SNME 10/29/88.

Good Lord! Has it been 6 months since the last SNME episode? It sure has. SNME had been doing a good job of running one show roughly every month since late 1987, but after the April, 1988 episode, there was a 6 month gap between episodes. And what a 6 months it’s been. Let’s recap where the various WWF angles have taken us since our last episode.

6 months ago, in April of 1988, we saw Rick Rude take on Koko B. Ware. Not long afterward, Rude who was choosing various women to tease after his matches, managed to unknowingly pick a woman that didn’t respond to his gyrations like all the other women. This woman turned out to be Cheryl Roberts, the wife of Jake “The Snake” Roberts. It wasn’t too long before Jake himself came down to ringside to attack Rude and from there, one of the hottest feuds of 1988 took off. Rude, who had begun wearing tights airbrushed with various designs on them, began sporting the likeness of Sheryl Roberts painted on his crotch. This of course infuriated Jake, who on one occasion stripped Rude butt naked on an episode of WWF TV. This feud continued throughout the summer, and will continue tonight.

Also in 1988, we saw the end of the Honkytonk Man’s 14 month Intercontinental Title reign, as the champion you loved to hate gave a tremendous bump to Ultimate Warrior who demolished HTM in less than a minute to win the IC title and catapult into the Main Event level. Now, like many of you, I’m no current fan of the Warrior. I loved him back in 1988 though, as there was nobody in the business as intense as he was, and he was fun to watch. Unfortunately, time would prove, that outside of the aforementioned intensity, there was little else of any redeeming value to the Warrior’s character. And after a run with the WWF Title, the Warrior’s star plummeted. But this is still 1988, and the Warrior’s star is still on the rise, as the crowd is just loving their new IC Champ.

Perhaps the biggest angle to take place during the Spring and Summer months of 1988 was the heated feud between WWF Champion Randy “Macho Man” Savage and “Million$$$ Man” Ted DiBiase. These two were bringing the house down all over the country with their singles matches. They then upped the ante with DiBiase brining in Andre the Giant to further antagonize the Macho Man. Savage responded by brining in former champ Hulk Hogan to reunite the Megapowers and thus, even the odds. This resulted in the main event of the first Summerslam PPV when the Megapowers wrestled DiBiase and Andre, now known as the MegaBucks with none other than Jesse “The Body” Ventura as the guest referee with the Megapowers emerging victorious.

Jake “The Snake” Roberts v. “Ravishing” Rick Rude
Jake has his wife Cheryl at ringside for this match, and Rick Rude, as promised is wearing the face of Cheryl Roberts on his tights again. Neither Jake nor Cheryl are happy about this and Rude is having fun taunting the two of them. Jake immediately gets in the ring and charges Rude and attacks him. Jake goes right to work on Rude’s left arm with a wrist lock. Rude tries to leave the ring, but Jake still has his arm and drags him back in. Rude sends Jake to the ropes, but Jake nails Rude with a fist to the gut. Jake signals for the DDT, but Rude escapes and rolls out of the ring. Jake pulls Rude back in though. Rude rakes the eyes and goes for a wrist lock of his own. Jake reverses it and goes for a short clothesline, but Rude ducks and nails Jake with a right hand. Rude is working over “The Snake” with a multitude of right hands, forearms and elbows. During the punishment, the arrogant Rude manages to stop from time to time to taunt Cheryl as well.

That arrogance backfires on him though, as Jake eventually comes out of the corner while Rude is swiveling his hips at Cheryl and nails him with a right fist. Jake then peppers Rude with several additional rights and comes off the ropes with a fist that takes Rude to the mat. Jake nails Rude with a gut buster and then holds Rude on the ropes so Cheryl can slap the taste out of his mouth! Rude’s manager Bobby “The Brain” Heenan is incensed and complains to the ref about Jake’s wife clearly interfering with the match. Cheryl is then forced to leave the ringside area.

