Keith's Sunday Night Heat Review Thread

[Keith]

The show which basically was a teaser for things to come on Monday Nights and a PPV preview show started debuted on August 2nd, 1998.

Vince opens up the first broadcast by announcing that his son Shane will be doing play-by-play alongside JR and the King. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't this the first time we've seen Shane on TV since he was a ref in the early 90's? Shane comes out with two hotties. Sadly as soon as he opens his mouth he's just terrible! He not only sounds clueless but just rambles on about nothing of importance most of the time. His attempts to sound cool and hip die a death too. Including referring to Lawler as "King Fish" Can't believe Vince thought Shane was ready to be on TV full time based on this. Then again he is his son, so you know...

Edge VS. Double J (W/Tennessee Lee)
These two always had decent chemistry and this is a nice crisp opener. It could never match their Fully Loaded IC Title match. But its a solid watch anywhere. The highlights being Jarrett's reverse Russian legsweep, Edge's reverse of Jarrett's top rope cross body, and Edge's triple suplex with the final part switched into a face buster. The main story to the match is that Jarrett and Lee are starting to fall out with Jeff starting to think of a change in direction. The dated Lee does suck the life out of Jeff and the match. Lee misses his cue to grab Edge's leg on a suplex attempt from out side in. Then a moment later he grabs Jarrett's leg instead of Edge's as the heel comes off the ropes. Edge gets the quick pin. **1/2

Pacific Blue cast members Mario Lopez and Amy Hunter are shown enjoying the action at ringside. Pacific Blue just happens to be on after Heat. So guess what that's not the last we'll be seeing of them

DX cuts a typical in-ring promo with The King. The highlight is probably Triple H referring to Lawler as "a old man dressed as Liberace" They hype the HHH/X-Pac match on Raw. Pac says they will go out there and do a Professional job. Trips adds that Vince is just trying to divide DX because he doesn't like their counter culture style. Then per request a plant takes off her top at ringside. For some reason Vince's son cheers this?

We get a Droz World segment. WTF? Droz tells a story of how he was once sick on Mark Henry Wow, just wow... Next time on Droz World Darren talks about his ass Tattoo

The Headbangers and Darren Drozdov VS. Kaientai (W/ Mr. Yamaguchi-San)
They replay the Raw segment with Val Venis in the shower with Mrs. Yamaguchi-San And that Meat chopping segment Val comes to the ring with Mrs. Yamaguchi-San in toe in a hot red number They flirt at the top of ramp throughout the match. The match itself is meh outside of some nice Kaientai double teams and fine Dick Togo running leg drop Droz gets the win with a sit out powerbomb. Post match Val flirts with Amy Hunter. Mario gets pissed and has a pull apart with Val. Do they ever follow this up? **

They replay the Sable-Jackie Bikini contest from Fully Loaded. We also see the Raw clip when Vince DQ's Sable because of course kids hand prints are not proper Bikini wear Vince asserts his power only for Sable to flip him off and show off a very revealing Bikini.

European Title Match - D-Lo Brown (W/Mark Henry) (C) VS. Ken Shamrock
Another rushed job. JR does a nice job of selling Brown's chest protector. There's some decent wrestling, but it quickly breaks down into a brawl, including Mark Henry, Steve Blackman and Dan Severn. Ken Snaps not for the first time *1/2

Bart Gunn hypes up the Brawl for All with another bland Pacific Blue cast member.

Tag Title Number one Contenders Main Event - Kane and Mankind (W/Paul Bearer) VS. The Rock and Owen Hart
Owen gets some insane crowd heat in this one, with the nugget chants Its proper big name main event. The Rock hits his sweet float over DDT on Kane for a near fall. The Big Red Machine spills out of the ring (landing on his feet) and comes back with a hot clothesline from the top on the "Great One". Following the commercial break the Cooperation have isolated Mankind. Owen and Mankind both do some great selling here. Mankind hits the double arm DDT and makes the tag. Kane dominates Hart with the big foot off the rope. His attempted chokeslam is blocked as Owen cuts him off at the knees. A kick to the back of the neck, plus a missile drop kick from the top gets a two. Kane recovers to hit the chokeslam at the second time of asking. The Rock saves his partner before Kane can hit the tombstone. This leads to a full on brawl between the four guys on the outside. Owen like the sneaky heel he is sneaks back in just before the ten count This count out win sets up The Rock and Owen VS. Taker and Stone Cold for the tag titles on Raw. ***

In an interview Austin says people shouldn't read too much him offering the deadman a cold one on raw. He also has a few choice words for that jackass Michael Cole

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 9/08/98

Motormouth McMahon is the host now or so it seems. "Kaboom!" he yeps when Kane's fire hits. Mankind opens the show recapping the events of the HITC match at King of the Ring. Mankind says he is done trying to please the fans and challenges Taker to a match later in the show. Its a very good promo from Foley.



Vader VS. Mark Henry
A pretty one sided big man match. Vader's decline goes on. He looks awkward when landing following a Henry press slam A Vader comeback with stiff shots busts Henry open from the mouth. This seems a wake up call for the "The World's Strongest Man". He reverses Vader into the steps. Back inside he hits a hard clothesline and four big splashes. In a dumb finish the ref DQ's Henry for refusing to pin Vader? Even if the call was that Vader couldn't carry on, the match still would have gone to Henry by four forfeit. WHO BOOKED THIS SHIT?! *1/2



The Headbangers (W/Droz) VS. Southern Justice (W/Tennessee Lee and Double J)
Tame brawl with zero crowd heat. Match goes to a double DQ when Droz and Jarrett brawl into the ring. *

Taka Michinouku (W/Mr. Yamaguchi-San) VS. X-Pac
Why couldn't this have been the main event and given a few extra minutes? I mean its Heat Pac comes out without DX leading JR to speculate that the group have fallen out following heat between Pac and Chyna the previous week on Raw. Pac's bowing gesture to Taka at the start was dodgy even in 98 The highlights are Taka hitting a top rope missile drop kick, but then missing with a top rope splash. Pac catching Taka off the ropes and planting him into the mat, followed by round house kick. He then hist a bronco buster for a big pop and a face buster for the win. Post-match DX squash Kaientai. Of course the Japanese heels are made to look like clowns **

And check out this kick ass Taka video and theme!

