WWF RAW 11/24/1997

Written by: Matt Peddycord

WWF: Raw is War
November 24, 1997
Fayetteville, NC
Cumberland County Center

The current WWF champs are as follows:
World Champion: Shawn Michaels (11/9/1997)
Intercontinental Champion: Steve Austin (11/9/1997)
European Champion: Shawn Michaels (9/20/1997)
World Tag Team Champions: The Legion of Doom (10/13/1997)

TIME TO GET RAW! Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jim Cornette.

Rick Rude’s music hits, but he’s in WCW? Oh okay, it’s “Handsome” Harvey Wippleman instead now wearing a really cheap suit. He does his best Rick Rude impression – and it’s pretty funny. He introduces D-Generation X: Shawn Michaels, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, and Chyna. Shawn takes the mic and pie-faces Wippleman out of the ring while sarcastically noting that Rude’s spot was a “real tough spot to fill”. So according to them, Rude has been thoroughly mocked. Shawn switches gears and says he hasn’t gotten a lot of sleep since Survivor Series. He’s just a total wreck over this whole Montreal screwjob thing. He even starts to fake cry a little bit saying that everyone involved deserved a better outcome than what we got. Without the knowledge of Vince McMahon or anybody else in the WWF, Shawn tells us that he has successfully made contact with Bret Hart and that they will confront each other here tonight on RAW. Whether their confrontation ends in a handshake or in a fight, it will end tonight once and for all.

WWF World Tag Team Champions The Legion of Doom vs. Road Dogg & Billy Gunn
JR informs us that the LOD wanted to get their hands on Road Dogg and Billy Gunn so bad that they couldn’t wait for the next In Your House PPV. This is all Road Warriors to start as they handle Billy Gunn pretty easily. Road Dogg tries to jump Hawk, but receives a reverse neckbreaker for a big pop. It’s great having Cornette out here talking up the history of the Road Warriors. Road Dogg tries to duck out on Hawk and gets floored with a clothesline by Animal. LOD continue to dominate Road Dogg with their usual while JR and Corny hype-but-not-really the ECW PPV November to Remember for November 30. Cornette was going to buy the PPV, but forgot he had a colonoscopy that day, which he would rather do than watch ECW. Right before we go to break, Hawk misses a corner charge and runs into the post as the Outlaws pounce on him. When we come back, the LOD suffer a blind tag. While the ref is with Animal, Road Dogg blasts Hawk with one of the tag title belts. Cover by Gunn, 1-2-NO! He misses a flying legdrop causing the hot tag to Animal. Fayetteville eats it up like it’s biscuits and gravy. Ref gets knocked out of the ring by a shoulder tackle, but the LOD continue their dominating ways. They go for the DOOMSDAY DEVICE on Gunn, but Road Dogg cracks a chair over Animal’s back. While Hawk beats Road Dogg to the floor, Billy has Animal in a victory roll as another ref runs down and counts the pinfall. (6:39 shown) Have the Road Warriors ever lost clean? Anyways, the new tag champs escape to the parking lot like a bat out of hell and drive off. They nearly collide with an incoming limousine we’re believed to be holding Bret Hart. Ahh, the Monday Night Wars and their mysterious limos. I’ll probably always have a soft spot for the Road Warriors. *½

During the break, LOD beat up security guards trying to get them out of the ring.

Out comes Goldust in a wheelchair wheeled down to the ring by a nurse wearing a surgeon’s mask. Michael Cole conducts the interview. Goldust says that the broken arm has spread to the rest of his body and he is now suffering from paralysis in his limbs. HE CAN’T HELP IT! Goldust even has Michael Cole cross his legs in a weird moment. He asks the nurse to rub alcohol on his shoulders. Goldust says that alcohol is the only thing that soothes his soul anymore. He thanks the people for their letters and prayers wishing him well when Vader comes out wanting to know why he got hit in the head with a hammer last week. And who can really blame him? When Vader tries to turn the wheelchair over, the nurse squirts the rubbing alcohol in his eyes. Goldust beats on the blinded Vader while the nurse disrobes to reveal herself as LUNA VACHON. Refs and agents head down to keep them separated. JR – “[Goldust] left his wife and family for that? You’ve got to be kidding me.” This was so Memphis-y.

LIMOS ARE HERE!

We get a Sgt. Slaughter video package showing us what a beast this man was fifteen years ago. Out he comes to meet Michael Cole for an interview. Hunter Hearst Helmsley won’t be facing Commissioner Slaughter at In Your House, he’ll be facing the old Sgt. Slaughter. When he puts the hat on, his voice changes and he starts calling Helmsley slime and a maggot. Anyways, he tells Helmsley that they will meet in a Boot Camp match. Fayetteville doesn’t know what that means though, but you would think Fort Bragg would at least pop for the name. This is an impassioned promo from Slaughter. He starts referencing one too many Vietnam War movies from the 1970s, but still.

WWF Light Heavyweight Title Tournament Quarterfinals: Brian Christopher (w/Jerry Lawler) vs. Flash Flanagan
This is the final quarterfinal match for the tournament. Flanagan BUM RUSHES THE SHOW with a somersault dive on Christopher to start. Inside the ring though, Lawler stops him on the apron and holds onto his foot so that Christopher can give the man a sunset flip powerbomb to the floor! Back in, Christopher hits the missile dropkick to the back of the head. Christopher hits a Rocker Dropper, but Flanagan fights back with a Russian legsweep. He connects with a couple clotheslines, but Christopher catches him for the Full Nelson Faceslam. Reverse DDT out of the corner sets up the TENNESSEE JAM for the win. (3:31) Christopher will meet Scott Taylor in the semi-finals. That match will just be TOO MUCH. *

ENTER THE WARZONE! Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler.

