Written by: Kevin Kindelberger
WCW Monday Nitro 11/30/98
Nitro lost 5.0 to 4.2…..Now there are a lot of questions. Is Nash booking, what is Hogan up to. How will the lead into Starrcade work. I see why the Giant lost as his contract is up in February and they doubt he will re-sign so it makes sense. Wrath less so but whatever it builds up the main event. Let’s go!
Sorry, spell check not functioning….
Hogan is now buddies with Leno because he is on the show. They shake hands and that is about it.
They go to the arena and we are awaiting the arrival of the nWo.
They exit the limo, after arriving of course! Led by Steiner they enter the arena. The camera is following them through the arena. Now they come out to their music and head to the ring. No Hogan…but Bischoff is there. Bischoff is introducing the heir apparent of the nWo and it is Big Poppa Pump! Scotty wants a moment of silence for the greatest champ: Hogan. The fans boo. He claims Hogan is watching this show and he talks about LA and private jets. He reiterates what Bischoff said and that he is the new leader of the Black and White. Hogan was the originator of the largest arms in the world, and the biggest star in wrestling and so Steiner knows why he is the heir apparent because of his biceps and the fact that he has the greatest body in wrestling. The nWo are going to be like rabid dogs and take care of business. The first order of business is to take care of someone who left the nWo and seeing as the nWo is for life, Scott Hall will be the first order of business and he is going to wish he was never a part of the nWo. Horace will be his partner and Hall needs to find as the nWo is going to bury him!
Match 1: Konnan v. Chris Jericho (c) for WCW TV Title
Jericho sends Ralphus to the back. Konnan rolls around and then armdrags him across the ring. Konnan pulls him over and then clotheslines him. He taunts him and Jericho retreats to the apron. He gets back in and Konnan whips him over by the arm again. He works it over. Jericho nips up but is knocked down. Konnan kicks him and then batters him with a series of shots and stomps in the corner. The ref pushes him back and Jericho attacks. Jericho runs him over and now some leapfrogs by each. Jericho goes for the catapult but is stomped and then nailed with a seated dropkick. The whip is reversed and Konnan gets tossed throat first off the top rope and then Jericho turns a springboard into a kick, knocking him off the apron. He goes out after him and Konnan is flung into the steps. Jericho rolls him in the ring and does his one foot cover and gets two. Jericho applies a reverse chinlock. Jericho keeps after him, kicks him in the head as Konnan is laid out; he bodyslams him, and slowly heads up top, stands up there and blows a kiss at the fans and this leads to a leap into a boot. Konnan strikes with a rolling clothesline. Konnan grabs him off the whip and gets two after the Perfect Plex. Jericho is up and clotheslines him and gets two after a Lionsault. Jericho pulls him up and then kicks him in the corner a few times. Konnan weakly sends him into the corner and then spikes him back down and rolls him up for a near fall. Both are slow to get to their and Jericho forward rolls and goes for the Tamer and Konnan is fighting him off but he turns it over and Konnan is right at the ropes and wisely grasps them. Jericho has the TV belt and misses and he is bulldogged into it and gets the win.
***1/2 Fun match…NO BUILD. Fuck me, what a feud this could have been. The fans popped too and were in it the entire match. Have Jericho piss off the Wolfpac after turning his ire towards them after the Goldberg angle and lead it into Starrcade…..but what do I know. Once again a great match leads into asinine booking decisions. Oh, WCW, why must you hurt me so…..
The Wolfpac comes down to celebrate with him.
Gene calls down Flair and he wants to know what is going on between him and Bischoff. Flair responds that there is a time to walk down that aisle. Wherever Bischoff is (he is here) and he wants him to listen. Maybe Flair is getting old but that has nothing to do with getting old and he names off a bunch of stars and those are the people who make you who you are, past and future. He is disappointed at BW and also mad as hell as EB abuses his power and is an asshole. Flair does not care if he is fired, and if that happens young kids as well as Ted and they will wonder why EB could not take out an old man like Flair. Flair, an old man with diminished skills called him out tonight or any night and he wants a piece….He dances and Woooo’s around the ring.
Hall comes down wearing an Outsiders shirt. Hey Yo, he recaps what Steiner said earlier. Hall admits that getting beat up is what he does and the only problem is that he has no friends but willing to do it all alone, one on one. But then he is willing to take both on; Nash appears at the top the aisle and waves. He and Hall have not seen eye to eye but he will be his Huckleberry (Tombstone) tonight…..team with him.
