The Fed Zone: Reviewing WWF 1995

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #117

Date: 26 June 1995
Location: Whitey McCloskey Center; Danville, PA
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Shawn Michaels

TONIGHT: It's the fallout from King of the Ring and Jeff Jarrett defends the IC Title!

We're in another high school gym for this set of tapings, as Vince welcomes us and his co-commentator for the night, Shawn Michaels, to the show. Jerry is still getting his mouth sorted or something.

The Smoking Gunns def. The Black Phantom & Jason Arhndt (1:41)
The Gunns apparently want revenge on MoM but it sounds like they'll have to get in line. Billy and Phantom start the match and Billy works him over. Both men tag and Bart catches Arhndt with a vertical suplex as the Gunns assert themselves. Billy is tagged back in and the Gunns finish Arhndt with a Sidewinder. The highlight of this was HBK making lots of subtle jabs at Sir Mo (who was pretty much universally hated at the time in the back).

We now catch up with Jerry Lawler at the office of his dentist, Isaac Yankem DDS, and apparently the loss to Bret Hart has affected King's oral hygiene badly. Yankem is, funnily enough, a wrestler as well as a dentist, and he's coming for Bret Hart. Yankem is, of course, none other than Glenn Jacobs (a.k.a. Kane) but we'll meet him soon.

Skip def. Scott Taylor (2:13)
Usual Sunny promo to start, as she continues to lap Skip in terms of both fan interest and charisma. Skip does some high-fives in the ring and goes for a pop shot on Taylor but misses. Taylor works Skip a bit, but the fitness bod drops him with an enzuiguiri and then parades himself around the ring a bit. Taylor actually gets his shit in though and dropkicks Skip out of the ring, before sending him into the barricade outside with a baseball slide. Skip halts his momentum pretty fast though and trips him from the outside, slamming him on the floor before levelling him with a plancha. Skip then takes his opponent to the top for a hurricanrana and gets the pin. Neat finish. As much as I've called the action, pretty much all the focus was on Sunny here.

King of the Ring Report now with Todd, as he wraps up the action from last night and plugs the main event for In Your House 2: Sid vs. Diesel in a Lumberjack Match. Meanwhile, Savio Vega and Jeff Jarrett cut promos ahead of their match later tonight.

Man Mountain Rock def. Phil Apollo (1:20)
Usual guitar solo introduction for Man Mountain Rock, who is still getting something of a push (at least for now). This is mostly a backdrop to talk about the Backlund presidency angle. Rock hits Apollo with a belly-to-belly and then beats on him a bit until it's time to go home with the Whammy Bar. Get this loser off my screen, please.

King Mabel def. Kenny Kendall (2:33)
They have four poor schmucks carry Mabel's fat ass out to the ring on his throne and that doesn't look fun. Inside the ring, Mabel roughs up his opponent and screams about being King. He whomps Kendall with an ugly-ass enzuiguiri and then tosses him into the steps on the outside. Back in the ring, Mabel is being compared to Henry VIII (I guess he gets a lot of bitches too) as he finishes Kendall with a belly-to-belly. This push is instantly DOA.

What isn't DOA is this awesome Waylon Mercy character, who debuts on RAW next week. Dan Spivey delivers the material really well, it's just a shame he couldn't really go in the ring.

Also, we're just a week away from hearing Jarrett's new single WITH MY BABY TONIGHT and oh boy, I'm excited.

Intercontinental Championship: Savio Vega def. Jeff Jarrett (c) via DQ (5:30 shown)
Roadie distracts the guy who pinned him last night to allow Jeff Jarrett to take control early on. Savio responds though and manages to avoid getting a boot to the face in the corner. He hits a flying punch for a near fall, before Jarrett manages to get him into a corner and work the challenger over. Vega fights back but Roadie tries to get involved and ends up getting knocked off the apron. The match moves to the outside now, as Savio clotheslines Jarrett, while Shawn has some fun on commentary and pulls on Roadie's dreads. Back from a break, Jarrett gets a two off a snap suplex and Roadie tries to attack Savio's throat with the ropes while Jarrett distracts the ref. Vega makes a comeback though and connects with his own suplex, as both men are down. Vega gets his arm over for two and then levels Jarrett with a chokeslam. Roadie tries to trip Savio now but gets kicked back onto the announce table, where Shawn plays with his hair once again and pushes him back. They get into it and Jarrett tries to sneak attack HBK, but Shawn has his number and beats on him, before throwing him back in the ring. Savio then goes for a victory roll, but Roadie runs in to save Jarrett's title and give Savio a DQ win. The stuff at ringside with Shawn was more interesting than anything in the match itself but it was fine for a TV match, I guess. *½

Post-match, HBK helps Savio even the odds, effectively setting up the Jarrett/HBK feud heading in to the next PPV. Shawn is over as hell (like, scarily more over than anyone else on this show) and that's how we finish things off this week.

Not a terrible show this week but there's not a whole lot to sing about right now and I have very little interest in any of the programmes they have going. Slight thumbs down.

NEXT WEEK: Bam Bam Bigelow goes one-on-one with Sid and Waylon Mercy debuts!

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #118

Date: 3 July 1995
Location: Whitey McCloskey Center; Danville, PA (taped)
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: Sid clashes with Bam Bam and we get to see Double J's music video!

Jerry Lawler is back as usual this week but still has some bad breath in what's surely not going to be a really irritating running gag throughout the episode.

Dueling promos between SID and Bam Bam now. This clash is certainly one of the matches that ever happened.

The 1-2-3 Kid def. Mike Bell (3:03)
Despite getting flattened by MoM a little over a week ago, Kid is back to face Mike Bell. Kid gets an early clothesline but Bell boots him in the corner to cut off the momentum. Kid gets back in the game though and does a form of seated senton dive from the apron to the floor, wiping out Bell. A spinning heel kick form Kid connects and he pin Bell with an Oklahoma Roll. Kind of a weak finish there but good to have Kid back.

