WCW SuperBrawl IV (Version II)

Original Airdate: February 20, 1994

From Albany, Georgia; Your Hosts are Tony Schiavone and Bobby Heenan

Opening Match: Harlem Heat v Thunder & Lightning: We're ten minutes into the broadcast, and Heenan is already trying way too hard on commentary. Like I've said before, I love Bobby, but Jesse Ventura was a much better fit in this role, and had much better chemistry with Schiavone. Heenan's act feels really forced here, as opposed to the comfortable rapport he had with Gorilla Monsoon, and even with Vince McMahon. Kole starts with Lightning, and they feel each other out. Who would have ever guessed that, out of all the guys from this era, Booker T (Kole) would still be a part of the game all these years later? Thunder tags in to work a hammerlock on Kole, but he gets dropped with a bodyslam, and Kane tags in. Criss cross ends in Thunder hitting a jumping shoulderblock, and he passes over to Lightning for a flying axehandle. Lightning works the arm, but Kane escapes with a bodyslam of his own - only to miss a pointed elbowdrop. He still manages to tag, but Kole ends up in an armbar as well, and Thunder comes in with a kneelift for two. Thunder with a bodyslam, but he runs into a cheap shot from Kane, and Kole clotheslines his ass over the top. Kane sends him into the guardrail out there, and Harlem Heat cut the ring in half on Thunder. Thunder & Lightning are getting a surprising amount of support from the crowd here. Kole misses a flying elbowdrop to allow the hot tag to Lightning, and Roseanne Barr the door! Belly-to-belly suplex on Kole gets two, and a rollup follows, but the referee misses it - allowing Kane a cheap shot, and Kole scores the pin at 9:46. Very basic, house show level stuff. * (Original rating: DUD)

Equalizer v Jungle Jim Steele: Steele fights off an attack with a pair of armdrags right away, but runs into a kick, and Equalizer delivers a turnbuckle smash. Another one gets reversed, however, and Steele adds a second, before hooking a schoolboy for two. Steele works a wristlock, but Equalizer counters to an armbar, so Jim uses a monkeyflip to escape. Dropkick corners Equalizer, and Steele tries another monkeyflip, but gets dropped on his head instead. Equalizer puts the boots to him, and delivers a bodyslam to set up a legdrop. He really IS the world's number one Hulkamaniac! Equalizer dumps him to the outside for some abuse, as Heenan continues to bomb on commentary. In, Equalizer with a backbreaker for two, and he works a bearhug. Jim escapes and hooks a crucifix for two, but gets cut off, and Equalizer nails a turnbuckle smash, and Tony has the balls to compare this action to the near four-star 2 Cold Scorpio/Chris Benoit match from last year. Ventura would have definitely called him on that bullshit, though in Bobby's defense, I doubt he'd seen it. Steele blocks a backdrop and hits a clothesline, then delivers a Thesz-press for the pin at 6:30. Energetic enough, but junk. ¼* (Original rating: DUD)

Diamond Dallas Page v Terry Taylor: They were still far behind the WWF, but it's worth noting that WCWs production values had drastically improved by this point, especially since Gene Okerlund joined the fold. Page tries a sneak attack, but Taylor fights him off with a series of jabs, then whips him into the ropes for a spinkick. Pumphandle-slam gets two, and Terry works a wristlock. Dallas fights free, to Taylor grounds him in a cross-armbreaker instead, but DDP is in the ropes, and he bails upon the break. I don't know who this Diamond Doll is tonight, but it definitely ain't Kimberly. Taylor drags him back in to continue working the arm, so Page tries a sunset flip - triggering a pinfall reversal sequence that ends in Terry applying an armbar. Taylor with a clothesline for two, but he runs into a backelbow while trying to go after the arm again, and Page delivers a fistdrop. Page with a suplex-slam for two, and a gutwrench stomachbreaker gets two. Side suplex gets two, so Page slaps on a cobra clutch, but Taylor escapes, so Dallas throws a clothesline for two. Turnbuckle smash, but Taylor uses a few elbows to block, so Page grounds him with a chinlock. Terry uses a side suplex to escape, but telegraphs a backdrop, and eats mat with a facebuster for two. DDP grounds him again with a cravat, but Terry escapes with a bodypress for two, so Page punches him in the mouth to buy time. He charges in the corner, but that misses, and Taylor capitalizes with a schoolboy at 11:46. Dallas was looking sloppy and unpolished here - it's truly a wonder how much he improved in a relatively short period of time. This had lots of effort, but was rather awkwardly worked, and overstayed its welcome - though Taylor did a good job of guiding Page. ¾* (Original rating: ½*)

