RAW vs Nitro #66 (1/20/97)

Welcome back to another edition of RAW vs Nitro! Click here to read last week's edition or click here to catch up on all the previous ones. So with that out the way, this is RAW vs Nitro #66. As always, let's start with RAW...

But first! A quick recap of the Royal Rumble 1997, which happened the night before this episode of RAW

• In a dark-match, the team of Perro Aguayo Jr. and Venum defeated the team of Maniaco and Mosco de la Merced.
• In another dark-match, the team of Blue Demon Jr., Octagon, and Tinieblas Jr. defeated the team of Abismo Negro, Heavy Metal, and Histeria (Super Crazy)
• On the Free for All, the team of Mascarita Sagrada Jr and La Parkita (Octagoncito) defeated Mini Mankind & Mini Vader
• Hunter Hearst Helmsley retained the Intercontinental Championship against Goldust. Helmsley would debut the returning Mr. Hughes as his bodyguard. Hughes would assist Helmsley during the match, pulling him out of the ring and preventing a pin by Goldust before Helmsley would hit the Pedigree for the win.
• Ahmed Johnson defeated Faarooq by disqualification after the rest of the Nation of Domination attacked him mid-match. Johnson would quickly get his revenge by giving a nameless member of the Nation a Pearl River Plunge through the French announce table.
• The Undertaker faced Vader. Late in the match, Paul Bearer came down to ringside. Taker quickly left the ring and attacked Bearer, bringing him into the ring and attempting to chokeslam him. However, Vader prevented it. Taker took the fight to ringside, draping Vader over a guardrail before attempting to jump off the stairs and onto him. However, Bearer pulled Vader out of the way before hitting Taker with his urn behind the referee's back. Vader brought Taker back into the ring and quickly hit the Vader Bomb for the win. Vader & Bearer left together, beginning their partnership. Taker then chokeslammed the referee before destroying ringside and yelling at Vince McMahon on commentary.
• The AAA wrestlers managed to get on the actual card. The team of Canek, Hector Garza (the uncle of Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo), and Perro Aguayo defeated Fuerza Guerrera, Heavy Metal pulling double duty, and Jerry Estrada. Aguayo got the win for his team after hitting a diving double stomp and an elbow drop on Heavy Metal.
• In the 30-Man Royal Rumble match, Stone Cold Steve Austin last eliminated Bret Hart to win the match...OR DID HE!? The match came down to the final seven of Austin, Hart, The Undertaker, Vader, Mankind, Terry Funk, and Fake Diesel (of all people.) Mankind would eliminate Funk before getting booted out by Taker. Mankind & Funk would brawl at ringside, distracting the referees as Hart threw Austin over the top rope. Austin would sneak back into the ring and toss Taker & Vader over the top rope as Hart eliminated Diesel. Austin would toss Hart and was awarded a very tainted victory and a shot at the WWF Championship at WrestleMania 13. After the match, Hart argues with the referees, roughing them up before going over to the commentary table and cursing at Vince McMahon.
• Sycho Sid defended the WWF Championship against Shawn Michaels in his hometown. Late in the match, Sid threw Michaels into the referee, taking him out of the match. Sid got the visual three off a chokeslam, but the second referee couldn't count the three in time. Sid knocked the second referee out with a punch, prompting Jose Lothario to hop up on the ring apron. Michaels took the opportunity to payback Sid for Survivor Series, hitting him a camera, but Sid kicked out at two. HBK followed up with Sweet Chin Music for the three, the win, and his second WWF Championship.

RAW

RAW kicks off with Bret Hart storming down to the ring without entrance music. Hart rants about getting screwed out of the WWF Championship by Shawn Michaels at In Your House: It's Time and getting screwed out of another shot at WrestleMania 13 by Stone Cold Steve Austin. He says he's been screwed by the WWF and Vince McMahon. He might want to get used to that. He quits the WWF, hops the barricade, and leaves through the crowd. All of a sudden, Steve Austin materializes in the ring, talking into a microphone that doesn't work. After being given one that does, Austin threatens the tech guy. Austin is so great. Austin says Hart has done nothing but complain since coming back and now he's done what all the Harts do when things get tough; quit. He says the only person Hart can beat is his dad in his basement. He says he's been jerked around for seven years and then complains about Gorilla Monsoon changing his match tonight. He calls Sid a coward with a yellow streak down his back before calling out the Undertaker, who is his new opponent. McMahon then heads to the back.

