The Dusty Shelf: NWA/WCW Great American Bash 1989

The Dusty Shelf: NWA/WCW Great American Bash 1989
By: Stuart James

Note on The Dusty Shelf: The Dusty Shelf is a look back at forgotten gems that some people underrate for whatever reason. Alternatively, these DVD reviews can be events which have a good reason to be at the back of a cupboard, never to be viewed again. This article bases its report on the match quality, booking quality and overall fun and flow of the show before finally deciding if the DVD belongs on the shelf, or should be a part of all wrestling collections and watched regularly. So let’s get started with …

Great American Bash 1989
Baltimore, Maryland

Depending on whom you ask, this is either the best wrestling event of all time, or in the top three. The general consensus in the wrestling world is that, of the major events from the biggest promotions, this is one of the best in terms of workrate. Certainly, if you went on any wrestling forum and asked what the best wrestling event of all time was, the majority would say: Wrestlemania X-Seven. Why? Well, personally, I feel that is because Wrestlemania happened at the height of one of the biggest boom periods in wrestling history and, more importantly, it happened only seven years ago, as opposed to the nineteen years between now and the Great American Bash.

I remember first watching this, and last time I saw it was probably in 2000, before a long hiatus away from wrestling, but I remember watching it and loving it greatly. It made my very rare list of “perfect” events, where everything just worked. Other such examples include Canadian Stampede and Wrestlemania XIV. It also made my list of best ever events (in terms of workrate), at that time, once again joining Canadian Stampede and the much acclaimed, Wrestlemania X-Seven.

Which is exactly why this event comes under the watchful eye of The Dusty Shelf, as I look to see how well this event has aged, and contemplate whether it really is the best of all time, or whether it is dangerously overrated. Does it hold up, or will I leave satisfied, yet disappointed? Lets get started with the event.

It should be noted that, as much as I searched online, all I could find was the Turner Video version, which is what I had on VHS anyway. So some of the matches are shortened quite a bit.

Your commentators are Jim Ross and Bob Caudle.

Opening Match:
King of the Hill Battle Royal for $50,000: Bill Irwin, Brian Pillman, Dan Spivey, Eddie Gilbert, Kevin Sullivan, Mike Rotundo, Ranger Ross, Rick Steiner, Ron Simmons, Scott Hall, Scott Steiner, Sid Vicious, Steve Williams, Terry Gordy

I have to say, I’m a bit of a mark for Battle Royals starting off events, because I’m a huge fan of them. Its quite hilarious seeing such spectacles as Scott Hall with bleach blond hair, or whacky late-eighties hairstyles. And above all else, Theodore Long, eventual referee and general manager of SmackDown! has hair! But my god he has not aged in the slightest.

This is a fine way to kick off the show. Due to the War Games contest to ensue later in the night, there is, of course, a double ring, which would play into the conclusion of several matches on this night. The rules are that there are two rings A and B. All wrestlers start in ring A, and are eliminated when thrown into ring B. Inside ring B, a second battle royal begins, where the contestants eliminated from A attempt to throw each other to the floor eliminate them. From there, the last person standing in A then stays in A, to wait for a winner for B, and then a battle commences for the money. Complicated rules but an interesting concept.

Ron Simmons gets the worst of this match, being the first man eliminated and by Ranger Ross … poor guy. This match is clearly booked to make three people look good: Sid Vicious, Dan Spivey and Steve Williams (Doctor Death, not Stone Cold). Sid Vicious really is crazily over, and he just dominates ring A, and inevitably wins it, last eliminating Brian Pillman. Inside ring B, the final combatants after several minutes of typical battle royal styled fighting, are Doctor Death and Dan Spivey – tag team partner of Sid. Doctor Death fights but the winner of ring B is Dan Spivey.

The fans then erupt, as they expect to see these two powerhouse tag partners fighting for the money. However, their hopes are dashed as the manager of The Skyscrapers, Theodore Long, arrives to explain how they plan to share the money, and thus eliminating the whole point of the match; however it was fun for what it was, and got the fans stoked for the rest of the night. Nothing inoffensive here, so it all works for me, and has still aged just as well as any other battle royal.

The booking decision has to be questioned here, as they had the heels go over in the opening contest. That’s all fine, as it gets the fans riled up for the night, but then further deflating them by denying them a potential tag-partner battling each other, which was clearly what they wanted. Thankfully for them, the crowd wasn’t deflated and got even more irate, and loud, so I suppose this is why I’m not a booker?

Winners: Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey
Match Rating: **1/2

Match Number Two:
Wild Bill Irwin vs. Brian Pillman

We skip straight into the second match, which is joined in progress as Bill Irwin tosses Pillman around for a few seconds. A good idea for them to join just at the end of Irwin’s heat section and right at the start of Pillman’s comeback. This actually lasts less than three minutes when cut short, but it’s a fine three minutes of non-stop action, with Flyin’ Brian doing everything he can to put away the much larger powerhouse Bill Irwin.

