WCW Fall Brawl 1993

After dropping the ‘WrestleWar’ show concept for the pay per view lineup in 1993, WCW created Fall Brawl as a new, permanent home for the popular WarGames match. The first show was built on another confrontation between Sting/Davey Boy Smith and The Masters of the Powerbomb – this time with their pals in tow for the ultimate blowoff.

Unfortunately, Sting and Davey’s pal Hawk fell out before the show, so they promised a mystery partner. At the Clash of the Champions the month before, they unveiled partner The Shockmaster (the WWF’s Typhoon, dressed as an overweight Stormtrooper with a bedazzled helmet), though his debut failed to make the splash WCW was hoping for when he literally fell on his face. In fact, the debut has become so legendarily embarrassing that, even twenty years later, people still use ‘Shockmaster’ as a verb for whenever a wrestler trips, or looks foolish.

From Houston, Texas; Your Hosts are Tony Schiavone and Jesse Ventura. Tony immediately makes a ludicrous claim that they are ‘jam packed to the rafters’ when there are rows (hell, sections) of empty seats visible, and over half the crowd papered.


Opening WCW Television Title Match: Ricky Steamboat v Steven Regal: Steamboat actually jumps Regal from behind, but Regal fires off a shot to Steamboat's taped ribs (injured by Regal during the buildup) to turn the tide. It spills onto the elevated ramp way for Steamboat to chop him, and he hits a flying tomahawk chop on the way back in - only to crumple to the mat because of the ribs. Regal wastes no time driving his shoulder into the ribs, but he gets reversed going into the corner, and taken to the mat in a hammerlock. Steamboat blasts knees into the shoulder, but gets backdropped coming out of the ropes, and his ribs take the brunt of it. Regal ties him up on the mat to grind his elbow into the ribs, but a reverse chinlock allows Steamboat an electric chair to counter. Splash, but Regal lifts the knees - getting him right in the ribs again. Regal with an overhead backbreaker, but Steamboat won't give, so Regal takes him to the mat for a vicious looking surfboard. He still won't quit, so rips the rib tape off, and hits a butterfly suplex for two. Steamboat tries a slingshot to turn the tide, but Regal counters a bodyslam into a bodyblock for two, and goes back to the ribs. Tombstone, but Steamboat reverses for two, and here come the chops! Inside cradle gets two, and a fisherman's buster suplex for two. Flying bodypress for two, but that doesn't do his ribs any favors. Regal is still too dazed to capitalize, however, so manager Sir William whacks the champ with his umbrella, and Regal instinctively German suplexes him for the title at 17:05. Psychologically sound (it had more rib work than dinner at Tony Roma's), and great selling from Steamboat - if overall a bit dull for the length. * ¾

Big Sky v Charlie Norris: The first few lockups go to stalemates, until Norris hooks an armbar. Blind charge misses, however, and Sky throws him around - as the few people in attendance start filing out for concessions. Sky with a chokeslam, but Norris is RIPPING OFF!! Big Boot! 4:35! Don't feel too badly for Sky - he'd go on to have a fairly successful film career after getting away from wrestling a few years later. Plus, he could stand in for Chris Jericho at stadium shows, if it ever comes down to it. DUD

Marcus Bagwell and 2 Cold Scorpio v Paul Orndorff and The Equalizer: Bagwell and Scorpio's pre-match dancing NEVER fails to crack me up. In fact, if someone ever made up a YouTube video compilation of them, it would instantly become my screensaver. Bagwell starts with Equalizer, and gets smacked around, but he manages to take Equalizer down by using his speed advantage. Tag to Scorpio for a stereo dropkick to clean house, but he makes the mistake of agreeing to a test-of-strength, and gets railroaded into the heel corner. Tag to Orndorff for a backdrop, but he gets caught with a flying moonsault, and taken to the mat in an armbar. Bagwell tags for a hiptoss, and a suplex gets two, so Equalizer pulls down the top rope on a criss cross, sending Bagwell crashing to the floor. Equalizer takes the opportunity to slam him out there, and rams him into the ring apron as he works to beat the referees count. Inside, Orndorff with another backdrop, and Equalizer tags to help cut the ring in half with restholds. Bagwell manages to side suplex out of an Orndorff bearhug to make the tag, and Scorpio is a house of arson. Four-way brawl breaks out, of course, and a miscommunication allows Scorpio to finish Equalizer with the 450 splash at 10:46. Dull, formula stuff. ¼*

Ice Train v Shanghai Pierce: Pierce has the map of Texas branded on his ass, and Train still manages to get a face reaction. Not a big one, but still, I'm surprised he didn't get the US Title out of it. He brings the heat with a side-headlock, so Pierce challenges for a test-of-strength, and fires off a cheap shot to takeover. Suplex, but Train reverses, and backdrops the Texan. That draws the ire of Pierce partner Tex Slazenger, but Train shrugs them off, and powerslams Pierce for the pin at 3:28. This had no place on pay per view. DUD

