WCW Bash at the Beach 98'
San Diego, CA - July 1998
CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, Bill Goldberg is the WCW World Champion (having defeated Hulk Hogan for the strap on an episode of Nitro from the Georgia Dome a week prior) and, because of this, the United States Championship (which Goldberg never lost) was vacated. Booker T is the reigning WCW Television Champion while Sting had named Kevin Nash his tag team partner after winning the World Tag Team Championships in a singles match against The Giant at The Great American Bash. Finally, Chris Jericho is the reigning WCW Cruiserweight Champion.
COMMENTARY: Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, and Mike Tenay
Before I even start this review, did you look at the poster for this show? Not a single wrestler featured, but a not-so-veiled reference to oral sex. And wrestling fans wonder why our favorite pastime is considered low brow.
Two years after WCW became the hottest wrestling company in America thanks to the New World Order, Bash at the Beach 98' kicks off with another stable's infighting - former Raven's Flock ally Saturn taking on Raven's Flock leader, Raven. I love how this match opens up (with Saturn mercilessly tossing Raven into the guardrail repeatedly). This leads to Raven ending up in a precarious position on the top rope, but Riggs steps in and Saturn ends up on the floor. Raven then hits him with an absolutely awesome whiplash leg sweep into the guardrail, one of my favorite moves of his from his ECW days. The big spots keep coming, but the overbooking, illogical swerves, and non-selling pile up too, including a nonsensical run-in by Kwang favorite Kanyon. Its a wrestling cliche for a third party to interfere on behalf of one guy only to attack the guy he moments earlier helped, but in this instance it is doubly frustrated as, not only is Kanyon's decision-making inexplainable but, due to poor timing, Saturn looks like an imbecile too. On its way to greatness, but stumbled in its closing minutes. (3/5)
Eddie Guerrero joins "Mean" Gene Okerlund and hypes his hair match against Chavo Guerrero later in the show. Who would book a PPV with two Chavo Guerrero matches? I know he's lost a step, but even in 98', Chavo's a 1-match-a-night guy and Stevie Ray, his first opponent tonight, is a no-match-a-night guy.
Raven's Flock member Billy Kidman comes out next for a bout against literal-babyfaced luchadore Juventud Guerrera. As Tenay notes on commentary, this is Kidman's first match on pay-per-view and he definitely seems eager to wow the crowd. Though the heat ebbs and flows, the crowd pops for the big spots and there are plenty of em'. Highlights include Juvi and Kidman both hitting massive crossbodies to the outside, some nasty suplexes (including a T-bone out of Juvi that looks like a career-ender), and a back-shattering spinebuster from the top rope by Kidman to Guerrera. Throughout the contest, nearly everything they do, even the most intricate sequences, are executed flawlessly, but at no point does this look like a choreographed dance. An above-average match that runs just a touch too long, like a great rock song that returns to its charming chorus one time too many. (3.5/5)
Chavo Guerrero arrives for his first of two matches tonight, squaring off against Stevie Ray. Chavo's gimmick at this point was that he had flipped out, coming out to the ring wearing a little kid's flotation tube, squirting a super soaker, challenging opponents to dance contests, and believing he could overpower guys like Goldberg and, in this match, the brawn half of Harlem Heat. In a clever turn of events (that also saves the audience from having to see a Stevie Ray match), Chavo immediately submits to Stevie Ray when they shake hands and it's Hair Match time. More angle than match, I'm not going to rate it. (+1)
Eddie Guerrero steps into the ring as the crowd chants "Eddie Sucks" and Chavo chases him out of the ring by biting him. I did not enjoy their match at Great American Bash, but Chavo's new character adds much-needed energy and fun to a rivalry that needed something extra by now. After nearly back body dropping Eddie to the rafters, Chavo goes right back to biting and the crowd cheers in appreciation. Eddie takes control soon after and the tone of the match gets more serious, with Eddie taking out Chavo with a series of locked-in dropkicks to the back of the head and neck in the corner and on the mat. Later, Chavo misses a huge crossbody from the top, but follows it up with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to cut off Eddie's momentum. To the outside they go and Eddie exposes the concrete. Chavo counters with a suplex but Eddie doesn't necessarily sell it as long as he should, rolling back into the ring to break the count with illogical ease. In the corner, Chavo looks to hit something from the top, but Eddie races up and we get a superplex. Chavo again heads to the top moments later for a frog splash, but Eddie raises his knees and Eddie follows it up with one of Chavo's finishers - a tornado DDT. Eddie grabs for the scissors, but Charles Robinson rips them away. Eddie misses his Frog Splash and Chavo lands his finisher (to relative silence). Now its Chavo's turn to make the mistake of going for the scissors early, but it ends up costing him the match. Solid opening to the match, but as they approached the finish, the selling fell off and the crowd seemed to lose interest. In a final, post-match twist, Chavo takes his own hair off, begging Eddie to do the same so that they can be twins. An improvement on their Great American Bash match thanks to Chavo's strong character work and Eddie being maybe the most watchable wrestler ever, but imperfect and not necessarily a bout I'd want to revisit. (3/5)
