Review: WWF Monday Night Raw, 4/28/97, from Omaha, Nebraska.
Now, to follow up...
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Welcome everyone to Monday Night RAWWWW. Flashback to Steve Austin/Bret Hart from last week. As much as I liked the angle, I could've done without that.
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Brian Pillman comes out to the ring, with a mic I might add, and begins to talk about religion. He wants everyone to pray for Bret Hart, and the people who liked what Austin did to Bret. He prays for the destruction of Austin, and that people everywhere will begin to listen to Bret again. Austin comes on the TitanTron, and says that Pillman had better pray. Pillman says he'll turn the other cheek, then turns around and bends over so that his ass is facing the TitanTron. Here comes Austin to the ring, and it was a trap. Owen and Bulldog try to attack Austin, but Austin runs through the ring and into the crowd. Davey and Owen stay in the ring, and pray along with Pillman. Both Davey and Owen pray for Bret, and Austin comes back in, with an axehandle that he broke the end of an ax off from. He chases the three guys away and into the crowd, and tells them they better give their souls to the Lord, cause their asses are his. That segment is open to interpretation. Some may like it, some may not. I thought it was just decent.
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Pillman's praying in the back, before the match between Flash Funk and Rockabilly w/Honky Tonk Man.
Not bad on paper, but the gimmicks. Oh Lord, the gimmicks. Flash dances, until Rockabilly pushes him to the ground. Flash gives him a dropkick and a hiptoss, and then a springboard crossbody for 2. Flash gives him an armdrag, as we go splitscreen, with Bret sitting in an ambulance, waiting to make an appearance. Back to the action, where Flash dumps Rockabilly to the outside, and follows him out with a clothesline from the 2nd turnbuckle. Honky distracts Flash while Flash is on the apron, which leads to a Rockabilly clothesline. He suplexes Flash in, and gets a cover for 2. A FAMEASSER follows, and Rockabilly goes up to the top. Flash crotches him, but is given a swinging DDT, for 2. Didn't know Billy Gunn had that in him. Honky gets on the ring apron, and Rockabilly runs into him, which leads to Funk giving Rockabilly a hurricanrana, and the pinfall for Flash, at 4:21. I don't quite get why they'd have Rockabilly lose this match. **. After the match, Honky hits Flash in the head with his guitar. Poor guy.
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Bret Hart comes out of the ambulance, and to the ring. He talks about Pillman's praying, and says that it can't help you all the time. More anti-American stuff, mainly talking about how bloodthirsty we are. He says that Austin and Shawn Michaels will be the next to get put in an ambulance.
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Austin's in the back, looking for the First Aid room. After that, there's a FUNNY WWF commercial. Prelude to the attitude.
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The next match is the Legion of Doom v. Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon.
Before the match, we go split screen and listen to Furnas talk about being a legitimate wrestler, and that it's the fans fault they haven't been able to win matches. That's cool. Animal and LaFon start, and Animal gives him an elbow to the head. LaFon comes back with a spinning leg lariat, but Animal gives him a flying shoulderblock and an elbowdrop. Furnas and Hawk tag in, and Hawk gives him a clothesline and neckbreaker. Hawk gives him a fistdrop, but Furnas quickly gives him a belly-to-belly suplex, and a legdrop. LaFon tags in, and they both give Hawk a shoulderblock, for 2. LaFon gives him a trapping suplex, and a cross armbreaker. He lets go quickly, and gives Hawk a snap suplex. Double colission follows, and so does the hot tag to Animal. Dropkicks for both and a powerslam for Furnas, until Hawk clotheslines both. They go for the DOOMSDAY DEVICE, but Furnas gives Animal a dropkick, knocking both he and LaFon out of the ring. Hawk goes through with the move though and gives Furnas a clothesline off the top rope, which gives LOD the pinfall at 3:47. *1/2. JR's in the ring with Furnas and LaFon, and they say what they said before the match. The fans suck.
