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rare Magic card l00k posted:I have no idea what you're talking about, friend, I definitely didn't typo and accidentally type 1991 instead of 1989. As you can clearly see, it always said 1989. You're right, I look at it now and I have no idea what I was thinking!
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Jun 6, 2018 13:02
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Rarity posted:
Luger was really really good in NWA/WCW in 88 and 89. He's one of those guys who is badly hurt by their WWF run (this is a mild spoiler but I'm assuming you know Lex Luger was in WWF at some point), and WWF more or less mythologizing that he was a huge bust who never got over (I don't know if he moved tickets, but those Carolina crowds loving loved Luger in the mid 90s)
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Jun 6, 2018 14:20
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at Luger.
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Not so much relevant to this thread, but it's cool seeing that the Liger/Sano feud was properly appreciated by the Observer audience. They were doing some next-level work.
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Jun 6, 2018 14:21
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Takuan posted:Not so much relevant to this thread, but it's cool seeing that the Liger/Sano feud was properly appreciated by the Observer audience. They were doing some next-level work. There's a Liger/Sano match from 1990 that's still the best Japanese match I've ever seen. Sano's career is really weird, I think he could have become one of the best in the world but he was more or less a journeyman.
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Jun 6, 2018 14:22
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Feels Villeneuve posted:Luger was really really good in NWA/WCW in 88 and 89. He's one of those guys who is badly hurt by their WWF run (this is a mild spoiler but I'm assuming you know Lex Luger was in WWF at some point), and WWF more or less mythologizing that he was a huge bust who never got over (I don't know if he moved tickets, but those Carolina crowds loving loved Luger in the mid 90s) Isn’t he also one of those dudes who was never really a huge fan of wrestling and realized fairly quickly that he could get over enough to maintain a career without having to bump or hurt himself
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Jun 6, 2018 15:28
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Feels Villeneuve posted:There's a Liger/Sano match from 1990 that's still the best Japanese match I've ever seen. Are you talking about the one where Liger gets his mask ripped open? That one was awesome too.
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Jun 6, 2018 17:43
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Also Luger managed to have an extended feud with Flair in WCW that, while the matches were great, he managed to never win until people realized he was never going to win. Kind of like Roman Reigns vs Brock, except people didn't hate Lex going in. And the thing about great matches
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Jun 6, 2018 19:11
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Takuan posted:Are you talking about the one where Liger gets his mask ripped open? That one was awesome too. Yeah, and Liger gets pissed after the match and throws the belt on the floor, that match was WOR MOTY in 1990, I think.
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Jun 7, 2018 14:58
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Royal Rumble 1992: Laughing At The Mentally Handicapped Is Totally Fine What I Think I Know
 It's January 1992, little Rarity is getting tested for her first pair of glasses and across the Atlantic it's the marbles are all on the line as the WWF Title is up for grabs in the biggest match in the business, it's Royal Rumble 1992. The grand return of the shouty Vince McMahon intro kicks things off as he names some of the contestants featured in tonight's Rumble. There aren't any surprises here and there aren't any surprises on commentary either where Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan will be calling the action. So we're live from the Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, NY and let's just get things moving for once. The Orient Express w/ Mr. Fuji vs. The New Foundation Well, look who we've got here! After one of the best PPV matches to date at Royal Rumble 1991, Tanaka and Kato are back from whatever hole they got shoved into for the last loving year and set up to have a crack at a repeat performance. Seriously, where the hell have these guys been for the last twelve months? Not that I think they're amazing or anything but they're certainly better than most of the dreck that's now in the tag division. As for their opponents, it's two men making their return to the thread as Owen and Anvil team up to form the (Please Don't Call Them The) Hart Foundation. So yes, this is a really strange spot for these two to be in because they're so clearly evoking the Hart Foundation but at no point do they ever refer to the Hart Foundation. I don't know if this is just because the team's already established so they don't see the need or whether it's a conscious decision to distance from Bret but it really comes across as weird. They've got a new generic theme that's so bland I have no words to describe it, they've got hideous ring gear consisting of velour pants and cross-check boots and none of it is pink, they don't even mention that Owen is Bret's brother. Yet somehow none of that matters because it's Owen and Anvil and they are awesome dudes.  