WCW Monday Nitro - November 13, 1995
by Scrooge McSuck
- Last week on Monday Nitro, Sting and Ric Flair battled for probably the 3,004th time in their careers, with Sting refusing to let go of the Scorpion Deathlock until that no-good turncoat Lex Luger talked him out of the ring. Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero had another brutal contest, Jimmy Hart wiped away the Renegade's dignity, and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship has been held up, and will be awarded to the winner of the 3-ring, 60-Man Battle Royal, at World War 3.
- Over on Monday Night Raw, the 1-2-3 Kid finally turned heel, fast-counting Razor Ramon in a Non-Title Match with Sycho Sid, and joining the Million Dollar Corporation. Henry Godwinn freaked Hunter Hearst Helmsley by slopping himself before their scheduled match, and Ahmed Johnson made his in-ring debut. There's also a final, hard-push interview with Bret Hart and Diesel for Survivor Series, but even taking that into account, a very poor show for in-ring quality.
- We're TAPED from Jacksonville, FL (taped following last week's live episode, for the record), with Eric Bischoff, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, and Steve "Mongo" McMichael calling the action. Over/Under for how many times the phrase "This is where the big boys play" is set at 5.5. Have I mentioned Mongo's stupid dog?
- Bizarre promo from a graveyard... or something, with Hulk Hogan dressed in a black cloak and mask. So I guess he's coming back as either the Executioner or the haggard woman that the Queen disguises herself as in Snow White. Then to confuse me further, he busts out the Master Sword to suck up to Legend of Zelda fans. It's all about the Dark Side of Hulkamania. What in the flying fuck is this guy talking about?!
"Macho Man" Randy Savage vs. Meng (w/ Taskmaster):
Please God, enough with featuring Meng every week. David Pinzer introduces Jimmy Hart, but he's not present. That's one of those "attention to detail" things WWF almost never let happen, but seems to happen a lot with WCW. Macho Man is introduced from the Dark Side of Venice Beach... ZUH?! Savage runs in from the crowd and attacks from behind with a running high knee. Savage, in his nWo colors, tosses Meng to the floor and rams him into random parts of the ring. Back inside, Savage rakes the eyes and chokes Meng across the top rope. Savage with a slam, but a double axehandle is met with a fist to the midsection. Jimmy Hart finally makes his way to the ring as Meng dumps Savage to the floor. Meng tears up Savage's shirt and lays in with chops. If you're not a fan of chops, there's plenty of choking. Meng with a slam, but misses a headbutt from the top rope. Savage tosses Meng into JImmy Hart, clotheslines him across the back of the head, and finishes with the Elbow Smash at 4:50. Post-Match, the Shark and Lex Luger run out to put a beating on the injured arm. 1/2* The body language from both men seemed to lack enthusiasm, and to be fair, Savage's arm is pretty banged up, so him working incredibly light is understandable.Kensuki Sasaki vs. Chris Benoit:
I'm not too familiar about WCW, but I'm pretty sure Sasaki has made a handful of appearances a few years earlier and also worked with Road Warrior Hawk as the Hell Raisers in NJPW. That's all I've got. I'm sorry. Benoit attacks before the bell, only to get laid out with a short clothesline. Sasaki with a suplex, followed by a Power Slam for only a one count. Whip to the ropes, they meet hard and Sasaki lays him out with another hard clothesline. Whip to the corner, followed by a running bulldog. The crowd boos, probably because Sasaki is Japanese. Sasaki with a slam for a one count. He takes Benoit over with a snapmare and slaps on a rear chinlock. Elbow drop across the chest gets one. Whip to the ropes, Benoit fights out of a tilt-o-whirl and counters a back suplex with a leverage press for a two count. They fight over a waistlock until Benoit takes him over with the rolling German Suplexes, then caps it off with the Dragon Suplex for three at 2:41. *1/2 Didn't have enough time to mean much or get going. Noteworthy: Bischoff hyped an upcoming US Title defense from Sting against Sasaki, so expect Sasaki to win after doing a clean job here.WCW Television Championship Match:
Johnny B. Badd © vs. Eddie Guerrero:
