Raw History: Episode 246 and Reliving Nitro: Episode 126

Raw History
Episode #246
February 9th, 1998 | Roberts Memorial Stadium in Evansville, Indiana | Attendance: 8,457

WWF Champion: Shawn Michaels (3) since 11/9/97
WWF Intercontinental Champion: The Rock (2) since 12/8/97
WWF European Champion: Owen Hart (1) since 1/26/98
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

To celebrate the 80th birthday of Freddie Blassie, Sunny sang “Happy Birthday” dressed as Marilyn Monroe. She was in Monroe’s “Seven Year Itch” outfit.

LAST WEEK ~ Tensions rose between Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin.

Jim Ross, Michael Cole, and Kevin Kelly on commentary.

Steve Austin kicked off the show by hitting the ring carrying a white bag. He’s pissed about having the WWF Title shoved in his face. Austin doesn’t want to wait until No Way Out as he wanted Shawn to grow some balls and come out right now. Instead, he got DX on the Titantron. Shawn bragged about punking Austin last week and said that he calls the shots. He wanted Austin to give him one good reason to come out. Austin said he had Shawn’s title. The champion didn’t believe him, but went to retrieve his title, only to find out it was a toy. Austin pulled the real WWF Title from his bag and told Shawn to come get it tonight. Fine little opening segment. Up the alley of the character of each man.

STILL TO COME ~ We’ll hear from Mike Tyson.

Barry Windham and NWA North American Champion Jeff Jarrett w/ Jim Cornette and the Rock n’ Roll Express vs. The Legion of Doom
Sunny handled guest ring announcing duties. Commentary harped on the losing streak of the Legion of Doom. Though they seemed to blame the NWA guys, LOD hasn’t done well in months. Animal did his thing to start, but ended up playing somewhat of a face in peril. Hawk got the mild tag and took his usual shoulder spot in the corner. Cornette added a tennis racket shot to further the damage behind the referee’s back. Jarrett slapped on the Figure Four, but Bradshaw ran out and chased him away. He hit the Express outside and we got a DQ finish in 5:08. Felt like filler. The LOD were on a rough run of matches and this was no different. [*¼]

Backstage, Shawn Michaels told Chyna to get the title back for him.

Henry Godwinn w/ Phineas vs. Pierre w/ Jacques
The Quebecers face the Godwinns at No Way Out. Seems like a good chunk of that feud was built on Shotgun. These two just slugged it out to open the action. Pierre worked a short chin lock as Henry went for a babyface comeback, despite not being a babyface. He randomly began working the leg, complete with wild selling by Pierre. Jacques whacked Henry with the slop bucket, but the tables got turned when Phineas did the same to Pierre, giving Henry the win in 4:39. Boring. [½*]

In the back, Chyna spoke with Los Boricuas in Spanish and seemed to get them to agree to help get to Austin.

WWF REWIND ~ DX and the Outlaws beating up Austin last week.

Aguila and WWF Light Heavyweight Champion TAKA Michinoku vs. Brian Christopher and Pantera
On Shotgun, Pantera basically turned heel and left TAKA out cold. There was a quick pace to this from the start. Lots of high flying action, including a cool spot where TAKA and Aguila double dropkicked Pantera, knocking him off the apron into a somersault onto Christopher. TAKA followed that with some sweet dives, making sure this match stands out from the rest of the card. They got to work through a commercial break, where the heels took control on Aguila. TAKA’s hot tag saw all sorts of head scissors. Christopher got some brass knuckles and supposedly used them on TAKA but didn’t seem to. Still, TAKA sold it. Pantera took the illegal object and put it in his mask, then winning via flying headbutt in 5:25. Quite enjoyable as everyone worked hard to get this to stick out. [**¼]

The music of Kane hit, signaling the arrival of he and Paul Bearer. Bearer ran down Vader for using a fire extinguisher last week, claiming he tried to take out Kane’s good eye. He’s tired of hearing, “It’s time,” and to prove what time it would be on Sunday, Kane set a clock on fire. Clever. Bearer also added that The Undertaker wouldn’t be in Houston. Fine enough to further the angle, though the fire on the clock was disappointing.

SLAM OF THE WEEK ~ The Rock won with a Rock Bottom over Salvatore Sincere on Shotgun.

WAR ZONE! Jerry Lawler replaced Cole and Kelly.