Johnny B. Badd v Jimmy Garvin: Garvin, who was retired and working as an airline pilot at this point, is a sub for an injured Michael Hayes. Feeling out process to start, as Heenan finally starts to find his groove with Schiavone. Badd dominates him on the mat for a long while, so Garvin bails to the ramp to strategize with a wheelchair bound Hayes - only to end up right back on the mat when he comes back inside. He escapes a hammerlock with a series of knees in the corner, so Badd tries a charge, but Jimmy manages to lift his boot to block for two. Garvin with a few turnbuckle smashes, and a snapmare allows him to ground Badd in a chinlock. Heenan and Hayes entertain themselves through this shit by shouting greetings at each other from opposite sides of the ring, which is funny. Badd escapes and hits a headscissors, as he mounts his comeback. Uppercut rattles Garvin, and Johnny comes off the top with a flying sunset flip for the win at 10:47. Like most of the undercard tonight, this had no place on pay per view, let alone for eleven minutes. DUD (Original rating: DUD)

WCW Television Title Match: Lord Steven Regal v Arn Anderson: Oh man, this feels like it has 'style clash' written all over it. The idea here is that the time limit has been extended to thirty minutes, as opposed to the standard fifteen. Hey, wouldn't ya know it, Regal stalls to start. I know, I'm as surprised as you are. Slow feeling out process, with the challenger generally dominating, but Regal holding his own. That literally sums up the first twenty minutes of this match, and believe me, you haven't missed a thing. Seems even the production crew is bored out in the truck, as they take the time to fashion a transparent 'WCW' logo on the bottom right corner of the screen for the first time tonight. Arn hits the first high spot of the match with a backdrop, but then it's right back down to the mat again afterwards. The execution is all quite sound here, but boring as all fuck. Regal escapes an armbreaker with a series of European uppercuts, but he gets reversed into the corner, and Arn stomps the lower back until Steven bails. Sir William uses the umbrella on Anderson, allowing Regal to work a half-crab, then an STF. Arn escapes and tries a spinning-toehold, but Regal blocks, and he dumps Anderson to the outside for William to abuse with the umbrella again. Arn powers through it, and manages to sweep Regal down into a toehold anyway, but Steven is in the ropes to save himself. He gets Arn down in an overhead wristlock, but Anderson slugs free (eventually), and now they're fighting over a knucklelock. Seriously? We're over twenty five minutes into this thing, get off the damn mat! Arn finally wakes up with the rotating spinebuster, but Regal rolls into the ropes before he can cover. Anderson stays in it with a slingshot sunset flip, but an assist from William allows Regal to counter into a cradle to retain at a mind numbing 27:32. It pains me to rate it so low, because the execution and such was fine, but this was legitimately one of the most boring matches I've ever seen, in over twenty years of watching and reviewing wrestling. Truly a chore to watch, and the psychology was all over the map, too. A real stinker, which should safely regulate this show to the DUD-pile, unless the last few matches really kick it up a notch. ¼* (Original rating: ¼*)

