WWE Survivor Series 95'

WWE Survivor Series 95'

Landover, MD - November 1995

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into the show, Diesel is the WWE World Champion, Razor Ramon holds the Intercontinental Championship, and Alundra Blayze is the WWE Women's Champion. The Tag Team Champions were The Smoking Gunns who aren't even on the card. According to Cagematch, they faced Public Enemy in a dark match before the show - which is an interesting story unto itself worth googling. Anyway...

This show starts off red hot with the arrival of Mr. Perfect as a commentator and then a video hyping tonight's main event. The opening contest pits the Underdogs - Marty Jannetty, Hakushi, Bob Holly, and Barry Horowitz vs. Skip, Tom Prichard, 1-2-3 Kid, and Rad Radford. Before the match starts, Razor Ramon tries to get a piece of the 1-2-3 Kid, but gets held off by referees. Jannetty and Prichard start things off but its not long before Radford comes in. Radford is referred to by Sunny as the "Prince of Grunge Rock," which is a pretty tremendous gimmick for something to have had in 95'. Holly eliminates Prichard, but then gets eliminated by Skip immediately after. Hakushi gets the biggest response of any of the babyfaces, which probably says more about his teammates' popularity than his own. As the match goes on, Barry Horowitz finally comes in and eventually rolls up Rad Radford to a sizable pop. Horowitz was coming to the end of his lone mini-push as he had been feuding with Skip and Sunny (and even pinned Skip at SummerSlam 95'). Horowitz doesn't last too long after and we're left with a 2-on-1 situation with Jannetty trying to fight off Skip and The Kid. Had Hakushi been put into this position, this match would've been kinda cool. Jannetty powerbombs Skip from the top rope, which is kind of insane for 95' or really any time, but The Kid comes in and takes over. The Kid hits him with an awesome leg drop from the top and then a dropkick in the corner. The Kid goes back to the top and attempts a front-flip cannonball (that JR incorrectly calls a moonsault), but Jannetty moves out of the way. Sid makes his way down the aisle and Jannetty gets worried. Jannetty hits a "Fameasser," but only gets 2. DiBiase distracts the referee, allowing Sid to pull Jannetty neck-first onto the top rope and give The Kid the victory. Considering the talent level and credibility of the competitors, this match wasn't all that bad. (2/5)

Backstage, Razor Ramon freaks the fuck out because The 1-2-3 Kid and Sid have screwed over Marty Jannetty apparently. He throws a TV against the wall repeatedly, which seems like a real overreaction.

We then cut to Jim Cornette, Mr. Fuji, Yokozuna, Owen Hart, and Dean Douglas. They hype their own match, which is tonight's "Wildcard Match."

This next match is interesting - Alundra Blayze teaming with Chapparita Asari, Kyoko Inoue, and Sakie Hasegawa to take on Aja Kong, Bertha Faye, Lioness Asuka, and Tomoko Watanabe. Unlike in WCW, where Bischoff wisely had Mike Tenay assist on commentary to provide some context and background on the international talent that were spotlighted, nobody is able to say much about anyone apart from Blayze, Bertha Faye, and to a lesser extent, Aja Kong. Blayze is also, noticeably, the only wrestler whose name is shown on the screen and given an entrance. Asari hits an insane screwdriver splash from the top early on, but its Blayze who gets the pinfall after hitting Asuka with a german suplex. Watanabe comes in and misses a high risk maneuver. Blayze hits a splash to the outside and then tags in Hasegawa, who hits a series of rolling double-arm suplexes that is unreal. Aja Kong comes in, but ends up getting suplexed too - Hasegawa is incredible. Kong ends up taking her out with a T-Bone Suplex, though, and then makes quick work out of Asari too. Blayze comes in and they trade some kicks before Blayze tags in Inoue. Inoue is jobbed out in less than a minute. Blayze calls out Bertha Faye, but all three women corner her instead. Blayze fights her way out and hits Watanabe with a snap suplex and then a piledriver to get a 3 count. Faye comes in and uses her size to overpower Blayze. Kong tries to come in for help but ends up bumping into Faye. Blayze hits Bertha with a german suplex to eliminate her and we're down to just Kong and Blayze. The final minutes of the match are a bit weird as Kong basically dominates and eventually puts Blayze away with a backhand to the face. Its a devastating move, but doesn't seem like a true "finish." This match would've been better if it had been given more time and wasn't completely built around Blayze. Hasegawa and Asari were super impressive in particular. (1.5/5)

Todd Pettengill interviews a Bill Clinton impersonator in the crowd.