Once again, there’s nothing overly offensive here, and I’m sure it must have been a really enjoyable match as the crowd were really hot for Pillman’s offence. The ending was actually really good, as Irwin tossed Flyin’ Brian into the second ring, but Pillman proceeds to go up top turnbuckle of the second ring to deliver a sweet flying cross body onto Wild Bill, who was previously distracted by the referee.

Pillman was new to the NWA at this point, but was already a fan favourite for his wild high-flying wrestling manoeuvres and his great selling for bigger guys.

Winner: Flyin’ Brian Pillman
Match Rating: *3/4

Match Number Three:
The Skyscrapers vs. The Dynamic Dudes

If you know these two teams, you know instantly that this isn’t going to end well for the Dynamic Dudes, and even if you don’t, just switching on the tape you see instantly that the Skyscrapers are absolutely going to kill these two. Shane Douglas and Johnny Ace would take on the winners of the battle royal previously in the evening, Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey. Once again, like before, Sid is absolutely crazily over with the fans, as he is the guy the fans care about, chanting for him throughout.

The match itself is, once again, about three minutes long when cut down by Turner videos, and is a pure squash. It’s joined in progress, and after about a minute of a rest hold by Sid, he tags out and the crowd jeers, and they boo hard. The Dudes try all sorts of moves, but The Skyscrapers just don’t sell for them much, and Sid doesn’t at all. They even do the whole “partners clothesline each other” spot which happens in most big man/little man tag matches, but Sid doesn’t sell, yet Spivey does. This begs the question: does Sid know how to sell at all? And if not, then did he get over for not knowing how to sell, as opposed to optionally no-selling smaller man’s offence? The mysteries of life …

After the clothesline spot, its lights out, as Sid decides to kill both Johnny Ace and Shane Douglas, before its Spivey with a sick powerbomb (the definition of manhandling jobbers), to put the Dudes away for the inevitable pinfall. Johnny Ace may well be dead after that one.

Entertaining enough squash, but not really enough to get a good rating.

Winners: Sid Vicious & Dan Spivey
Match Rating: *

Match Number Four:
Tuxedo Match: Paul E. Dangerously vs. Jim Cornette

Looking at this match in this day and age, you’re probably thinking “I bet that sucked a massive penis”. Well, you’ve thought incorrectly, because this has got to be the most entertaining non-wrestler, manager match of all time, which has got to be surprising due to the on-paper crappy gimmick match. I picked up the tape again thinking that this will be incredibly sucky to a smart wrestling fan, but I actually really enjoyed it.

In storyline terms, it totally worked, because the fans cheered for it, and the babyface manager won, humiliating the heel manager. The match itself was good because they actually tried hard, showing their ring-savvy and Heyman pulling out all old school heel tactics. Jim Cornette helped loads by pulling out the babyface comebacks, and even HULKED UP! That got me marking out, and the finish was very clever, as Cornette was too smart to be hit by the powder twice, and reversed it, to give everybody a very satisfying ending. Once again, this match was under five minutes, which is funny because so far the longest match out of the first four has been around eight minutes.

Its very hard to rate such a match, but it was entertaining and did exactly what the fans wanted.

Winner: Jim Cornette
Match Rating: **

Match Number Five:
Texas Tornado Tag: Rick & Scott Steiner vs. The Varsity Club

This match is a Texas Tornado Tag, meaning no disqualifications, no countout, no tags. Needless to say, this should be fun stuff, as the Varsity Club of Mike Rotunda and Kevin Sullivan, take on the debuting Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner was already well known, but this was Scott Steiner’s debut, I believe). May I just say: my god does Scott Steiner look different or what? Now its to be expected that in nineteen years people do change their appearance, but Steiner looks so unbelievably different.

This is basically all action from the get-go, as Rick Steiner just brutalises Kevin Sullivan with all sorts of household objects, hurling around tables, chairs, and anything he could get his hands on. This worked on so many levels, as Scott Steiner was debuting, and it kept a lot of focus off him, so any mistakes could be covered. As luck would have it, there were no mistakes, and everything was hit nice and cleanly.

Personally, for another less-than-five-minute match, this was just a really fun brawl. Everyone looked relatively strong, and the Steiners picked up a really big win for themselves. The funniest moment of the match was easily Rick blocking a sunset flip by Kevin Sullivan and headbutting him around ten or fifteen times in the groin, and Sullivan selling it like an epileptic watching Japanese anime at two in the morning with all the lights out.

It was exactly what was needed, and our first three star match of the evening, with no resting, good workrate and just all round enjoyment. So far so good for the Great American Bash, as nothing has of yet been offensive, and everything has been solid.