WCW World Tag Team Title Match: The Nasty Boys v Cactus Jack and Maxx Payne: The champs no longer have Missy Hyatt with them, which is a shame. Heenan makes sure to get some cracks in on dear, departed Missy. Brian Knobbs starts with Payne, and Maxx hits a German suplex right away - sending an off guard Knobbs to the outside. Tag to Jerry Sags on the way back in, and he goes to the eyes to try and rattle Payne, but eats a suplex as well, and also ends up on the outside. The Nasties must have loved working with Maxx, because they both look positively lean beside him. Brian tags back in, but an attempt at a clothesline is countered with a uranage, and Sags' attempt to rush in with a bodypress is countered with a slam! Over to Cactus, and Jack slams both champions around, then drops an elbow on Knobbs for two. Sags breaks the count, so Payne comes in to deal with him, and Roseanne Barr the door - the challengers cleaning house. Dust settles on Sags and Jack, and Jerry uses a knee to slow Cactus down, but Knobbs runs into an elbow upon tagging in, and Jack drops a leg. Over to Payne with a facebuster for two, and a shoulderblock follows, so Sags comes in with a cheap shot, and Knobbs capitalizes with a clothesline. There's no way the Nasty Boys weren't just a little bit based on Bebop and Rocksteady, or vice versa. They cut the ring in half on Payne, but Knobbs misses a 2^nd rope flying legdrop, and Jack gets the tag! He hits Sags with a kneelift and a straddling ropechoke, then cuts an incoming Knobbs off with the cactus clothesline! He tries following up with an elbowdrop off of the apron, but the Nasties gang up on him, and Jack takes a crazy bump off of the apron onto the concrete! I've seen him do that spot in a million different matches, but that was legitimately one of the craziest. Not surprisingly, he's bleeding from the mouth after that one. And then, the madman ups the ante - taking another hard bump into the rail out there. Just insane. Inside, Brian bodyslams him, and slaps on a Boston crab, as the champs cut the ring in half. You know those bumps were crazy, because we actually get replays of them DURING the match, as opposed to the usual WCW practice of doing replays after the bell. They also really sell Cactus as the face-in-peril here, especially with the blood oozing out of his mouth. The Boys work him over, but he manages to catch them both with a DDT, and Maxx gets the tags! He comes in hot, and Roseanne Barr the door, because the Nasties are in trouble! Payne Killer looks to finish Knobbs, but Sags comes in with a guitar - breaking it over Maxx's head to save, but getting DQ'd in the process at 12:26. I don't know if it's enough to save the show, but it's a step in the right direction! ** ¾ (Original rating: *** ¼)

Six-Man Tag Team Thundercage Match: Rick Rude, Steve Austin, and Paul Orndorff v Sting, Dustin Rhodes, and Brian Pillman: They're actually enforcing tags for this, which is no fun. Rude starts with Sting, and hammers him with forearm shots, but gets reversed into the ropes, and backdropped! Sting with a series of quick clotheslines, so Rude hides in the ropes to buy time, and the referee backs the Stinger off. Tag to Orndorff, and he pounds Sting's arm with elbows, then grounds him in a fujiwara armbar. Over to Austin, and he stays on the arm, but an armbar gets reversed, and a criss cross ends in Steve blowing out his knee. Sting shows no mercy, however, slapping on the Scorpion Deathlock, but Orndorff is in to break - allowing Austin a schoolboy for two, and revealing the 'blown knee' to have been a ploy. They spill to the outside, where Sting whips Steve into the side of the cage, and Pillman hops down to abuse his former tag partner on the floor. In, Brian gets the legal tag, and he drops Austin with a facebuster. They spill back to the outside, where Brian chases Steve, and ends up taking a bump into the cage in the process! Orndorff capitalizes by throwing Pillman into the cage a second time, and Brian is busted open! Inside, Rude pounds Pillman down, as the heels work to cut the ring in half. Steve comes off the middle rope with a flying axehandle, but Pillman manages to dropkick him out of the air, and he gets the tag off to Sting! Sting comes in hot on all three heels, able to clean house on them. He ends up on the outside with Orndorff, and he bashes Paul into the cage a few times, then passes to Rhodes on the way back in. Dustin unloads on Orndorff, and an elbowdrop sets up a barrage of mounted punches, but Paul manages to send the kid into the turnbuckles to buy time for a tag to Rude. Rick tries a few turnbuckle smashes, but Rhodes shrugs him off - only to have a bulldog attempt blocked when Rick drops the Natural crotch-first onto the top turnbuckle! Rude brings him down with a side superplex, and he works a bearhug to wear Dustin down. Over to Austin, but Rhodes manages to knock Steve off the apron and into the cage, which rattles Austin's ankle enough for Rhodes to hit him with a 2^nd rope flying backelbow. Tag to Pillman, and he knocks all the heels over like bowling pins with a dropkick, and Roseanne Barr the door! Sting clears Rude and Orndorff out, then helps Brian tandem backdrop Austin, before press-slamming Pillman onto Steve for the pin at 14:37. Never really made it onto that upper level that you'd expect, but non-stop action here. *** (Original rating: ***)

