WCW Nitro 10/13/1997

Written by: Kevin Kildenberger

WCW has done a fairly effective job in setting up Havoc. WCW has rebounded since the disastrous run up to Fall Brawl. They have a lot of good things going on, such as Savage and DDP finishing their feud and Perfect and Flair. Not sure what is going on with the tag titles as Hall is facing Luger. Piper and Hogan has run its course and will be nothing more than kicks and punches. Still the undercard is shaping up well and Eddie is involved in a solid feud and we will see what they do with Malenko, Jericho and Benoit and hopefully it will be something decent.

WCW extends its thoughts to Brian Pillman’s family.

Here comes EB, Hogan and Savage. Hulk gets his flex on. EB has some important business to bring up. Bragging about Hulk’s new shitty TNT movie. There is a rumor going around that they will try to sneak in these signs to the World Series and even the competition and they would hate that and they have a lot to hate (talk about sheer idiocy). He turns his attention to Piper and yells about his gall in making the Outsiders wrestle. EB points to Savage and his neckbrace and wants to know what Piper thinks as that is assault and battery. Hogan’s turn and basically if you mess with Savage and Hogan you mess with them for life. Hogan calls the neck injury inexcusable and he will take care of it himself. Piper cannot beat him and the word icon does not apply to him as he has not sold out arenas and tonight he is going to take out Piper and DDP and get his belt back. EB shouts that no one leaves the building until he gets his belt back and DDP pays for his felonious assault…..I missed the belt taken I think but it has been a bit since I watched.

Match 1: Psychosis v. Eddie Guerrero (c) for WCW Cruiserweight Title

Jesus Guerrero is ripped. Pyschosis misses in the corner right as the bell rings and Eddie back suplexes him. Pyschosis goes up top and strikes with a leg lariat and a baseball slide that sends Eddie to the floor. Psychosis goes up and nails him with a senton backsplash. Psychosis is slow to get up and rolls Eddie back into the ring; he bodyslams him and heads upstairs but misses. Both are slow to get up and Eddie is rolled up and nearly pinned. Psychosis gets hit with a heel kick and they exchange holds and Eddie is dropped again after he connects with a backbreaker. Psychosis slams him and slowly heads up top but is crotched and Eddie heads up and superplexes him. Eddie heads up and finishes him with the Frog Splash.

Nice opener.

More history of Lucha Libre and interviews with Luchadores; they focus on the impact of losing their mask.

Gene is in the ring and he calls out Piper. Piper has some serious makeup on. He has two orders of business to take care of and he tells EB that he is the boss. He calls what happened to Savage, justice. He tells Hogan he does not deserve the belt the way he has treated it. The last piece of business, the Outsiders have to defend or they would be stripped. He talks about their injuries and he has to be fair, he has reconsidered and that he was right and they have to defend them or they will be stripped of the titles.

Okay they show him swinging the belt…I recall now just did not realize he “stole” it.

Match 2: Steven Regal v. Steve McMichael

They show the menage a trois between the McMichael’s and JJ.

They lock up and Mongo puts him in a side headlock. Regal pushes him into the ropes only to be run over. Regal has his arm and works that and the wrist. Regal takes him down as Mongo tries to escape, they get to their feet and Mongo reverses it and throws him. Regal drops him with an uppercut and kicks and stomps him. Regal knees him in the gut, and Mongo reverses a whip into the corner and Regal stops the momentum and Mongo looks confused so he elbows him awkwardly a couple of times and then abruptly finishes him off with the Tombstone.

Poor Regal.

Gene is with Debra and the rumor is JJ is not with WCW. Debra affirms that and it is time to move on to bigger and better things. Mongo calls him a snake and her too for that matter. He tells her to get home and get in the kitchen where she belongs. Debra calls herself the star and she has a plan at Havoc and it is a big surprise. Also, a dead snake can still bite.

Match 3: Yuji Nagata v. Chris Jericho

Jericho strikes first with a series of armbars and hammerlocks and he dropkicks him down. Now he goes back to the arm. Nagata suplexes him and snaps him over, kicking him in the back. Nagata puts him in a clutch and the ref makes him break it. He twists the arm but runs into a boot and is missile dropkicked from the middle rope. Nagata comes right back with some kicks but is grabbed around the neck and swung around. Jericho gets a two count but is grabbed and tossed back on his head. Jericho is on the apron and he is shoved into the rail. Jericho reverses a whip into the post and slams him. Sonny goes for a kick but it is blocked and he is shoved down. Jericho goes up top and Sonny trips him up and Yuji applies a leg submission called the Nagata Lock.

