I most definitely caught this show live when it happened, but its been awhile and I needed something to watch while I jogged on my treadmill so...
After a lengthy video recapping the latest state of affairs between Vince McMahon and Steve Austin, a feud that was now full into its 2nd year, we get Hardcore Holly vs. X-Pac. If I'm not mistaken, Vince Russo was still in charge so this tournament is more about storyline progression than putting on great matches (like Bret in 93') or establishing a new superstar (like 94', 96', or 97'). Holly and Waltman try to deliver something good by working stiffly and not wasting any time, but they also only get 3 minutes before the bell is rung as Holly has gotten himself DQ'd for using a chair. In the Attitude Era, this was not only acceptable but had become the norm, which means nobody was invested in this tournament at all and winning it meant nothing because, to be crowned King, your path was likely littered with schmozz endings and DQs. (1/5)
Kane vs. Big Show is next. I was surprised how fun this started out as Kane really went out of his way to make Big Show look like not just his equal, but actually the even stronger monster. Unfortunately, after a promising start, the match swiftly turns into the drizzling shits as a ref bump leads to a Hardcore Holly run-in (this, by the way, marks his third segment on the show as he was interviewed backstage by Terry Taylor prior to this match) and then a god awful stretch where Kane applies a choke on Show that seems to go much, much longer than it was ever intended to (maybe there was a ref botch or something?). Eventually, Kane opts to just bash Show with a chair in order to advance in the tournament. I guess this was supposed to protect Big Show, but because this match fell apart so awkwardly and terribly, neither guy benefitted one bit. (1/5)
"Mr. Ass" Billy Gunn takes on Ken Shamrock next. At WrestleMania a few months prior, DX had split as Triple H and Chyna (and Gunn, later, IIRC) turned heel, leaving X-Pac and Road Dogg as babyfaces. Shamrock, meanwhile, was in his own storyline feud with the McMahons and had been attacked by Steve Blackman (at Vince's behest, I believe) on the Sunday Night Heat pre-show, causing him to the come to the ring (after taking out a bunch of EMTs) with blood already dripping out of his mouth. Again, the emphasis of this match is on the shenanigans that happened earlier in the show and not at all on Billy Gunn. Ken Shamrock being a nutcase was one of my friends' favorite things about the WWE, but it was definitely more about laughing at his ridiculous delivery and overacting more than it was actually thinking he was cool. After a few minutes and Shamrock coughing up more blood, Teddy Long stops the match and awards it to Billy Gunn. That's 2 non-finishes and a screwy finish if you're keeping score at home. This gets a half-point just because Shamrock is so ridiculous here. (0.5/5)
Backstage, Chyna cuts a promo before her match with Road Dogg. Chyna cut a promo before the match about growing up and wanting to be a princess, but now wanting to be the first Queen of the Ring. In hindsight, I think they should've went with her as the winner as she was way more over than the person who got the nod instead. This match should've been a somewhat big deal as there was plenty of history between Road Dogg and Chyna and they do get a touch more time, but because we're talking about Road Dogg and Chyna, that's not necessarily a good thing. Road Dogg always worked better for me as a tag wrestler or a bumping manager because nothing he does looks at all tough. Chyna, meanwhile, always came across to me as stiff and robotic in the ring, though she at least looked intimidating. Triple H is on the outside, playing second fiddle for the last time in his career really as he'd be fully thrust into the main event by the end of the summer (and would be cheating on real-life girlfriend Chyna with the boss's daughter, Stephanie McMahon, by the end of the year if I'm not mistaken). Because of his interference, Triple H is ejected by the commissioner, Shawn Michaels. If I recall correctly, he was brought in on TV in 99' basically just because WWE was paying him all along, but he does not look too excited to be on TV and was still a drug addict at this point. There's a decent finish in this match as Chyna attempts a low blow but Road Dogg came prepared with a cup and gets the win with his pump handle slam. As other reviewers have noted, this might actually be the best match of the night so far, but that still doesn't make it good. (1.5/5)
Edge and Christian (still with Gangrel) take on The Hardys (with Michael "P.S" Hayes as their manager) next. These two teams go out and actually have to accomplish something and get over and you can see it in the effort they put into this brief match (the runtime is less than 5 minutes), loading this with as much high-impact and speedy offense as they possibly can, including a nifty moment when Jeff Hardy goes for the Air Hardy and gets driven to the mat with a spear from Edge instead. This is really just a teaser for when they would start stealing the show in the fall and then blow people away with a triangle ladder match at WrestleMania 2000 featuring the Dudley Boys. (2/5)
Before the next match, Vince McMahon cuts a promo and attempts to cancel tonight's match with Austin, but Shawn Michaels nixes that idea. McMahon then explains that he wasn't going to cancel the match after all - he was just going to find a suitable replacement. Its a bit confusing and feels unnecessary anyway as this could've been a backstage segment. This entire show feels more like an episode of RAW than something worth paying $50 to see.