The 90s has a lot of terrible fashion to answer for All in all, this has the potential to be up there with that match with the Rockers from last year so they've got my full attention. The bell rings and Owen and Kato exchange wristlocks so obviously Gino and Heenan... immediately start talking about the Rumble. Godammit, guys, this is some real WCW poo poo right here. Heenan's excited for the Rumble and is backing Ric Flair to bring it home but he doesn't know what number Flair's been given cause he's been busy all day. It's ok, Heenan, I'm sure he's fine. I mean, what are the odds, right? Gino announces that there's been a couple of last minute replacements due to injury so we're not going to be seeing Brian Knobbs after a shoulder injury tonight, a development I can only be thankful for. Also out of action for tonight is Marty Janetty who has somehow Martied himself into a concussion. I wouldn't expect anything less. Don't worry, I will be talking about the match as well. Kato asks Owen for a test of strength but then kicks him to mat, except Owen holds onto a strong bridge and presses straight back up. Owen nails a slingshot hiptoss and follows it up with a hurracanrana. Oh Owen, this is exactly what this roster has been missing. Kato tries to beat on Anvil but he gives less than zero fucks and straight up hurls Kato across the ring. Oh Anvil, how I've missed my dumb happy fightman. Aw, this is just joyful right now.  Kato and Owen's secret handshake was rather extreme With Kato having no luck against either man Tanaka tags in to have a crack while Heenan describes him as “a master of all the martial arts”. Wow, that's impressive. Even the Samoan art of Limalama? Even 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu? Even Bajan stick licking? And before you ask, yes those are all real. The man with a black belt in Kalaripayattu tries to lift Anvil up for a body slam but hasn't got the strength and winds up eating a headbutt. Tanaka goes for a series of shoulder blocks but just runs into Anvil and falls down each time, all while Anvil has a goofy grin on his face. I love how much he enjoys dudes trying to beat the poo poo out of him. Owen lands a second rope elbow drop then Tanaka whips him into the corner except he jumps straight to the top rope, does a moonsault onto his feet and replies with a back body drop. loving awesome. Owen follows with a crisp enziguri and goddam this guy is so drat good. He stands out the same way Shawn and Marty always stood out, it's like no-one else on the roster. For all the plaudits Bret gets for his ability, based on what I'm seeing here I think I might like Owen more. Anvil sets Tanaka up in the corner and comes in hard as he drives his shoulder into Tanaka's chest. Oof! Anvil connects with a double clothesline to Tanaka and Kato and Owen hits a beautiful double crossbody then follows with a spinning heel kick to Kato. Is it just me or is this match ridiculously one-sided so far? Not that I'm complaining. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and Tanaka gets in a cheap shot on Owen which Fuji takes advantage of to whack him with the cane. This allows Kato to follow up with a thrust kick and a corkscrew elbow and from there Tanaka and Kato are well in control. Tanaka whips Owen into the corner and he takes a full-on Bret bump backwards. Aww, it's nice to see these little family connections. Tanaka headbutts Owen right in the dick which is in every meaning of the phrase possible, a dick move. Owen runs into a stiff flying chop from Tanaka who then teams up with Kato to whip him shoulder first into the ringpost. Which doesn't sound too bad except Fuji's shoved his cane in there and he hits it so hard it breaks in two.  This sounded like Owen had broken his shoulder or something Remember how I called this really one-sided earlier on? This is like a complete reverse of that. Tanaka and Kato spend ages just beating the poo poo out of Owen and he's got very little to respond with. Kato connects with a hammerlock slam before Owen pulls off a beautiful belly to belly suplex on Tanaka. He can't press the advantage though and Tanaka and Kato reply with a double clothesline. This is some a masterful display of basic tag team wrestling psychology here. They've got the build up to this hot tag bubbling up really well. Somewhere in the world a young Scott Dawson is furiously taking notes. Tanaka and Kato hit the leapfrog crotch but then Owen finds a double dropkick and there's the tag! Anvil comes into the ring with a double slingshot shoulder tackle. Awesome! Kato rolls to the outside so he whips Owen into a suicide dive through the ropes. drat! Some lovely work on show here. Owen goes up top and Anvil launches him into a body splash on Tanaka and that is all she wrote. So this wasn't quite up to the standard of the ridiculously good match from last year's Royal Rumble but I never really expected it to be. It was fast, it was hard-hitting, it was a good way of opening up the show to get people interested. It's great to have Owen and Anvil back on the roster. It's always fun to see how much joy Anvil gets from kicking people's heads in and Owen brings a spark to the tag division that's going to be needed with the Rockers on their way to their inevitable break-up. I felt very down on the tag division for most of 1991 so I'm hoping these two can turn that around.
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Jun 7, 2018 20:33
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Owen loving ruled. Even going back to the Blue Blazer, he was doing stuff no one short of the Rockers were even trying.
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Jun 7, 2018 21:15
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I always thought pairing Valentine with Neidhart as "Hammer and Anvil" would have been a more logical step at this point, but Owen is an upgrade in every possible way. Owen never had a terrible match, ever. Owen and Shawn are like Fettuccine Alfredo and Pizza--even when they're not great they aren't bad, either.