Owen Hart & The British Bulldog with Clarence Mason vs Doug Furnas & Phil LaFon

That confrontation between Austin and Taker never happens apparently, so instead, we have a match I didn't know I wanted until I started doing these reviews. Thankfully, this match was everything I had hoped for. In terms of in-ring action, these are the two best teams by a pretty wide margin, and putting them together gives you a really good TV match. There isn't too much to say about it, it's just a good match that is certainly worth a watch. The finish comes after LaFon hits an ugly looking float-over DDT on Bulldog, but Hart breaks up the fall. Furnas rushes Hart out of the ring, inadvertently distracting the referee. This allows Hart to take his Slammy Award and hit LaFon in the face, which Bulldog capitalizes on by hitting a running powerslam for the three and the win.

Faarooq with the Nation of Domination vs Bart Gunn

Well, the show started off on a high, so let's bring it way down low. This match is boring and uneventful. It ends with the Nation costing Gunn the win by putting Faarooq's foot on the ropes. As Gunn goes after the Nation at ringside, Faarooq dives onto him off the apron before hitting a scarily sloppy Dominator for the three and the win. As the Nation heads to the back, they cross paths with Vince McMahon & Gorilla Monsoon.

In the ring, McMahon interviews Monsoon. He says he's upset about Bret Hart quitting and makes an offer to him. He says what happened at the Royal Rumble was a travesty and says he can't overturn Steve Austin's win. What he can do, however, is take away his shot at the WWF Championship at WrestleMania 13. Instead, that title opportunity will go to the winner of an elimination, no disqualification four-way match between Austin and the three men Austin illegally eliminated; Hart, the Undertaker, and Vader. That announcement brings out Austin, who blasts Monsoon's decision before calling him a jackass. He threatens to beat up Monsoon, but McMahon gets between them, leading to an argument between him & Austin. All of a sudden, Bret Hart returns and gets in the ring. He accepts the offer before charging at Austin. The two brawl in the entranceway, ending with Hart slamming Austin's head into the ring steps. Even worse for Austin...

The Undertaker vs Steve Austin

His match is next. Luckily for him, the Undertaker is also looking to brawl with Hart, as they trade blows in the entranceway. Austin tries to jump Taker while his back is turned, but Taker quickly gets the upper hand and beats down Austin around ringside. The match finally starts after Taker rolls Austin in the ring, and after a brief burst of offense from Austin, Taker quickly regains control before hitting Old School. Taker controls the match until Austin hits a swinging neckbreaker. Austin beats down on Taker, controlling the match until Taker hits a blatant low blow in front of the referee. Earl Hebner doesn't call this, for some reason, as Austin recovers quick enough to hit a Stunner. Both men are down as we cut backstage to see Bret Hart and Vader being restrained from eachother. Back in the ring, Austin is firmly in control, getting a near fall off a fist drop. Austin controls the match until Taker hits a jumping clothesline. That brings out Vader & Paul Bearer, the former of which causes a DQ by running in and taking a chokeslam from Taker. Hart runs down as Austin attacks Taker, leading to a four-way brawl between the "final four" as JR calls them. Austin tries to high tail it out of the ring as Taker & Vader continue to brawl in the ring, but Hart runs after him and brings him back to ringside. The show ends with all four men continuing to brawl.

That's it for RAW. Onto Nitro...

Nitro

Now, before I start this, I'd like to go back to something that happened back in November on this show (see RAW vs Nitro #52.) And I quote:

"Schiavone tells him (Nick Patrick) that Randy Savage will be fined for putting his hands on him, but only $500 instead of the million that Patrick wanted, along with being suspended for the first five matches of 1997."

The reason I bring that up is because this show opens with Macho Man Randy Savage hopping the guard rail. I know this obviously isn't a match, but you can't suspend someone for matches in wrestling. That's just not booking them. And if they meant "the first five shows of 1997", then this definitely wrong because it's week three of 1997. What I'm getting at is that this makes zero sense whatsoever. Anyway, this is Savage's legit return to WCW, as a contract dispute kept him away for the past two months. Savage throws a chair in the ring before taking a microphone. He says he's been blackballed and says he won't leave until he talks to someone "with some stroke." He says he'll stay the whole two hours of Nitro if he has too before telling Eric Bischoff to kiss his ass. Savage takes a seat in the ring as the first match is supposed to begin; Chavo Guerrero Jr vs Maxx. Chavo comes down to the ring, confused as to what he's supposed to do. Despite Chavo's pleas, Savage doesn't budge, barely acknowledging him. Eventually, Savage punches Chavo and throws him out of the ring before taking his seat again. Maxx comes out next, so Savage beats him up before throwing the referee out of the ring. The same happens to WCW's head of security Doug Dillinger (no relation to Tye) and Alex Wright. Savage stands his ground with his chair as the Steiner Brothers and the Amazing French Canadians come down to the ring.

