation of the "Where's Pamela Anderson?" story that runs through the whole evening. At the time, Anderson was the super duper popular star of Baywatch and had not yet had her sex tape stolen and distributed. Jenny McCarthy is also there but is basically playing second fiddle to Anderson, which was maybe a recurring theme of her career in the 90s? Jonathan Taylor Thomas is also there, Nick Turturro is serving as a backstage interview...really, this whole scene is about as dated as any WrestleMania ever and that includes the one where Snooki wrestled.

Back in the ring, The Undertaker takes on King Kong Bundy. The storyline going into this match is just a continuation of the Deadman's feud with the Million Dollar Man, who had stolen the urn. As expected, this match is a plodding, boring affair and doesn't last long. It would be a few more years before the Undertaker would start getting paired up with guys like Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart and Mick Foley who could actually work good 10+ minute matches with him. During the match, Undertaker regains the urn and then unwisely gives to Paul Bearer (who gets it stolen from him by Kama, who gets on the mic and says he's going to melt it down into a chain, which is what he'd do to build up his own forgettable, meaningless match with Undertaker at SummerSlam if I'm not mistaken). Undertaker doesn't hit the Tombstone because Bundy was too big so he wins with a clothesline in under 7 minutes. The Undertaker has had quite a few duds in his WrestleMania career but this is rightfully considered maybe the worst of them all. (0.5/5)

The next match was built up around Owen Hart having a "mystery tag team partner." I'm not sure if there was hype that it would be Jim Neidhart or somebody else, but in hindsight, it makes 100% sense that Yokozuna would end up getting that spot as he was clearly on his way down the card and definitely not in peak physical shape but still credible enough to be used prominently in a limited role. Plus, with Owen and Cornette as mouthpieces, Yoko would be and was really protected. Their opponents are the WWF World Tag Team Champions, the Smoking Gunns, who would somewhat surprisingly hang on in the company as a team for years and years to come, all the way into 1996. Granted, that may not seem like a long time, but considering they debuted in 93' and how one-dimensional the gimmick was, its impressive they made it 3+ years (while teams like the Road Warriors and Nasty Boys would rarely stick around in one company for that long). Anyway, not much to say about this match beyond that it's all about building up Yokozuna as a monster who, with Owen and Cornette at his side, is now basically unstoppable in the tag division. Owen is obviously the most impressive in-ring worker in this match and looks like he's having fun in there with Yoko as his partner. In the time since Owen's tragic death, there's always been lots of talk about how he "deserved better" or should have been a World Champion due to his talent, but part of his talent was that he was also irreplaceable as the glue that could hold together just about any match and be slotted in to make others look good. Here he has clearly been positioned to do the heavy lifting and while that may not have come with the glamour (or paycheck) of being a serious top singles heel, its important to recognize how integral he was on this roster in the mid-90s and, aside from his brother and Shawn Michaels, might have been a company MVP. A passable match but nothing to go out of your way to see. (1.5/5)

Speaking of Bret Hart, it's time for his match against Bob Backlund, an "I Quit" Match no less. Supposedly this was the first of its kind in the WWE, though there have been multiple "I Quit" matches in the NWA before this and most of them were far more brutal and violent than this one - which is more like a submission match. In his book, Bret called this one of the worst matches of his career and considering he's an expert on he subject, he's probably right. That being said, I'd ease up on myself if I were him. Was this as good as their match at Survivor Series? No...but compared to some of the "action" that the WWE was putting on at this time, this was still decent. Roddy Piper is annoying and unnecessary as the referee (I'm not sure what role Piper could've and should've played on this show because he doesn't fit in anywhere, but this wasn't it), but the actual layout of the match and some of the sequences are good if a bit pedestrian. The match doesn't overstay its welcome either, which would've made it way worse. (2.5/5)

