wrestling / Video Reviews
Leighty’s Retro Review: WCW Monday Nitro 3.3.97
Image Credit: WWE
Loading...-Written: 7.6.26
-Run Time: 1:39:50
-Announce Team: Hour One: Tony Schiavone and Larry Zbyszko
-The Omni, Atlanta, GA
-We have the debut (I think) of the black hummer and the nWo pile out. Well, black with Nitro graphics. A black limo pulls up behind and out comes Dr. Harvey Schiller, President of Turner Sports. Larry: “Wait a minute, he is way above Bischoff.” You don’t say and give WCW credit as Atlanta is their home, and makes sense for the good Dr to be here.
Hugh Morris and Konan vs. The 4 Horsemen (Jeff Jarrett and Mongo) (w/ Debra)
-Tony notes these are the only 2 members of the Horsemen that can wrestler as Flair and Arn are really injured and Benoit is still selling the SuperBrawl match with Sullivan. Morrus starts with JJ and gets a side headlock. Jarrett ducks a clothesline and lands a right hand. Mongo delivers one as well from the arpon. JJ with an inverted atomic drop and then chokes on the ropes. Konan pulls Morrus away from the ropes and JJ misses. Konan gets the tag and pounds away in the corner. Rolling clothesline and then Konan spits on Mongo. Everyone seems fired up to be working in ATL. Hot crowd so far as well. Morrus up top and goes for No Laughing Matter while Konan holds JJ. That just seems dumb and sure enough, JJ moves and Morrus hits Konan. Hot tag to Mongo and he runs wild as the crowd pops like crazy. Public Enemy is out and want the briefcase from Debra. JJ out to save and as he pulls the briefcase away, he hits Mongo in the face and Mongo gets the pin at 3:13.
Winners: The Dungeon of Doom (Konan and Hugh Morrus) via pin at 3:13
-Short match here to continue the Horsemen/Dungeon issues and continue the Mongo/JJ stuff. Crowd was hot which was a plus. *1/2
-Gene is in the ring for another episode of How The Horsemen Turn. Arn is fired up and wants answers as he notes JJ is not that clumsy. JJ shoots back and says Flair is on his side, but Flair seems fed up with him as well. Flair says JJ is making him look bad. Mongo is up and starts screaming, but JJ explains it was an accident. Debra talks and gets BOOED out of the building. So Debra crawled so Vicki Guerrero could walk. Cooler heads seem to prevail and JJ is still a Horsemen..for now.
Diamond Dallas Page vs. Rick Fuller
-The crowd really likes DDP. Fuller is already in the ring, so I don’t like his chances. Actually, he could have Cody pyro and I wouldn’t like his chances. Page with a belly-to-back suplex, but gets caught with a jawbreaker. Fuller lays in the boots as we get a DDP chant. Slam from Fuller and he throws clubbing blows to the chest. Page back with the discus clothesline and hits the Diamond Cutter after sliding out of a slam attempt. That gets the win at 2:07.
Winner: Diamond Dallas Page via pin at 2:07
-Fuller was given a little to do before taking the expected Cutter. Crowd popped for DDP as he is about to take off with the Savage feud. *
Juventud Guerrera vs. Ray Mendoza Jr
-Juvie slides between the legs but gets caught and taken down to the mat. Juvie lands on his feet from a German Suplex and hits a spinning kick. Mendoza runs him down with a clothesline. Head scissors by Juvie and a dropkick sends Ray to the floor. Baseball slide by Juvie and he goes to spring, but Ray pulls him off the apron. Suplex on the floor by Mendoza. Juvie gets a boot up in the corner back in the ring, but runs into a powerslam for two. Juvie back with a swinging neckbreaker and he drops an elbow. Springboard leg drop gets two. Juvie with a reverse chinlock which is weird for CW match that’s only getting a few minutes. Mendoza misses a series of clotheslines and Juvie ends up getting a rana for two. Mendoza charges and gets dumped to the floor from a backdrop. No DQ though. Juvie dives through two sets of ropes in the corner for a suicide dive. They fight on the apron and Juvie springs off the top and gets a rana to bring Mendoza back into the ring. Sounded better on paper than the execution. They battle up top again and I am kind of terrified as they look like it’s going to be a suplex to the floor. Juvie drops Rey on his balls on the top rope. Juvie comes off with a heel kick and then hits the 450 for the pin at 5:05.
