WWF Prime Time Wrestling 5/4/1987

Written by: Man of Steel from Place To Be

Prime Time Wrestling
May 4, 1987
Gorilla Monsoon and Lord Alfred Hayes

-Gorilla welcomes us to the show this week, and he lets us know that Bobby Heenan is not with us for various reasons, then goes over this week’s show, capped off with a tag team battle royal at Madison Square Garden. We start with a recap of “The Ken Patera Story” and Bobby denying he had anything to do with Patera’s downward spiral.

-We go to an episode of Superstars and Mean Gene lets us know that we have a debate between Ken Patera and Bobby Heenan. Bobby starts by saying he’s too high a stature to be in the same ring with an ex-convict. Patera responds by saying he paid his debt to society and he’s proud of his amateur, Olympic, and professional accomplishments. Bobby reads from a piece of paper, but they bleep his comments out and then a graphic comes up saying producers had to bleep it out due to its heinous nature. When the bleep ends, Bobby says Patera should be kept behind walls because he’s vicious and uncontrollable. Patera repeats himself by saying he paid his debt and he’s happy to be out of his weasel family. He says while he was in prison he stewed over the fact that Bobby hung him out to dry, after saying he would stand behind him every step of the way and he abandoned him. Bobby retorts by saying he’s a businessman, not a babysitter. What you do outside the ring is your business, and he really doesn’t care about your wife or snot-nosed kids. Patera repeats AGAIN he’s proud to be in a country that lets you pay your debt and he’s proud of his amateur and professional record. Bobby says all he cared about was belts, and if he wanted a belt so bad he could have asked. So Bobby takes his belt off and starts whipping him with it, but Patera takes over. He puts the belt around Bobby’s neck and whips him across the ring.

-Gorilla says Bobby lost the debate, but clearly Patera was killed in it. I repeat again, it was a logically retarded storyline. I never cared much for Patera anyway.

George “The Animal” Steele vs. “Luscious” Johnny Valiant
Maple Leaf Gardens, 1/11/87
Gorilla Monsoon and Billy Red Lyons

Johnny V is filling in for Honky Tonk Man, whose arm is in a sling. Steele with some punches and V bails. V does this a couple of times until V starts choking him but Steele starts biting him. Steele with a body slam, and as he lays into Steele Honky comes in with the sling off and attacks Steele, forcing the DQ. Honky and Johnny V work Steele over as the crowd’s chanting “JYD”. Junkyard Dog doesn’t come out but Steele chases them off. Typically crappy match with the Animal in it. WINNER: George Steele by disqualification (Grade: 0)

-Gorilla and Alfred chat about George Steele, but its boring and without Bobby its not the same.

Outback Jack vs. Frenchy Martin
Spectrum, 3/14/87
Roger Kent and Ken Resnick

They lock up and a clean break. They lock up again and Jack pushes him down. Jack with an armdrag. They lock up again and another armdrag with a bodyslam from Jack and Frenchy bails. Frenchy with a boot and a front facelock, but Jack puts him on the second rope and lets go. Frenchy bails again and this is dreadful. Frenchy drops to his knees and wants to shake hands, but as Jack turns to the crowd Frenchy hits low. Frenchy with some chops and a front facelock. Frenchy loses focus and Jack with some right hands. Jack off the ropes with a reverse elbow and a splash for 2. Jack with a clothesline into a back bulldog for the win. WINNER: Outback Jack (Grade: 1)

Jim Brunzell vs. Jim Neidhart
Madison Square Garden, 5/19/86
Gorilla Monsoon and Lord Alfred Hayes

Wow this match is almost a year old. So many house shows and they have to dig stuff this old? They lock up and Anvil pushes off. They lock up again and Brunzell with a waistlock but Anvil breaks it. Brunzell with a hammerlock but Anvil pulls the hair to break. Anvil with a headlock after more hair pulling. Brunzell tries to break it a couple of times but finally pushes off and gets a drop toe hold into a reverse anklelock. Neidhart makes the ropes and bails to the floor. Anvil takes his time getting back into the ring and they lock up. Neidhart with a knee to the gut and a forearm shot puts Brunzell to the floor. Neidhart drapes Brunzell over the rope and crushes him with a forearm. Brunzell tries again and Neidhart with an elbow. Third time Brunzell grabs the legs and pulls Neidhart down. Brunzell whips Neidhart into the post and he heads into the ring. Both back in and Brunzell with a hammerlock. Brunzell turns it into an armbar and Neidhart gets to the ropes. Neidhart whips him into the ropes and Brunzell with a cross body for 2. Brunzell goes back to the armbar. Brunzell turns it into a half-nelson pin for 2, but Neidhart powers it into a pin for 2. Brunzell goes back to the hammerlock and the Garden crowd is restless. Neidhart gets to the ropes and Brunzell breaks it. Brunzell goes back to the armbar and he kicks the arm. Brunzell keeps cranking away but Neidhart breaks it, whips Brunzell into the ropes and hits a spinebuster. Neidhart starts choking as we go to break. We’re back and Neidhart is biting Brunzell’s head. Neidhart goes after Brunzell’s taped hand by biting the fingers. Brunzell on the apron and Neidhart is choking him on the top rope. Brunzell with a low shoulder block and a small package for 2. Neidhart regains control with a rear chinlock. Brunzell pushes off and goes for a hip toss but Niedhart with a low boot and back to the headlock. Brunzell hits the ropes and a nice leap frog but Neidhart responds with a shot to the throat, and back to the headlock. Brunzell pushes off into the ropes and latches on a sleeper, but Neidhart backs into the corner and pastes Brunzell into the turnbuckle. Niedhart back to…yup the headlock. Brunzell breaks free again and he takes Neidhart down by the leg and starts cranking on it. He drags Neidhart to the corner and slams the knee into the steel post. Both are back in the ring and Brunzell kicks the leg. Brunzell locks up a half-assed figure four and Neidhart makes it to the ropes. Brunzell is choking then whips the Anvil into the corner but Niedhart hits a clothesline for 2. Off the ropes and a double clothesline drops both men. Brunzell goes for a slam but falls back and Neidhart gets a 2. Off the ropes again and Brunzell hits the big drop kick. He goes for the 3 count but Neidhart puts his foot on the rope and the bell rings as the time limit expired. The crowd got into it late but slow. WINNER: Time Limit Draw (Grade: 2)