Disco Inferno (with Alex Wright) makes his way down the aisle next for an impromptu "bonus" match against the nWo Wolfpack's Konnan. Like the Stevie Ray non-match earlier in the show, I have to reward WCW for the brilliant booking here - this match essentially comprises of Wright and Inferno dancing, Kevin Nash and Konnan popping the crowd with their catchphrases, and then Inferno getting jacknife powerbombed while Wright gets put in the Torture Rack on the outside. Konnan applies one move by my count. Barely a match, but probably more entertaining than a legitimate Inferno/Konnan match could ever be. (2.5/5)
The next match was originally going to be a tag bout featuring Curt Hennig and Goldberg, but when Goldberg won the World Championship all that changed and we now have The Giant competing one-on-one against NFL star (and future NFL Hall of Famer) Kevin Greene. While certainly a novelty match, this is a surprisingly sound contest with some very logical sequences and everything these two do looking pretty good (especially considering that I'm not sure Greene was necessarily prepped about this being a singles match in the weeks leading up to it). The Giant, meanwhile, does a his job of leading the linebacker through the match's paces without rushing anything, selling and bumping without losing any of his own credibility and wisely milking this match for its real purpose - to essentially build to a Goldberg/Giant match (the crowd picks up on this fairly early and lets the big man hear it). While certainly not a "great" match, considering Greene's experience level and the intended purpose of this match, its a fine few minutes of action. (2.5/5)
Backstage, Curt Hennig tells Lee Marshall that he has the know-how and experience to defeat Bill Goldberg tonight.
For the dozenth time tonight, Schiavone reminds fans that the scheduled Jericho/Malenko Cruiserweight Title Match will not happen tonight due to Malenko's recent suspension (he attacked Jericho on Nitro when there was a "no contact" rule in place to keep them separated). This time, though, we actually get a video package showing us exactly what happened a few nights earlier.
Chris Jericho makes his way down the aisle with his Cruiserweight Championship (as well as a top hat and cane). The Ayatollah of Rock n' Rollah proceeds to cut a promo about "Stinko" Malenko and then begins his "soft shoe" routine. He's instantly interrupted, though, by "Jo Jo" Dillon, who apologizes to Jericho for underestimating the amount of fans he has. Dillon continues to say that his fans are probably disappointed that Jericho won't be able to defend the title tonight and tells him that he's found a guy who hasn't wrestled in 6 months (and is therefor eager to get in the ring with Jericho). Jericho makes sure that the match is still No DQ and then we hear the familiar entrance music of noneother than...Rey Mysterio Jr.! Mysterio and Jericho have always had good chemistry and this match has some really fun moments, including Mysterio hitting a hurricanrana off a lifeguard chair and Jericho bashing the hell out of Mysterio's knee with a chair. After missing a follow-up Pillmanizer from the top, Mysterio gets his turn with the chair and Jericho is in trouble. Mysterio attempts a springboard maneuver of some kind but ends up in the Walls of Jericho. Malenko arrives but doesn't seem to cause much of a distraction. Still, the outcome is the same - new Cruiserweight Champion with an unexpected victory roll. Jericho and Mysterio have had much better matches, but a "whole picture," this is an "angle + match" combo that works really well (and would've worked even better if the San Diego crowd actually gave a shit). (3/5)
Bret "The Hitman" Hart vs. Booker T for the Television Championship is next. Hart coming down to the nWo theme song, a song that at least a half dozen other guys use as their song, is almost a perfect metaphor for how much Hart can become "just another guy" in WCW by this point. The match starts off fairly hot, with Booker T in control and Bret Hart forced to play defense, hip tossed over the top rope and then slammd into the guardrail. A TV title match was "beneath" the Hitman, but Hart doesn't half-ass it and Booker is obviously working like this is the biggest match of his career (which, at this point, it easily was). Work-wise, between bells, this is an easy match to love - and though the finish is disappointing, it is also super effective at establishing a number of new ideas, specifically that Booker T's innovation and energy may have had Hart's number, that Bret is a mega-heel that doesn't give a single shit about sportsmanship, and that the Stevie Ray/Booker T relationship is frayed. The in-ring action we did get was very good and I dug the intensity of the post-match angle too. Not a must-see match, but good storyline development nonetheless. (3/5)
A video package highlights Goldberg's historic World Championship victory on Nitro. WCW wasn't known for its great production, but this was really well done. (+1)
