Saturday Night's Main Event #16 - 3/12/88

The reviews keep coming. Today’s is Saturday Night’s Main Event from March 12, 1988. Held in Nashville, Tennessee’s Municipal Auditorium.

First? Promos from all the guys in matches saying how they'll run the other guy into the ground. 

We’ve got McMahon and Ventura on commentary making a redneck joke before laying down the card. Classy.

First off, there was a recap of The Main Event, where Hogan lost to Andre.

An interview with Jimmy Hart and Greg Valentine, who said Valentine carried Brutus Beefcake during their tenure as tag team champions. Followed by an interview with Brutus that had terrible haircutting puns.

Match: Greg “The Hammer” Valentine (with Jimmy Hart) vs. Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake

The match started with Valentine outside the ring, seemingly scared of Beefcake’s shears. Once Valentine got back into the ring, the two men briefly struggled for control. Valentine gained the upper hand until Beefcake covered a whip with a high knee and body slam. After a boot to the face, he executed a couple atomic drops and an elbow to the head. He went for a failed cover before cornering him by the turnbuckles. Valentine started cowering but pulled off a cheap shot and turned the match around. He flew off the top rope and tried to pin Beefcake. Valentine started going for a leglock but Beefcake was able to grab a hold of the ropes. Valentine hammered on the knee, which prompted Beefcake to slide out of the ring.

Honkytonk Man interrupted, mocking Beefcake while he was out of the ring.

The match then resumed with Valentine tossing Beefcake back into the ring and working on Beefcake’s head. Valentine kept the momentum, continually softening the leg. In going to for the Figure Four, Beefcake countered and was able to take momentum back and gave Valentine an elbow to the face. He executed a sleeper hold, but Valentine was able to make it to the ropes. The two fell outside the ring and continued fighting. Beefcake tried going back, but was stopped by Hart. He tried chasing him, but Valentine stopped, dragged Beefcake back in and performed a suplex. Valentine got the three count, even though Beefcake got the shoulder up. The win was reversed in Beefcake’s favor.

After the match Beefcake chopped off a tiny bit of Hart’s hair.

Winner: Greg “The Hammer” Valentine

This was a great match and the perfect way to open the card. Both men had good momentum and Beefcake’s knee didn’t stop him from turning the match around. Interesting how the decision was reversed due to the three count going after the shoulder was up. 4/5

Now for an interview with King Harley Race and Bobby Heenan, who said all mortal men will bow to the king.

Another interview with Hogan, who said the wheels of Hulkamania are still churning and that Race was just an obstacle in the way of reclaiming the title.

Match: King Harley Race (with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan) vs. Hulk Hogan.

Hogan started off by chasing Heenan, who fled from ringside.

Hogan slid into the ring and Race started elbow dropping. He continued by headbutting Hogan after he stood up. None of it fazed Hogan who started hammering away on Race. Now the match officially started and Hogan clotheslined Race three times, the third time Race went over the ropes onto the timekeeper table. Hogan shoved Race into the ring post as Heenan came back. When distracted, Race went for Hogan. Though when going for either a drop or piledriver, Hogan countered and dropped Race a couple times. He suplexed him before throwing him back into the ring. Hogan continued to elbow and chop Race before taking his tape and chocking Race twice. Hogan viciously choked Heenan as well, before Race used the distraction to his advantage and turned the match around. Race eventually suplexed and kneed Hogan before performing a piledriver. Race threw Hogan out of the ring and placed him on the timekeeper table. He dropped and Hogan moved out of the way causing Race to drop onto the table. Hogan went back into the ring, and Race followed, continuing to hammer on Hogan. After a top rope headbutt, Race tried to pin and Hogan went into God Mode after breaking the count. He clotheslined and legdropped for the win.