Alright, DX returns to the ring to have this final showdown with Bret Hart. Before that begins, Hunter Hearst Helmsley tells Sgt. Slaughter that he wasn’t scared of the man when he was a kid, and he definitely isn’t scared of him now. To make things worse, Hunter tells Fayetteville that he will be showing his dick to the wives of the soldiers at Fort Bragg while they’re away. Yikes. Shawn introduces us to Bret Hart. Oh boy, it’s midget Bret Hart. If the Rick Rude mocking wasn’t ridiculous enough, this is even more ridiculous. Shawn puts the little man in the Sharpshooter while HHH does the play by play and shouts praises to HBK. While the hold is locked in, HHH makes the little guy admit that Shawn is the best there is and all that jazz. When they let him up, Helmsley sticks a WCW sign on his butt and sends him out of here. Once he goes back through the curtain, Jim Neidhart appears declaring he is the HART FOUNDATION. He wants to kick their butts, but HBK tries to talk him out of it. He sweet talks Neidhart telling him that he was the charismatic one of the Hart Foundation and wonders where were the big money contracts that Bret Hart was offered that was never offered to Jim Neidhart. Since all of the Hart family are either home crying over Montreal or injured, Shawn knows the man has a wife and family to support and offers him the opportunity of a lifetime: a spot in DX. He must decide by 11PM tonight though. JR can’t believe this.

We see Steve Austin eating dinner with some family who won a contest. Weird.

Video package on Butterbean airs. HE’S A MONSTER.

Ken Shamrock vs. Savio Vega
Savio pearl harbors Shamrock to start. Shamrock fights back as he goes for the ankle early, but runs into a spinning heel kick in the corner. Savio dumps out Shamrock as Miguel Perez Jr. runs down to put the boots to the number one contender. Back inside, they play off a chinlock. When he fights up, Savio kicks him down and puts his feet on the ropes for a nearfall. Splash by Vega hits knees. Shamrock makes a comeback with a powerslam and a hurracanrana. Miguel gets knocked off the apron and Shamrock ducks the SPINNING HEEL KICK. Belly to belly suplex and the ANKLELOCK wraps this one up as Shamrock continues his winning ways. (5:20) Just a little showcase for Shamrock. Doubt anybody thought Vega was going over here. ¾*

The Nation of Domination are in the ring and Rocky Maivia takes the mic away from Michael Cole. He’s got the IC belt over his shoulder like he’s the champ. Somebody is playing with the lights and the audio. Rocky sucks starts appearing on the TitanTron and everybody is very confused as to what is happening. He sends the NOD to find out. Next thing we know, Steve Austin is on camera inside the production truck playing with the controls. Next time Rocky sees 316 on his beeper, he’ll know his ass belongs to Stone Cold. While Rocky continues to watch the TitanTron, Austin is in the ring. Rocky checks his beeper – freaks out – and gets spun around for a couple right hands from Austin. The Nation of Domination head back down to save the day. The difference between Austin and other heroes is that he doesn’t jump the rail and live to fight another day, he grabs a chair and returns to the ring to scare everybody else away with the belt still in possession of Maivia. Austin tells Rocky to enjoy his Thanksgiving and gives him the bird. This was good but it could have been better. Who wouldn’t have wanted to see a Stone Cold Stunner on the Rock right there?

Crush vs. Jeff Jarrett
OK – this must be the last time we see Crush in the WWF. Backstage, Jeff Jarrett pitches a fit about how his poor locker room conditions don’t meet what was in his contract and refuses to wrestle. Jarrett keeps calling Crush by the wrong name saying he won’t wrestle a biker like Chainz. So Crush wins by forfeit and now Kane and Paul Bearer appear. Crush stands up to Kane, but he’s quickly put down with a Chokeslam and the TOMBSTONE. The DOA come out to help their leader. One of the WWF agents Gerald Brisco is out and he bumps into Kane. Big mistake. Brisco gets his first CHOKESLAM. Kane sets the corners on fire while refs help poor Jerry to the back.

Shawn Michaels (w/Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Jim Neidhart & Chyna) vs. Vader
Yes, Neidhart comes out with DX. Vader has his eye covered with some sort of bandage. Let’s take a commercial break. We are JIP as Vader knocks Shawn around for a bit and sits on his chest to counter a sunset flip. I mean, really Shawn? Big splash gets two. Shawn avoids an avalanche, but misses Sweet Chin Music and gets drilled with a clothesline. As Vader comes off the ropes, Neidhart pulls the top rope down and Vader spills out to the floor. Helmsley and Neidhart put the boots to the big guy. Back inside, Vader reverses a whip on Shawn and catches him with another clothesline. He heads up for the VADER BOMB, but Helmsley throws more liquid into Vader’s eyes. JR declares that it was hot coffee, but how would he know that? While Vader grabs Helmsley on the apron, Shawn gives him a superkick to the back of the head followed by SWEET CHIN MUSIC. Cover, 1-2-3. (2:42 shown) Just when it looks like Neidhart is officially a member of DX, Chyna gives him a low blow to show that he is indeed NOT a part of their crew. They do a big number on Neidhart – completely disrespecting the man and trying to show how DX rules not just the WWF, but the wrestling WORLD. This continues on until we close out the show. JR is completely disgusted. ¾*