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On Shotgun Saturday Night, Sunny was under cover. Literally. Well, the Headbangers came out, and sat in the bed with her. So, she models an Austin shirt on RAW, as Michael Hayes is giving us the rundown on sizes and all that. Whenever Sunny's on my screen is a good thing, but this is lame. Still feel bad for Hayes....
And Ahmed Johnson's backstage. He's sick of the Nation, so he wrecks shit.
Now Pillman kisses Owen's Slammy's, before...
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For the Intercontinental Championship, it's Owen Hart w/Bret Hart and the British Bulldog vs. Rocky Maivia. Owen's family hangs out near the TitanTron, and that'll be the case during the later match as well.
Owen says he's going to win it for Bret. How sweet. Owen attacks Rocky at the start, but Rocky quickly responds with a clothesline, dropkick and an armdrag. He gives Owen a powerslam for 2, and applies an armbar. Rocky gives him a backdrop, and goes back to the armbar, before giving Owen a shoulderblock. Strong start from Rocky. Owen tosses Rocky out of the ring, and gives him a baseball slide. Then Rocky comes back in, and Owen gives him a missile dropkick for 2. Owen goes to the chinlock, and gives him a droptoehold. He snaps Rocky's lower leg back twice, and begins to work on the left knee, with an indian deathlock. Rocky rolls him up for 2, but Owen goes back to the knee, with three leg whips. He goes for the SHARPSHOOTER, but Rocky won't allow it. Owen gives him a suplex, but Rocky comes back with that floatover DDT of his, which gets two. He gives Owen ROCK BOTTOM, but it only gets 2. Certainly wasn't his finisher then, if you didn't know. Rocky rams Owen into the buckle, but Owen comes out with a spinning leg lariat. Owen goes up top for a moonsault, but he gets crotched, and back suplexed off by Rocky, which gets 2. That spot always makes me cringe, with the way that the recipient lands on his head. Rocky tries a suplex, but Owen rolls through it and winds up behind Rocky, where he pins him with a rolling clutch hold for 3 at 8:26, and the INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE. As much as it boggles my mind to say this, that was his first singles title in the WWF. Yeah, really. **1/2. Rocky did the best he could. Owen celebrates by placing the Intercontinental Title in Bret's lap.
Backstage, Austin's in a wheelchair. What?
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We're in the Warzone, and it's Austin, again. He's carrying that wheelchair through the crowd, and to the ring. He sits in the wheelchair when he gets in the ring, and asks the crowd if they want to see a wheelchair match between him and Bret. He says he'd whip Bret's ass for sure. Austin's gonna whip Taker's as at A Cold Day in Hell, or so he says. Bret pops up on the TitanTron, and promises that Austin will ride in an ambulance.
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Vader's back, and there's some footage of him grabbing the interviewer in Kuwait, during Good Morning Kuwait. Let me say that I'm awfully surprised to see Taker out of character on that show, dressed like he usually did as BikerTaker. More so that it was shown on RAW. A stupid Ken Shamrock video follows that, unfortunately, featuring video from his in-ring interactions. Never liked Shamrock. He's annoying.
Obviously, the previous things shown mean that it's time. It's VADER TIME. He's facing Jesse Jammes. The singing gets worse every week. Vader smashes Jammes, then gives him a big splash off the 2nd rope. He picks Jammes up at two, and gives him the VADER BOMB, to finish the match at 1:35. Thank you. *1/4. JR goes into the ring to ask Vader a few questions, and Vader's first answer is that he went to Kuwait to do a job.
WWF World Champion the Undertaker defeated Vader
I'll take that literally. He starts to bully JR by taking his hat and glasses, so Ken Shamrock runs to the ring to save JR, by giving Vader a belly-to-belly suplex. Vader bails, and goes into his WHO'S DA MAN routine while walking backstage. Good build for their match at the PPV, which
Shamrock won.