In Your House Report with Todd now, as he announces some of the lumberjacks for the Diesel vs. Sid match at the PPV. We'll also be getting Roadie vs. 1-2-3 Kid, The Allied Powers vs. Owen Hart & Yokozuna and Jarrett vs. Shawn for the IC Title. Delicious, finally some good f***ing food.

Big moment now (as I'm not covering Superstars) as we get a first glimpse at "With My Baby Tonight", as it's revealed that Double J can sing! This song is actually a banger, and taking the character in the "oh, he's good" direction rather than just making him a goof out of the gate is a surprisingly erudite move from WWF in this era.

Bob Holly def. The Brooklyn Brawler (2:54)
Holly gets knocked down early but recovers and executes a flying head scissors on Brawler before working the arm. Brawler gets him down with the leg and works some heat (if I'm being less generous, more like mild annoyance). Holly works out of that though and connects with a dropkick, before hitting the flying body press from the turnbuckle to put Brawler down for three.

Henry O. Godwinn def. Barry Horowitz (2:57)
Godwinn has started a mini-feud with Adam Bomb after "slopping" him on Superstars. I wouldn't give that too much thought. HOG overpowers poor Barry to begin with, as the latter continues battling for his first victory. The fans seem to be getting behind him though, so the storyline is working. Horowitz tries to keep his head above water, but HOG clotheslines him and follows that up with a knee drop. Horowitz then manages to hit a knee lift though and evades a corner charge, as the crowd start to chant his name. Have I missed something here? When did he get this popular? Unfortunately, he misses a dropkick and HOG finishes him with the Slop Drop for the win.

Post-match, Godwinn continues hanging out at ringside as Sid makes his entrance for our featured match. DiBiase seems to gesture to him about something, so I guess that won't be the last we see of him tonight. As he heads up the aisle during Bam Bam's entrance, the two big boys start trading fists, but the referees manage to break it up.

Sycho Sid def. Bam Bam Bigelow (5:42 shown)
Sid gets an advantage early but spends too long taunting the crowd and misses a clothesline, as Bigelow takes him down with a body tackle. Bam Bam continues to foil Sid's attacks and attempts at using DiBiase as a distraction, as Bigelow connects with a DDT. Beast from the East in charge. Bigelow goes up top but then decides to chase DiBiase around and gets jumped by Sid. Sid hits a big boot on Bigelow now and puts the beating to him, as the crowd actually boo him. Well, maybe that's real. Back from a break and Sid has Bam Bam caught in a REST HOLD. Bam Bam powers out of that and hits Sid with the electric chair, but he charges the corner and eats boot sole. Sid chokeslams him and goes for the Power Bomb but Bigelow reverses with a backdrop. He climbs to the top now for the flying headbutt, but Ted has the ref distracted and Godwinn returns to push Bigelow off his perch. I guess that's a new feud then. Sid gets the cover and the fall is enough to put Bigelow out for three. Couldn't just give Sid a dominant win, then?
Post-match, Sid gives Bigelow a Power Bomb for good measure. This was not very good and went through the motions, but I think I liked it more than the King of the Ring match. *¼

Waylon Mercy def. Jeff Hardy(!) (2:59)
This isn't Jeff's first rodeo on RAW, as he got decimated by Razor as Keith Davis previously. It's the first under his own name though and I can't imagine he was more than 17 or 18 here. This is also the Waylon Mercy debut following all those cool vignettes. He shakes everyone's hand to start, including Jeff's, but turns all psycho when the bell rings. It's kind of like a thinking man's Festus. Hardy gets nothing in here as Mercy just destroys him, doing real evil, vicious shit like choking him on the rope. He finishes the poor kid Nero off with a brainbuster and sleeper combo. Not a bad start but Spivey was looking old and broken at this point.

Lawler is in the dentist waiting room now, and this segment feels like it goes on forever before Isaac Yankem, a.k.a. Kane, emerges from his office. And he looks ugly! He had just made the jump from SMW of course, which was going down like a house on fire at this point. That's pretty much our lot for this week.

Similar to last week, this wasn't the worst show they've done lately and had some interesting new developments (the Mercy debut, a new feud for Bam Bam, the introduction of Yankem) but the action didn't really hit and I remain fairly bored by the overall direction of the company. Thumbs down.

NEXT WEEK: The Allied Powers take on King Kong Bundy and Tatanka...oh dear lord.

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #119

Date: 10 July 1995
Location: Whitey McCloskey Center; Danville, PA (taped)
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: The Allied Powers take on Tatanka and King Kong Bundy Henry O. Godwinn!

Vince and Jerry are back in Danville as we get a retrospective on the chaos Sid has been causing since his return to the WWF.

The Roadie def. Jerry Flynn (2:41)
Roadie gets a head lock early but Flynn hip tosses Roadie and gets some brief control with the arm. Roadie punches out of it but Flynn shows some fire and kicks away at Roadie in the corner. Flynn then makes a charge but eats boot and then gets elbow dropped by Roadie. Flynn tries for an enzuiguiri to get back in it but misses and Roadie goes for a single leg crab. Flynn gets out of the submission but Roadie catches him with a Power Bomb and pins him. Is this guy Sid or something? Actually a fun little squash here as they went about even.

We now, for some reason, get a retrospective on Jeff Jarrett in the WWF, all the way up to another airing of "With My Baby Tonight". Were they short of material for tonight or something?

