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"The Taskmaster" Kevin Sullivan has been told by The Master that he has one mission - to end
Hulkamania once and for all. Sullivan has banded together the Dungeon of Doom in an effort to
destroy Hulk Hogan. Sullivan brought together Kamala, The Shark, The Zodiac, and Meng in a
formidable and fearsome group.
To complicate matters for Hogan, the "son" of Andre the Giant, simply calling himself The Giant has
aligned himself with The Taskmaster and the Dungeon of Doom as he seeks revenge on Hogan for
defeating his father.
What better place for a war to unfold but in the annual War Games match at Fall Brawl. The team for
the Dungeon of Doom was set to consist of Kamala, Shark, Zodiac, and Meng while Hogan would helm
a "dream team" of himself, Sting, Randy Savage, and Vader.
However, after Vader was indefinitely suspended following an outside incident with Paul Orndorf - a spot
has opened up on The Hulkamaniacs.
Ric Flair is going to war...
A friendship that has lasted decades could be coming to an end. It would appear that Arn Anderson
has grown tired of playing "second fiddle" to "The Nature Boy." Could his jealousy towards Flair really
bring about an end to this long-time partnership?
Or is this all just one big swerve in the making?
NJPW is going to war...
The talent exchange between NJPW and WCW continues as Japanese stars come and go with Collision
in Korea just airing in the United States on PPV in August. It was the largest joint PPV ever for the two
companies and it saw The Steiner Brothers and Road Warrior Hawk getting big wins for WCW while
Antonio Inoki picked up a huge victory over Ric Flair in the main event.
But tensions are mounting for the New Japan crew to prove themselves the superior organization.... and
one has to think this is just the beginning of the battle between the two companies.
WCW is going to war...
On September 4, 1995 - the opening shot of the Monday Night Wars will be fired...
And it will be fired by WCW.
Because this is when WCW Monday Nitro will debut LIVE on TNT. The one-hour broadcast is designed as a
"testing of the waters" for Turner as they want to see how one hour of WCW television will do airing up
against WWF head-on.
WCW will have the advantage of airing their first episode when WWF is pre-empted by tennis, making
them the only game in town for this night.
And WCW President Eric Bischoff has another ace up his sleeve - rumors are swirling that a "big name" from
the competition (who also happens to be a former WCW star) is jumping ship after just appearing on WWF
Pay-Per-View at Summerslam and WILL be at the first ever episode of WCW Monday Nitro.
Fans are buzzing wondering just who this impact player is going to be.
September 4, 1995 LIVE from the Mall of America in Minneapolis, MN Your Hosts: Eric Bischoff, Bobby Heenan, and Steve "Mongo" McMichael
The voice of Eric Bischoff welcomed us to the Mall of America in Minneapolis, MN for the first-ever episode of WCW Monday Nitro! Bischoff promised this would be the best wrestling show you've seen on a Monday night EVER! Plus we were LIVE! You can't beat LIVE! Bischoff promised that each and every week on WCW Monday Nitro you'd see wrestling's top stars like Hulk Hogan, Sting, Ric Flair, and many others! And you'd see matches that MATTER - like title matches.
In fact, Bischoff announced that right there tonight there would be TWO, count 'em, TWO title matches. In tonight's main event - WCW United States Champion Sting would defend the title against "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair! But that's not all - WCW Television Champion The Renegade would be defending against the dastardly "Diamond " Dallas Page. PLUS - Hulk Hogan would be on hand later in the evening as well to discuss War Games!
But first, we would kick things off with action in the ring!
= = = = =
FLYIN' BRIAN PILLMAN versus JUSHIN 'THUNDER' LIGER
Nothing like a fast-paced, back and forth match-up to kick off the first episode of Nitro. These two brought their proverbial "A" game tonight as they showcased their talents in front of millions watching around the world on live television. During the match, Bischoff built up the style these two brought to the table as something you won't see "ANYWHERE" else on television. We also got some backstory on Liger's Japanese resume and how impressive he has been.
Liger certainly did look impressive against the former Hollywood Blonde, picking up several "oh-so-close" nearfalls including an off-the-top rope Frankensteiner and an impressive shooting star press. However, Pillman managed to kick out of each attempt by Liger.
An attempt of a Ligerbomb was countered into a head-scissor takedown by Pillman. Pillman took over and he himself picked up a very close nearfall off of a tornado DDT, but Liger was the one getting his shoulder up at the last minute this time! Pillman's attempt at the Air Pillman was countered with a spinning heel kick as Pillman came off the ropes!
Liger hooked Pillman's legs - One, Two, Thre...NO! Another kickout by Pillman.
Liger didn't let it get to him, and instead went back on the attack...but when Liger went for the Ligerbomb once again, this time Pillman escaped down Liger's back and rolled him up!
One, Two, Three!
Pillman scores an impressive victory over the Japanese sensation!
Winner: Flyin' Brian Pillman by pinfall at 7:06
= = = = =
We cut down the Dungeon of Doom - complete with bad lighting, a foggy mist, and creepy music - where The Master sat on his 'throne' with his loyal subject 'The Taskmaster' Kevin Sullivan by his side. In the background the rest of the Dungeon was present as well, standing at attention like true soldiers. The Taskmaster delivered a cryptic message about how Vader was not going to make it to Fall Brawl because he knew the consequences of going up against the Dungeon of Doom.