Chainz and Ken Shamrock w/ Ahmed Johnson and the DOA vs. Faarooq and WWF Intercontinental Champion The Rock w/ The NOD
Rock ran down the fans as being unworthy of getting cloned. Weird, but he had a ton of heat. Faarooq opened with Shamrock while JR brought up his football career. When Shamrock got his hands on Rock, he owned him. That was most of the narrative this match was designed to get over. Shamrock > Rock, but Rock was smarter and more cunning. JR added info about Rock’s football career. Shamrock got the hot tag and locked Faarooq in the Ankle Lock. While the stables brawled outside, Rock absolutely BLASTED Shamrock with a brutal chair shot. That got Faarooq the three count in 4:22. It did what it needed to and the chair shot is memorable. [*¾]

Shamrock snapped after the match, hitting Chainz and an official with a belly to belly suplex. It took the rest of his buddies at ringside to hold him down and stop him.

PRESS CONFERENCE ~ Clips were shown from the big WrestleMania press conference. Vince McMahon officially announced that Mike Tyson would play the role of Enforcer at ringside during the main event. Shawn noted that he lays down for nobody, while Austin said he’d fight harder in this match than any other ever. Tyson spoke about his favorite wrestlers that got him interested (Bruno Sammartino and the Valiant Brothers), while also saying Austin should try loving somebody. Austin and Michaels showed no intimidation of Tyson and his background. They nearly came to blows in the end, with Tyson keeping them apart.

Backstage, Chyna and Los Boricuas continued to search for Austin. She even went into the men’s locker room. Like Austin wouldn’t have his own personal one.

Recon w/ Sniper vs. Steve Blackman
Blackman debuted the light stick show! Yes! While the dull match went on, the Jackyl was lowered from the ceiling with a podium. He went on a sermon during the match that the crowd didn’t care about. It goes on forever. It meant nothing as Blackman won via armbar in 4:36. Too ridiculous to rate. The focus was on the Jackyl. [NR]

Jackyl got in the face of Recon, the future Bull Buchanan, for losing. He opened himself up to get hit by Recon, who thought better of it.

The New Age Outlaws stepped out onto the stage for some promo time. They mocked the dumpster spot from last week and re-enacted it with dummies. They tried so hard to be funny, yet it completely wasn’t. Just corny.

Backstage, Steve Austin outsmarted Los Boricuas and trapped them in a room. Chyna flipped over a table in anger when she got to the scene.

Goldust w/ Marc Mero, Luna, and Sable vs. Thrasher w/ Mosh
Marilyn Manson Dust again. THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. The match was a lot of nothing. They killed time until Sable, who Mero kicked out, returned to ringside. She argued with Luna and when Goldust got involved, she slapped him. It set up a Thrasher rollup win in 4:36. A whole lot of nada. [NR]

Sable and Luna brawled after the match until Mero pulled her away.

To close the show, DX came out to retrieve the WWF Title. Since Austin wanted Shawn to ask nicely, he told Austin to get his ass out here and added a “please.” Austin obliged and dragged the title to the ring. He swung it at DX and chased them away. The Outlaws ran out to surround the ring with DX. Before they could attack, we could hear a chainsaw. Chyna snuck over and got the title. Cactus Jack and Chainsaw Charlie cut through the bottom of the ring to join Austin against their No Way Out opponents. They were also joined by their final partner, Owen Hart. The fans erupted as a fight broke out between the guys. The faces sent the heels retreating to end the show.

Reliving Nitro
Episode #126
February 9th, 1998 | Haskins Centers in El Paso, Texas | Attendance: N/A

WCW World Heavyweight Champion: Vacant since 1/8/98
WCW United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (1) since 12/28/97
WCW World Tag Team Champions: The Outsiders (4) since 1/12/98
WCW Television Champion: Booker T (1) since 12/29/97
WCW Cruiserweight Champion: Chris Jericho (3) since 1/24/98

LAST WEEK ~ The show closing fight was recapped.

HOUR ONE! Tony Schiavone and Mike Tenay host. They had no clue why Larry Zbyszko wasn’t at work.

Hollywood Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff made their way to the ring to open the show. Bischoff spoke about following the rules of Hollywood Hogan, whatever that meant. The fans just kept chanting for “Sting.” Hogan addressed Randy Savage, saying he’s sick of people thinking Savage runs the nWo. There are people who think that? Hogan threatened to take Savage to the ring and give him a wrestling lesson. “OOOH YEAH.” Macho Man appeared in the stands and said he’s number one and he doesn’t care who is second. Savage promised to beat Hogan from El Paso to Juarez and then would face Sting for the World Title after SuperBrawl. Hogan tried to respond, but Savage walked away. They set up a huge match for the night, but this infighting in the nWo wasn’t that interesting.

NITRO GIRLS!