Savio Vega def. Mike Khoury (1:52)
Savio has got some pep in his step tonight and takes over early, batting off Khoury's attempted strikes and chopping the shit out of him in the corner. Khoury tries to reverse the situation, but Savio back drops him and maintains control. He puts Khoury in the abdominal stretch to wear him down and then cradles him for a three count. He'll team with Razor at IYH2 to take on Men on a Mission.

Vince welcomes Sycho Sid to the ring now for an interview, although DiBiase does pretty much all of the talking as they introduce their 15 lumberjacks for the Championship match at IYH2. Damn, Jimmy Del Ray made the cut! And shit, Mantaur is still around. Sid does his usual bit about being the ruler of the world and this was segment was just there really.

In other news, Barry Horowitz finally won a match on Wrestling Challenge over Skip, which of course produced the famous JR call "HOROWITZ WINS! HOROWITZ WINS!". Good for Barry.

Hunter Hearst Helmsley def. Matt Hardy (3:12)
Triple H vs. Matt Hardy in 1995 feels like an acid trip. Helmsley does his usual slow and deliberate start, methodically working away at Hardy's arm. Vince actually adresses the negative reception towards King of the Ring during this, which is something. Also, Jack Tunney is retired as WWF president, so we'll be getting a new authority figure soon. Hunter continues the beat down and takes out Hardy with a delayed suplex. Hardy gets a brief hope spot off a boot in the corner, but Hunter blocks the moonsault attempt and finishes Brother Matt with the Pedigree.

In Your House Report now with Todd, who announces more matches for the upcoming PPV, including Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Henry O. Godwinn. Meaty men slapping meat!

The Allied Powers def. Tatanka & Henry O. Godwinn (5:53 shown)
So King Kong Bundy was advertised last week but has pneumonia. Which would make sense, except all of these episodes were taped? So what's up with that? In any case, I'm not sure we even see Bundy again but I could be wrong. Tatanka and Lex Luger start and oh boy do I not need to see them wrestle again. Tatanka hits Luger with a DDT, but Luger fights back. Tatanka gets a two count off an elbow smash and works Luger over to the heel corner, where him and HOG launch a double-team assault. Back from a break and Luger is still getting worked over like a geek. Tatanka gets another two off an elbow smash and tags Godwinn in, who slams Luger but misses the elbow drop. Both men tag out and Bulldog runs wild. He hits Tatanka with a vertical suplex for two as the crowd starts to heat up. Godwinn then trips Bulldog from the outside, allowing Tatanka to slam him and head up top. He can't capitalise though, as Davey Boy recovers and hits the running powerslam for the win. Well, Luger really helped out there. This was alright but mostly just heat on Luger with a decent enough finishing sequence. *¼

We finish on another visit to the office of Isaac Yankem DDS, as he drills a poor patient while Jerry sits around and asks questions. Very cheesy stuff here, even by King standards.

Pretty crappy show this week, as everything ft like filler and the company clearly doesn't care enough right now to properly build to the minor PPV coming up. Thumbs way down.

NEXT WEEK: Shawn Michaels meets IRS and we find out who Diesel's lumberjacks are!

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #120

Date: 17 July 1995
Location: Whitey McCloskey Center; Danville, PA (taped)
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: Shawn Michaels beats up the tax man and Diesel introduces us to his lumberjacks!

We open with duelling promos from IRS and Shawn Michaels ahead of their featured match. Vince and Jerry then welcome us to the show, as it's our final night in Danville.

Owen Hart & Yokozuna def. James Dimitri & Gus Kantarakis (2:55)
Hey, the jobber team is matching tonight! Owen kicks off the match and takes control, but Dimitri gets a hold of the arm and the jobbers actually work Owen over in their corner a bit! Owen levels Kantarakis with a clothesline and dropkicks the life out of him. He tags Yoko in now, and they do the drop toe hold and legdrop combo to pretty much end this one as a contest. Owen synches in the Sharpshooter and Dimitri taps.

A final In Your House Report now ahead of the PPV as Todd runs down the card. Here's what's on tap:

• WWF Championship: Diesel (c) vs. Sid in a Lumberjack Match
• Intercontinental Championship: Jeff Jarrett (c) vs. Shawn Michaels
• World Tag Team Championships: Owen Hart & Yokozuna (c) vs. The Allied Powers
• Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Henry O. Godwinn
• Razor Ramon & Savio Vega vs. Men on a Mission
• The Roadie vs. The 1-2-3 Kid

Jean-Pierre Lafitte def. David Thornberg (2:33)
Feel like we haven't seen Lafitte in a while. He absorbs a bunch of clotheslines to start before decking Thornberg with one of his own and then nails him with a German Suplex. On the outside, Lafitte flies at Thornberg with a clothesline, as Vince speculates he may be the reason for things going missing in the locker room. Maybe the Repo Man is back?! Lafitte does his usual routine of tying up his opponent in the ropes and hitting them full force, before connecting with a DDT. A cannonball senton from the top wins the day.

We get a Fatu vignette now, as his singles career is about to begin post-Headshrinkers. He takes us to his hometown and tells kids to say nope to dope.

Look, I love the song, but they play "With My Baby Tonight" for a third week in a row and it's starting to feel like overkill.