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Jun 7, 2018 23:21
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Rarity, wanna guess how Marty got that concussion? https://youtu.be/OWsPehsBFEg
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Jun 8, 2018 00:02
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Shiki Dan posted:
He did, once, in New Japan in 1988 against Mark "Rollerball" Rocco.
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Jun 8, 2018 00:11
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Takuan posted:He did, once, in New Japan in 1988 against Mark "Rollerball" Rocco. ...how the gently caress did they manage that?
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Jun 8, 2018 00:35
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Rarity posted:Wait, Tenryu? As in WM7 Tenryu? Wut? Tenryu is a huge star in Japan at this point and later too. Rarity posted:
You want to know the main reason Jose killed Brody? Brody was supposedly going to take the head booker roll. The head booker? Jose. He booked himself as a face after killing Brody.
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Jun 8, 2018 00:53
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What the actual gently caress? Who would think this was a good idea? Why would anyone-
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Rarity posted:Yeah in retrospect the way they handle Taker here really does feel different to the monsters Hulk's beaten in the past. It's not a definitive win. Looking back on it now it's clear this was a really smart choice but I wonder how that decision came to be made at the time. Politics, always politics. I'd take a wild guess and say that WWF didn't want Taker to lose to the leg drop and look weaker, and Hogan didn't want to have someone kick out of his finisher. Roll up sorta protects both guys and their characters, even though it's bullshit because the match before this, Hogan no-sold the Tombstone so I'm betting Taker wasn't happy about that and it likely figured into their rematch finish.
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Jun 8, 2018 02:54
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Open Marriage Night posted:Rarity, wanna guess how Marty got that concussion? OH GOD IT'S BURTUS! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME? 
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Jun 8, 2018 06:15
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I always forget how crazy over Burtus really was. Dude got mad pops just for showing up and being Burtus
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Jun 8, 2018 11:53
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DeathChicken posted:I always forget how crazy over Burtus really was. Dude got mad pops just for showing up and being Burtus He had great theme music and that was all it required for 6/7 year old me to think you were the best. Thus, I genuinely thought Brutus Beefcake was a great wrestler.
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Jun 8, 2018 12:22
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forkboy84 posted:He had great theme music and that was all it required for 6/7 year old me to think you were the best. Thus, I genuinely thought Brutus Beefcake was a great wrestler. Then why didn't you love the Rougeaus, huh? 
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Jun 8, 2018 12:28
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Speaking of, you might be interested that prior to the PPV here, we have a new Intercontinental champ. None other than Jacques beat Bret Hart in a match I can absolutely not find anywhere on Youtube as it seems WWE has copyright pulled it
DeathChicken fucked around with this message at 13:25 on Jun 8, 2018 |
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Jun 8, 2018 13:15
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"I am going to spoil things in this thread with NO SPOILERS in the title"
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Jun 8, 2018 13:23
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It's hardly a spoiler if it literally never aired on a PPV (and happened before the one we're on now), but 'okay'
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Jun 8, 2018 13:25
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DeathChicken posted:It's hardly a spoiler if it literally never aired on a PPV (and happened before the one we're on now), but 'okay' They literally air it on the PPV. It's the very next update!
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Jun 8, 2018 13:28
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Oh really? That's actually pretty awesome. Usually they didn't bother actually showing things that happened on house shows, you'd only get Mean Gene making vague allusions to so and so happening check out WWF Magazine
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Jun 8, 2018 13:33
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Rarity posted:Royal Rumble 1992: Laughing At The Mentally Handicapped Is Totally Fine It took me a second to figure out what this was referencing and once I did, I let out a big, depressed sigh.
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Jun 8, 2018 13:37
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Gaz-L posted:...how the gently caress did they manage that? I was wrong about the date, it was January 25, 1990. As to how they managed to have a bad match: I, In my New Japan thread posted:It was one of those matches where the heel spends 80% of the time on offense, which are bad enough as it is, compounded by Black Tiger/Rocco being a plodding, very limited, completely uninspiring worker. Owen, to his credit, tried to inject some entertainment whenever he had the chance, but it wasn’t nearly enough.