Glacier vs. Steve McMichael
Before the match, there were clips of Mongo’s feud with Davey Boy Smith. The crowd was pretty hot for Mongo. He knocked Glacier outside and did a kung-fu pose. Louie Spicolli interrupted commentary with a Larry Zbyszko shirt to say that he was looking for him. He had his bags but couldn’t find him. Glacier hit a hot shot but jumped into a back elbow. Mongo Spike ended it in 4:08. It was inoffensive.[*]

Mortis came out after the match and jumped Mongo. He wasted time celebrating, allowing Mongo to turn it around and hit him with the Mongo Spike. Mongo ended by saying he would take out the trash that is the Bulldog.

Konnan w/ Vincent vs. Norman Smiley
Norman is far and away the better wrestler. It’s his Nitro debut by the way. He forced Konnan to regroup outside for a bit. Once inside, he twisted up Smiley in a pretzel of sorts. Norman had the highlight with a Northern lights suplex that commentary, including Spicolli who stayed out there, incorrected called a fisherman suplex. Konnan won after the 187 and Tequila Sunrise in 4:40. Smiley was good. Konnan sucked. [*½]

Mike Tenay had a word with the head of GM Motorsports about a WCW racecar. It was pointless.

NITRO GIRLS!

JJ Dillon and Nick Patrick had a confrontation in the ring. Patrick was out to officiate, but JJ kicked him out as he’s suspended. Patrick pleaded his case and threatened to sue Dillon. JJ didn’t care and still had security eject him.

Disco Inferno vs. Yuji Nagata w/ Sonny Oono
One of the strangest matchups possible on paper. Nagata mostly dominated this one. Oono wanted him to showboat a bit, which ended up costing him as Disco hit the Chartbuster to score the unlikely win in 2:58. Wow. [NR]

La Parka came out and whacked Disco with a chair. He added a shot to Nagata before dancing alone in the ring. What is happening?

Mike Tenay brought out Lex Luger for an interview on the ramp. All he said was that he hopes there’s a piece of Randy Savage left for SuperBrawl.

HOUR NUMBER TWO! Same hosts.

Chavo Guerrero Jr. and Dean Malenko vs. WCW Cruiserweight Champion Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero
Quite the loaded tag. And in the Guerreros’ hometown. Jericho was continuing as a great character, attempting to wrestle with his title still on his waist. He drew a lot of heat. Jericho was able to hold an advantage over Chavo, but got in trouble against Dean. It took he and Eddie together to take down the “Iceman.” Surprisingly, that set up Dean to take the heat, though it was because of his opponents using underhanded tactics, like an assisted abdominal stretch. Jericho missed the Lionsault and that brought in a hot Chavo. However, a well-timed shove off the top by Eddie put Chavo in position for the Liontamer. He tapped in 9:04. This was the best match on Nitro in a while. Everyone brought their A game and gave us a high energy tag with a hot crowd. [***¾]

VIDEO PACKAGE ~ The Steiner Brothers are having issues.

El Dandy vs. Juventud Guerrera
El Dandy is a heck of a wrestler, a great technician, and a jam up guy. Juvi got the crowd going with a plancha in the opening minute. Dandy got in a bit of offense, but fell to the 450 splash in 3:40. The pop for Juvi winning was ridiculous. Fine enough match. [*¾]

Chris Jericho jumped Juvi after the match, but got sent packing. He then questioned Juvi for hitting him, saying he was just out to congratulate him. Juvi responded in Spanish, so Jericho claimed he could speak ten languages. Juvi wanted a title shot, but Jericho called him a flash in the pan like Dexy’s Midnight Runners. Classic. When Jericho questioned why he would do that, Juvi offered to put his mask on the line. Jericho agreed to do it at SuperBrawl. Fun segment. Jericho was so good.

Bobby Heenan joined the booth.

Bill Goldberg vs. Steven Regal
This is quite the famous match. Regal has claimed that management wanted him to have a competitive match with Goldberg. Instead of something even or a Goldberg squash, we got Regal stiffing him and schooling him with all sorts of holds. The fans were molten hot for Goldberg, but Regal completely owned and dominated him. It was clear Goldberg couldn’t do much besides what we’d already seen from him. Goldberg eventually won with the Spear and Jackhammer in 5:01, but it was rough for him. It’s an interesting match to watch, that’s for sure. [**]

NITRO GIRLS!

Chris Adams vs. Louie Spicolli
Another relatively famous match, though for sad reasons as it would be the final one of Louie’s life. The Flock arrived during the match. It doesn’t long before Louie whacked Adams with Larry Zbyszko’s briefcase, getting DQed in 1:57. [NR]

Louie continued the attack until Larry Zbyszko showed up for the first time tonight. He chased Louie away and yelled to the camera that Louie switched out his limo driver, who then took him to a different arena. Ha. Larry’s all like, “I DON’T SPEAK SPANISH!” He yelled at the camera for too long, though.