Micheal Cole has been giving us updates (if you can call them that) on Undertakers status and if he will accept Mankind's challenge. We see a video of Cole being allowed into Taker's dressing room only to be thrown out when he spots the camera (well he is broadcaster Taker?). Cole claims to have seen someone else in the locker room?

Bradshaw VS. Dustin Runnels
So this is when WWF were first trying to build Bradshaw up as the big monster/bully heel. Runnels was doing his Born Again Christian angle (which would in the end lead to him returning as Golddust), which I'm pretty sure was Russo just sticking it to Religious people (how times change). There's some half decent 1980's style brawling. Bradshaw wins a quick match with a clothesline from Hell. *1/2



This week on Droz's World old Darren talks some rubbish about expressing himself through his body and Tattoos, and someone throws up again, for some reason?..

Droz VS. Double J
Droz looks very sloppy with moves such as a sidewalk slam, a reverse flying elbow, and a body slam for which he gets a two count A Southern Justice distraction turns things around for Jarrett who scores a two from a cross body block from the top. He follows that up with a DDT, a side Russian Leg sweep, and a surplex into a float over for a near fall. Droz fights out of a Jarrett sleeper, but misses a splash in the corner. The Headbangers come out to even up the sides. In all the confusion Tennessee Lee's boot ends up in the ring and Droz uses it to steal the pin on Jarrett. Post match Double J and Lee finally have their parting of the ways with Southern Justice actually taking Jarrett's side in beating down Lee. **



The show closes with Mankind calling out Undertaker. The announcers try to convince us than a match is going down. In a twist Kane destroys his partner. In another twist Kane unmasks to reveal THE UNDERTAKER!! This just adding fuel to the belief that Taker and Kane are in cahoots More next week.

 

[Chris]

that trash ass finish in the Henry/Vader match needs to be brought up more bc it's hilarious.

 

[Barry Poppins]

Russo at his fucking Russo-ist at that ending.

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 16/08/98

We open with a recap of last week's raw including Kane and Mankind winning the tag belts.

Tag Title Match Kane and Mankind (c) (W/Paul Bearer) VS. LOD 2000 (Droz fills in for Hawk)
More tension between the new champs. Droz replaces Hawk because in the storyline Hawk was having drinking issues. For some reason LOD are not DQ'd when Animal slams Mankind on a chair. Kane wins the match with a tombstone on Animal. *1/2



Jacqueline is pissed at Sable after she cost her a match with Luna on Raw and gave Luna her Bikini Contest trophy. Jacqueline wants the trophy back and challenges Sable to an arm wrestling match. Sable accepts, but not before suggesting Jackie is a whore... Sable suggested that to someone else?



Edge VS. Brian Christopher (W/Scott Taylor)
Edge keeps his unbeaten streak going in easily the match of the night. Edge hits a belly to back surplex before clotheslining Christopher to the floor. The Canadian superstar misses a sliding drop kick on Too Much. On his way back in Taylor grabs Edge's ankle. This leads to Christopher hitting a sunset power bomb on the floor. This gets some good crowd heat. Back inside Too Sexy hits a bulldog off the top. And the heels hug for some more heat Edge turns the table catching Christopher in mid-air turning it into a slam. He then hits a spear (not bad, but not quite as good as it will look later). Christopher then reverses Edge into a sharp full nelson slam. The end comes when Christopher misses his top rope leg drop. Edge hits a rough looking downward spiral for the pin. ***



Bart Gunn VS. Vader
Not much to say about this one. Gunn kicks out of Vader's big splash. Vader does some mat wrestling. The match is to further hype the hopeless Brawl for All tournament. The Godfather sitting at the broadcast table attacks Gunn for the DQ finish. *



Gangrel VS. Scott Taylor
This Gangrel's in-ring debut. The match itself is nothing much to speak of, but of course love his entrance Grel wearing Blood throughout the match is a nice touch. The new guy wins with his jumping DDT. *1/2



In his latest "High low will Americans go?" segment Tiger Ali Singh pays a plant $500 bucks to eat a worm. So I take it the boss took a day off being Russo's filter when that idea got the green light?

DX (Triple H & X-Pac) (W/Chyna) VS. Southern Justice
X-Pac is once again the star of the match. Trips doesn't look too bad either. Again its another rush job, Justice don't offer much. Another DQ finish comes when Double J blindsides Pac, almost cutting his locks. This finish is to hype the Jarrett VS. Pac Hair VS. Hair match at Summerslam. **



Undertaker ends the show by hyping up his Summerslam main event with Stone Cold. Taker offers no new hints on if he and Kane are in cahoots. Austin comes out to confront the Deadman. Kane then comes out. The shows closes with the Brothers of Destruction either side of Austin....

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 23/08/98

Before the opening match The Rock comes out and places a ladder on the ramp signaling that he will respond to Triple H's Ladder match challenge later on.

