August 18, 1984
Your hosts are Tony Garea and Vince McMahon
The hosts run down the show, which will feature Ken Patera, Kamala, Piper’s Pit with Sgt. Slaughter and Gene Okerlund will present Wendi Richter with the new WWF Women’s Championship Belt.
Ken Patera w/Capt. Lou Albano vs. Billy Travis
As usual, Vince gloats about the physique of his wrestlers, this time slobbering all over Patera. Patera overpowers Travis, who fights back with a dropkick. Travis uses his speed but gets caught with a back elbow smash. Patera sends him over the ropes with a punch and Lou rolls him on the apron. Patera brings him back in with a hiptoss and applies a chinlock. He gets him in a bearhug for a bit then hits a suplex and a clothesline, pulling him up before the three count. He slams Travis a few more times then drops an elbow for the win (4:38).
Thoughts: This was Patera’s return to the WWF after an absence of over three years. They put him over a ton on commentary and Meltzer reported that he was rumored to get the IC strap shortly after his debut. He held the belt in 1980, defeating Pat Patterson to win and lost it to Pedro Morales. As far as the match, it wasn’t much and Patera was in his 40’s, with his best days certainly behind him. Albano did not add much here. Patera was managed by the Grand Wizard in his last WWF run.
Steve Lombardi vs. Kamala w/Freddie Blassie & Friday
This is Kamala’s WWF debut. Before the match, Hulk Hogan is introduced to the crowd and they go bananas. He gives Lombardi a pep-talk then retreats. Kamala chops Lombardi a few times as a “We Want Hogan” chant erupts from the crowd. Kamala knocks him down with a double chop then finishes him off with a splash (0:48). After the match, Kamala attempts to climb to the top rope but Blassie and Friday hold him back.
Thoughts: This played off as a setup for Hogan’s next feud. The match was way too short to mean anything. I have no idea who played Friday. Lombardi played Kimchee later on but no clue as to who played Friday in the WWF. Anyone have an idea?
WWF Review with the song “Dance Hall Days” by Wang Chung. They show clips of JYD’s debut against Max Blue and a squash featuring Don Muraco.
Mean Gene is standing in the ring. He holds the new WWF Women’s Championship belt in his hand, which has a white leather strap. He introduces Richter and the crowd goes nuts. As she enters the ring, known pervert Mel Phillips blatantly looks up her dress. Oh well, beats looking at her face I suppose. She thanks Cyndi Lauper but doesn’t get to say much more as the Fabulous Moolah runs into the ring and assaults her. She even sends Okerlund to the mat with a boot in the ass. Richter regains control and grabs her belt back from Moolah, who leaves the ring. The crowd is going crazy, pelting Moolah with trash. Heated segment.
Mario Mancini vs. Greg “The Hammer” Valentine w/Capt Lou Albano
Thoughts: Another strong outing from Valentine, who certainly seems positioned for a shot against Santana. He was one of the best wrestlers in the company at this point.
WWF Update with Vince McMahon. This week’s topic is Roddy Piper. They show a clip of Piper talking himself up on his set.
Piper’s Pit with guest Sgt. Slaughter. Piper talks about his time in the service then calls Sarge an idiot and pleads with him to listen as to why that is the case. He goes on about how no one cared about him after he got home from serving in Vietnam Del Rio
Dave Barbie vs. Tito Santana
Santana as the word “Arriva” on the back of his jacket. The crowd loves Tito. Barbie was the real-life bodyguard of Andre the Giant. They start by trying to feel each other out as the mysterious man from the Putski match last week struts around the ring. Vince tells us that his name is Brutus Beefcake. Tito knocks Barbie to the floor then slingshots him back into the ring. He works a side headlock for a very long time as this match is dragging. Barbie struggles and eventually fights out but gets taken back down with the same move. One fan starts a “boring” chant as this is really starting to put everyone asleep. Barbie is just a terrible wrestler and is constantly out of position. Barbie lands a few shots but Tito fights back. He gets a slam then hits the flying forearm and gets the pin using a bridge (5:53)
Thoughts: Awful match. Barbie was incompetent in the ring to the point that having the match revolve around a side headlock was probably for the best. At least he could get into position for that. The crowd, which was electric all show long, died during this match.
Final Thoughts: Good show. They planted the seeds for future feuds and continued the Richter/Moolah saga. They debuted a new wrestler and even showed another one in the form of a music video (Junkyard Dog). With several newcomers being introduced, it looks like the old guard is going to be phased out soon.
A big problem with most WWE characters is that fans are given no reason why to root for or against them. WWE creative may feel that face and heel turns are a relic of bygone days and things should be more "realistic" but pro wrestling is not "realistic" and like any genre it has its own set of rules that fans by into. I mean a big problem with the face turns of Miz and Alberto Del Rio is that both literally decided they wanted to be faces without any real face turn. Without giving a reason to cheer for them why should we care. The characters shiuld have a motivation and a reason for being, that's not the case for quite a few characters especially Miz and Del Rio.
ReplyDeleteAgree 100%. WWE Creative gives the fans nothing in terms of getting behind a wrestler. The face turns are all out of the blue and the promos are completely scripted to the point that everything they do comes off as forced and manufactured. They give off zero emotion and that gives the fans zero reason to care.
ReplyDeleteLook at the Sgt. Slaughter face turn, as a heel, Sgt. Slaughter was a sadistic drill sergeant who believed that he was the best America had to offer and felt everyone else was too soft. Then one day the Iron Sheik stayed in the ring too long insulting America, saying "Iran Number One." Slaughter comes out for his match ready to defend America from this anti-American Iranian but he refused to give America its proper respect. Slaughter made sure he leaves defending America in the process. Instant face turn. Slaughter may have a been a sadistic jerk but he always believed in America, if anything he always felt America could be better but he always believed in it. So from face to heel Sgt. Slaughter had a motivation that is consistent with his basic character (let's ignore the Iraqi turncoat stuff for a moment) and gave the fans reason for fans to go from booing the character to cheering for him, you cannot really say the same about Miz, Del Rio, or even Sheamus to a certain extent.
ReplyDeleteMiz turned face by aligning with Flair and using the figure four.
ReplyDeleteDel Rio's turn was terribly done and is not going to get over at all.
Even face turns like Brutus Beefcake were done a lot better than this.
Miz's alliance with Ric Flair was a last ditch attempt at salvaging a face turn that was already taking place.
ReplyDeleteI still remember Beefcake face turn because he was abandoned by his partners and he wanted to get back at them then someone else stuck his nose in it and he got a whole new gimmick from it. Not the best face turn but it was decently done.
It can be (and should be) realistic...the problem is the way these face turns are done is hardly realistic. Someone doesn't just wake up and 'turn' good.
ReplyDeleteAlso, supposedly Cena's first program after WM is against Big Show (again). So, is Show turning heel again after WM?
Believable is probably a better word than realistic. But Big Show again, that just seems like a retread. Isn't time to elevate guys like Damian Sandow and Cody Rhodes to the nextblevel. Then again we saw how Cena's feud with Dolph Ziggler worked out with Ziggler looking like a bigger goof than ever.
ReplyDelete