WWF RAW 9/28/1998

Written by: Kevin Kindelberger

WWF Monday Night RAW 9/28/98
The PPV was not as good as previous ones. They threw most of the matches together with only minor build. They need to make them worth watching, and spend more time on building up the feuds. RAW was preempted but at the same time they need to flesh them out more. Bradshaw knocked out Vader once and now a month later a PPV match! Now most of the wrestling was decent and they did a good job but it should have been better and there were too many filler matches. The cage match was pretty solid. The main event was typically overbooked but still had its moments. UT and Kane nearly splitting and once again they set it up where Austin had to lose in order to keep the heels strong and that was wise. Austin is not Superman and needs to lose here and there. I mentioned my thoughts on the booking of the match last night and will not repeat them here. Still the main event matches for the WWF are far better than what is shown in WCW. RAW has had two good RAW’s and hopefully that continues. RAW wins with hours of 4.4 and 4.9 for a 4.6 while Nitro received a 4.0. It started with a 4.3 but fell to a 3.9 for the final two hours.

Vince comes down to Austin’s music. He gloats that he told everyone so. All Austin had to do was play by the rules. Austin will not get a rematch, but he is magnanimous and will celebrate Austin’s career. He has police awaiting his arrival! Vince is excited to crown a new WWF champ tonight with a new official belt, one without the skull on it. He wants Austin here to help crown the new champ. Slaughter places the belt around Vince who tells the crowd that he hopes they have enjoyed the evening! Damn is the crowd hot. Vince gets up in the corner and poses for the crowd as police escort him to the back.

They pan to the back and show the reception awaiting Austin when he arrives.

Here come the Outlaws and it is clear that I am in the minority as they are just fucking going apeshit for the Outlaws. Literally eating out of their hands.

Pan to the back again.

Lawler is challenging Jim Carrey: Man on the Moon movie.

Match 1: Southern Justice v. New Age Outlaws

Canterbury buries Gunn and Dog makes the save. Gunn comes back off the duck and strikes with a forearm shiver. But he is nailed. Knight gets the tag and runs right into a swinging neckbreaker. Road Dog is in and he snaps Knight over, shimmies his hips and lands on him. But Canterbury comes in to lend a hand and kidney punches him. Gunn who is the best pure athlete in the WWF gets the hot tag and clears out the ring. Canterbury is hit with Rocker Dropper. JJ tries to intervene but the guitar is grabbed and Canterbury gets blasted with it. Gunn does not look happy that Road Dog did that.

*1/2 Fairly lame feud.

Gunn is in his face shoving him. Jesus DX bickers every other week. X Pac gets in the ring and is shoved down by Gunn and scrape his eye. Gunn pouts and leaves. HHH comes down in his wheelchair and Gunn brushes by him.

Match 2: Dan Severn v. Owen Hart

Cole is outside DX’s door as they bicker. JR calls it a family feud. FUCK it happens all the time with these ass clowns.

Dan gets the hometown pop. He starts strong but is hit with a heel kick and a belly to belly. Owen is put in a chokehold but Owen flips behind and Owen piledrives him and Dan sells the neck.

*1/2 Not sure what happened as all I can find out is that he was involved in a storyline. He is out for a few months and comes back for the Rumble and does little else. I think he was on his way out….it is an angle.

Severn is taken away in an ambulance.

Match 3: Vader v. Al Snow

Vader starts strong with some clubbing blows. Al fires back and finally gets him down with a running clothesline. Vader blocks the bodyslam attempt and drops him with a short-armed clothesline. Snow kicks at him but Vader grabs the leg only to get clocked with an enzuguri. Slaughter puts his foot on the ropes and Al swings around Head. The ref is looking at Slaughter for some reason and Vader is knocked out and pinned.

*1/2 These two needed more time.

A pouting Billy Gunn is leaving. No loss.

Match 4: Six Man Elimination Match

JJ, Mero, Gangrel, Edge, Brown and Droz.