The Oddities VS. Southern Justice
Is it just me or does Golga look and wrestle a lot like Earthquake? His offense is easily the best thing about this punch kick rush job. The DQ finish comes when Jarrett comes out with clippers (I can only guess he was helping Justice even though he's feuding with X-Pac) more on this later... *1/2



European Title match Animal VS. D-Lo Brown (c) (W/Mark Henry)
D-Lo is announced as being from Munich Germany The match never gets started. Hawk comes out drunk and is double teamed by Brown and Henry. Droz makes the save. Yawn!

We get more BFA hype ahead of the final on Raw.

The Headbangers VS. Owen Hart and Dan "The Beast" Severn
This is actually tidy little match which tells a decent story. The only thing is the Beast is made to look like a bit of a jobber. Owen is very much the brains of the team, but is also learning MMA submission style moves from Severn ahead of his Lions Den match with Shamrock at Summerslam. The Bangers cut the ring off nicely on Severn early on, with some work on his knee. Hart changes things with a spinning heel kick. He then hits a surplex but misses with a splash in the corner. Thrasher hits a back drop, followed by a Mosh pit splash in the corner (I just named that move!), and slam for a two count before Severn breaks up the pin. Owen runs "The Beast" into one of the Bangers then hooks on a reverse chinlock/sleeper into a body scissors for the submission win. I like the touch of Severn telling Owen, "Its not as good as mine" **1/2


The Rock comes out with the ladder and accepts Triple H's challenge for Summerslam. He also calls the fans "the biggest load of trailer park trash he's ever seen"Its a confident heel promo.



Taka Michinoku (W/The Yamguchi's) VS. Scorpio
So Mrs Yamguchi comes out dressed muted almost like a goth (is she now a heel? Or has this been forced on her?). Its also been revealed that she is Taka's sister because of course she is At the start of the match JR describes Scorpio as the most underrated guy on the roster and you know what he may just have had a point. There's a couple of sloppy moves here and Scorpio's size difference compared to Taka is hard to get over, but they work a decent match anyway (which again should've been longer). Taka takes the upper hand with a spinning heel kick, followed by a Asai moonsault off the ropes onto the floor. Yamguchi-San then misses Scorpio with a clothesline hitting Taka instead. Mrs Yamguchi then steps in front of her husband. Back inside Scorpio hits a good looking powerbomb. He then strikes with a super kick followed with a fireman's carry into a drop (a bit like an F5). Scorpio then hits his version of a Moonsault off the top. Taka's sister distracts the ref before he can count three. Taka drop kicks Scorpio into Yamguchi-San (who has also got involved). He hits the Michinoku driver for three count and in what JR describes as an upset. Fair to say that neither man would have been happy with their lot in WWF at this point. Post-match Val Venis comes out and challenges Taka to a match on Raw. Seems Taka's sister still has a thing for Val. **



They recap the latest in the Stone Cold/Undertaker saga from the last Raw. The highlight is Austin saying that he would stuff Taker and Vince into the hearse and drive them down the highway to hell They do the is it Taker or Kane deal again as we see Austin fighting someone dressed as Taker but with a Kane mask (JR's communicant here is a blast!). In all the confusion it turns out to be little brother after all. Kane ends up in the hearse but Undertaker's in the driving seat

Double J VS. Droz
Another rushed and forgettable brawl. Jarrett is acting more aggressive (since dropping Lee), but lacks focus according to JR and Shane. X-Pac comes out and clips some Jarrett hair for the DQ. *1/2

Next Time it will be the pre-Summerslam Heat...

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 30/08/98 (Pre-Summerslam Heat live from MSG)

HBK comes out to a big pop and joins Shane and JR for Heat commentary. For once Shane has ditched the chicks and is smartly dressed in a tux (the kid is learning).

LOD 2000 VS. Too Much
This was meant to be Animal and Droz but a drunken Hawk (wearing a harmet) shows up again and talks Droz into letting him take the match. And we can all see where this one is going! There's some decent double teaming from the heels including a double surplex. When Animal powers out of a Christopher pin attempt he then reverses a second double surplex attempt, power slams Taylor and clotheslines Christopher to the floor. The finish predictably comes when Hawk miss-ques on a double team move. Staggered on the top turnbuckle he ends up hitting his own partner who is then pinned. **





HBK interviews Sable who is wearing a hot white and black number. The purpose of the chat is to try and get from Sable who her mystery partner will be for the mix tag match later at Summerslam (3 points if you guessed Edge!). Instead we get cringe worthy talk of guns and bombs (sadly nothing to do with weapons) Sable gives nothing away except that her partner will not be one of the Oddities as they already have a match set for the PPV (Sable had been appearing with the Oddities in recent weeks, Wiki even has her listed as one of their members) The interview ends with Shawn and Sable doing some flirty dancing.



Gangrel VS. Dustin Runnels
This is a watchable enough short brawl. It keeps the momentum building slowly for newcomer Gangrel who still looks a bit green, but also has enough promise. Runnels does a solid job of making him look good. Gangrel remains unbeaten with his jumping DDT. If only Grel wrestled on Heat his whole WWF career he probably could have stayed unbeaten and had grabbed a two year run with the Euro title... **



We get a recap of the Val/Mario Lopez thing from a few weeks ago. Yep their still trying to make that a thing. So you heard it here first MARIO LOPEZ FOR WWF CHAMPION!

The big story cooking back stage is that Stone Cold has arrived with a sledgehammer and is awaiting Undertaker and Kane. This makes Vince nervous that the rattle snake is going to ruin the main event. Later when he confronts the WWF Champion about it Austin says he has no intention of killing the main event, but is carrying the sledgehammer to make sure there's no surprise element from Kane.