Shawn Michaels def. IRS (8:38 shown)
Shawn tries to get a quick start in this as the crowd come alive for him, and puts IRS in an ARMBAR. IRS ropes his way out of that and tries to bail, but HBK brings him back in and hits a forearm smash for a two count, before grabbing a REST HOLD. Is he playing IRS at his own game here? IRS works out of that eventually and evades a charge from HBK, who flies to the outside. IRS takes the chance to send to Shawn into the steps and takes some control of the bout. Shawn fires back though and slingshots into the ring for a sunset flip, which gets two. IRS catches him with a shot to the stomach though and then locks in the abdominal stretch, for a long and boring sequence that brings the match to a standstill. Back from a break and Shawn is still caught in a hold, but IRS has transitioned to a head lock now. IRS then slams Shawn but gets caught with a dive from the top as both men are down. Shawn goes high now and hits the double axe-handle for two. Shawn signals for some Sweet Chin Music but IRS avoids it and hits the Write-Off. He then goes for a whip into the corner for some reason, but Shawn is able to engineer this sequence into a super kick and falls on IRS for the three count. This was IRS' last TV match ever for the company, although he will be one of the lumberjacks at the PPV. He shows up in WCW later in the year. This was okay but IRS matches are a chore and even Shawn couldn't get something that great out of him. *¾

We get another Isaac Yankem DDS promo now as he terrorises a child and Lawler continues his verbal onslaught at Bret Hart and his family.

Kama def. Russ Greenberg (2:02)
The announcer calls the jobber the wrong name and gets a telling off to start. That's great. Kama puts the beating on Greenberg early and rolls him up for two. Greenberg rallies and hits a missile dropkick, but then eats Kama's boot on the follow-up. Kama works Greenberg over in the corner now and is in firm control. A right-hand strike puts Greenberg down and Kama gets the pin. Afterwards, Kama gets in the faces of the goth kids at ringside as he leaves.

It's interview time now with Diesel. He proclaims victory at IYH2 and introduces us to his lumberjacks, which include Shawn Michaels. He gives Diesel the high-five. Sid arrives next and comes down the aisle as we go to a break. Back from the break and Sid is on the apron, as his lumberjacks arrive behind him for the big stand-off. Sid and his boys eventually back-off and leave their adversaries to celebrate. Well, that didn't make Sid look like a bitch at all.

Well, there you have it. A "go-home" episode alright, but not exactly a great sell for the PPV. I won't complain about a HBK match on TV though. Thumbs down.

NEXT WEEK: Bret Hart vs. Hakushi part deux! And the fallout from In Your House 2.

 

[ChristianCaged]

In Your House 2

Date: 23 July 1995
Location: Nashville Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, TN
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

Double J returns to Music City and leaves the WWF on the same night...

We get an opening video package with the In Your House theme music before Vince and Jerry — decked in cowboy garb — welcome us to the show.

The Roadie def. The 1-2-3 Kid (7:26)
D-Generation X explode! Before they even exist! No Jarrett at ringside for this one, as he's getting warmed up for his performance tonight. Kid, who was put out of action by Roadie and Jarrett, starts aggressive and attacks before the bell, outpacing Roadie in the early exchanges and connecting with a spin kick in the corner. He then catches Roadie with a head scissors to the outside and springboards over top boot first. Back in the ring, Roadie catches him with front slam. Jarrett is not even watching backstage, as Vince point out. Roadie nails Kid with a clothesline from the apron and then drives him face first into the post. Back in the ring, Roadie stays on top and works a REST HOLD (but not for too long). He goes high but misses a splash and Kid comes back with a roundhouse for two. He goes high off a slam and connects with a frog splash for two. Roadie then reverses again and catches Kid in power bomb off the rope for a two count. Roadie runs into the turnbuckle but crotches Kid as he goes high before piledriving Kid from the top! Well that looked gnarly as f*** and no way they'd let anyone do that today. Unsurprisingly, that gives Roadie a win. This was a fast-paced, fun opener but ended before it really had a chance to get going. Roadie visibly whiffed a few spots. **¾

Post-match, Roadie makes sure to get the stage ready for Double J's performance.

Sid and Diesel are hanging out backstage with their respective posses of lumberjacks, which are near enough the entire babyface and heel locker rooms.

Men on a Mission def. Razor Ramon & Savio Vega (10:09)
This is of course a follow-on from the events of King of the Ring, not that they've really been pushing it on television. Mo gets in Razor's face to begin and slaps him like a bitch. Razor catches Mo for a fall away slam and tags Savio, who has an awkward exchange with Mo and then clotheslines him down. He recovers and tags Mabel. Savio avoids the avalanche and then kicks both members of MoM in the head. Mabel catches him with a uranage though and chucks him out the ring. Back in the ring, Mabel beats on Savio some more and hits a kick to the back of his head for two. MoM double-team Savio now as Mo hits a suplex and Mabel comes back. Savio foolishly attempts a slam but Mabel falls on him for a near fall. Mabel hurls Savio across ring in a rare impressive move (think Brock just lobbing fools around the ring) while Razor begs for a tag. Razor tries to get in to help, but MoM work a distraction to keep Savio isolated and connect with a drop toe-hold and leg drop combo. Razor breaks up the pin. Mo goes for a moonsault but misses and Savio finally tags Razor, who runs wild. He takes Mo up for his usual turnbuckle back drop and connects. Mo manages to tag Mabel, who goes high, but Razor catches him on top and pulls him down for a 2.9999 count. Mabel regains control soon though and hits a DDT, he then goes for a splash but misses again. Razor makes it to his feet, but only in time to be avalanched in the corner after a slug fest. As Mo has Savio occupied, ?Mabel picks up another big win by belly-to-belly suplexing Razor for three. A surprisingly cromulent tag team match that utilised Mabel just enough without exposing him too much. **½

Jarrett's performance is coming up now as Todd acts like an idiot. Backstage, there's a rumour that DiBiase has bought off a Diesel lumberjack and converted them to his team. I don't think this went anywhere.

Jarrett performs "With My Baby Tonight" and some fans seem genuinely surprised he's good. Clearly they haven't been watching RAW lately!