Main Event: WCW World Title Thundercage Match: Ric Flair v Vader: The Boss acts as the special guest referee for this one, and Heenan accidentally calls him ‘Bossman’ at points. Vader brings a chair into the cage with him, but Boss makes him get rid of it before the bell. No fun! Vader charges at the bell, but Flair manages to sidestep, and he pounds his massive challenger down with a fast and furious flurry in the corner. They spill to the outside, where Ric uses the chair on him - though with sissy shots, and on the padded side to make things worse. You're not gonna earn his respect like that, Ric. Boss actually lays in the count while they're out there, which is a unique concept. Inside, Flair cross corner whips him, and Vader actually does a flip onto the apron, but bashes Ric when he tries to come after him. Vader is wearing some weird alternate outfit tonight, and it does not suit him. Vader with a slam to set up the Vaderbomb, and a short-clothesline sets up the Vadersault, but Ric manages to dodge - only for Vader to land on his feet! Wow! He knocks Ric down with a shoulderblock, then dumps him to the outside, where Harley Race gets in some abuse through the wide cage bars. Back in, Vader goes to town with shots in the corner, but Flair actually tries matching him blow for blow! He manages to chop Vader into the opposite corner, but runs into another shoulderblock, and the champion ends up back on the outside - where Race is ready. Seriously, just stay away from the bars, Ric. Have you never been to a zoo? Vader with a suplex-slam back in from the apron, and he takes Ric upstairs for a vertical superplex. Elbowdrop misses, so Ric rolls to the outside, but there's Race again. Boss decides to deal with it by handcuffing Harley to the cage, but Vader puts a stop to that, and instead handcuffs Boss to it. That seems like a flawed strategy. I mean, if the countout rule apparently isn't waived, it's foolish to assume it's no disqualifications. Race steals the key from Boss to let himself into the cage, and he and his charge go to work on Flair. Vader with a splash, but a flying bodyblock ends up hitting Harley, and Ric unloads on them both! Flair uses a chair to beat Vader down, as Arn Anderson and Ricky Steamboat desperately try to break into the cage. Flair gets overwhelmed against the two of them, but just as he looks doomed, Boss breaks free of the shackles, and makes the save. He beats Vader down with the nightstick (talk about biased officiating - Ventura would be having a field day with that), and Ric slaps on the Figure Four to retain at 11:30. Too much overbooking for my tastes, and not on the same level as the classic Starrcade match, but still pretty good. ** ¾ (Original rating: ***)

BUExperience: Yeah, this one is not worth your time. A couple of good matches at the end, but there’s just so much shit you have to sit through beforehand, and even the good main event feels like an overbooked letdown after what they did at Starrcade. On top of that, this one has got very little historical significance going for it, with no title changes, and nothing ‘can’t miss’ going down. Don’t bother.

DUD