WWF Monday Night RAW (May 24, 1993)

Original Airdate: May 24, 1993 (Taped May 17)

From New York, New York; Your Hosts are Vince McMahon, Bobby Heenan, and Randy Savage.

Opening King of the Ring Qualifying Match: Mr. Perfect v Doink: These two had wrestled to two non-decisions previously, but tonight there WILL BE WINNER! And Doink is ready, attacking Perfect before the bell, and choking him with his own towel. Oh, the humanity! Perfect returns fire with the towel and wins a slugfest before sweeping Doink, and hooking a spinning-toehold. He wraps Doink's leg around the post, but back inside, Doink blasts him with a boot to the midsection, and dumps him over the top. Doink follows him with an axehandle off of the apron (making sure to sell the knee when he lands), and he posts Perfect. Another slugfest on the apron goes Doink's way, and he drags Perfect back in for a backdrop, but Perfect quickly counters into a mat-based headscissors. He goes back after the knee, and hooks a modified leglock that looks like a bootleg figure four, but Doink rakes the eyes, and bites him. He takes Perfect back to the floor for another shot into the post, and starts targeting the arm - wrapping it around the post. Inside, Doink slaps on an overhead wristlock, and then stomps the arm to be a dick. Hammerlock slam gets two, but Perfect catches him with an atomic drop out of another slugfest, and he clotheslines the clown. Another clothesline knocks Doink over the top, but that just gives him the opportunity to switch out with doppelganger Doink under the ring. Inside, Perfect goes for the kill, but suddenly Doink is fresh, and monkey flips him. Backdrop, but he telegraphs it, and gets caught in the Perfect-Plex at 15:00. Fun, psychologically sound match. **

King of the Ring Report. Now that Mr. Perfect has qualified, we have all four quarter-final matches set, so be sure to call your local cable company!

Fat RAW Girl Sign of the Week: Are You RAW?

Money Inc v Mike Bell and Tony Devito: Money Inc are the WWF Tag Team Champions here, but this is non-title. Great bit, as DiBiase offers anyone in the crowd $100 if they get into the ring right now and shine his shoes. Some kid takes the bait, but IRS deducts 70% for taxes - which is just awesome, dickish heel work. Anyway, DiBiase starts with Bell, and controls with a hammerlock. Criss cross goes DiBiase's way with a facebuster, and he tags IRS for a flying axehandle. IRS forces the tag to Devito, but things don't go too well for him either, and DiBiase hits a 2^nd rope axehandle before clotheslining him out of the ring. Money Inc cut the ring in half on Devito, and IRS finally puts the poor jobber out of his misery with the Write Off at 3:55. Just a squash. ¼*

Crush v Bobby Who: Who actually tries a full-nelson right out of the initial lockup, but Crush literally shrugs him off. Who tries raking the eyes, but an Irish whip backfires, and Crush kicks him. Hanging vertical suplex and a legdrop sends Bobby out to the floor, but Crush is on him with a clothesline out there. Back in, Crush hugs him like a bear, and hits a belly-to-belly suplex out of the hold, followed by a press slam. Kona Crush finishes at 3:24. Nothing wrong with it as a squash, but certainly nothing memorable. DUD

Vince McMahon brings Razor Ramon out for an in-ring interview, to discuss that pesky Kid who beat him last week. Razor offers him $2,500 to try it again next week, but instead of the Kid, Ramon gets Bret Hart (his opponent for King of the Ring) out to tease him about losing to a jobber. Nice to see them actually develop any of the matches for King of the Ring - thus far, no one in any of the matches (tournament or otherwise) has had any real interaction.

Adam Bomb v Phil Apollo: This is very early into Bomb's run. Bomb overpowers him right away, and tosses him into the turnbuckle with ease, then hiptosses him out. Bomb with a dropkick, as Vince goes crazy with atomic related puns on commentary. Bomb with a pump-handle, and he tosses Phil to the floor for a whip into the rail. Back in, Bomb hits a flying clothesline, and and a powerbomb finishes at 2:30. Off to a good start for Bomb - the 'flying big man' stuff was still really unique in 1993, and it's a shame he didn't go further. ¼*

Bam Bam Bigelow offers words for new Intercontinental champion Marty Jannetty, who he will be facing right here, next week!

BUExperience: Not nearly as good as last week, and other than the fun little TV-match that was the Perfect/Doink opener, there’s nothing really notable here.