WCW Saturday Night - Saturday, 11/29/97
WCW Saturday Night - Saturday, 11/29/97
- We are not even remotely live from Toledo, Ohio!
- Okay, here's the running joke of the week. You know how Scott Hall gets everyone to say things like 'n! W! o!' '4 life!' and 'too sweeeet' on cue? Well, you the faithful DDT Digest readers get to be my crowd, okay? I think you guys can keep up - I believe in you.
- Dean Malenko makes Lenny Lane submit with the (points to crowd).
- The show actually opens with Lenny Lane's entrance. I like the new style of opening up immediately with a match intro, instead of the five minute prosthetic limb factory sequence.
- I was wondering why the crowd was booing and turning the thumbs down for Lane, until I hear the first notes of his opponent's theme music! Malenko!
- As the action starts, Dean flips over with a forward somersault as part of an escape for an arm lock. It amazes me what a gymnast some of these men are, Malenko especially.
- Lane's hip toss is blocked, Dean reverses it, but his is blocked too, and Lane delivers a great clothesline!
- I still say the greatest wrestlers are those who not only provide the best hits, but those who take the best falls. I just can't say enough good things about Dean Malenko, but that is definitely on the list. Though Lane had an advantage for a slight majority of the match, Dean really made him look good.
- The single-leg dropkick by Malenko. Odd looking move. He tends to just run into the person, so it could be a high knee that just gets turned over.
- Lane provides a perfect bulldog. He could teach a class.
- Dean slaps on the Texas Cloverleaf after a missed dropkick, and Lane quickly taps out.
- They pan the crowd coming back from commercial, and it's quite an arena. It looks easily as big as the crowd in the MGM Grand for Halloween Havoc.
- Dusty and Tony (don't look at Dusty) tell us how great the upcoming matches are, (don't look at Dusty) and prepare us for Starrcade (don't do it!), making sure we're totally convinced (I mean it!) to order it.
- I looked. Night of the Living Chins. Scarier than Scream 2.
- Chris Adams and Norman Smiley got the win over Steve Regal and Dave Taylor following Adams's superkick.
- This really is a good crowd, they are very much into the action. Either that, or they have a great sound effects man. Whichever it is, it makes the show that much more enjoyable to watch.
- WCW Saturday Night has really improved. I especially like the recurring feuds that have nothing to do with Nitro. It gives you a reason to keep watching WCWSN.
- The match starts with a brawl, both men of both teams fighting. A train wreck! Regal is smacked into Taylor, and they both go out of the ring. Regal is on the verge of tears and falls into Taylor's arms for comfort. Awww.
- An excellent sequence of turns, escapes, and counters by Regal and Smiley. Watching Regal shake his head every time he gets out of a hold or lock is a nice touch.
- Now they are calling the European Uppercuts again. Didn't I yell at them enough last week? Go ask Lennox Lewis (from Britan) if *he* would throw an uppercut like that...
- After a knockdown move, Dave Taylor decides to impress us with his fitness by doing some jumping jacks. Dave, if you really want to impress me, use a hurricarana for your next offensive move. Or chokeslam both opponents at the same time. But don't do calisthenics.
- Here's a good move - Regal uses a slingshot to send Norman Smiley right into Taylor's uppercut. Then Regal shakes like he's got the runs and can't find the bathroom.
- Smiley leapfrogs a backdrop attempt, and uses a fallaway dropkick. (Creedspeak: A standing dropkick without twisting, so you fall back to the mat, on your back.)
- Finally, my man Chris Adams gets the hot tag, and cleans house. Regal gets knocked outside, and Taylor gets the superkick and a pin. But both men beat on Adams, with Regal spazzing out again, this time looking like he just sat on a porcupine.
- Highlight footage for the Larry Z/Easy E Starrcade match. Is this going to be an "Alphabet Soup" match? (Oooh, I like the Gothic printing in the promo, though...)
- Eddie Guerrero over Louie Spicoli with a (points to crowd).
- I can almost hear Tony Schiavone screaming, "Holy smokes, it's Rad Radford! What's he doing here?!" Seriously, Spicoli's T-shirt says "The Real Innovator" (back) "of the Death Valley Driver." Louie does a Rob Van Dam, bouncing up and down and pointing his thumbs at his shoulders.
