Donnie watches WWF 1982

[BigVanDonnie]

Ok, so this year is going to be missing the first few months of TV (until May) due to lack of footage and the Network dying in Australia, so sorry for that. But in better news, we have a ton of house show footage and this is the year where Vince buys the company from his old man and helps kick off the 80's boom period, so it's going to be a wild year on top of being incredibly important. Massive thanks to anyone nice enough to read these. Love you all.

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF MADISON SQAURE GARDEN
JANUARY 18TH, 1982

THE FINK IS THE RING ANNOUNCER. GOD YES

In a weird call, Vince is solo on commentary for the night. REALLY needs someone with him as he's not great at this in general, but being by himself just further exposes that.

Match#1 Manuel Soto vs Davey O'Hannon
Nice to see this awful push is still going and they stuck it on MSG in their biggest market in an attempt to get anyone to care about him. O'Hannon talks a lot of shit and looks like a failed 80's comedian who died of a coke overdose. This isn't actually all that bad as they have a fun little back and forth with both guys looking way better than ever before. O'Hannon's control is really fun as he does a lot work on the neck including a sick piledriver, and his shit talking ramps up to that great point where he's screaming at anyone who will listen. "I'M GOING TO PUT HIS ASS TO SLEEP" He beats him down for a good while, and Soto's attempted comebacks are good as he gets closer and closer, but he never makes a full one and in a true shocker O'Hannon hits a Swinging Neckbreaker to win.
**3/4

Match#2 Larry Sharpe vs Jose Estrada
Estrada is the hometown boy and MSG loves him to death, so he gets to play babyface for the night. Smart choice as not only does it make it sense, but Sharpe is a great heel and the best possible guy for this type of match. Jose dominates to start and it's all very basic stuff, but the crowd hanging on everything helps with put it over the top. Sharpe takes over with a gross knee to the gut and beats the crap out of him in a cool control seg. Nothing insane of anything, just all the basics done perfectly on top of him being a scumbag and doing stuff like covering his entire face and trying to bite him. Proper piece of shit, and the crowd wants him dead for it. Jose tries a dropkick but Larry holds onto the ropes and Estrada hits the mat and takes the wind out of himself and Larry jumps on top of him and pins him to win. WOAH.
**1/4

Before the next match, Vince says Morales was sent to the hospital earlier in the week thanks to an attack by Valentine on TV, but he's going against doctors orders and wrestling tonight. LOVE THAT SHIT.

Match#3 Charlie Fulton vs Johnny Rodz
Vince knows nothing about Fulton other than that he's a veteran of wrestling. Amazing job, Vince. Fulton isn't very good and there's a reason he's a jobber for the rest of his stay as he's only doing some bad stomps and chokes, and Rodz can only do so much with nothing to work with. Rodz takes over and the crowd is 100% on his side and he goes on a great run of offence, and it's another moment of being like "hey, just push him". Sadly, it's not meant to be. It turns into a back and forth and Fulton is better off here as he can just pepper in stuff and let Rodz take care of the rest. Rodz misses a flying headbutt and Fulton pins him to win.
*3/4

Match#4 Pedro Morales (c) vs Greg Valentine w/Grand Wizard (WWF Intercontinental Title)
Vince explains that Hammer suplexed Pedro on the concrete floor and sent him to hospital, and i wish i had the footage because it sounds awesome. Pedro is mad and goes right after him and batters him with a series of punches, and it's the best he's looked since the title switch. He gets too angry though and Hammer slips in a punch to take over, and beats the shit out of him, and Pedro takes some awesome bumps for him. Greg throws these LOUD punches and forearms and you can hear the sound of flesh getting smashed with every shot. Pedro takes a gross bump to the concrete floor to further fuck him up, and Greg gets even more violent with him. He goes for legs and the struggle over everything is awesome as hell as Pedro fights like crazy to get him off, and he finally does and mounts a killer comeback. He beats the shit out of him and they spill to the outside where he throws him into the rails and the post and Greg is all fucked up as a result. Pedro drags him back in and hits that amazing headbutt to the stomach that he did to Muarco. He tries for another but Valentine moves and shoves him into the ref. Hammer gets some knucks and tries to KO him, but Pedro gets them and punches the shit out of him just as the ref wakes up and he DQ's Morales. Wonderful bullshit finish.
***

Match#5 Jesse Ventura w/Freddie Blassie vs Domenic Denucci
Brutal stuff to give Jesse this old fuck as his opponent in his MSG debut. Like, this is what you have Hennig for, not this washed idiot whose not going to help him look good. Jesse at least does his awesome posing and stooging, which is way more fun than actually having these two have a straight match. Jesse's shit talking is the highlight as he keeps calling him a "bum" and sitting in a chinlock or armbar for minutes at a time. Dom's comeback is horrible, and you can tell how much the game as passed him by as it's all bad strikes and arm work as he never moved past 1975. Jesse at least takes some bumps for him and has good woozy selling for the bullshit. Jesse hits a spinning elbow to the chest and then a big running one to win.
*

Match#6 Bob Backlund (c) w/Arnold Skaaland vs Adrian Adonis w/Freddie Blassie (WWF World Championship)
Cool fight for control right away and we establish that Backlund is the faster of the two as he out quicks him and goes right after the arm, and Adonis looks pissed that he wasn't able to stop him. Great control work from Bob as always as he always doing something cool and new, like when Adonis tries to throw him into the corner to get him to let go, but Bob holds on and still has it when he bounces back out of the corner and drags Adonis back to the mat. Insane thing to actually do and pull it off, but Backlund is just the right man for the job. He keeps on it and makes Adonis look like a fool, while also being mean as hell on the arm so it's just not for nothing. They end up on the mat and Adonis rolls over the top of him and punches him in the nose to get him to finally let go and it's a bloody mess! BOB LOSES HIS SHIT AND GOES INSANE ON THE ARM AND SNAPS IT OFF THE ROPES AND NOW TRIES TO BREAK IT, AND HE DEADLIFTS HIM BY IT AND SLAMS HIM TO THE MAT, AND HE DOES IT AGAIN. Bob's eyes are watering and he's sucking back wind in an amazing visual. Adonis clocks him with lariat in the face and finally drops him and gains control. AND HE FUCKING DROPS HIM WITH A GROSS RIGHT HAND TO THE FUCKING NOSE. It turns into a nasty fight after as it only can at this point, and it's tremendous watching them tiredly fight it out and give it everything they've got. Adonis tries to come off the top, but Bob stops him and sends him dick first into the ropes and then kicks him in the dick again just to do it, and then he hits a fucking spike piledriver. He keeps at it, but Adonis manages to get him into Irene and Backlund fights like hell as he slowly drops to to one knee, and he runs at the ropes and rams Adonis' face into them to get him to let go! Adrian still holds on though and he smacks Bob's head into the post twice and punches him in the face again. and Backlund's entire head is busted open and he's fucking dead. AMAZING concussion selling as he's woozy and spiting out blood and it looks like a horror movie. Adonis punches the piss out of him over and over and Bob takes one of the damndest beatings he's gotten in years. He still fights at every turn and throws his own back AND HE GOES ON A MAD FLURRY AND PUNCHES HIM INTO THE MAT AND THROWS SHOT AFTER SHOT AND STARTS STRANGLING HIM. HE SHOVES THE REF AWAY AND CONTINUES TO PUNCH THE FUCK OUT OF HIM UNTIL HE FINALLY KNOCKS HIM OUT OF THE RING AND THE MATCH ENDS. Another goddamn war from Backlund, and probably our MOTY.
****