WCW World Tag Team Title Match: Arn Anderson and Paul Roma v The Nasty Boys: The Nasties introduce Missy Hyatt as their new manager, and the brilliant production team actually focuses on a sign in the crowd wondering how much she paid for her enormous tits. Just awesome. Paul Roma starts with Brian Knobs, and quickly outsmarts him - which is about the wrestling equivalent of a three year old outsmarting toilet paper. Roma with a powerslam to trigger a four-way brawl, and the Horsemen pretty casually clean house. Another hilarious bit on the floor, as Missy tries to help the Nasties up, and some dude throws a dollar at her - which the camera crew zooms in on for a good fifteen seconds! God, I miss WCW. Anyway, the dust settles on Anderson and Jerry Sags, and Arn quickly wins a slugfest before posting Sags' knee. Roma tags in to dive on the knee, and he hooks an anklelock, but Sags manages to pass back to Knobs. He walks right into a droptoe-hold, however, and Anderson decides to start kicking the crap out of his knee instead. No good deed goes unpunished, I guess. Roma with a leglock, as the camera crew gets bored, and starts cutting to the most random collection of crowd signs ever assembled (Bevis and Butthead! WCW #1!) until Sags tags back in with a gutwrench suplex. The Nasties cut the ring in half on Roma, but an electric chair on Knobs allows the tag back to Anderson. He dominates, but gets overwhelmed in a double-team, and slammed on the floor - oh, and that dollar appears to be gone! Looks like Missy is in business, folks! Hell, go for it - I'd rather watch that than this. The Nasties work Arn over with their usual arsenal of restholds, as the camera cuts to yet another guy waving a dollar at Missy from the front row. Jesus, you'd think that George Washington guy was a debuting wrestler, considering the amount of attention he's getting here. Unfortunately, he isn't - forever robbing fans of the Vader/Washington Cage Match we so desperately crave. Arn finally manages to dodge one of the Nasties endless double-teams, and Roma is a house of arson! It doesn't take long for a four-way to break out from there, and Sags manages to blast Roma with a flying elbowdrop in the chaos, and Knobs covers for the victory at 23:58. Insanely long for what they were doing, but insanely long tag matches were sort of a hallmark of early 90s WCW. This would have been fine (dull, but fine) at half the length, but as is, it's a borderline offensive waste of a half hour on pay per view. ¼*

Cactus Jack v Yoshi Kwan: Cactus Jack's booking around this period may actually be more embarrassing than the Shockmaster fiasco, as WCW took a surefire hot angle (Vader nearly kills Jack on TV, and puts him out of action) by turning the whole thing into a joke where Jack has amnesia, and does goofy things. By this point, even they realized they should try to salvage it - having Jack say that the 'amnesia' was fake in order to play mind games with Vader. And he comes in hot, spearing Kwan to the mat for mounted punches, and Cactus Clotheslining him to the floor. Kwan tries a roundhouse kick out there, and a spinheel on the way back in. More kicks in the corner (Kwan was a white guy with Rob Schneider's makeup job from I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, who apparently thought lots of poorly executed 'kicks' would make people think he was actually Asian), but Jack shrugs him off, and finishes with the double-arm DDT at 3:39 - getting the biggest pop of the night, so far. DUD