- Eddie, with his newer, cooler music, arrives, staring down the fans. Apparently, this is because the "Eddie Sucks" chant isn't loud enough yet.
- Great hip toss and arm drag takedown combination by Spicoli, and Edide rolls out of the ring, clearly frustrated.
- Ha! Rolling back in the ring, Eddie calls for a timeout to tell the referee: "I want you to know that when he does the arm drag (shows the ref how) he pulled the hair" Referee: "Nooo!" An argument ensues between all three men in the ring, and Eddie seizes the moment to dropkick Spicoli's knee.
- After getting knocked around a while, Spicoli fights back, and launches a fantastic spinebuster! (Arn would be proud.) But his top rope maneuver never gets going, becoming a superplex by Eddie instead.
- Here comes the froggie, and Louie takes the fall.
- Tony Schiavone declares that Eddie may be "virtually unbeatable." Really. Well, get him a match with Kevin Nash or the Giant. This I gotta see...
- Mean Gene name drops, starting with Bret Hart and ending with Rick Rude and Sting. Call his hotline at $1.59 per minute to find out the background and the litigation between these two...
- Better yet, call me for like $0.10 a minute and I'll tell you. Old story, hardly with hotline time.
- Fit Finley over Trevor Blanchard with the Tombstone Piledriver.
- Trevor Blanchard? Any relation? [Note from Bill: Absolutely not.]
- Fit Finley enters, still wearing that strange Road Warrior jacket of his. Will he ever find the other shoulder pad? Call Mean Gene!
- Blanchard gets absolutely spiked with a forceful body slam. Ouch.
- Tony and Dusty keep rambling on about the nWo rather than calling this match. Oh wait - we're not actually missing anything. Fit Finley just isn't that interesting these days.
- Wait, he picks up Blanchard for the Tombstone Piledriver! Here it is, it's all over! Oh, I guess not, just another slam.
- Finley follows up with a double stomp a la Kevin Sullivan, but almost slips and falls. I guess you have to leave a complex technical move like that to the veterans.
- Blanchard makes it to the top rope for a missile dropkick, but Finley sidesteps like a bullfighter, then scoops up Blanchard for a (wince) tombstone piledriver. He actually jumps with Blanchard in his arms! (winces hard)
- Highlights of the whole Mongo/Bill Goldb... er, Alex Wright/Debra situation, from World War 3 and Nitro, where Debra got fired by one and rejected by the other. After recent dealings with a rather unscrupulous blonde roommate, it's nice to see a meddlesome woman put in her place.
- Harlem Heat defeats Ernest Miller with the Big Apple, while Glacier watches.
- Glacier and Miller enter first. After some lasers and other effects, the duo comes to the ring, where the Blue Guy rips a large band-aid off his face and screams in pain! Oh, wait, that was his mask...
- Harlem Heat arrive - still my pick for the best tag team in WCW. And I still say we need a "Jacqueline 3:16 says I just embarassed you on live TV" T-shirt.
- Glacier counters a Harlem Heat spinning round kick with a nice leg sweep. Already I'm liking this pairing of the two teams. Even my roommate, the martial arts instructor, agrees.
- Having met both Miller and Glacier, they are both extremely nice. Glacier especially, who remembered us from the last time we were in Vegas. So needless to say, he's the favorite of both my roommates.
- The standing spinebuster from Booker T, the tag is made, and the "Harlem Sidekick" is executed, which isn't actually a side kick at all, but a good move nonetheless.
- Oh, a *sweet* ax kick by Stevie Ray, who goes to the top rope, but catches a Cryonic Kick coming back in.
- Hot tag, and Miller's on fire! A nice little tornado kick thrown in, much appreciated by the roommate. IF you don't know, it's a spin kick where you jump and kick with the back leg.
- Ducking under a double clothesline attempt by the Heat, Miller responds with a gorgeous leaping kick on both men while doing the splits in mid-air! Jean Claude would be proud!
- After the aforementioned roommate grabs the remote to rewind and see it again, he declares it to be a 'flying side kick and roundhouse kick.'
- But Miller gets caught, and the Big Apple knocks him down for the pin - right in front of Glacier, who just stands and watches it.
- Glacier, on the house mic after the match: "Now *you* know what it's like when your buddy is a few minutes late." A Glacier heel turn? This might not go over much bigger than the Renegade heel turn.