D.O.A (W/Paul Ellering) VS. Bradshaw and Vader
What a difference two years makes. At Summerslam 96 Vader looked every bit the monster heel and was involved in a super heated WWF Title main event against HBK. Two years on he's stuck on the pre-show card. The purpose of the match is to set up a feud between Bradshaw and Vader (who met in the Brawl for All). The two are uneasy partners throughout and finally things go tits up when Vader runs into a Bradshaw blow when charging off the ropes opening the door for D.O.A to steal the win. The post match brawl between Bradshaw and Vader was better than anything in the match. *1/2



There's a video package running down the history between Triple H and The Rock ahead of their IC Title ladder match on the PPV. It really is excellent stuff. WWF was pretty much untouchable when it comes to their hype videos. The package includes the brilliant DX parody of the Nation



The Nation and DX brawl out in the arena. The Rock takes out Triple H's knee casting doubt over his ability to compete later. This is smart booking and makes H's win later mean even more.

Heat goes off the air with Austin destroying a hearse he believes has one if not both the Brothers of Destruction in.

And so there's just one last stop on the "Highway to Helllllll!!!!!!"

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 6/09/98

Gangrel VS. Dick Togo
JR and Shane discuss the heat building between Gangrel and Edge. Gangrel starting to look sharper in-ring. Togo gets in some good moves like second rope moonsault and double arm surplex. Gangrel goes over with his jumping DDT in a short match. *1/2



In his home video Mark Mero presents Jackie with a brand new Bikini contest trophy. Mero claims Sable will never look as good as his Jackie. Sable is missing in action this week because she is filming an episode of Pacific Blue.

Bradshaw VS. Ken Shamrock
This was pretty solid stiff style match with a decent flow. Shamrock took the first upper hand with a Fisherman's surplex for two. He then hits a flying shoulder block. The Texan heel responds with a nice full away slam. "The World's Most Dangerous man" hits back with a flying reverse elbow and spin wheel kick. Bradshaw catches him in a power slam off the ropes, followed by a big foot, before Vader comes out to get even with Bradshaw for the previous night on Raw. The pair once again brawl. Shamrock is pissed when he hears he's been DQ'd **





The Roaddog (W/Bad Ass Billy Gunn) VS. Dennis Knight (W/Mark Canterbury)
Bit of a nothing match with some alright brawling. Canterbury and Double J get heavily involved to force another DQ finish. X-Pac and Gunn even up the odds. *



We get a Raw recap (special Saturday Night edition). Vince insults Undertaker for not accepting Kane's help in his title match with Austin at Summerslam. The chairman refers to the Brothers of Destruction as "pussies" Fired up the Brothers proceed to run through a butch of guys (mostly jobbers). It appears this was a part of Vince's master plan to get Kane and Taker back on their games.



The Undertaker and Kane VS. Droz and Animal
During the match Hawk calls in and tells JR he's booked himself into rehab. Another short match with some decent power moves mostly between Taker and Animal. The match ends with Undertaker locking on a leg bar and refusing to release it (again showing that ruthless aggressionKane choke slams Droz. Vince appears on the ramp and enjoys what he sees. **


Taka Michinoku VS. Edge
Another impressive showing for Edge and these two have good chemistry. Edge hits a running face slam, but is caught by Taka in the corner. Taka then hits a tornado DDT off the ropes. Edge gets two from a spin wheel kick. The Canadian hits his groove with a reverse pump handle, a hard clothesline and a beautiful flap jack. Edge misses with a diving headbutt off the top and Taka scores with a missile drop kick from the top. Taka signals for the Michinoko driver, but is instead reversed into Edge's downward spiral for the pin. **1/2


Kane and Undertaker drag Patterson and Brisco to the ring. The Deadman gives Vince ten seconds to come out. When he doesn't the Brothers destroy the stooges to a big pop.

European Title Match Val Venis VS. D-Lo Brown (C)
This week the Euro Champ resides in Warsaw, PolandVal starts fast attacking Brown on the outside, running him into the ring post. Back inside he hits a DDT for a near fall. The pace picks up and D-Lo hits a nice sit out power bomb. Back outside Brown hits a back breaker but then is caught on the guard rail and dropped across it. Venis takes charge with a smooth back drop reverse elbow, and elbow drop. Pounding away on the champ in the corner, Venis has to be tore away. D-Lo takes this opening to remove the turnbuckle pad. Val's emotions again get the best of him as he dives in blindly missing Brown and hitting the un-exposed pad. D-Lo hits a impressive back surplex into a bridge to retain the title. Venis would get some measure of revenge post-match by ripping off Brown's chest protector. Hitting a powerbomb and splash from the top rope (wearing the chest protector). In defeat Val gets the last word and stays over strong. Nicely done **1/2



In the closing promo Vince says he's wearing black to morn the end of Stone Cold's title reign on September 27th (the next PPV). The boss then calls out Taker and Kane. Backing down, he says sorry and that Undertaker deserves another title shot. He then calls Austin out. After the champ comes out to big pop, Vince runs him down and books Austin against both Taker and Kane for the Breakdown PPV. Vince is on top form throughout this segment. Not just convincing as the sinister/sleazy Mr. McMahon but also selling his fear of Taker/Kane and Austin. Its the highlight of the show.

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 13/09/98

Ken Shamrock VS. Vader
A rematch from Ken's debut WWF match a year and an half before. It got signed because Shamrock was pissed at Vader for costing him the match with Bradshaw on last week's Heat. Though not as full on as their previous match , this is a strong opener. Vader catches Shamrock in mid-air and slams him, but Shamrock comes back with his quickness and martial arts. He gets Vader down in an ankle lock, the man from the Rocky Mountain makes it to the ropes. Back inside Vader strikes with a running block. Hits two running splashes for a near fall. A clothesline from the second rope scores another two. Vader then hooks on a arm bar on the mat, but moments later misses in the corner. Vader blocks a Shamrock headscissors attempt turning it into a powerbomb. Shamrock catches Vader off the top and hooks on an arm bar, followed by the ankle lock for the tap out victory. Post-match Shamrock complains that he's only had one WWF Title shot since debuting. He issues a challenge to Austin ***



From the set of Pacific Blue Sable issues a challenge to Jackie for a Evening Gown match on Raw.