I guess Guerrero earned this title shot with his pinfall victory over Chris Benoit last week, or maybe it's just a random match. They shake hands before the bell as Bobby Heenan expositions a storyline involving the New Japan stars and WCW Pro. They take turns working the arm. Guerrero grabs a side headlock. Criss-cross, Badd with a tilt-o-whirl back breaker for a two count. Another criss-cross ends with Guerrero taking Badd over with a flying head scissors. Guerrero avoids a leg sweep, but Badd manages to take him over with a snapmare. Guerrero meets an elbow on a charge, and Badd slingshots from the apron with a leg drop for a pair of two counts. Guerrero from out of nowhere with another flying head scissors for two. Badd blocks a Super-Plex attempt and comes off the top with a sunset flip. Guerrero rolls through, Badd counters, and Guerrero counters again into another pinning combination for a near fall. Badd sends him to the floor and follows with a somersault plancha. Badd misses another slingshot move and Guerrero covers for two. They blow a victory roll spot pretty badly. Eddie escapes a press slam with a sunset flip for two. Cradle for two. Badd nails Guerrero with a pair of hard lefts, knocking Eddie silly. Guerrero makes it back to his feet and tackles Badd. They roll around trading blows until the referee pulls them apart. Badd with a side headlock, countered with a back suplex. Eddie with a somersault senton for two as we're reminded there's 2-minutes left in the Time Limit. Eddie sets up for a Tombstone, but Badd counters with his own for two. Whip to the corner, Eddie gets an elbow up and takes Badd down with a Tornado DDT for two. Criss cross, and a double body press puts both men down. They trade blows from their knees until the bell rings at 9:07, signaling a Draw. Well, close to 10-minutes, I guess. Those time limit countdowns always ruin a match for me. **1/2 Good exhibition of athleticism, and I like the storyline of two babyfaces losing their cool, but the crowd was out of it early, and some spots seemed a bit sloppy and the final two-minutes were a complete wash when it comes to excitement thanks to the "oh, there's so many minutes left in the time limit."
- Hulk Hogan will be on WCW Monday Nitro, next week, and he wants STING.
- "Mean" Gene Okerlund is in the ring with the Taskmaster, Jimmy Hart, and The Giant. It's pretty much the same interviews from the previous couple of weeks, minus the WCW World Championship in the Giant's posession.
Sting vs. Dean Malenko:
I don't think the outcome shouldn't be much of a surprise here. Sting slaps hands with the fans, so he's still a babyface... for now. Lockup, Malenko grabs a waistlock. Sting powers out, but Malenko backs away before he could make something of the counter. Malenko with a headlock, but a shoulder tackle doesn't move him. Criss-cross ends with Sting tossing Malenko across the ring with a press slam. Whip to the ropes, Malenko with a basement dropkick, followed by a flurry of kicks to the left knee. He grapevines the leg as we take a break. We return with Malenko applying a leg scissors. Sting teases a comeback, but Malenko goes to the knee with another low dropkick. Malenko keeps working the knee as Bischoff keeps spouting off about Dean's father, "the Great Malenko." Malenko with a German Suplex for two. Sting hangs back to avoid a dropkick, sends Malenko to the corner, but misses a Stinger Splash. Malenko from the top with a missile dropkick. He crosses the legs for the Texas Cloverleaf, but Sting cradles him for the three count at 5:08. **1/4 Another match too short to really go beyond where it was heating up, but Malenko looked good and Sting gave him most of the offense before pinning him on a cradle. I hate all these cradle/roll up finishes, but this was a fine time to use it.- Post-Match, "Mean" Gene Okerlund interviews Sting for a response to Hulk Hogan's challenge from earlier in the broadcast. Next week... it's on. HULK HOGAN vs. STING.
Final Thoughts: No eye-popping performances, but this week was definitely wrestling heavy and showcased a solid core of midcard talent. Sting may have gone over, but let Malenko look impressive, Eddie Guerrero continues to shine in what feels like his weekly Nitro appearance, and I'm disappointed we didn't get more time for Benoit vs. Sasuki, which could've had potential with even 3-minutes added to it. Other than Savage/Meng, nothing negative. Sure, Hogan's bat-shit crazy promo was just that, but it falls under the "so bad, you've got to see it" category. Next week, Sting vs. Hogan. I'm there.
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