wrestling / Video Reviews
Raw History: Episode 239 and Reliving Nitro: Episode 119
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Raw History
Episode #239
December 22nd, 1997 | Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, Massachusetts | Attendance: N/A
WWF Champion: Shawn Michaels (3) since 11/9/97
WWF Intercontinental Champion: Rocky Maivia (2) since 12/8/97
WWF European Champion: Shawn Michaels (1) since 9/20/97
WWF Tag Team Champions: Billy Gunn (4) and Road Dogg (1) since 11/24/97
WWF Light Heavyweight Champion: TAKA Michinoku (1) since 12/7/97
LAST WEEK ~ The LOD were dismantled by DX and the New Age Outlaws.
Jim Ross, Michael Cole, and Kevin Kelly hosted hour one. Fake snowflakes fell from the ceiling on this Christmas themed episode.
D-Generation made their way to ring to open the show wearing bathrobes. They started by bragging about what they did to LOD last week. Interestingly, Hunter chastised the Outlaws for taking credit, saying it was only DX’s moment. He brought up Owen Hart and claimed he won the “rock, paper, scissors” game to get to be the one to take him out. Shawn took over to focus on Undertaker. He said he has never rested in peace and can stay up all night. To end, they offered a Christmas present and stripped off the robs to reveal thongs that were mostly covered by a special DX censorship logo. That brought out Commissioner Slaughter to note that Shawn hasn’t defended the European Title in over sixty days. He booked Shawn to defend it tonight or get stripped. Shawn wasn’t afraid to defend it and Sarge picked HHH as his opponent. Obviously, DX was not happy. There was even some friction when HHH insinuated that he would win the title.
Henry Godwin w/ Phineas vs. Thrasher w/ Mosh
This feels odd. Neither team has been focused much lately. At least the Headbangers were in the Christmas spirit, wearing Santa hats. These two did a lot of nothing until Phineas ran in for a DQ at 1:13.[NR]
The Godwins brought out straps and whipped the Headbangers, because all of a sudden, they’re considered the kings of the Country Whipping Match. Okay.
VIDEO PACKAGE ~ We see clips of the beating Dude Love has taken at the hands of the Tag Team Champions over the past few weeks.
Somewhere in the building, Mankind cut a promo on how he was here in Dude Love’s defense.
LAST WEEK ~ After Raw went off the air, Santa Claus was in the ring. He was awaiting Sable, but she never came out. Instead, Santa brought a kid in and was rude to him. That triggered the arrival of Steve Austin. He had some great banter with Santa, running him down for not being real. Santa said Austin wanted girly presents when he was a kid, which led to a Stunner.
Backstage, DX argued behind their locker room door. Shawn stormed out and shoved the camera.
Non-Title Match: WWF Intercontinental Champion Rocky Maivia w/ The Nation of Domination vs. The Undertaker
Two greats who just never had any chemistry together. It’s a shame. Undertaker held serve in the early stages, putting his relatively inexperienced opponent on his heels. Paul Bearer strolled out for a distraction, which allowed Kama to low blow Taker heading into commercials. Returning, NOD jumped him some more. That allowed Rocky to take control and wear down Undertaker. Undertaker eventually rallied and hit the Chokeslam. After the Tombstone, he covered, but the lights went out. Kane came out and the match was ruled over at 8:35. It was surprisingly solid for what we got, especially when you consider the quality of their future matches. [**]
Paul Bearer ran down Undertaker for not fighting, and even referenced his dead parents. Kane attacked, but other than a short attempt to possibly do something, Undertaker refused to fight back. Bearer promised that 1998 would be the year of Kane.
WAR ZONE! Jim Cornette replaced Kelly and Cole.
We’re scheduled for the European Title match right now. However, during HHH’s entrance, Owen Hart came out and jumped him. Security broke things up, but the match was clearly not happening now.
Backstage, the New Age Outlaws searched for Mankind in the bowels of the arena. They thought they found him and beat him up, but when the lights came up, they saw it was just a random guy.
Marc Mero w/ Sable vs. Scott Taylor
Mero brought out Sable in a special outfit. The horny fans were disappointed that it was just her dressed in a reindeer outfit. Mero won in quick fashion with the TKO in 2:26. [NR]
Mero attacked Taylor after the match, which brought out Tom Brandi. Tom beat him up and Sable showed off a more revealing Mrs. Claus outfit under her reindeer suit.
Backstage, HHH spoke with Chyna about what he has to prove by beating Shawn tonight.
8-Ball vs. Kurrgan w/ The Jackyl
Jackyl cut a promo while Kurrgan dominated his bald opponent. Kurrgan won with the Side Slam in 2:41. I know there isn’t a lot of depth to these match reviews so far, but almost nothing has happened in the squashes. [NR]
The New Age Outlaws continued to search for Mankind backstage.