Butch Reed vs. Dick Slater
Spectrum, 3/14/87
Roger Kent and Ken Resnick

Great, another match with this dog broadcast team. Reed postures to the crowd at the start. They lock up and Slater goes for a chop but breaks the hold. Slater goes after Slick for a minute but heads back to the ring. Slater with some right hands and “The Natural” begs off. They lock again and Slater with a hammerlock. Reed hits the ropes and they lock up again. Reed with a low knee into a bodyslam. Reed with a headlock to “The Rebel”. Reed blocks the ref and chokes Slater. Slater tries to push off but Reed pulls hair. Reed whips Slater into the corner and keeps choking. Reed with a hip toss into an elbow to the head. Reed starts choking again, with his hands and the middle rope. Reed throws Slater into the ropes but misses a clothesline and Slater with a chop. Slater with some elbows for 2. Slater tries for a piledriver but Slater reverses it into a back drop. Reed with an elbow but Slater slams his head into the turnbuckle. Slater with a small package for 2. Slater with a suplex for 2. Slater’s head butt is missed and Reed capitalizes with a piledriver. Reed starts stomping as Slater bails. Reed goes after him and slams Slater into the railing. Reed goes for the post but Slater pushes him into the post. Slater with chops and head butts and both back into the ring. Slater with a snap mare, then to the top rope. Slater hits the flying elbow off the ropes but Slick puts Reed’s foot on during the 2 count. Slater chases Slick and Reed catches him coming in. Slater with a barrage of punches in the corner but Reed grabs the legs and perches his legs on the ropes as he rolls Slater up for the 3 count. WINNER: Butch Reed (Grade: 2)

-Back to the studio and Alfred Hayes picks up Bobby’s phone and its Heenan who demands the show be stopped if he’s not there. He’s waiting for his neurosurgeon coming from Europe.

Demolition vs. Paul Roma & Jim Powers
Thomas & Mack Center, 3/21/87
Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura and Bruno Sammartino

This is from a Superstars episode, as the Young Stallions get their first look. Ax starts with Powers and takes some big shots and a body slam. Ax slams Power’s head into Smash’s boot and a tag. Smash cranks on Power’s head and then some knees to the back. Tag to Ax who keeps the knees going. Tag to Smash who hits a body slam, but puts his head down and Powers with a boot. He tags Roma and a drop kick. He tries a second but misses. Tag to Ax who hits the Decapitation Device for the win. Dominating performance by the Ax and the Smasher. WINNERS: Demolition (Grade: 1)

-Gorilla says Bobby Heenan passed money around to the control room so they could air the Muraco/Fuji comedy bit. The money was $3. We go to a WWF Update with Craig DeGeorge, who talks about the ongoing feud with Hercules and Billy Jack Haynes.

SD Jones vs. Dino Bravo
Spectrum, 3/14/87
Roger Kent and Ken Resnick

Do we have to take another match from this show so we must listen to these humps again? Bravo attacks SD early with some body slams and stomps. SD reverses the whip into the corner with a hip toss and body slam. SD with a head butt, and Bravo’s reeling. SD runs into the corner and jumps but Bravo catches him and hits the reverse atomic drop. Bravo with some clubbing blows into a Boston Crab. SD pushes out of it but Bravo with a body slam. Bravo misses the elbow and SD with some right hands. SD with a back drop and another head butt. SD goes for a double ax handle in the corner and misses, which gives Bravo a chance to hit the side suplex for the win. WINNER: Dino Bravo (Grade: 1.5)

$50,000 Tag Team Battle Royal
Madison Square Garden, 10/20/86
Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund and Lord Alfred Hayes

Here’s who’s in it: King Kong Bundy/Big John Studd, Islanders, Moondogs, SD Jones & Mike Rotundo, Jay Strongbow & Steve Gatorwolf, WWF Tag Team Champions British Bulldogs, Hart Foundation, Killer Bees, Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff, The Machines, The Rougeaus, and the Dream Team. Typical battle royal stuff, which ends when Bundy accidentally clotheslined his partner out of the ring, giving the Islanders the win and the money. WINNERS: The Islanders (Grade: N/A)

-We return to the studio, where Gorilla says Bobby Heenan will return to the show next week. He gives a special Mother’s Day message to all the moms out there, and we’re out.

DRAMA’S TAKE: As much as Lord Alfred is a very serviceable co-host, it’s just not the same when Bobby co-hosts. I think the forced phone call just added to that theory. The Brunzell/Neidhart match was the best of the show, as everything else was pretty much squash junk. The tag team battle royal finale was typical battle royal fare. The main part of the show was the Heenan/Patera debate. Of course Patera had to come out on top, and Gorilla foolishly said that Patera came out the better there, even though all he did was repeat him 3 times. The whole storyline was lame, and now that we’re smarter wrestling fans we all see how illogical the whole thing was. Overall a decent show, but without Bobby that pizzazz just wasn’t there. FINAL GRADE: C-

WWF Titleholders (As of May 4, 1987)
World Champion: Hulk Hogan (January 23, 1984)
Intercontinental Champion: Ricky Steamboat (March 29, 1987)
Tag Team Champions: The Hart Foundation (January 26, 1987)