WWE House Show 12/12/2003

Written By: Bob Colling

World Wrestling Entertainment House Show
Date: 12/12/2003
From: New York, NY

Opening Contest: the Hurricane defeated Test: Test uses his power advantage to shove Hurricane down to the mat out of a lockup position. Test drops to his knees to insult Hurricane but is slapped for doing so. Hurricane dropkicks Test off the apron followed by a slingshot cross body on the floor! Test stops Hurricane with a leg drop as he tried to roll back into the ring. Test goes to the floor to tell his manager Stacy Keibler to sit in a chair. Test clotheslines Hurricane in the corner to keep the advantage. Hurricane battles out of a bear hug and hits a neck breaker. Test knee lifts Hurricane but Hurricane takes Test over with a head scissors take down. Test runs into a big boot and Hurricane leaps off the middle rope to hit a flip neck breaker for a two count. Hurricane gets out of a power bomb looking for a choke slam but Test blocks it. Hurricane counters a pump handle slam attempt by connecting with the Eye of the Storm for a two count. Test nearly steals a win using the ropes for leverage in the corner. Test grabs Stacy on the apron and is slapped for doing so. Hurricane face busters Test for a near win. Hurricane climbs up top but is crotched after Test sends the referee into the rope. Test misses a running big boot and is hung on the top rope. Stacy comes over to wiggle the ropes behind the referees back. Hurricane hits the choke slam but Test kicks out at two. Hurricane attempts a Shining Wizard but Test ducks and hits a full nelson slam for a two count. Test goes to the floor to grab a chair. Test goes to use it but Stacy enters and is shoved by Test. The guy holding the camera misses the finish, but apparently Hurricane won the bout after Test missed hitting Hurricane with the chair and hit himself instead after it bounced off the top rope. *1/2

Second Contest: Mark Henry defeated Tommy Dreamer: Henry gets a squash match at a house show. Henry blocks a kendo stick shot by slamming Dreamer, which is good enough for a quick win.

Before the next match, Victoria comes out to be the special referee.

Third Contest: WWE Women’s Champion Molly Holly defeated Lita, Trish Stratus and Jazz in an elimination match to retain the title:
First Elimination: Lita suffered a injury very early into the contest and was helped to the backstage area by officials
Second Elimination: Trish rolled Jazz up for the elimination
Third Elimination: Molly rolled Trish up after countering a hurricanrana attempt.

Fourth Contest: Mark Jindrak/Garrison Cade defeated Lance Storm/Val Venis: All four men trade right hands until Cade and Jindrak are dumped over the top rope to the floor. Storm takes Cade out on the floor with a slingshot cross body. Venis chops Cade in the corner to legally start off the contest. Storm quickly tags in delivering a back elbow to Cade. Jindrak tagged in and works on Storm with right hands. Storm avoids a dropkick and hammers away on Jindrak. Venis enters to scoop slam Jindrak for a near fall. Venis continues to work on Jindrak in the corner for a few moments. Venis clotheslines Jindrak in the corner before getting a near fall with a rollup. Storm springboards off the top to axe handle Jindrak’s arm. Venis leaps off the top to do the same thing. Cade tags in but Venis stops Cade with a right hand. Venis fights off Jindrak on the floor by dropping him throat first across the guard railing. Jindrak drops Venis throat first across the top rope which helps Cade get a two count. Jindrak dropkicks Venis for a two count. Cade tags in to take Venis over with a double vertical suplex for a near fall. Jindrak works on Venis for several moments getting a few near falls throughout the beat down. Jindrak nearly gets a win following a DDT but Storm makes the save. Storm gets the hot tag and cleans house with a dropkick and a leg lariat on Cade. Storm puts the Maple Leaf on Jindrak but Cade enters hitting Storm with a bulldog. Venis and Cade go to the floor after a clothesline. Jindrak rolls Storm up using the tights for leverage but only gets a two count. Venis and Storm hit the Hart Attack on Jindrak for a two count! Venis knocks Cade out with a cross body off the apron. Storm randomly got knocked out on the floor, but rolled back into the ring to be pinned by Jindrak. That was an odd finish. *

Fifth Contest: Matt Hardy defeated Maven: Maven almost gets sent into the referee but puts on the breaks. He turns around and Hardy hits the Twist of Fate to win the extended squash match.

