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Raw History: Episode 254 and Reliving Nitro: Episode 134
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Raw History
Episode #254
April 6th, 1998 | Oncenter Complex in Syracuse, New York | Attendance: 5,599
WWF Champion: Steve Austin (1) since 3/29/98
WWF Intercontinental Champion: The Rock (2) since 12/8/97
WWF European Champion: Triple H (2) since 3/17/98
WWF Tag Team Champions: The New Age Outlaws (2) since 3/30/98
WWF Light Heavyweight Champion: TAKA Michinoku (1) since 12/7/97
LAST WEEK ~ The altercations between Steve Austin and Vince McMahon were highlighted. Vince has promised Austin will be a model, corporate champion tonight.
Jim Ross and Michael Cole hosted Raw.
To a loud chorus of boos, Vince McMahon made his way out to the ring. He said having Austin arrested was a difficult decision and because of him, Austin was released later that night. Vince said Austin learned his lesson and tonight, he guaranteed we’ll see a new, reformed Stone Cold.
Dan Severn w/ Jim Cornette vs. Flash Funk
Dan holds the NWA Title, but also brought out a bunch of UFC Titles with him. All the titles instantly made Dan look legit. Cornette joined commentary to put Dan over more. The Beast dominated most of the match and won via armbar at 2:56. I do wish it was bit more one sided, but it was still a squash. [NR]
WWF REWIND ~ The formation of the new DX last Monday.
That led right into DX making their way out to the ring. JR noted that Shawn Michaels was asked about this new DX and had no comment. Each guy got a chance to speak. HHH said he promised an improved DX and delivered. Road Dogg said they were the best young talent in the business, while X-Pac directed his words at WCW by saying the old guys stinking up the joint wouldn’t be found here. HHH made bazooka and cock jokes, because he was a one note dude here.
After commercial, DX bullied some workers backstage and spray painted DX on things. Gee, it’s almost like they were a young version of the nWo.
Brian Christopher vs. Steve Blackman
Christopher was subjected to jobber entrance territory. As the match went on, Tennessee Lee joined commentary to help promote the Blackman/Jeff Jarrett feud. Lee also gave us a “surprise” announcement that Sawyer Brown would do backup vocals for Jeff Jarrett at a live performance at Unforgiven. He poorly hyped Brown, stumbling over his words. Christopher took control and delivered a solid missile dropkick. Blackman came back with a bicycle kick and applied a strange, Tequila Sunrise like submission to win in 5:03. Lee was annoying on commentary, but the match was fine. [**]
Tennessee Lee returned after the match to introduce Jarrett. Couldn’t he have just made the Sawyer Brown announcement here? The lights went out and Jarrett snuck in behind Blackman to knock him out with the guitar. “NOW THAT’S A SMASH HIT!” I don’t remember much of his first WWF run, but this might’ve been the first guitar shot from Jarrett.
Backstage, DX took time to piss on the DOA’s motorcycles. As the straight males they portray themselves as, I’d think they’d be more against the idea of whipping them out in front of each other.
SLAM OF THE WEEK ~ LOD 2000 winning last week via Doomsday Device in short order.
Cactus Jack came down to the ring with a neck brace. He sat in a chair in the middle of the ring to cut a promo. Jack put over the bad shape he and Terry Funk are in after last week’s attack, saying Funk wasn’t even there tonight. He also put over Funk as the gutsiest old man ever. He turned the attention to the crowd. They chanted for Austin while he and Funk were down last week. Foley said when he came in as Mankind or when he appeared as Dude Love, all anybody wanted was for him to be Cactus Jack. He gave them Jack and this is the thanks he gets. Jack said he and Austin are friends, but it’s sickening to hear what has happened. He demanded a group apology from the crowd, who didn’t give it. Due to that, he said the things he does in the ring aren’t worth it and this may be the last time you see Cactus for a while. Great promo from Mick. The words were strong, but this was all about the delivery. You felt how bitter he was.
LAST WEEK ~ Faarooq was overthrown as the leader of the Nation of Domination.
EARLIER TODAY ~ Faarooq was beaten up by NOD members, led by the Rock.
WWF Intercontinental Championship: The Rock [c] w/ The Nation of Domination vs. Owen Hart
A year prior, Owen dethroned a struggling Rocky Maivia for the IC Title (**½). Owen outwrestled Rock at every turn in the early stages. The NOD did some distracting, which led to them getting ejected. Even with his buddies gone, Rock got in the driver’s seat until Owen got a near fall on a swinging neckbreaker. He also came close with a spinning heel kick. Owen blocked the Rock Bottom, hit an enziguri, and applied the Sharpshooter. However, Chyna showed up with a baseball bat to whack Owen in the back for a DQ at 5:46. The crowd was into this and it had some good back and forth before that finish. Not bad. [**¼]
DX laughed atop the stage. Oddly, Chyna dropped the bat at their feet and brushed them off on her way to the back.
