The Name on the Marquee: NWA World Championship Wrestling (9.20.1986)

-Another week is MIA, so we move forward…

-Cold open: Corny throws down a challenge to Paul Ellering and gets a slap to the face.

-Originally aired September 20, 1986.

-Your hosts are Tony Schiavone & David Crockett.

-Bill Dundee and Buddy Landel are here, but their chemistry isn’t. Dundee will not allow anyone to stick him in a microwave and go PUFF.

BARON VON RASCHKE vs TOM BARRETT
-“Baron’s body looks like a candle that’s almost finished.” I’m watching this week’s episode with some friends and I’m glad.

-Armbar applied by Von Raschke, who another friend tells me “looks like the guy that Clint Eastwood had to fight in Every Which Way But Loose.” Never seen the movie, I’ll take his word for it.

-Half crab locked on. Barrett makes the ropes, but Baron barely gets him in the air for a strained slam. Claw finishes.

-Jim Cornette is here, and the Midnight Express is planning to destroy the myth of the Road Warriors. Cornette takes maybe two breaths in two minutes.

-Ric Flair gripes about Dusty Rhodes winning the NWA TV Title with a chair in the ring over Cousin Arn. Dusty’s just a pile of blue jeans, and by the way, Magnum is an EX-Champion who can’t walk the aisles in Wichita and Cincinnati.

ROCK & ROLL EXPRESS (World Tag Team Champions) vs MIKE SIMANI & GENE LIGON
-Robert Gibson starts with Ligon. Ligon slugs but misses a charge and eats a Ricky Morton dropkick. Morton armdrags him around. Simani tags in and gets slugged down. Chinlock by Gibson, and the double dropkick finishes.

-America’s Team is here on a HOT THATADAY NAHT! They’re ready for the US Tag Team belts, and Dusty promises he’s gonna cripple and maim Tully.

-Tully Blanchard Enterprises knows that NWA wrestlers are the toughest on the planet, but he can’t bring himself to shake in his shoes at Dusty Rhodes’ threats.

ARN ANDERSON vs JACK JACKSON
-Anderson slams Jackson and chokes him with his baby blue boots. Not a good color for Arn. Arn puts the boots to him. Jackson slugs back at him, but Arn ties him up and puts him in an armbar. Hammerlock slam, a move that really needs to come back, and Arn goes back to the arm one more time and just destroys it with knee after knee. Spinebuster looks to finish, but Arn is so embarrassed about losing the TV Title to a gourdbuster from Dusty that he hits the gourdbuster himself to send a message and finish the match.

-Arn Anderson repeats the promise that Dusty is through by the end of 1986.

-Corny is back with the Midnight Express. They’ve listened to people talk for three years about how you can’t hurt the Road Warriors. Not only did Cornette’s boys hurt them, they left them begging for mercy.

-We go back to last Saturday morning. Cornette runs down every tag team until Paul Ellering shows up to defend his boys’ honor and slaps the shit out of Cornette. A few minutes later, the Road Warriors are murdering some jobbers when Cornette shows up to take out Paul Ellering with the tennis racquet. Referee gets cleared from the ring, and Eaton shocks everyone by just kicking the shit out of Animal. Hawk is…actually okay. We finally hear Dennis Condrey talk for the first time ever that I can recall, and holy SHIT Dennis Condrey is a hilljack. My neck turned red just hearing that.

-The Russians are here. Barry Darsow, in just blue jeans and no shirt, looks less like a menacing superstar wrestler and more like a dude who takes an entire day to tend to his lawn. They’re ready for the US Tag Team Title tournament.

KANSAS JAYHAWKS vs TONY ZANE & RON CRENSHAW
-Sideways Chia pet Dutch Mantell goes on the attack on Zane early. Zane tags out as Tony mentions Ravishing Rick Rude on commentary for the first time, running down the teams for the US Tag Title Tournament. Dutch clamps on an intense dry-humping chinlock on Crenshaw. Clothesline off the top by Bobby Jaggers finishes.

-Dick Murdoch pledges his allegiance to Dusty Rhodes if Dusty needs it.

RON GARVIN & DICK MURDOCH vs MULKEY BROTHERS
-Garvin takes down Bill with a front facelock, but lets go without doing any more damage to him. Murdoch does some light arm work before bringing Garvin for the pretzeling, which pops the crowd big time. Murdoch finishes with the brainbuster, getting some great Davey Boy Smith-style hangtime on it before dropping.

-Wahoo McDaniel is on his way to the Omni to face the big Russian, and he warns Magnum TA that he’s ready for a challenge if he winds up with the US Title after tonight.

4.0

The final score: review Poor

The 411

Short show this week, and I think it affected the output, it was like they didn't want to commit to anything actually happening this week, so everyone was just kind of killing time.