Winner: Juventud Guerrera via pin at 5:05
-Sloppy at times and seemed like they were just trying things on the fly, but it wasn’t boring. Crowd was along with them by the end. **1/2
-Kevin Sullivan, Jackie, and Jimmy Hart take over the announce table. Jackie brags that she can beat anyone, man or woman. She even calls out Hogan, Savage, and Luger. Sullivan says Benoit will never be the man he once was and won’t be the man he is today. They are 2 Legit to Quit!
-Ted Dibiase and Syxx want you yo but the nWo denim jacket for $80.00 (plus shipping).
-Hank Aaron is in the front row as Tony notes he is the greatest home run hitter of all time. That would be Barry Bonds now, and yes, I do recognize him as the HR King and think he should be in the Hall of Fame. Baseball didn’t bat an eye when they knew players were juiced to the gills as it saved baseball after the strike. They may need to turn a blind eye to that again by 2028 when we don’t have a season next year. I am pro owners in this battle as baseball needs a salary cap and floor.
Dean Malenko vs. Mike Enos
-Dean gets to face a heayvweight as he is being moved to the US Title tier for the time being. Enos attacks at the bell, but Dean fires up and chokes away in the corner. Dean is still a little ticked off about losing the CW Title to Syxx. Dean stomps Enos down in the corner as he continues to show great aggression. To the floor where Dean attacks the leg by using the railing. Cool! Enos hobbles around the ring, but catches Dean with a suplex. The knee is gone though and he can’t follow. Dean kicks him in the face and hooks a knee bar. Enos gets to the ropes, so Dean releases and stomps the knee. Props to Enos for getting SQUASHED like this. Dean heads up top and hits a cross-body, but Enos rolls through for a two count. Lariat from Enos but he misses a dive and gets planted. Dean stomps away in the corner and gets forced back by the ref. Enos pulls Dean face first into the buckle, but gets caught with a small package for the pin at 4:28.
Winner: Dean Malenko via pin at 4:28
-Nice little match where I dug the story of Dean being aggressive and it sometimes getting him in trouble, but he went back to the mat game to get the win. **
-Dean cuts a promo about the new Dean Malenko and how he is ready to kick Eddie all around the ring.
-Saturday Night at 6:05 PM: Luger, DDP, Prince Iaukea, Duggan, and many more!
-Gene brings out Eric Bischoff, who says he is the most powerful man in the industry. The nWo would love to step in the ring at Uncensored and put their belts on the line against WCW’s future. He basks in the cheers that are for Dr. Schiller, who makes his way out. Eric quickly changes his attitude, which is pretty funny. The crowd goes crazy as they hear that Dr. Harvey is Eric’s boss. Bischoff thinks he can do what he wants because he is EVP. Always a slippery slope when you give someone EVP powers. Schiller suspends Bischoff and the crowd erupts. He tells Bischoff he can’t even use the bathroom at CNN Center. Good stuff as they fans needed a moment like this and Bischoff needed his power reigned in so we weren’t constantly getting titles stripped and losses by the nWo overturned.
WCW United States Heavyweight Championship: Eddie Guerrero (c) vs. Ultimate Dragon (w/ Sonny Onoo)
-I think this is for the US Title. Eddie with a go behind and into a front facelock. Dragon with a head scissors and it’s a stalemate. The crowd starts a USA chant and Eddie decides to chant along with them. Test of strength and Dragon goes to a bridge. Eddie with a side headlock and he runs Dragon down with a shoulder block. Dragon back with a rana and lands a chop to the chest. Eddie gets tossed in the air, but snaps off a head scissors on the way down. Dragon sends him to the floor and Sonny gets in a shot that Eddie just shakes off. Dragon fires off his series of kicks and a spin kick drops Eddie. Punt to the back! Eddie flips over a backdrop, but gets caught with a spin wheel kick. Dragon with a cartwheel cross-body, but Eddie rolls through and gets the pin while tangled in the ropes at 2:48.