Winner: Hulk Hogan

Let me say this was an interesting match, especially with Hogan blatantly chocking Race and Heenan. I liked it though, it showed how Hogan was willing to do anything to win and move onto WrestleMania IV to get the title back. The table spot was also good. Great match. 4/5

An interview with Ted DiBiase who said no one has faith in Hogan or Savage anymore. He also promised a surprise in his corner “worth its weight in gold.”

Then an interview with Randy Savage, who said he’d bounce DiBiase all over the ring and that Elizabeth was worth more than gold.

Match: Ted “Million Dollar Man” DiBiase vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage

Before the match, DiBiase’s surprise, Andre the Giant, revealed himself.

Savage immediately fell for Virgil’s distraction of getting close to Elizabeth. DiBiase took the opening it was and started to work on Savage. He whipped and dropped him before shoving him against the turnbuckle. As he strutted and let Savage get to his feet, he launched from the top onto Savage, getting him back down. DiBiase brutally smeared Savage and though the referee got him off, Andre was able to sneak in a hit. Savage was able to counter a whip and give DiBiase a knee to the face and back. The latter sent DiBiase out of the ring. Savage retrieved him and was able to get in an Atomic Elbow. He bounced him off the top rope and kicked him in the chest. DiBiase rolled out of the ring and came back in after Savage was able to bask in the momentum. DiBiase returned and turned the match around, dropping Savage and performing a few elbow drops. Once Savage returned to his feet, DiBiase chopped him and whipped him into the buckles. As he charged, Savage kicked DiBiase in the face and elbowed him. After a false pin, he slammed him and missed a knee drop, letting DiBiase get the strength to start a leglock. Savage kicked him and launched him back out. The two men eventually went outside the ring and brawled until Andre distracted him and Virgil attacked from behind. The referee tried to order Virgil to the back. When the match resumed, DiBiase was able to get Savage back in and launched for an elbow to the head and another false pin. DiBiase applied a headlock and kept  hold while kneeing Savage. He was able to get up, but DiBiase forced him back down and kneed him a few more times. After fighting it, Savage got back to his feet and elbowed DiBiase and gained enough momentum for a clothesline. Savage whipped and body dropped DiBiase off the ropes. DiBiase was able get a couple hits in before being whipped into the referee. Savage threw DiBiase out of the ring and flew off the top rope. While outside, Andre headbutted Savage and threw him into the ring post. DiBiase took this time to get back into the ring, Elizabeth went into the back and Andre kept brutalizing Savage. The referee woke back up and DiBiase blocked him from seeing Andre’s attacks. Savage was counted out. DiBiase and Virgil decided to continue wailing on Savage until Hogan came out with a chair to save Savage. DiBiase, Virgil and Andre decided to leave.

Winner: Ted “Million Dollar Man” DiBiase

While DiBiase won, I really liked this match. Andre was a good surprise and Hogan’s coming to Savage’s rescue once again after being caught in the losing beatdown helps solidify what’s forming between the two. The match itself was great as well. Tons of momentum, heat and energy.  4/5

An interview with Heenan and the Islanders, with Heenan talking about smoking bees.

Match: The Killer Bees vs. The Islanders (with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan)

Brunzell and Tama started off, with Brunzell immediately covering. He tagged in Blair, who also tried for a pin. Blair worked the arm, tagging Brunzell back in to work on the arm. Brunzell went for another pin, whipping Tama before failing a jump kick. Tama took the opportunity to pick up Brunzell and was able to suplex him. Tama went for a pin, failed and tagged in Haku. He whipped and successfully executed a jump kick, but failed for the pin. Tama was tagged back in and kept going for the head. Brunzell was able to execute an Atomic Drop before Tama tagged in Haku and both were downed from a double clothesline. Tama and Blair were tagged in. Blair was able to knee drop Tama and suplex both of them before attempting to roll up Tama. It failed when Brunzell went into the ring to stop Haku and the referee stopped the count. Tama then reversed the roll.