Sullivan said that HulkHogan would have trouble finding another partner to replace Vader - who would be so foolish to step into the ring with the beasts that stand before them - Kamala...The Shark...The Zodiac..and MENG - they would not stand a chance. Sullivan felt sorry for the pitiful soul of the person who agreed to join Hulk Hogan's team. But rest assured, there would be no pity given inside War Games. Sullivan laughed maniacally as we headed to break.
= = = = =
Back from break, 'Mean' Gene Okerlund was standing by with former WCW Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat along with their manager Sister Sherri.
Okerlund reminded us that at Fall Brawl, Harlem Heat would be challenging for the WCW World Tag Titles against the team that defeated them - "Dirty" Dick Slater and Bunkhouse Bunk. Booker T did most of the talking for the former champs here, vowing that they would not rest until they had the tag titles back around their waists.
But Okerlund wanted to know about the relationship between Sister Sherri and the champions' manager Colonel Robert Parker. Okerlund said he had seen the looks they've been sharing - ever the investigative reporter - Okerlund wanted to get to the bottom of this! Sister Sherri started to explain herself, but Booker interrupted her, "Don'tcha even try to go there, Gene. There's NOTHING to talk about!"
"OH come on now!" Okerlund declared, wanting to get some real answers - but Booker was having none of it.
Booker put his foot down, saying that Sherri has a job to do as their manager and that business always comes first. Sherri simply stated that Booker was absolutely right and that at Fall Brawl - Harlem Heat would be walking out WCW tag champions once again! Stevie Ray smirked and ended things with a "now can you dig that? SUCKAAAA!"
The challenger and his entourage of the beautiful Diamond Doll and his bodyguard Maxx Muscle made their way out first to boos from the crowd before the highly energetic Renegade sprinted down to the ring, dropping his belt at ringside before climbing into the ring and shaking the ropes vigorously. Heenan wondered aloud if The Renegade forgot to take his medicine this morning as Bischoff pointed out that Page had been wanting this title shot for weeks now and finally got it - but will he be regretting what he wished for once the match got underway?
Bischoff might've had a point - as quickly Page found his offense having no effect whatsoever on the television champion. Renegade shrugged off the rights and lefts and clotheslines from Page - gave out a rebel yell and then laid out Page with a stiff clothesline of his own. Renegade dominated the majority of the match - showing off his sheer power as he hit Page with a barrage of scoop powerslams, suplex variations, and splash variations.
Page scored with a cheap eye rake to Renegade that managed to slow the powerhouse down enough for Page to get in some offense, but after taking Renegade down with a discus clothesline - Page went for the cover only to have Renegade POWER out with authority at two!
Renegade began his version of the 'hulk up' as Page once again found his offense useless against the champion. After Page was dropped with a Gorilla Press Slam, Page's entourage sensed trouble. Maxx Muscle climbed onto the apron - getting the attention of Renegade. Renegade yelled at Maxx, but when the referee went over to get Maxx down...Renegade came over and delivered a forearm shiver to Maxx! Maxx fell to the floor but landed on his feet. Muscle and Renegade exchanged words, but when Renegade turned around he was hit out of nowhere by the Diamond Cutter from Page! Ever the opportunist, Page took advantage of the situation and hooked Renegade's leg to get the three count! Page has defeated Renegade to become the NEW WCW Television Champion!
Winner and NEW WCW Television Champion - Diamond Dallas Page by pinfall at 7:42
As Page celebrated with Muscle and the Diamond Doll at ringside - Bischoff pointed out how anything can happen live on WCW Nitro and we've witnessed a title change hands right here tonight on the first episode! You never know what's going to happen on Monday night!
Meanwhile, in the ring - The Renegade was NOT thrilled about the situation and when he spotted Page and company celebrating at the top of the ramp...he CHARGED out of the ring towards the group! Page saw them coming and he and his posse high-tailed it out of there as Renegade gave chase.
= = = = =
As we were getting ready to head to the break, Eric Bischoff pointed out that WCW was going through some big changes recently with this being the first episode of Nitro. Bischoff pointed out that there has been a wave of new talent wanting to be a part of the top wrestling promotion in the country now that they are LIVE on Monday nights...just take a look at what's coming our way...
Which kicked us over to a hype video package focusing on four wrestlers who have been competing with each other in NJPW and in other companies across America - the video showcased Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Sabu in clips of matches against each other and other unidentified Japanese wrestlers. We see Benoit coming off the top rope with a diving headbutt, Sabu performing a springboard moonsault to 3 individuals on the outside, Eddie Guerrero flying through the air with a frog splash, and a montage of submission holds from Dean Malenko.
As the video came to a close, Bischoff was excited to have these guys as a part of WCW and you could see them some of them in action this Saturday on WCW Saturday night as well as next week right here LIVE on WCW Monday Nitro!
= = = = =
Back from the break, once again 'Mean' Gene Okerlund was standing by with a tag team - this time it was Marcus Bagwell and Scotty Riggs - The American Males. Apparently, the duo had specifically requested some interview time on the first Nitro to get themselves some more exposure.