Post match, a mountain of refs get him away and try to calm him down. Vince waits for the announcement and assumes it ended via DQ, but Fink announces the ref actually stoped it because of excessive bleeding and the win is awarded to Adonis, but he can't win the title this way which seems like complete bullshit. Adonis is rightly pissed off and spits on Backlund and screams he won the title, and i can't see how anyone could say he didn't. Fuck it, can't wait for a rematch.

Match#7 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito (c) w/Lou Albano vs Rick Martel & Tony Garea (WWF World Tag Team Championships-Pat Patterson is the guest referee)
Perfect piss break match after that incredible match. Everyone is trying a bit harder because it's MSG and all of that, but the work is still crumby dogshit and no amount of effort can change that when 3 of the 4 are terrible wrestlers. Control on Garea is the worst as we all know, because the offence is bad and he's an asshole who can't and won't sell or make anyone look good. Martel gets the hot tag and locks in a sleeper on Saito, and right away Fuji attacks Patterson and sprays mist in his face and the match ends it, and hopefully this godforsaken feud along with it.
1/2*

Post match, the faces run them off and check on Pat.

Match#8 Tony Atlas vs The Executioner
Thankfully only 2 minutes. Still not at all good or worth being a nutcase and watching it, but at least it's quick and painless. Atlas hits two of the worst heabutts i've ever seen, the second of which didn't even connect. He then hits the bad splash to win
1/2*

Match#9 Ivan Putski vs Killer Khan
Andre killed this idiots push but not his career sadly, so we're stuck for a little while yet. Putski being back is also very upsetting as it means Bruno is for sure on his way back as well. Just bad stuff all round. This is a bad fight as both men's strikes are pathetic looking, and then the bell rings after maybe 2 minutes and Vince says the curfew has started and the show has to stop. the ref then awards the match to Ivan.
LMAO

Post match, Ivan shouts "POLISH POWER" to close the show.

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF PHILADELPHIA SPECTRUM
February 20th, 1982

To start the show, Ivan Putski leads the crowd in signing the Polish national anthem. Poor bastards

Match#1 Charlie Fulton vs Jeff Craney
Apparently, we didn't suffer enough last time, so they bring him back and let him wrestle an even lower card guy than he is. The 80's were wild time, boys and girls. Also, turns out the dude’s name is Craney and i fucked that up, so my bad. This looks like a fight between two drunk guys in that it's sloppy, sometimes fun and sometimes horrible, and leaves you feeling a little dirty afterwards. Fulton controls for most of it and it's very boring and dull and like i said, there's a reason he was a jobber for years. He wins with a running leg-drop that might suit another tall blonde guy in the future.
1/2*

Match#2 Adrian Adonis vs SD Jones
Sadly, Adonis doesn't run through him in 30 seconds, and instead has to go 10 minutes with him. Really awesome on his part though, between his offence and stooging and just overall coolness. SD sucks as always, but AA doesn't let him ruin the match too bad, and mostly beats him up or takes big bumps when he was to. Like, when he flips all over the place for some headbutts and punches. Adonis hits him in the throat and hits a vertical suplex to win.
**

At ringside, the commentators interview him. He dumbs himself a wrestling machine and doesn't need to talk like these old timers. He says he dropped SD on his head, and he won't be dancing or doing the boogie tonight. He finishes by saying if Jesse doesn't beat Backlund tonight, the title is coming back to NYC with him.

Match#3 Tony Atlas, Rick Martel & Tony Garea vs Mr Fuji, Mr Saito & Lou Albano (2/3 Falls Match)
This gets 16 minutes because satire is dead. It makes no sense how handicapping the heels by making Lou wrestle when he's been retired for years at this point, and then making him wrestling fucking Tony Atlas, like that's an even match up. What the fuck, people? This is worse than normal now that we've added all the bullshit i just said, on top of this being the deadest feud in the entire company. i promised myself i wouldn't skip anything else, but fuck this.
Pooping yourself and having to use leaves to clean yourself.

Match#4 Pedro Morales (c) vs Greg Valentine (WWF Intercontinental Title)
Hammer stalls for the first few minutes and drives Pedro insane to the point where the old man snaps and bites him and beats the fuck out of him. Pedro is weirdly awesome in these hate filled brawls, and Hammer is the perfect dude to bring it out in him. He gets too angry and Hammer is able to throw him into the buckles to take over and and a great control seg happens. Hammer targets the back and rams him into the post and turns this into a real nasty beating as you'd expect from Hammer. Tons of LOUD shots to the back and legs from him, and Pedro's selling is cool as hell as he does stuff like shake his legs like he's having a spasm. Morales has an even better comeback and gets dirty right away by going after the eyes and dragging him to the outside and smacking his skull off the rail a few times and really beats his ass. He throws hm back in and refuses to stop hitting him when the ref tries to stop him, AND PEDRO THROWS THE REF OUT OF THE RING. OH SHIT. He keeps beating the now bloody Hammer's head in and it's rules sooooooo much. The ref finally drags him off a dead Hammer and the match ends.
***

Post match, GMC announces that Pedro has been DQ.

The commentators interview the ref who explains he had no choice but to do it, AND PEDRO RUSHES OVER AND SHOVES HIM AND GRABS THE MIC AND SCREAMS HE WANTS TO KILL THAT BASTARD AND THEY AREN'T DONE. Love this feud so much.