Val Venis VS. Marvelous Marc Mero (W/Jackie)
The match barely lasts a minute before Jackie jumps on Val's back for the DQ. Post match Jackie accepts Sable's challenge. Dustin Runnels attacks Venis. In a hard hitting segment Runnels lays Val out including shots with his belt and choking Val. On the previous Raw Val had mocked Runnels who had once again been out with his signs. This feud is on!




Taka Michinoku (W/Yamaguchi-San) VS. Gangrel
Taka takes the first open hand after Yamaguchi grabs Gangrel's ankle from the outside. Taka drops him to the outside, then hits a hot Asai moonsault He then connects with a baseball slide drop kick. Back in the ring Taka hits a low drop kick off the ropes. Gangrel comes back with a double arm surplex. He drops Taka across the top rope, and hits a over head surplex into a bridge for a two count. The momentum carries on with surplex float over followed by Grel's smooth looking corkscrew elbow drop. A power slam off the ropes follows, but Taka escapes a power bomb attempt and scores with a spin heel kick off the ropes. He then hits a missile drop kick from the top and goes for the Michinoku driver, but Gangrel blocks it and hits his double arm DDT (which Taka sells very well) for the win. ***



D-Lo Brown (W/Mark Henry) VS. Kane (W/The Undertaker)
In a great piece of heel selling D-Lo looks terrified by the Brothers of Destruction at the start and throughout the matchD-Lo knocked to the floor but is met by Taker. Back inside the Euro champ is run into the turnbuckles. Kane hits a slam but misses with a elbow drop. Brown hits a low drop kick, but Kane quickly sits up. The Big Red Machine chokes D-Lo on the top, and hits a big foot off the ropes. Henry and Taker start brawling on the outside. This ties up the ref, which allows the Rock to run in with a chair and get a couple of shots in on Kane (D-Lo and the Rock are both still Nation members). Taker chases the Rock from ringside. The Rock's involvement with Taker and Kane keeps building him up for the main event. Henry gets involved in the match, but Taker returns and The Brothers double team the Nation members. They double chokeslam Henry and Kane hits a tombstone on D-Lo with Taker coming off the top to increase the impact Pretty great booking all round. **1/2



Lumberjack Match - Double J (W/Southern Justice) VS. X-Pac (W/The New Age Outlaws)
Another nice, action packed back and forth match, where the outside involvement added to the match. Both face and heel Lumberjacks take turns in getting cheap shots in when the respective wrestler comes outside to their half off the ring. Jarrett hits a good looking standing surplex for two. Jeff misses a elbow in the corner, but Pac puts his head down too soon on a back drop attempt. Jarrett hits a belly to back surplex. X-Pac comes back with a sweet spinning back heel kick. Pac then connects with a bronco buster. The Outlaws then grab Jarrett and post him by the by the ballsSouthern Justice then drag Pac to the floor and Dennis Knight attempts a guitar but Roaddog grabs the guitar and nails Knight with it. Moments later Pac seems set for the win when hitting the face buster, but as the Lumberjacks all fight on the inside, Mark Canterbury sneaks in and nails Pac with a pump handle powerslam (which looks awesome!) allowing Jarrett to even up the defeat from Summerslam. ***



Austin ends the show. He praises Undertaker for choosing to reject Kane's help at Summerslam and hypes up the 3-way at Breakdown. Stone Cold then responds to Shamrock's challenge earlier calling him out for a match. Vince and co also come out. With both Shamrock and Austin ready to go, the champ demands Vince rings the bell. The show goes off the air before we see what happens Heat is getting better by the week.

 

[Switchblake]

Vader on Heat?

I sometimes forget Heat was SmackDown before SmackDown made it Heat.

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 20/09/98

This week Jim Cornette fills in/suffers for good old JR

Mankind (W/The Rock and Ken Shamrock) VS. Dustin Runnels
This is just a quick brawl to further the respective storylines. Shamrock and The Rock have formed an alliance with Mankind so they can protect each other from the threat of Kane and Undertaker. Dustin is off his game having seen his wife Terri in bed with Val on Raw in "The Preachers Wife" videoMankind gets the easy win with a double arm DTT and Mandible claw Like the Rock Mankind seems to be gaining in popularity. Val comes out to once again rub Dustin's face in it and shows him another video of him and Terri in bed. This time called "When Terri got her Groove" Only in the Attitude era could the Venis character be a face. *1/2





The Taker/Kane interview leads to a wild brawl when their attacked by Shamrock, the Rock and Mankind. Vince gets in the middle and ends up on his backside. Moments later McMahon wanting to protect his new business interests talks Mankind into leaving the arena with Rock, and Shamrock.