Bam Bam Bigelow def. Henry O. Godwinn (5:33)
Hilariously, there is literally zero reaction for HOG as he enters. Bam Bam gets a head lock early but HOG back suplexes him. Bam Bam then responds with two of his own and sends HOG to the outside. Back in the ring, Bigelow nails HOG with DDT. Godwinn recovers though and pulls the rope down to send Bigelow tumbling outside, before heading outside himself and slamming him to the floor. He clotheslines Bam Bam back inside for two and then grabs the chin for a REST HOLD. Bam Bam breaks out and hits a flying body press off the ropes, but Godwinn recovers and maintains control. He hits a body slam, followed by an elbow drop, for two. Bam Bam turns things around though after HOG hestistates in corner and sets him up for a flying headbutt, but he misses it. Godwinn goes high now but also whiffs and Bam Bam is able to roll him up for three. The post-match is super awkward here, as Godwinn seems too injured to do the angle with the slop bucket as Bam Bam exits sheepishly. Altogether, a poor match with no heat. ¾*

Intercontinental Championship: Shawn Michaels def. Jeff Jarrett (c) (20:01)
HBK cuts a pre-match promo before Roadie introduces Jarrett to a pretty negative reaction. Shawn gets huge pop bucks comparison and wins the pose off pre-match. Slug fest to start as Shawn cracks Jeff in face and sets him back. Jarrett takes Shawn down now and struts; he then gets the better of a speedy exchange, and sends HBK out of the ring. Shawn now gets the better of Jeff and clotheslines him out the ring while he skins the cat. Always love that spot. Jeff tries to bail now but Shawn embarrasses him and goads him back as Jeff stalls his re-entry. Shawn gets tired and follows him out, but he's caught coming off top once they get back in the ring. He soon turns it around though and hurls Jarrett out on top of Roadie before hitting a flying body press to the outside on both men. The crowd are going bananas for this. Back in the ring and Shawn engineers a sunset flip for two, but Jarrett back bodydrops HBK right out of the ring for a sick bump. Jarrett heads out to bang Shawn's head on steps and takes over. A modified brain buster gets a near fall and then Jarrett puts on the abdominal stretch, using Roadie's hand for leverage until Earl Hebner kicks it away. Shawn whips Jarrett into the ropes now but Double J counters with a DDT. Jarrett then takes out Roadie accidentally as Shawn rolls up Jeff for two. Jeff launches Shawn over thr rope again and occupies the ref while Roadie nails HBK with a clothesline from the apron. Back in ring, Shawn reverses a body press into a near fall, before the two exchange fast counts in a pinning sequence. Jarrett then nails Shawn with a drop kick for a two count and locks in the sleeper. Shawn works out of it though and both men are down following the back body drop. Shawn moves first and covers Jarrett, but he kicks out. Shawn hits a flying clothesline next as fans go crazy. He runs wild and comes off the top with a spinning axe for two. The Macho elbow drop also gets a two and then Shawn crotches Jarrett to the outer post. Roadie returns the favour by crotching Shawn on the ropes and allows Jarrett to super-plex him for a near fall. Shawn wins back control, but Roadie gets involved and chop blocks him while the ref is out. Jarrett gets a 2.99 off a body press but then gets tripped by Roadie accidentally as Shawn connects with Sweet Chin Music to win the title. Great match as these two had instant chemistry and a excellent dynamic to play off, with Shawn being more popular than Jeff in his own home town. The nterference was not too intrusive either, punctuating the match rather than consuming it. Probably the match of the year so far. ****

Backstage, Dok Hendrix reports a potential bust-up between Jarrett and Roadie. The real story of course is that Jarrett and Roadie were not happy about being separated via storyline and wanted to continue their partnership, so both walked out of the company in protest. It all worked out in the end for both of them but man, Roadie leaving just as he was getting a push was a choice.

World Tag Team Champipnships: Owen Hart & Yokozuna (c) def. The Allied Powers (10:54)
Luger and Yoko start and have a strength test as USA chants ring out around the arena. Luger takes charge now and smashes Yoko's head into turnbuckle for the obligatory ten count by the crowd. It's a rough start in general for the champions, as Yoko and Owen get into it after Yoko falls on Owen's foot in the corner. They have a shoving match but Jim Cornette is able to split them up. Owen slaps Luger now and then goes on the attack, but Luger hip tosses him and tags in Davey Boy. Owen does his classic arm work and manoeuvring on Bulldog, but Davey responds with his own technical skills and slingshots him into the babyface corner. Bulldog shoulder blocks Owen now but gets whacked in the heel corner by Yoko and Owen starts to work the leg before tagging Yoko back in. Yoko gets a nerve hold and wears down Bulldog. REST HOLD! He tags Owen, who gets a two off a drop kick before Davey gets his own near fall off a sunset flip. Owen misses a dive into thr corner and gets walloped by the turnbuckle, as the fans will Davey back to his corner by chanting USA? He tags Luger, who takes down Yoko and runs wild on Owen, slamming him from the top turnbuckle before pressing him into Yoko. Luger and Bulldog double clothesline both Owen and Yoko and get a near fall off the latter, before double backdropping Yoko for a big pop. Owen breaks up the pin and takes Bulldog out of the ring, as Yoko hits the legdrop and beats Lex AGAIN. Lex would hang around for a few more weeks but in case it wasn't obvious, he's pretty much done with the WWF. A decent tag match but not exactly outstanding for some of the participants and there wasn't enough Owen for my liking. **