Jesus Jericho gets buried a lot. Fun match though.

Match 4: Scotty Riggs v. Goldberg

Raven and Saturn and another guy are sitting in the crowd….are they ever going to do anything with him?

They lock up and Goldberg pushes him down and for some reason is chastised by the ref. Goldberg spears him off the whip and drives his head into the mat a few times. he tosses him into the corner and the ref keeps at him. He runs into a couple of kicks but pulls him out of the corner by the legs. Riggs dropkicks him a couple of times and clotheslines him out. He leaps out and Goldberg catches him and lifts him up, dropping him down on the rail. Back in the ring it is Jackhammer time and all over.

They have his music now….boy some of his moves look like they hurt.

Match 5: Scott Hall and Syxx (c) v. Steiner Brothers

Hall is taking a little survey. And the survey does not go as well as usual. Hall tells everyone that Larry and Lex could not beat him on their best day. WCW is also trying to get them to put up the titles against the Steiners without Nash who needs knee surgery. But that is no problem as the titles will be put on the line.

Commercial.

Hall starts smacking Rick and but gets tossed out and so does Syxx by Scotty. Back in the ring, Syxx leapfrogs but is picked up by Scotty by the legs and driven through the mat. Rick and Hall are now in and Hall gets mauled in the corner, Hall reverses a whip and clotheslines him in the corner. Hall misses a clotheslines and Rick gets two after a flying clothesline. Rick goes up to the middle rope and is caught and tossed backwards. Hall misses the elbow drop, Rick is whipped into a knee from Syxx but he decks him. He is dropped by Hall and now Syxx lays into him. Hall pounds his head, bodyslams him and Syxx is back in and he stomps on him. He kicks him over and over in the corner and down goes Rick. Hall is tagged back in and he hammers Rick in the corner with a series of stomps. Syxx is in and goes for the Buster and eats a boot to the head. Scotty gets the hot tag and unloads on both men. Syxx is launched and Hall is powerbombed. He gorilla slams Syxx. Rick hoists up Syxx and Scotty DDT’s him off the top rope and the pin is about to be made but the ref is pulled out by Hall. DiBiase is not happy and Larry comes down and Scotty rolls him back into the ring and Hall is finished off with the top rope bulldog….new champs.

I enjoyed this match. Overbooked but Hall and Syxx got worked and that was nice to see.

Match 6: Dean Malenko v. Rey Mysterio Jr.

They go back and forth and neither can get the advantage. Dean runs him over off the whip and gets a two count. Rey gets on his shoulders and climbs down him but is sent over the top. Rey gets into the ring and arm drags him but gets hit with a dropkick and Dean gets another two count. Rey swings around him and rolls him up for a two count. Rey is whipped into the corner and he tries to float over but is grabbed and dropped….he tried a flying headscissors actually. Rey is snapped over and put in a rear chinlock and now headscissors. Rey is powerbombed and he gets two. Dean shoves him into the corner but Rey turns it only to be thrown off. Rey runs at him and is tossed and he lands on his feet on the top rope and quasi connects with a flying back crossbody. He gets a couple of near falls but gets popped. Rey is sent over to the apron and he hits his finisher but Eddie grabs the mask and runs off…saw a glimpse of the face and Dean uses that to finish him off with the Cloverleaf.

Fans were dead but fuck them. Decent match.

DDP is talking about his goals in a gym and he is not worried about money and accoutrements and he still comes to the Power Plant and that is contrast to Hogan and Savage and he has not changed and cannot afford to. He also appreciates Piper. The camera keeps panning around him and zooming in odd areas like biceps and tats and different head positions etc….anyway he is ready for Havoc.

Gene is in the ring and Piper comes out again. Gene wants to know about the tag match. Piper responds that Larry was sanctioned as a ref a week ago so the decision stands. He screams “Hail the Steiners.” The nWo does not do so good when it is forty to one and he alludes to the Havoc match and now EB and Savage comes down. EB calls him a wannabe commissioner and he will pay for a couple of things. The neck brace is a result of an assault and he wants to know if this is how he is going to run things. Savage who was on the apron is invited in and EB wants the title back. Piper just says they have come in to play and EB and Savage step back. Here comes the B squad and they enter the ring. Sting comes out and EB grabs the mic as the nWo keeps a wary distance. Sting gets in the ring and points the ball bat at them and he clocks Piper and it is clearly a fake one as they did not show it up close……I still should have known. It is Hogan and he takes off the mask and rips the Sting shirt and beats on Piper with a helping hand from his comrades.