Michael Buffer is in the ring to announce the participants in tonight's WCW World Championship match, WCW World Champion Bill Goldberg and his opponent, Curt Hennig. Goldberg is super over and dominates at the start, with Hennig showing off his incredible bumping. Goldberg's leglock-takedown has looked prettier and his powerslam from the corner is almost equally ugly, but Goldberg's appeal has never been his fluidity or execution. Hennig is able to cut him off briefly and attack Goldberg's ankle, but instead of sticking to that gameplan, he goes for the Perfect-Plex. Goldberg, unsurprisingly, kicks out with ease and hits both his Spear and a Jackhammer to seal this one at well under 5 minutes. I wasn't expecting much more than this, but as a Hennig fan, I kind of wish this was more competitive. Average in terms of Goldberg's matches, but below average when you think about this match being the night's World Heavyweight Championship bout. (2/5)
Main event time - Diamond Dallas Page and Karl Malone vs. "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Dennis Rodman. The heels arrive first to a chorus of boos followed by Diamond Dallas Page and Karl Malone decked out in matching ring gear. Tenay plays up the on-court rivalry between Malone and Rodman stemming from the Bulls/Jazz Championship series that ended just a month prior (Rodzilla's Bulls won that series). Malone and Rodman start things off in a surprising twist, the Worm refusing to engage with the Mailman. They finally lock up and Rodman applies a side headlock, bailing out of the ring when Malone breaks free. Hogan comes in and tries to intimidate Malone but ends up locked in a very awkward headlock instead, eventually scoop slammed to the mat as the crowd roars. Page comes in and Hogan tags out minutes later as an audible portion of the crowd starts chanting "Boring," obviously hoping for some wrestling beyond just tie-ups, headlocks, and the occasional hip toss. The "Boring" chant starts up again before we get the first "high spot" of the match - Page and Rodman colliding in the ring. Rodman returns to a side headlock as the two take a tumble in the ring in what looks like a botched spot. Speaking of botched spots, after two respectable leap frogs from Rodman, they botch whatever was supposed to happen next and the crowd picks up on it. The Mailman and Hogan come in and we get staredown number 40 or so. Hogan applies a wristlock, but Mailman overpowers him and sends him crashing to the mat. Rodman delivers a cheap shot and Hollywood takes control. You would think that a 20-year veteran like the Hulkster would put more moves on display than a 2-week guy like Malone, but this match would prove you wrong. Malone takes some good textbook back bumps and finally we get a legitimate wrestling move as Hogan hits the Mailman with a back suplex. Schiavone notes that Malone has the reach to tag in DDP but doesn't because, well, who knows. Page finally comes in on the hot tag and, though he tries his best to revive the crowd, the audience doesn't seem to care. Hogan takes off his belt and uses it to beatdown DDP (the crowd finally popping for something). Hogan and Page obviously wanted to deliver a main event-caliber match and not take any shortcuts and, to their credit, when they're in the ring together things do get better, but this match needed more smoke-and-mirrors than front headlocks and test-of-strength teasing. Page plays face-in-peril for awhile, building up suspense a hot tag to Malone. At least 5-6 minutes from this match should've been donated to Hart/Booker because this one just had no business going more than 10-12 minutes bell-to-bell. Malone finally comes in and pops the crowd by body slamming Rodman and then knocking their heads together in classic Three Stooges fashion. Malone has Hogan at his mercy and calls for a Diamond Cutter, hitting the Hulkster with a big boot and then tagging in his partner to finish him off. Rodman tries to save his partner, but ends up eating a Diamond Cutter of his own by Mailman. This should have been the finish, but instead, the Disciple comes in to help the heels score the pinfall. Malone, upset about the finish, hits a Diamond Cutter on Charles Robinson as the nWo's victory song plays. Talk about feel-bad booking for no reason beyond feeding into Hogan or Rodman's ego. Not the worst match I've ever seen, but at over 20 minutes, just too repetitive and pedestrian to ever recommend. (1/5)
Bash at the Beach 98' starts off really strong, with a series of better-than-average matches. However, as the show wears on, the wrestling weakens and questionable booking take their toll. Booker T and Bret Hart have a pretty good 7-minute match that ends in meaningless fashion at the 8th minute. The Guerreros, Jericho, and Mysterio get some really entertaining character development on the show, but the action doesn't live up to expectations considering the talent involved. The opening match starts off hot and then ends in overbooked nonsense that makes everyone involved look bad. As for the main event, the only times when it isn't outright boring is when Rodman is botching a spot, Malone is looking comically awkward, or Page and Hogan are trying their best to salvage the thing with overacting. There are small moments that show WCW could still produce some entertaining TV in the summer of 1998, but as a whole, this show definitely reveals more than a couple glaring problems with where the company was and where it was heading. Even with a pretty decent Kwang score of 2.83-out-of-5, this one gets a...
FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver
Eddie Guerrero joins "Mean" Gene Okerlund and hypes his hair match against Chavo Guerrero later in the show. Who would book a PPV with two Chavo Guerrero matches? I know he's lost a step, but even in 98', Chavo's a 1-match-a-night guy and Stevie Ray, his first opponent tonight, is a no-match-a-night guy.
Raven's Flock member Billy Kidman comes out next for a bout against literal-babyfaced luchadore Juventud Guerrera. As Tenay notes on commentary, this is Kidman's first match on pay-per-view and he definitely seems eager to wow the crowd. Though the heat ebbs and flows, the crowd pops for the big spots and there are plenty of em'. Highlights include Juvi and Kidman both hitting massive crossbodies to the outside, some nasty suplexes (including a T-bone out of Juvi that looks like a career-ender), and a back-shattering spinebuster from the top rope by Kidman to Guerrera. Throughout the contest, nearly everything they do, even the most intricate sequences, are executed flawlessly, but at no point does this look like a choreographed dance. An above-average match that runs just a touch too long, like a great rock song that returns to its charming chorus one time too many. (3.5/5)
Chavo Guerrero arrives for his first of two matches tonight, squaring off against Stevie Ray. Chavo's gimmick at this point was that he had flipped out, coming out to the ring wearing a little kid's flotation tube, squirting a super soaker, challenging opponents to dance contests, and believing he could overpower guys like Goldberg and, in this match, the brawn half of Harlem Heat. In a clever turn of events (that also saves the audience from having to see a Stevie Ray match), Chavo immediately submits to Stevie Ray when they shake hands and it's Hair Match time. More angle than match, I'm not going to rate it. (+1)
Eddie Guerrero steps into the ring as the crowd chants "Eddie Sucks" and Chavo chases him out of the ring by biting him. I did not enjoy their match at Great American Bash, but Chavo's new character adds much-needed energy and fun to a rivalry that needed something extra by now. After nearly back body dropping Eddie to the rafters, Chavo goes right back to biting and the crowd cheers in appreciation. Eddie takes control soon after and the tone of the match gets more serious, with Eddie taking out Chavo with a series of locked-in dropkicks to the back of the head and neck in the corner and on the mat. Later, Chavo misses a huge crossbody from the top, but follows it up with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to cut off Eddie's momentum. To the outside they go and Eddie exposes the concrete. Chavo counters with a suplex but Eddie doesn't necessarily sell it as long as he should, rolling back into the ring to break the count with illogical ease. In the corner, Chavo looks to hit something from the top, but Eddie races up and we get a superplex. Chavo again heads to the top moments later for a frog splash, but Eddie raises his knees and Eddie follows it up with one of Chavo's finishers - a tornado DDT. Eddie grabs for the scissors, but Charles Robinson rips them away. Eddie misses his Frog Splash and Chavo lands his finisher (to relative silence). Now its Chavo's turn to make the mistake of going for the scissors early, but it ends up costing him the match. Solid opening to the match, but as they approached the finish, the selling fell off and the crowd seemed to lose interest. In a final, post-match twist, Chavo takes his own hair off, begging Eddie to do the same so that they can be twins. An improvement on their Great American Bash match thanks to Chavo's strong character work and Eddie being maybe the most watchable wrestler ever, but imperfect and not necessarily a bout I'd want to revisit. (3/5)
Disco Inferno (with Alex Wright) makes his way down the aisle next for an impromptu "bonus" match against the nWo Wolfpack's Konnan. Like the Stevie Ray non-match earlier in the show, I have to reward WCW for the brilliant booking here - this match essentially comprises of Wright and Inferno dancing, Kevin Nash and Konnan popping the crowd with their catchphrases, and then Inferno getting jacknife powerbombed while Wright gets put in the Torture Rack on the outside. Konnan applies one move by my count. Barely a match, but probably more entertaining than a legitimate Inferno/Konnan match could ever be. (2.5/5)
The next match was originally going to be a tag bout featuring Curt Hennig and Goldberg, but when Goldberg won the World Championship all that changed and we now have The Giant competing one-on-one against NFL star (and future NFL Hall of Famer) Kevin Greene. While certainly a novelty match, this is a surprisingly sound contest with some very logical sequences and everything these two do looking pretty good (especially considering that I'm not sure Greene was necessarily prepped about this being a singles match in the weeks leading up to it). The Giant, meanwhile, does a his job of leading the linebacker through the match's paces without rushing anything, selling and bumping without losing any of his own credibility and wisely milking this match for its real purpose - to essentially build to a Goldberg/Giant match (the crowd picks up on this fairly early and lets the big man hear it). While certainly not a "great" match, considering Greene's experience level and the intended purpose of this match, its a fine few minutes of action. (2.5/5)
Backstage, Curt Hennig tells Lee Marshall that he has the know-how and experience to defeat Bill Goldberg tonight.
