wrestling / TV Reports
Mid-South Wrestling (12.14.1985) Review
Image Credit: WWE
Loading...-The end of two roads; with a couple of one-off oddities, this is the last episode of Mid-South on WWECock, and this is also the final taping in the Irish McNeil Boys Club.
-Originally aired December 14, 1985.
-Your hosts are Jim Ross, Joel Watts, & Dick Slater.
TV TITLE TOURNAMENT, ROUND 1: JAKE “The Snake” ROBERTS vs. EDDIE GILBERT (with Oliver Humperdink)
-Jake works the arm while Dick Slater demands that Mid-South look into the DDT. If they can outlaw the piledriver, they certainly should consider outlawing the DDT.
-Jake stays on the arm, making the most of the waived time limit. Eddie goes to the eyes to take control. Humperdink chokes Jake from the floor, but Jake fights back with a knee, and the DDT finishes Eddie nice and clean.
TV TITLE TOURNAMENT, ROUND 1: “Mad Dog” BUZZ SAWYER vs. NICK PATRICK
-Sawyer DEMANDS that this be changed to a Dog Collar match and tries to make Patrick put on the chain. While that’s going on, Butch Reed shows up at the commentary table and argues with Slater. Sawyer is distracted by the sight and Patrick tries to take advantage by taking a few free shots, but Sawyer just powerslams him and pins him instantly to get it over with, and then attacks Reed, tying him into the ropes and winding up to whip him with the chain. Hacksaw Jim Duggan, true to his pledge of loyalty to Reed, hits the ring and lets Sawyer have it, and he takes the brawl out to the concession stand…
-…but Reed is still tied in the ropes. So Slater hurries to the ring to take some cheap shots, but Reed manages to free himself and rips Slater’s clothes off, then whips out his soup
bone on his pantsless nemesis. Dark Journey manages to get Slater out of the ring, and Reed goes after HER, presumably to give her extended coffee break privileges to go along with last week’s menacing threat of 30 days paid vacation.
-And because this promotion is awesome with continuity, Jim Ross mentions that Dick Slater will be fined $2500 for leaving the commentary table, a rule that was established in an angle more than three years ago.
BRUISE BROTHERS vs. LARRY CLARK & BROADWAY JOE MALCOLM
-Broadway Joe takes a beating while Joel Watts announces that Eddie Gilbert is offering a reward for information leading to the recovery of his stolen portrait. I feel like this angle is heading towards an “Oh, let’s just say…Moe” ending where they kind of have to own up to not knowing where to go with it. Big splash by Boyd gets a three-count. Squash matches are rather brisk this week.
AL PEREZ vs. RICKY STARR
-Perez works the leg, and works the leg…and works the leg. Starr goes to the eyes, setting the iron man record for Mid-South jobbers on this week’s episode. Perez throws a forearm, and the German suplex gets three. I get the impression that they were thinking rather long-term with Wendell Cooley & Al Perez, and with Cooley gone, this promotion is just looking at Perez and going, “I dunno.”
TV TITLE TOURNAMENT, ROUND 1: “Dr. Death” STEVE WILLIAMS vs. ROB RICKSTEINER
-And JR is in his glory rattling off everything he knows about the respective alma maters. Ricksteiner does a fireman’s carry slam right away, and Williams looks completely bewildered by the new kid’s strength. Williams comes back with an armdrag and celebrates with posing, but he turns his back so Ricksteiner dropkicks him to the floor. Crowd has NO idea how to react to this match because they’ve been so weird with Williams’ heel/face alignment for the past few weeks and Ricksteiner is completely showing him up.
-Slam by Williams, but an elbow misses and Williams looks tired at this point. Ricksteiner frantically throws punches and a clothesline, sensing he actually has a shot this week. Backdrop by Ricksteiner, and Williams goes really airborne for it, so Williams definitely “understands the assignment” in this match. Belly-to-belly goes kinda wrong. Doc resists an attempted roll-up and tackles Ricksteiner. Stampede gets the win for Williams, and again, Rob Ricksteiner looks like a star in a losing effort. I’m starting to wonder if this Rob Ricksteiner fellow is any relation to Rick Steiner, the tag team wrestler who was in the WWF for a couple of years in the 1990s.
TV TITLE TOURNAMENT, ROUND 1: HACKSAW JIM DUGGAN (with Debra) vs. HUMUNGOUS (with Oliver Humperdink)
-Duggan knocks Humungous right on his ass with a clothesline and the building is shocked by that sight. Humperdink interferes from the floor, drawing the ire of Duggan and the elderly woman in the front row. Humungous attacks from behind and drops a leg, but he can’t put Duggan away. Humungous tries a bearhug, but Duggan won’t quit. Humungous tries the leg drop ONE more time and Duggan rolls out of the way. Slam by Duggan gets a two, with Humungous kicking out so hard that Duggan lands on the referee. Humperdink throws a chair into the ring to take advantage of the situation, but Duggan gets his hands on it, knocks Humungous loopy, and follows with a spear to get the three-count on Humungous. Good little TV battle.
-And we close the show with a special goodbye to director Oral Link and the technical crew of KTBS-TV in Shreveport for the great job that they’ve done for Mid-South over the years. Beginning next week, Mid-South comes to you every week from the convention center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
-And the reviews for this show will continue. They just won’t be coming from WWE Network anymore.
