WWF Superstars 9/19/1992

Written by: Tom Hopkins

Mr. Perfect and Vince McMahon are here to call the action and we’re jumping right into this episode.

–Bret Hart vs. Glen Ruth–
Bret is fresh off losing the IC title to British Bulldog and McMahon is already hailing it as one of the best single-matches in WWE history and he’s right in what would usually be a hyperbolic statement. Perfect couldn’t care about this match – he just is happy that Flair is the world champion. Papa Shango pops up in an interview saying it was his curse that cost him the IC title at Summerslam and he says it will hurt him at Survivor Series 5 years later as well. That’s one curse that was tough to break. Bret makes short work of Ruth, who happens to have the same amount of letters in their name, finishing with a Sharpshooter at 2:19.

Mean Gene is at the Update Center and he recounts the events that led to Savage losing the WWE title to Flair, from Flair softening up Macho’s leg at Summerslam to Ramon’s involvement.

–Shawn Michaels (w/Sensational Sherri) vs. Ross Greenburg–
Sherri has the huge heart-shaped mirror with her and that’s about the most interesting thing I can mention about this match. Ross gets the standard jobber offense in before running into a big boot in the corner. Shawn hits the super kick which at this point in his career was just a set-up to his real finisher – the teardrop suplex. This one’s over at 2:51. We’re two matches in and we’ve seen two wrestlers who would one day battle for the WWE Title and partake in what would become one of the biggest matches in wrestling history. Who knew back in 1992?

Sean’s at the Event Center and he introduces some promo’s for us. We hear from the Big Boss Man, who is the law and order of the WWE. He will get his revenge on Nailz, natch. Martel is also hear to tell us about being the best wrestler in the WWE. I think he mentions something about being destined and I immediately get an image of Alberto Del Rio. Here’s an interesting question – did Del Rio steal some of Martel’s swagger and bravado for his character?

–The Mountie (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. Tatanka–
Mountie asks the Hershey Hillbillies if they know who he is but before they can answer Tatanka’s music hits and the Native American comes to the ring. Hart has the Shock Stick with him, too. Mountie imitates Tatanka’s dance which gets some decent heat. Mountie asks Tatanka if he know who he is and gets smacked in the face as his answer. Tatanka no-sells a chop and delivers some of his own and Mountie is sent hurtling to the outside. We head to break and return with Hart and Mountie regrouping on the outside. Hart distracts Tatanka and the referee which allows the Mountie to sneak in from behind. Mountie misses his boot and Perfect tells us that no one sneaks up on an Indian except another Indian. I am getting way too much enjoyment from that line. Mountie is atomic dropped and falls outside but skins the cat as Tatanka is distracted again. Mountie tries to knee Tatanka from behind but hits Hart instead. Hart trips up Tatanka coming off the ropes and Mountie takes control. Mountie sets up Tatanka in a reverse tree of woe and stomps away. Mountie gets a piledriver but instead of covering asks for the microphone. Even Perfect recognizes that’s not a smart move. I AM THE MOUNTIE!!! Of course, Tatanka gets to his feet and chops away. Mountie’s oversell is incredible here, almost bordering on Hennig-like levels. Tatanka connects with a top rope tomahawk but misses a splash. Jimmy grabs the shock stick and slides it to the Mountie as he distracts the referee. Mountie has it in his hands and tries using it in plain sight of the referee and is immediately disqualified as a result at 8:15. Mountie chases the referee which allows Tatanka to make the save and throw some chops before Mountie bails. This was wildly fun and I liked it more than I usually would just because of its milieu. This is normally a showcase of 2-minute squashes. Here was a full 8-minute match (not counting commercials) that actually had a decent story and some amazing selling from the Mountie. This was a pleasant surprise. **1/2.

It’s more Mooney time! We hear from Virgil who calls out Ramon. Listen, Virg, you couldn’t beat Nailz, don’t call out Ramon. We hear from Ramon himself. Ramon completely ignores Virgil’s statements and instead focuses on Randy Savage. Unfortunately we never would get a definitive WWE blowoff to their feud.

–Nailz vs. Kerry Davis–
Before the match Fink tells us that Shawn Michaels has left the building. Nailz comes out and immediately I recognize that Fink’s announcement is the best part of this match. If you haven’t seen a Nailz match here it is: Choke, choke, choke, finish with a rear choke. Rinse and repeat. This is over at 1:03, so at least it was quick. Nailz brutalizes Davis with the night stick after the match.

Macho Man comes out for an interview with Gene Okerlund. Savage is limping and has an Ultimate Maniacs kneepad on. He warns Flair and Ramon that they will soon have to face the power of the Ultimate Maniacs and sure enough, Ultimate Warrior comes out. They babble on incoherently which isn’t surprising given the two. I do enjoy how they are building to Survivor Series already.

–Kamala (w/Harvey Whippleman & Kimchee) vs. Tony DeVito–
I love the way Finkel introduces Whippleman. Such disdain in his voice! Tony DeVito would go onto minor fame in ECW and ROH. We hear from Whippleman that Kamala is not afraid of the Undertaker or anyone else. I don’t know if people knew but according to TMZ Kamala had to have one of his legs amputated recently, within the last few months or so at least. Kamala ends with the big splash and finally covers to end this at 1:40.

Paul Bearer wheels a casket out after the match and Kamala nearly shits a brick before running out of the arena through the crowd. I guess there is something Kamala is afraid of.

Sean begins the big wind down and it seems that throughout this whole episode Mooney and the Event Center aren’t mixed as loud as the in-ring action. Anyway, the Natural Disasters say they will take on all challengers to their tag titles. Another champion is here, this time it is the British Bulldog. He is proud to win the title in his home country.

Next week on Superstars – The debut of Komet Kid (who would become Max Moon), the Big Boss Man, Razor Ramon and the British Bulldog. Also, Flair will be on Primetime this Monday and will have a special interview next week on Superstars.

–The Bottom Line–
What a refreshing episode! A nice, long match highlights this and there were some cool angle building segments (Ultimate Maniacs and Kamala/Undertaker) that really made this an entertaining show. This is definitely one of the better episodes of Superstars I can remember.