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Jun 8, 2018 14:24
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Rarity posted:Then why didn't you love the Rougeaus, huh? Oh, I really did but I don't feel embarrassed about that now. On the other hand, I loved Demolition because of their theme and that again is a bit silly in hindsight. But the Rougeaus (& a later Jacques tag team who come around in about 94) had amazing music. (USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)
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Jun 8, 2018 15:07
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Every version of the 92 Royal Rumble features clips of the Barbershop segment and the other match. It's at this point that the WWF has gotten much, much better at video packages that explain the buildup to their matches, so there's going to be much less of Rarity and other new viewers going "huh, well how did THAT happen? Oh well, guess we're going with this". Say what you will about the transition to the "New Generation" and Kevin Dunn but at least the TV editing took a great leap forward in this era. I guess it was also at this point that the WWF has realized that PPVs are actually going to become some kind of historical thing and began designing their releases for future audiences rather than just assuming that everyone who will ever watch their PPVs on tape would have already seen all 4 of their syndicated TV shows every single week for the 4 months in between PPVs, where even 4 minute throwaway matches like Dino Bravo vs. Ronnie Garvin would have had like 8 promos spent to hype it up. Shiki Dan fucked around with this message at 15:21 on Jun 8, 2018 |
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Jun 8, 2018 15:12
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forkboy84 posted:
Come on dude, you know the rule 
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Jun 8, 2018 15:15
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How difficult can it be to NOT say stuff?
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Jun 8, 2018 15:53
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Too late for me to tag it now but I've handed out a probation. If it happened AFTER what Rarity is currently talking about, then it's a spoiler. Doesn't matter how vague you think you are making it, it's a spoiler. Just don't post it. It's NOT difficult!
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Jun 8, 2018 16:53
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Sorry about the barber shop thing. Totally forgot it gets covered.
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Jun 8, 2018 18:26
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I'm so sorry Rarity, that was dumb and careless of me.
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Jun 9, 2018 11:51
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Over to the back we go where we find none other than your friend and mine, LORD ALFRED HAYES! Everyone's most favourite well-endowed Englishman is here to catch us up with some recent events. You see, it turns out that just two days prior to this show Bret Hart defended his Intercontinental title on a house show while running a massive fever despite the advice of his doctors. Now Bret may be the best there ever was at wrestling but he's not the best at recovering from illness so he easily lost the title and this means your new Intercontinental champion is none other than this guy: He's an All-Intercontinental Boy, an All-Intercontinental Boy Let me say a resounding gently caress yes to this development. After claiming my love and adoration four years ago my boy Jacques Rougeau has finally got some gold. We get to see clips of the match as he rolls up Bret in a small package to get the pin then clobbers him with the belt after the match. He even takes out Rowdy Roddy Piper when he tries to come to Bret's aid but Piper soon recovers and sends him running. All of which means that tonight Piper's got a chance for double gold as he's not only in the Rumble but he's also got a Intercontinental title shot. In the back Sean Mooney is with our brand new champ and Jimmy Hart and you know what? In celebration of this glorious victory and general recognition that this new gimmick is actually very fun now, I'm rewarding the Mountie with giving him his name back. Congratulations, Jacques. It takes a lot to turn this cold, dead heart around. So anyway, Jimmy is guessing that Bret is still at the hospital and wants to get him a get well card because he thinks Bret is sick from losing. The Mountie is outraged at having to defend his new title with just two days notice and wants to know Piper's win-loss record. I think you'll find it's 20% wins, 0% losses, 80% double countouts. MOST HOMOEROTIC MOMENT The Mountie: “I'm gonna take your skirt, your manhood and whatever's left”  Now imagine him saying that while pulling that face Meanwhile, Zombie Mean Gene is with Piper who seems to have predicted my Most Homoerotic Moment award because he calls the Mountie “one of the original Village People” and says Jimmy gets lipstick on the belt from kissing it. Ah, where would we be without good old 90s gay panic? A progressive, tolerant society, that's where. And we couldn't have that. Piper heard that the Mountie will take his integrity but that's “like Jacques Cousteau trying to find a dry spot in the ocean” because Piper doesn't have any integrity. Um, you realise you're meant to be the face, right? He also heard that the Mountie plans to take his manhood and wonders what the Mountie came here to do because Piper came to win two titles and he can't do that unless he wins the first one. He adds “I think you've been dreaming and I think it's been all wet too”. What the gently caress is this promo? Intercontinental Title Match Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. The Mountie w/ Jimmy Hart You know what? This makes me so happy. I don't even need to see this match, I just need this moment right here of the Mountie coming out as champion. For years this guy was so great and so deserving of a title run and he was completely ignored for the tag belts but now after I thought I was never going to see him again he's finally getting his due. I hope that Raymond is chasing the caribou in your honour tonight, Jacques. Aw, and he's got so much heat as well when he enters. The crowd is all riled up and it's a joy to see. Piper comes out and he's maybe the most over he's been since his 'retirement' match. Everyone is well up for this one.  