Match#5 Bob Backlund (c) vs Jesse Ventura (WWF World Championship)
Jesse does ALL the stooging and stalling to start and it seems like maybe he's not taking it all that serious, and then he rabbit punches Backlund in the kidney and drops him, and it's such a cool moment of showing he knows exactly what he's doing and Backlund might be in for a fight. Jess uses his power to control him for a while, and it's all very basic and mean and while not out of the world great, it's a nice change of pace if nothing else. He uses a backbreaker to weaken him, and the highlight is Bob's incredible selling as he fights like death to get out of it. He manages to pull himself down and hit a piledriver, but he's too fucked up to do anything and Ventura keeps control. He locks in his backbreaker and nearly has the win, but Backlund kicks his feet off the ropes and uses his momentum to land on top and grabs his legs and pin him to win.
**

Post match, Jesse goes nuts and says he illegally used the ropes and that should have been a DQ, and he's demanding a rematch. I was a little shocked they had him lose clean in his first shot, but this is a great heel argument to weasel his way into another shot.

Match#6 Killer Khan vs Ivan Putski
SO happy they're getting a rematch after the curfew draw in MSG. I know you wanted to see it just as much as me. In fact, i bet you go out of your way to watch this show just for this epic dream match. They have one of the greatest matches ever in the history of the medium. SO amazing that i won't even spoil the match for you because i love you that much.
***************

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF MADISON SQAURE GARDEN
MARCH 14TH, 1982

Match#1 Steve Travis vs Jose Estrada

Not the most exciting matchup in the world, and i'm 99% sure we've seen it on TV as a squash, but whatever. Fine enough back and forth for 10 minutes with Jose's attempts to cheat being the real highlight. He lifts Travis in a fireman's carry and chokes him with his free hand and hides it from the ref, and it's a cool thing that more people should use more. They fight for a while and Travis gets an O'Conner roll to win
*1/2

Match#2 Greg Valentine w/Grand Wizard vs SD Jones
Ok showcase for Hammer after the series with Pedro, but like always, picking someone like SD is a choice. I know i sound like a prick, but he's really bad and doesn't even belong as a jobber. Brings nothing interesting to the table and makes everyone look lesser when they wrestle him and have to go 10+ with him. Hammer eventually wins with an elbow to the chest.
*1/2

Match#3 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito (c) vs Andre The Giant & Rick McGraw (WWF World Tag Team Championship. 2/3 Falls)
Guess that retirement was bullshit, you little fuck. Andre spends the opening murdering these two and it's such a heartwarming moment after months of their trash on my TV. Sadly, he doesn't pin them in 60 seconds and leave with the titles. McGraw get isolated and it's very bad and lame for a few minutes. Saito legit choke him for nearly 3 minutes, and it perfectly sums up these lazy jerkoffs. They refuse to stop attacking him, so Andre snaps and beats the fuck out of them, and the ref DQ's the champs. Super weird way to do that. Vince says the titles can't change hands on a DQ in a 2/3 falls match, so you see exactly where this is going. Andre gets in for the second fall and belts the fuck out of them. He kills Fuji with a big boot and a massive splash to win the second fall.
*1/2

Post match, Fink announces the titles can't change hands on a DQ, so the nightmare continues.

Match#4 Bob Backlund (c) vs Jesse Ventura (WWF World Championship-Ivan Putski is the guest referee)
Jesse cuts all the shit and runs at him full speed for something different, but Backlund still whips in his ass and makes him look the fool for a while. Ventura ends up hanging him on the ropes to take over and his control seg is still lacking that fire, but it's fun enough for a dude that seemingly hated actually wrestling. Ivan is a horrible ref and slow counts for Ventura and fast for Backlund, and it throws the rest of the match off as a result.Bobby's comeback is fine enough, but he's not going full spaz in his efforts. They use the exact same finish as the last match for some reason, and Ivan fast counts like a shithead.
**

Post match, Ventura attacks Ivan, but Backlund fights him off and the faces hold the ring.

Match#5 Pedro Morales (c) vs Adrian Adonis (WWF Intercontinental Championship)
HELL YEAH. They go nuts right away with Adonis taking huge bumps on everything he's hit with, and it's another wonderful showing from the big man. Adonis knees him out of the ring and drops him to the floor to take over. All basic stuff from Adrian this time around, but it's done so well and mean that's is great no matter what. He goes after the legs with boots and elbows and it's good shit, along with Pedro's selling. Morales makes a great comeback showing all the fire from the last few months is still there, and Adonis again throws himself all over the place like a maniac with no regard for his safety. They fight back in the ring and Adrian hits a German suplex and both men's shoulder are down, but at the last second Morales pops his up to win.
***

POST MATCH, ADONIS ATTACKS HIM AND HITS HIM IN THE HEAD WITH THE BELT, BUT PEDRO FIGHTS BACK AND WHIPS HIS ASS AND HOLDS THE RING. Awesome shit.

Match#6 Pat Patterson vs Lou Albano
PATTERSON STABS HIM WITH A SPIKE OVER AND OVER AND LOU'S HEAD IS A BLOODY MESS!! PAT KEEPS STABBING HIM UNTIL ALBANO RUNS AWAY AND LOSES VIA COUNTOUT.
*********************************************************

Match#7 Rick Martel & Tony Garea vs Charlie Fulton & The Executioner
This is the last match of this horrible team as Martel is gone after this, and Garea moves on to being a jobber loser. THANK GOD. Decent showcase as always with Martel ruling and Tony being a giant piece of shit. The dreaded and feared Sunset Flip ends the match, the team and the show
**

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF Championship Wrestling
May 8th, 1982
Allentown, PA

Vince and Patterson are our commentators, which is weird as i thought there would be a change up to make them different.

In a pre-tape, Vince hypes up the 5/6/82 MSG card, which is the first time in these reviews they've done this for the house shows. Really selling how big they are. Vince announces Snuka will challenge Backlund for the title. Bob walks on and Vince says Snuka attacked him in MSG a few weeks ago and caused him to be carried out. Backlund says he freaked out when they went after Arnold, and while he's got hurt ribs and he's beaten down, he won't let his family down. He gets very emotional talking about not being able to play with his kids and he walks off crying. AMAZING.

