AUGUST 12TH — LA CROSSE, WI — LA CROSSE CENTER — TAPED
NOTE: Throughout the show there are several instances of wrestlers sharing their thoughts on the career vs. career match at Road Wild. It doesn’t add anything to the show or match, so I’m not considering them segments to rate or care about.
MATCH #1: WCW TELEVISION CHAMPION RICK STEINER VS. SPYDER
NOTE: Steiner promises he’s going to beat up Goldberg at Road Wild.
FINISH: Steiner hit a top rope clothesline and locks in a top wrist lock for the submission.
Bob’s Take: Steiner kicking ass and being a bully is a fine approach for the character. I don’t think he’s translating all that well as a main event player. Spyder didn’t put himself in the correct position for the top rope bulldog and it was instead a clothesline. The top wrist lock is a weak submission. For whenever Steiner is kicking ass it can be enjoyable, but the submission move is quite lame. 0 for 1
MATCH #2: SID VICIOUS VS. DISORDERLY CONDUCT — HANDICAP MATCH
FINISH: Sid wins the following powerbombs. After the match, Sid delivers chokeslams and cuts a promo. Sid yells into the camera saying that people will end up in the same position as Disorderly Conduct. Sid says it won’t do the fans any good by chanting Goldberg’s name.
Bob’s Take: I don’t hate the approach of giving two of the main heels decisive wins on a taped show right before Road Wild to give them some extra momentum. I think it would be expected that Sid and Steiner are likely going to lose at Road Wild, but Sid could win since Hogan is likely going to retain and he’d be positioned as the next giant to lose to Hogan on PPV. It’s dominance by Sid and exactly what it needed to be. I’m a sucker for Sid, so this was enjoyable. 1 for 2
MATCH #3: DEAN MALENKO & SHANE DOUGLAS VS. WEST TEXAS REDNECKS (BARRY WINDHAM & BOBBY DUNCUM JR.)
FINISH: Douglas pins Duncum Jr. following the Pittsburgh Plunge. After the match, Saturn runs into the ring to make the save, but is beaten down and hogtied.
Bob’s Take: A competitive tag match between these two teams, and I can appreciate that. Revolution picking up the win is the right decision as they need to build momentum to see as threats to anyone on top. They probably shouldn’t lose a match for a few months and rally the fans behind them. I think at some point the crowd lost interest in this match, though. It’s a good win, but it dragged towards the end. 1 for 3
BERLYN VIGNETTE
CONTEXT: The same vignette we’ve seen before. Berlyn is Alex Wright, but with a drastically different look.
Bob’s Take: From what I remember, this is not going to go well. 1 for 4
DENNIS RODMAN ON JAY LENO
CONTEXT: Rodman talks about how Gorgeous George wants him. Eventually, Randy Savage and Gorgeous George appeared on the show to confront Rodman after Rodman said he wouldn’t leave. Savage says they don’t need to wait for Road Wild. Savage tackles Rodman over the couch until security gets involved.
Bob’s Take: I guess this is cool and their appearance on Leno makes them more relevant. 2 for 5
MAIN EVENT: RANDY SAVAGE VS. EVAN KARAGIAS
NOTE: Savage says this is a tuneup. Savage teases the answer for the driver of the hummer, but says don’t worry about it because he’s a problem solver. Karagias says that Mona is like a sister to him and Savage shouldn’t have treated her like that since Mona would have done anything for Savage.
FINISH: Savage hit an elbow drop off the top, but decided against pinning Karagias. Instead, Savage continued to beat on Karagias prompting Mona to beg Savage to not do it, but Savage hit a second elbow drop off the top. Mona appears to have twisted her ankle and the referee attacks Savage to protect Mona, but Savage spike the referee with a piledriver. Savage hits a third elbow drop onto Karagias. This match is thrown out, but Karagias probably wins by DQ, really. After the match, Savage counts his own fall on Karagias.
Bob’s Take: Savage worked this segment wearing his regular clothing because Karagias is not big of a threat towards him. Karagias actually got more offense on Savage in this match than Bagwell did in the couple of matches he had with Savage. At one point. Karagias dived over Mona to take Savage out on the floor. It was far more enjoyable than I was expecting it to be, I’ll say that. 3 for 6
It’s a taped show right before the PPV, so for the most part this was mostly focused on trying to get some PPV buys. There’s nothing worthwhile to check out and of course nothing major was going to occur to make it be must-see. Lets just head into Road Wild, folks.
WCW Thunder 8/12 TV Rating: 2.9
Thanks for reading.