The WWE Champion Diesel defends the title against Shawn Michaels next. This match had a months-long build based on Diesel and Shawn's partnership over much of 94' and then Michaels getting jealous of the big man once he became champion in November/December of that year. Michaels had taken on Sid as his new bodyguard and their on-again/off-again relationship would come to a head years later at Survivor Series 96'. While this isn't as good as the match they'd have roughly a year later at In Your House: Good Friends, Better Enemies, it is still the clear match of the night by a wide margin and an excellent showcase match for Michaels, who bumps like a pinball for Diesel throughout the contest. It has been written and said by Bret and others that Shawn "goes into business for himself" a little here by trying to upstage Nash and make the match all about himself but its hard to blame or shame Michaels for what was clearly his biggest opportunity to put himself into the main event. While Michaels had fought for the WWE Championship before - at Survivor Series 92' - he had spent the next few years in the Intercontinental Title scene while guys like Bob Backlund, Jerry Lawler, and Yokozuna, who Shawn rightfully believed he could outwork at that time, were booked at a level above him. Here, Michaels does everything he can to make this the Match of the Night and he succeeds to the point that, by the end, even some of the crowd is clearly behind him (though I wonder if that's also because there are just some outwardly "heel" fans that can heard throughout the show, including in the main event). I wouldn't call this a "must see" match, but its pretty close. (3.5/5)

Main event time - Lawrence Taylor vs. Bam Bam Bigelow in a match that resembles a lumberjack bout due to the involvement of various NFL stars and Ted Dibiase's Million Dollar Corporation. Pat Patterson is the referee, which makes total sense considering LT's lack of experience. Speaking of LT, he starts the match by clotheslining Bigelow out of the ring and follows it up with a decent bulldog and then a series of stiff forearms and a hiptoss. After the two sides nearly come to blows on the outside, Bigelow takes control in the ring. LT is a surprisingly decent seller, though this match comes to a grinding halt once Bigelow applies a boston crab and then a leglock. I'm guessing they felt like having a main event run under 10 minutes would've been disappointing, but in this era, you couldn't stretch things with table spots and multiple run-ins like they would today. LT eventually hits a big back suplex but Bigelow cuts him off again with a double axehandle and then some headbutts and a leg drop. Bigelow goes to the top rope and lands his signature twisting splash but lands incorrectly on his knee, preventing him from making the cover. Back up to their feet they go and LT hits a miserable looking half-piledriver-type-move for 2. Bigelow hits a spinning heel kick and is essentially burying his own offense here as he can't put away LT despite connecting with some of his best offense, including a headbutt off the top rope. After hitting the headbutt, Bigelow gets 2 and there's an audible boo from the kickout as I'm guessing there were at least a few fans who thought this main event was an embarassment. LT hits a series of big forearms and finishes Bigelow off with one from the second rope to get the W. This match started out alright but then devolved and made Bigelow look too weak by the end. Considering the legal trouble that Taylor would find himself in over the next few years (even up to the morning that I'm writing this review as LT was just nabbed for not registering as a sex offender), this main event has not aged well. (1.5/5)

There have been worse WWE pay-per-views over the years, but is there any worse WrestleMania? I'm not sure there is (though the first two Manias aren't exactly full of great matches). With a low Kwang Score of 1.92-out-of-5, WrestleMania XI is the lowest rated WrestleMania I've reviewed and while WrestleMania XX scored a lousy 1.96, at least that show offered a strong main event, a "train wreck" moments in the Brock Lesnar/Goldberg match, and felt star-studded with Foley, The Rock, Jericho, and Flair all around, plus a good atmosphere in Madison Square Garden. The WWE's roster at this point was paper thin, this show taking place in Hartford makes it feel lesser than any other Mania I can recall, and while Shawn/Diesel is a strong title match, nothing else on this card is remotely "must see." 

FINAL RATING - DUDleyville

WWE In Your House #10: Mind Games

WWE In Your House #10: Mind Games

Philadelphia, PA - September 1996

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into the show, the WWE Champion was Shawn Michaels, the Intercontinental Champion was vacant (due to Ahmed Johnson being injured mid-reign), and the WWE Tag Team Champions were The Smoking Gunns.

