Here's a Mr. Perfect vs. Shawn Michaels match that's pretty obscure.
Taped 3/11/91, aired on the Prime Time Wrestling "Road to WrestleMania VII: Stars And Stripes Forever" special on 3/17/91.
Hennig was on a major roll at this point, no doubt. Shawn was no slouch himself. Had the Summerslam 93 match even been this good, people wouldn't have been so pissed about it, I think.
I always hate when people bury their Summerslam encounter by saying that Shawn and Perfect didn't have chemstry with each other, when the 91 match proves that both guys could have a great with one another. I think the reason their Summerslam was disappointing was probably due to Hennig's declining health.
ReplyDeleteI don't even find the Summerslam match so bad. Give it 5-7 more minutes and a clean ending or even a hook the tights ending and it's **** in my book.
ReplyDeleteI was live in attendance for this match. Hemingway swatted his gum in my direction and I trampled a five year old who had never seen any NJPW in order to catch it. I then started chewing it myself and waved at Hennig and he waved back. *****
ReplyDeleteI should also note it is the same gum I am seen chomping on in during the backstage video from When Worlds Collide where I am palling around with Konnan. I preserved it for three whole years.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see the Prime Time HBK vs Bret match when they were both faces in tags. That was one of the first few things in the first few years of my fanhood that made me think "wow, this is something I didn't realize wrestling could be." Others included the first time I saw the Great Muta, the first time I saw the Jumping Bomb Angels, and randomly enough, some juniorweight title match with Fishman that got thrown onto a Coliseum tape.
ReplyDeleteAll I remember from the match was Shawn putting Perfect in some sort of Back Breaker submission/Resthold, and keeping it on for what felt like 12 minutes, then the Diesel interference.
ReplyDeleteThat shit is awesome. Hoping for more.
ReplyDeleteI really, really recommend it. I've yet to read a "bad" book in the series. It does take a little bit to get going, but after book 4, things happen at a prodigious rate, and they're goddamn awesome.
ReplyDeleteBig Turtles fan. Read the comics (had a ton of the Archie ones), watched the original cartoon religiously as a kid, owned all 3 live-action films on DVD, played all the video games. This new movie just looks terrible. The Turtles themselves look the worst they've ever looked, Megan Fox isn't April, and Shredder has like 48 blades coming out of his arms...? Nothing about it looks appealing. Though William Fichter is typically great.
ReplyDeleteI think Fichtner would have been better of playing Agent Bishop.
ReplyDeleteNoted. I really want to finish Words of Radiance first though, and American Gods so far is pretty damn great.
ReplyDeleteI loved TMNT as a kid. I had the figures, video games, saw the movies and it was something I remember playing with / talking about with neighbor kids, friends, cousins, everybody. TMNT was awesome and was a part of my childhood. That being said it is not really something I would enjoy as an adult. I won't go out of my to see the movie, but at the same time I wouldn't mind seeing either. To me TMNT didn't crossover into adulthood the way some other things did.
ReplyDeleteDid you watch all 8 episodes? I can't get enough of them.
ReplyDeleteCan someone explain the Michael Bay hate to me. I thought Pain and Gain was fantastic.
ReplyDeleteAll sizzle, no steak, and in a really obnoxious way? That's how i've always understood it.
ReplyDeleteBeen subscribed since around the 2nd episode. Hooked me immediately.
ReplyDeleteWhat does that even mean?
ReplyDeleteLots of explosions, loud noises, and shiny things. Lack of coherent story or character development.
ReplyDeleteOverly obnoxious use of effects, and treating actors like props instead of the things used to carry a movie? The lack of coherent story-telling? Useless comedy that falls back on stereotyping way too often? Endless "magic hour" shots?
ReplyDeleteTo be clear: I don't really give a shit about him, either way. His movies make all the money, so fuck if I know anything.
Hell, I'd even argue the GI Joe movies are better than the TF movies. They're not even remotely great, but they're at least enjoyable and they sure as hell don't have a runtime that overstays its welcome.
ReplyDeleteThe arcade games were huge, I remember seeing them everywhere.
ReplyDeleteTransformers?
ReplyDeletei never followed tmnt, either
ReplyDeletei remember when the cartoon and the nintendo game came out, but that was it
honestly, my biggest association with them is that metallica thanks them in the liners for the master of puppets album
Get it? DO YOU FUCKING GET THE JOKE YET??
ReplyDeleteSources indicate that I have nearly 300 up votes off just a handful of comments, which would lead us to believe you are in the minority. So plans can change.