Sixth Contest: WWE World Tag Team Champions the Dudley Boys defeated Chris Jericho/Christian in a tables match to retain the titles: Jericho and D-Von kick off the title bout. Jericho tags out after stalling for several moments. D-Von works on Christian with a hammerlock and comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Christian slaps D-Von but is taken down by D-Von quickly. D-Von nails Christian with a spinning elbow strike but Christian recovers to tag in Jericho. D-Von trades right hands with Jericho until Jericho backs D-Von into a corner delivering several blows. D-Von comes out of the corner hitting Jericho with a running clothesline. Bubba tags in chopping Jericho in the corner followed by several jabs to the midsection. Jericho blocks a backdrop with a kick to the chest but Bubba puts both opponents in the claw briefly. Bubba clotheslines both Jericho and Christian as well. The champs stand tall in the ring as the challengers bail to the floor. The challengers try to leave but are stopped on the aisle way by the champions. D-Von knocks Christian off the apron but Christian drags Jericho to the floor to save him. They are rammed into each other head first by Bubba. Christian grabs D-Von in the corner to drop him throat first across the top rope. The challenger’s double shoulder block D-Von. Christian taunts Bubba to allow Jericho to choke D-Von in the corner. Jericho chokes D-Von over the middle rope and jumps onto D-Von’s back. Jericho dropkicks D-Von while Christian goes under the ring to get something but is chased by Bubba. Christian misses a splash onto D-Von’s back but Jericho prevents a tag by knocking Bubba off the apron. Jericho barely hits a running bulldog as D-Von staggers out of the corner. Jericho attempts a springboard moonsault but is met with a pair of knees to the gut. Bubba gets the hot tag and clotheslines Christian a few times before back dropping both men. Bubba side slams Christian and Samoan Drops Jericho. Bubba follows up with a splash on both men but Jericho is able to leap off the middle rope hitting Bubba with a dropkick. Dudley’s hit a back suplex/ neck breaker combo on Jericho. Jericho enters the ring after Christian is elbow smashed by Bubba and hits Bubba with a chair. Trish and Lita run down to prevent the usage of two chairs on Bubba. Lita and Trish leap off the top rope to hit the What’s Up on both Jericho and Christian. On the floor, the Dudley’s hit Christian with a table before setting it up in the ring. Jericho stagers to his feet but Christian attacks Bubba to save Jericho from a 3-D. D-Von moves the table as the challengers tried to suplex Bubba through the table. Christian accidentally clotheslines Jericho and is sent through the table following a 3-D. *1/4

Seventh Contest: Shawn Michaels defeated Ric Flair: Flair backs Michaels into a corner but cleanly breaks away. Michaels shoulder blocks Flair after coming off the ropes but doesn’t quickly follow up. Flair again backs Michaels into a corner but Michaels turns the tables to slap Flair before walking to a neutral corner. Michaels controls Flair with a side headlock on the canvas. Flair chops Michaels in the corner before delivering a right hand. Michaels blocks another right hand and fights back with several chops. Michaels back dropped Flair before going back to a side headlock. Flair comes off the ropes with a shoulder block but Michaels hip tosses Flair before again going back to a side headlock. Flair pokes Michaels in the eyes in the corner to gain the advantage. Flair proceeds to drop Michaels with a chop and sends Michaels to the floor. Flair rams Michaels into guard railing chest first. Flair grabs Michaels on the apron to drop him throat first across the top rope for a near fall. Michaels tries to punch his way out of a wristlock but Flair keeps the hold on. Michaels breaks free and exchanges chops with Flair, getting the better of Flair. Flair is able to stop Michaels in the corner with an atomic drop for a two count while using the ropes for leverage. Flair delivers a knee drop as it is announced that ten minutes are left in the match. That is a clear tell that this is going to a draw. Michaels puts the figure four on Flair. Flair manages to reach the bottom rope after a few moments. Michaels chops Flair in the corner but Flair battles back with a few of his own. Michaels clotheslines Flair over the top to the floor. Michaels takes Flair out with a slingshot cross body (third time we have seen that). Michaels almost rolls Flair up for the win getting a two count. Michaels backslides Flair for a two count. Flair goes to a corner and low blows Michaels with a back kick. Flair tries for the figure four but Michaels rolls him up for a two count. Michaels comes off the ropes and collides with Flair causing both men to go down. Flair heads to the top rope but is slammed off by Michaels. Flair tosses Michaels to the floor but is rammed head first into the guard railing by Michaels. Flair has been busted open as Michaels rams Flair head first into the ring steps as well. Michaels punches Flair down to the mat from the apron. Michaels sunset flips Flair and yanks down Flair’s trunks for several moments before getting a cover but only a two count. Michaels comes off the ropes hitting Flair with a forearm smash. Michaels scoop slams Flair before mounting Flair delivering right hands. Michaels backs Flair into the corner delivering more right hands. Michaels avoids an atomic drop by punching Flair. Michaels backdrops Flair again as one minute remains in the contest. Michaels heads to the top rope and leaps off hitting an elbow drop! Michaels sets up for the super kick but Flair blocks it and puts the figure four on Michaels! Flair is using the ropes for leverage but isn’t able to get Michaels to give up as the bell sounds because the time limit as expired. Flair flips out and wants five more minutes. Michaels accepts five more minutes by punching Flair a few more times. Flair appears to be bleeding badly. Flair chop blocks Michaels to stop the momentum shift. Flair begins to work on Michaels knee before putting the figure four on again. Michaels turns over the hold but Flair lets go of the hold. Flair gets up to stomp away on Michaels knee. Flair chops Michaels, but Michaels fights back with right hands and chops of his own. Michaels dropkicks Flair as he comes staggering out of the corner. Michaels backdrops Flair and nails Flair with the super kick! Michaels slowly covers Flair and gets the three count. ***