WWF Championship: Diesel (c) def. Sycho Sid in a Lumberjack Match (10:06)
The lumberjacks are out at ringside, ready for thr arrival of Diesel and Sid. Prominent figures on both sides include Shawn, Razor, 1-2-3 Kid and Bam Bam in Diesel's corner, and the Million Dollar Corporation in Sid's. Sid attacks early and hammers away but Diesel gives it right back and throws Sid out to the babyfaces, who hurl him right back in. Diesel slams Sid, who rolls out to his lumberjacks and takes a breather. Diesel then gets launched out by Sid and the heels all put the boots to him, until the faces make the save Sid goes for a pin to take advantage but Diesel kicks at one. Sid continues the assault and focuses on the ribs before clotheslining Sid to the mat. I just noticed the Kliq all standing together at ringside, besides Hunter (who is in Sid's corner obviously). Diesel responds and drops Sid to the mat before delivering an elbow. Diesel then dives to the outside (which looks pretty sick) and goes after the heels in a dumb move. Diesel gets back in and gives Sid snake eyes but Mabel trips him and avalanches him into the post on the outside, before slamming him to the floor and dropping the leg. MoM throw Diesel back in while the other lumberjacks brawl and Sid grinds Diesel down. It's REST HOLD time as Sid jams his knee into Diesel's back and softens him up for the power bomb. He hits it but starts to celebrate too early and Diesel obviously kicks out. Diesel back drops Sid now as both men are down. Sid gets up and then rushes the face lumberjacks, as HBK gives him the axe handle from the top. Back in the ring, Diesel goes for the Jackknife, but has to fend off the MDC first. Amidst thr chaos, he connects with a big boot to Sid and apparently that's enough to end this godforsaken feud. An unequivocally terrible match once again between these two, which had some bells and whistles keeping it out of DUD territory, but I found it worse than their IYH1 encounter. 1/2*

Post-match, Diesel celebrates with the other babyfaces while Mabel berates him from the outside, clearly setting up our next world title programme.

Overall

This show is a real mixture of highs and lows, as we get the WWF MOTY so far and one of the worst main events we'll see all year (and trust me, there's a lot of bad ones). This did have more energy than the last couple of PPVs though and the average of the card came in a little higher. This Diesel title reign just weighs everything down though. Let's call it a 5/10.

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #121

Date: 24 July 1995
Location: Louisville Gardens; Louisville, KY
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: Bret Hart and Hakushi settle the score and we meet a mean professor called Dean Douglas!

We reflect on Shawn Michaels winning the Intercontinental Championship at IYH2 as HBK himself makes his way to the ring to rapturous applause. This is the debut of the new RAW set, with the big letters at the entrance way rather than the colourful arch.

Shawn Michaels def. Jimmy Del Ray (5:21)
This is actually Del Ray's final match in the WWF, as The Heavenly Bodies soon became the latest in a long line of releases around this time. Del Ray gets a cheap shot in early but Shawn quickly gains control and sends Jimmy over the rope with a clothesline. He hits a baseball slide but misses the next and Prichard gets a hold of HBK. He averts the double team attack though and sends Del Ray back inside. Del Ray gets a low blow off though with the ref's back turned and taunts Shawn with his signature pose. After some control for Del Ray with Prichard's help, Shawn gets a sunset flip off for two, but Jimmy responds with a clothesline, followed by a reverse neckbreaker for two. Del Ray then heads to the top but whiffs the splash. Shawn kips up and heads to the top for the big elbow drop, which connects for two. He sets up for Sweet Chin Music but Prichard interjects and gets a super kick for his trouble. This gives Del Ray an opening, but Shawn counters and connects with Sweet Chin Music for three. A pretty fun and surprisingly competitive little contest here. I dig it. **½

Vince and Jerry cover off the Double J and Roadie situation and reference the fact that Jarrett was supposedly lip synching. That's pretty much all they could do to tie this one off as both men had taken their ball and gone home.

The Smoking Gunns def. John Faulkner & Rich Stockhauser (2:02)
Billy Gunn gets it going with Faulkner, with the latter getting some shots in early and tagging Stockhauser to play the numbers game. Billy works out of it though and tags Bart, who goes wild on Stockhauser. The Gunns hit the Sidewinder for the win and that's all. These guys are just kind of floating in the aether at the moment.

After this Barry Didinsky clown shills some more godawful merch, we get a first teaser for Goldust. No creepy promos yet but they're coming.

Meanwhile, Fatu is out on the mean streets of San Francisco and takes us to the Cow Palace. This Do the Right Fatu gimmick is lousy.

Waylon Mercy def. Gary Scott (2:01)
As usual, Mercy is all smiles and handshakes to begin but cheap shots his opponent to begin. He beats down Scott and then hurls him outside. He lets him back in and even graciously pulls the bottom rope up for him, only to let it snap down on Scott as he rolls under. I love that spot. Mercy roughs up Scott some more and slams him on the outside, before finishing with the sleeper while he pulls a crazy face. Another fun squash here but you sense the longer his matches go the worse they'll get.

A final In Your House Report for now, as Todd wraps up last night's action and looks forward to Summerslam. King Mabel has already declared himself number one contender and oh god it's really happening. Mabel talking like he's try to get sued for IP infringement by Mr. T isn't helping.

Bret Hart def. Hakushi (9:24 shown)
Pre-match, Hakushi once again reveals the bust of Bret Hart, which remains a pretty sick deal. Bret gets distracted early by Shinja and goes after him, which allows Hakushi to take him out with a sneak attack. Back in the ring, Hakushi goes for a Vader Bomb but Bret gets his knees up and hits a clothesline. Bret then goes for an Irish whip which Hakushi counters, sending Bret flying into the post for a great bump and sell. Hakushi hits the handspring elbow smash and grinds Bret down while taunting the crowd. He then starts to chop away at Bret, but Hitman blocks it and takes Hakushi down with a Russian leg sweep. Hakushi recovers and connects with a spin kick to Bret, before delivering a backbreaker for a near fall. Going after the back, Hakushi hits a splash for two and then puts him in a brief REST HOLD, which Bret engineers into a roll-up and near fall. Hakushi throws Bret out and as we come back from a break, he lands an AWESOME Space Flying Tiger Drop (basically a Sasuke Special variant). Bret then does a DIVE of his own, taking out Hakushi and Shinja with a springboard. Flippy Bret is fun. Back in the ring, Bret executes a backbreaker and then hits the second rope elbow drop for two. Shinja sees the tide turning now and tries to interject, but Bret annihilates him and hits a bulldog on Hakushi for two. A small package gets another near fall. Hakushi reverses here and hits a suplex on Bret before heading to the top, but whiffs the flying headbutt. Bret now takes Hakushi up for a superplex and synches in the Sharpshooter to make Hakushi tap. Awesome television match here and *hot take* a bit more fun and sharply worked than their IYH encounter. ***¾

Post-match, Jean-Pierre Lafitte robs the Bret Hart mannequin head and scarpers to the back. Well that's leading somewhere.