September 96' was an interesting time in the WWE, mostly because it was a much more interesting time in WCW. By this point, the New World Order angle was the hottest thing in all of pro-wrestling (at least in the US) and so McMahon was forced to get a bit more creative and start shifting his show into more of an "adult" space. The change to "The Attitude Era" didn't happen overnight, but as early as this show, things were changing in noticeable ways...

For example, during our opening contest, Savio Vega vs. Justin "Hawk" Bradshaw in a Caribbean Strap Match, we get the surprise appearance of ECW's The Sandman (who spits beer in Vega's face) and the acknowledgement of their presence by Vince as an "outlaw local promotion." There had been ECW chants during WWE shows in Philadelphia before, but to acknowledge the company on a WWE PPV was definitely something new. It also seemingly pissed off Bradshaw, who held a grudge against the company for years to come. As for the match...it's not as good as the Austin/Vega one from a few months earlier, and at 7 minutes, it doesn't really tell a full story, but the action we do get is hard-hitting and physical, more violent than most anything the WWE had produced over the previous 9 months (save for Mankind's outings). Unfortunately, the finish is a repeat of the one from Vega/Austin, which is just lazy booking/producing. (2/5)

In the back, the backs of "Diesel" and "Razor Ramon" are shown beating up Savio Vega from afar. This was part of the awful angle where Jim Ross brought back a fake "Diesel" and a fake "Razor Ramon" so that Vince could prove a point about how he had created those characters and that Nash and Hall were just two lucky "actors" playing those roles. It might be the dumbest angle in WWE history, really, as it backfired 100% and just made WWE look even lamer. 

Back to the ring we go for Jim Cornette vs. Jose Lothario. This is barely a match as Lothario just whips his ass in under a minute. There wasn't much of a story to this match beyond Cornette's stable of heels feuding with Shawn Michaels and Lothario being Shawn's mentor (though, as we'd see at Survivor Series 96', at the time, I don't think Shawn necessarily wanted an old man walking down the aisle with him). A half-point for this not going a second too long. (0.5/5)

Brian Pillman makes his way down the aisle, welcomes Owen Hart, and then "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, all three piling on and verbally destroying Bret Hart. Austin had been having good segments before this on TV and PPV, but this is one of the more memorable ones - and deservedly so. He spews his famous line about "adding an S in front of Hitman" during this promo and once again challenges Bret. This would lead to their Survivor Series classic. (+1)

In a somewhat interesting rarity, especially for this era, we get a heel/heel match as The Smoking Gunns (with Sunny) defend their WWE Tag Team Championships against Owen Hart and the British Bulldog. Bulldog and Owen actually get a bit of a face response, mostly because I think the Philly crowd respected their talent and would never have gotten behind a cartoonish gimmick team like the Gunns. On commentary, Mr. Perfect tries to hype this as being a great technical wrestling contest and, to be sure, there is far more actual wrestling in this one match than in the previous two combined. Still, it's just an average match with maybe a slightly above-average finish and at least one good nearfall towards the end. The right team won as Hart and Bulldog were much more reliable hands and added credibility to the titles. Sunny basically turns on her team after they lose, but if I recall correctly, this doesn't lead to a Bart Gunn/Billy Gunn feud like one would suspect. I think they actually disappeared from the scene instead, with Billy showing up as Rock-a-Billy a few months later. (2.5/5)

Jerry "The King" Lawler made his way down the aisle, hurling insults at his opponent, the debuting Mark Henry. Vince made it clear that Henry was untrained as a wrestler, but that if he got his hands on Lawler, he could use his strength to rip the King apart. It came off as him apologizing for what he knew would be a very one-note match, though, to his credit, Lawler, works hard to make Henry look good, gamely getting himself tossed into a guardrail with a sickening thud. Its a tremendous bump. Henry won with a backbreaker submission after 5 minutes. This was better than I thought it would be, but still not something worth checking out really. After the match, the New Rockers run in to attack Henry for no real reason and then Hunter Hearst Helmsley also shows up - inexplicably - to try to attack Henry only to get press-slammed out of the ring. I'm guessing they did this to establish that all the heels were jealous of Mark Henry? It didn't make sense to me. (2/5)