Jacqueline (W/Marc Mero) VS. Luna (W/The Oddities)
A tidy little match between two experienced workers miss-handled by WWF. Luna gets a two from a nice looking slam. She then hits a swinging neck breaker. A Lunabomb gets another near fall. Luna then misses a dive into the corner and takes a rough landing the middle buckle. Jackie goes to work on the legs and gets the submission win with a figure four. Post-match Sable and Jackie set up a one on one match for the next night on Raw. **



DX: Triple H, Billy Gunn and X-Pac (W/The Roaddog) VS. Jeff Jarrett, D-Lo Brown and Owen Hart (W/Southern Justice)
Gunn gets the press slam on Brown followed by a famouser (before it was called that). Owen and Pac both tag in. Nice hip-toss slam by X-Pac who then tags in Triple H. Again the pace quickens and H scores with a running knee lift and gets a two count. Jarrett takes a cheap shot from the outside and gets it back from the DX leader. But this distraction does allow Owen to hit a DDT for a near fall. Jarrett tags in and hits a swinging neck breaker when Trips leg buckles (surely a left over from his injury in the Rock feud). A fresh D-Lo tags, hits a smooth standing leg drop and works the crowd nicely The Euro champion then goes to work on the IC Champ's knee. Owen tags back in and the heels cut off the ring nicely, triple teaming Triple H in their corner Brown talks some more smack but is then caught with a running knee by H. Hot tag to X-Pac! Pac hits a running leg lariat for a two before Jarrett breaks up the pin. Gunn and Trips both re-enter the ring to break even up the sides and they brawl to the floor. In all the confusion Mark Canterbury enters the ring and in a repeat from last week hits Pac with the pump handle slam allowing Jarrett to get the winning pin fall. Mark Henry attacks Triple H's knee following the match. ***



Edge VS. Taka
Edge wins in less than a minute with the downward spiral. Kaientai attack Edge who is saved by Gangrel. Grel tells Edge that he will come home...



In the back Al Snow is arrested for messing with the production team (Snow is suspended at this point, but just wants to find head). Later Commissioner Slaughter brings the handcuffed Snow to the ring and insults him with classic Slaughter terms like "maggot" and "puke" Slaughter says if Snow wants to be part of the WWF than he must face him in a Boot Camp match on Raw. Slaughter adds that if Snow wins he will be reinstated.




D.O.A (W/Paul Ellering) VS. The Undertaker and Kane (W/Mr. McMahon)
Pretty standard brawl. Taker takes a double DOA boot to the face but Kane makes the save on the pin attempt. Taker hits his flying clothesline. Kane's sidewalk slam looks as good as ever. Kane and Skull brawl back and fourth. Kane hits his choke slam but Eight Ball breaks up the pin. A dodgy looking D.O.A piledriver soon follows, but Kane sits up and hits the tombstone for the pin. **



Next time I will have a double bill of Heat plus a special review of the Breakdown PPV.

 

[Keith]

Sunday Night Heat 27/09/98 (Pre-Breakdown PPV)

Vince opens the show. He says he takes no responsibility for Kane and Undertaker's actions later in the PPV main event. The Boss further stacks the deck against Austin by announcing that if anyone from the back helps the champ he will be DQ'd and lose the belt (to who is unclear). McMahon also adds the steel cage to the number one contender's triple threat match at Breakdown.

Golga (W/The Oddities) VS. Mosh (W/Thrasher)
This match was made because the bangers destroyed Golga's mascot on RawGolga avenges this with his running sitdown splash for the win in a short brawl. *1/2



Cole reports that someone has attacked Triple H with a pipe and injured his back.

Mark Henry cuts a promo in-ring saying that he's here to impress his girlfriend Chyna. Yes its the start of dat storyline! Henry calls HHH a coward claiming that he won't be able to make it for his IC Title defence against Henry later in the night (this making Henry a strong suspect for the pipe attack). Henry preaches that he's tired of being over looked. To apprise Henry Vince books him in the main event of Heat against Stone Cold inside the steel cage.



Kaientai (Funaki & Teioh) VS. The Hardy Boyz (TV debut)
A solid debut match for one of the most successful teams of the Attitude era. The more experienced Japanese duo do some solid work in putting them over too. In highlights, Matt hits a nice spring board plunge on the floor. There's a nice looking running bulldog from Funaki, but Jeff turns the tables with a double drop kick taking down both heels in one. The Brothers hit stereo monkey flips out of the corner. Jeff attempts a reckless dive over the top and hits hard on the floor (such stunts would be a big part of what gets them over, but why waste it on your debut match on Heat?). The finish comes when Kaientai miss a flag shot, and the Hardy's hit an impressive swanton bomb/splash combo from the top for the win. **1/2



Bad Ass Billy Gunn VS. D.O.A. (W/Paul Ellering)
With Roaddog selling his injury (though he is set to appear in the six man on the PPV), Gunn goes it along in a handicap match. Its a sloppy brawl which serves little purpose. Gunn starts first with a famouser, but is soon overcome by the numbers and D.O.A. win with a series of double team moves *



Steel Cage main event - Mark Henry VS. Stone Cold Steve Austin
Or not! Henry doesn't appear and its revealed he has been attacked by Chyna in the back with a pipe (the IC Title match is def off now). Meanwhile in the arena Vince, Undertaker and Kane have come out to enjoy the main event. In a brilliant angle to end the show, Vince is caught in the cage with a camera man who turns out to STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN! The Rattle snake gets to have his way with the Boss before Taker and Kane can chase him from the cage. The only problem with this segment is with Austin prepared to face Henry in the main event how would he know to dress up as a camera man and wait for Vince? Still it was great stuff.


WWF Breakdown: In Your House PPV

During the opening one of the signs in the crowd reads, "Carry fears Lawler" This was during the time the Hollywood funnyman and the King were filming 'Man on the Moon' the biopic about the late comedian Andy Kaufman (a very fine film it is too). The pair were said to have had an onset tussle which ended with Lawler putting Carry in the hospital (mirroring the famous Memphis angle between Lawler and Kaufman 16 years earlier). Sadly we didn't get a full blown feud out of this one...