It's time for The Report Card with our newest addition to the roster, Dean Douglas (better known as Shane). He explains what knowledge means and then promises to give all the other wrestlers an F. This has the whiff of Lanny Poffo's Genius gimmick but is way, way more boring. You take one of the best promos in ECW and do this with him?! Maybe the company deserved to go out of business in this nineties.

We finish the show with a split screen interview with Shawn, as everyone (including Jerry, it seems) is gunning for his Intercontinental Championship.

Hey, a good show! Perfectly cromulent opener, a fantastic main event and Waylon Mercy squashes are always fun. Handily one of the best episodes of the year. Thumbs up.

NEXT WEEK: Razor and Savio team up again to challenge Owen Hart and Yokozuna for the Tag Team Titles!

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #122

Date: 31 July 1995
Location: Louisville Gardens; Louisville, KY (taped)
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: Razor and Savio challenge for the tag titles as the build towards SummerSlam begins!

Vince and Jerry welcome us to the show and look ahead to tonight's featured match.

King Mabel def. Nick Barberri (3:12)
Those poor fools are carrying Mabel to the ring again and oh god everything about this is terrible. Mabel just manhandles Barberri to begin and beats him up. Barberri attempts a fightback and gets a few licks in, but Mabel neutralises him with an ugly-ass enzuiguiri. To the outside now, as Mabel hurls Barberri into the steel steps. Ouch! Back in the ring, Mabel goes for an elbow drop which Barberri evades, but his dropkicks fail to put a dent in Mabel's fat ass and the King ends him with a belly-to-belly. Post-match, Mabel proclaims that he will be the new WWF Champion after SummerSlam. I guess that match is official then.

Fatu is now hanging outside his old high school. Fine. He'll wrestle next week once he gets done reminiscing.

Meanwhile, the war of words between Jerry Lawler and Shawn Michaels continues, as Jerry heads backstage to challenge Shawn to a match. But he doesn't want one on RAW! Shawn seems more than willing to fit him into his schedule though.

Goldust is coming!

Bam Bam Bigelow def. Bob Cook (3:21)
Cook rakes the eyes of Bam Bam early and then slides out of the ring after Bigelow reverses the Irish whip, thinking he's all smart. My heel radar is off the scale for this jobber! Bigelow grabs him soon enough and starts to beat the schmuck down. Cook pops him in the face, so Bigelow wrecks him with a suplex and then grinds him down some with a REST HOLD. Cook breaks out of that and actually takes control again briefly, but Bigelow takes his head off with a clothesline and slams him. He heads to the top now and hits the flying headbutt for the win. Bigelow just feels dead in the water and this squash didn't make him look like a threat at all.

Another edition of The Report Card now with Dean Douglas and this character is instantly death. He gives Bam Bam Bigelow an "F", which I'm sure will make the big guy really, really mad.

Skip def. Major Yates (2:23)
Skip is trying to recover from the loss to Barry Horowitz but let's face it, he never really did. Sunny does her usual fat-shaming promo to start as the crowd chant for Barry. Skip slams Yates to start and boots him in between jumping jacks, at least until Yates rolls him up and nearly beats him. Yates gets a classic monkey flip off and applies some pressure to the arm, but Skip works out of it. Yates then connects with a sunset flip for a near fall, but Skip wipes him out with a sling blade and then takes Yates to the top for a superplex. He gets the pin and then talks down the camera to cry about Horowitz ruining his life. I think there's another guy on the roster you'll probably want to blame for that real soon.

It's time for our first SummerSlam Insider with Todd Pettengill. What was wrong with the word report, exactly? Diesel vs. Mabel has been announced, along with Bret Hart vs. Isaac Yankem and Shawn vs. Sid. Yeah, that last one doesn't happen.

World Tag Team Championships: Owen Hart & Yokozuna (c) vs. Razor Ramon & Savio Vega was fought to a time-limit draw (13:28 shown)
Owen and Savio start things off, as the latter backdrops Owen and then brings Razor into the fray. Razor takes Owen down and sends him out the ring as we break off for a commercial. Owen has taken over as we come back, but Razor catches him and hits the fallaway slam for two. Owen gets to his corner and tags in Yokozuna, while Razor manages to work around the big man and bring in Savio. He dropkicks Yoko out of the ring as the champions are in disarray. Yoko gets back in but tags out immediately, as Owen gets taken down on entry. He rallies though and wipes out Savio with a spinning heel kick, before tagging Yoko back in for the drop toehold and leg drop combo. They work over Savio now, with Owen slamming him on the outside. Back in the ring, Yokozuna synches in a REST HOLD as we go to a break. As we return, Savio escapes and manages to tag Razor, who runs wild and wipes out Yoko with a flying bulldog, which Owen breaks up for a two count. After some chaos with all four men in the ring, Razor gets Owen up for the Razor's Edge and connects. He pins Owen and that seems to be it, but the ref realises Owen was not legal and the match MUST CONTINUE. Cornette is ejected from ringside and goes crazy, as Razor continues to overcome the heels' double team efforts, hurling Owen into Yoko. Vega tags in now and covers Owen for a near fall, before working a few more pinning combinations, to no avail. Back from another break, Owen is working over Savio, until the latter gets two off a sunset flip. Owen tags Yoko in, and he cleans Savio out with a clothesline, but misses an elbow drop as Savio tags Razor in. Owen is also tagged in and the two men go at it. We get a nice sequence now as Razor gets Owen up for a suplex, which is countered into a pin fall, only for Razor to reverse again and nearly steal the win. Razor nails Owen with a uranage now but time is running out and we go off the air before Razor can hit the Razor's Edge. I guess we'll find out what happens next week? I don't love the finish but I get what they were going for. This didn't need to be as long as it was though, especially if they weren't going to give us an ending! Solid enough match though. **¼