Winners: Rick & Scott Steiner
Match Rating: ***1/4

Four matches left, and you’re bounded to be thinking right now in the review, if you haven’t seen the show before, what’s the big deal about? One three star match, a tuxedo match, a squash and another three minute match. Well, this show flows by so easily; you wouldn’t expect you’ve been watching it for nearly forty minutes already. Plus, the main reason it is held in such high acclaim is the second half of the even.

Match Number Six:
World TV Title: The Great Muta vs. Sting ©

And the recently deceased Gary Hart (RIP) escorts The Great Muta to the ring prior to the match. A note on Gary Hart, as many readers may not know of him as much. He’s a guy that I regard as probably the best manager to have never managed in WWF/E to my knowledge. It was a shame when I heard the saddening news of his departure earlier in the year, and I wish him all the best.

In this battle of painted warriors, Sting is massively over as a babyface, while Great Muta is over as the evil foreign heel. One thing I have to commend for the success of this event is the crowd, as they loved everything and bought absolutely everything. Kudos to them!

This match is pure awesome. Its fast, with some good power, and technical skills, so its basically all the best of both men moulded together into one great match, and our first classic of the evening. It should be said, Muta has the most clean, crisp high-flying moves I’ve ever seen. The moonsault towards the conclusion, as well as his traditional elbow drop and diving judo chops are all so perfect and sweet. It really adds to his matches.

One great thing that also adds to this match is a clear face-heel dynamic. Sting plays the heroic babyface American, who uses Hogan-esque power ups, all brilliantly timed, whereas Muta is just clever and cocky, and shows emotions in the ring that not many foreign wrestlers can grasp. Its less than nine minutes long, so its another short one, but its so back and forth, that they really didn’t need any longer, as they built a perfect story, and even managed to pull off a suitable controversial end which kept Muta undefeated, and Sting strong, so it was a great ending to a great, great match.

Winner: Draw
Match Rating: ****1/4

After the match, Muta runs away with the World Television Title, which would eventually lead to it being vacated.

Match Number Seven:
United States Title: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs Lex Luger ©

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat comes out with his very own Komodo Dragon, which looks like a beast. Lex Luger, on the other hand, despite being a huge egotistical heel, is, like Sid Vicious, insanely over as a face for this match. Jim Ross, who had been brilliant on commentary all night with Bob Caudle, has obviously tried his hardest to get Luger over as a heel but the audience just don’t want to. Naturally, as you’d expect, this is our power vs. technique match for the night, and Ricky Steamboat is perfect for that role.

This contest was supposed to be a no-disqualification match, but Luger doesn’t want that, as he wants the opportunity to get himself disqualified if things look tough for him. In my opinion, that basically gives away the ending immediately, but the crowd stayed with them again.

If you ever want to contest why Ricky Steamboat is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, there’s three matches you need to look to: The Flair match at Clash of the Champions, which is basically the closest thing to the perfect match we’ve ever seen, the match with Savage at Wrestlemania III, to show how absolutely crisp and perfectly he hits every move, and this match, to show that he could have a brilliant match with anybody. Full credit goes to Luger though, he moves nicely here, hits everything clean, and sells surprisingly well for Steamboat’s offence, although The Dragon’s chops are so lethal I don’t think he had any choice.

The psychology and storytelling is absolutely perfect throughout this match, as it displays Steamboat’s resilience and Luger’s power, but also his frustration at his inability to put this man away. The shots are stiff, in particular the chops I referred to earlier (seconded only to those of Kenta Kobashi and Ric Flair).

It kept building and building up until the finish, which was cleverly done, as Luger tried to get himself disqualified, so Steamboat says “fuck this, if I’m not winning the title, then I’m gonna make sure its on my terms” and murders Luger with a chair and chases him around ringside. Some say its out of character for Steamboat, but it just shows that even a cool babyface like him can get frustrated, and it was a simple way of keeping each man strong. This is what DQ’s in today’s wrestling lack – a good reason for it, and it should always be preceded by a good match so they don’t feel ripped off.

I’d put this match on par with the Flair/Luger classics, and easily one of my favourite big-man/little-man matches of all time (behind Vader/Flair, Michaels/Taker or Vader/Sting).

Winner and STILL United States Champion: Lex Luger via Disqualification
Match Rating: ****1/2

Match Number Eight:
War Games: Michael Hayes, Jimmy Garvin, Terry Gordy, Samu & Fatu vs. Stan Lane, Bobby Eaton, Steve Williams, Hawk & Animal

And thus, we come to our main gimmick match of the evening. The heel team of the Samoan Swat Team and The Fabulous Freebirds take on The Road Warriors, The Midnight Express and the original Steve Williams. This right here, is just a brutal brawl, booked to perfection, yet unfortunately not a lot of blood.