Match#1 Jimmy Snuka w/Lou Albano vs Frankie Willams
Not a fan of Snuka at all, but him being here is super important to the next few years, so it's fine. i mean, not fine if you're the woman he killed, but you get my drift. Not a great showcase as most of his offence looks weak and bad, and not in any "wild" as they portray him as. Real fraud on top of everything else. He wins with a bad running knee to the head.
3/4*

Match#2 Andre The Giant vs The Black Demon
Vince dubs Andre the only undefeated man in wrestling, starting that lie off nice and early. Still, this is another awesome showcase as he beats the crap out of this poor fuck in amazing fashion. Boot and Ass Splash end it
*3/4

Match#3 Jay Strongbow & Jules Stronbow vs Jeff Craney & Mack Rivera
OH MY GOD, ARE YOU KIDDING ME????? They bought Strongfake back and gave him a shitty partner on top of it. I hate everything. This is fucking abysmal and a true war crime of a match. Boring, dull, borderline illegal. Jules wins with a terrible sleeper hold.
1/2*

At ringside, Patterson interviews them and it;'s terrible, and i refuse.

We cut in to a Blackjack Mulligan promo!!!! He says he made Andre fall and the world is watching him in awe and dubbing him "GIANT KILLER", and he is the man they need to bow to. He says Blassie lead him to this point and he will take Andre out of wrestling.

Match#4 Steve Travis vs Terry Gunn
Decent showcase for Big Steve. Nothing out of this world great, just good basics for a couple of minutes. He wins with a running powerslam
*1/2

Match#5 Blackjack Mulligan w/Freddie Blassie vs Joe Perkins
Super fun bully squash from Blackjack. He fucks with the jobber by picking him up and sitting him in the corner so he can punch him in the kidney. Massive dickhead stuff, and it's a blast. He beat the crap out of him some more and wins with the Claw and a giant red X shows up on the screen censoring the violence. AMAZING.
**

At ringside, Vince is with Albano. He laughs his balls off at Backlund crying about his loser family. He's a coward , a down right coward and Snuka is going to dive down and take the title.

Match#6 Tony Atlas vs Lee Wong
Atlas works the arm this week and it's one of the funniest possible ideas as he just sits down and pulls it a lot and nothing else. Untrained idiot. He wins with his terrible slam and splash.
Licking a toilet

Match#7 Bob Orton w/Grand Wizard vs Barry Hart
All the pieces slowly come together a little bit more. Bob's a roughhouse type of wrestler and throws a lot of punches to the head and chest and the like. Not at all fancy, just mean as hell. He wins with the Suplerplex
*3/4

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF Championship Wrestling
May 15th, 1982
Allentown, PA

TONIGHT; VALENTINE VS GAREA

In a pre-tape, Vince hypes up the 5/6 MSG show with Blackjack/Andre and Blacklund/Snuka headlining. Really awesome to get to the point where we get build for the live events, a trend that will continue for the better part of the decade. Backlund walks on and he's still very upset about the attack stopping him from playing with his kid. He says he fought getting off the stretcher because he didn't want to be embarrassed in front of the world, so he's coming for revenge for his family, fans and himself.

Match#1 Tony Atlas vs Mack Rivera
Another massive piece of shit from Atlas. Hate him so much, and i can not wait for him to get fired soon. Bad slam does it
1/2*

Match#2 Jimmy Snuka w/Lou Albano vs Jeff Craney
Way better than last week as Snuka puts some force behind his shots and really lays them in as he should be doing. Flying Headbutt of the top ends it.
*3/4

Match#3 Greg Valentine w/Grand Wizard vs Tony Garea
Tony finally takes his rightful spot as jobber to the stars. Granted i wish he wasn't here, but getting to watch him get his ass kicked is fine with me. They have a great fight to start with some awesome haymakers and other gross shots, and it's an awesome change of pace. Hammer eventually drags him down and goes to work on the legs, and Tony is fucked. Great shit from Hammer as always as he gets real mean with it. Garea fights back and has a little run before Hammer cuts him off and hits a NASTY Butterfly suplex right on top of fucking skull. THEY SAY FUCK IT AND THROW MORE AMAZING PUNCHES AND BOTH DUDES SHOVE THE REF AWAY AND HE EVENTUALLY THROWS THE MATCH OUT.
**3/4

In a pre-tape, Vince interview Andre. He laughs at Blackjack calling himself a giant when he's "only" 6ft9. He doesn't know what it is to be a real giant or fight one, but he'll show him.

Match#4 Bob Orton w/Grand Wizard vs George Roseallo
Orton knees the shit out of the kid over and over, and it's one those real brutal squashes that feels like a shoot. Orton jumps off the top rope to the floor with a knee to the back in an absolute wild moment for 1982. Superplex ends it
**

Match#5 BlackJack Mulligan w/Freddie Blassie vs Bary Hart
Blackjack beats poor Barry like he's a counterfeit machine. Only 90 seconds and change, but still as mean as fucking possible. Claw does it
*3/4

Match#6 Jay Strongbow & Jules Strongbow vs Frankie Williams & Charlie Fulton
NO

Match#7 Swede Hanson w/Freddie Blassie vs Paul Figueroa
Swede is back as well despite being 100 and not good. Lazy old man type of match with sleepers and bad strikes, and it just leaves you wondering why he's back at all. He wins with a terrible looking backbreaker.
1/2*

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF PHILADPEHIA SPECTRUM
MAY 22ND, 1982

Match#1 Larry Sharpe vs Charlie Fulton
Larry does his best to carry this goof for a few minutes, and it's not bad on his end; Fulton adds nothing to it and sucks, but Larry's stooging and fun style are enough to make up for the big lug. He takes a good beating for the control seg and then comes back and wins with a Piledriver
*3/4

Match#2 Mikel Scicluna vs. Pete Sanchez
Vince's expansion can not happen quick enough so this bullshit can finally fucking end. Horrible horrrrrrible stuff.
FUCK YOU

Match#3 Swede Hanson vs. Laurent Soucie
Read the previous review.