Excuse me, I just need to savour this for a second As the two men stare down in the ring Gino claims that Piper has “more integrity in his little finger” than the Mountie. Weren't you listening not three minutes ago, Gino? We've already established from Piper himself that this isn't true. There's a long stall while Piper takes his kilt off as the crowd chants “RODDY” but eventually he whips it off and flings it into the Mountie's face. That's the first step of the promise completed. The Mountie decides he's not feeling it tonight and tries to bail but Piper goes right after him to bring him back to the ring. Piper is looking super intense tonight, that shot at double gold must be really driving him. Piper connects with a bulldog but he whiffs a dropkick which allows the Mountie to take control. The crowd kicks off another round of “RODDY” chants as the Mountie rams him into the turnbuckle and follows up with a corkscrew elbow. Meanwhile, on commentary they're discussing Bret's decision to put the title up while having a fever and Heenan has little sympathy. He claims he's worked on a temperature of 113 and Gino says that if he'd done that he'd be dead. That's not an issue, Gino. You die at the announce desk every night. Back in the ring, Piper hits an atomic drop on the Mountie that sends him staggering over the top rope but he holds on and skins the cat. Nice. Jimmy climbs the apron but the Mountie accidentally runs into him and Piper slaps on a sleeper hold to get the title. Jimmy tries to defend his man with the cattle prod but Piper grabs it and gets in a few extra hits on the Mountie for good measure. Hey, where's your integrity? Oh. Oh yeah. SIGN OF THE NIGHT  No one ever told me that Mojo Rawley attended this show It's very rare to come away from a five minute match with any kind of quality judgement. It's not enough time to combine telling a story with getting in some exciting spots. With that fully documented, this match was real good. They obviously wanted to keep Piper's workload light so he's good for the Rumble and I can't exactly begrudge that when he's the first man ever to pull double duty at a Royal Rumble. I'd like to see what these two could do together at a time when they didn't to be under these time constraints. And while I'm not as thrilled as I was to see the Mountie get the belt I do think it's cool that Piper gets to add a title reign to his Wikipedia page. He was one of the most influential figures in wrestling in the 80s, he deserved something solid to go on his legacy. Off to the back we go where Alfred is currently walking into other men's dressing rooms. He wanders into one where he finds Hulk Hogan. Now you might think that someone barging into your dressing room unannounced would be a cause to kick off but Hulk takes it in his stride. He tells Alfred he's lucky that they're friends because once he's in the Rumble he's not going to have any friends. He adds that the Rumble is his “cup of tea” and of course, Alfred knows a lot about tea. Hey! That's racist! Not all Brits drink tea! I myself subsist on a regular influx of diet coke and energy drinks.
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Jun 10, 2018 11:20
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Yeah, this match felt like a perfect storm. Piper was always protected well enough that if he wasn't going to a countout, he was probably whupping someone's rear end. Meanwhile people hate hate *hated* Jacques and wanted him whupped. Well, here you go.
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Jun 10, 2018 12:18
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DeathChicken posted:people hate hate *hated* Jacques Wow, I guess a million people CAN be wrong
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Jun 10, 2018 12:32
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I can't remember if Piper vs. Mountie was announced ahead of time or if it was Piper vs. [whoever the Intercontinental Champion is]. I feel like it was the latter, just because I remember being pumped at the idea of Piper winning both singles titles in one night. When we get to what Piper's up to at WM8, I have to remember to talk about his Saturday Night's Main Event appearance in-between. It's... certainly something.
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Jun 10, 2018 12:39
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...man, I really wasn't kidding about Piper being well protected. I glanced at his WWF matches and I think the only pins he actually ate to this point were one to Snuka way back during the Coconut Armageddon, and one to Flair Which makes Mountie's "What's his win record?" thing really funny
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Jun 10, 2018 13:24
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To be fair, Piper was the top heel at the peak of WWF's Rock n' Wrestling era, which was a time in which top heels lost all the time b/c the top faces had to be invincible. It just happens that he almost never actually pinned. I'm pretty sure he never laid down for Hogan. Also I want to point out the whole "Bret working a fever of 105" or whatever was complete worked horseshit, and Bret admitted as much later. The issue was that Bret's contract was winding down quickly and WCW actually started to ramp up negotiations to the point where Bret actually had to consider it. Of course, they still left the IC strap on him, so they just decided to get the title off ASAP.  Jacques just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Bret's ego concocted the fever angle to preserve his heat--which, as much as I love Bret, was a pretty wack move. Even if Jacques was a 2-day transitional champion, at least try to put him over strong. Luckily both Bret and the WWF learned from this incident and nothing like this happened again............
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Jun 10, 2018 17:10
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