PPV review
I know this was 12 years ago but I'll watch an old PPV now and then to see how it holds up. What did everyone think of this one?
The first match was OK. Owen Hart hadn't really found himself yet and once Koko B. Ware stopped coming out with Frankie the parrot and calling himself The Birdman, he was just another high-flier, nothing special. It was cool to see Rikishi about 100 pounds less and coming off the top rope though. Grade: C
The Big Bossman versus Nailz match was awful. I was always a Bossman fan but nobody could have made a match with Nailz turn out decent. Grade: F
Savage/Perfect vs. Flair/Ramon was one I was really looking forward to. Usually when I watch an old PPV, I can usually remember who wins the big matches, but this one I thought could go either way. I was expecting Perfect to turn on Savage but I think that comes a little farther down the road. This match reminds me that Ric Flair is as good today as he was then. Maybe not as good as he was 20 years ago in the Four Horseman heyday, but 2004 Ric Flair would hold his own in a match against 1992 Ric Flair. Savage looked OK in this match, but kind of like he was going through the motions. I believe this was Razor's first PPV match so he wasn't really The Bad Guy yet. I miss Curt Hennig. Every match he was in was pretty good. Even just his entrance with the towel and him chewing the gum made you think, "This is one cocky SOB who can flat out wrestle" It was weird seeing him as a face. Grade: B+
Tatanka vs. The Model I thought would be great, but it was just OK. Lots of slow wear down holds. Normally I don't mind a slow-paced match but this one didn't do much for me. This was when the Model came out in some kind of jacket that made him look like Captain Steuben from the Love Boat. I liked it better when he was cockier and he had that perfume, Arrogance. I think he was with Sensational Sherrie then too. Grade: C+
Yokozuna vs. Virgil. This match was what it was. I forgot that when Virgil wrestled he wasn't half bad. He spent so much time as DiBiase's bodyguard and didn't get a chance to wrestle on TV. Plus, his in-ring work had deteriorated a lot by the time he made it to WCW as Vincent. So he looked good. Yokozuna was amazing for his size, although you couldn't really tell by this match. Grade: C
Beverley Brothers/Money Inc. vs. Natural Disasters/Nasty Boys. I was hoping Money, Inc. would survive which they didn't, but at least they weren't beaten by the Natural Disasters. I'm glad WWE doesn't use guys just for their size now. Even a fat guy like Rosey, can still move around with some semblance of agility. Earthquake and Typhoon were slow and not even very intimidating. The Nasty Boys were a good tag team but there was nothing special about this match for them. The Beverley Brothers weren't a very good tag team and were definitely the odds-on favorites to be eliminated first. Money, Inc. was a great team, and a reminder to the days when the tag team ranks were filled with actual teams, where the two guys usually had something in common. Ted Dibiase was, I think, the greatest wrestler never to be WWF champion. Grade: C+
Kamala kept making me laugh during the casket match. First, because the fear in his eyes was so believable. He really did look like he wanted to run out of the arena instead of facing Taker. And secondly, because his wrestling was atrocious. His chops were a joke. Undertaker looked good. The crowd seemed to be into the casket gimmick Grade: B-
Michaels and Hart had better matches than this but that shouldn't take away anything from this match. Started out slow with a lot of wear-down holds but then the pace picked up. Good mix of mat work, and high-impact moves. Definitely the dawn of a new era with guys like Hart and Michaels in the championship match. This one was exciting. Grade: A-
Looking back, lots of C's but all in all, not a bad PPV. Lots of guys had better matches earlier or later in their careers, but it was fun to watch and as usual, good commentary from Bobby "The Brain" Heenan.
P.S. Check my profile for other PPV reviews I've done. Check them out and let me know what you think.