After the commercial break we see Jake and Rude brawling outside the ring. Rude is working Jake over something fierce, ramming Jake into the ring post before getting back in the ring to swivel his hips some more. Jake finally manages to get back in and mound a comeback, taking Rude down with several right hands. Jake with an irish whip and a back body drop. Jake signals again for the DDT, but Rude in a desperation move, backdrops Jake and drops several forearms on him. Rude then goes to the top rope and delivers a flying fist drop, but fails to get the pinfall. Rude goes for the Rude Awakening neckbreaker, but Jake escapes by biting Rude’s hand! Jake then runs to the ropes. Rude attempts a backdrop, but Jake sees it coming and stops short. Rude stands up, and Jake telegraphs another right fist, but Rude ducks, which is just what Jake was looking for, as he immediately DDT’s the ravishing one. Rather than going for the pin though, Jake goes to strip Rude of his tights. Bobby Heenan runs into the ring and starts kicking the hell out of Jake, causing the referee to call for the disqualification. Jake then goes after Heenan, but Andre the Giant comes down to ringside and attacks Jake, sending him out of the ring before he can do any real damage to “The Brain”.

Jake may have been down, but he wasn’t out though. Jake returns to the ring with his snake Damien. Heenan sees it and bails out of the ring, but Andre isn’t so lucky. He sees the snake and begins backing up. The 7 foot 5 inch giant appears to be genuinely afraid of Jake’s boa constricter and is backing away. Jake sees this and advances on the pleading Andre and puts the snake around Andre’s neck! Andre falls to the mat, and goes into convulsions, clutching his chest! It looks like Andre is having a heart attack here (And damned If I didn’t really believe that this was real when it happened. That’s how real it looked.) Jake celebrates in the ring above the unconscious Giant before going to the back. Bobby Heenan runs into the ring and with a look of pure horror on his face, rips Andre’s shirt open and begins applying CPR to the Giant, while pleading for medical help from the back. After a commercial break, Andre is awake again, but still clearly shaken up by his bout with the snake. Andre leaves the ring, but is still scared out of his wits looking under the ring to see if the snake was still there.

This was a great opener. Jake and Rude had a great chemistry, and put on some really good matches during the summer and fall of 1988. This match was for the most part the end of their feud, but it flowed right into Jake’s feud with Andre the Giant. I have to hand it to Heenan and Andre for putting on a fantastic display of emotion here. Like I said, I was genuinely scared for Andre when this originally aired. I of course know now that like Randy Savage injuring Ricky Steamboat’s throat back in 1986, this was a 100% work, but much like Savage/Steamboat, this was acted out almost to perfection.

Hart Foundation v. Demolition
Long before anyone had given Bret Hart any chance of being the fantastic singles wrestler and multiple time World Champion that he would eventually become, he was one half of one of the greatest tag teams in the sport. Formerly heels and one time holders of the WWF Tag Team Titles, the Hart Foundation have now turned babyface and have abandoned their former manager, “Mouth of the South” Jimmy Hart. Hart won’t be too far behind though, as he is lending his expertise to Mr. Fuji and his tag team of Demolition. Demolition have been riding high since winning the Tag Titles at Wrestlemania 4, with repeat victories over the British Bulldogs and pretty much every other team that had been put in front of them.

The match starts with Ax and Neidhart in the ring. They lock up, but Anvil quickly finds himself in the heels’ corner. Smash tags in and Demolition does their customary double team pounding on Neidhart. Smash attempts a vertical suplex on Neidhart, but it’s reversed. Neidhart brings Smash to his corner and tags Hart. Irish whip by Bret and the Hitman connects with a boot to the gut, followed by a drop kick and then an elbow from the second rope for a 2 count. Bret hits Smash with an elbow as Smash gets to his feet, and is then floored by a Clothesline by Smash. Smash presses the advantage by firing Bret chest first into the corner before tagging Ax back in. Ax rams Bret into the corner and both members of Demolition proceed to double team the Hitman while Jimmy Hart has the ref distracted. Fuji even manages to get involved for good measure, but the ref doesn’t see it, as he’s busy making an enraged Jim Neidhart return to his corner.