Match 2: Raven and Kanyon v. A Tag Team that I cannot remember
Kanyon is talking to Raven and instead the latter whines. Kanyon take the mic and he is sick of his whining and tells him to get over it as everyone had a hard childhood. It is the Armstrong’s and they attacks him right. They doubleteam him and Steve nearly pins him after a front suplex but then Kanyon kills him with a reverse front suplex and then goes over to Raven and jaws at him. Raven stares and leaves. Kanyon goes back to work and decks Steve and then chokes him out. Kanyon yells at him to come back and then hits his finisher on Steve but does not pin him and hte other Armstrong sneaks him and rolls him up for the win.
NR Angle advancement…..this is still going on.
Gene has called down Bret Hart. Gene asks him about DDP and Hart claims he has been hurt really bad. DDP stooped so low that he put out a hit list, sprinkling out rewards and treats to have people take him out. Little Malenko tore his groin and then Bret tells the fans that they do not have groins. Bret cannot wrestle and has doctor’s that agree. Here comes DDP as Bret continues to say he is injured. DDP wants to get something straight and calls him “Hitscum” again and how he told everyone last week that he put a hit on everyone. DDP came out and challenged him last week and they made it for this week, and now he is hurt. Bret responds that real doctor’s claim he cannot work…..DDP mocks that and calls him a liar. DDP claims he was excellently executed and then taunts him….Gene reminds Hart that he has a match. Bret has no gear and Gene states that he can get some. Bret Hart who has fought uphill against the odds, is willing to fight in a no DQ match. DDP is in.
Match 3: Eddie Guerrero v. Kidman (c) for WCW Cruiserweight Title
Eddie yells at him and then pushes and slaps him. This leads to a Kidman dropkick but Kidman fights back and sends him for the ride and monkeyflips Eddie. Kidman ends up on the apron and then strikes with a sprinboard headscissors and then knocks him to the floor. He slingshots out but Eddie is waiting, grabs him and tosses him into the steps. He sandwiches the leg between the steps and post. Eddie rolls him back and dives into him. Eddie takes his time, hits a shoulderbreaker and works over the arm.
Commercial.
Kidman is laid out after being spiked and Eddie slowly goes up top and is crotched. Kidman goes up but slips off on the Frankensteiner attempt as Eddie held on. Eddie hooks him and wants a powerbomb but is bulldogged and nearly pinned. Eddie recovers, runs him into the corner but Kidman counters and uses the corner to bulldog him again and then stomps a hole in him. Eddie begs off only to be powerbombed and nearly pinned. Kidman strikes with a forearm only to be grabbed and nailed with a hurracarana and now a DDT. Eddie drags him to the center of the ring, slowly makes his way up again. Kidman is up again and goes up after him and superplexes him off. Kidman turns him over and only gets two. Kidman pulls him up and is sent into the corner off the reversal. Eddie charges and Kidman catches and spins him around but the ref is caught and knocked to the floor. Kidman hits a Frankensteiner. Juve runs down and is kicked off the apron and then Rey runs in and slingshot kicks Eddie and the Press finishes the match.
***1/2 Another solid match.
Rey and Kidman are chased off.
EB and Windham are in the ring and the former is happy to see him. EB talks about being in Cody WY, and how his friend told him that we need another hero. Especially with crime rates escalating and outta control taxes and what the world needs is a hero. The President lied and so we need another hero and EB will bring that to us. He is waiting back and there and he calls out Dean Malenko. Dean slowly does so. Arn encourages him and he heads down and EB is going to give him a chance of the lifetime and despite his bad wheel if he can bea BW then EB will face Flair. Dean is ready and willing. EB has one more clause and there will be a special referee. Dusty Rhodes will be that man…..Wow it has been quite some time since we saw him. Dusty enters the ring and shakes hands all around but Dean refuses. EB asks if this will be unbiased and Dusty declares will there be no shenanigans and looks at BW declaring the best man will win.
Match 4: Jobber v. Wrath
Wrath kills him…..
* Squash.
The Cat comes down with Sonny doing his thing. Saturn comes down and they jaw. Saturn calls him a coward and Cat declares that if he beats Sonny then he will face him.
Saturn destroys him….Cat pulls the ref out. Glacier appears and kicks Saturn in the head and places Sonny on top and Saturn barely gets the shoulder up. Cat tosses something to Sonny; it is a chain but Saturn blocks it and it is DVD time and Saturn gets the pin. Ref notices the chain. Ref reverses the decision and Saturn chases him off.
Angle Advancement.
A limo has arrived.
Here he comes after the break….flanked by police. It is a contract signing between him and Nash; the fans love it. Bigelow is in the crowd bellowing that it should have been him and now here comes Nash. The Wolfpac is right behind. Nash gives Goldberg a shit eating grin as Gene goes over the particulars and he has to sign it twice. Goldberg will not defend the title…..until Starrcade. Lame. But it hypes up the match. Goldberg signs. Bigelow runs towards the ring and tries to get in but is swarmed by security. He is led out. He is out of the building and not allowed back in.