Match#4Johnny Rodz vs Mr Saito
Johnny is now being fed to this goof in a single match for unknown reasons. Heel vs heel it at least fun as both dudes are bastards to one another, but it doesn't make for a great match. Saito wins with a bad headbutt.
1/2*

Match#5 Pedro Morales vs Jimmy Snuka
This card is really weird and feels like a holdover until they get to MSG as none of these make sense from a kayfabe stand point. Jimmy's wildman stuff goes out the window again as he goes to the mat and works an arm. Like, yeah it's cool you can do at (not well, but ok), but you're a fucking wildman gimmick, do that or fuck off. Pedro has none of the fire from the last few shows, so he's not helping matter either. Just a bad styles clash on top of everything i mentioned. Also, goes nearly 15 minutes just for the final fuck you, Donnie. Snuka eventually snaps and headbutts the ref for the DQ.
Eating grilled cheese off a radiator

Match#6 Blackjack Mulligan vs Steve Travis
Blackjack saves the show. He beats the complete shit out of poor Steve, and it's so nice after 90 minutes of pure shit. Just a hellacious beating from one of the best bullies ever. He never lets up and poor old Steve gets murdered for it. Blackjack weirdly wins with a back elbow to the face.
**1/2

Match#7 Bob Backlund (c) vs Bob Orton (WWF World Championship)
This is a return match from April where Orton won via countout, sucks we don't have it though. Really awesome feeling out to start where once again Bob goes to the speed aspect to take over, and Orton gets owned and made to look the fool as so many others before him. Orton eventually sends him out of the ring on to the floor and dives off the top again and goes nuts on him in revenge and it turns into a killer fight. Awesome strike exchanges and big bumps, and it's another great Backlund title defence during his wonderful reign. Orton takes the Race/Flair bump right over the top of the buckles and then spikes himself on a piledriver a little later, and Backlund is right there with him with these crazy bumps or never shying away from a punch to the face. They spill to the outside where Orton gets a belt and strangles Backlund and throws him to the ground and slides back into win via countout.
***

Post match, Backlund goes after him with the belt and holds the ring.

Match#8 Jesse Ventura vs Tony Atlas (Steel Cage)
This is a return from the last Philly show, but i'm happy we don't have that one. Jesse takes a ton of crazy bumps into the cage and does his utmost to make it as fun as possible, and maybe the best Atlas match ever. Tony takes a few nice headers into the cage and gets busted open, and he sells it pretty well for a guy whose never had to do it before. Jesse beats his ass for a while it's good times, as is Tony's comeback. He goes nuts on Jesse and makes him kiss the cage a few times and busts him open in a real ugly gusher. They beat the crap out of each for a while and then race out to the top and Tony is just a touch quicker and gets out first.
**3/4

Match#9 Adrian Adonis vs Ivan Putski
Thankfully only 7 minutes and AA controls 99% of it. He beats the old man from pillar to post, and it sucks he can't have his normal match with someone this washed, it's still cool to see him. He takes those wild bumps for Ivan's comeback and makes him look not washed and horrible for the first time in years. Ivan hits a terrible Thez press to win
*3/4

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF MADISON SQAURE GARDEN
JUNE 5TH, 1982

Match#1 Jose Estrada vs. Laurent Soucie
Jose opening every MSG card is awesome for him, even if he's stuck with losers and the like. LS isn't much and only lasted two years as a wrestler, but it's cool to see a piece of forgotten history in action. They have a back and forth for 8 minutes and it's inoffensive, but very dull. Jose wins with his flying back elbow to the face.
3/4*

Match#2 Ivan Putski vs Mr Saito.
I love you all, but not a chance.

Match#3 Greg Valentine vs Tony Atlas
Thankfully only 6 minutes and it's mostly controlled by Hammer. He bumps big for the kid to start and makes Tony's weak stuff look good, and then takes over and works the legs for a while. Good work from him, but not to his normal great standard as he's not killing himself for this. Atlas powers out of the figure four and a big brawl breaks out, they spill to the outside where it goes to a double contount.
*1/2

Match#4 Bob Orton vs Steve Travis
Hell Yeah. Awesome fight to start with both dudes getting mean and nasty trying to take control. Orton hits a motherfucker of a forearm to the face to to take it, and he beats the crap out of our boy. Mean as hell as always now with some great bumps and sells from Steve. Travis' attempted comeback rules as he's throwing these wonderful punches to the head and body and gets closer and closer, but Orton keeps cutting him off and getting dirtier in return. Orton goes for a Vader Bomb off the top but Travis gets his knees up and mounts a great comeback. He goes to the top to try something BUT ORTON PUNCHES HIM WITH A DISGUSTING RIGHT HAND TO STOP HIM AND THEN HITS THE SUPLEX TO WIN. Fuck yeah.
***

Match#5 Swede Hanson vs Tony Garea
HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. lol.

Before the title match, Backlund beats the shit out of Albano and runs him off.

Match#6 Bob Backlund (c) vs Jimmy Snuka (WWF World Championship)
AND THEN BOB JUMPS SNUKA AND BEATS THE FUCK OUT OF HIM. GOD YES, THE CRAZED KILLER IS BACK. Fantastic angry stuff with a ton of gross punches and huge Snuka bumps for everything. Backlund works the arm for a while and it's just as good as his other stuff as he's trying to rip it out of the socket or break it, and Snuka's selling is very good. He's still not good, but this is easily one of the best performances of his life. He proves me right when he takes a MASSIVE bump over the top rope to the floor when Backlund ducks under him. And then they show an instant replay of it with Vince being awe of it. Holy shit, that rules. Bob stays on him and the arm, and it's very fun, but it would make more sense if he was going for the kill. They fight on the outside where Snuka sends him rib first into the rails and Bob clutches them right away and he's fucked up bad. Snuka goes after them with a bearhug and shots to them, and it's all very good work from him. He goes for his big splash and MSG comes alive for him, but backlaund misses and he ends up hitting a fucking swanton bombs to the mat in another insane bump. They fight on the outside and Jimmy cracks him with a headbutt and gets back in to win via countout.
***

Post match, Snuka stays on the attack and rams him into the post and beats him up on the floor and taunts the crowd, and Bob is a bloody mess. Snuka keeps taunting them and they want him dead, and Bob comes back alive and beats the shit out of him and eventually runs him. That fucking RULED. Can't wait for the rematch.

Match#7 Pedron Morales (c) vs Mr Fuji (WWF Intercontinental Championship)
I'm good, thanks.

Match#8 Jesse Ventura & Adrian Adonis vs Jay & Jules Strongbow
Oh fuck off. Zero reason not to give the new heels the titles and have them hold them until Vince cares about tag wrestling in like 3 years. They do their best to carry these assholes for a few minutes with some big bumps and the like, and it's fun, but goddamn what a waste. Things break down and Jay hits one of the worst Thez Presses ever on Adonis and pins him while AA has his foot on the ropes the entire time.
1/2*

Match#9 Sherri Martel & The Fabulous Moolah vs. Judy Martin & Penny Mitchell
I wanted to skip this, but Scary Sherri being here is awesome and she deserves some props. Even if she's teaming with that horrible cunt. This is really bad though, as no one it can actually wrestle, or stabs Moolah in the throat with a shiv. The Cunt wins with a terrible rollup
Farting so bad you shit yourself

Before the main event, Fink announces Backlund vs Snuka in a Cage on the 28th of June. FUCK YEAH.