For the dozenth time tonight, Schiavone reminds fans that the scheduled Jericho/Malenko Cruiserweight Title Match will not happen tonight due to Malenko's recent suspension (he attacked Jericho on Nitro when there was a "no contact" rule in place to keep them separated). This time, though, we actually get a video package showing us exactly what happened a few nights earlier.
Chris Jericho makes his way down the aisle with his Cruiserweight Championship (as well as a top hat and cane). The Ayatollah of Rock n' Rollah proceeds to cut a promo about "Stinko" Malenko and then begins his "soft shoe" routine. He's instantly interrupted, though, by "Jo Jo" Dillon, who apologizes to Jericho for underestimating the amount of fans he has. Dillon continues to say that his fans are probably disappointed that Jericho won't be able to defend the title tonight and tells him that he's found a guy who hasn't wrestled in 6 months (and is therefor eager to get in the ring with Jericho). Jericho makes sure that the match is still No DQ and then we hear the familiar entrance music of noneother than...Rey Mysterio Jr.! Mysterio and Jericho have always had good chemistry and this match has some really fun moments, including Mysterio hitting a hurricanrana off a lifeguard chair and Jericho bashing the hell out of Mysterio's knee with a chair. After missing a follow-up Pillmanizer from the top, Mysterio gets his turn with the chair and Jericho is in trouble. Mysterio attempts a springboard maneuver of some kind but ends up in the Walls of Jericho. Malenko arrives but doesn't seem to cause much of a distraction. Still, the outcome is the same - new Cruiserweight Champion with an unexpected victory roll. Jericho and Mysterio have had much better matches, but a "whole picture," this is an "angle + match" combo that works really well (and would've worked even better if the San Diego crowd actually gave a shit). (3/5)
Bret "The Hitman" Hart vs. Booker T for the Television Championship is next. Hart coming down to the nWo theme song, a song that at least a half dozen other guys use as their song, is almost a perfect metaphor for how much Hart can become "just another guy" in WCW by this point. The match starts off fairly hot, with Booker T in control and Bret Hart forced to play defense, hip tossed over the top rope and then slammd into the guardrail. A TV title match was "beneath" the Hitman, but Hart doesn't half-ass it and Booker is obviously working like this is the biggest match of his career (which, at this point, it easily was). Work-wise, between bells, this is an easy match to love - and though the finish is disappointing, it is also super effective at establishing a number of new ideas, specifically that Booker T's innovation and energy may have had Hart's number, that Bret is a mega-heel that doesn't give a single shit about sportsmanship, and that the Stevie Ray/Booker T relationship is frayed. The in-ring action we did get was very good and I dug the intensity of the post-match angle too. Not a must-see match, but good storyline development nonetheless. (3/5)
A video package highlights Goldberg's historic World Championship victory on Nitro. WCW wasn't known for its great production, but this was really well done. (+1)
Michael Buffer is in the ring to announce the participants in tonight's WCW World Championship match, WCW World Champion Bill Goldberg and his opponent, Curt Hennig. Goldberg is super over and dominates at the start, with Hennig showing off his incredible bumping. Goldberg's leglock-takedown has looked prettier and his powerslam from the corner is almost equally ugly, but Goldberg's appeal has never been his fluidity or execution. Hennig is able to cut him off briefly and attack Goldberg's ankle, but instead of sticking to that gameplan, he goes for the Perfect-Plex. Goldberg, unsurprisingly, kicks out with ease and hits both his Spear and a Jackhammer to seal this one at well under 5 minutes. I wasn't expecting much more than this, but as a Hennig fan, I kind of wish this was more competitive. Average in terms of Goldberg's matches, but below average when you think about this match being the night's World Heavyweight Championship bout. (2/5)