- In the 'locker room,' Alex Wright is interviewed, talking about how Debra has been interfering left and right in his matches. Then she shows up, begging and pleading to be taken back. Alex reminds us that Mongo "hasn't slept in a month, hasn't eaten in a month, he's broke, an emotional wreck" and doesn't want to end up like that. Alex, that's not because of Debra, that's because of the Horsemen breaking up.
- After a commercial, more highlights, showing the Raven/Scotty Riggs situation, with the World War 3 match, and Riggs sitting with Raven at Nitro.
- Rey Mysterio, Jr. defeats El Dandy with his patented springboard hurricarana.
- For some strange reason, El Dandy comes out to Juventud Guerrera's music. I guess he doesn't get his own yet.
- Dusty says pound for pound, Rey is the best. So if he grows a foot and gains 100 pounds, he could be the next World Champion? Get the rack!
- El Dandy, who supposedly is Dusty's favorite, uses a six-move flip and roll combination to escape a wristlock. Rey flips to his feet to escape a snapmare takeover. If you didn't know who was going to win this, that should tell you right now.
- As I watch Rey writhing in pain while Dandy stands behind him, I find myself wondering if they don't use rest holds to plan out the next sequence of moves: "Rey, what next?" "Um, dunno, I'll think of something - just put me in a headlock for now."
- Rey wraps his legs around Dandy, flips up, does a quick "Look Ma No Hands" and reverses into a headscissors takedown. Cool.
- Wow. Mysterio goes for a sunset flip - stops in mid-move, reverses direction, and rolls sideways into an arm drag! Fine, just go ahead and defy the laws of physics then!
- A monekyflip takes El Dandy out of the ring, and Mysterio uses a baseball slide, which becomes another rolling headscissors takedown! Wow!
- Here's Rey Mysterio's finishing move - I still think it's needs a cool name, like the Mysteriosa, or the Flying Mystery... something other than *that* move.
- Tony: "When he gets that on, he can beat anyone, cruiserweight *or* heavyweight!" Oh? So if he had landed that on Kevin Nash, he would have had a chance?
- WCW Motorsports segment. They need to make this more interesting. Have the driver seen in the behind a pit crew getting punked by guys in nWo jumpsuits. Have an nWo Monster truck out on the course, chasing the WCW car.
- WCW vs. nWo World Tour for the N64. WOW! Awesome! The movement is extremely realistic!
- More World War 3 and Nitro highlights, this time about Scott Hall, the nWo, and "Here comes Sting!" Sure, right, like I believe a 7-foot Sting.
- Hacksaw Jim Duggan wins over Kendall Windham with a ...?
- Windham arrives with a goatee and a shaved head. He gets a thumbs down from the cute ring attendants.
- Hooo! Duggan's in the house. To the camera, he says, "Come on, baby!" He can't think of anything else to say, so he says it again. And again. And again. Finally they take the camera off him, mercifully.
- Tony says there is no other entrance like Hacksaw Jim Duggan's. After what I just say, I am extremely grateful for that.
- Hacksaw points his 2x4 at Windham and fires. I can't help but think of the scene from the Untouchables, where Sean Connery criticizes a guy for 'bringing a knife to a gunfight.' Duggan isn't even that smart - he brought a piece of wood!
- Duggan... wants the crowd to quiet down? Oh, I see - he wants to start a "USA!" chant. Why? Where is Kendall from, Outer Mongolia? Red China? Antarctica?
- In Duggan's defense, I will say he can get a crowd going. He doesn't take them anywhere, but he gets them going.
- After a Duggan beating, Windham starts a comeback but misses a flying clothesline and crashes into the top turnbuckle instead.
- Hacksaw's finishing move is a running, leaping kneedrop on the chest. Until further notice, that is now the Dugganizer.
- To the camera: "nWo... stay away from me! Tough guy!" Huh? Does he think nWo is someone's initials?
- Mean Gene interviews DDP in the locker room, who says he's not cryin' about Hogan's WW3 interference, or receiving a Diamond Cutter - it just means he's got Hogan's attention. For the match against Hennig today, it will be a 'defining moment,' and I agree. If the U.S. Title changes hands on this show, it will define the moment! And people will watch, even more than before!
- Villano IV, er, V pins Super Calo after a top rope senton splash.