Match#10 Andre The Giant vs Blackjack Mulligan
ANDRE RUSHES HIM AND A BIG BOY FIGHT BREAKS OUT. YESSSSSSSS. Andre headbutts him over and over and then goes after the Claw hand!! He wretches the hell out of it and bends in some of hideous ways, and i can't even imagine how much it hurt to have him do that. Andre stays on him and every shot is thrown with ungodly power and hatred, and Blackjack dies over and over. Jack manages to get the Claw on the back of his neck when Andre tries his ass smash in the corner, and it's a cool moment of desperation. Mulligan manages to get him to the ground, and Vince declares Andre will finally lose, which is a tremendous thing to do to get Mulligan over. Andre slowly fights back to his feet and sells the damage amazingly well as he's shaking his neck and stumbles around. Jack grabs the Claw again and they tumble to the outside where he locks it on again and they both get counted out. Fuck it, that ruled
***

Mulligan refuses to let it go and busts Andre up!!!!! He lets go so he can taunt the crowd, and Andre comes to life and beats him up and then throws a ton of chair at him until he runs to the back. Holy shit, that was wonderful.

On a final note, this is an incredibly important show as Vince with the help of his wife, Gorilla and Arnold Skaaland bought the company from Vince's dad for a million bucks the week of this show (with it all being finalised on the 6th of June, at least that's what most wrestling historians cite as the correct date). Vince will slowly start his plan to take over wrestling and crush everything and everyone in his wake, but he'll need to wait for his old man to die before he put his final steps into motion. History is being made and we're now along for the ride. God speed.

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF Championship Wrestling
June 12th, 1982
Allentown, PA

in a pre-tape, Vince hypes the MSG show on the 28th. Backlund walks on for some more hype, he says he was very upset he couldn't beat Snuka las time, but by golly he's going to beat him in a cage match. He says he can't wait to rip him limb from limb, and get locked in there.

Match#1 Salvatore Bellomo vs Frankie Williams
Sal his making his debut and he's more famous as a jobber for years and years, but he's ok. He does a lot of basics and Patterson keeps shouting about how he's bringing the European style to the states, and it's not that at all. He wins with a Butterfly suplex.
3/4*

Match#2 Ivan Putski vs Terry Gunn
No

In a pre-tape, Vince interviews Snuka and Albano. Lou says Snuka's gameplan was to confuse Bob by jumping around inside and outside of the ring to make him mad, and it worked perfectly. They're ending the reign next week.

Match#3 Steve Travis & Rick McGraw vs Tony Calone & Johnny Rodz
Steve is now in a team with this pesky little shit, and there's worse ways to push him, i guess. Good showcase for them however, as they mesh pretty well, on top of being in there with a great jobber. Travis wins with his running Powerslam.
*3/4

In another pre-tape, Vince with with Orton and Wizard. Bob will be challenging Pedro for the title in MSG. Wizard says this is a stepping stone to the big title, and they're going to throw him into the 8th row and take the title.

Match#4 SD Jones vs Lee Wong
Terrible showcase for SD, but thankfully on 90 seconds. He wins with a move
1/2*

Match#5 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito vs Pete Sanchez & Miguel Salino
NO

Match#6 Buddy Rose w/Grand Wizard vs Barry Hart
Playboy is here!!!! He blasts the crap out of Barry, and it's another really mean squash that everyone should aspire to do. He wins with Black Hole Slam onto his knee.
**

Match#7 Tony Atlas vs Jeff Craney
Bad Atlas squash once again. Just want him to go away forever, or at least until ECW 2008. Horrible slam does it
1/2*

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF All Star Wrestling
June 19th, 1982
Allentown PA

Match#1 Swede Hanson w/Freddie Blassie vs Steve Travis
Fuck. Poor Travis gets fed to old ugly washed shit. He tries his best to get something out of him, but yeah not happening at all. They fight to a double countout just to make matters worse
1/2*

Match#2 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito vs SD Jones & Dino Palacimo
STOP IT.

They replay Buddy's squash from last week.

Match#3 Bob Orton vs Jeff Craney
Orton saves the show with a fun squash. Brings all the mean work he's been doing and takes Craney to school. Orton hits a gross knee of the top and then the Superplex to win
*3/4

Match#4 Tony Atlas vs Charlie Fulton
Horrible once again, and now gets over 5 minutes. FUCKING WHAT. Gorilla Press ends it.
1/2*

Match#5 Blackjack Mulligan vs Charlie Brown
60 seconds this week because Atlas needed that time. Claw does it
3/4*

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF Championship Wrestling
June 26th, 1982
Allentown PA

In our opening pre=tape (which seems to be the norm for Championship Wrestling) Vince hypes MSG on the 28th, and he adds that cage match is now escape only through the door has Snuka has an advantage if it's over the top. What the fuck?? That's one of the most biased rulings ever.

Match#1 Pedro Morales vs Mr X
X is a fat dude in a gimp mask and it's what all jobbers should look like tbh. This is awful as Pedro lets the jobber control him for a while and he looks like a massive fucking geek as a result. Bad crab does it
1/2*

Match#2 Bob Orton vs Miguel Feliciano
Orton doesn't let the jobber control him because he's not a fucking asshole. He pounds the hell out of him for a few minutes and it's fun as always, as Bob is now maybe the best squash guy in the company. Suplerpex for the win.
**

Match#3 Buddy Rose vs Dale Pierce
Buddy kicks the snot out of the poor guy and it's another real brutal squash on his behalf. Buddy wins with a flying knee this week.
**

Match#4 Bob Bradly & Steve Travis vs The Demons
The Demons are Fulton and Scicluna under masks, and Bradly is the future BATTLE KAT. He's a tiny jacked guy whose not all that good, but he's here as a "star" for the week. NO HE ISN'T AS THE DEMONS BEAT HIM WITH A DOUBLE CLOSELINE AND AN ELBOW TO THE CHEST IN 80 SECONDS. WHAT THE FUCK??
1/2*

An honest to God shocking squash right there. Zero clue if these idiots stay under this gimmick and get a push of some sort, but now i kinda want to see what happens. Job well done.