Main event time - Diamond Dallas Page and Karl Malone vs. "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Dennis Rodman. The heels arrive first to a chorus of boos followed by Diamond Dallas Page and Karl Malone decked out in matching ring gear. Tenay plays up the on-court rivalry between Malone and Rodman stemming from the Bulls/Jazz Championship series that ended just a month prior (Rodzilla's Bulls won that series). Malone and Rodman start things off in a surprising twist, the Worm refusing to engage with the Mailman. They finally lock up and Rodman applies a side headlock, bailing out of the ring when Malone breaks free. Hogan comes in and tries to intimidate Malone but ends up locked in a very awkward headlock instead, eventually scoop slammed to the mat as the crowd roars. Page comes in and Hogan tags out minutes later as an audible portion of the crowd starts chanting "Boring," obviously hoping for some wrestling beyond just tie-ups, headlocks, and the occasional hip toss. The "Boring" chant starts up again before we get the first "high spot" of the match - Page and Rodman colliding in the ring. Rodman returns to a side headlock as the two take a tumble in the ring in what looks like a botched spot. Speaking of botched spots, after two respectable leap frogs from Rodman, they botch whatever was supposed to happen next and the crowd picks up on it. The Mailman and Hogan come in and we get staredown number 40 or so. Hogan applies a wristlock, but Mailman overpowers him and sends him crashing to the mat. Rodman delivers a cheap shot and Hollywood takes control. You would think that a 20-year veteran like the Hulkster would put more moves on display than a 2-week guy like Malone, but this match would prove you wrong. Malone takes some good textbook back bumps and finally we get a legitimate wrestling move as Hogan hits the Mailman with a back suplex. Schiavone notes that Malone has the reach to tag in DDP but doesn't because, well, who knows. Page finally comes in on the hot tag and, though he tries his best to revive the crowd, the audience doesn't seem to care. Hogan takes off his belt and uses it to beatdown DDP (the crowd finally popping for something). Hogan and Page obviously wanted to deliver a main event-caliber match and not take any shortcuts and, to their credit, when they're in the ring together things do get better, but this match needed more smoke-and-mirrors than front headlocks and test-of-strength teasing. Page plays face-in-peril for awhile, building up suspense a hot tag to Malone. At least 5-6 minutes from this match should've been donated to Hart/Booker because this one just had no business going more than 10-12 minutes bell-to-bell. Malone finally comes in and pops the crowd by body slamming Rodman and then knocking their heads together in classic Three Stooges fashion. Malone has Hogan at his mercy and calls for a Diamond Cutter, hitting the Hulkster with a big boot and then tagging in his partner to finish him off. Rodman tries to save his partner, but ends up eating a Diamond Cutter of his own by Mailman. This should have been the finish, but instead, the Disciple comes in to help the heels score the pinfall. Malone, upset about the finish, hits a Diamond Cutter on Charles Robinson as the nWo's victory song plays. Talk about feel-bad booking for no reason beyond feeding into Hogan or Rodman's ego. Not the worst match I've ever seen, but at over 20 minutes, just too repetitive and pedestrian to ever recommend. (1/5)
Bash at the Beach 98' starts off really strong, with a series of better-than-average matches. However, as the show wears on, the wrestling weakens and questionable booking take their toll. Booker T and Bret Hart have a pretty good 7-minute match that ends in meaningless fashion at the 8th minute. The Guerreros, Jericho, and Mysterio get some really entertaining character development on the show, but the action doesn't live up to expectations considering the talent involved. The opening match starts off hot and then ends in overbooked nonsense that makes everyone involved look bad. As for the main event, the only times when it isn't outright boring is when Rodman is botching a spot, Malone is looking comically awkward, or Page and Hogan are trying their best to salvage the thing with overacting. There are small moments that show WCW could still produce some entertaining TV in the summer of 1998, but as a whole, this show definitely reveals more than a couple glaring problems with where the company was and where it was heading. Even with a pretty decent Kwang score of 2.83-out-of-5, this one gets a...
FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver
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