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It's Hunter Hearst Helmsley w/Chyna vs. Goldust next. Before the match, Goldust says that ringside is no place for a woman, so Marlena's not allowed out there.
Slug it out, until Goldust gives Hunter two clotheslines. He whips Hunter to the corner, where he goes upside down. 10 punch time, and after #9, Goldie bites him. He gives Hunter a BUTT bump, and a slap to the face, before more 10 punch. But before he can get started, Hunter gives him an inverted atomic drop. Hunter follows that with a high knee, and he tosses Goldust out of the ring, where Chyna kicks him a whole bunch. Marlena comes down to the ring, and we have a...
commercial break.
We're back, and Hunter's giving Goldust a knee to the face. Chyna looks like a man, and Vince pretty much compares her to Ellen, calling her a lesbian. I'd say she's a transsexual. Goldust grabs his own nuts, and clotheslines Hunter. Well. Goldust gives him a bulldog, and Chyna moves towards Marlena. Marlena throws powder at Chyna, and Chyna starts choking Hunter, who came out of the ring to get Goldust. That leads to Hunter being counted out at 4:50 (commercial time not included, obviously). Cute little finish, but the match was no good. *.
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The Undertaker comes on the TitanTron as Hunter and Chyna take the quick road backstage (taking a right in the aisleway and walking around the TitanTron), and says a bit about Austin. He's not too worried about him, and he can do worse to Austin than put him in a wheelchair.
After that, Sable models an Undertaker shirt. When I was a kid, well, you figure it out. Pillman prays for Bulldog to hurt the Undertaker, and we get another funny WWF commercial, where this time, the kid thinks he's Stone Cold Steve Austin.
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The main event is the British Bulldog w/Bret and Owen Hart vs. The Undertaker, in a non-title bout. So, this match did happen more than once.
Unfortunately, we go to a
commercial as soon as the match starts, after a Taker choke toss.
We're back, and Bulldog has Taker up in a delayed vertical suplex, which gets 2. Bulldog misses a clothesline, and gets chokeslammed by Taker. That forces Owen to run-in, at 1:18 (commercial not included). No rating, the entire match happened during the commercial.
Austin comes through the crowd to save Taker(?), and after chasing Owen and Davey away, grabs the WWF Title and celebrates with it. Heh. Austin gives Taker a STUNNER, but while flippin' the bird at him, Taker sits up and gives Austin a chokeslam. Don't particularly care for the Taker/Austin booking. They were trying to pop a buyrate, but it's gonna make Austin seem like a bitch, in the end. Remember, I watched WCW in 1997, not much WWF. Austin sees Bret at the stage, and Bret can't get away. When he tries to, JIM FUCKING NEIDHART comes out, and attacks Austin. Bret hits Austin with a crutch, and that knocks Austin off the stage. That looked like a hard fall, with no added protection. We cut backstage as Austin's being stretchered out, and Pillman has this insane look on his face, to end the show. Loose Cannon, indeed.
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Rating: Good. Three things, though.
1. Too much Austin. Just a bit too much. But having Neidhart come back offsets that.
2. No Mankind. Boo.
3. Title change is good. Very, very good.
Plus, any show that Jesse Jammes gets squashed on is fun. The show had a good crowd, for once.
Best Segment: I got the most enjoyment out of Pillman's look at the end, and Neidhart's return. So that.
Worst Segment: The Shamrock video. Ugh.
Loudest Sound: Austin, Taker, and the Hart Foundation. Figures.
No Sound: Furnas and LaFon, Rocky Maivia and Jesse Jammes. They pushed Rocky too hard, too fast. That's not the right way to analyze why the fans hated him, though. They hated him because he was vanilla. No personality, or natural charisma. Now how that changed, I couldn't say. When he went heel, it was like someone flipped a switch.
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Shorties section is next. I've seen everything there is to offer, so far. I'd like for them to add something obscure today. It only took me 2 hours to type 5 pages. That's a new record.
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