Winner and Still WCW United States Heavyweight Champion: Eddie Guerrero via pin at 2:48
-They gave these two less than 3 minutes? That’s criminal. *
-Gene interview Eddie in the ring and here’s Dean and they start yelling at each other as Gene tells them this isn’t the time.
-Hour Two Pyro!
-Announce Team: Hour Two: Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, and Bobby “The Brain” Heenan
-The announce team recap Bischoff being suspended and we see Dr. Schiller lay down the hammer again. “You have no more financial responsibilities. You can’t sign any contracts.” Larry: “Take his credit card.”
VK Wallstreet vs. Scotty Riggs
-Wallstreet comes out some aggression, which is needed as he should be ticked off after what happened to Bischoff. Riggs goes after the arm and then comes off the top with a double axe for two. I think they should have had Patrick as the ref to start and then Schiller come down to replace him with a WCW ref. Wallstreet hits the leaping clothesline (Write Off I think it was called) and gets a two count. Tony is being informed that Dr. Schiller is letting the Championship Committee make the nWo vs. WCW match at Uncensored to happen and is letting Piper pick a team to join the match. Oh boy! Reverse chinlock as the announcers continue to ignore the match. Riggs with a jawbreaker, but misses an elbow. Tony: “Piper is an intelligent wrestler and I am sure he will get a team.” Yeah, about that! Riggs with a missile dropkick and here’s Buff for the DQ at 4:25.
Winner: Scotty Riggs via pin at 4:25
-I get the idea as they wanted Riggs vs. nWo member so Bagwell could interfere and continue the American Males explosion. They could have let Riggs beat Wallstreet to at least look like a threat before the PPV vs Bagwell. Match was ignored by Tony and company and I really can’t blame them. 1/2*
-Riggs grabs a chair and wastes too much time which Bobby and Tony note. That lets Bagwell get away.
-Lee Marshall is On The Road with 1-800-Collect and is in Panama City. I wonder if that city will ever hold any historic significance for the wrestling world?
-Roddy Piper is out to hold court and he talks about his family that leaves in Portland and his other family: the fans. He makes a bald joke about Hogan before saying he will make a third family. There are six guys in the back and he is going to face them one at a time and he will let the fans pick his three partners. Thumbs up or thumbs down, and speaking of the Last Nitro, Vince tried the same with the WCW roster and the fans in Cleveland never got it. They just wanted to chant for Goldberg.
-Our first guy is out and Tony sums this up: “I have no idea who that guy is.” I remember watching this live and realizing it was pretty awful. This was when I was 15 and loved everything about wrestling, so for me to question what was happening meant it had to be pretty brutal. Piper taps the guy out and the fans give the thumbs down.
-Second guy I do know as he went on to become Luther Reigns. He slaps Piper in the face and starts throwing knees and right hands. Piper fights back and gets the sleeper. He is out and the fans with another thumbs down.
-Our third man is out as the announcers note this is bizarre. Before he can make it into the ring, a guy in boxing gloves comes down and decks that guy. He waits while Piper pulls out a pair of boxing gloves. They wildly swing at each other and Piper knocks the guy down, so he grabs a leg and takes Piper to the mat. Some in the crowd start a boring chant as this continues. Piper calls for a stalemate and the crowd with another thumbs down, so Piper gives him another chance. He punches Piper down in the corner and now the crowd is getting impatient with this. Piper calls time and offers a handshake. The crowd doesn’t like him, but Piper has to keep someone and just ignores what the fans want. Piper tells the kid he has a lot of gonads and thinks the fans are being too harsh. They start fighting again to make sure and the kid boos this so they just move along.