Edge VS. Owen Hart
Fitting for a PPV in Canada we open with two Canadian born wrestlers as Edge puts his unbeaten streak on the line against the more experienced Nation member Owen Hart. Owen brilliantly trolls the locals by wearing the jersey of the rival hockey team And the two gel really well giving us some fine wrestling, packed with strong near falls and sound psychology. It proved the perfect opener. After some good chain wrestling to start with, Owen scores the first big move with an over head surplex. Edge lands on his feet from a monkey flip and takes Owen down with a drop toes hold. This is followed up with a headscissors and Owen is knocked to the floor. Hart turns the tables by catching Edge coming off the apron with a power slam to the floor The former King of Hart scores a two following a missile drop kick off the top. Another two follows from a gut wretch slam (love that move!), and the same result with from a standing neckbreaker. A beautiful belly to belly off the ropes gets Owen very close to the pay window! After a pace drop, Edge reverses a victory roll, but takes a spin wheel kick for a two count. Edge recovers with a electric chair into a flapjack The face then gets a two from a swinging neck breaker, and DDT gets another near fall. A Hart belly to back attempt is countered and Edge scores a nice over head surplex into a bridge for a dramatic near fall. Hart's belly to back bridge gets an even closer count. Owen blocks an Edge superplex attempt, Edge gets his boots up as Owen dives off the top but in a smooth transition Hart side steps it and goes for the sharpshooter only for Edge to kick out and catch Hart in a small package for a hot two count! A mystery man appears at ringside which distracts Edge allowing Hart to grab a cradle for the win. The stranger at ringside is Edge's future tag partner Christian. This lame finish was my only complaint with the match. They still could have had a moment with E&C without it leading to Edge's loss. ***1/2





Too Much VS. Al Snow and Scorpio
I like that JR references Snow and Scorpio's past in ECW and Japan etc.. Plus he highlights Snow's failed past WWF gimmicks. For a filler match its very solid. Too much work the crowd nicely and there's some decent back and forth action. Highlights include Scorpio's spinning back kick, Taylor's nice pump handle slam, Snow's double arm hook and headbutts as the fans chant "Head" is a hoot In a nice nod to ECW a chair is introduced and Snow flies off it into Christopher. We get some old school comedy like Taylor landing head first into his partners nutsSnow's moonsault off the guard rail on the floor is another fun stunt. The heels snatched control with double team moves including a spring board double sledge and a double back drop on Scorpio. Christopher hits a nice running bulldog, but Scorpio counters a second one and hits a beautiful double drop kick. With ref tied up Snow hits Christopher with head, but then gets carried away and hits Scorpio by mistake. Moments later Brian hits his Tennessee jam but Scorpio makes a timely save breaking up the pin. Snow hits the snow plough for win. ***




In an interview Undertaker says that he and Kane have an understanding when it comes to the triple threat main event (who would take the pin?).

Marc Mero (W/Jackie) VS. Droz
Sloppy filler match. The Mero experiment has run its course by this point and Droz shows no sign of improving. The finish comes when Jackie hits Droz with her heel off the top and Mero hits his shooting star press which at least looks good. **



Vader VS. Bradshaw - Falls Count Anywhere Match
Better than expected mid-card match which had a bit of a build over a few weeks on Heat. They don't do much with the FCA gimmick, the brawling is solid at least. The bookers clearly see big things in Bradshaw as he kicks out of a Vader splash from the second rope and a Vader bomb. Vader survives two clotheslines from hell but Bradshaw gets the pin with a neckbreaker. Bradshaw would find tag success with the APA but it would be some time before his singles career took off. **




D-Lo Brown VS. Gangrel
JR: "This is a strange son of a gun right here" (talking about Gangrel) "Wonder what that red substance is"? Another strong mid-card match I thought. They have a fast paced start and the vamp scores with a sharp looking flying elbow. Gangrel blocks a Brown hip-toss and hits a smart looking over head surplex. He follows that up with two corkscrew elbow drops for a two. D-Lo fires back with a heel kick off the ropes and talks some smack The former Euro champ misses with an elbow off the top rope. Gangrel goes for a double arm surplex but its blocked and Brown hits a hot looking sitdown running power bomb out of the corner. Brown is really over with this crowd.He takes too long to make the cover and then gives the cocky one knee cover after the leg drop. This becomes a theme as D-Lo makes another lax cover after a surplex. Brown gets two from a cradle. He gets another near fall from an over head surplex and gives the ref shit for the count I loved Lawler's dig at a Canadian fan for being behind the times for wearing a Hulkamania shirt As Grel takes control by dropping D-Lo on the top rope Mark Henry comes out. TWSM pulls the top rope down as Gangrel hits them and runs him into the ring post setting him up for Brown's Lo-Down and the pin. Like Edge earlier this is Gangrel's first televised defeat. Post match Gangrel gets a measure of revenge spitting blood into Henry's face and laying out Brown. The match had a decent story and it did a good job of keeping the heat on the heels. Plus D-Lo did a good job carrying it. ***



