WCW UnCensored is only three days away and we’re coming off a dreadful episode of Nitro to witness a taped edition of Thunder. Typically, taped Thunders will not have anything meaningful in the sense of promos or angle development. However, the show will be mostly filled with in-ring wrestling. I can live with that tradeoff. In case you’re wondering, there’s not going to be much for angle advancement on this Thunder.
Nitro was a disaster and provided virtually zero to get me excited for UnCensored. The pay per view is heavily focused on the barbed wire steel cage match between WCW World Champion Hollywood Hogan and Ric Flair. For the past three months the NWO Wolfpac (or Elite) have been making Flair’s life a living hell which included Flair being nearly murdered in a field. We’re only a few weeks apart from that moment and Flair acted very much so as a heel against Goldberg in a match that simply didn’t need to happen whatsoever. Flair’s brawl with the NWO after the match garnered zero crowd reaction. I’m predicting that David is going to turn on Hogan and somehow Hogan is going to turn babyface out of it and I can’t wrap my head around it.
I should note that they have mentioned a special stipulation for the cage match, which fans could only find out about if they went to the website. As it turns out, the stipulation is that the barbed wire cage match is also a first blood match. That’s right the first man to bleed will essentially lose the match. I’m sure the reason this isn’t mentioned on TV is because of standards and practices being anti-blood.
MARCH 11TH — WINSTON-SALEM, NC — LAWRENCE JOEL VETERANS MEMORIAL COLISEUM — TAPED
RAVEN PROMO
CONTEXT: In the ring, Raven cuts a promo about if chaos is inevitable then why keep order. Raven talks about the three way match with Hak and Bam-Bam Bigelow. Raven was told by veterans to speak nicely about his opponents Bigelow has nice tattoos and Hak doesn’t sweat much for a fat guy. Raven finishes off with his catchphrase.
Bob’s Take: Raven is trying to get What About Me? over as a phrase, and I’m not sure if it will work as a babyface. It’s such a heel thing to say to be a whiner. 0 for 1
MATCH #1: RAVEN VS. DAVE TAYLOR
FINISH: Raven hits the Evenflow DDT to pickup the clean victory.
Bob’s Take: There’s not much to this one. Raven got a pop for the DDT, but the match isn’t all that good or interesting. 0 for 2
MATCH #2: CHRIS BENOIT & DEAN MALENKO VS. DISORDERLY CONDUCT
FINISH: Benoit picks up the win following a top rope diving headbutt
Bob’s Take: Horsemen look ready for UnCensored and prepared to win the tag titles. This was just an extended squash, but enjoyable for what it was. 1 for 3
HORSEMEN PROMO ON WINDHAM & HENNIG
CONTEXT: Dean Malenko calls out the WCW Tag Team Champions Windham and Hennig so they don’t have to wait for UnCensored. Benoit says that Winston Salem is Horsemen country and they want to settle this Horsemen style. Hennig and Windham come out and distract the Horsemen allowing Disorderly Conduct to cheap shot them. That momentum doesn’t last and finishes with Malenko and Benoit locking in their respective submission holds.
Bob’s Take: Benoit and Malenko are too smart for the heels. I don’t hate it. Simple and effective. 2 for 4
MATCH #3: HAK VS. THE BARBARIAN
FINISH: Jimmy Hart tried to toss a kendo stick to Barbarian, but Hak grabbed the stick and hit a side Russian leg sweep to win the match.
Bob’s Take: I seem to remember that Hak declared every match he’d compete in was contested under Hak rules, which is essentially Raven’s rules, which is just a hardcore match. It should be against the law to have Hak compete in anything other than a hardcore match. This was not good. 2 for 5
MATCH #4: WCW TELEVISION CHAMPION SCOTT STEINER & BUFF BAGWELL VS. BOOKER T & REY MYSTERIO JR.
NOTE: It’s announced during the match that WCW Television Champion Scott Steiner will defend the title against Booker T. Also, Vincent squares off against Stevie Ray in a Harlem street fight where the winner will be the leader of the black and white.