WAR ZONE! Jerry Lawler replaced Cole.
Vince McMahon, flanked by two police officers, came out to introduce us to the new and improved Stone Cold Steve Austin. True to his word, Vince showed us an Austin in a suit. He came out and instead of standing on the corner to salute the fans, Vince motioned for him to keep it chill, so he just put an arm up towards them. Vince did question why Austin wasn’t wearing the Gucci shoes ordered for him. He said they simply hurt his feet and his wrestling boots didn’t. Vince also threw aside Austin’s hat. Austin said that while he sat in jail last week, he realized that a redneck from Texas couldn’t compete with the leader of this industry. Austin requested a picture with Vince, which one of the officers took. Austin told Vince to get the film developed, because it would be the last time you ever see him in a ridiculous suit like this. The fans popped HUGE for that, as did Jim Ross. Austin ripped off the suit and then tapped Vince in the nuts, knocking him over. Austin took a picture of that for laughs. Another memorable segment. Austin was on a whole different level from everyone else at this point and was producing great TV consistently.
The DOA were pissed (HA) about their bikes and called out DX for what they did. Instead of wanting a fight now, they wanted it for later. Sure sounds like you guys are mad.
LAST WEEK ~ Luna challenged Sable to an Evening Gown match.
Luna w/ TAFKA Goldust vs. Matt Knowles
JR kept hyping this as the first intergender match in company history. Goldust beat up Knowles before the match. He was still willing to face Luna, who hit a monkey flip and diving headbutt to win in 0:28. Props for the Bigelow headbutt. [NR]
VIGNETTE ~ Val Venis said Jack Nicholson has nothing on him. He also said his latest film was titled, “As Hard As It Gets.”
Ken Shamrock vs. Marc Mero
Surprised they put Sable on so soon after the Luna segment. That quickly got settled as Mero sent her away for getting too much attention. JR announced that DX accepted the DOA’s challenge for tonight. Mero found himself in quick trouble when Shamrock trapped him in submissions. He’d find the ropes as his only escape. He did manage to counter a rana into a powerbomb. Shamrock avoided the TKO and hit a belly to belly. The Nation ran out, so Shamrock got a chair and ran them off. The match ended around 3:00. It was barely a match as it was a lot of just sitting in submissions to kill time. [NR]
The Nation surrounded the ring and Mark Henry got to clock Shamrock from behind. He planted Shamrock with a belly to belly and hit a splash as Rock shouted instructions. He also directed D-Lo to hit a frog splash, before adding some boots of his own and talking smack on the mic.
Kevin Kelly was in the ring to conduct an interview with the Undertaker. The Dead Man put himself over as the Lord of Darkness and put Kane over for giving him a beating. However, he called the Inferno Match a desperate act by desperate men. He accepted the match, which triggered Paul Bearer and Kane on the Titantron. Bearer promised Taker would die a slow, agonizing death. They were in a graveyard, where Kane destroyed two tombstones (apparently the ones of their parents) with a sledgehammer before burning them.
The DOA vs. D-Generation X w/ Chyna
X-Pac joined commentary while his three stablemates did the wrestling. That’s unfortunate, since he’s the best in the ring of his stable in this era. HHH didn’t surpass him for at least a few more months. Gunn took an early heat that didn’t last too long. HHH got the tag and ran a bit wild as you’d expect from the leader. They worked through a commercial, with a Harris brother taking the heat. It’s hard to feel sympathy for one when they’re so interchangeable. Chainz got a mild tag but a distraction set him up for a Pedigree at 6:34. It was about as good as you’d expect from these guys, which wasn’t very.[*¼]
DX continued to beat up the DOA. Chainz even took a piledriver onto a steel chair. LOD 2000 ran out for the save and brawled with DX to close the show.
Reliving Nitro
Episode #134
April 6th, 1998 | Miami Arena in Miami, Florida | Attendance: N/A
WCW World Heavyweight Champion: Sting (4) since 2/22/98
WCW United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (1) since 12/28/97
WCW World Tag Team Champions: The Outsiders (5) since 2/22/98
WCW Television Champion: Booker T (2) since 2/22/98
WCW Cruiserweight Champion: Chris Jericho (3) since 1/24/98
As soon as the show began, an ambulance pulled up to the arena. Macho Man was down and out on the concrete. Commentary had no clue what happened. Savage got a neck brace put on for his ambulance transport.
HOUR NUMBER ONE! Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, and Larry Zbyszko hosted.