- The Villanos enter, pointing at each other, at themselves, at the crowd, at nothing in general. Odd.
- I find Super Calo's mask to be very strange. Built in sunglasses and cap. Must be convenient when he goes outside though.
- Villano IV spikes Calo with a great DDT!
- Calo manages to walk right up Villano and flip over into a moonsault, following it up with two tilt-a-whirl backbreakers.
- Check it - a double blown spot. Calo gets caught on the top rope, missing his move to go out of the ring onto Villano, but then Calo gets caught on the bottom rope after trying to do a kick instead!
- When Villano IV goes to get in the ring, V yanks him down and takes his place, coming in with two big clotheslines and a standing senton (splash, landing on your back instead).
- Villano (V now) misses the top rope senton splash, but when Calo attempts a springboard top rop Frankensteiner, Villano IV holds his legs. Instead V goes to the top, and this time the senton hits.
- But Hector Garza (my favorite Luchador, other than Mysterio) runs out to explain to the ref, only to get attacked by the Villanos. In the midst of it, Calo launches Garza into a double dropkick on both Villanos, who leave the ring afterward.
- The extremely cool promo for Starrcade 97, with the Gothic looking Sting as Crow shots.
- The Faces of Fear defeat Wrath and Mortis following a Tongan (points to crowd).
- Long introduction for Vandenberg's men, cut down by footage of the Faces of Fear/Harlem Heat incident on the last Nitro.
- The Faces of Fear get cheered, and caught up in the moment, Jimmy Hart attacks Vandenberg! He jumped on him and was really going at it! At least, until Wrath and Mortis threw him out of the ring.
- Tony hypes the Tongan Death Grip as the most dangerous hold in wrestling. Well, if it is, why doesn't someone learn from what Scott Hall did to the Giant, and go after Meng's hand?!
- After Mortis legdrops Wrath by mistake, Meng slaps the TDG on Wrath, and it's thankfully over. I liked this match the first time I saw it several weeks ago. This is like the third or fourth time, now.
- Mean Gene, with the same hype for his hotline. If you really believe he said anything different this time, I've got a bridge to sell you...
- Curt Hennig keeps his United States title by disqualification of Diamond Dallas Page.
- Another interesting twist. When Hennig enters, his name is shown next to an nWo logo. More fuel to the rumors that the upcoming new show will have only WCW talent, while Nitro will be strictly an nWo show.
- It's DDP! bang. (Sorry, it's just not the same without the cool fireworks for the Diamond salute.)
- Hennig starts with a top wristlock, DDP reverses it, yanking on the arm, so Curt goes to the ropes to get the break. The crowd picks up a "DDP!" chant.
- Curt moves into an arm drag, and says, "That's right, I'm the champ!" Page responds with his own arm drag and a smirk.
- Side headlock now on DDP, but a shot to the ribs helps set up the whip to the ropes. Hennig catches the attempted kick and turns around Page, but gets a big clothesline from the master of the Diamond Cutter. He points to the crowd, then goes for said Diamond Cutter, but Hennig slips out of it.
- Curt claims there was hair pulling, takes his belt and makes like he's leaving before coming back.
- Page wrenches the arm of his opponent, shoulderblocking the twisted limb. Again, the Diamond Cutter is attempted, but again Hennig slips out, ducking between the ropes, and setting DDP up for a back kick low blow. Ouch!
- Hennig kicks the taped ribs of Page twice, then knees them. After pulling DDP up for a clubbing forearm, the U.S. champ makes a very weak cover, which is easily kicked out of.
- Page fights back - literally, throwing rights and lefts, ending with a big punch! Classic.
- A jawbreaker from Hennig changes the mood, and the belt is brought into the ring, but DDP kicks first, the belt is dropped, and Curt is pancaked right on the belt!
- As DDP lifts up Hennig for the TKO (just kidding) the fireman's carry into a Diamond Cutter, one of the feet bumps Nick Patrick - who calls for the DQ!
- Unfortunately, my tape jammed up at this point, so I don't know exactly what happened after this. It came back on just in time to see the closing graphic. Aaaaugh!
- Good show. They've really improved Saturday Night - it's worth watching again, more than just a bunch of warm-up matches and Nitro highlights. If they would just stop pushing the Pay Per Views at every commercial break now.