FINISH: Booker nails Bagwell with a missile dropkick and Mysterio hit a top rope splash to pin Bagwell. After the match, Steiner attacks the referee with a chair and hits Booker T over the head, but Booker hardly sold the chair shot.
Bob’s Take: A mostly standard tag match, but certainly better than what we got prior to it. Booker and Mysterio have been entertaining in their singles pushes, so naturally they did well as a team. This was a good pin win for Mysterio even if the finish was coming off a move from Booker T to set it up. Regardless, an enjoyable tag match. 3 for 6
UNCENSORED THREE WAY HARDCORE VIDEO PACKAGE
CONTEXT: Raven, Hak and Bam-Bam Bigelow provided promos regarding their UnCensored match. Raven is going to pass his abuse onto Hak and Bigelow. Hak wants them to prove that they’re hardcore. Bigelow cuts a promo saying he’s the guy who took things to the next level.
Bob’s Take: It’s fine for what it was. I think these three could have a good hardcore match since they are all fairly well experienced at it. 4 for 7
WCW TAG TEAM TITLE VIDEO PACKAGE
CONTEXT: Benoit and Malenko talk about Windham and Hennig being cowards. Windham says the toughest thing about being a Horsemen is realizing you’ve been outsmarted. Windham thinks the worst thing you can experience is someone being smarter. Malenko knows what it feels like to choked out by a belt. Malenko promises there is enough room for Windham and Hennig’s neck. Hennig promises the only belt touching them at UnCensored are the tag titles. Malenko wants them to remember the sound of the belt hitting their back. Hennig says that Benoit and Malenko are forever going to be wannabes and losers until the end. Benoit declares this is about revenge and respect. Windham knows every trick in the book and that’s why they are the tag champions. Windham claims they’d figure out why they lost, if they were to do that.
Bob’s Take: That was a solid video package. I’m ready for the Horsemen to win the tag titles at UnCensored. 5 for 8
MAIN EVENT: RIC FLAIR VS. DISCO INFERNO
FINISH: Flair forces a submission with the figure four leg lock to win the match
Bob’s Take: This match was taped prior to the 3/8 Nitro where Flair acted very much as a heel. So, the crowd reaction is a little bit different than had this match taken place right after the Nitro program. Also, Disco didn’t come out to the Wolfpac music, but rather his regular music. The finish came across weird as Flair stomped Disco on the face several times before just locking in the figure four to get the submission. I’m not sure why Inferno has gotten two Thunder main events recently with the other one being against Bret Hart after Superbrawl. Inferno isn’t a great in-ring worker and didn’t make either match all that enjoyable. This was basically an extended showcase for Flair, but Inferno had a couple of moments of control, but the finish was never a doubt. 5 for 9
For a taped episode of Thunder it was a lot better than expected. The video packages in the second hour were nicely done for the the couple of under card feuds that they focused on. The tag match involving Booker, Mysterio, Bagwell and Steiner was a decent match. It wasn’t a complete waste of a two hour program.
TV Rating: 3.3
WCW UNCENSORED 1999 CARD — OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED
WCW World Championship — Barbed Wire Steel Cage Match — First Blood, if Flair wins he remains in power
(C) Hollywood Hogan vs. Ric Flair
WCW Television Championship
(C) Scott Steiner vs. Booker T
WCW Tag Team Championships
(C) Barry Windham & Curt Hennig vs. Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko
Kevin Nash vs. Rey Mysterio Jr.
Dog Collar Match
Perry Saturn vs. Chris Jericho
3-Way Falls Count Anywhere Match
Hak vs. Raven vs. Bam-Bam Bigelow
Harlem Street Fight
Stevie Ray vs. Vincent
Handicap Match
Jerry Flynn vs. Ernest Miller & Sonny Ono
Interestingly, there’s not a WCW Cruiserweight Championship match promoted for the event. A staple for WCW isn’t even booked for the event.
Thanks for reading.