I'd say this was a pretty tepid, lukewarm episode with not a lot going on after last week's uncharacteristically fun show. Thumbs down.

NEXT WEEK: Diesel takes on Mo and the Tag Team Title situation will be resolved!

 

[ChristianCaged]

RAW #123

Date: 7 August 1995
Location: Louisville Gardens; Louisville, KY (taped)
Commentary: Vince McMahon & Jerry Lawler

TONIGHT: Razor and Savio challenge for the tag titles...again! And Diesel faces off against Mabel's squire Sir Mo.

We start off with a recap of last week's tag team title situation and duelling promos from Mo and Diesel. The latter is really going Ham on the cheesy babyface voice and it's so phony it's unbelievable.

World Tag Team Championships: Owen Hart & Yokozuna (c) def. Razor Ramon & Savio Vega (12:14 shown)
So last week was a draw, which makes this a replay. In front of the exact same crowd. And you wonder why they're so quiet? We learn pretty early on, by the way, that Gorilla Monsoon has taken over as Interim President and booked Shawn vs. Razor II in a Ladder Match for Summerslam. That's random but great! Razor tries to get an advantage early but Yoko slams him. The big man misses the elbow drop though and Razor tags Savio. We get a pretty long sequence now of both teams tagging in and out and wearing each other down with limb work, with nobody really holding onto the advantage. Owen picks up a near fall off a neckbreaker, after some meddling by Yoko, before tagging Yoko in. He immediately puts Razor in a REST HOLD and oh lord this feels like it goes on forever. Razor breaks out of this eventually but Owen whomps him with the spinning heel kick for two, after which Razor hip tosses him and grabs a backslide for another two count. Another long REST HOLD now as Owen jumps on Razor's back and puts him in a sleeper, but Razor back suplexes out of it for two and then tries to make it to his corner. He makes it to Savio just as Owen tags in Yoko and the two fresh men go at it, with Savio chopping away at Yoko, thrust kicking the soul out of Owen, before levelling Yoko with his own version of the spinning heel kick. Everything sort of breaks down here, as Razor and Owen brawl outside of the ring and Yoko recovers to deliver a Samoan Drop to Savio. He drops the leg now and that finishes it. I really don't think we needed two long-ish tag matches to get that point across. This was bogged down by long rest hold sequences as well. Much less enjoyable than last week. *½

It's time for another edition of The Report Card with Dean Douglas, as he grades Razor and Savio's performance TT for Terrible Twosome. I would grade this segment C, for crap.

Next up, we head to Yankem's dental surgery for more mind games ahead of the match with Bret at SummerSlam.

Fatu def. Tony Devito (2:43)
Do the Right Fatu is making his solo RAW debut here (well, sort of) and manages to avoid a sneak attack to start. Fatu back bodydrops Devito and then tries to rally this dead crowd after a slam. He beats on Devito some more in the corner before levelling his opponent with a Samoan Bulldog. A flying splash finishes it for Papa Uso. Suffice to say he was going nowhere with this gimmick.

It's time for our SummerSlam Insider now, as Todd chats to new Interim President Gorilla Monsoon, who plans to be the most popular President of all time. Alright, Donald. It's then announced that Alundra Blayze vs. Bertha Faye and Kama vs. Undertaker have been added to the card. Popular!

Kama def. Troy Haste (1:25)
Speaking of Kama, we get a mercifully short squash here, as the Creatures of the Night look on. This is just a backdrop for a phone-in with Sid, who is mad about losing his shot at the Intercontinental Championship. Of course, they changed it because they thought the card looked terrible and yeah, they were probably right to do so. Kama doesn't waste much time with Haste and beats him to a pulp before finishing with a cross arm-breaker.

Diesel def. Sir Mo (6:56 shown)
We get some early heel tactics by Mo, as he evades Diesel and then catches him with an eye rake and some cheap shots. He wails on Diesel now, but the champ battles back and and connects with a big clothesline for two. Diesel then slams him and sends him to the outside, at which point Mabel rocks up. HBK also heads out to back up Diesel, as Mo tries an embarrassing attempt at a low-bridge on the champ. Mo sends Diesel into the post on the outside and sends him back in the ring. Mo goes for the cover but only gets two. He then applies the REST HOLD for a bit before heading to the top and completely whiffing the elbow drop. Diesel follows up with a side slam and a big boot to Mo, before hitting the Jackknife for the victory. As pointless and dull as you would expect. ½*

Post-match, Mabel attacks Diesel and leg drops him, which brings HBK in for the save. He sends Mabel out the ring but gets rammed into the post, as MoM take over. Diesel soon recovers though and hits Mabel with a double axe-handle from the apron, as the refs finally restore some order. And that's this week's show.

A really crummy episode that kind of captures everything wrong with the company right now; the main event angle sucks, the booking seems to engineer audience apathy, and everything feels super phoned-in. Thumbs way down.

NEXT WEEK: Jerry Lawler challenges HBK for the Intercontinental Championship!