Recap of Flair and Hennig.

Match 7: Scott Norton v. Ray Traylor

They go at it and Ray uppercuts and follows up with a back body drop. He gets out and runs after Buff. As he gets back in the ring it is Norton’s turn to beat him up. He pounds on the back over and over. He now stands and jumps on the back. Ray gets to his feet and fires back but is caught and slammed.

Kidman comes down wearing eyeshadow and sits by Raven.

Buff chokes him out on the ropes as Norton distracts the ref. Ray gets to his feet but is offense is short lived and down he goes. The slow moving match continues with measured blows from Norton but he seems to be upsetting Traylor and he drops him with a big uppercut. Norton is whipped into the corner and then smashed. He jumps on the back of his neck, slides under the rope, clocks him and drops Vince too. Buff gets up on the apron and tosses the spraypaint and the ref clearly sees it and turns to Vincent instead. Norton knocks out Traylor and it is over. They tag him too.

Terrible match.

Match 8: Alex Wright v. Disco Inferno (c) for WCW TV Title

Wright shoves him, so Disco shoves him back but is kicked and pushed down. Wright hammers him again the ropes and down goes Disco. He hits him with a dropkick to the jaw. He follows up with a standing dropkick. Wright kicks him in the gut a few times, finally takes his jacket off and whips him with it. Disco reverses a whip and hammers him. Wright makes a comeback and Disco is down and stomps on him for a good bit. He dances a bit and then hangs him over the apron and continues to pepper him with blows. He stomps on his hand and jumps on top of a struggling Disco. He rolls him back into the ring and Disco counters with a back slide getting a two count but is dropped with a clothesline. Wright bodyslams him but Disco counters and he gets a two count and here comes Jackie. They go back and forth and Disco hits him with a swinging neckbreaker and Disco yells at her and is rolled up but it is reversed and Disco gets the win.

Slow. But Disco is getting a minor push.

Jackie points and yells at him as he departs.

Match 9: Curt Hennig (c) v. DDP for WCW US Title

DDP grabs the arm and starts to work it but is shoved down. Curt escapes to the floor and a fan grabs him and he glares at him so the fan shows him his nWo shirt! Classic. Back in the ring they lock up and Curt is taken down but he escapes the Cutter and retreats to the floor again. Hennig gets on the apron and spits on DDP who returns the favor and Hennig drops to the floor really irate. Curt is reversed into the corner and he tries to take down DDP but he is taken down. He gets to his feet but DDP will not let the headlock go. Hennig counters with a hammerlock but is hit with a shoulder block and DDP takes him down again and gets two. DDP runs into boot and is clocked with a hard right. Curt kicks DDP in the gut a couple of times, puts him in a chinlock and gets one. He hits him with standing dropkick. He goes back to the chinlock. He still has it on. DDP breaks loose and applies a sleeper only to have Curt break that with a jawbreaker and now they go back and forth. DDP hits him with an inverted atomic drop and he has him down after a few other moves but as he goes for the Cutter is stopped with another jawbreaker. Flair is fighting to get to the ring. DDP rolls him up and there is a count of three and Flair comes down and goes after Hennig who runs out. DDP thinks he won the title but the ref claims otherwise….as he claims he saw Flair.

Okay match. It was the drama that mattered.

After the break Anderson and Piper are coming down the aisle discussing the match and Piper gives the belt to DDP. Hogan rolls in and he is attacked but the numbers game takes over and down goes Piper and DDP. Savage with the neckbrace hits the elbow drop. Savage goes up again and hits Piper with the elbow this time. Sting shows up in the crowd and stares down….and now Hogan notices him and the nWo stares up at him. A Sting runs down and is hit and another and yet another comes down and they are shoved out as they come out of the crowd and down the ramp. More and more come and get leveled and some try to keep the mask and wig on! Buff hits the real Sting and it has no effect and he is Deathdropped and he takes off the amsk and Piper is up again swinging the belt….as the nWo retreats.

When I say drama I mean the actual match and not the overbooking. But at least the nWo is losing….kind of. Now why the fuck is Piper up thirty minutes after getting his ass kicked and then up again at the end of the second beatdown? Sweet holy Allah dude sell something…..please. Other than that the show was really good. They kept it nicely paced and the wrestling was above average over all. They focused on the main players and those in the PPV. Hopefully they can keep this up as Nitro is recapturing what made it great last year and again over the summer. Sure there are booking issues but then again sometimes it is fine not to over analyze shit and enjoy the show and I enjoyed this.