They admit that they are still a new tag team on the scene - but they have already been tearing up the competition and they wanted a shot at whatever tag team walked out of Fall Brawl the champions. Okerlund seemed to think that sounded like a great idea, but there was another team who did not agree. In sauntered Lord Steven Regal and his sidekick Earl Robert Eaton. The Blue Bloods couldn't help but disagree with the American Males' point of view - Regal pointed out that he has royalty in his blood and with such comes riches like gold - and the WCW tag team gold is his destiny to win.
Bagwell said that if the Blue Bloods thought they deserved it more - the Males would have no problem taking it into the ring! Before things could escalate any further - The Nasty Boys came out of nowhere - literally shoving Riggs and Eaton out of the way. Bagwell and Regal each got in the face of Knobbs and Saggs respectively. Knobbs said there wouldn't be a discussion of who got a title shot without including the Nasty Ones. Okerlund ducked out of the way, calling for some help before this got out of control.
But it was too late - it quickly degenerated into a three-team brawl backstage as security flooded the scene to break things up.
= = = = =
Back at the announce booth, Eric Bischoff once again talked about how ANYTHING could happen on live TV! Bischoff reminded us that still to come - HULK HOGAN would be out to discuss War Games... but first, two of the biggest names in WCW were going to square off for the WCW United States Championship!
These two are no strangers to each other, but it is fitting to have these two wrestlers in front of the live TV audience for the first episode of WCW Nitro. The crowd was pro-Sting, but Flair had some supporters in the audience as well.
They were slow to measure each other up early on - neither man wanting to give the other the early advantage. After some back-and-forth reversals early, Sting managed to take control. Sting worked over Flair in the corner with some stiff chops, but Flair fought back and reversed their positions, giving Sting a taste of his own chops! "WOO's" echoed through the crowd as Flair lit up Sting's chest with chop after chop.
Flair found himself in firm control as he wrestled Sting to the ground and began working over his knee in an attempt to set him up for an eventual Figure Four. But Sting battled right back, reversing an Irish Whip attempt by Flair and sent Flair crashing into the turnbuckle. Sting climbed the ropes and performed ten punches to Flair's head as the crowd counted along.
Sting hopped down as Flair stumbled out of the corner and flopped face first to the mat. Sting let out a "WOO" of his own before climbing to the top turnbuckle. Sting waited as Flair staggered to his feet...FLYING CLOTHESLINE from Sting! Sting went for the cover - One, Two, Thr...Kickout by Flair!
Sting wasted no time going back on the attack and would pick up another nearfall off a backbreaker from Sting. After Flair kicked out, Sting began to pull Flair up, but Flair hit Sting with an unexpected jawbreaker! Sting was left staggering and was laid out by a stiff chop from Flair! Flair went back on the attack to Sting's knees and finally went for the Figure Four...only to have Sting kick Flair off with his free leg!
As Sting tried to get back up to his feet, Arn Anderson slowly made his way down to the ring and watched as Flair and Sting exchanged rights and lefts. Sting got the upperhand and sent Flair into the turnbuckle. Sting rushed in...STINGER SPLASH! Sting whipped Flair into the opposite corner. Sting backed up and charged in for another Sting Splash...but FLAIR moved! Sting collided with the turnbuckles and Flair took advantage with a chopblock!
Flair pulled Sting to the center of the ring and called for the Figure Four...but Flair noticed Arn at ringside. Flair took his eyes off Sting and questioned Anderson's presence at ringside. Anderson was silent as Flair continued to yell at him from the ring. This had given Sting time to recover, but Flair noticed his recovery and went back on the attack...Flair fought Sting off and sent him into the ropes...where Arn Anderson slammed a chair into Sting's back right in front of the referee! The referee called for the bell immediately, awarding the match to Sting by disqualification.
Winner - Sting by disqualification at 8:51
Ric Flair seemed both confused and upset as Anderson dropped the chair at ringside and made his way back up the aisle. Flair wanted answers, and climbed out of the ring and headed after Anderson while Sting was starting to recover in the ring.
After the break, we would hear from WCW World Heavyweight Champion, HULK HOGAN!
= = = = =
After the break, we see backstage footage of Ric Flair trying to catch up to Arn Anderson to get answers. Flair grabbed Anderson as he was trying to get into his car and asked him what that was all about. Flair thought they had"come to an understanding."
Anderson shook his head, "We have an understanding, alright. I'm done doing your dirty work, Ric" before shoving Flair off and slamming the door.
Anderson drove off as Flair was left speechless in the parking lot.
= = = = =
Back in the ring, "Mean" Gene Okerlund was in the middle of the ring and introduced the WCW World Champion Hulk Hogan! Hogan came out to munch fanfare from the crowd and took plenty of time on his way to the ring to interact with them before climbing into the ring and giving the crowd plenty of poses to cheer for. Okerlund finally was able to corral Hogan in the middle of the ring for the interview.
Hogan was excited to be a part of the first-ever Monday Nitro and even more proud to be WCW Champion at a time when WCW is SOARING to new heights. Okerlund wanted to turn the talk to Fall Brawl where Hogan is the captain of the Hulkamaniacs to take on the Dungeon Of Doom. But suddenly Hogan's team finds themselves without a fourth member with Vader no longer working for the company. Hogan admitted that he wasn't ever truly sure he would be able to trust Vader, and that the Hulkamaniacs would be better without him. "Addition by subtraction, brother."
But Okerlund interjected, surely Hogan wasn't considering going into War Games against the Dungeon of Doom with only THREE members. Hogan said that the Hulkamiacs are a dream team - you have the Hulkster and his 24 inch pytons, you have the Macho Man Randy Savage, who "let's face it brother, is just crazy enough to step into the ring down one man against the Dungeon," and you have one of the best wrestlers in the world today The Stinger - even if they are only three men, Hogan was CONFIDENT that they would be just fine.
Some unfamiliar music hit the PA system, which shut Hogan up and a confused crowd looked to the ramp as a familiar face to many walked out from the back sending the crowd into an uproar.
"Woah woah woah!" Okerlund cried out as the man with slicked back greasy hair stepped over the top rope in his blue jeans and denim vest with gold chains around his neck.
"We all know who this is!" Okerlund said, "you'reScott Hall!A former champion in another company...you don't work here! What are you doing here?"
Hall smirked and waited for the crowd to quiet down some before he took the microphone. "HEY YO."
Okerlund once again repeated himself"What are you doing here? You don't work here!"
Hall smirked and responded coolly- "Calm down, chico. Maybe... I do now. I got a call from ole Turner himself - said he had a lot of money comin' my way if I showed up down South. Well...here I am."
Hogan took the microphone from Okerlund and wanted to know why Hall thought he could just march in here and think he owns the place. Hogan said that this is WCW and this is where the "BIG BOYS PLAY, BROTHER."
"Hey, that's why I'm here...big boy," Hall responded calmly with another smirk. "So...don't go losin' your...vitamins...champ. Now Teddy-boy may have offered me plenty of money to show up tonight, but I also am here with a...proposition."
With his hands on his hips, Hogan didn't seem amused. "And just what would that be?"
"You're out here talkin' 'bout going into War Games down a man... some might call it courageous, but y'know what I call it, champ? Dumb. No amount of bravery or pride changes the fact that walkin' into war 4 on 3 is just flat-out dumb. So allow me.....to make you an offer...you can't...refuse. Because...if ya wanna go to war...you don't just need "A Guy" for your team...your gonna need..."The Bad Guy."
The crowd popped for Hall, offering up himself to become the fourth man on the Hulkamaniacs...but he wasn't done.
"...BUT...I didn't come all the way down here just offer up that up out of the goodness of my own heart. You wanna make a deal with the Bad Guy...I get something in return. A shot. At that belt right there. You promise me a World Title shot and you'll have your team and there's no denying it..we'll win."
Hogan was slow to respond, before he said that the man who just left them in this predicament was a man he couldn't trust.
Why should Hogan trust Hall?
"I don't think you have much of a choice, chico." Hall responded.
With that, Hall patted Hogan on the shoulder and turned, leaving the ring. Hall headed right back up the ramp, turning at the top of the ramp to look back to the ring to Hogan, and nodded his head before disappearing. Bischoff wondered aloud as to whether or not Hogan was going to accept the proposal or not...he certainly has been left with something to think about!
The show came to a close as Hogan was left in the middle of the ring, unsure of what to think about what just went down. What would Hogan decide? I guess we would have to wait til next week to find out!
Off the top, Scott Hall taking the Lex Luger surprise spot is a huge. Having him wanting to join hogan’s team for war games in exchange for a world title shot I love. Also makes me excited at the anticipation of Hall maybe becoming a World champion. And the ramifications this has for the next year cause seemingly… the nWo storyline probably doesn’t come to fruition. You’ve got me hooked.
Wow, Dubb, first and foremost a big shout out to you for being bold and having Scott Hall take the place of Lex Luger as the BIG SURPRISE~!~ for the Nitro debut spot. I really like the premise of him wanting to do business for a title shot and pinning Hogan in a corner there.
Everything else on the show hit or didn't hit with varying degrees for me. I'm intrigued about the Flair and Arn stuff. But much of it was standard fare, which is fine obviously. Especially since you have me hooked with that finish to the show. If that's the start here, I'm very excited about what's to come next.
I think this was the perfect first edition of Nitro so you get big props from me here. Obviously everybody is talking about the Scott Hall stuff, which is an awesome and inspired move, but there's more that made this great. Bischoff is promoting the hell out of Nitro being unpredictable and talking about how matches actually matter (as opposed to Raw and their squashes), and what better way to put that over then have the TV Title change hands. Very smart move, plus DDP is such a better option as champ then The Renegade.
The Flair/Arn stuff was intriguing, you're building up some issues with your tag scene, and continuing the Sherri segment. The pending debuts of Benoit, Guerrero, Malenko and Sabu are going to make things very interesting. Only thing needed here is more freaky Taskmaster stuff.
In a huge shocker, Scott Hall struck a deal with WCW that was so hush-hush that even wrestlers in both WWF and WCW were shocked when Scott Hall showed up on the first episode of WCW Monday Nitro. Hall had just a week prior been stealing the show at Summerslam in a ladder match with Shawn Michaels but apparently, he had been working without a contract after his deal expired in July.
WCW and Hall had been in negotiations previously, apparently, but they weren't offering enough to entice him to officially make the move. But a few days ago, Vader and Paul Orndorff were involved in a backstage fight at TV tapings (more on that shortly), causing things to change for Eric Bischoff and WCW. The promotion wanted a big jolt to kick off their first show, and with Vader seemingly on his way to being fired, WCW turned back to trying to bring Hall back to WCW. Vader was a big part of WCW's plans going forward and it's possible Hall could replace him in those plans.
As for the Vader/Orndorff incident... it apparently started as an argument over Vader arriving late that escalated into a screaming match before Vader finally shoved Orndorff to the ground. This lead to a pull-apart brawl with Orndorff actually being the one, according to witnesses, who came out the winner of that fight. While Vader has said to have been apologetic since but he's been cast as the bad guy iin the altercation. Dave thinks there's a strong chance Vader gets fired. He was scheduled to be on Hulk Hogan's team at Fall Brawl, but as seen on Nitro, that's clearly not the case anymore
As seen on WCW Nitro, several new wrestlers are making their way to WCW by way of ECW. Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, and Sabu have each signed deals with WCW. Guerrero and Dean Malenko faced off against one another in their final ECW match this past weekend and received standing ovations from the ECW faithful though Paul Heyman did give a long speech on the show, declaring war against WCW. Heyman went on to announce a deal with AAA that would allow Rey Mysterio to face off against Psicosis at the next ECW show. Sabu meanwhile already has been working dark matches for WCW, including this past weekend he defeated Chris Kanyon.
More ECW talent coming and going news indicates that Ron Simmons has given his notice. He's barely been used in months anyway but it's unknown if he might be heading back to WCW or heading to the WWF. Meanwhile, The Eliminators (Perry Saturn and John Kronus) are coming to ECW after recent WWF tryouts that did not go well. Apparently, Shawn Michaels didn't take well when one of them used a superkick during the match.
WCW has been in discussions with Too Cold Scorpio, though it sounds like those talks may have fallen off lately. Jerry Lynn, who has been receiving tryouts as Mr. JL, has also been in talks with signing a contract as rumors are picking up of a possible Lightheavyweight Division being built around some of these new names coming in like Guerrero and Malenko.
WCW Saturday Night
September 9, 1995
Your Hosts: Tony Schiavone & "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes
The standard Saturday night open brought us in before we went directly to footage from the first ever WCW Monday Nitro where an "outsider" Scott Hall interrupted WCW World Champion Hulk Hogan's interview at the end of Nitro. We also saw Hall's proposition to Hogan to join the Hulkamaniacs at Fall Brawl in exchange for a shot at the WCW World Title! Tony Schiavone's voice tells us how this "surprising turn of events” from Nitro has left the War Games match at Fall Brawl in limbo.
We cut to Tony Schiavone and Dusty Rhodes in front of the WCW Saturday logo, discussing the events from Nitro and revealing that later on in the program we would get to see a recap of the interview in its entirety just in case we missed it Monday.
Schiavone revealed tonight's main event was going to be "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair taking on "Flyin" Brian Pillman.
DISCO INFERNO versus SGT. CRAIG "PITTBULL" PITTMAN
Tony Schiavone brought us up to speed on the issues surrounding Sgt. Pittman and his former subordinate Cobra and what has led to their match being signed for Fall Brawl. Cobra had served under Pittman in the Gulf War and had been abandoned by his commander in the desert and reported AWOL. Cobra has tracked Pittman down to WCW and is seeking revenge for the actions of his former superior officer.
But tonight, Pittman was up against the disco dancing fool himself - Disco Inferno. Pittman was not interested in the free-spirited Disco Inferno's dancing and immediately attacked Disco to start the match. This one was back and forth until Cobra himself made an appearance at ringside as Pittman was starting to take a commanding lead. Cobra climbed the apron - causing Pittman to come over and exchange words with his former officer. As the two exchanged words, Disco was able to recover...Disco snuck up from behind Pittman and scored with a roll up! One, Two, Three!
Cobra backed up the ramp with a big grin on his face as Disco celebrated his win at ringside. In the ring, Pittman was livid as he shook the ring ropes in frustration and slammed the turnbuckle repeatedly.
WINNER - Disco Inferno by pinfall in 5:12
= = = = =
Backstage - "Mean" Gene Okerlund was standing by in front of the WCW Saturday Night logo with one half of tonight's main event "Flyin'" Brian Pillman - Okerlund called the biggest match in Pillman's career to be going one on one with The Nature Boy!
Pillman said that Okerlund may be right - but he's not worried, because Flair is too busy worrying about Arn Anderson. Pillman said people had been overlooking him lately, but he's here tonight to prove that he is one of the "Big Boys" and that he's got his eyes on some gold!
Interrupting Pillman's interview, Ric Flair sauntered into the interview dressed in full robe. "WOO!" Flair belted out - Flair said that Pillman doesn't know much about THE NATURE BOY if he thinks Flair is looking past Pillman. Flair said that despite their differences - he does like Pillman.“Look kid, you got the looks… you got the skill… and you’re even a lil’ bit… crazy! Who does that remind you of? THE NAITCHA BOY HIMSELF! WOOO!”
Pillman told Flair he “appreciated the compliment,” but tonight he would prove his worth in the ring. Flair offered to shake Pillman’s hand, which Pillman accepted as Flair told him that “to be the man, you gotta BEAT the man… and the man is right here, you’re lookin’ at ‘em! And after tonight, I still will be THE MAN. WOOOO!”
= = = = =
MR. JL versus SABU
"The Professor" Mike Tenay joined Tony and Dusty on commentary for this match as he has the "4-1-1-" so to speak, on the new influx of talent coming into WCW.
As Sabu and the masked luchador Mr. JL put on a back and forth, high speed match - Tenay told us all about Sabu's history as not just the nephew of the original Shiek, but also his history in NJPW and "other promotions" where he has grown a reputation as being nearly "suicidal" in the ring, taking risks that no ordinary man would be willing take, all in the name of winning a match.
Tenay said that Sabu is not afraid to put his body on the line - and he showcased some of that tonight as he springboarded over the top rope into a somersault plancha onto Mr. JL at ringside.
Tenay mentioned that Sabu has a lot of history in NJPW and these other companies with other newcomers Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko and Eddy Guerrero. In a solid matchup, Sabu brought home the victory after locking Mr. JL in the Camel Clutch and getting JL to submit.
WINNER - Sabu by submission
= = = = =
FALL BRAWL COMMAND CENTER
In the studio, "Mean" Gene Okerlund gave us a rundown of Fall Brawl which would be coming to us LIVE from Asheville, NC in a week from Sunday. Okerlund started by heavily hyping the War Games match where the Dungeon Of Doom would be represented by Kamala, The Shark, The Zodiac, and Meng taking on the Hulkamaniacs team of Hulk Hogan, Sting, and "The Macho Man" Randy Savage - but they have one open spot and Hogan has hinted that the Hulkamaniacs would be willing to go into "war" with a man down if they had to. But with the arrival of Scott Hall - we are waiting for a decision from Hogan and the Hulkamaniacs.
Elsewhere on the card - former allies turned enemies Ric Flair and Arn Anderson have officially been signed for Fall Brawl. There's certainly a lot of history between these two and "oh how things have changed."
Okerlund then ran down the rest of the card which would include a rematch for the Television Title as Diamond Dallas Page defends against The Renegade, a WCW tag title match between champions Dick Slater & Bunkhouse Buck versus former champions Harlem Heat and Sgt. Craig Pittman taking on former subordinate Cobra.
Okerlund reminds us that if we can't be there in Asheville, the next best thing is to order now for a front row seat in your living room!
= = = = =
As we headed out to break, in the WCW Saturday Night logo/split screen we saw "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff checking himself out in a mirror in his dressing room. He recited "Mirror, Mirror on the wall - who's the Most Wonderful of them all."
Orndorff checked his hair and smiled before heading out of the room. His opponent, Johnny B. Badd wandered into the room with a confused look on his face as he looked into the mirror himself. He smiled and nods his head, "I'm a Badddddd man!" he said before leaving to make his way to the ring.
"MR. WONDERFUL" PAUL ORNDORFF versus JOHNNY B. BADD
In a match that was filmed before his backstage brawl with Vader, the recently struggling Paul Orndorff had hoped his luck had changed after the visit from psychic Gary Spivey - so he was out to show he could get back on the winning track with a victory over the rising star Johnny B. Badd.
The crowd was solidly behind Badd as he went back and forth with Orndorff. Using some "slightly" underhand tactics, Orndorff was able to take control of the match. However Orndorff began to show signs of letting his frustration get to him after Badd kicked out of his German Suplex and a running knee strike. Orndorff would attempt to put Badd away with his Spike Piledriver, but Badd countered with a backdrop. Badd rallied with a flurry of rights and lefts, but Orndorff came back with a kick to the midsection that was awfully close to the groin.
Orndorff ignored the warning from the ref and took Badd to the mat with a vertical suplex. Another pinfall attempt by Orndorff resulted in a two count. Orndorff complained to the referee, which only allowed Badd to recover. Orndorff turned around right into the Tutti Frutti knockout punch! Orndorff dropped like a sack of bricks to the mat. Badd pulled Orndorff to the corner, where he pointed to the top turnbuckle which drew a mild ovation from the crowd. Badd climbed the turnbuckles and hit the Wild Thing Shooting Star Press to Orndorff to pick up the three count victory!
WINNER - Johnny B. Badd by pinfall in 6:55
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In the back, "Das Wunderkind" Alex Wright was standing by with "Mean" Gene Okerlund. Coming up next, Alex Wright would be going up against the new television champion Diamond Dallas Page. Wright brought up that this wouldn't be his first "dance" with a television champion - but he assured us that the results would be different this time around. He promised to make the fans both here in America and back home in Germany proud. His match with DDP was up next after the break!
"DAS WUNDERKIND" ALEX WRIGHT versus DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE (w/The Diamond Doll & Maxx Muscle)
Prior to the match, we go to relive the ending of Page's match on Nitro with then champion Renegade. A distraction from bodyguard Maxx Muscle allowed Page to hit the Diamond Cutter to become the Television Champion.
Page was as confident as ever now that he has some gold around his waist, and he made sure that the Diamond Doll took "good care" of his belt at ringside - instructing her to not let any of the fans at ringside to get their "filth" on it.
The young German proved to be a tough challenge for Page, showing that perhaps DDP had underestimated his opponent tonight. Much of the discussion of the match centered on the fact that Page would have to defend the title against The Renegade at Fall Brawl and both Tony and Dusty seemed to believe it would be very difficult for Page to pull a "rabbit out of his hat" twice.
After Wright controlled most of the offense early before Page used a rake of the eyes to slow the Wunderkind down. Page took Wright down with a discus clothesline and took control of the match. Just as it looked like Page was going to put Wright away - The Renegade RUSHED down to the ring. Page saw him coming and immediately fled from the ring. Page darted through the crowd as The Renegade ran laps around the ring.
DDP watched from the safety of the crowd as The Renegade stalked The Diamond Doll and the TV title. Maxx Muscle stepped in, but The Renegade connected with some stiff punches and tossed Muscle into the ring steps! Fearing for herself, Diamond Doll offered the Television Title to Renegade, who gladly took it! Renegade lifted it in the air with both hands and banged his head violently back and forth as Page was livid in the crowd. All the while, the referee had been counting Page out and awarding the match to Alex Wright!
WINNER - Alex Wright by count out in 7:39
Wright celebrated his victory after the match while Renegade spotted the visibly upset Page in the crowd. Renegade tossed the TV title back to the ground and headed over the guard rail and began giving chase to Page through the crowd! Renegade was continuing to give chase as we headed to break!
Want to know the story behind Scott Hall joining WCW? Gene Okerlund has it for you on the WCW Hotline! Just call 1-900-909-990!
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HARLEM HEAT (w/Sister Sherri) versus THE STATE TROOPERS
After the break - Harlem Heat were making their way down to the ring to some mixed reactions from the studio crowd while their opponents - Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker & Lt. James Earl Wright of the State Troopers were already in the ring. We found out that DDP had managed to escape the building without The Renegade getting his hands on him - but at Fall Brawl, there would be no running for Page!
Back to the action in the ring, this one wasn't much of a match-up as the former tag champions dominated the action with the State Troopers getting in very limited offense. Tony and Dusty used this match to promote the tag title match at Fall Brawl, as Harlem Heat looked impressive heading into the title match. The Heat Bomb put Lt. Wright away for the three count to cap off the dominant match by Harlem Heat.
WINNERS - Harlem Heat by pinfall in 2:02
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FALL BRAWL COMMAND CENTER
Back in the command center with "Mean" Gene - this time Okerlund wanted to continue to hype the War Games match by explaining the rules.
There are 7 periods of action - 2 men would start in the ring for the first period which would last 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, the head referee will flip a coin - the side that wins the coin toss will send in a second main. The winning side will have a 2-on-1 advantage for 2 minutes during the 2nd period. After 2 minutes, the losing side of the coin toss will send in their 2nd man to even the sides. Each remaining period is 2 minutes until all eight men are in the ring.
The match continues until someone either submits, surrenders, or is knocked unconscious. There is no pinfall, count outs, or disqualifications. Okerlund emphasized that this is one of the most brutal matches we'll ever see! All the more reason to purchase the event now!
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"HACKSAW" JIM DUGGAN versus "THE FACE OF FEAR" MENG (w/"The Taskmaster" Kevin Sullivan)
HOOOOO! Hacksaw led the crowd in cheering while he stomped around the ring as the match got underway. Duggan immediately went on the offensive against Meng, but Meng appeared to be unphased by Duggan's attacks. Meng fired back with some stiff punches and chops of his own to send the fan favorite reeling. Dusty and Tony were amazed at just how powerful Meng's blows were and stated that he would certainly be a force the Hulkamaniacs were going to have to reckon with inside the confined cage of War Games. Dusty remarked that he certainly wouldn't want to be staring down Meng from the other side of the ring inside a steel cage.
Sullivan watched on from ringside with a sinister smile on his face as he watched his monster Meng pick apart Duggan in the ring. But Duggan was as resilient as ever, so you had to give him credit for hanging in with Meng. With the fans rallying behind him, Duggan managed to battle his way back into the match.
After managing to stagger Meng with some clotheslines, Duggan executed an atomic drop to Meng before finally taking Meng down with a leaping shoulder block. HOOOOO! Duggan cried out again with one thumb in the air. Duggan stomped over to the corner and got into a three-point stance as Meng got to his feet...CLOTHESLINE to Meng took the big man down!
Duggan bounced off the ropes and hit the OLD GLORY jumping knee drop!
Duggan with the cover - ONE, TWO- NO! Meng kicked out!
Tony and Dusty were at a loss for words as suddenly Meng was back up on his feet as if nothing had been wrong! Duggan fired some rights and lefts at Meng which once again had no effect on Meng. A headbutt to Duggan took him down to the mat and as Duggan began to get back up to his feet, Meng locked on the TONGAN DEATH GRIP to Duggan!
Duggan fell over to the mat and once both shoulders were on the mat, the referee made the count - One, Two, Three!
Impressive victory by the Dungeon of Doom's Meng as we prepare for Fall Brawl!
WINNER - Meng by pinfall in 5:28
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After the break, we got a full recap of the ending of WCW Monday Nitro that saw Hulk Hogan being interviewed by "Mean" Gene Okerlund. After Hogan had stated that the Hulkamaniacs would be willing to go into battle against the Dungeon of Doom 3-on-4 - out came the unfamiliar music that can now be associated with "The Bad Guy" Scott Hall who made his arrival in WCW known with a proposition heard 'round the world, according to Tony Shiavone.
Hall has laid it on the table - he'd be the fourth member of the Hulkamaniacs in War Games in return for a shot at the WCW World Title! But the question on Hogan and most likely the rest of the Hulkamaniacs team is - can Hall be trusted?
Tony Shiavone urged us to tune into Nitro this week because Hulk Hogan, Sting, and Randy Savage would all be on hand to discuss the situation and give Scott Hall an answer!
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MAIN EVENT: "THE NATURE BOY" RIC FLAIR versus "FLYIN'" BRIAN PILLMAN
Ric Flair had Arn Anderson to look forward to at Fall Brawl, but tonight he had his hands full with Brian Pillman. Pillman was determined to pull out all the stops to "beat the man" - but Ric Flair indeed was not looking past the youngster.
The savvy veteran Flair took control of the match early after wearing Pillman down with some stiff chops before taking Pillman down to the mat. Flair began working over Pillman's leg to set him up for the Figure Four, but Pillman kept managing to escape every time Flair went to apply the hold. Behind the referee's back, Pillman gave Flair a kick to the midsection, which Dusty noted that Flair might've been right about Pillman reminding him of himself because that was right of out the "Dirtiest Player in the Game's" own playbook.
Pillman turned up the intensity of the match as he began to use his speed to out maneuver Flair to avoid the veteran and sneak in some quick attacks. After connecting with a spinning heel kick, Pillman climbed to the top turnbuckle and measured up Flair as he stumbled to his feet...FLYING DROPKICK to Flair! Pillman went for the pin!
ONE!
TWO!
THR…Shoulder up by the Nature Boy!
Pillman wasted no time going back on the attack, crouching down across Flair's upper body and unloading a flurry of closed fist right hands to Flair's head. The referee had to pull Pillman off Flair and warned Pillman on using a closed fist. Flair was staggering back to his feet as Pillman rushed in and grabbed Flair by the head, setting him up for a snap DDT, but Flair countered with a double leg take down!
Pillman was quick back to his feet, but Flair ducked a lariat attempt and hit a back suplex to Pillman! Flair was back in control and would eventually head to the top rope, but Pillman recovered in time to toss Flair off the top rope! Pillman hit a running kneedrop to Flair before going for the pin once again. One, Two, The - another kickout!
Pillman would climb back out onto the apron as Flair was staggering to his feet, measuring Flair up once again. Pillman springboarded into the ring looking for Air Pillman, but Flair moved out of the way!
Pillman stumbled to his feet right into a rollup from Flair!
One, Two, Thre...KICKOUT by Pillman!
Both men were back to their feet, and Flair ducked another lariat attempt by Pillman, lifted Pillman up and dropped him across his knee with a kneebreaker! Flair held onto Pillman's leg as he hit the canvas...Flair intertwined their legs and locked in the Figure Four!
Pillman struggled to fight the pain, attempting to pull himself to the ropes...but the pain quickly became too much for Pillman and he was forced to tap out!
WINNER - Ric Flair by submission at 9:52
A strong performance by the youngster, which Flair definitely seemed impressed by, but for tonight it was Ric Flair who was still “the Man.”
From the top of the ramp, we saw Arn Anderson emerging from the back, giving Flair a sarcastic "slow clap" as Flair was having his hand raised in the victory by the referee.
Flair spotted Anderson and had some choice words for Anderson as he stood in the ring. The two kept their eyes locked on one another as WCW Saturday Night came to a close.
The focus on the Hall stuff throughout the show had to happen so I'm glad it got the rightful attention that it deserves. It's obviously your most interesting angle.
I was never big on the Pittman/Cobra stuff to be honest. Didn't find it hilariously Wrestle Crap bad, more so just bad bad. Which means I was happy that Disco got the win so there's that. But yeah, good luck making Pittman/Cobra interesting for me.
Flair/Pillman is a fun main event, and I liked that you gave them that brief bit of mic time. Making note that Flair compared Pillman to himself because that is a huge rub, and if it's any indication to how Pillman will be treated in here, I look forward to it. Obviously it's Flair's time now though so he wins and the stare down with Arn is a fine Saturday Night way to continue that angle.
Not a hell of a lot else to say about the rest of the show really. Page/Renegade continued nicely, and I'm definitely looking forward to Page's reaction to Diamond Doll just giving up the TV Title. Thumbs up for Meng going over Duggan too. If the result went the other way, I might have needed to stop reading.
Looking forward to more of the 'bigger' stuff on Nitro.