Eighth Contest: WWE Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam/Booker T defeated Randy Orton/Batista: Booker and Batista start off the bout. Batista elbows Booker as he attempted a go behind. Batista comes off the ropes with a shoulder block and taunts Booker afterwards. Batista backs Booker into a corner to deliver a knee lift and a few shoulder rams. Booker back elbows Batista in a corner and nails Batista with a standing spin kick. RVD gets tagged into the bout. RVD works on Batista with several kicks until he is backed into a corner where Orton tags in. Orton uppercuts RVD and puts a headlock on RVD for a brief time. RVD arm drags Orton several times and spin kicks Orton off the apron to the floor. RVD baseball slides Orton to the floor after playing to the fans. RVD takes Orton out with a slingshot cross body on the floor (fourth time for the night). RVD places Orton on top of the railing and leaps off the apron to spin kick Orton’s back. Booker grabs Evolution to ram them into each other head first. RVD connects with a handspring moonsault on Orton for a two count. Booker backs Orton up against the ropes delivering several chops. Booker connects with a bicycle kick for a two count. Booker knocks Batista off the apron but Orton is able to drop Booker throat first across the top rope with help from Batista. Batista is the legal man now and chokes Booker over the middle rope. Batista drops Booker with a short arm clothesline for a two count. Booker sunset flips Orton for a two count but Orton recovers with a dropkick for a near fall of his own. Batista tags back in to control Booker with a sleeper hold. Batista rams Booker back first into a corner to allow Orton to tag in and deliver several shots. Booker stops Orton with a big spine buster! RVD tags into the bout cleaning house with strikes and kicks. RVD springboards off the middle rope to kick Batista. RVD follows up with a step over heel kick. RVD connects with the rolling thunder on Orton for a two count. Batista drives RVD down with a spine buster but Booker comes over to clothesline to the floor. Booker scissors kicks Orton and RVD heads up top to hit the Five Star Frog Splash on Orton! RVD covers and gets the three count. *1/2

Main Event: WWE World Heavyweight Champion Goldberg defeated Kane to retain the title: Goldberg with a flurry of right hands followed by a leaping shoulder block. Goldberg runs into a big boot in the corner from Kane. Kane continues to work on Goldberg with right hands and connects with a clothesline. Goldberg storms out of the corner with a clothesline to drop Kane. Kane bails to the floor but Goldberg follows him. Kane sends Goldberg shoulder first into the ring steps! Kane rams Goldberg head first into the ring post before sending the champ back into the ring. Kane side slams Goldberg for a two count. Kane puts a sleeper on Goldberg for a few moments. Goldberg gets out of the hold to put Kane in a sleeper but Kane powers out with a back suplex. Kane signals for the choke slam but Goldberg grabs Kane by the throat as well! Kane knee lifts Goldberg but is met with a powerful clothesline. Goldberg big boots Kane followed by a back elbow. Goldberg gets out of a tombstone attempt and power slams Kane! Goldberg attempts a spear but runs into a big boot which gets Kane a near fall. Kane leaps off the top rope looking for a clothesline but lands on his feet and Goldberg was supposed to spear him but mistimed it. Kane gets to his feet and is speared accordingly to give Goldberg the win. ½*
After the match, Batista runs down but is dumped to the floor by Goldberg. Randy Orton and Mark Henry run down as well but they are both speared for their troubles. Goldberg gets his championship and celebrates his win.

End of show

My Take: While Hurricane/Test wasn’t a good opener by any means, it was a quality bout. I thought the action was okay, but the fans weren’t all that interested in the match. They were only interested when Stacy Keibler got involved.

I can sum up the next four matches with a one word, BORING. No one cared about any of those matches and they just seemed to drag on. One of the people recording the show said “if I had known this was going to happen, I would’ve stayed home to watch Velocity.” I have a feeling that several people in the crowd were thinking something similar to that. Yikes…

The tables match wasn’t entertaining at all to me. It’s a tables match, but yet there are rules to it? If they had competed the match under Texas Tornado rules it would have liven up the crowd a little bit. Instead, it was a lackluster bout with no heat.

Note to any aspiring or current bookers, do not ever announce the time limit throughout the match if you are going to do a draw finish. Fans get pissed off by that because it is so predictable. Flair and Michaels put on a good match, for house show standards, but it isn’t a classic by any means. Still, despite their best efforts they couldn’t get the crowd into the match all that much.
The tag bout was another boring contest that didn’t amount to anything. The finish was nice, but the ten minutes leading up to that left a lot to be desired.

The main event was just awful. It really was just horrible. The botched finish and really simple offense equals a poor ending to the show. By the way, the fans were not all that into Goldberg. I think it is safe to say, that at this point Goldberg was not over as a dominating champion.

Overall, this has to be one of the worst all around MSG shows I have recapped thus far (March 2011). The crowd was silent for everything and that just made the show even more unbearable. If they had been vocal during any point of the match, it would have been slightly better but not much. Michaels/Flair is the only good bout, but again it is not a classic by any means. This show gets a big thumbs down.

Thanks for reading.