Prime Time Wrestling 9/4/89
- We open with the usual animation and then head inside the studio where Gorilla Monsoon welcomes us to another episode of Prime Time…we are one week removed from Summerslam and he is all alone, saying Roddy Piper & Bobby Heenan are busy bickering and may return next week, but Gorilla doesn’t know…so Monsoon flies solo tonight…he runs down some of the card and tosses it to our first match
- Bushwhackers vs. Darrell Nichols & Black Knight…Schiavone and Lord Alfred are on commentary for this one…Butch starts things off as Tony talks about the benefits of sardines…I wonder if they could have pulled off a heel turn with the Bushwhackers…I know they couldn’t be as wild or vicious as the Sheepherder days, but could have been cool…Luke comes in and pounds on the Knight…Tony recaps the tag team division for us, putting over the Powers of Pain, who are eyeing a matchup with Luke & Butch…guess Fuji is setting his sights low these days, more proof that he is a useless manager…Nichols gets tossed around as the Bushwhackers have led this from the opening bell…lots of quick tags, punches and kicks…these guys actually had pretty good solo and tandem offense when they want to and they move pretty well…a somewhat unique moveset considering the era…they crash into Nichols with the Battering Ram and follow with the double gutbuster for the win…solid little squash
- Back to Gorilla, who speaks highly of Luke & Butch…talks about how great the tag division is right now as we head off to break
- When we return, Gorilla talks about Summerslam and how Ultimate Warrior regained his IC strap from Rick Rude…says the feud isn’t over and takes us to Mean Gene Okerlund, with Update…Gene reviews the IC title change, including the interference from Roddy Piper…we get a great heated promo from Rude and Heenan…they are not happy about Piper’s involvement at all…back in studio, Gorilla says Bobby is useless when things go wrong, which is often
- Rougeau Brothers vs. Dennis Bertrand & Jim Evans…Tony and Hayes still with us…talk about the continued development of the Rougeaus…Jimmy Hart at ringside…Jacques flaunts and struts a bit to start…we get an inset promo from the Rockers, who say the war rages on, despite Summerslam having come and gone…Evans & Bertrand mock the Rougeaus by strutting and embracing…Jacques answers that by dropkicking both men…Ray tags in and kicks away at Bertrand…the Rougeaus were so damn good and it is a credit to the dept of the tag division that they weren’t in the title picture at this point…Tony talks about their issues with the Rockers…this is a quick one as Jacques polishes off Bertrand with a high knee drop to the back
- Gorilla again puts over the tag division but thinks the Rougeaus are hypocrites and for those fans that can’t tell the two apart, Jacques is the fat one
- Back from break, Gorilla talks about how King Jim Duggan is a proud American that represents the WWF well…back to the ring
- King Duggan vs. Brooklyn Brawler…Tony & Hayes with us, and Tony notes that we are in Springfield, MA…Duggan is out in full royal regalia, crowd covering his crossed eyes…the royal music doesn’t quite fit Hacksaw…Duggan rallies the crowd as only he can…Brawler is just coming down off his push at this point, so he isn’t quite considered a full on jobber just yet…Tony says Duggan has the uncanny ability to take his eye of his opponent to play to the crowd but still control the match…I would say being able to look in two directions at once certainly aids in that endeavor…Brawler finds an opening and turns the momentum, working Duggan over and getting a decent amount of offense in…Brawler makes the mistake of attacking the head but thwarts the comeback and maintains control…Hayes criticizes Brawler’s attack of the skull, so he gets it too…Duggan punches and clotheslines his way back in and Brawler fans should be sad, as this was a very winnable match for their guy…Duggan actually works in a neck vice as this battle trudges along…Brawler whiffs on a dropkick, but good on him for getting up there…Hayes thinks Brawler is close to expiration, which is kind of mean…Duggan slams Brawler, hits the Three Point Stance and that is it…this was longer than you would expect and Brawler really got more offense than the King…better than you would think
- Back to the studio, where Gorilla notes Bobby has dumped the Brawler since he took all his money…he says Brawler has nothing to look forward to now
- Back from break and Gorilla talks about how Dino Bravo switching to the tutelage of Jimmy Hart was a great move that makes him even more dangerous…I agree that getting away from that useless bag of crap Frenchy Martin will help anybody’s career
- Dino Bravo vs. Louie Spicolli…Alfred agrees that Dino hooking up with Jimmy was shrewd…Dino looking a bit bloated and chubby here, still juiced to the gills, but not as fit as usual…Louie is bloated and chubby too but is lacking the piles of muscles to match Dino…Bravo has Louie finished off after a few different moves, but he picks him up each time…Dino turns out a nice gutwrench suplex, followed by his side suplex for the win…no contest here…Dino should hit the treadmill on his way out and cut down on the poutine while he is at it
