wrestling / Video Reviews
Leighty’s Retro Review: WCW Monday Nitro 10.23.95
Image Credit: WWE
Loading...-Again, I look forward to this show every week and this is the go home show for Halloween Havoc 1995. I have decided I will review Havoc this weekend. Let’s get to it!
-Announce Team: Eric Bischoff, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, and Mongo
-Von Braun Civic Center, Huntsville, Alabama
”Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Kurasawa (w/ Colonel Parker)
-My sister’s best friend when we were all kids was a wrestling fan, and I used to torment her by trapping her in an arm-bar and screaming “Kurasawa.” True story! Savage shoves Parker on his ass before the bell and Kurasawa attacks. Savage kind of deserved that. Kurasawa fires off chops and kicks as he beats Savage to the mat. He fires kicks at the hamstrings and delivers a headbutt. Heavy chop to the back of the head and then a kick to the chest and then one to the back. Savage gets desperate and uses the trunks to pitch Kurosawa to the floor. He no sells that and comes back in with another chop to the back of the head. Backdrop Suplex gets two! Bischoff notes that Kurosawa is feared in Japan as he is the man that broke the arm of Road Warrior Hawk. Savage has his elbow bandaged coming into this one and Kurosawa goes right after it. Eric notes Savage is getting a mud hole kicked in him. JR’s ears perked up somewhere! Baseball slide to Savage on the floor! Kurosawa snaps Savages damaged arm over his shoulder as we take a break at 3:43.
-60 seconds of Peacock commercials!
-Halloween Havoc commercial!
-Back at 5:19 with Kurosawa beating the snot out of Savage. Chops to the corner as Eric mentions Savage faces Kamala this Sunday just to get a chance to face Luger later in the show. Kurasawa kicks Savage to the floor and goes for the baseball slide again, but Savage avoids this time. He misses a kick and hits the post! He still stalks after Savage and fires off more chops. Kurasawa goes for the arm-bar, but Savage sends him throat first into the top rope and hits a clothesline. Savage up top and he hits the Flying Elbow for the pin at 7:21.
Winner: “Macho Man” Randy Savage via pin at 7:21
-Savage was getting destroyed here as Kurasawa was unloading on him and looked like a monster. Savage had a run of matches like this where he would get his ass beat and then pull out a Flying Elbow as his only move to get the win. The crowd popped for the finish. *1/2
-The lights go out and The Master (King Curtis Iaukea) babbles and yells for Sullivan. He refers to Hogan as a white bengal tiger and talks about him wandering in darkness as a large block of ice is shown in the arena. It seems we will find out at Halloween Havoc.
-Mean Gene is right in front of the ice and has The Giant and Kevin Sullivan with him. It seems The Master brought back The Yeti. Sullivan notes evil dwells in Hulk Hogan’s heart, which proved prophetic. The crowd starts a load Hogan chant as he seems popular in Alabama. The Giant laughs and talks about being immortal.
-Peacock commercials!
-Gene brings out Hulk Hogan next and he is still dressed in all black and is still sporting the neck brace. Hogan fears no evil, dude and carries all the Hulk-a-maniacs on his back. Hogan makes an OJ reference in regards to his black gloves and black bandana. Yep! He rips off the neck brace and the spits some rhymes about ashes to ashes and dust to dust and in Hogan you will still trust. He then calls out his “friends,” Sting, Luger, and Savage. Again, this is testing the waters for Hollywood Hogan and no wonder he transitioned so easily when it happened for real.
Dean Malenko and Chris Benoit vs. Eddie Guerrero and Mr. JL
-This could be RADICAL! Well, 75% radical! Alex Wright is out on crutches as he was supposed to be teaming with Eddie, but a knee injury is keeping him out and JL is taking his place. Eddie starts with Benoit and they have done this a time or two before. Eddie goes to work on the arm and takes it to the mat. Eddie transitions into a side headlock and a tag is made to Dean. Eddie gets sent to the floor and Dean gets a slingshot dive. He holds Eddie as Benoit goes for a suicide dive, but Eddie moves and Malenko eats the shot. Eddie just throws JL on to Benoit with a cross-body. Back in the ring Eddie hits a tilt-a-whirl back breaker. JL in and he gets an alley-oop into a forearm to the face. Dean tags out to Benoit as we get split screen and see Shark and Norton being separated in the back. JL goes for a roll-up but Dean lands a shot from the apron to turn the tide. We head to a break at 4:17.