Winners: The Islanders

It was a short but good match with both sides showing good strength. 3/5

Interview with Slick and One Man Gang, where slick said the US Olympic team was a bunch of losers.

Match: Ken Patera vs. One Man Gang (with Slick)

Gang attacked Patera before he was able to get his pants off and choked him with said pants. Gang hammered away at Patera’s head. Patera was able to return the favor and corner Gang. He whipped Gang and gave him a bear hug before Gang’s punches to the head were too much. He got away for a moment before giving Gang a full nelson. Patera continued wailing on Gang before Gang was able to corner Patera who reversed he roles and whipped him again and kneed Gang in the chest. Another whip, but Gang clotheslined Patera

Winner: One Man Gang

Another good match, not entirely one sided by Gang and Patera had his moments. 3/5

All in all, this was a great show, earning 4/5 I’d say my favorite match was Savage/DiBiase. Great heat, good power, and excellent energy.

Coming up next, another Superstars of Wrestling. 

Superstars of Wrestling 12/6/1986

Superstars of Wrestling rundown for 12/6/1986

Champion Randy "Macho Man" Savage (w/ Miss Elizebeth) vs. S.D Jones

Winner: Randy Savage

Koko B. Ware vs. Bobby Colt

Winner: Koko B. Ware

Paul Roma vs. "Adorable" Adrian Adonis (with Jimmy Hart)

Winner: Adrian Adonis

Hercules (with Bobby "The Brain" Heenan) vs. Jose Luis Rivera

Winner: Hercules

Salvatore Bellomo vs. Kamala (with The Wizard & Kimchee)

Winner: Kamala  

Three Man Tag Match: Billy Jack Haynes, Jacques, and Raymond Rougeau vs. Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake, and Dino Bravo (with Johnny V)

Double Disqualification

3/5

Superstars of Wrestling 11/22/1986

I think there are only two or three more individual shows that I can find video of for this year. But, I’ll continue to update even without video. But I’ll make sure this doesn’t turn into a simple run down blog, there are too many of those on the internet.

Tonight, we have an edition of Superstars of Wrestling from November 22, 1986.

Randy “Macho Man” Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat for the Intercontinental Championship

I fully expect Savage to retain, but let’s see.

Savage doesn’t leave the ring? Finally. Steamboat and Savage were evenly matched in the beginning, but Steamboat was able to gain the advantage, almost pinning him. Despite Savage’s several attempts to turn it around, Steamboat was able to hold his own for a long while. At one point, Steamboat decided to punch Savage instead of pin him… but was still able to attempt another after a while, but since the referee was knocked out, Steamboat’s pin of far more than 3 seconds didn’t count. Steamboat’s argument with the referee was all the advantage Savage needed. With Savage’s beatdown of Steamboat, it seems the victim swallowed and was choking on his tongue. As paramedics tried to help, Savage kept attacking.

Winner: Randy “Macho Man” Savage to retain the Intercontinental Championship

Well, I hated the ending, but that doesn’t detract from how amazing the match was. Steamboat was able to give Savage a great enough match that he almost won. It was highly energetic and great moves. Perfect first match. A feud should come from this. 5/5

The Junkyard Dog vs. Al Navarro

Hard act to follow.

And Junkyard Dog goes heavy on Navarro… winning in the first minute.

Winner: Junkyard Dog

While it was a hard act to follow, a one minute squash match was not what was needed after that. Terrible booking. 1/5

Hulk Hogan had an interview, where he spoke of his championship match between Kamala in Boston. Guess who wins?

Kurt Kauffman vs. Dino Bravo (with Johnny V)

Bravo started off with no mercy to Kauffman and ended the match in 55 seconds.

Winner: Dino Bravo

Another squash match, but I’ll have to admit, this one was a bit more entertaining than the last one. 2/5

The Islanders gave an interview, who said they were the real men, not Greg Valentine or Brutus Beefcake

Jimmy Jack Funk vs. Dick Slater

Funk started wailing on Slater before the bell rang. Soon though, Slater was able to turn the match in his favor. Though Funk had some more steam near the end, it wasn’t enough.  