Once again, I loved this match, because of the heel-face divide they created with the intervals, giving the heel team the first 2-on-1 advantage, which is always a good idea, as the final entrant is a huge babyface pop. The momentum shifts throughout at the most perfect times, especially as Steve Williams (once again, not Stone Cold) enters in second, and the fans desperately want Hawk in. So its good booking to have him come in last and to get the deciding fall as he does.

There’s a lot to see in this wild brawl. Because of the nature and uniqueness of the match, it never gets boring, but the highlights include Doctor Death pressing Terry Gordy (!!!!!!) into the top of the cage above his head eight times! I’d like to see Stone Cold do that! Other highlights include Michael Hayes (the final heel into the cage) DDTing everyone, to instantly give the advantage to the heels when he arrives. Also, look out for people flying between rings (in particular the “human missiles”, as JR says, called the Road Warriors).

While not up the unprecedented standards of the Wrestle War 1991 War Games match, this is still one of the better ones, in my opinion. Perfect booking, wild brawling and great excitement all around makes this our third consecutive great match.

Winners: The Road Warriors (Hawk and Animal), The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane) and Steve Williams
Match Rating: ****

After the match, the heel team wait for all the faces to leave the cage, except for Animal, and then destroy him in front of Hawk (revenge for making Jimmy Garvin tap out). The faces are absolutely desperate to get into the cage, but the heels have it locked up pretty tight. Really sweet beatdown, until the faces finally get in, and the heels bail. This feud continues!

Just a note. The last three matches have all been **** or higher, which is absolutely crazy! Just think about that for a second. With one match to go, and three consecutive matches at four star or higher – when has that ever been heard of before? Unreal. Even better yet – we have Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk next.

Main Event:
NWA World Title: Terry Funk vs. Ric Flair ©

I marked out for Ric Flair’s music.

No, this isn’t the famous I Quit match. If it was, that’s probably the only way this show could get much better, but as it is, this stands as the precursor to the classic I Quit match. As for this match, well it’s just tremendous. Wrestling is all about storytelling, and being able to feel the emotions of the characters in the ring, and in my mind, there’s no two better storytellers than Terry Funk and Ric Flair.

While I have gripes with this match as a whole (gripes that are rectified in the rematch), such as the psychology in the match not being totally focused on Flair’s part (surprising, I know), the intensity is just through the roof. The perfect match to really compare it to is The Rock vs. Stone Cold from Wrestlemania X-Seven (quite ironic since that’s the other big pay-per-view ever), as its just an all out war over the title. The difference is, while I feel Rock and Austin is a better match as a whole, this match has more hatred between the two wrestlers.

These two guys bleed a ton throughout the whole match, and hit some pretty sick moves on one another. The chops by Ric Flair are just unreal, and everybody knows Funk can brawl. Yes, these two could probably pull off a ***** scientific wrestling match, but that doesn’t fit the story (seriously, if someone piledrove you through a table, you wouldn’t headlock them to death), so this match worked so perfectly.

Really well booked once more, since Ric Flair won with a rollup, which always leaves room for a rematch, and this would play into the story to booking the I Quit match, since Flair wouldn’t win “flukily” next time. All in all great stuff here, and a fine ending to a wonderful pay-per-view.

Winner and STILL NWA World Champion: Ric Flair
Match Rating: ****1/2

And a huge brawl between Sting, Ric Flair, Great Muta and Terry Funk ensues, and my god is Sting over! The brawl is the perfect way to end the show, and one piece of hilarious as Funk throws a chair into the ring, while Sting & Flair celebrate, and it hits Flair’s ankles, Ric goes APESHIT on him and chases him down the aisle.

Final Thoughts:

Four straight four-star or higher classics to end the show. In all honesty, do you need a higher recommendation right there, but then you also have five other matches, one of which is good, and the others are all fun stuff. Much like in my first review of Wrestlemania 22, there’s something for everybody here, just at a much higher quality, and one of the best wrestling events of all time. Its undeniably great, and all the hype around it is fully justified. Even with the shortened Turner Videos version that this review is based on, the quality still holds up, and two hours just flies straight by.

Is it the best event ever? In my mind, no, that accolade will always go to Wrestlemania X-Seven, but its easily second best, jumping ahead of Canadian Stampede, Wrestlemania X, anything produced from the rest of WCW, or TNA or Ring of Honor.

Highest possible recommendation ever.

Peace Out.

Stu

The 411: This one needs to come off the Dusty Shelf and into everybody's regular viewing collection! Its two hours of pure enjoyment, and entertainment from the start, along with a hot crowd, and was just as good (if not better) than the first time I watched it. If you’ve got it in your possession, take it out and watch it over, and add it to your regular viewing, as it is just wonderful to watch. Professional wrestling at its finest, and its these sorts of events that make you remember just why you watch it. If you don’t have it, find it somewhere, buy it, and watch it right now!

Final Score:  10.0   [ Virtually Perfect ]