-Next out is a kickboxer with tattoos and he offers Piper a handshake. Heenan: “Barefoot and tattooed, it sounds like the winner of the Miss. Kentucky contest.” After the initial period of the crowd being into this, they have checked out fully. Tony thinks this could develop new Superstars for WCW. It’s the Power Plant come to life I guess. Boring chant as the big guy picks Piper up, but before he can drop him, Piper calls time and offers this guy a spot on his team.
-Final guy is John Tenta and at least he is a star and the crowd reacts positively to him. The idea is he has a sumo background to go with the boxer and martial arts guy. The two guys who were already on the team, attack Tenta and Piper just stands by and enjoys. Tony thinks he has his team and for a week at least he was right. Piper takes the mic and wraps this mess up. This ran over 16 minutes from Piper’s opening promo to his closing one. Piper lets us know nWo stands for No Way Out. Somewhere some flunky in WWF just got an idea for a PPV name.
Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Mr. JL
-JL goes to work on the arm as no entrances for either man. Both go for a dropkick and it’s a stalemate. Cut in promo from Prince Iaukea, who is giving Rey a TV Title Match at Uncensored. Rey springs off the ropes with a dive and gets a two count. JL sends Rey in the air and brings him down with a modified flatliner. Interesting time as WCW has Rey going for the TV Title and then Eddie and Dean battling over the US Title. JL up top but misses a head-butt. He didn’t get much air on that one. Rey slides to the floor off a whip and gets caught with a baseball slide. JL off the apron with a cannonball. JL up top, but Rey cuts him off and brings him down with a rana for two. JL with an inverted atomic drop as they seem kind of off here. Rey flips around the ring and hits the West Coast Pop for the pin at 4:06.
Winner: Rey Mysterio Jr via pin at 4:06
-Weird match as they seemed to stop and start. It just seemed like they were struggling to get going and then had to go home. *
-Gene is with Madusa who complains about being stuck on the sideline. She came to WCW after dumping a World Title in a can. Madusa calls out Luna Vachon, which is news to the announce team, and here’s Luna as she attacks Madusa to make her debut.
-The entire nWo is out and that includes Sting. Eric being full of himself with the nWo surrounding him is a nice character touch. Eric notes he is friends with Ted, so he can’t be fired. Hogan brings up a good point as he wants us to compare his team to Piper’s team. Sting is just brooding in the back and the announcers are still positive he is part of the nWo. Hogan says brah a lot instead of brother for a little something different. They wrap it up as garbage continues to hit the ring including a full cup of soda. Heenan makes sure to note that Sting never moved. I wonder why?
The Steiner Brothers vs. Lex Luger and The Giant
-First match for The Steiners since January, I believe. Both teams have the right to claim to the Tag Titles if not for Bischoff reversing the results of their matches with The Outsiders. Luger and Rick start and tempers start to flare. Lex blocks a charge in the corner and hits a running clothesline. He flexes! Rick ducks a second clothesline and hits a powerslam. Tag to Scott and he runs Lex into the corner. Scott with a belly-to-belly suplex and he talks trash to The Giant. Double under hook powerbomb. This is a very early look at Big Poppa Pump. Giant in and he catches Scott with a big boot and drops an elbow for two as Rick makes the save. Rick gets a blind tag and comes off the top with a double axe. Double suplex on The Giant gets two as now Luger makes the save. All four men in the ring and they stop fighting. The nWo (Hogan, Hall, Nash, Savage) come through the crowd and Heenan is ready to bail. Sting is with the nWo and has baseball bat in hand. They surround the ring as Tony notes this would be a great WCW team. Foreshadowing! Piper is out with him team and the crowd chants for Sting. The crowd knows! They tease the teams fighting as we are out of time as they start swinging. Sting just watches from the floor.
No Contest at somewhere around 4:00
-That started fun before the non finish. The Steiners throwing The Giant around was kind of cool and the crowd was digging it. They needed a hot ending to sell the three team match, so this worked in that sense.
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