-60 seconds of Peacock commercials!
-Back at 5:21 with Malenko hitting JL with a running clothesline in the corner and then a belly to belly suplex gets a two count. Nasty belly to back suplex from Benoit, but Eddie makes the save. Benoit tries a powerbomb, but JL counters with an arm-drag, but gets swatted down trying a dropkick. Malenko back in and he uses the bottom rope to drop a leg for a two count. JL with a sunset flip, but Malenko is out at two and tags Benoit. He drops JL stomach first on the top rope! JL gets to the corner and heads up top, but Dean grabs the leg to block. Superplex from Benoit to pop the crowd! That gets two as Eddie has to make the save again. Malenko in and we get a fight over a backslide. JL wins and gets a two count! JL gets a back elbow to leave both men down. The crowd rallies JL and HOT TAG Eddie! He flips over Dean’s back and hits a dropkick. Benoit gets one as well! Eddie climbs the ropes and makes the tag before getting a double head scissors. All four men in the ring and it settles down to Malenko and JL as Eddie and Benoit fight on the floor. Wright grabs Dean by the foot as he runs the ropes and JL gets a victory roll for the pin at 10:13.
Winners: Eddie Guerrero and Mr. JL
-This was fun though I was expecting more. To be fair they were all relatively new to WCW and were still some time away from changing the Midgard and undercard style once Jericho and the cruiserweight hit. ***
-Brian Pillman is out and decks Eddie before splatting him with a DDT on the concrete. Cool!
Harlem Heat (w/ Sister Sherri) vs. Sting and Lex Luger
-Bischoff mentions In Your House the previous night and Mongo craps all over it by renaming it “In Your Outhouse.” He is kind of right though as it was the Bulldog/Diesel show where Vince threw his headset down after and bitched to everyone how awful it was. Sting is still wearing Red and Yellow and is growing out a mustache similar to Hogan’s. I appreciate the small details in Sting’s fight to get Hogan back from the dark side. All this stuff is fascinating knowing what was coming less than a year later. Booker starts with Sting and delivers a kick to the gut. Side headlock, but Sting shoves off and gets a dropkick. He sends Booker to the floor with a hip-toss and Heenan rightly calls for a DQ. Eric shouts that down and accuses Heenan of being blind. I agree with Heenan there! Luger in as we take a break at 1:26.
-45 seconds of Peacock commercials!
-Back with Stevie Ray holding a nerve hold on Luger. He takes to Booker, who hits a dropkick. He stomps away at a ground Lex and gets a two count. Stevie back in and Luger fires back with right hands, but a shot to the eyes cuts that comeback off. Booker chokes from the apron as Stevie suckers Sting into keeping the ref away. Eric questions what a Yeti is and Heenan notes similar to Bigfoot or the girl he saw Mongo with the other day. Ha! Booker chokes Luger and then yells at the crowd. Wonder why Booker would have an issue with fans in Alabama? We focus on Sherri now as she is kissing Polaroids of her and Parker together. My son will read this one day and question what a Polaroid is and I will feel even older than I do now. Stevie back in with a side suplex as commentary stays focused on the block of ice. Booker misses The Harlem Hangover and the hot tag is made to Sting. He takes on both members of Harlem Heat. Running clothesline to Booker! Now a Stinger Splash! One for Stevie as well! Scorpion Deathlock, but Stevie lands a super kick to break. Sting gets pitched to the floor, but ends up going to the top rope and hits a flying clothesline for the pin on Booker at 7:57.
Winners: Sting and Lex Luger via pin at 7:57
-This was kind of boring, but the crowd was into it because of the Sting/Luger star power. *
-The Giant and Sullivan are out and Giant with a choke slam to Luger and then one for Sting. Savage is out next and he baits The Giant until Hogan shows. The crowd is losing it over this as this is the hottest they have been all night. Hogan lands a series of right hands, but Giant just stares him down. Hogan gets slugged down, but Hulks-up and staggers Giant with right hands. He sends him into the buckle as The Dungeon of Doom hit the ring. Savage is in to help Hogan to clear the ring as the crowd is loving every second of this. Security keeps Hogan away as the lights start to flicker and Bischoff notes the floor is shaking. The block of explodes and a GIANT MUMMY pops out as the show goes off the air. That is the only thing I have a clear as day memory of from this show.
-Thanks for reading!