Edge comes out of the crowd and goes after Gangrel so it those two. He punishes him but is tossed and his knee is wrenched with a dragon screw. Gangrel falls off the middle rope and is rolled up and finished. Gangrel sucks. D’Lo Brown blindsides Edge and drops the legs as the crowd has chanted that Brown sucks for some time. Edge counters with a DDT. Edge tags in Droz who tees off and then suplexes JJ into the ring, and drops him with a back elbow. JJ hits the Stroke and follows up with a dropkick. JJ is clotheslined to the floor and they start brawling on the floor. They are both counted out. Mero drops Edge with a Samoan Drop and heads up top and Brown shakes the ropes crotching him. D’Lo giggles and Edge takes advantage and hits a hurracarana from the top, and Brown leaps from the top and crushes Mero. Edge dropkicks him to the floor and pins Mero. Edge leaps onto Brown but is distracted by Christian….no name given yet and Brown finishes him off.

**1/2 Should have been better. Winner gets a shot at European belt next week.

Vince is back in the ring with his cronies, flanked by police. He calls out the Undertaker and Kane comes out soon after. No fire explosion for Kane and Vince thanks him. Both men are deserving of being the champ. They single-handedly covered Austin and as he blathers on Austin drives into the rear of the building in a Zamboni and goes right by a stunned police force. Vince is lived as Austin drives down the aisle and leaps into Vince from the Zamboni beating the shit out of him. The cops stand around for a moment and then pulls him off as Kane and UT had retreated to the apron. They cuff Austin who keeps trying to get at Vince. Vince is finally being led away. The sound was cut off as Austin cut the sound by driving over it with the Zamboni.Vince is yelling about Vince as he is led off. Vince is hobbling towards the back. Vince wants his ass taken to jail as the cops try to settle him down. Now he wants them to let him go as Austin tries to get at him. He is put in the cruiser and driven away. Vince is hobbling again.

After the break Vince is back in the ring flanked by the Undertaker and Kane. They need to recall that they were to keep Austin away from him. But three times in the last week Austin has brutally attacked him. They did not live up to their end of the deal, so he will not live up to his and therefore they will have to fight for the belt. At the next PPV they will battle it out. He is going to put Austin into their business seeing as they cannot keep him out. Austin will be the guest referee. Vince will be there to watch him suffer the indignity of counting one of these two become champ. Vince wants to make sure everyone gets their money’s worth and they will fight in a handicap tag match. He mentions Shamrock, Mankind and Rock and the crowd gets louder with each announced name. Dealing with UT and Kane is like dealing with the handicap, one is physical and one is mental. He turns to leave and UT grabs him and tells him that he needs to watch his ass. The next time Vince gets in their way he will be the one handicapped. Vince flips them off thinking they were not looking. UT decks him and pummels him. Kane helps out too! UT goes to work on the knee and puts him in the Figure Four! Brisco is unsure of what to do so Kane bashes his head into the steps. Vince is dragged to the floor and they drive the steel steps into the ankle as JR screams “Oh My God” over and over. It was the knee, my bad. The fans are ecstatic.

On Sunday Night Heat Chyna attacked Henry from behind, kicking him. She belts him with a pipe as refs try to hold her back.

Match 5: Mark Henry v. Farooq

Chyna is guest referee. Mark thinks that she is his girlfriend. Farooq tries to attack him at the bell and gets knocked down and bounced around. He is knocked to the floor and Henry goes out after him and bodyslams him. Henry crushes him with a powerslam….Chyna will not make the count and just glares at him. So Henry picks him up and gets a lowblow from Chyna and Farooq falls on top of him and Chyna counts a fast count and it is over.

* Lame ass advancement of a lame ass angle.

Chyna was served some papers and she tosses them after reading them and departs.

McMahon is put in an ambulance and Mankind is trying to give him some soda!

Match 5: Oddities v. Headbangers

This is like drinking Drano. I would almost rather. ICP trips up one of the Bangers and Kurrgan leaps on him for the win.

-******************** Negative a million stars. Kidding. Kind of.

Rock talks about the match tonight.

Val is getting a blowjob from Terri and he is doing that creepy ass sighing…..at least Val gives hope to ugly dudes everywhere.