El Dandy, La Parka, and Psychosis vs. Judo Suwa, Nobunaga, and Tokyo Magnum
OH SNAP! NOGUNAGA IS CIMA! SUWA! Dragon Gate on Nitro! With that out of the way, we got a solid little opener here. The crowd wasn’t interested in the Japanese group. However, that group made a lot of quick tags and showcased some innovative offense for the time. At one point, there were about three or four consecutive dive spots from almost everyone in the match. Psychosis hit the guillotine leg drop to give his guys the win at 4:39. Fun opener, even if it meant nothing. [**½]
After the match, La Parka clocked Psychosis with a chair to make up for a miscommunication spot earlier. El Dandy was confused by this.
Outside, Randy Savage still hadn’t been helped into the ambulance.
WCW Television Championship: Booker T [c] vs. Disco Inferno
No offense to Disco, but this is a big step down from Booker’s recent title defenses. To be fair, this wasn’t a bad match by any means. It was just largely forgettable. Disco snapped Booker’s neck off the top rope before getting two on a swinging neckbreaker. Booker mounted a small comeback, but Disco kept grounding him. It took the SPINAROONIE to set up the Scissors Kick, 110th Street Slam, and missile dropkick so Booker could retain in 5:22. Booker continues to have solid matches. Nothing special, but it did the job. [**]
NITRO GIRLS!
Kidman vs. Lenny Lane
I’m sure it’s been said before, but Lane looks like Lex Luger without the steroids. This was a short match with some decent back and forth. Though he’s not getting a mega push, this worked as a showcase for Kidman. He won with the Seven Year Itch (SSP), which Tony thought used to be called the Northern Lights, at 3:27. [*½]
Mean Gene plugged his hotline before bringing out JJ Dillon to boos. JJ said there’s extra footage of what happened with Savage, but it can’t be released due to an investigation. He’ll bring Gene news once he gets more.
Konnan w/ Vincent vs. Norman Smiley
Norman > Konnan. The only important thing to happen during this match was the announcement that Sting will defend the WCW Title against Kevin Nash tonight. Konnan won a lengthy squash in 4:12 via Tequila Sunrise. [NR]
The EMTs only just now put Savage in the ambulance.
NITRO GIRLS!
WCW United States Championship: Diamond Dallas Page [c] vs. Buff Bagwell
DDP is defending a title he doesn’t have physical possession of. Buff brought his usual case of taunting and arrogance in between offensive moves. Commentary questioned this tactic considering how hard DDP works and how he never quits. A ton of move, pose, repeat. Buff came close with a neckbreaker and argued with the official about it. As soon as DDP rallied and hit the Pancake Slam, Raven appeared with a microphone in the crowd to talk trash. DDP chased after him and got counted out at 4:56. Too much Buff nonsense to be good. [*¾]
Buff demanded the title, saying he should be champion. DDP returned to the ring and hit him with a Diamond Cutter.
HOUR NUMBER TWO!
The footage of the Savage attack got to air. All we saw was Savage on the ground and a red Dodge Viper speeding away. Vincent and the Disciple showed up to tell the camera this was nWo business. When Elizabeth arrived, Disciple told her that Savage didn’t look so Macho now.
The nWo, led by Hulk Hogan, made their way out to the ring. Hogan put over he and Kevin Nash for what he calls an eventual win at the “Pay-Per-View.” I get the feeling he doesn’t remember that it’s called Spring Stampede. He also said that Nash would win the World Title tonight and bring the title to the nWo family. The family that Nash isn’t out there with at the moment. More of the same from the group.
Goldberg vs. Hammer
We’re up to 68-0. Big as Hammer is, he’s no match for DA MAN. He came off the middle rope right into a Spear. The Jackhammer finished it at 1:38. [NR]
Goldberg forced the Flock to scatter off the apron. Pissed at the result, Saturn put Hammer in the Rings of Saturn.
NITRO GIRLS!
Mean Gene introduced Roddy Piper for some promo time. He made weird comments about Goldust being a transvestite and how he beat him into being a man. Then he focused on Hogan and Nash, saying he didn’t want to wait for the PPV and wanted a piece of him tonight.
Chavo Guerrero Jr. w/ Eddie Guerrero vs. Ultimo Dragon
Bobby Heenan replaced Zbyszko before the match. It was supposed to be Eddie competing, but he made Chavo take his place to make up for how their family is “suffering” due to Chavo’s struggles. That meant that Chavo wrestled in jeans as he wasn’t prepared to compete. Chavo was doing better than expected to start. Once Dragon took over, Eddie put a towel over his head out of shame. Though Dragon couldn’t hit the big Dragonrana, he used the Dragon Sleeper to win in 4:13. Another fine match tonight. [**¼]
Eddie smacked Chavo with the towel after the match.