Mr. Ass takes on Kane next. Another nothing match with a screwy finish as Big Show clocks Kane in the head with a chair to give Gunn the win. The WWE ratings were super high at this time for their TV shows and they were selling out arenas worldwide, but its also worth noting that much of this popularity was delivered on the shoulders of a handful of giants that got over HUGE in 98', namely Steve Austin and Vince McMahon and then Mankind and The Rock. The "crash TV" style without these characters resulted in crap like this tournament and, in WCW, drove the company's ratings and credibility into the ground. (1/5)
X-Pac vs. The Road Dogg is the other half of the semi-finals. Road Dogg vs. Gunn for the crown would've made more storyline sense, but also would've meant that the Road Dogg wrestled three matches on a show and even Vince Russo, who famously couldn't care less about the in-ring product, probably recognized that that was an awful idea. So X-Pac wins in under 4 minutes instead. (1/5)
The WWE Championship is on the line next as The Rock challenged the The Undertaker. This match had a bizarre overbooked start (surprise surprise) as Taker took out the ref but then got Rock Bottom'ed and ate a visual pin, which popped the crowd but also made The Undertaker look very weak. That sort of spot would've worked great against a cowardly heel - even a Triple H - but against the Undertaker, it was just too gimmicky. Like most of the Attitude Era main events of the time, many minutes were spent out of the ring, brawling up the aisleway and using chairs and whatnot to keep the crowd engaged. Eventually, there was a rag of ether and then a Triple H run-in that cost The Rock his match. The crowd enjoyed this way more than I did watching it 20+ years later, which is why I want to give this a sub-average score but can't deny that The Rock was so over that even a sub-average match out of him was enough to pop 20,000 plus fans and keep them at the edge of their seat from overbooked beginning to overbooked end. I believe the Undertaker was working through quite a few injuries at this point in his career, desperately needing time off but also not wanting to miss out on the biggest paydays of his career against such strong babyfaces as The Rock and Austin. (2.5/5)
The Finals of the King of the Ring tournament are next as "Mr. Ass" Billy Gunn faces X-Pac. I read that X-Pac was injured coming into the show, which makes it a bit surprising that they'd have him wrestle in three matches on the show, but then again, when your only alternative is the Road Dogg, you're kinda stuck. Of course, a Gunn/Road Dogg finals would've seemed natural considering their history but...yeah...it would've sucked even worse than this match. Cheers to X-Pac for working hard to produce something good, but the Billy Gunn singles run was DOA (and I'm not talking about Skull and 8Ball). After Gunn wins the match in 5 minutes, with a top rope Fameasser (which could've felt like a big deal if it actually been built up after a "classic" Fameasser didn't do the job), he doesn't even get a coronation moment...which just goes to show how little anybody in the back cared at all about this tournament, its "prestige," or Gunn himself. (1.5/5)
Multiple backstage segments on this show have revolved around the main event (with "Stone Cold" himself never appearing on-screen), including one before the last match where Shawn Michaels banished Triple H from the building for interfering in the WWE Title match, thus eliminating Vince's top choice for a replacement tag partner for Shane. So, instead, Vince McMahon makes his way down the aisle and announces Steve Blackman as his partner. Of course, that plan is also ruined by Shawn Michaels, who sees on a GDTV/GTV feed (look it up if you're unfamiliar with this aborted gimmick), that Shane McMahon is actually 100% healthy and is fully capable of tagging with his old man against Steve Austin for control of the WWE. Speaking of Austin, he comes in and gets a mega-pop as expected, running roughshod over the McMahons after they try to walk out (a move by the McMahons that makes absolutely no sense considering that they'd then be essentially forfeiting a match that has the highest possible stakes for them). Austin gets a big pop when he pulls Shane crotch-first into the post but this buys time for Vince to recover on the outside and the McMahons gain control by beating down the Rattlesnake 2-on-1. Austin fights back, though, and sends Shane into the steps before beating down Vince in the aisleway. Shane makes his way over and ends up on top of the ladder-made set. Austin follows him up and Shane comes down, though its not captured very well on camera. Austin sends the McMahons through the various ladders, eventually causing the whole thing to collapse in a cool visual that the crowd gives a huge reaction to (though, on camera, its clear that the McMahons weren't really crushed all that much). Austin brings a ladder into the ring in order to retrieve the briefcase but the McMahons ends up chasing him down, only to get knocked around with the ladder some more. Austin shoves Shane onto the Spanish Announce Table and sets up a ladder, coming down onto him with his trademark elbow in a spot I'm honestly surprised Stone Cold did (and I was even more surprised when he climbed back up on the ladder and ending up getting sent into a table himself by Vince). Vince sets up the ladder in the middle of the ring but he can't reach the briefcase. Austin stops him with a low blow and then pulls Vince over the ladder, ramming his head into the steel rungs before pulling him onto the arena floor. Shane comes in but he gets cut off too, stomped out in the corner. Austin uses the ladder to continue to punish both McMahons and looks to have the match sewn up, with Shane in particular taking a hell of a beating. Austin sets up the ladder and climbs to the top, but Vince dumps the ladder and Austin goes down. I like how Vince and Shane try to win the match without using a ladder next and Austin bringing them both down in a heap. I can understand that moments like these are maybe a touch too comedic but the McMahons doing Three Stooges bits always got a huge reaction. Austin climbs atop the ladder but, inexplicably, the briefcase is pulled up closer to the ceiling. Among my friends, there was always a question as to "Who Raised the Briefcase?" but its clear now the intention was never to really answer that question, just to make it clear that the McMahons were able to "pull strings" and have company employees do their bidding. In all the confusion, Shane McMahon retrieves the briefcase and the McMahons have regained control of the WWE. There's not much a "match" here, but there are some fun moments and the crowd is absolutely into it. I wouldn't consider this a highlight of Austin's run when he had so many better matches and moments. (3/5)
With a pretty woeful Kwang Score of 1.5-out-of-5, King of the Ring 99' is a dreadful show only somewhat salvaged by a "good enough" main event, a decent World Championship match between The Rock and The Undertaker (mostly due to a hot crowd), and a tag team bout that shows off the chemistry between Hardys and Edge & Christian and is a textbook definition of "maximizing your minutes." The King of the Ring tournament itself has to be in contention for the worst versions ever, though it does have some stiff competition in the 95' version that saw Mabel get the crown. Recommended to only the most ardent supporters of Vince Russo...
FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver
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