Next up - The Undertaker vs. Goldust. A month earlier, Paul Bearer had turned on the Undertaker and aligned himself with Mankind and I must say, it is kinda noticeable that the Undertaker seems almost "incomplete" here without Bearer at his side. Taker's own presence and charisma would eventually make it not such an uncommon sight but, at the time, it was weird. There's an Undertaker/Goldust match from a different PPV - I think it was In Your House #8: Beware of Dog - that I really liked but I was less impressed with their match at In Your House #9 and this one isn't that hot either. The match as billed as a "Final Curtain" match, meaning it must end by pinfall, which seems backwards because their first match was a Casket Match. Goldust attacks early and the Undertaker shows some vulnerability, even getting slapped by Marlena. Things get hokey when Marlena blinds Taker with "gold dust" from her purse and the Deadman sells that he's been blinded only for Goldust to not really capitalize all that much. For some reason, despite this match needing to end by pinfall (making it No DQ/No Countout by default), they didn't spend much time out of the ring or use any weaponry. I found that to be a missed opportunity as, while Taker and Goldust did more actual wrestling than brawling, this crowd probably would've appreciated something wilder and chaotic and Dustin Rhodes, at his best, was very capable of that. (2/5)

Main event time - Shawn Michaels defending his WWE Championship against Mankind. Mankind starts out in control, striking HBK with a series of strikes, a back body drop, and then the first major spot of the match - a clothesline that  takes both men over the top rope and onto the floor. Foley then kicks Michaels into the guardrail and uncovers the floor only to get caught underneath the padding and stomped by Michaels. Michaels immediately hits a crossbody on Mankind onto the floor! Michaels follows it up by sending Mankind skull-first into the floor in a horrific bump. Damn, this match has gone barely 2 minutes and we've already seem some nasty spots. Back in the ring and Michaels hits some rights and then a clothesline, the pace not letting up at all. Michaels delivers a scoop slam and then goes to the top rope to hit his trademark elbow. He calls for the Sweet Chin Music but Mankind dodges it by going to the floor. Bearer and Foley regroup on the outside and the two competitors trade blows in the corner and then end up brawling on the mat. Michaels attempts a neckbreaker but Foley falls back and grapevines him, attempting the Mandible Claw. Great hard fought, legitimate-looking exchange there with Michaels showing no restraint. Mankind gets up, though, and delivers a devastating right hand that Michaels sells perfectly. Mankind sends Michaels back to the outside and rearranges a table, but MIchaels dives over it! Shawn then hits one of the more legendary spots of the match, a suplex on the floor that sends Foley's leg right into the steel steps! Wow. That was brutal. Mankind barely sells it, though, and makes his way onto the apron. Michaels chop-blocks him and Foley ends up on top of the casket left at ringside from the previous match. Michaels continues to work on the knee and now Foley sells the heck out of it, falling into the corner. Michaels loses his cool momentarily and Mankind takes advantage, striking back. Mankind goes for a boot, but Michaels catches his leg and delivers a leg twist before applying the figure four. Good refereeing by Hebner as Mankind nearly gets pinned. Mankind rolls over and Michaels releases the hold, both men struggling to make it to their feet. Mankind sends him to the ropes and Michaels comes back with a dropkick to the knee and continues his attack on the knee. For some reason some fans can be heard chanting "Boring," which is just bizarre considering how action-packed this match has been with not even a single rest hold. Another great spot follows soon after as Mankind hits a surprise stun gun on Michaels that HBK sells perfectly. Mankind drives a pencil into his own knee on the outside and it seems to have energized him as he chokes Michaels on the bottom rope and then slams his headfirst into the casket. Michaels gets back in the ring but Mankind is in full control, eventually even hitting the running thigh in the corner, a move far ahead of its time. Mankind drives Michael's head into the canvas repeatedly but Michaels cuts him off with a back suplex. Mankind recovers quickly, though, and hits a headbutt and then a stomp. Michaels gets a second wind but succumbs to a big irish whip into the corner. Michaels hits a series of elbow drops on Michaels as he hangs in the corner, the champion taking a serious beating. Mankind hits a leg drop on Michaels as he lies facedown in the center of the ring and then eats another pair of stomps, the second one sending Michaels back over the top rope. Mankind goes for another running thigh into Michaels, but Shawn moves out of the way, sending Foley into the steps. Michaels follows it up with a drop toe hold into the steps and rolls back in the ring. Michaels attempts a suplex on the apron, but Mankind counters. Michaels lands on his feet on the apron and Mankind looks to drive him into the post, but Michaels dodges and its Foley who hits the post. Back into the ring and the breakneck pace continues as they go into another brilliant exchange of cut-offs and counters, ending with Foley caught in the ropes by his neck! Holy shit! Michaels approaches and Mankind manages to apply the Mandible Claw before Mankind slips through the ropes and goes to the floor. Back on the floor, Foley applies the Claw, but Michaels counters by driving him into the guardrail. Michaels grabs a chair, Foley punches him but catches the steel, and then HBK uses it on Mankind's knee and hand! Back in the ring, Michaels continues his attack on Mankind's hand, biting his fingers and stomping them on the mat. This is as vicious as Michaels has ever been, heel, face, any era. Michaels takes Mankind to the edge of the ring and uses the ropes to help him stomp on Foley's hand repeatedly! Michaels gets into it with Hebner, allowing Mankind to recover. Michaels comes running at him and Mankind back body drops him back onto the floor! Foley hits the big elbow drop on the floor and breaks the count. Foley comes back and hits a swinging neckbreaker on the floor, Shawn looking to be in serious trouble. As Michaels gets back in the ring, Mankind hits him with a leg drop and then a double-arm DDT...but only gets 2.9! Mankind then delivers a piledriver and, again, he only gets 2.5! Mankind applies another two pin attempts but can't get the W, pulling out his own hair in frustration. Mankind  then grabs some chairs, heaving them into the ring only for Hebner to toss them back out. Mankind opens up the casket and tries to roll Shawn into it, but Shawn fights back! Shawn hits the flying forearm and is all revved up! Michaels with the scoop slam and then a crossbody for 2! Michaels goes back to the top rope, but Foley grabs the ropes, crotching him on the top turnbuckle. Mankind climbs up the ropes too, looking to back suplex him into the table, but both men end up going through as Michaels ends up on top of him! Yet another fantastic spot. Mankind grabs a chair as Bearer distracts the referee. Mankind goes to the top with the chair, but Michaels catches him with a Sweet Chin Music in the corner! Michaels looks to have the match run but Vader runs in! Michaels fights off Vader as Bearer then strikes Michaels with the urn! Sid runs down and he and Vader get into it! The bell keeps ringing as Mankind gets to his feet and applies the Mandible Claw! Mankind looks to roll Michaels into the casket, but The Undertaker emerges! This match deserved a clean finish, but the booking here was actually really smart as Michaels won by DQ, Mankind was protected, and they set up some intriguing storylines going forward with Mankind and Undertaker continuing their feud, Sid and Vader igniting theirs, and Shawn Michaels proving that he could survive the most brutal match of his career. An absolute classic and arguably one of the top 5 WWE Matches of the 90s and maybe even of all time. (5/5)

This show's unremarkable Kwang Score of 2.5-out-of-5 might leave you thinking that Mind Games was a forgettable, middling show unworthy of a first watch let alone repeat viewings. While the show does start off with a series of stinkers, things pick up nicely after the Pillman and Owen segment, with the World Tag Team Title Match being at least interesting, Henry/Lawler serving its purpose, and the Undertaker/Goldust match (while not as good as their bout from a few months earlier) isn't outright offensive or anything. What makes this show worth checking out, though, is the main event, arguably a Top 10 WWE Match of All Time (which covers a TON of ground). As this match had no sequel and both guys' career trajectories were so different in the years after, it is a match unlike any other on either guy's resume. This match alone has made Mind Games something of a classic as its mere existence on this card somehow elevates the whole show and proved that the WWE might stand a chance against the juggernaut that WCW had become at this time.

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