Y’know, this is what’s missing from tag team wrestling today. I mentioned in the recently posted group column on “Wrestling’s Biggest Pet Peeves” how the sport suffers from a lack of good managers. These days, a manager is nothing more than a half naked woman who comes to ringside with her wrestler(s) and simply stands around showing off either her legs, tits or ass. Back in the 80s and early 90s, you could count on guys like the aforementioned Jimmy Hart or Mr. Fuji, as well as others such as Lou Albano, Bobby Heenan, Jim Cornette, J.J. Dillon, Slick or Paul E. Dangerously (among others) to not only be at ringside, but to play a pivotal role in the match. Oftentimes, the managers were so good at what they did (Bobby Heenan comes to mind) that they were more entertaining to watch than their wrestlers were. The only guy I’ve seen in the WWE that comes close to capturing that same effect as a manager is Daivari. Anyone who saw his performance as a referee this past Monday on RAW would agree with me. Daivari overshadowed everyone but Angle & Michaels. But I digress. Back to the action.

Demolition is dominating Bret in the corner. Ax tags Smash back in, who continues working Bret over. Snap mare by Smash, followed by a rear chinlock and several boots to the back of Bret before Ax tags back in. Ax continues the punishment with an assortment of forearms and chokes. Smash tags in and Demolition gets in some double teaming before Ax leaves. Bret begins to fight back, but it doesn’t last long, as Smash quickly reasserts himself. Smash fires Bret to the ropes and both men go down with a double clothesline. Both men for their corners, but it’s Bret who finally makes the tag to his partner. The Anvil goes nuts beating on both Smash, but Ax as well, who has come in to try to help his partner. Neidhart is a fury of clotheslines and drop kicks here, as he works over both members of Demolition. He finally settles in on Smash and nails a running powerslam, but only gets a 2 count as Ax runs in to break the count. Bret Hart comes in and all 4 men battle it out with the Hart Foundation’s speed winning out over the power of Demolition.

Meanwhile, Jacques & Raymond Rougeau (who are now heels and managed by Jimmy Hart) come down the aisle to get a good look at the action. Back in the ring, the ref is trying to restore order and both Jimmy Hart and Mr. Fuji have jumped up on the ring apron. Not for long though, as the Hart Foundation attack both managers. At this point, with the ref clearly losing control and not being able to see everything going on, the Rougeaus come to ringside and toss Jimmy Hart’s megaphone to Smash, who nails Neidhart with it and covers him for the 3 count.

Good match here. Back in 1988, you were guaranteed some good tag team matches, and this one was no different.

Hulk Hogan v. King Haku
Haku is accompanied by his manager Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, while Hogan is seconded by Elizabeth. The crowd is of course electric for Hulk Hogan, as the Hulkster hadn’t yet gotten stale with the fans.

The bell rings and Haku attacks Hogan while the ref is checking Hulk’s boots. Haku is working Hulk over with punches, kicks and he even bites him for good measure. A chop to the throat puts Hogan on the mat, but the Hulkster gets a second wind and fires away on Haku with 3 punches. A 4th punch puts the King down to the mat. Hogan levels Haku with a running clothesline followed by an elbow drop. Hogan picks Haku up and chops him twice. Heenan grabs Hogan’s leg, and the Hulkster chases Heenan, but Haku attacks Hogan from behind to take the advantage back. Hogan is back down on the mat, as Haku applies a nerve hold on Hogan’s neck. Hogan fights his way to his feet and after reversing an irish whip by Haku attempts a clothesline, but gets a double chop to the shoulders, and super kick that sends Hogan out of the ring. Haku goes out to the ring apron and attempts to jump down and chop Hogan, but Hogan pulls Heenan into the way, and Haku takes out his own manager! Hogan then gets back in the ring and puts Haku’s crown on in celebration, as a semi-concious Heenan is helped to the back.
With both men back in the ring, Hogan has the advantage again with several punches. Hogan whips Haku to the , corner, but the Islander comes back with a clothesline to take control again. Haku drops a headbutt on the Hulkster, followed by a vertical suplex for a 2 count, and Hogan Hulks up! Yup, you guessed it. After Hogan points at Haku, it’s 3 punches, a boot to the head, a leg drop and a 3 count.

