Dean Malenko vs. Prince Iaukea was the best match of the night. It wasn't
anything flashy or memorable but the execution was good and I'm digging the
Prince upon his return from New Japan. Eddie Guerrero was pretty bad on
commentary. There were plenty of jokes to be made at the expense of Dean
Malenko's countenace but his all fell flat.
For those of you who miss Monday night squashes there was the super stiff
Lodi vs. Chris Benoit. Not as good as last weeks inspired match between
Kidman and Benoit but it wasn't meant to be. I'm in agreement with Dean here,
the Benoit vs. Raven's Nest angle is hella cool, and it's way better than
any of that Sting vs. nWo crap.
Ric Flair's in-ring interview was getting on my nerves until he started
talking about Bret Hart. Strange that the promotion that actually has
Bret Hart under contract (WCW) is pushing him less than the company he
just left (WWF). I look forward to a couple of Hart vs. Flair rematches,
not that they will be great like they could have been five years ago but
should be at least good and cool to see.
Disco Inferno vs. Saturn was a decent, short match. Unlike your regular Nitro
reporter, I actually see something in Inferno. He's a basic wrestler but
he does it well and with the right opponent (think Dean Malenko) he can
be very watchable. This was ok, they kept it simple and maybe Inferno will gain
some credibility. Saturn doesn't have half the charisma he did in ECW which is
weird.
Buff Bagwell vs. Lex Luger wasn't a good wrestling match, but as a spectacle
carried by Buff's personality it worked. Tony Schiavone gets all warm and fuzzy
comparing the physiques of the wrestlers. Scott Norton and Bagwell should be
tag team champions.
Whoever got that Undertaker cut-out into the arena deserves a big thumbs up!
Hey, I'M not afraid to review a Ray Traylor match! I remember his great
match against Vader at Spring Stampede, I've heard all about the bump he
took off the steel cage, I can handle it. And Konnan, he's OK. But this
match sucked. Traylor has some of the worst punches in the business, and
that's about all he does now. Tony Schiavone mutters the first of many asinine
comments when the lights go out and he says, "This is the first time
this has ever happened in our sport!!!" Settle down, Beavis, and watch almost
any ECW tape from this summer.
I think the Barbarian vs. Steve McMichael is what Dean refers to as WELCOME
TO HELL! Meng comes out after the match for another good measure of suckiness.
Hugh Morrus vs. Randy Savage was another uneventful match leading up to
someone turning out the lights but Savage can still work for an old codger
and his top rope elbow drop is still one of the best in the business. How
does it feel to have weaker looking love taps than Giant Baba, Mr. Bruce Smith?
Morrus is decent but gets by way too much based on his past reputation in W*ING
and his one good move, the moonsault.
Rick Rude humiliating the WCW announcing team is a good a segment as any to
bring up just how lame these guys are. When they're not hyping Sting vs. Hogan
as if they've never wrestled before (Nitro, 11/20/95) they're acting like a
bunch of ninnies jumping at their own shadows or acting completely clueless
when everyone watching on TV knows that Sting was turning out the lights. I
used to respect Mike Tenay as an announcer for his work calling the cruiserweight
matches but now he's just another WCW shill. So there!
I liked the history between the two in the match pitting Scott Hall vs. Diamond
Dallas Page but they didn't play it up in the ring. Not that anyone should be
expected to remember back the eons that is six or so years ago in the wrestling biz.
Pretty good match, they kept it short so Hall could show everything he has and
look good and Page was good with his stuff too. But it was all flushed down the
toilet with the so predictable it's not even worth complaining about anymore nWo
run-in finish. Then things got even more stupid when the nWo couldn't tell that
they were dragging a warm body across the ring and not a plastic dummy. And then
Mr. This Is Sting gets to lay out the whole nWo while STILL ATTACHED TO A CORD
HANGING FROM THE CEILING!!! Ahem.
As annoying as Raw can be at times I really like the fact that they at
least try to treat their audience with a modicum of respect. No, we haven't
seen anything like Nash vs. Giant before, especially with both guys fighting
over who is the real giant in WCW. No, this does not at all bring to mind
Big John Studd vs. Andre the Giant. No, not at all.
NO LUCHADORES! WTF?! I guess last week's awesome lucha/cruiser fest was enough
for two weeks worth of TV.
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