Bam Bam Bigelow comes out next for his bout against Goldust, who was making his second pay-per-view appearance here (he'd defeated Marty Jannetty at an In Your House show a month before). Terri "Marlena" Runnels was not yet at his side, but the rest of the act is at least 75% there, the lavish entrance and some (but not yet all) of the freaky mannerisms in place. 25 years later, the gimmick is still stranger than anything the WWE puts on their programming today; it is impossible to pigeonhole or define singularly, David Bowie's "Starman" by way of mid-20th Century Hollywood with the physicality of a southern style brawler. Today, the character would likely have much more flash, but Dustin Runnels being the man beneath the make-up only added to the disparate elements that made up the character. Still, as interesting as Goldust is and was for the time, this match isn't all that great. Bigelow was nearing the end of his WWE contract and hadn't been pushed particularly strong after WrestleMania XI. Rhodes, meanwhile, was still fine-tuning Goldust's in-ring persona, not yet pushing th eenvelope as far as he would once he began feuding with Razor Ramon and Ahmed Johnson in the months that followed. Even Goldust's finish was a holdover from his WCW run as he was not yet finishing matches with the Curtain Call reverse DDT. A solid win for Goldust, but not a true spotlight. (1.5/5)

We cut back to Todd Pettengill with "Bill Clinton," but this time they are joined by Bob Backlund. These segments are so corny.

Back to the ring we go for our next elimination match - The Royals (King Mabel, Isaac Yankem, Jerry "The King" Lawler, and Hunter Hearst Helmsley) vs. The Darkside (The Undertaker, Savio Vega, Henry O. Godwinn, and Fatu). The Undertaker was re-emerging from a couple months-long break here, wrestling with a horrendous-looking mask. What's kinda fun about this match is that while, on-screen, the Undertaker's team is made-up of some bizarre characters, backstage these guys were a real-life posse of buddies known as the Bone Street Krew based on their shared love of playing dominoes (the circle of friends also included Yokozuna, future Ministry of Darkness member Mideon, and Brian "Crush" Adams). Despite their real life friendship, the chemistry doesn't really come across on the screen, the Undertaker looking very out of place having to hang out on the outside of the ring next to the fiery Savio Vega and future Rikishi. Lawler and Helmsley do most of the heavy lifting for their side, their exaggerated, over-the-top bumping giving the match much-needed energy but not necessarily any suspense or drama. Mabel comes in and dominates Vega, eventually hitting him with an insane over-the-top suplex that I'm not sure I'd seen him dish out before. Yankem takes over and hits him with a dropkick, a move he didn't bust out too often as Kane later on. Helmsley comes in next but can't keep Vega down. Lawler hits a piledriver but doesn't make the cover quick enough, allowing Vega to catch his breath. Lawler tags Yankem back in but then Helmsley comes in - only to get hit with a huge T-bone chokeslam from Vega! Helmsley tags in Lawler and the King hits him with a second piledriver, but Vega springs to life and tags in the Undertaker! Nobody wants to tag in and the Deadman ends up lifting the King up by his neck and tossing him into the center of the ring. Taker finishes him with a Tombstone Piledriver and the faces are up 4-3. Yankem tries to sneak attack the Phenom, but Taker catches him with a flying clothesline and then drops him with a Tombstone too! The crowd goes wild at the second elimination as Helmsley comes in and then immediately high-tails it out of the ring. Helmsley tries to escape, but Godwinn scares him back into the ring with a threat of getting slopped. Taker destroys him with a huge chokeslam from outside of the ring and Triple H is out. Mabel finally puts the Deadman down and nails him with a huge legdrop - a clever callback to how Undertaker ended up under the mask. Undertaker sits up, though, and Mabel runs down the aisle, taking the countout loss and giving the Darkside the victory. Back in the ring, Undertaker chokeslams Sir Mo and this one is over. The bulk of this match wasn't very good, but the closing 3-4 minute s were fine as the Undertaker was undeniably and noticeably more credible and over than pretty much everyone else in this match combined. I still wouldn't qualify this as "good," but it would've been way worse if they had tried to stretch it by having the Undertaker actually sell for these lesser opponents. (1/5)

We get some pre-recorded comments for Bret Hart and Diesel next. Diesel's promo is very loose and not too great, while Bret's is more focused but not nearly as charismatic. We then cut to Davey Boy and Sid, who were teaming with Ahmed Johnson and Shawn Michaels, in the next bout...