WCW International World Title Match: Ric Flair v Rick Rude: This was originally for Flair's NWA World Title, but the NWA objected to Rude's planned title win here, so WCW called their bluff, and split from the NWA for good, in turn renaming Flair's title as the 'International World' title' - an idea that works in the short term, but should have quickly been quickly unified with the WCW World Title, which they did eventually get around to in 1994. Rude grabs a side-headlock early on, but misses a flying kneedrop (taking a visually impressive bump on the way down), and Flair wastes no time slapping on the Figure Four. Rick makes the ropes, however, so Flair hits him with a flying elbowsmash. Wristlock leads to more hilarious unintentional comedy, as Jesse Ventura starts making a flurry of misogynistic jokes on commentary, until an offended female technician cuts his headset off for a while. Ventura starts screaming, however, so we can still hear him bitching her out for it without the headset. He was so blatant with those line, it had to be a rib on her. Poor Jesse, though. Misogynists are underappreciated in today’s society. Flair keeps the wristlock going, and shifts into a hammerlock on the mat, but Rude drives him into the corner to break. Flair dodges a blind charge, however, and uses the opportunity to take Rude back to the mat with another wristlock. Into the corner for some chops, and a shindrop to the arm leaves Rude on his knees for an armbar. Backslide gets two, and a bodypress sends them both tumbling over the top - a spot Flair frequently botches, but executed perfectly here. Rude takes over with a clothesline out there, and a suplex back in gets two. Rude with a series of forearms to the lower back for two, and he hooks a reverse chinlock - making sure to blow kisses at Flair valet Fifi the whole time. Flair powers out into another series of chops, but walks into a press slam, and he Flair Flips to the floor. Back inside, Rude hugs him like a bear for a couple of two counts, so Flair goes to the eyes, and mounts him with punches. He's still too dazed to capitalize, however, and walks into a stungun. Rude with a pair of flying tomahawk chops to follow-up, but a third try gets him gut-punched, and Ric side suplexes him. Shindrop and a butterfly suplex get two, but a blind charge misses, and Rude DDTs him for two. Rude Awakening, but Flair reverses for two - Rude getting a foot on the ropes to save him. Kneebreaker sets up the Figure Four, but Rude shoves him off, and cradles him for two. Flair keeps firing off shots at the knee to retain the momentum, but gets nailed as he tries a flying axehandle, and Rude hits a flying kneedrop for two. Sick of Flair, Rude dumps him so he can properly hit on Fifi - though that's kinda short sighted, since he can't win the title by countout. I guess French pussy > International World Title. That allows Flair to sneak back in with the Figure Four, but Rude whacks him with a pair of knux, and we have a new champion at 30:49. These two doing thirty minutes on pay per view is a classic on paper, but ended up being very disappointing in actuality - especially considering the time they were given. And it wasn't a fluke, either, as their rematch at Halloween Havoc the next month wasn't much better. The crowd just kept waiting for them to get it going, but the parade of restholds just went on and on and on. Normally, that could work if it were at least psychologically sound, but Rude managed to forget all of Flair's arm and knee work, and Flair shrugged off Rude's back work, so it all built to nothing. ½*

Main Event: WarGames: Sting, Davey Boy Smith, Dustin Rhodes, and The Shockmaster v The Masters of the Powerbomb and Harlem Heat: WarGames is a two ring match, with a cage covering both rings. One man from each side starts. After five minutes, a member from one of the teams - determined by a coin toss - enters, giving his team the temporary handicap advantage. After two minutes, a member from the other team enters to even the odds. Entrants alternate between teams every two minutes, giving the coin toss-winning team the temporary advantage in the numbers game before giving the other team the advantage with the freshest man in to even the odds. Once everyone is in, they battle to submission, surrender, or knockout - no pinfalls or disqualifications. There was a time when everyone who liked wrestling knew that, but with the WWE's refusal to incorporate WarGames into their schedule, I'm not sure that everyone remembers the details today. Dustin Rhodes kicks things off against Vader, and goes right at him with a flying clothesline. Fists of fury leave Vader slumped in the corner, and Rhodes takes his boot off as a weapon. Hey, they're not just encouraged; they're allowed! Vader doesn't give a shit, however, and blasts Rhodes with a bodyblock before taking him into the corner for the forearms. Vaderbomb hits, but Rhodes comes back with a DDT, and pits the socks to him. Stomping a guy in socks is just not visually impressive. It's just not. Mounted punches as time winds down, and the heels win the coin toss - bringing in Stevie Ray. Rhodes does his best, but the double-team (practically triple, since it's fucking Vader) overwhelms him, and Stevie uses his own boot against him. No! That goes on until Sting buzzes in for the face team, and he's a house of arson on both guys - feeding Stevie Ray the cage, and Stinger Splashing Vader. Sting with an impressive Samoan drop to send Vader into the side of the cage, and Rhodes recovers enough to pick up his end with a jumping clothesline on Stevie. Sid buzzes into the match with a chokeslam on Sting, and he chokes him on the ropes as Vader and Stevie work Rhodes over. The Masters of the Powerbomb give Sting a neat double-team press slam into the ceiling of the cage, but time is running down, and here's the Bulldog! He keeps Sid busy with a clothesline, and a powerslam for Vader pops the crowd. Sting comes over to pay Sid back with their own double-press slam into the ceiling spot, but the heels take over again in short order. Booker T enters as anchor, but the heels are already dominating, so he doesn't really change the flow of the match - just another body to help double-team. Shockmaster buzzes in to round out the field, and he gets into a fat guy-showdown with Vader as Rhodes smacks Sid around with his boot. Shockmaster gets Booker into a bearhug, and the other heels (notably Sid, and Booker’s regular tag partner Stevie Ray) just stand their gawking at them instead of making the save, until Booker submits at 16:39. Really underwhelming WarGames, and oddly booked, to boot. *

BUExperience: Fuck. No wonder nobody talks about this show anymore, ever. It was like a seemingly endless parade of crap, which came to a standstill with the International World Title match, and then sort of sputtered to a close with a crappy WarGames. There are some legitimately hilarious bits of unintentional comedy here, and the title changes add some (minor) historical significance – but this could be used as a torture device by underfunded militaries. DUD