Match#5 Jimmy Snuka w/Lou Albano vs Jim Wittenburg
Snuka is getting more popular as the weeks go thanks to his style, so something is going to need to be done about it. Decent squash from Snuka this week. He's way better suited in real matches, but he can beat a jobber pretty well when he cares. Flying Headbutt does it.
*

Match#6 The Strongbow Brothers vs Jose Estrada & Pete Mitchell
Gets 4 minutes just to be a little more cruel than it already was. Complete trash as always. Sleeper does it.
Cultural Appropriation

Match#7 Blackjack Mulligan w/Freddie Blassie vs Mac Rivera
Awesome shit from Blackjack as always. Mean and brutal and without a care in the world for the jobber. Claw ends it
**

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/10/81

WWF MADISON SQAURE GARDEN
JUNE 28TH, 1982

Match#1 Johnny Rodz vs Rick McGraw
Jose has been robbed, goddamn it. As always with these MSG openers, this is a fine back and forth for 10 minutes with both dudes looking good and whatnot. Nothing more and nothing less But hey, there are worse matches they could put in this spot, so it's cool. Rodz wins with a legdrop off the top right onto McGraw's stupid head
**

Match#2 Swede Hanson vs. Laurent Soucie
Oh no. "Thankfully" only 3 minutes in the way of a Swede squash, but it's horrible no matter how much time it gets. Bad Backbreaker ends it
1/2*

Match#3 Pedro Morales (c) vs Bob Orton (WWF Intercontinental Championship)
Pedro runs through him right away and Orton bumps all the over the place for him, and it's another fantastic showing for Orton. Bob cuts him off with an atomic drop and goes to work with another fun control seg on the old man. Pedro takes a few nasty bumps and sells really well, and does a lot to help Orton. Pedro's comeback is fun and Orton returns the favour by bumping like a nutcase for him. Pedro refuses to stop attacking him in the corner and ends up throwing the ref across the ring when he tries to stop him, so he gets DQ like an assholes.
**3/4

Match#4 Blackjack Mulligan vs SD Jones
Really fun Blackjack showcase against a big piece of shit whose had this beating coming for years and years. Blackjack wins with the back elbow to the face.
**

Match#5 Steve Travis vs Charlie Fulton
Fulton jumps him from behind and dumps him on the floor, and it's a great change of pace from this dude. Travis is fucked up and Fulton stay on him and beats the piss out of him, and it's the best he's looked since his debut. He keeps at it, but Travis drags him down into a cradle to steal the win out from under him.
**1/4

At ringside, Vince is with Travis. He says he will never take any one lightly, and he's going to wake up with a few bruises, but a lesson learnt. He declares his intention to win a title in the near future, be it singles or tag with McGraw.

At ringside, Vince is now with Blassie. He's happy Blackjack won tonight, and it's only a matter before he beats that pencil necked geek Andre. He says they have signed a contract for a rematch in a Texas Death Match. Fuck Yes.

Match#6 Bob Backlund (c) vs Jimmy Snuka (WWF World Championship-Steel Cage. Escape through the door only)
Bob attacks him right away again and punches the hell out of him, and the crowd boos him and sides with Snuka. OH SHIT. First time Backlund is getting booed like this, but it's not hard to blame them for siding with the crazy dude that does cool shit. Snuka takes over and fucks Bob up with the cage and jumps off the turnbuckles a few times, and it's the first time i can recall someone actually doing that. Bob manages to throw him into he cage to bust him open, and he slingshots him into and Snuka takes it right in the fucking face and bounces back all the way across the ring in an insane moment. Backlund keeps beating the piss out of him, and even covers his face with some of his blood like a true madman. Snuka cuts him off again and jumps off the top with a knee the face and beats him bloody in revenge. Snuka climbs to the very top of the cage and goes for his Superfly Splash

JESUS FUCKING CHRIST. Backlund scrambles out of the cage and Snuka just misses grabbing onto his feet, and Bob falls out the door to win.
***

Post match, Vince interview Bob at ringside. Bob calls him an animal and a dog, but he's proud of what he was able to do to him in the cage tonight. Backlund says going out the door was the way he wanted it, so he could show who the true winner was. He doesn't like cage matches because it's not his style, but whatever it takes. He respects Snuka for his efforts, but he's not a fool and he saw him coming off the top and he moved and got out of there with the title. Bob is the original "JUST MOVE, DICKHEAD" Wrestler, and it's more reason to love him. He says he had an accident in training when he broke a friends leg, and it nearly made him quit wrestling, but he heard what Orton said about him and he's accepting the challenge from him.

Match#7 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito (c) w/Lou Albano vs The Stronbow Brothers (WWF World Tag Team Championship. Guest referee Ivan Putski)
Fuck me. Of course this bullshit has to happen after a really fun show, and all time insane moment. It just shows how dire the division how anyone who wants to bitch and moan about how bad others over the years have been, really needs to look at this shit and compare them. This is terrible as you'd expect with 4 of the worst wrestlers in the world at this point getting 10 minutes. Everything is bad and deeply wrong and evil, and makes me question why i do this to myself. Fuji breaks out the dreaded nerve hold just to really ramp up the awfulness to this, and i can't help but respect how fucking lazy he is. Fuji misses an elbow and Jay "jumps" on him and that's enough to get the 3 and we have new and maybe worse champs. Outstanding work from everyone involved.
Castration

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/7/82

Fuji and Saito won the titles back on the 13th on TV, but i don't have the footage, so fuck it.

WWF All-Star Wrestling
July 17th, 1982
Hamburg, PA

Match#1 Mr Fuji vs Tony Garea
JIP because maybe life is ok. very bad for what we see and it ends on a double countout.
Poop

Match#2 Tony Atlas vs Johnny Rodz
Rodz his best to make it a good squash with his normal fun stuff, and Tony doesn't fuck much up, so it does it work. Rodz misses his knee of the top and Atlas "fires" up with some terrible shots. beats on him for a while and wins with his bad gorilla press.
*

Match#3 Buddy Rose vs Jeff Craney
Super mean stuff from Buddy as is the norm at this point, and it's neck and neck between him and Orton for the best squash guy in the company. Flying knee drop does it.
**

All the promos have either been cut out or they stop half in, so this is a match only show by the looks of it.

Match#4 Jimmy Snuka w/Lou Albano vs Barry Hart
The fans love him as always, and now Patterson is singing his praises, so babyface turn is coming. Snuka wins in 40 seconds with the flying headbutt.
1/2*

Match#5 Pedro Morales vs Mr Saito
only 3 minutes but still horrible. Pedro beats him up and locks in the crab, but Albano attacks for the DQ.
1/2*

Post natch, Pedro runs them off, but Snuka attacks from behind!! He beats the shit out of him and hits him with Splash to close the show.

