WCW Clash of the Champions XXIII

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 Clash of the Champions XXIII – June 1993

Norfolk, Virginia

CHAMPIONSHIP BACKGROUNDS: Heading into tonight’s show, Vader is the WCW World Heavyweight Champion and Barry Windham holds the NWA World Championship. The WCW/NWA Unified Tag Team Champions are The Hollywood Blondes, Steve Austin and Brian Pillman. At this time, the United States Championship has been vacated while “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff holds the Television Championship.

COMMENTATORS: Tony Schiavone & Jesse Ventura

The show kicks off, in classic WCW 92'-93' style, with a match different than the one originally advertised as Ron Simmons squares off against "Dirty" Dick Slater, accompanied by the man he was actually set to wrestle, TV Champion Paul Orndorff. The crowd is a pretty live one, popping big for Simmons and breaking into a "Paula" chant when the heels arrive. Unfortunately, the match itself is pretty lame, but at least kept short. (1/5)

In terms of match quality, the next bout is thankfully a step up - Lord Steven Regal vs. Marcus Bagwell. I've reviewed quite a few Bagwell matches at this point and his in-ring improvements over that stretch have been kinda fun to watch. While Regal is obviously leading this match and certainly has the more impressive bumps and maneuvers, Bagwell keeps up respectably. In his first appearance on a major WCW card, Regal comes off as a big deal and works smartly from the very moment he comes out the curtain. Unlike Chris Benoit, whose stoic character didn't tell the fans to cheer or boo him, Regal is recognizable as a heel from just his facial expressions and slow gait. While I thought the finish was a little sloppy, it accomplished what needed to be done in order to keep both guys looking strong. (3/5)

The next two segments both have to do with the monster Maxx Payne. First, he "gives back" Johnny B. Badd's Badd Blaster by shooting him with it at point-blank range in the face. Then, having injured the man he was scheduled to wrestle tonight, Payne is announced the winner via forfeit. This leads to the Z-Man hitting the ring for revenge. All-in-all, not a bad stretch of TV, but certainly not "must see." (2.5/5)

The NWA World Heavyweight Championship was on the line in the next contest, with champion Barry Windham defending the title against 2 Cold Scorpio. I really enjoyed this match and thought both men put on a good effort - something I've seen Windham get criticized for in the years that followed. I also liked how this match told the story that it should've told - namely the grizzled, possibly "too cocky" veteran trying to wrestle "his match" against a fresh up-n'-comer with an innovative style. When this set-up is executed right, you get a match like this, which allowed both guys to showcase their best stuff in the confines of a rather simple, straightforward story. In some circles, this match is regarded as a Match Of The Year candidate, but I don't think I'll go that far with the praise as, while it does feature some great action and overcomes the obstacle of having a predictable finish with some marvelous near falls, I'm not sure this is a "must see"match as much as its a very cool hidden gem, the kind of treat that only the biggest wrestling fans will likely ever see (and enjoy the heck out of). (3.5/5)

The next bout pits Sid, Vader, and Rick Rude against Sting, the British Bulldog, and Dustin Rhodes in a 6-man tag. The Norfolk crowd is absolutely bonkers over Sting and hate the heels with a passion, so what you get is a really entertaining contest where the minor surprises and details are almost doubly effective. For example, Rhodes was always a great face-in-peril, but here, the crowd gets even more vocal for his comebacks and offense, particularly him wailing on Vader with forearms and reversing a piledriver from Rick Rude. Sid doesn't do much, but doesn't need to. Vicious plays his part perfectly fine, essentially just beating the crap out of the faces for limited minutes and not getting in Vader or Rude's way. Had this match ran just a few more minutes longer, I'd be tempted to rate it even higher than I did, but it is hard to criticize this match as ineffective when it really does make you want to see all 6 of these men tangle again. (3.5/5)

The main event is a 2-out-of-3 falls match for the Tag Team Championships with Ric Flair and Arn Anderson taking on the Hollywood Blondes. The Norfolk crowd is deeply in the pocket of the Horsemen, particularly Flair, but all 4 men do good work and the Blondes get great heat. This match is well on its way to being a classic, arguably a Match of the Year candidate, but whether you want to call it timing issues or just poor booking, the finish deflates what could've been. Most reviewers love to mention Arn and Austin's "camera taunt"-into-a-DDT spot, and it is a thing of beauty, but I also really enjoy the little things that Pillman brings to the match, such as his outright mocking of Flair mannerisms mixed with lifting actual pages out of Nature Boy's playbook (begging off the babyface, clipping the knee). Speaking of other reviewers, Dave Meltzer gave this match 4 stars, earning it distinction as the Match of the Night, while other critics have been far less kind. The most obvious gripe is that the finish seemingly contradicts the purpose of the 2-out-of-3 falls stipulation. There are also some who want to blame this match (and dislike it) for Austin getting stuck in limbo in WCW. The story goes that it didn't draw the expected huge rating for Ric Flair's in-ring return and that the blame was put onto the Blondes as they were not "marquee" names. This led to them splitting up. Whether this is an accurate description of the cause of the Blondes split doesn't really matter, but I do question how anyone can criticize what we get in the ring in this match by bringing up its political repercussions months later. To me, if you take this match for what it is, you'll enjoy the hell out of it...until the final minute, when the bookers decide to pull a bait-and-switch and keep this one from its rightful place as one of the best tag matches of its time. (4/5)

Clash of the Champions 23 is easy to classify. Earning an average match rating of 3.16-out-of-5, the show may not start hot, but it closes with a succession of matches that manage to build off each other and deliver more and more entertainment value. The Scorpio/Windham match gets the ball rolling as the 6-man tag builds on the fan's energy leading to the main event, a homecoming party for Ric Flair that is well worth watching for Horsemen fans or tag team wrestling junkies. Unfortunately, a poor finish keeps the match from all-time classic stature. With a card featuring Rick Rude, Ric Flair, the Hollywood Blondes, Sting, Regal, 2 Cold Scorpio, Barry Windham, Vader, and Arn Anderson, as well as a molten hot crowd, this show is well worth a spin on the WWE Network - just keep the remote handy.

FINAL RATING – Watch It…With Remote in Hand