Suddenly, Sting repels down from the rafters and makes his way down to the ring. Savage gets up, prompting Sting to shove him with his bat multiple times. Sting then hands Savage the bat and turns his back. Instead of hitting him, Savage gives the bat back and the two leave together.

Chris Jericho vs Alex Wright

Nitro's first match that Randy Savage doesn't ruin is Chris Jericho vs Alex Wright. This is a pretty solid back and forth match-up. It's nothing special, but it's not bad. Jericho wins with a roll-up, despite Wright's shoulder being way off the mat.

nWo Sting vs Scotty Riggs

nWo Sting spends too much time doing Sting's mannerisms, allowing Riggs to hit him from behind and beat him down in the ring. Sting rebounds with a Stun Gun and a backbreaker for a near fall, but Riggs fights back and hits a missile dropkick. Riggs goes for a cover but gets distracted when Buff Bagwell comes down the ramp. He says Riggs is too fat, while he's all buff. nWo Sting tries to hit Riggs from behind with a comically telegraphed axe handle so everyone in row Z can tell what he's doing. Riggs avoids as Buff and the rest of the B-Team run down to cause a DQ. Riggs escapes through the crowd as the B-Team bullies him into saying that nWo Sting won by countout.

Ric Flair interviews Bob Probert of the Chicago Blackhawks. He says he can't be in Chicago tonight for Nitro, but if he was he'd be walking down the aisle with the Four Horsemen and tells Hulk Hogan and the nWo to watch his back next time he's in Chicago. Why did this air?

Arn Anderson & Steve McMichael with Debra vs Eddie Guerrero & Jeff Jarrett

Man, Arn Anderson's always getting stuck with the Four Horsemen's dead weight. First Roma, now Mongo. This match is very brief, that's about it. Midway through the match, Guerrero sprints to the back. The commentators play it off like Syxx made an appearance, but we never saw him. Jarrett quickly eats a Double-A Spinebuster from Anderson before getting locked in the Boston Crab. Debra then throws in her beauty queen sash, essentially throwing in the towel for a wrestler she's not managing.

After...whatever that was, Mean Gene Okerlund brings out Ric Flair for an interview with the Four Horsemen. Chris Benoit & Woman also show up without any mention. Flair says he's on the mend before saying that the Horsemen need focus on the team instead of their women. Anderson calls wrestling a man's sport before saying the Horsemen will stay alive as long as he & Flair are. Mongo plays up to the Chicago crowd before Debra defends protecting Jarrett. Debra gets booed out of the building, which should tell you how annoying she is that being married to Mongo, who is mega-over with the Chicago crowd, isn't enough to get pitty cheers. Benoit says the McMichaels are winners in football and beauty pageants, but the rest of the Horsemen are winners in wrestling. I must've missed Woman's Women's Championship run or something. Mongo then points out that he's beaten Jarrett, unlike Benoit, who's taken the loss in his last two matches with Jarrett. Everyone except the McMichaels leave, prompting Debra to call Woman fat.

In a pre-recorded video, Eric Bischoff gloats about running the two biggest wrestling organizations in the world as Miss Elizabeth films him with a camcorder. He gloats about what the Outsiders have done to the WCW tag division before thanking Hulk Hogan for buying him a bike and putting legends away. He says Ric Flair's career is over and that he tried to protect Roddy Piper by keeping him out of the ring with Hogan. He calls the Giant an idiot for throwing away the opportunity the nWo gave him. He says the nWo will live forever.

Ultimo Dragon with Sonny Onoo vs Dean Malenko

Every other match on this show so far has been pretty bland at best and horrible at worst, so this is a much-needed change of pace. This is a really good match, as to be expected from these two. Unfortunately, it is very brief, only going about four and a half minutes before Ultimo Dragon pins Malenko with a la magistral cradle for the win. Also, Malenko and Dragon are facing eachother tomorrow at Clash of the Champions in a title match, so this match is completely pointless.