- Gorilla thinks Jimmy is working on a deal with Slick so that perhaps Dino Bravo and Rick Martel can team up some day soon…that was an odd comment, wonder if it was meant to go anywhere…Sean Mooney is in the Event Center…generic promo from Bad News Brown, who actually calls out “Hollywood Hogan”…that caught me off guard…we also hear from Tito Santana, calling out Rick Martel and his loser friends like Greg Valentine, Haku and Heenan…Sean takes us to break
- Gorilla brings us back and says that many fans have been asking who the Genius is and where he came from…Gorilla says he doesn’t care but states he is impressive in the ring…and then sends out to our next match
- Genius vs. Mark Young…Tony states we have seen some great stuff from Young lately and I will take his word for it…Genius dodges all human contact on his way to the ring…Alfred compliments the in ring style of the Genius but doesn’t quite care for his constant talking…Genius shares a promo with us before the bell…Alfred liked the poem, so maybe he has now changed his mind about the Genius’s verbosity…Genius stretches in the corner, limbering up and Tony wants to now why Young doesn’t jump him…he also calls Genius “prissy” as flexes and poses…I must say, Poffo was fantastic in this role early on, really playing it up for some good heat…he bails to the floor and wanders around, stalling and showing off some more…the way he flaunts each move to the fans is awesome…Young matches him and actually controls things a but…maybe it is the power of his perma-mullet and Super Dave Osborne tights…this is just a great heel character thanks to Poffo just throwing himself into it fully…he leaps up and hooks Young’s armpits with his feet, taking him down into a roll up for the win…and he celebrates with a cartwheel as only he can…fun squash
- Gorilla puts over the Genius’s ability and wrestling skill, but not his poetry…Gorilla is very subdued this week…he turns his attention to the PTW Sing a Song Showdown Contest, which nobody won…but he uses that quick anecdote to send us to Gene Okerlund in the arena, set for an interview with Dusty Rhodes…Dusty has Big Boss Man’s nightstick and hat…he calls Slick a “melon farmer” which is interesting…Dusty says the word on the street is that he has to be investigated and interrogated in public…he is really playing up the lisp and speaking kind of drawn out…he says Boss Man has been tried and sentenced and that Dusty will handle the execution…he shows off Boss Man’s goods and promises that wherever he catches Boss Man, he will interrogate him…not much here, just some rambling and Dusty seemed a bit off…he and Gene dance a bit for us as we head back to the studio…Gorilla comments briefly and tosses us to break
- Gorilla is back and talks about the roll Brutus Beefcake is on…comments on what went down at Summerslam…puts over how Beefcake is a close friend of Hulk Hogan as we head to the Oakland Coliseum for our next match
- Brutus Beefcake vs. Chuck Campbell…Tony & Alfred back with us…Tony notes that Beefcake is basically wrestling on his home turf, as he emanates from San Francisco…inset promo from Rick Martel, who says he looks, wrestles and dances better than Beefcake…Alfred tends to agree with Rick, despite popular opinion…Beefcake has his shorter hair, having had some locks shorn by Randy Savage over the summer…Brutus working over Campbell, nothing much of note really…Alfred says he is trying to send a message to Martel…Beefer hooks the sleeper and that is all she wrote…Brutus gives Campbell a trim and then kicks his neck to wake him up…Brutus is kind of a dick…and we head back to the studio
- Gorilla transitions us to the Event Center, saying Sean Mooney never gets any sun or fresh air…promo from the Rockers, talking about the tag titles and the Rougeau Brothers…and we hear from Greg Valentine, who talks about his issues with Ronnie Garvin…Hammer claims he will roll right over Garvin and nail him down…well then
- We are back and joining Tony Schiavone at the Coliseum Video Vault…he says they have collected all of the fan feedback and requests and are releasing WWF Fan Favorites, consisting of six never seen before matches requested by the fans…he runs down a few of the choices, which actually seem interesting I suppose…we now get clips from the video, starting with Ted DiBiase cutting a very racially insensitive promo on Jimmy Snuka, offering Superfly cash to buy bananas with…Tony & Alfred are on commentary here…Snuka refuses the money and keeps DiBiase reeling right off the bell, knocking him to the floor a couple of times…this has been all Snuka as DiBiase just can’t get it together at all…Virgil trips up Superfly but DiBiase still can’t take advantage…he finally takes over and they brawl on the floor a bit…these guys are working hard but this all feels so paint-by-numbers for the both of them…and we don’t get to see the culmination as we cut back to Tony…what a tease…buy the tape
- Back in studio, Gorilla is on the phone with Piper, who is meeting with lawyers in LA…Gorilla says Piper assured him that he will be back next week