Winner: Dick Slater

This was a good match. I like how Slater was able to turn it around and, even though he had some rough spots, keep the edge. 3/5

Piper’s Pit with Kamala, Kimchee and The Wizard

Kimchee and Kamala don’t speak English, so The Wizard told Piper he was going to need some friends someday. Piper went on to insult Kamala’s weight and face.

Billy Jack Haynes vs. Ray Vance

The match started before Piper’s Pit ended, with Haynes dominating Vance.

Winner: Billy Jack Haynes

Too quick, too boring. 1/5

Six Man Tag Team: Hillbilly Jim, Tito Santana, and Pedro Morales vs. Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, Johnny V, and Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake

Jim and Valentine started off, with Jim clocking Valentine and bringing in Morales, who was beaten down by Valentine, but when Beefcake came in, Morales was tag in Santana, who made short work of Beefcake. With Jim back in, Beefcake got the wind knocked out of him. Beefcake started to work on Jim, tagged in Valentine who continued as well as V. Santana was able to come in and work on V. Soon though, chaos erupted and a disqualification resulted.

Winners: Greg Valentine, Johnny V, and Brutus Beefcake

Not a bad match, all the talent had some good time in and it was an interesting end. The chaos wasn’t too chaotic and didn’t go on for too long. 3/5

Heenan gave an interview who said that Orndorrf had a news blackout, put down Junkyard Dog, while telling Hogan that he wanted what was left after Kamala got through with him.

At the end of the show, Sammartino gave an update on how Steamboat was doing, when Savage interrupted. The two exchanged verbal insults and Sammartino started choking Savage, having to be separated by various wrestlers.

Not that bad of a night, a solid 3/5 was the final score.

I’d say my favorite match was actually the first, it was a great way to open the card. The two matches that followed just drained any energy. The Funk/Slater and Six Man Tag matches did help to bring it back.

Coming up Friday: Starrcade 1986

Superstars of Wrestling 10/11/1986

Hey look! I’m actually on time and on schedule today!!!

Today’s review is of Superstars of Wrestling from October 11, 1986, so let’s get started.

Obviously we open with the usual, Vince, Bruno and Jesse going over the card

Before any match, Ventura interviewed the Bulldogs, who have Matilda the Bulldog as their new mascot.

Match: The British Bulldogs vs. Greg “The Hammer” Valentine and Brutus Beefcake (with Luscious Johnny Valentine)

Both Valentine and Beefcake started wailing on the Bulldogs before the referee could get control of the match. Once he did, Dynamite Kid started having a good offensive edge on Valentine, who was able to turn it around and tag in Beefcake. Valentine started to look like he was down until he tagged in Smith, who started well, but was put down momentarily by Valentine. It went back and forth between Valentine and Beefcake wearing Smith down. However, Smith was able to turn it around for a quick second until he accidentally hit the referee. Things went haywire from there; illegal tags made and repeated attempts to cover.

Winners: The British Bulldogs

Great match with great energy. Like I said, it went haywire at the end, and it got sort of confusing, which I saw as the only flaw. 4/5

We then had an interview with Jake “The Snake” Roberts, who ranted about fear and survival.

Match: Sivi Afi and Billy Jack Hays vs. The Magnificent Don Muraco and Cowboy Bob Orton (with Mr. Fuji)

The match started off with Billy Jack and Afi working well against Muraco, until Orton was tagged in and started having the edge against Hays. Muraco then started working on Afi, and gave it over to Orton.

Winners: The Magnificent Don Muraco and Cowboy Bob Orton

Short  match, but good. It started well, looking like Billy Jack and Afi would have the edge, but it shifted over to Muraco and Orton quickly. Maybe Afi and Hays should have gotten a false second wind in there. 3/5

Randy Savage then started trying to psycho out Ricky Steamboat before their title match over the weekend.