Match 6: Val Venis v. X Pac (c) for WWF European Title

Val starts strong. He slams him and then hammers him for a bit. Pac is run over to the ropes where he is choked out. Pac runs into a boot but strikes back with a kick to the head, after a two count he strikes with a flying clothesline. Val is hammered in the corner, and Pac preps for the Buster but Terri trips him up and he is nearly pinned by the Perfect Plex. Val slams him again and Chyna has come down and she shoves Terri. Val tries to hit on Chyna and Pac slide kicks him and both and he and Chyna wail on him and the match is tossed.

* So with D’Lo getting the shot next week this was just a random and useless match. The fans boo too. There was really no purpose for it.

Now Cole is with Mankind in some sort of electrical storage room. Mankind brags about his chair swinging skills and that the People’s Elbow is the worst move ever. A Clinton joke too.

Kane and UT are strolling in the back.

Match 6: Mankind and Ken Shamrock and the Rock v. UT and Kane

Mankind and Shamrock start pummeling each other despite being partners. Mankind is uppercutted to the floor. Rock comes down to an ovation and he unloads on Shamrock! I love it when a wrestler like Austin or even DX and now the Rock turn face by proxy because the fans deem it so. No more Nation, it is just like he is done with it. Mankind and Rock stomp a hole in Shamrock and here comes UT and Kane.

They come into the ring and clear it with ease. Rock is left in the ring and he is decleated by a dual big boot. Mankind and Shamrock are brawling on the floor. UT pounds him in the corner, tags in Kane who continues. Rock is choked out in the corner. Mankind gets the tag after Rock escapes. He gets in a few blows but it does not last as Kane rocks him around the ring with blow after blow. UT is tagged in and he too batters him. Mankind is able to make the blind tag and Shamrock beats him up instead. Rock is in and he taps Shamrock on the back and clotheslines him! UT covers him for a two count. UT has the arm, tags in Kane who decks him. Kane drops him with a mighty blow getting a two count. Mankind gets the tag and finally they get in some offense. Kane is knocked to the floor and he goes onto the apron, Mankind does, but UT is right there and clotheslines him! He is beaten by both men and meets the steel steps headfirst.. UT holds him as Kane stomps on him and then he is pulled nut first into the post. Kane is tearing into him still and clubs the back. UT is in now and he hammers Mankind whose only offense is a back elbow. UT slams him and gets two. Mankind is dumped to the floor, and Kane flings him into the post with some velocity. UT chokes him out with a cable and Kane waltzes over with a chair and wallops Mankind upside the head with it. Mankind is rolled back into the ring and UT covers him but he is able to get his foot on the rope. Kane gets the tag and telegraphs the backdrop and Mankind strike with a swinging neckbreaker. Kane rises up and decks him and then goes over and hits Shamrock for fun. UT is back in and Mankind is getting punched over and over by both Kane and UT. But he is able to counter with a double-armed DDT and both he and Kane are down. Rock gets the hot tag, UT is in too and the latter is dropped with a DDT and then slammed. People’s Elbow time! He covers him and Kane makes the save. All five are in the ring and Shamrock clotheslines Kane over the top heading out too. Mankind gets the tag and he runs UT’s head into the boot of Shamrock, tags him and Shamrock eats a big boot but trips him up and goes for the Lock but Kane makes the save. Rock and UT are in the ring going at it: Rock Bottom and he gets the win!! Kane was busy brawling on the floor….

*** The match did the job. But this is how how you push someone. WCW did it with Goldberg but it is rare there. The WWF just gave the Rock the monster push. He is the heel and booed at the PPV against HHH, and then their next match he garners more respect and then after that he is really over. The WWF books him to win his next PPV and match and he pins the Undertaker cleanly! Smart.

*** Other than that match and the Austin Zamboni incident the show dragged. The midcard is just not that compelling. WWF always got praise for making their midcard great. I beg to differ right now. Val Venis is annoying, X Pac too. Oddities are awful. Gangrel even more so. There are some bright spots such as Edge and D’Lo Brown as well as JJ finally getting interesting. But it is the main event scene that dominates and holds my attention. It is a bit busy but at the same time they have freshened it up by getting Mankind involved again and the Rock too.