As with all of Hogan’s WWF matches, this match was Hogan-by-the-numbers. Same match, different opponent.

Ken Patera v. Dino Bravo
Patera was finishing up his second and final run with the WWF. He’d finish up after the Survivor Series which would be one month away. At this point, it would be no big loss, as despite being the second man to hold the Intercontinental Championship, Patera at this point, was little more than a babyface version of Haku. Someone with a name and some talent, but was used primarily for putting over other wrestlers. Tonight would be no different, as the WWF’s first Olympic competitor would face “The World’s Strongest Man.”

At the beginning both men run the ropes and collide with neither man moving. Bravo attempts a clothesline, but Patera ducks, and nails Bravo himself. Patera with several punches and a back body drop sends Bravo outside to confer with his manager Frenchie Martin. Bravo returns to the ring and begins pounding on Bravo with several punches and kicks, leaving Patera stunned in the corner. Bravo continues to work over Patera in the corner. An irish whip to the opposite corner is reversed by Patera, and it’s Patera’s turn to fire away on Bravo with a flurry of rights. Bravo is now down in the center of the ring. Patera picks Bravo up for a bodyslam and goes for his patented full nelson, but Bravo makes it to the corner to force the break. Patera fires Bravo to the opposite corner but gets booted in the face as he charges in for the attack. Bravo hits Patera with a reverse atomic drop, and then a side slam for the clean pinfall victory.

Bad match. Hogan v. Haku was actually better.

Big Bossman v. Jim Powers
The Big Bossman had recently signed with the WWF and had destroyed Koko B. Ware at Summerslam, just 2 months prior to tonight’s show. They’re still building the Bossman up as a major heel here. On a previous episode of the Brother Love interview show, Bossman beat 6 kinds of hell out of Hulk Hogan, and would soon begin teaming with Akeem (formerly the One Man Gang) to feud with the Megapowers (Hulk Hogan & WWF Champion Randy Savage). Jim Powers was another Jobber to the Stars at best. He could normally be seen tagging with fellow JTTS Paul Roma as the “Young Stallions”. A decent enough team, who were used primarily to get over the better heel tag teams. A good comparison of the tag teams in 1988 to the teams of the mid 90s (during what I call the Great Tag Team Depression, where teams like the Bodydonnas, the Bushwhackers and Men on a Mission were considered to be the WWF’s top teams), the Stallions would have easily been the tag team champions. So-called “great” teams of the mid 90s WWF like the Smoking Gunns, would have been jobbing left and right in the late 80s, as they’d have no doubt been extremely outclassed by the incredible tag roster that the WWF had in 1988.

Anyway, the match. Bossman prettymuch kills him in about 3 minutes. You don’t really need a play-by-play for this one. After the match the Bossman handcuffs Powers to the second rope and continues to beat the hell out of him with his nightstick.

In the back Jesse “The Body” Ventura interviews Bobby Heenan and a still shaken up Andre the Giant, asking Andre if he is afraid of snakes. Both Andre and Heenan deny that there is any fear there, but you can tell that Jake found Andre’s achille’s heel and will no doubt do everything he can to exploit it in the months to come.

Tonight’s show hit in some places and missed in others. The Jake Roberts v. Rick Rude opener was great. Especially the finish with Andre nearly dying in the ring in fear of the snake. They should have closed the show with that one, and had the Bossman/Powers squash start the show. The Hart Foundation match was good, while the Bravo/Patera match stunk up the place. Hogan/Haku was neither good nor bad, but was just “there”. Hogan had just been beaten down a week ago by the Bossman as mentioned earlier, so this match was primarily there to let the fans know that Hogan was ok and still “the man”.

My score: 7.8 Rude/Roberts/Andre worked, as did Demolition/Hart Foundation. Everything else seemed to be just treading water. Looking forward to next month. And yes, I’ll have it posted within the next week or so. Be sure to email me at gnagus@comast.net or post in the forums at the Oratory and let me know what you think.

Till then, Thanks again for reading.

-Corey