Match: King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd (with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan) vs. Dick Slater and Ricky Hunter

Seems like a night full of tag matches.

Studd and Slater started off with Slater pounding on Studd, who used his power to turn it over to Bundy. Hunter came in after Slater was able to get away from Bundy. Though he tagged in  Studd, who was took the match back.

Winners: King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd

Good match, it was sort of a squash without it expressly being a squash. Slater and Hunter seemed like they could take the match in the beginning, but once Studd found power, it was all over. 3/5

Now Ricky Steamboat gave a rebuttal to Randy Savage, who told him it would be the best fight of their lives.

Match: The Rougeau Brothers vs. Hercules and Barry O.

The match went back and forth between the four quite evenly, but I can’t really call it that well.

Though I wasn’t able to call it well, I found the match to be good, but a little too short 3/5

Cut to construction of the new Piper’s Pit.

Match: The Islanders and Pedro Morales vs. The Hart Foundation and Kim Clover (with Jimmy Hart)

No singles matches tonight?

The Islanders and Morales attacked the Harts and Clover before the bell, but after the bell, The Islanders started off well against Clover. And ended it swiftly.

After the match, the Hart Foundation beat up Clover for losing

Winners: The Islanders and Pedro Morales

That was way too short for a three man tag match, but it was an ok match for what it was. 2/5

Match: The Junkyard Dog and George “The Animal” Steele vs. Steve Regal and Terry Gibbs.

Dog and Regal started against each other, with Dog headbutt charging Regal. Steele was tagged in, ate the turnbuckle, roughed up Regal and tagged Dog back in, who ended it.

Winners: Junkyard Dog and George “The Animal” Steele

Another quick match, Gibbs and Regal never had a chance. I do like that Steele quickly ate the turnbuckle instead of how he usually slowly does it. But I do wish it would have been a little bit longer and that Gibbs was able to get in. 2/5

The night receives a 2.8, one more point and it would have been a good night instead of an ok night. Maybe if the last two matches had been longer.

I think my favorite match of the night was the card opener with the British Bulldogs/Valentine and Beefcake.

So that’s it for today, coming up Friday: Another Superstars of Wrestling (I personally can’t wait to get t 1988, when WCW Main Event starts)

Superstars of Wrestling 9/20/1986

Vintage Wrestling Reviews starts of a new week, this time with another episode of Superstars of Wrestling, aired on September 20, 1986.

Opening

We start off with… nothing.

This is the unfortunate thing, my dear readers. Going through a weekly show that aired for such a long time, such as Superstars of Wrestling, there’s bound to be some episodes that just can’t be found. All I can really do is give what my information says, just the match pairings. I said with matches I can’t find that I’d just give a 3/5, so with entire missing airings, I’ll just have to assume it was average.

Match: Mike Rotundo and Dan Spivey vs. Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake (with Johnny Valentine)

Winners: Mike Rotundo and Dan Spivey with a disqualification           

Match: George "The Animal" Steele (with Capt. Lou Albano) and the Junkyard Dog vs. Steve Lombardi and Tony Nardo

Winners: George Steele and the Junkyard Dog

Match: The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, and Hercules (with Classy Freddie Blassie and Slick) vs. Billy Jack Haynes, Nick Kiniski, and Mario Mancini

Winners: The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff and Hercules

Match: Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. Tony Garea

Winner: Jake “The Snake” Roberts

Match: B. Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell vs. Joe Mirto and Jack Kruger

Winners: B. Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell

Match: Magnificent Don Muraco (with Mr. Fuji) vs. Lanny Pofo

Winner: Magnificent Don Muraco

That was the entire night. I wish I could report on what happened in the matches, but this happens sometimes. Hopefully entire missing airings won’t happen all that much.

On Wednesday, we get another airing of Saturday Night’s Main Event