D-Lo Brown w/ The Nation of Domination vs. Ken Shamrock
It’s easy to forget that Shamrock had a WWF Title shot at the last PPV. Brown was in surprising control here, though Shamrock went after the leg. He hit the belly to belly and won with the Ankle Lock at 2:27. [NR]
The Nation surrounded the ring, when Rocky came out. He got on the mic to say that the Nation would hop in the ring and jump him at the snap of his fingers. Rocky eventually got the point, saying he didn’t like Ken being called the “World’s Most Dangerous Man.” So, he challenged Ken to a match at the Royal Rumble and even put the IC Title on the line. He ordered the NOD to return with him, leaving Faarooq confused about this rookie bossing him around.
The New Age Outlaws finally found Mankind. However, he turned the tables on them and beat them up. All while singing. The numbers were too much, though, and they locked him in a freezer.
Goldust and Luna came out so Goldust could “express himself.” He was dressed as what seemed to be a gay Christmas tree and read “Twas the Night Before Christmas.” Santa Claus joined the party and handed stuff out to kids. Luna yelled at him and Santa attacked Goldust, only to reveal himself as Vader. He sent Goldust packing. I’m all for Santa Vader.
WWF European Championship: Shawn Michaels [c] vs. Hunter Hearst Helmsley
Chyna was out, but not really in one specific corner. They sized each other up for a bit. Shawn laid down and HHH ran the ropes a bunch. He then laid on Shawn and got the three count in 1:48. [NR]
Shawn threw a fake fit, while HHH had a big celebration. Cornette – “Michaels cries every time he comes to this town.” Commissioner Slaughter hit the scene. Shawn said this was the most emotionally draining match of his career. HHH hit us with, “YO SARGE! I DID IT!” They laughed at Sarge, but he smiled and said (under his breath) that HHH would defend the title against Owen Hart next week.
Reliving Nitro
Episode #119
December 22nd, 1997 | Macon Coliseum in Macon, Georgia | Attendance: 7,615
WCW World Heavyweight Champion: Hulk Hogan (3) 8/9/97
WCW United States Champion: Curt Hennig (1) since 9/15/97
WCW World Tag Team Champions: The Steiner Brothers (6) since 10/13/97
WCW Television Champion: Disco Inferno (2) since 12/8/97
WCW Cruiserweight Champion: Eddie Guerrero (2) since 11/10/97
LAST WEEK ~ WCW banded together against the nWo and DDP called out Curt Hennig.
HOUR NUMBER ONE! Your hosts are Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, and Larry Zbyszko. It’s the go home show for Starrcade and it’s three hours long.
NITRO GIRLS! I’m using all the caps tonight. They were dressed as Santa’s helpers.
SPECIAL INTERVIEW ~ See what I mean about the caps? This was an nWo vignette style interview with Eric Bischoff. He spoke about his karate skills and how he had the entire nWo behind him, including the referee. He promised to kick Larry in the face and even went on to say that Larry is only a legend in his own mind. Eric said there would be a surprise treat for everyone tonight. This was great. He came off so well in this segment and was a top notch cocky douche. Great stuff.
WCW Cruiserweight Champion Eddie Guerrero vs. Fit Finlay
This was obviously non-title as Finlay is too big for a shot. Tony noted that this arena was where Scott Hall first appeared on WCW TV. Loud “Eddie sucks” chants. He was so over as a heel. He used his speed here, but Finlay avoided it and took to pounding away on him. Eddie fought back with chops. Finlay was still too strong and threw him around a bit. Tired of the abuse, Eddie eventually poked Finlay in the eyes and left the ring, losing via countout in 5:08. Like the Dean/Fit match last week, this felt like a bad clash of styles. It never came together. [*½]
VIDEO PACKAGE ~ The Giant spoke in a strange whisper as he explained what he would do to Kevin Nash at Starrcade.
Meng w/ Jimmy Hart vs. Steve McMichael
Two brutes. As expected, they spent the opening exchanges trading blows. Meng caught him with a powerslam for the first real bit of offense. He added a piledriver and flying splash, but picked up Mongo instead of trying for the win. Odd strategy, especially with it seemingly being the direction Jimmy Hart gave him. A chair came into play and Mongo broke it over Meng’s head, which he no sold. Since that one was wooden, Mongo got a steel one and used it. He hit the Tombstone and won in 4:46. Decent little brawl, but the pin pickup was strange. [*]
NITRO GIRLS!
Mean Gene brought out Diamond Dallas Page, who has been granted a shot at Curt Hennig and the US Title at Starrcade. Ric Flair is out with an injury. He spoke about loving Christmas and saying there’s a gift waiting for him at Starrcade. That’s the US Title. He had a present for Hennig, too, and it’s to fell the BANG. Simple, short, and to the point.
STARRCADE ~ A short video aired to hype Nash/Giant, with Marc Mero’s theme playing over it.