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/7/82

WWF PHIILAHELPHIA SPECTRUM
JULY 31ST, 1982

Match#1 Steve Travis vs Tony Garea
Nice opener for the Philly fans. Good back and forth to start and if they're going to keep Garea alive, this is the best way to use him. Travis looks awesome again, and if the US title was a thing in WWF, he'd be my first pick. Travis ends up hitting a bridging German and both men's shoulder's are down and it goes to a draw
*3/4

Match#2 Salvatore Bellomo vs. Pete Sanchez
WAY too long at nearly 11 minutes as Big Pussy doesn't have it all, and this just makes him look even worse when the jobber is beating him up for long turns in this. Sal wins with a shoddy looking Sunset flip
1/2*

Match#3 Mr Fuji & Mr Saito (c) vs The Strongbow Brothers (WWF World Tag Team Championship)
Horrible as shit once again, and i can not fucking wait for 83 to hit and this shit to FINALLY fucking end. Champs win, and let's move on.
Fuck you.

Match#4 Bob Backlund (c) w/Arnold Skaaland vs Jimmy Snuka w/Lou Albano WWF World Championship)
Weird start as Snuka starts stalling and teasing he'll walk out, and it doesn't fit him at all given everything he's done since his debut. Even more so when you remember the last match they had and how close Snuka was to winning, so what the fuck??. Even weirder is once he comes back and Bob get ahold of him, he doesn't have the same insane fire as normal, and it's all very run of the mill type work. Snuka takes over...and then he works the arm for a few minutes and has fuck all fire himself. it's one of the most disappointing things ever given how awesome the last two matches between them have been. Even when it breaks down and they fight it still sucks because neither dude is going insane, or even trying all that hard. AND THEN IT TURNS EVEN WORSE WHEN THE MANAGERS START FIGHTING AND THEN A TON OF WRESTLERS RUN DOWN AND FIGHT. WHAT THE FUCK. I SWEAR I'M NOT MAKING THIS UP.
What a horrible sad piece of shit

Post match, they all keep brawling and fighting and nothing makes sense at all. It finally ends with Backlund and other faces holding the ring. One of the oddest and worst booking ideas ever.

Match#5 Andre The Giant vs Blackjack Mulligan.
Andre fucks him up right away and sends him pillar to post and it rocks, but it's even cooler watching a man as huge as Blackjack bounce around like he's a lightweight. Andre again tries to break his claw hand, so Jack gouges his eyes to stop him and starts beating his ass. He sinks in the claw and gets him down again, and Andre's selling is amazing as hell. Going from dead on the mat to convulsing, just a great display from the big man. He slowly grabs onto the hand and twists and turns it until he rolls over and traps it!! Jack is now fighting like hell to hold on, but Andre manages to rip the glove off. OH SHIT. Andre goes ballistic and beats the fucking shit out of him. He drags him to the outside and beats him some more, and then hits him with a massive kick to send him flying when they both trying to get in the ring, and Jack gets counted out.
**3/4

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/7/82

WWF Championship Wrestling
July 31st, 1982
Allentown, PA

Tonight; Buddy Rose vs Steve Travis.

Match#1 Tony Atlas vs Mac Rivera
Atlas is still lost in the ring and nothing is seemingly going to fix that. Truly one of the worst project guys ever. He wins with his terrible splash.
1/2*

Match#2 Buddy Rose vs Steve Travis
Travis rushes him and tries to tire him out in the smartest play, and it's another really good showing for our hero. They go back and forth and Buddy catches him right in the nose with a gross back elbow and explodes Steve's face. Buddy goes nuts on it and beats his ass in revenge and throws him to the floor, but it brings Travis back to life and he overwhelms Buddy with offence. He keeps at it, but Buddy ducks out of the way when he jumps in the corner and Travis hits his head on the ring post. Buddy quickly follows up with a flying knee drop to win.
**3/4

Match#3 Swede Hanson vs Ollie Brown.
Fuck off.

Match#4 Mr Fuji & Mr saito vs Steve King & Bob Bradley
no

 

[BigVanDonnie]

WWF World Champion; Bob Backlund- Since 20/2/78
WWF Intercontinental Champion; Pedro Morales -Since 23/11/81
WWF Tag Team Champions; Mr Fuji & Mr Saito- Since 13/7/82

WWF Championship Wrestling
August 7th, 1982
Allentown, PA

In a pre-tape, Vince hypes the upcoming MSG show on the 30th, where Backlund will defend against Playboy Buddy Rose. Buddy walks on and says he's been chasing Backlund for years and years but he refused to defend against him on the west-coast, so he came west to take the title and show everyone he's the best. Rose says he needs the title to live his chosen lifestyle, and Wizard says they're guilty for living life as only they can.

Match#1 Pedro Morales vs Rocky Cole
WWF is now putting up names for the wrestlers before their matches which is awesome, and makes this easier when the sound mostly sucks and you can't make out the correct names sometimes. This is your standard Pedro squash for a few minutes, and it's a old game at this point. Bad crab does it
1/2*

Match#2 Buddy Rose w/Grand Wizard vs Bob Bradley
Awesome squash from Playboy this week. Mean as hell and just plain fun for a while. knee drop does it
**

Match#3 Mighty Joe Thunder w/Lou Albano vs Steve King
So, Joe is an old vet from the 60's and 70's who had a run in Florida for a while, and then retired for 14 years and is now back. Super weird, but the 80's before the boom were weird. He's not good at all because he's both old and washed, and the game has passed him by and then some. He wins with a bad elbow drop
1/2*

Match#4 Tony Garea vs Mack Rivera
booooooooo. Hate to see this fool get a showcase after years of being horrible and dragging Martel down, but life isn't fair as they say. He wins with an Abdominal Stretch like it's 1968.
Fuck NZ

Match#5 Superstar Billy Graham w/Grand Wizard vs Barry Hart
OH NO. This horrible bastard has returned to stink the joint up despite being another old washed hack, who wasn't even all that good in his prime. Vince immediately comments on him looking 20n pounds lighter and having no hair, so you can already tell Vince hates this shit and is only doing to keep his old man happy. Bill wins in 40 seconds with a bearhug as the tribute to the 60's continues.
Being a pariah in a business full of the worst people in the world

Match#6 Andre The Giant vs Mr X
Andre saves the day with a wonderful squash of a masked goon. He does his ass based offence and murders the poor kid as only he can. He hits the big boot and massive ass splash to win.
**

Match#7 Bob Orton w/Grand Wizard vs Victor Mercada
Little over a minute this week, but awesome all the same. He takes it with a piledriver.
*