ReplyDeleteSo Bay is the Vince Russo of the wrestling world?
ReplyDeleteWell no, Bay never swerves anything, he's more of the extreme backyard wrestling type of guy, weapons for the sake of weapons.
ReplyDeleteThat dive over the top at 3:58ish is INSANE.
ReplyDeleteFrom 1990? I think that's on the Bret/Shawn shootish DVD they released a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Bay is John Zandig. I never saw that before, but it totally fits!
ReplyDeleteIf you are wowed by that, I suggest subscribing to the newsletter. $9.99 a month gets you full access to the audio archives plus the latest Observers and back issues.
ReplyDeleteAs I said before, this gimmick has legs.
ReplyDeleteHe had a ****+ match with Bret two months earlier, so expectations were high.
ReplyDeleteHogan/Backlund on the unreleased archives is a legit ****3/4.
ReplyDeleteI also really like the Hogan/Bockwinkle match with the false finish. I'd call that one ****1/2.
I'd really like to see the Hogan/Hansen match from 1990.
Oooooo... that's some good rasslins.
ReplyDeleteWhen did the Hogan/Backlund match happen? Never even heard of that one.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember off the top of my head but I want to say 79/80. It would have been some time before the Shea Stadium match with Hogan and Andre.
ReplyDeleteNo lie, that is the most electrifying countout victory I have *ever* seen. Holy cow. To be one of those kids in the front row when he gets the shakes...that was nuts.
ReplyDeleteI'm here to simply share my insider stories, and combat the Dave Scherer backlash, if people want to hate, that's their prerogative.
ReplyDeleteHow I miss those cheesy green screens at the start to make it look like Vince and Heenan really were in the same arena shown on TV. Plus, how Heenan is somehow able to turn into Usain Bolt leaving the "broadcast booth" for the ring in record time.
ReplyDeletePain and Gain is absolutely amazing. One of my fave films ever. Of course, I think if you don't lift it's probably not half as entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI remember being one disappointed 9 year old when the promoted for weeks beforehand "best Intercontinental Championship match of all time" turned into that SummerSlam match, it's true.
ReplyDeleteThe Boss Man was on fire during this period. Great charisma, an over gimmick, he'd lost some weight from his Twin Towers days so he could move a lot better, had good agility for a big guy, and could just do some cool shit like swinging that nightstick around.
ReplyDeleteTurtles Forever was GREAT
ReplyDeleteAlways been a huge turtles fan. I grew up with the cartoon and movies and eventually got into the comics. I think the 2003 turtles cartoon is hands down the best adaptation from movies or tv. I'm skeptical about the new movie but I'll watch it for sure.
ReplyDeleteDid Perfect do anything between Summerslam and disappearing before Survivor Series? Maybe his back was a mess.
ReplyDeleteI get lost in his movies because i cant follow anything when something is exploding every 30 seconds. Pain anf Gaib was great though.
ReplyDeleteThat DVD is basically Shawn saying "yeah, I was an ass, I'm sorry" and Bret saying "Well let's go through all the things you should be sorry for one by one".
ReplyDeleteFACT: The Rock was ghostwritten by Quentin Tarantino, as was Crimson Tide and Its Pat.
ReplyDeleteI was a pretty di hard Turtle fanatic as a kif but i gotta say, if Michael Bay foing a TMNt flick is the worst thing thst ever happened in someone's childhood, they lead a charmed life.
ReplyDeleteI'll probably check it out eventually, someday.
ReplyDeleteI was a pretty decent fan as a kid, but unlike a Trandformers it's not a franchise that I'm particularly nostalgic for. I only ever dabbled in the comics, never read a lot of them.
I don't like the choice for April.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen his movies? Pain and Gain is good but even that just gets to be too much. It's so bloated.
ReplyDeleteNot really. He just did a polish of the screenplays .
ReplyDelete"Sean" Michaels. LOL.
ReplyDeleteespecially because the matches the two years before had been so amazing.
ReplyDeleteAlways loved this match. That dive Shawn does looks like one of those insane THQ video game moves.
ReplyDeleteThey repackaged this match for release on a coliseum video later in the year. minus the fake heat, Vince on commentary and oddly enough -- with a bunch of different camera angles. It's more enjoyable here in the midst of this special -- which also had a fun Warrior/Savage contract signing.
I didn't like Turtles Forever.
ReplyDeleteIt made a mockery of the 1987 series, while extolling the 2003 version. Sure the '87 show was more silly and light-hearted, but the Turtles weren't as idiotic and annoying as they were made out to be in Turtles Forever.