Lord Steven Regal (c) vs Jacques Rougeau with Col. Rob Parker-Television Championship

This is the third match of the night where no one gets an entrance. Even though he's been a heel for...pretty much his entire WCW career...and is still doing his snobby Englishmen gimmick, Regal is the face here, as Parker cheats on behalf of Rougeau frequently in this match. Eventually, Parker just gets in the ring and tries to hit Regal with his riding crop, only for Regal to duck and cause Rougeau to get hit for the DQ. Holy sh*t, a DQ was called when it should've? In a WCW match? Is this real life? Regal tosses both men out of the ring to close the segment.

Kevin Sullivan with Jimmy Hart vs Chris Benoit with Woman

Sullivan and Benoit are facing off tomorrow at Clash of the Champions in a Falls Count Anywhere match...so naturally, they're supposed to have a match tonight for no reason. Benoit jumps Sullivan during his entrance, leading to a brawl through the crowd, through the arena, and into the bathroom. Kevin Sullivan really loves brawling to the bathroom. At one point, Benoit rips a sign over a urinal off the wall and hits Sullivan with it. They brawl back to the ring as fans get in the way, prompting Woman to hit one of them with her shoe (the most dangerous weapon in wrestling.) Sullivan throws a beer at Benoit, which prompts a dick fan to throw his beer at both of them. The match finally starts, and it only goes a few minutes before both men go down after colliding with eachother. Woman gets on the apron and distracts the referee, allowing Jimmy Hart to slide Sullivan the ring bell. Benoit goes for the diving headbutt, only for Sullivan to hit him in the head with the bell. In hindsight, that is horrifying. Sullivan gets the three and the win.

Before the next match, the nWo takes over the commentary table, with Eric Bischoff, Ted DiBiase, and Kevin Nash now on commentary.

Carl Ouellet with Col. Rob Parker vs Jim Duggan

Early in the match as Duggan is steamrolling Ouelett, Jacques Rougeau pops up and attacks Duggan while the referee is distracted with Ouelett. This brings out the Steiner Brothers...for some reason. Rick Steiner takes out Rougeau, distracting the referee while Scott Steiner clocks Ouellet. Despite all that interference, Duggan still feels the need to tape his fist illegally before punching Ouelett for the win. This was lame & dumb.

Squire Dave Taylor vs Masahiro Chono

So...

anyone got a good answer as to why Dave Taylor is dressed like this? He's still in the Blue Bloods, but he looks like he just got back from a safari. Anyway, this match was supposed to be Crocidile Hunter Taylor against Psicosis, but Bischoff wanted Chono to get a  warm-up for his match with Chris Jericho at Souled Out. Also, Bischoff wants an "even playing field" for this match, so Nick Patrick is refereeing this match. It's a short, decent match where Chono wins with the STF in what I think is the first time somebody has actually tapped out and didn't verbally submit to a move.

Booker T with Sister Sherri vs Scott Hall

In another change thanks to Bischoff and the nWo, this was supposed to be Booker T vs Rick Steiner, but instead, we're getting Booker against Scott Hall. Once again, Nick Patrick is the referee. This is actually Hall's first singles match since returning to Nitro. Unfortunately, this is less a match and more of a way for the nWo to flex their muscle over WCW. The match is decent enough, as Booker gets most of the offense, only for Nick Patrick to slow count his pins, with the most egregious one being off a crossbody. As Booker confronts Patrick, Hall hits him from behind before hitting the Outsider's Edge for the three and the win. Also, Buff Bagwell ran down to distract Sherri just because.

Stevie Ray with Sister Sherri vs Lex Luger

One member of Harlem Heat could theoretically have a good match with Lex Luger. That member is not Stevie Ray. Nick Patrick is still the referee for this match, which is enough of a distraction for Stevie Ray to jump Luger from behind. It's another short, uneventful match that ends with Luger submitting Ray with the Torture Rack. Can this show just end?

Outcomes Hollywood Hulk Hogan with Ted DiBiase and Vincent in tow. Hogan says he'll bust up the Giant at Souled Out and before Ted DiBiase says Hogan shouldn't show him any mercy. He says he used the Giant, which brings out the Giant. Security holds him back, only for the Giant to break free as the show ends.

That Nitro was god awful. No interesting segments, no interesting matches outside of short Dean Malenko-Ultimo Dragon match that didn't matter, this show had nothing going for it. RAW was actually pretty good this week outside of the Bart Gunn-Faarooq match, and compared to this Nitro it was like WrestleMania X-7. Point to RAW.

RAW: 27

Nitro: 39

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