NITRO GIRLS!
UNCENSORED ~ Mean Gene was rude to Dean Malenko following a crushing loss to Chris Jericho. Dean seemed on the verge of tears after the loss.
Barry Darsow vs. Lex Luger
I’m ready for Repo Man vs. Narcissist. Without his Repo Man gimmick, Darsow ranks among the blandest dudes in history. Bald head, bad facial hair, and generic trunks. He worked the wrist but YOU CAN’T STOP THE BIONIC ARM! SCREAMING CLOTHESLINES and Torture Rack at 3:44 to end. [NR]
HOUR NUMBER THREE!
LAST WEEK ~ Bret Hart and his brothers-in-law battled with some nWo guys.
Brian Adams and Curt Hennig vs. Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhart
Rick Rude came out with the nWo guys, only to join commentary instead of remaining at ringside. This was given the most time on the show up to this point, though it’s hard to say that was a good move. Hennig is the only guy in it who can still somewhat wrestle, and he’s way past his physical prime. After some early no-selling, Neidhart ended up as the face in peril. Smith’s mild tag got wasted, as did a commercial break, because Adams bored us to tears with a bear hug. Eventually, Smith was held back as the Hennigplex finished Neidhart at 7:29. Boring, too long, and felt like a waste of time.[¼*]
For the third straight week, Bret Hart had to run out and save his scrub family members. Bret spoke to say that the days of the nWo ganging up on people was over. He got booed.
WCW Cruiserweight Championship: Chris Jericho [c] vs. Juventud Guerrera
A SuperBrawl rematch, which was where Juvi lost his mask. Jericho dedicated the match to the memory of Dean Malenko. He also mispronounced Prince Iaukea’s name and questioned why he deserves a title shot at Spring Stampede. Juvi brought a lot of fire in the early stages. That made sense given their history. Jericho tried taking advantage with his power, but Juvi had an answer for everything. Schiavone made the poor argument that Jericho’s attitude is holding him back. Heenan correctly pointed out how nice Jericho won nothing and having the attitude has worked for him. Juvi got a near fall that was so close, the fans booed Nick Patrick for saying it wasn’t three. That was his last real hope. Jericho put him in the Liontamer and that was it. Juvi refused to quit, so Iaukea ran down and threw in the towel at 6:08. There was a lot to like here. The ending felt too rushed, though. Juvi should’ve been trapped in that hold with no way out and Iaukea should’ve agonized over throwing in the towel. Chop off minutes from the prior match and add drama here and you’ve got a winner. [***]
We got a recap of the Savage stuff again.
Scott Steiner w/ Vincent vs. Sick Boy
Steiner got called Big Poppa Pump by commentary here. Vincent brought out a trophy that was apparently Scott’s but we didn’t hear about it. These heel/heel matches are strange. Total dominance and a Steiner Recliner win at 2:58. Scott and Vincent posed with the trophy we still know nothing about. [NR]
WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Sting [c] vs. Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash wore a Randy Savage shirt to the ring. Nash spoke before the match to say that he knew the Dodge Viper belonged to Hogan and that he wouldn’t give Hogan the title when he won tonight. He also threatened to possibly beat Hogan up with the bat alongside Piper and the Giant. Konnan randomly joined Nash during this promo. The crowd seemed unsure how to react to this. Sting is the ultimate babyface/company savior, but Nash is the cool anti-Hogan nWo guy. And the nWo has been way over in Miami. Nash’s size and some Konnan cheap shots put him in the driver’s seat. Sting turned it around by working the knee. He put on the Scorpion Death Lock, but Nash was too long and made it to the ropes. Near the end, Sting hit some Stinger Splashes. He got caught for a Jackknife Powerbomb, but Nash’s back gave out. Hogan ran in and jumped Sting for a DQ finish at 10:43. I’m surprised we got a lengthy match and one that wasn’t bad. [**]
Kevin Nash brought down the straps and pulled Hogan off Sting. They argued until Sting got up and hit Hogan, triggering the arrival of the rest of the nWo. Nash and Hogan went back to arguing until Roddy Piper and the Giant hit the ring and the show ended.
Raw MVP: Steve Austin
Raw LVP: The DOA
Nitro MVP: Chris Jericho
Nitro LVP: Brian Adams
Raw Rating: 4.4
Nitro Rating: 4.6
Nitro: Not a bad episode of Nitro. One that featured a fun six man tag and a good Cruiserweight Title match. The nWo civil war isn’t clicking the way WCW probably wants and it’s weighing things down. The same goes for the Bret Hart stuff. It’s repetitive. DDP, Raven, Goldberg, Jericho, and Eddie Guerrero continue to be highlights. 6.0