The first-ever Wildcard Match - Yokozuna, Owen Hart, Dean Douglas, and Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, Sid, and the British Bulldog. The mix of heels and faces is interesting concept and the commentators hype it up accordingly, wondering aloud why Gorilla Monsoon would create this match. Owen and Shawn start things off, these two showing off their speed and agility. Douglas comes in and there's a distinct drop in chemistry. Michaels is very over with the females in the crowd, his offense drawing loud shrieks of joy from the crowd. Ahmed Johnson comes in for his time and destroys Douglas and Owen, but when he attempts to slam Yoko, he gets taken out quickly. Johnson eventually gets shoved into the corner and I like how Razor Ramon peppers him with some right hands - the sole babyface on his team actually heeling it up a bit (which makes sense is this context, especially out of the "tweener" Ramon). When Douglas ends up on the outside, Ramon tells him to get back in the ring, but because of their history, they end up in an argument leading to Michaels getting the pinfall on Douglas. The Bulldog comes in and he and Owen end up in the ring together, jawing at each other and eventually coming to blows. Bulldog tags Michaels back in, but now its Owen's turn to flip the script - tagging in Razor Ramon. For some ridiculous reason, just as they're about to come to blows, the camera zooms out and we don't see who really instigates the action. Michaels and Ramon fight it out for a little bit, Ramon eventually even delivering a Razor's Edge - only for the pin to get broken up by Ahmed Johnson. Johnson's save gets a big pop and both men take their time getting to their feet. They collide against each other a couple time, Michaels eventually making the tag to Psycho Sid. Sid gets to work on Razor, clubbing him and then sending him into the corner. Sid launches Ramon with a hip toss and then drops a boot on him. As Sid beats down on Ramon, Yokozuna comes in to try to break it up. With Ramon down, Sid climbs to the top rope, but Ramon brings him down with a slam. Moments later, back in control, Sid delivers a chokeslam and calls for a powerbomb. Instead of delivering it, though, he tags Michaels in, telling him to deliver Sweet Chin Music instead. Ramon dodges it and Sid eats the superkick! Ramon makes the cover, but now its Bulldog who comes in to try to break the pin - only for Ramon to move out of the way and for Bulldog to connect with a leg drop onto Sid! Ramon eliminates Sid, but before exits the ring, Psycho Sid hits Shawn with a huge powerbomb to a very negative reaction. Bulldog, meanwhile, beats down on Ramon and we're back to just watching these two lie around. Ramon drapes his arm over Shawn but only gets 2. Razor tags in Owen, the King of Harts delivering a stomp to the midsection and then a textbook backbreaker. Owen tags in Yoko and the former World Champion pummels him in the corner. He sends him the opposite way and Michaels takes his signature corner bump. I understand the reasoning behind having Michaels play face-in-peril for minutes on end, but this has become excessive and repetitive and the hot tag to Ahmed Johnson barely registers. Johnson hits the Pearl River Plunge on Owen to take him out, Razor coming in for his team. It looks like there's a bit of a miscue as Johnson wanders off as Ramon looks to have him set-up for his top-rope bulldog. Ramon hits him with a bulldog anyway and then we get some chaos. Johnson, being an idiot, goes into the corner to celebrate for no reason and ends up getting hit by the Razor's Edge. Bulldog breaks up the pin and he and Razor square off as Sid, The Kid, and Ted Dibiase make their way down the aisle. Razor gets distracted and the Bulldog delivers a running powerslam to eliminate him from the match. Yoko is now the sole survivor for his team, which actually makes him somewhat sympathetic. Michaels comes in for his team and gets him rocking for a little bit, but Yoko doesn't fall and ends up in control, delivering a huge bodyslam to HBK and then a legdrop. Yoko drags him to the corner and calls for the Bonzai Drop, but Michaels rolls away and Yoko is left as a heap in the corner. A "Let's Go Shawn" chant erupts and Michaels makes the tag to Johnson, who just barely bodyslams Yoko. Johnson goes for the cover but Bulldog breaks it up - for no real reason - only to get clotheslined over the top rope by Michaels and Johnson. Shawn hits Yoko with the Sweet Chin Music and then Johnson hits him with a splash to win the match. This one got a bit tedious in the middle, the booking maybe going just a touch too far in making Shawn the centerpiece. (2.5/5)

After another Bill Clinton segment, we get a video package hyping our main event. I really liked this video.