Agreed, I didn't care for Fox's casting at all, but I'm not letting it ruin the experience.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, loved the first two movies, still remember even as a kid thinking the third was shit. Haven't revisited since but have seen the original 2 a few times over the years as an adult. Still hold up relatively well. I can also still remember just how big a deal the first movie was when it was coming out in 1990. Christmas morning had NOTHING on the opening weekend of that flick.
ReplyDeleteOf course the original animated series was must-see TV on Saturday morning and some afternoons. All my friends and I were mega Turtle fans, and we even got a chance to go to the Coming Out of Their Shells Tour when it came to our town.
Caught a little bit of the revived 2003 animated series while I was at college. Liked it and followed it for a bit before moving on after a season or two. I wasn't quite on the nostalgia train with it just yet, not like I am now.
Really dig the Nick series and even make sure to DVR all new eps. Really great stuff for both adults and kids alike, especially old Turtle fans because they throw in a LOT of references to the old series and movies. They made sure to grab as many old, now-adult fans as they would new kids. It's not a coincidence that they already signed the show up for a 4th season and it isn't even finished with the 2nd yet.
Yeah I know there were a lot of people who were pissed at the portrayal of the 1987 series characters. I get the writers needed a theme and/or a story to tell, but I think they might have gone a little overboard with the "what childish garbage was THIS?" mentality.
ReplyDeleteBTW, has anybody ever seen Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation? I caught an episode for the first time the other day...and GOOD LORD.
ReplyDelete"Say yer prayers, Toytuls!"
ReplyDeleteGo ninja, go ninja, go!
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I'm being unfair, but one of the reasons I'm not going to this new TF film (and why I had just a hard time sitting through the 2nd and 3rd originals) is the ungodly runtime, as you mentioned. I just can't sit through almost 3 hours of Michael Bay Action. I can't imagine how much "better" these films would be solely if he just cut them down a little bit. They probably wouldn't be masterpieces, but they sure as shit would be easier to get through and possibly even enjoy.
ReplyDeleteEh, the first was good stuff. I don't think it went downhill the way it did until the 2nd. Totally different story after that.
ReplyDeleteTrust me, you've missed NOTHING by skipping the 3rd film. (Shudder)
ReplyDeleteI sat through it as a kid, waiting for it to get better. It did not.
ReplyDeleteIt would be M.Night Shyamalan.
ReplyDeleteThe current Nick Ninja Turtles cartoon is so much fun.
ReplyDeleteI love how their communicator's ring tone is the old-school TMNT theme.
ReplyDeleteAnd they were AWESOME!!!
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I liked Turtles Forever but the constant trashing of the 80s got old.
ReplyDeleteI found the 2003 version of the Turtles to be soooo boring. So joyless.
ReplyDeleteThe Nick version has a good balance of 1987 and 2003, comedy and action.
Hey, who knows...she might do a decent job! And the movie may actually be good!
ReplyDeleteI'm an optimist at heart...except when it comes to wrestling, of course.
American Gods is great! Did you know Gaiman based the lead character's look on The Rock?
ReplyDeleteAn Internet wrestling reporter/columnist is probably last on the "things that should be parodied list."
ReplyDeleteI was a TMNT fanatic as a kid. I loved the video games and the first two movies (never speak of the third movie). At one point I also had every figure in the toyline (even the weird variants of Turtles in sailor suits and trenchcoats). Parts of the '03 TMNT series were good but I never stuck with it but judging by the comments I guess I should check out the Nick series. It sounds like nostalgic fun.
ReplyDeleteI threw this match up a few months back during the A+ Match of the Day gimmick. Fun match, one both guys probably worked with a variety of opponents a million times. Love the atomic drop spot and the trip at the end is pretty funny. The movement and timing is on point.
ReplyDeleteLet's all remember, though: Michael Bay is only PRODUCING this one, not directing it. So it's much less of a direct raping than the Transformers series.
ReplyDeleteI bailed on the series after the first movie. They could have clipped an extra half hour of machine-on-machine violence (where you couldn't tell what was happening anyway) and it would have been much better.
ReplyDeleteHaven't seen any of the sequels, although I did play the video game adaptation for the second one.
The first GI Joe movie was crap, but they made up for it big time with the sequel.
ReplyDeleteI know he worked a house show that I went to 2 weeks later (September 1993), but then he no showed the November one (as well as survivor series). So I guess his back might have been screwed up.
ReplyDeleteThis was amazing.
ReplyDelete