Saturn w/ Lodi vs. Ultimo Dragon
Dragon was tentative to open, seeing the Flock in the front row. Lots of “Lodi sucks” chants. He got a lot of heat for a guy who didn’t wrestle much. Anyway, I found this match to be quite enjoyable. Saturn tried grounding him, so Dragon used his quickness. The strikes, kicks, and suplexes thrown in this match were all good. The exchanges led to the Dragonrana, but Saturn kicked him to block the Dragon Sleeper. A quebrada led to successfully applying the Dragon Sleeper. Saturn found a cool counter, using a snapmare to pull him into an inside cradle and steal it in 7:08. That was a fun midcard bout. Good action, arm work that helped prevent the Dragon Sleeper, and a cool finish. [***¼]

HOUR NUMBER THREE!

LAST THURSDAY ~ Clips of DDP vs. Chris Benoit for the US Title on Thunder aired. It was interrupted by Raven and the Flock. DDP/Benoit II is signed for SuperBrawl.

We’re supposed to get Raven against Booker T in a TV Title match. Instead, because Booker has what rightfully belongs to Saturn (according to Raven), the Flock jumped him. The fans got hot as Booker rallied and began wiping them out. The numbers game was too much, as a Hammer distraction let Raven hit the Evenflow. Saturn put on the Rings of Saturn as Raven told Booker to feel their pain. Good segment.

VIDEO PACKAGE ~ Randy Savage’s issues with Hulk Hogan and the nWo were highlighted.

Hulk Hogan w/ Eric Bischoff vs. Randy Savage w/ Elizabeth
Weird placement for this match. You’d think it would be either the main event or on at the close of an hour. Savage jumped Hogan from behind during his entrance, because he’s crazy. Both men worked like heels, so there was a lot of choking, eye gouging, and rakes. The turning point came when Savage missed an axe handle to the outside and hit the guardrail. Hogan went to use a chair, but Elizabeth took it from him and the crowd erupted. Savage proceeded to use the chair on Hogan, somehow not getting disqualified. Savage hit the big elbow, but Buff Bagwell ran out and pulled out the referee for a DQ in 7:48. Not terrible considering their offense. The crowd was hot and they knew how to work them into a frenzy. [**¼]

The nWo guys, including Buff, Hall, Vincent, Konnan, and Hogan, beat down on Savage and left him laid out in the ring. Just when you think he’s down, Savage popped up and attacked Hogan in the aisle as they went to commercial.

Returning, Lex Luger made his way to the ring. Like a complete asshole, Luger called out Savage. You know, the guy who was just getting beat up. Elizabeth came out and jerk Luger ran her down for it. Savage ran out, somehow okay after everything, and attacked Luger. As he went for the elbow, Sting hit the ring and beat him up around ringside. The nWo came back out, but more to threaten Sting than to help Savage. As they surrounded the ring, a giant net fell from the rafters to trap Sting, Luger, and the hurt Savage. The nWo beat them up into the commercial. That was weird.

NITRO GIRLS!

WCW World Tag Team Championship: The Outsiders [c] vs. The Steiner Brothers w/ Ted Dibiase
The survey was VERY pro-nWo tonight. Lately, Scott’s been starting matches for the Steiners. Instead, Rick got the opportunity this time. He did well, but once he tagged Scott, he couldn’t get back in the ring. Egotistical Scott was all about doing this on his own. That meant Scott got worked over for a while. He finally made the tag, but it was by accident as he was knocked into Rick. Hall didn’t realize this and set Scott up for the Outsider’s Edge. Rick came off the top with the bulldog and scored the win and the titles in 7:54. Decent enough action and it furthered the Steiners story. [**]

Raw MVP: Steve Austin
Raw LVP: The Jackyl
Nitro MVP: Chris Jericho
Nitro LVP: Goldberg

Raw Rating: 3.2
Nitro Rating: 4.6

6.8

The final score: review Average

The 411

Raw: This worked as a pretty strong “go home” for No Way Out. They furthered most of the storylines and gave the eight man tag main event its best build yet. The same goes for the War of Attrition match. Not anything of real note in the ring tonight, though the light heavyweights did their best. 6.0

Nitro: Honestly, I really liked that episode. There were several matches that came across as solid (Tag Titles, Hogan/Savage), a good match (Saturn/Dragon), and a great one (Jericho tag). We also got the interesting Goldberg/Regal interaction, a title change, and some strong storyline advancement. 7.5