- Powers of Pain vs. Tom Stone & Dale Wolfe…a true jobber dream team here…Fuji leads the POP out…Tony again pushes this dream Bushwhackers/POP match…he says while POP is bigger, the two teams have similar styles…Alfred gushes over Warlord as he beats on Wolfe…Stone is in now, so I am sure things will turn…they don’t…Warlord hoists up Stone and Barbarian finishes him with a top rope clothesline…quick and easy…the slow motion replay has some pixilation as Wolfe flashed some ass cleavage while getting crushed with a backbreaker
- Gorilla is back, speaks briefly on POP and then sends us right back to the ring
- Boris Zhukov vs. Paul Roma…this is a hell of a main event…Tony says Boris is very pleasant looking…Boris only gets about ten words into the anthem before he is interrupted by Roma’s music…wonder if they were planning a Roma singles push at all here…his mullet is filling in nicely and he has ditched the Young Stallions tights, decked out all in black…Boris is just a big, thick dude…he overpowers Roma, but things turn quickly…Alfred puts over Roma’s dropkick as the best in the WWF…Roma is moving really well and looks sharp here...I enjoyed his leapfrog, something I never thought I would type…the worm turns as Boris starts slugging away at Roma, clubbing his chest and back…Roma makes a fiery comeback, including an impressive suplex…the fans are pretty into this one and Tony is all fired up too…Roma comes off the top with a body press, but Boris rolls through for two…Roma recovers and snaps off a powerslam for the win…wow, solid match and hell, if this Roma always showed up, maybe he deserved a good singles push…he could have been a fixture in the IC title picture perhaps…I was impressed as I wasn’t expecting much when the bell rang
- Back to Mooney…promo from Ronnie Garvin, ranting about Valentine…and we hear from the Widow Maker, who gives a generic promo about his arrival
- We are back from break and with Gorilla…he talks about how Ted DiBiase injured Jake Roberts and put him on the shelf with a neck injury…but Jake is with us on tonight’s show…quick promo talking about his surprising return after his career was thought to be over…good stuff as usual with Jake
- Rick Martel vs. Tim Horner…Martel is escorted by Slick and we get to hear Jive Soul Bro in all of its glory…as much as I love Slick and his theme music, this was definitely an odd pairing but I guess they assumed Martel needed a manager to get him over as a heel post Strike Force…Horner is hanging around, pining for NWA glory of days gone by…Alfred notes that Martel hasn’t lost a match since hooking up with Slick, so maybe it is a good pairing…even matchup here, skill and size wise…Horner goes hold for hold with Martel early as we get an inset promo with Martel & Slick, making fun a Brutus Beefcake poster…in a bit of foreshadowing, Tony mentions Martel’s arrogance…fans chant for Tito as Martel takes over, using a gutwrench suplex and attacking the lower back…Martel lands a knee drop off the top rope and gets the win…maybe he was trying to find a new finisher or perhaps that was a one time treat…Martel dances with Slick to Jive Soul Bro and it is easily the highlight of this whole episode of PTW…Gorilla takes us to break quickly
- We are back and it is feature match time…Gorilla thinks Dusty will be watching this match closely…and to the ring we go
- Big Boss Man vs. Hercules…yes, we get to hear Jive Soul Bro once again, which I will never complain about…Tony & Alfred go wire to wire on this episode, calling every match…Hercules is out next and it is on…Tony talks about Dusty’s issues with Boss Man…Herc puts the chain down and Slick takes the nightstick so we are all even…Alfred says Dusty has great courage and determination to hunt down Boss Man like he has been doing…stalemate early as neither man can gain an advantage…Herc makes a late run at winning the Most Juiced & Bloated Wrestler award but not sure he can catch Bravo…Herc charges but Boss Man spikes him with a nice spinebuster…Boss Man misses a splash and Tony wonders if Boss Man is worried about Dusty lurking in the background…Herc drops Boss Man with a clothesline and starts to go for the backbreaker but decides to go jaw with Slick for some reason…Slick must have missed a cue there, because he did nothing but Herc acted like he got involved…Boss Man clocks Herc in the neck with the nightstick and gets the win…Alfred covers and says Slick said something really nasty about Herc’s relatives and that is why he went after him…Boss Man cuffs Herc, but Herc hammers back at him before he can do any further damage…Herc wipes out Slick too…he grabs his chain and swings it as Boss Man & Slick bail and head out…weird match
- Gorilla again pushes the Boss Man/Dusty feud as we take our final break…when we return, Gorilla wraps things up for this special Labor Day edition of PTW and we are out
- This was basically a filler episode, clearly filmed prior to Summerslam with generic canned matches, barely any angles and not much studio entertainment with Gorilla mailing it in working solo…also factor in that this was on Labor Day and you can see why it was bland as bland can be…still, it was fun to watch as most episodes of PTW are but I am looking forward to next week’s show to get back in the usual groove
Review Date: March 2013
Comments
Post a Comment