Triple Threat Steel Cage WWF Title number one contender's match The Rock VS. Ken Shamrock VS. Mankind
So we come to the real main event If you want a good example of why The Rock and Mankind became such big stars and Shamrock didn't look no further than the pre-match interviews. Shamrock's is bland and generic. By contrast the Rock is full of personality and attitude. Mankind's was probably even better as he referred Kelly's stupid question, to Bill Clinton's affair as stupid (wonder if that was a Vince line...), he also called the People's elbow stupid and in reference to one of Rock's remarks asks "Sugar coated intestines... is that a new breakfast cereal?!" This match proves a turning point for both Mankind and The Rock in putting them on the road to stardom. Mankind comes out to a pop and JR does a good job in describing his history up to this point. The Rock gets an even bigger pop and has the crowd in the palm of his hand throughout (whether that was the intention or not). Shamrock starts fast and trads blows with Rocky, this allows Mankind to make his first run at the door, Shamrock makes the save and hooks on the angle lock but then takes a clothesline from the Rock. In one of the spots of night Shamrock hooks Mankind in a abdominal stretch only for the Rock to hook one onto him at the same time Hip tosses by Ken and Mick break the holds. The Rock appears to agree to work with Mankind but then nails him with a clothesline. Rock shoots Mankind off the top rope and blocks Shamrock's escape attempt. Mankind helps the former IC Champ drag the former UFC star back into the cage. They double team Shamrock including choking him out on the ropes and running him head first into the cage. Another double team sees them sending Shamrock for a ride with the Nation leader hitting him high and Mankind taking him down. Foley looks for the Rock's approval with a thumbs up but Rocky's having none of it it Once again the People's Champion turns on Mankind and makes a climb but Shamrock grabs the ankle to stop him from escaping the cage. Moments later it is the KOTR 98 finalists who are double teaming Mankind. This doesn't last long as the Rock breaks up Shamrock's ankle lock. Maybe deciding neither can trust him Mankind and Shamrock double team the Rock to big Rocky chants. They hit a double back drop and Mankind scores with a running elbow drop. A double surplex follows but the Rock hits back with a clothesline on Mankind but then takes one from Shamrock. The Rock hits DDT off the ropes on Mankind, Shamrock is again waiting, but this time Rock counters into a smooth float over DDT. Firmly taking control he slams both and hits another novelty a double people's elbow for a huge pop He hits a rock bottom on Mankind but Shamrock saves the count. Shamrock takes over with a reverse elbow, a belly to belly and a anklelock on the Rock (same way he beat him at KOTR), this time Mankind makes the save before Rock taps. Mankind goes up top but the Rock catches him up there and they struggle high up. At one point Mankind almost drops to the outside the hard way. Things turn back his way when he knocks Rock to the canvas, but rather than accept his opening Mrs Foley's baby boy instead goes for glory and gambles on a Superfly top of the cage splash which does not pay off With both down Shamrock recovers and looks to exit out the door, but Mankind grabs at his ankle and drags him back inside though Shamrock brings a chair back in with him. This backfires as Mankind hits a double arm DDT onto the chair and then knocks Shamrock out with a all mighty chair shot. Instead of going for the door Mankind goes the hard way and climbs the cage but just as he nears the floor the Rock picks up the pieces and covers Shamrock to steal the victory and become the number one contender. Foley's reaction at the end is great as he believe's at first he's won the match and sells it so well. The match told a great story and was high on drama. It achieved just about everything it set out to do. Vince and co would be pleased in the back as this confirmed there was strength in depth on the roster and that there were people to step up when the Austin-Taker-Vince thing ran out of gas. ****






Val Venis (Terri) VS. Dustin Runnels
Just to rub salt in the wounds Val comes out with Terri wearing a hot purple dress and they flirt and kiss. JR later points out that Terri's dress matches Val's tights and how they had to have planned it The story of the match is that Runnels is just so down about the Val-Terri affair than he is off his game (according to the writers Terri and Dustin are still legally married despite him dumping her a year before). As it happens both character and the real Runnels seem off his game Its a very hit and miss brawl which lacks much emotion and plays before a dead crowd. It includes a screw up near the end when Dustin pins Venis following a running bulldog but Val forgets to kick out before the three so the wife just has to stop before the three (unless Dustin was supposed to pull Val up or maybe the ref just should have counted anyway?). The other few highlights included Val's excellent twisty spine buster and a rarity even in 1998 a camel clutch Val wins with the Money Shot splash and him and Terri make out. This feud gets a little more interesting the next night on Raw when Dustin returns to his Goldust persona. **1/2




Jeff Jarrett and Southern Justice VS. X-Pac and The New Age Outlaws
This match is a slight step up and feels like a nice warm up for the main event. Once again the best moments are when Pac and Jarrett are in the match (they seem to gel really well together). It feels a bit like running through some old stuff from the past few weeks too. Anyway things seem to be going the heels when Jarrett nails Pac with guitar on the outside, but Gunn the legal man hits the rocker dropper out of no where for the win. **1/2

WWF Title Triple Threat Main Event The Undertaker VS. Stone Cold Steve Austin (C) VS. Kane
The build for this match and the hype video are probably the best things about it. The match itself has moments and some sound booking, but it just feels flat and over booked. It feels like this feud has peaked and that the writers should have ended it after Summerslam. I do like Austin striking early and trying to isolate the Brothers. Also the tension between Taker and Kane later in the match was nicely done and showed how badly each wanted the title. The King making the case for the rules actually working in Austin's favour is gold too!Overall the match is bit sloppy, over long and the finish with both Taker and Kane pinning Austin felt like an anticlimax. The final shot of the PPV is Vince leaving with the title belt and flipping Austin off at the same time which I enjoyed **1/2






Overall: One of the stronger b-shows. The undercard provided enough highlights and the triple threat cage match was very exciting and did a great job in enervating two of its stars. The quality took a dip in the final three matches though none of those were terrible and still had their moments.

Best Match: Triple Threat cage match

Worst match: Mero VS. Droz

PPV Rating: 7.5/10

 

[Chris]

That Hardys match was on their collection on the network that I just watched and that missed dive by Jeff was fucking sick

 

[Deezy]

I still don't know how they got away with the South Park stuff on the show or why they even did it since their so anal about copyright infringement.

 

[Chris]

I still don't know how they got away with the South Park stuff on the show or why they even did it since their so anal about copyright infringement.

Yeah I always thought that too but maybe it was after South Park had got away with stuff under it being legal as parody so they were ready to use that same defense if south park came at them