Match 6: Mike Enos v. Booker T
Enos has been giving quite a bit here. Axe kick ends that. Now a back suplex and Booker spins up and hits the Harlem Kick. Enos gets up and the Spinebuster ends it.
** Decent match.
Match 7: Brian Adams v. Lex Luger
Adams clubs him, dumps him to the floor where Vincent hammers him. Back in the ring he is taken down and beaten some more. Luger get the elbow up off the whip and runs him over with lariats. Now the forearm and a weak ref bump. Luger calls for the Rack anyway. Vincent runs in and gets decleated. Adams grabs the chair that Vincent had brought in. Luger sees it and prepares for the blow. Luger is piledriven into the chair. Adams goes over to wake up the ref and Luger just gets his shoulder up. They go back and forth. Vincent gets involved and the Rack ends it.
** Okay.
Match 8: Dean Malenko v. Barry Windham
Dean chases him around. Dusty runs a screen for BW and he pokes the eyes and then gutwrenches Dean. BW gets two. Dean fires off some kicks but runs into an elbow. BW chops him a few times, and sends him into the other corner, Dean heads to the apron and is just pulled back into the ring and Windham works over the knee. Dean is in the ropes but BW refuses to break the attack….he continues it in the corner and Dusty calls for the bell and DQ’s BW! Dusty dances and leaves and EB is pissed, screaming at him and yells at him to get back in the ring and Dusty refuses. EB fires him. Dusty is “sad” about that. BW heads after him and Dean hits him from behind and the Horsemen now come down and beat the hell out of him. Flair runs after Bischoff who runs off with help from the nWo. Flair is in the screaming all excited about the match and calls this the greatest Christmas present ever.
Match 9: Scott Steiner and Horace v. Scott Hall and Kevin Nash
Hall is grabbed and worked over. Horace clotheslines him and then sends him into the corner where he sandwiches him. Horace uses the ropes to choke him out. Steiner gets the tag and unloads on Hall, runs him over with a clothesline and gets two. Steiner keeps at it; but Hall hits a bulldog. Hall is knocked to the floor and Horace uses the belt to choke him out. Nash stops that and Hall is rolled back in the ring and beaten some more by Steiner. He uses the ropes to choke him out and tags in Horace who stomps away. The fans chant for Nash, and Hall finally escapes and tags in Nash who destroys the heels. Horace tries to get Nash who is on the steps but he is super Edged. The nWo ref will not count. Nash demands it. Nash grabs him and powerbombs him! Another ref runs in and they get the win.
**1/2 For the hot crowd. I mean hot.
Bigelow wearing a mumu is outside screaming for Goldberg.
Goldberg has run outside and he and Bam Bam are ripping into each other out on the lawn. They are beating each other. Goldberg is trying to toss him in the back of a truck but cannot. Goldberg’s head eats it and the brawl continues. They are wailing away. They are tussling over the back and into the bus area, and now a bunch of security pull a huffing Bigelow off and take him away….hey the guy worked hard.
Goldberg runs at him as he is held and spears him and it is chaos.
Match 9: Bret Hart v. DDP (c) for WCW US Title
Six minutes left….that sucks. They finally lock up, and DDP pushes him into the corner and Bret ducks in between the ropes. They lock up again and DDP again has him in the corner but Bret nuts him and then rubs his face across the rope. Bret chokes him out and pounds him in the corner. DDP blocks a shot and returns the favor with blow after blow. He goes to the floor and has the legs and is going for the Figure Four around the ropes. He hooks it and the Giant rumbles down and stomps DDP. Giant tosses him over the top rope and back into the ring. Giant gets in to and chokeslams him! Bret just watches. Bret stands over Page, and has the legs but will not cover him and instead taunts him. He pulls him up and the Giant places him up top for a superchokeslam and hucks him across the ring! Bret gives the Giant a hug. Sharpshooter. Over.
*1/2 This sucks for a no DQ match. Might as well bring an army down for every match like this. I hate shit like this…..but Bret won and now we need a rematch.
**** Higher had the main event delivered. WCW did not really fuck around and stuck to their guns. They prepped for the PPV and EB will face Flair. Bigelow is running wild etc. But still, a weak TV outcome, as that would have been a great feud for a month or so but it was hotshotted. I do not mind the outcome but damn is Jericho over as a heel. A lot to like and some not to like and that is troublesome but normal…..The Fingerpoke is nearing and I am getting nervous.