Hector Garza, Juventud Guerrera, and Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. La Parka, Psychosis, and Silver King
Last week’s great tag match gets Garza and King added to it. They opened things with some quick exchanges, showing knowledge of one another. While the six guys did some fast work, commentary chose to focus on Larry and Eric. Rey came in to the biggest pop and hit everything moving. I got a kick out of La Parka catching him and strutting. Everyone got in some dives, with Garza getting the last spot on his Tornillo. He always had to get that move in. Rey got King on the top and snapped off a sweet reverse rana. He finished him with the springboard rana in 5:05. The luchadores did it again. Fast action that was unlike anything else on the show. [***¼]
Chris Benoit vs. Hammer
No Raven again, so Benoit got another Flock member. Though he’s at the size disadvantage, Benoit was the aggressor, stomping away on Hammer in the corner. Benoit remained in control until the fight went outside. The Flock tried getting involved and Benoit started throwing them around. However, Saturn came off the top and leveled him, resulting in a DQ at 3:40. More of an angle than a match, with the focus on the Flock. [NR]
Saturn put Benoit in the Rings of Saturn, weakening him for his match with Raven at Starrcade.
HOUR NUMBER TWO!
Instead of changing one or two commentators, everything changed. The nWo came out and took over Nitro, changing the stage and logos around the arena from WCW to nWo. The camera workers and production truck people were all given shirts and asked if they were nWo, which they all gave into easily. Nobody from WCW came out to try and stop this. It’s a cool idea, but with nobody trying to oppose it and having to watch all the changes actually get made, this felt like a big waste of time.
After all the changes were made, Eric Bischoff came out on his motorcycle. He just introduced the coolest guys he knows, the nWo. They all came out through the side curtain under their Nitro banner. Bischoff dedicated this episode of nWo Nitro to Hulk Hogan and presented him with his own Harley Davidson. They also brought out a limousine filled with champagne. This was rather pointless.
Backstage, JJ Dillon told Rick Steiner and Ted Dibiase that they don’t have to go out and compete under these conditions. Rick didn’t care.
Rick Steiner w/ Ted Dibiase vs. Scott Norton
Bischoff, Rude, and Nash handled commentary. The match itself was a straight power battle, but nothing of real note seemed to happen. As Rick set up for the Steiner Bulldog, Konnan showed up and knocked him off the top for a DQ in 3:14. [NR]
The nWo B-Team guys jumped Rick, but Scott Steiner and Ray Traylor arrived and cleaned house.
Non-Title Match: WCW United States Champion Curt Hennig vs. WCW Television Champion Disco Inferno
Though both men are champions, Bischoff instantly wrote off Disco as “the guy who lost to the girl.” Hilariously, while Hennig beat on Disco, the nWo voiceover guy would randomly be like, “NEWNEWORLDORDER.” Commentary spent the match running down Zbyszko. After what seemed like an eternity, Hennig ended this EXTENDED squash with the Hennigplex in 6:01. [NR]
HOUR NUMBER THREE! Bobby Heenan came out to do commentary. He sucked up to the nWo guys to get his spot back.
Harlem Heat vs. Lodi and Scotty Riggs
Oh, boy. This followed the same formula as the last match. The Flock guys got good heat. Bischoff gave up on this match and brought back Mike Tenay to do commentary. It was another super extended squash. Harlem Heat won after the Big Apple Blast in 7:07. What happened to this show? [NR]
Buff Bagwell vs. Chris Jericho
It’s our first non-squash. Jericho started hot with an apron dropkick and senton. He had control, but after a commercial, Buff took over and wore him down. They nearly flubbed a hot shot spot as Jericho began the comeback. Jericho crashed and burned on a flip, leading to the Blockbuster for the finish in 10:50. Boring match, but at least it wasn’t a squash. [*¼]
The entire nWo made their way back out to the ring. It was just another Hogan lovefest, where they praised him and showered him with gifts.
Lex Luger vs. Randy Savage w/ Elizabeth
We got hot Luger to start. You know what that meant. SCREAMING CLOTHESLINES! Savage threw him into the steel steps to take over and they brawled outside. Back in, Luger was not about to let him remain in the driver’s seat, so he went on another hot run. Unfortunately, it led to him clocking the referee by mistake. That brought out Buff to throw him into the ring post, followed by Kevin Nash to powerbomb him. Macho finished him with the flying elbow in 6:04. Compared to the rest of this second half, this was a MOTY candidate. Overall though, not very good. [*½]
Guess what? To close the show, we got the nWo coming back out to the ring. As Hogan and Bischoff ran down Sting and hyped Starrcade, another giant gift came for the champ. Hogan was flattered, but Bischoff had no idea where this present came from. Bret Hart arrived in the nWo limo with two Nitro Girls. WHOSE SIDE IS HE ON? Anyway, Hogan opened the gift to reveal what appeared to be his own head. He faked being freaked out, but seemed amused by it. Bret just stood outside the ring watching. Above the stage, Sting appeared and zip lined over Bret into the ring as the show came to a close. Pro wrestling is wild.
Raw MVP: The Rock
Raw LVP: The Jackyl
Nitro MVP: The luchadores
Nitro LVP: The nWo
Raw Rating: 3.1
Nitro Rating: 3.5
Nitro: This episode is lucky that it features the fun luchador tag, because it not, it would be among the worst episodes ever. It was en route to being a decent episode until the nWo took over. The rest of it was just bad. Overly long matches that felt hollow and had nothing going for them. There were also the terrible segments involving the nWo. An awful way to go into your biggest show of the year. 2.0