Main event time - Diesel vs. Bret Hart for Diesel's WWE World Championship in a No DQ/No Countout Match. Considering that the mid-90s WWE is known for outrageous gimmicks and all sorts of goofy storylines, this match has a remarkable "big fight" feel, a much more serious and competitive tone than most of the main events of the time. Part of that comes from this being a rare babyface/babyface contest and the commentators having no choice but to essentially call it down the middle, giving each guy credit for their abilities. Diesel controls early, dropping Hart neck-first on the guardrail and then continuing to punish him on the arena floor. Hart's hope spots are all cut off by Diesel's power, leading to the Hitman getting sent into the steel steps and then ran back-first into the post. Diesel grabs a chair and smashes it over Bret's back, which seems overly heelish, but he still has some fans cheering for him when he calls for the Jackknife. Diesel attempts it twice, but Bret is able to fight (and bite!) his way out! Bret applies a "sleeper" that is more like an eye rake and then goes after Diesel's legs, the Hitman finally able to get to work on his gameplan. Bret applies a figure four, which gets a huge reaction, and, as pointed out on the commentary, is a callback to their second match. Speaking of the commentary, its worth noting just how many times JR makes reference to their previous matches - its the kind of thing we don't get enough of and the attention to detail is just another reason the presentation of this match feels different and more legitimate than anything else on the show. Bret attempts a Sharpshooter but Diesel shoves him away and then kicks him off, sending the Hitman into an uncovered turnbuckle. Bret manages to slide out of the ring, though, pulling Diesel's legs with him and sending them into the post. Bret then grabs an electric cord and ties Diesel's left ankle to the corner. Tied to the corner, Diesel can not escape a double axehandle and the Hitman grabs a chair to try to capitalize even more. As Bret approaches, Diesel is able to fight him away at first, but the Hitman then delivers a series of strikes into Diesel's back and leg. The crowd turns on Bret a little bit there, shocked to see him go to such extremes. Bret manages to him with a backbreaker, Diesel still tethered to the corner. Bret makes his way to the top rope with the chair, but Diesel crotches him. Diesel then sends him to the center of the ring with an awesome press slam and then unties himself. Diesel sells the damage to his knee very well but still has the strength to hit Bret with a sidewalk slam and then an irish whip back into the exposed turnbuckle - a trademark Bret bump. Diesel delivers some of his own trademark offense, but its all labored and broken up by lengthy gaps of time because of his exhaustion. The pacing is just beautiful, the match really feeling like a struggle, not the "you're turn/my turn" bullshit we get too often today. Bret takes over again, but ends up crashing to the arena floor when he attempts his over-the-top rope splash and Diesel dodges it. Bret tries to make his way back into the ring, but Diesel meets him at the apron and shoves him from the apron through a table! That is one of the all-time great table bumps and the crowd's reaction is unreal. Diesel calls for a Jackknife, but Bret is just dead weight. Diesel lets him fall and then attempts it again - only to get rolled up for a 3 count! Diesel shoves Hebner down to the mat and then powerbombs Bret before taking a number of other officials. While most fans boo him, there are still some audible cheers for the post-match attack. An absolute classic match that absolutely deserves consideration as being one of the Top 10 WWE matches of the 90s. I was shocked to see that this match was 25 minutes because it was so good and spirited and suspenseful from beginning to end. (5/5)



An otherwise below-average show, Survivor Series 95' is rescued by its main event, an absolute masterpiece and arguably Kevin "Diesel" Nash's best match ever. The opener isn't too terrible - it may even be the best of the Survivors matches on the card depending on how much Shawn Michaels melo-drama you can stomach - and there are other interesting moments scattered elsewhere on the show (seeing a still-developing Goldust, the all-too-brief spotlight given to some of the international talent in the women's match, the lunacy of the Bill Clinton Impersonator skits), but this is a "One Match Show" that will only appeal to fans interested in a trip down the New Generation memory lane. With a Kwang Score of 2.25-out-of-5, I'm going with a...

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver