1990-01-21 WWF Royal Rumble

Just putting these stats up for the time being, I'll write this one up as soon as i get a chance.

Royal Rumble 1990 Stats -:

Longest Time in the Match - Ted Dibiase (44:54)
Shortest Time in the Match - Shawn Michaels (0:18)
Most Eliminations -: The Ultimate Warrior (6)

Time	Duration	Participant	Entry	Elimination	Eliminated By
48:08-61:04	12:56:00	Hulk Hogan	25	Winner	Winner
57:26-61:04	03:38:00	Mr. Perfect	30	29	Hulk Hogan
52:56-59:24	06:28:00	'Ravishing' Rick Rude	28	28	Mr. Perfect
55:18-58:28	03:10:00	Hercules	29	27	'Ravishing' Rick Rude
52:04-57:56	05:52:00	The Barbarian	27	26	Hercules
40:08-54:43	14:35:00	The Ultimate Warrior	21	25	Hulk Hogan
42:08-50:35	08:27:00	'The Model' Rick Martel	22	24	The Ultimate Warrior
50:14-50:32	00:18:00	Shawn Michaels	26	23	The Ultimate Warrior
46:08-50:24	04:16:00	The Honky Tonk Man	24	22	Hulk Hogan
44:08-49:21	05:13:00	Tito Santana	23	21	The Ultimate Warrior
26:09-48:50	22:41:00	Haku	14	20	Hulk Hogan
32:08-48:28	16:20:00	'Superfly' Jimmy Snuka	17	19	Hulk Hogan
02:19-47:13	44:54:00	'Million Dollar Man' Ted Dibiase	1	18	The Ultimate Warrior
38:08-46:56	08:48:00	Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart	20	17	The Ultimate Warrior
28:08-43:12	15:04:00	Smash	15	16	Haku
34:08-40:32	06:24:00	Dino Bravo	18	15	The Ultimate Warrior
36:08-38:53	02:45:00	Canadian Earthquake	19	14	Haku, Smash, Dibiase, Snuka, Dibiase
24:11-37:07	12:56:00	Ax	13	13	Canadian Earthquake
18:12-36:39	18:27:00	Dusty Rhodes	10	12	Canadian Earthquake
30:08-32:53	02:45:00	Akeem	16	11	'Superfly' Jimmy Snuka
20:12-30:53	10:41:00	Andre The Giant	11	10	Demolition
14:14-30:39	16:25:00	Bret Hart	8	9	Dusty Rhodes
22:12-24:18	02:06:00	The Red Rooster	12	8	Andre The Giant
10:16-22:44	12:28:00	'Rowdy' Roddy Piper	6	7	Bad News Brown
16:14-22:38	06:24:00	Bad News Brown	9	6	'Rowdy' Roddy Piper
12:16-20:15	07:59:00	The Warlord	7	5	Andre The Giant
08:32-18:46	10:14:00	'Macho King' Randy Savage	5	4	Dusty Rhodes
06:32-17:06	10:34:00	Jake 'The Snake' Roberts	4	3	'Macho King' Randy Savage
04:24-06:07	01:43:00	Marty Janetty	3	2	'Million Dollar Man' Ted Dibiase
02:19-03:58	01:39:00	Koko B. Ware	2	1	'Million Dollar Man' Ted Dibiase

1990-01-15 WWF Madison Square Garden

Live from Madison Square Garden, NYC exclusively on the MSG network, its action from the World Wrestling Federation hosted by Gorilla Monsoon and er, Hillbilly Jim.  
 

Bobby Heenan was busy that night

These guys are excited for the main even tonight which will be WWF World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan facing off against Curt 'Mr. Perfect' Hennig.  Also, the Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase puts his Million Dollar Championship belt on the line against Jake ' The Snake' Roberts.  I'm looking forward to both these matches too... Hennig could have a great match with Hacksaws 2x4 so should be able to put on a show with Hogan.  Roberts and Dibiase are all time greats and should put on a good show.  It's over to 'The Fink' Howard Finkel to start the show...

The Genius def. Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart (2*) 

The opening match sees 'The Genius' Lanny Poffo (real life brother of the Macho Man) take on Jim 'The Anvil' Neidhart (real life brother-in-law of Bret 'Hitman' Hart) for the 'MOST overshadowed sibling' championship of the world.  The Genius' gimmick is kind of obvious - he is very smart and will beat his opponents with cunning and intelligence, probably a source of inspiration for current WWE superstar Damian Sandow's gimmick.  I think Poffo goes for sneering & arrogant, but just comes across as being very camp and goofy.  The opening 5 minutes of this contest comprise of ballet theatrics, cartwheels and gymnastic showmanship from The Genius, which is pretty funny to watch.  The Anvil gets mad and knocks him out of the ring with a forearm smash.  Genius then lures The Anvil out of the ring and attacks him on the way back in with a series of eye rakes and punches.  Anvil seems to be blinded and this continues for a few minutes until Anvil breaks the momentum with an inverted atomic drop.  Anvil raises his knees to foil a moonsault attempt from The Genius, and then once again has to resort to chasing him around the ring.  This time Mr. Perfect appears from the aisle and clocks the Anvil from behind leading to a pinfall victory for the Genius.  A fun match made entertaining by the antics of the Genius (9:25).

 

 

Powers of Pain [w/Mr.Fuji] def. The Rockers (3*) 

The next matchup sees The Rockers (Shawn Michaels & Marty Janetty) taking on Mr.Fuji's 'Powers of Pain' (The Barbarian & The Warlord).  Shawn Michaels starts things off with the Barbarian in a series of tie-ups that are always going to favour the behemoth Barbarian.  Michaels & Janetty use quick tags and a series of double team moves to clear the ring.  There aren't many teams that had the speed & synchronization that the Rockers had in 1990.  Warlord comes into the ring and eventually catches Janetty, and gets amazing elevation on two body drops.  Marty is taking a severe beating at the hands of the Barbarian and gets a big boot that sends him clean over the top rope.  Its a shame that Marty Janetty couldn't really develop as a singles competitor the way that Shawn Michaels eventually did, as he really was a solid wrestler at this point in time.  The Barbarian goes for the bear hug, and hits a powerslam before missing the elbow drop allowing Janetty to make the tag.  Michaels comes in with that babyface momentum but things soon descend into chaos with all four men in the ring (which is probably to allow the Rockers to put in their double team moves).  Powers of Pain eventually score the pinfall on Shawn Michaels which comes via a trip from Mr.Fuji, followed by an elbow drop from the Barbarian.  Michaels hits Fuji with a dropkick after the match which leads to a beatdown from the Powers of Pain, and Janetty being taken out on a stretcher (10:00).  

 

The Rockers faced Powers of Pain

 

Al Perez def. Paul Roma (1*)

Al Perez faces off against Paul Roma next.  This is Roma between the Young Stallions team and Power & Glory.  He recently jobbed to Bad News Brown & Rhythm and Blues on TV, whereas Perez scored a highly unremarkable victory over the Brooklyn Brawler.  Neither of these guys are really even mid-card, so I have no idea what to expect.  Monsoon and Hillbilly tell us to expect a mat classic, but less than five minutes in and they are talking about farming and milk.  Hillbilly is excited and really gets into his gimmick, and I can no longer understand what the good old southern boy is saying.  The match has basically been a series of hip tosses & arm drags five minutes in.  Roma puts Perez in the tree of woe and stomps away, before Perez mounts a comeback with punches, stomps and rest holds.  This one has been a disappointment, it seems like neither guy can call a match very well and are just repeating the same spots over and over again.  It's ten minutes in before Roma starts working - small package, backslide, axe-handle, , dropkick, suplex.  Finally, some variety!  The finish comes when Roma attempts a flying crossbody, which is reversed by Perez for the pinfall.  This may be the first and last time these two guys are given 10+ minutes at the MSG (11:20).

 

 

Mr.Perfect [w/ The Genius] def. Hulk Hogan (2*)

The Genius is back in the ring to introduce Mr. Perfect (with a poem) who will be facing Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Title.  I love Curt Hennig, he was such a good performer, and his Mr.Perfect gimmick was awesome too.  Hogan comes to the ring and is hot, going after Mr. Perfect who leaves the ring.  The match gets underway and several bodyslams from Hogan force Perfect out of the ring to the outside.  Hogan follows and beats on Perfect and The Genius, throwing them both into the ring.  A double team follows which curiously draws no action from the referee, but Hogan continues the beatdown on both opponents.  Perfect comes back with a kick to the midsection and knocks Hogan to the outside.  Hogan runs Perfect into the ringpost twice, before Perfect applies a sleeper hold on Hogan.  Hogan goes through his legendary fightback theatrics but is ran into the turnbuckle by Perfect.  Hogan has Perfect on the ropes and hits an atomic drop (Perfect's selling of Hogans offense here is Shawn Michaels-esque c.2005).  Hogan misses with an elbow drop and Perfect hits the Perfect Plex.. 1-2, and a kick out.  Hogan starts to Hulk up, but his big boot sends Perfect over the top rope.  Perfect misses with a chair shot and Hogan sends him back into the ring.  The match ends when Mr.Perfect introduces brass knuckles into the match in a failed attempt to knock Hogan out, Hogan nails Perfect instead and is disqualified by the ref giving Perfect the DQ Win (13:38)

Mr. Perfect battles Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship

Sean Mooney is backstage and conducts separate interviews with both Roberts and Dibiase ahead of the main event.  Both men cut decent promos and the Million Dollar Belt will be on the line tonight.  Next up is an interview with 'Rugged' Ronnie Garvin and Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka who will be facing Rhythm & Blues later tonight.  Garvin is due to face Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine at the Royal Rumble in six days time, and has brought along his 'Hammer Jammer' thingy.  Following a commercial, Sean Mooney is with Rhythm & Blues (with Jimmy Hart), and they are looking to take the Hammer Jammer tonight so Garvin cant use it at the Rumble.

Akeem def. Bret 'Hitman' Hart (1*)
Next up we have a godawful gimmick in the form of Akeem (The African Dream, aka One Man Gang).  Akeem is a huge white guy who hails from Africa (specific), who with the help of some old-school rap music struts around the ring like a moron. He will be facing Bret 'Hitman' Hart today.  After a few minutes of Hillbilly rambling incoherently the match starts.  Akeem lumbers around the ring trying to catch the Hitman, but he is way too slow and misses with all of his offensive moves.  Hitman bites Akeem on the nose and per his style, goes to work on a body part methodically.  Not sure of the logic behind working on the fingers, but thats what we have here.  Hitman sells his own headbutt, and Akeem begins an assault of his own for a few boring minutes.  Eventually, Hart goes for a sunset flip which Akeem reverses into a sitdown splash for a pinfall (8:31)

  

Akeem.  From Africa, SC. 

Rhythm & Blues Time Limit Draw w/ 'Rugged' Ronnie Garvin & Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka (2*)
Next on the bill is Jimmy Hart's 'Rhythm and Blues' team comprising of Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine, and The Honky Tonk Man.  They will be facing off against 'Rugged' Ronnie Garvin & Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka.  Snuka starts the match with Honky after what seems like an age, and Snuka goes to work with the martial arts.  After a few headlock punches, Honky tags in Valentine.  Snuka brings in Garvin who beats on the 'Hammer' until he does the patented Ric Flair fall face first to the canvas.  Garvin hits the Garvin stomp but his Sharpshooter attempt is blocked and a double team ensues.  Both teams go back and forth before eventually the 'Hammer' applies his figure four, but Garvin just smiles and pulls faces implying that the 'Hammer Jammer' shin pad thingy is nullifying the hold.  Tags are made and Snuka misses a crossbody which enables Rhythm and Blues to double team further.  Snuka eventually makes the tag and Garvin gets a close two count with a backslide.  Garvin scores another near pinfall with a sunset flip from the top rope.  Ronnie Garvin was long gone before i started watching WWF as a kid, so this is kind of my first experience of him... before that move I was kinda thinking 'shit Dino Bravo'.  Honky Tonk Man manages to remove the 'Hammer Jammer' and Valentine hits the figure four leglock, but Snuka breaks the hold.  Valentine goes to the top rope but is caught by Garvin who is about to apply the sharpshooter when the bell rings for a time limit draw (early).  Decent match that served its purpose in building for the clash at the Royal Rumble (19:39).

'Million Dollar Man' Ted Dibiase def. Jake 'The Snake' Roberts (2*)
A young(er) Regis Philbin is in the crowd enjoying the action.  Its time for our main event, with The Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase facing Jake 'The Snake' Roberts for the Million Dollar Championship Belt.  Roberts enters the ring with a head of steam and goes to work with a headlock.  Several near pin attempts and Jake goes for the DDT early two minutes in, but Dibiase slithers to the outside.  Roberts goes back to work with the headlock and Monsoon repeatedly points out that he has never seen anyone pinned with a side headlock, which may still be true nearly 25 years later.  As if the Virgil black man slave gimmick wasn't bad enough to begin with, Hillbilly douses the fire with some gasoline by adding that Virgil will probably be 'back working in Burger King' should Dibiase lose the match, and that he probably wouldn't be able to work at KFC.  This shit will probably be edited if it ever makes WWE Network.  Dibiase hits a side suplex but Jake doesn't let go of the headlock... Dibiase eventually breaks free and lands with a piledriver.  Jake breaks free from a camel clutch which sends Dibiase perilously close to Damian (the live snake at ringside) prompting a display of fear from the Million Dollar Man.  Jakes attempt at a neckbreaker is blocked by Dibiase holding the ropes, and he returns in kind planting the same move on Roberts.  Dibiase hits a powerslam and applies the Million Dollar Dream sleeper hold, but Jake makes the ropes and the ref breaks the hold.  Dibiase then misses with an elbow from the top rope.  Roberts gets a second wind and hits irish whips, a body slam & a short clothesline.  The match goes outside the ring and Jake nails Virgil with some punches and a bodyslam, which probably makes Hillbilly happy.  Roberts gets back into the ring and hits the DDT, but the bell sounds before Jake can make a count.  He thinks he has won the belt, but it would appear that he has been counted out, therefore losing the match.  Jake tries to set Damian on the ref (Earl Hebner),  but he manages to escape the ring (20:31)

The MSG screwjob

There are a few promos to finish the show - Powers of Pain with Mr.Fuji continue their feud with the Rockers.  Mr.Perfect and The Genius gloat about their victory over Hulk Hogan earlier in the night.  Finally, The Hulkster talks about the largest arms in the world and his upcoming handicap match with Mr.Perfect & The 'limp wristed' Genius.... brother.

This show was decent enough, but far from a classic due to BS Finishes and some pointless matches.

1990-01-13 WWF Superstars of Wrestling

Hosting Superstars of Wrestling this week are none other than Jesse 'the body' Ventura and Vince 'What a maneuver!' McMahon.  I'm expecting to see a few squash matches and lots of old school promos with the Royal Rumble being one week away.

'Hacksaw' Jim Duggan def. Tony Burton (1*) 

I think that 'Hacksaw' Jim Duggan may be my least favourite wrestler of all time.  However, he might just be my second favourite Hacksaw of all time, behind runaway winner 'Hacksaw' Higgins.  Here he is taking on Tony Burton ahead of an upcoming clash with the Big Boss Man at the Royal Rumble.  McMahon & Ventura pay absolutely no attention to the 'action' at all, instead prefering to talk about Hacksaws relatives who work for NASA.  Ventura suggests that they are either janitors or apes, which is surely going to be the highlight of the episode.  The match itself is basically a procession of 'Hooooooo's, thumbs in the air, dumb faces and little else.  The three point stance clothesline finishes Burton in just over two minutes (2:14).

Hoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Sean Mooney starts hyping the show later in the evening at the Boston Garden.  The Colossal Connection will be facing Demolition, who cut a promo stating that they are going to win back their title belts.  Next up is the Macho King Randy Savage who will be facing good old Hacksaw.  He cuts an entertaining promo with Queen Sherri, which emphasises the point that Duggan is very stupid.

Oooooooohhh Yeeeeeeeeaaaaaah!

'Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase [w/Virgil] def. Dale Wolfe (1*)
Next up is the Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase.  I like watching this guy work, he has a nice move set.  He puts together a series of various suplexes, swinging neckbreaker, piledriver & a powerslam before applying the 'Million Dollar Dream' sleeper hold for the win.  Ventura & McMahon discuss democracy, Ventura stating that the Million Dollar Man should be able to buy whatever number he likes in the Royal Rumble.  Once again, they don't call a single spot in the match, but it's funny (2:38). 

Next up is the Brother Love show.  His special guest this week is the Intercontinental Champion, The Ultimate Warrior.  In a fairly messy segment, The Ultimate Warriors music hits half way through the interview and he thinks that there are 28 other guys in the Royal Rumble, instead of 29.  He walks in circles around Brother Love, talks about the Warriors & destiny a lot, builds his feud with Dino Bravo, before running off like a maniac.  This is a fairly typical Warrior promo

 

Brother Love with the Ultimate Warrior

 

A whole host of promos follow building up to the Royal Rumble.  We hear from The Honky Tonk Man, Dusty Rhodes, 'Ravishing' Rick Rude, Mr. Perfect, 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper, Bad News Brown, The Hart Foundation & Hulk Hogan.  All think they are going to win it, my highlight of this segment is Dusty Rhodes Yellow polka dot singlet, which is truly a sight to behold.

 

Dusty Rhodes - A Common Man (In Yellow Polka Dots)

'The Model' Rick Martel def. Jerry Monti (1*)

Martel wins this match quickly with a backbreaker followed by his Boston Crab finish.  Ventura sees a lot of himself in 'The Model', and he and McMahon continue to completely ignore the action in the ring.  During the match, Brutus ' The Barber' Beefcake cuts an incredibly camp promo wearing Martels rain jacket and hat, which he tore up on the previous weeks edition of Superstars. 

Finally, a couple more promo's for the event at the Boston Garden.   Honky Tonk Man is up first and he wants to hit Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka with his guitar.  The Ultimate Warrior is back on next, and this is completely insane.  "The Voodoo Dolls that others feared, those are the things I had to eat" is possibly the most nonsensical thing that he has to offer today.

Nice work on commentary by McMahon & Ventura made this one fun to watch.

1990-01-06 NWA World Championship Wrestling

The show starts with a promo from Theodore R. Long.  He hypes up the new formation of The Skyscrapers debuting later.  Sid Vicious is out injured for the foreseeable future and 'Dangerous' Dan Spivey has a new partner tonight.  Jim Ross is joined on commentary by Kevin Sullivan.

Rick & Scott Steiner def. Rick Fargo & Pat Rose (1*)

The opening matchup sees the Steiner brothers take on enhancement talent / perennial jobbers Fargo & Rose.  The Steiners come out to 'Welcome To The Jungle' by Guns 'N' Roses, and take part in some OTT fan interaction.  Rick starts the match and goes through his mad-dog routine.  This one is over quickly and Rose doesn't even get tagged into the match.  A top-rope 360 slam from Scott & a bear hug suplex from Rick and its all over.  Some nice moves from the Steiners but not really much of a match. (2:32)   

Up next, Jim Ross talks to Teddy Long about the Skyscrapers.  Teddy looking good in his white & black pinstripe suit tells Ross that Sid has been replaced and he might have a job for him once he is fit to compete.

"Let me tell you something playa..."

The Midnight Express [w/ James E. Cornette] def. Paul Drake & 'Nasty' Ned Brady (1*)

In 1990, the Midnight Express comprised of 'Beautiful' Bobby Eaton and 'Sweet' Stan Lane, accompanied by James E. Cornette.  Cornette joins the commentary team to offer his opinions on the tag team division, in particular the returning Rock and Roll Express.  Cornette suggests that they drove them out of the NWA before and would do so again.  Unlike the previous match, the jobbers manage to get a little offense in on 'Beautiful' Bobby, however some roughhouse heel tactics from Stan & Bobby, followed by the Rocket Launcher, and Eaton scores the pin. (4:15)

Norman 'The Lunatic' def. Bob Cook (1*)

Whilst not quite as bad as his 'Bastion Booger' gimmick in WWF, Norman was pretty dumb.  Hailing from the State Hospital, decked out in mental patient gear, completely mismatching footwear, what looks like a safari hat and carrying a teddy bear, it's hard to envisage this ever getting off the ground.  Norman's current angle is his infatuation with Woman (Nancy Sullivan / Benoit).  Kevin Sullivan is on commentary and has some harsh words for Norman, including 'Nitwit'.  Sullivan also says that Bob Cook is a great wrestler, so perhaps we shouldn't listen to him.  A promo is shown where Norman states that he will reveal his painting of Woman on the Sunday Night Main Event broadcast.  After a nice legdrop and back body drop, Norman sits on Cook's face for the pin and a literal squash. (3:15)

In case the outfit and demeanor of Norman didn't give it away, he was helpfully referred to as a lunatic.

 

'Mad Dog' Buzz Sawyer & DragonMaster def. Ricky Nelson & Rick Ryder (1*)

Sawyer & DragonMaster hit the ring minus The Great Muta who is also part of their stable around this time.  The bell rings and Sawyer lets out a feral scream... I think Festus must have watched this and years later based his entire gimmick around it.  Seems like the Mad Dog is being overly stiff with these two jobbers, but hits a nice powerslam.  Dragonmaster hits a backbreaker & Inverted Piledriver (tombstone) before tagging in Sawyer, who gains the pinfall via his top rope splash  (3:26)

We cut to a segment with Bill Apter of PWI who is with the magazines recent award winners, Scott Steiner (Most Improved), Ric Flair (Wrestler of the decade) and Gordon Solie (Commentator extraordinaire).  Ric Flair's hair looks immaculate.

Flyin' Brian & Z-Man def. The State Patrol (2*)

The State Patrol, were kind of the tag team equivalent of the Brooklyn Brawler.  They had a gimmick, but lost practically every match they were ever put in.  The match starts with a series of hip tosses and arm drags from the Z-Man, before Flyin' Brian starts putting together some quick offense - Sunset Flip, Backslide, Flying double clothesline.  Pillman looks absolutely ripped at this stage of his career to the point where his head looks a little bit too small for his body.  Lt. James Earl Wright & Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker beat down on Z-Man for a while, and even break out the patented Bushwhackers battering ram.  Its all short lived though, as Pillman gets the tag and its all over after a flying crossbody from the top rope (8:15).


The Royal Family [w/ Lord Littlebrook] def. Sean Regal & Larry Santo (1*)
The Royal Family head to the ring next.  Having debuted their frankly stupid costumes the previous night on Power Hour, they have new music tonight too and the transformation is complete.  WCW was really all about tag team wrestling in early 1990 - Steiners, Road Warriors, Midnight Express, Rock and Roll Express, The Freebirds, Skyscrapers, SST, Doom, Dynamic Dudes, Zenk & Pillman and these guys were right at the bottom of the list.  This one is thankfully brief and after some roughhousing and a double face-first suplex, Victory covers Regal for the win.  Littlebrook, who is like a cross between Hornswoggle & Snoop Dogg, puts a few boots in after the match (3:48)

The Royal Family.  Costumes endorsed by the Queen of England, according to Jim Ross

The New Skyscrapers [w/ Theodore R. Long] def. Agent Steel & Randy Harris (1*)
This match is memorable for being the first appearance of the Undertaker in WCW.  At this point he was known as 'Mean' Mark Callous and was put into the Skyscrapers team, replacing Sid Vicious.  Teddy Long and the commentators are going to great lengths to convince the viewers that The Skyscrapers are better than ever and a quick squash match is exactly what is needed here.  'Mean' Mark does get a chance to debut his walking the top rope move which is undoubtedly the highlight of a brief encounter.  'Dangerous' Dan gets the pinfall following a powerbomb. (2:20)  

Very old school

Post Match Promo with Jim Ross

Jim Ross conducts a short interview with Ric Flair next.  Flair addresses the feud that is building between himself and Lex Luger, gets in his 'To Be The Man...' shtick and talks a little about the new Horseman.  This is Flair in his prime, all faculties intact and his promos are well delivered.


The Dynamic Dudes def. Cactus Jack Manson & Lee Scott (1*)
The Dynamic Dudes head to the ring in their god awful shorts and t-shirts combo, but on this occasion they left their skateboards in California.  Johnny Ace (a.k.a John Laurinaitis) gives some kid in the crowd his t-shirt which may actually fit him in 2014, but he probably doesnt wear it.  Johnny's partner is Shane Douglas and they are set to go against ref/wrestler utility man Lee Scott, and Cactus Jack who has not yet dropped the Manson moniker.  Nothing happens in the first couple of minutes apart from a double drop kick, so Kevin Sullivan talks about Cactus Jack being a cultured genius & budding Kasparov.  Cactus eventually tags in Lee Scott who is quickly beaten with some double-team move which is basically a dropkick by Douglas.  After the match, Cactus Jack is unhappy with his partner losing the match, and proceeds to give him a beatdown (3:10).

We cut to Jim Ross who is about to interview the Rock and Roll Express.  Ross calls the team 'the four time tag team champions of the year' and they eventually head out in very un-rock-and-roll grandpa jumpers.  Robert Gibson talks incoherently for a bit before Ricky Morton lays out the teams plans to conquer the NWA tag division.  After a commercial break, a very unhappy Lee Scott joins Jim Ross and challenges Cactus Jack to a 1-on-1 match next week.


'Dr.Death' Steve Williams def. Hacksaw Higgins (1*)
I'll go on record as saying I was never really a fan of Dr. Death, who went on to achieve great success in Japan during the 90's.  At the stage of his career, Williams seemed to be WCW's answer to Hacksaw Jim Duggan... all thumbs up, "Hoooooo" chants to the crowd.  Higgins was a fairly large guy for a jobber, but didn't put up much offense in this match and Williams finishes things with the Oklahoma Stampede.  Jim Ross always went to bat for Dr. Death throughout his career, and its evident during commentary here too (3:55).

We cut to an interview with US Heavyweight Champion Lex Luger.  He talks about how great he is for three minutes and how it is his destiny to become the World Heavyweight Champion.

Lex Luger [US Heavyweight Champion]

'Wildfire' Tommy Rich def. Cactus Jack Manson (1*)
This is originally supposed to be a match between Tommy Rich and masked jobber Agent Steel, but Cactus Jack enters the ring and throws Steel back into the locker room area.  Jim Ross remarks that Cactus Jack isnt going to have a very long career as he takes several bumps to the outside, including a back body drop to the concrete floor.  The match is back and forth before Tommy Rich scores the pinfall with some kind of move that ends up much like a sunset flip (4:35).

Jim Ross interviews Michael 'P.S' Hayes about the tag team division.  He tries to build some heat between the Freebirds and the team of Pillman & Z-Man.  I think he calls Pillman 'Fryin' Brian.

The Samoan Swat Team w/ Sir Oliver Humperdink & The Samoan Savage def. The Italian Stallion & Brody Chase (0*)
The SST are up next, the team comprising of Samu & Fatu.  Its pretty cool seeing early Rikishi in action... he is probably around 280lbs here and looks in decent wrestling shape.  Samu starts off with the Italian Stallion who holds his own before tagging in Brody Chase.  After this the Samoans just decimate Chase, who could be genuinely groggy, but the match is filled with botched spots until a Fallaway Slam from Samu & top rope splash from Fatu end it (3:18).

Fatu of the Samoan Swat Team

The match is followed by a short promo from Woman, who states her intention for the 90's is to obtain the services of World Heavyweight champion Ric Flair.

Arn Anderson & Sting def. The Galaxians (1*)
You should always try to end a show in style and this one is no exception.  That's right, I'm talking about the Galaxians!  These guys are everything I love about wrestling from the 80's and 90's - completely ridiculous, no-hopers, awful gimmick, terrible costumes, but every week you want them to get the win... just once.  Facing two of the Four Horseman, there is little chance of that this week.  Sting hits the Stinger Splash, followed by a nice DDT from Anderson and this one is over, meaning we'll have to wait a little longer for a Galaxian win (3:57).

They really used to cram a lot into these Saturday Night shows, and there is just enough time left for Ross to conduct an interview with the Horseman.  Lots of mutual back slapping going on and Flair breaks out another of his catchphrases.

We are kiss-stealing, wheeling-dealing, limousine riding, jet-flying son-of-a-guns

I enjoyed watching the WCW shows that I have from this week in January 1990, and hopefully it brought back some memories for you.  My awards for the week go to -:

Wrestler(s) of the week : 

1. Arn Anderson - I just really like what he's doing.  Playing the 'Enforcer' role well, good technician, nice promo's, two pinfall victories.

2. Flyin' Brian - Cool to see some early Pillman, I haven't seen the 'high flying' version in a long time

3.  Cactus Jack - Even though he lost three matches over two shows, that's not really the point.  He did a good job of building his character this week with the 'reckless abandon' shown in some of the spots in his matches.

Match of the week : Flyin' Brian vs. Cactus Jack [Power Hour 1990-01-06]