WWF at Madison Square Garden (November 27, 1993)

Original Airdate: November 27, 1993

From New York, New York

Opening Match: The Headshrinkers v The Smoking Gunns: Feeling out process to start, with the Gunns controlling. Bart Gunn hits Fatu with a dropkick for two, and a missile version also gets two, so Samu takes a cheap shot to turn the tide. Fatu drills Bart with a clothesline, and he dumps him to the outside for Samu to send into the steps, then back inside to cut the ring in half. Bart is feisty, so the Headshrinkers aren't shy with the cheap shots to keep him docile, but a missed charge leaves Samu hanging in the ropes, and Billy Gunn gets the tag! The crowd is surprisingly hot for him (especially this one dude, who has not stopped jumping up and down), and Roseanne Barr the door! Billy makes the mistake of trying to bash the Headshrinkers' heads together, and eats a tandem forward-Russian legsweep, but the flying splash is cut off by Bart, and Billy schoolboys Samu for two! Bart comes in to try to help finish up, but Billy runs into a hotshot from Samu, and he's done at 11:54. Totally decent opener. * ¾

Midget Match: Tiger Jackson v Little Louie: Jackson was already working as Dink the Clown by this point (his first TV appearance as the character actually aired that same day), and this would mark his second to last appearance without that gimmick. Jackson plays mind games with Louie to start, and we get the standard silly midget spots, like toppling the referee, and ass biting, and such. Tiger finishes with a flying bodypress at 5:51. The usual goofy midget match stuff. DUD

Shawn Michaels v Doink the Clown: Thankfully, Shawn isn't recognized as the champion anymore at this point, because I don't think I could take 'Shawn versus Clown' as a viable title defense. Not this version of the Doink character, anyway. Doink lifts a couple of spots directly from the midget match to start, and it's sad to see a master level worker like Shawn Michaels have to play along with this shit. He takes it on the chin, though. After falling prey to a number of Doink tricks, Shawn ends up on the outside, and teases walking out of the match, before ultimately having a change of heart. Doink tries another gag during a criss cross, so this time a fed up Michaels blasts him with a clothesline, then unloads with mounted punches. To the outside, Shawn sends Clown into the steps, but Doink beats the count back in, so Michaels ropechokes him for two. Jumping backelbow gets two, and a snapmare leaves Doink in a chinlock. Doink escapes and hits a bodyslam to set up a splash for two, and a corner whip leads to a German suplex for two. He tries to get cute during a criss cross again, but Shawn dumps him to the outside, where Bam Bam Bigelow runs down to attack. Doink manages to get away from him, but the distraction allows Michaels to hit the superkick at 8:18. ¾*

WWF Tag Team Title Match: The Quebecers v The Steiner Brothers: Pierre starts with Scott Steiner, and Scott uses his power advantage to his... advantage... in the early going. Tigerbomb gets two, so Pierre stops to suck Jacques's dick on the apron. Or, well, that's what it looked like, anyway. Both guys tag, and Pierre uses a distraction to allow Jacques to attack, but he blows it when Rick powerslams him, and both champs bail to regroup. The dust settles on Pierre and Rick, and Pierre comes at him with a bodyslam, followed by a flying axehandle. Back to the top for a flying bodypress, but this time Rick catches him in a slam on the way down, and the Quebecers bail again - frustrating Scott now. That allows Pierre to take a cheap shot at him, and the champs double team to put Scott down. They cut the ring in half, but Pierre gets overzealous while trying a straddling ropechoke, and takes a big bump over the top off of a backdrop! Jacques is forced to cut off the tag, and he hits Scott with a jumping backelbow for two. The champs go back to cutting the ring in half in classic fashion, but the Quebec Crash misses, and Scott is able to fight off one last cut off attempt for the tag! Rick is a doghouse of fire, and Roseanne Barr the door! He press-slams Jacques into Pierre, and even takes out Johnny Polo to allow Scott the breathing room needed to hit Pierre with the Frankensteiner, but Jacques attacks the referee to cause a DQ at 12:37. The Steiner's celebrate with the belts afterwards, like idiots. Not out of this world, but solid action here. ** ¼

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Razor Ramon v Diesel: Razor takes a bump over the top off of a simple shove during the initial lockup, so you know he's on the good stuff tonight. Diesel continues to shove him around for a while, before grabbing a standing side-headlock. Razor tries forcing a criss cross to escape, but it backfires when he bounces off of Diesel while trying a shoulderblock. Diesel wants a test-of-strength next, and after suckering Ramon into agreeing, the challenger dominates it. From a kayfabe perspective, it's kind of weird that Diesel is challenging for the title here, given that Shawn Michaels was still claiming to be the champion. Like, how awkward would THAT be, if he won? Razor backdrops out of the knucklelock to send Diesel to the outside, but Ramon gets too close to the ropes, and gets swept to the floor. Diesel whips him into the apron out there, and back inside, he hammers on the lower back. Series of elbowdrops to the back get two, and a backbreaker is worth two. Sidewalk slam gets two, and the challengers works a bearhug. Ramon slugs free, but walks into a big boot right away, and Diesel drops him with a snake-eyes for two. Short-clothesline gets two, so Diesel goes back to the bearhug, but Razor slugs free again, and this time he's able to hit a bodyslam before Diesel can nail him - the referee getting bumped in the process. Side superplex sets up the Razor's Edge, but here comes Shawn Michaels with the alternate IC belt, and he whacks Ramon with it before he can execute the move! Diesel crawls over for the cover, but the referee is still down, so no count. A frustrated Diesel tries to revive him, but that allows Ramon to recover enough for a small package - Michaels pulling the groggy referee out to prevent a count, but another official sliding right in to count the pin at 12:05! These two real life friends always had some undeniable chemistry in the ring. ***

Marty Jannetty v Owen Hart: We're just a couple of days after Survivor Series here, where the biggest push of Owen's career began. He settles into his new heel role by choking Jannetty on the ropes to start, but Marty slows it down into a feeling out process. Pinfall reversal sequence ends in Owen hooking a backslide for two, and another reversal sequence ends in Jannetty hitting a monkeyflip for two. They trade hammerlocks next, until Hart starts drilling him with European uppercuts, and he drops a knee on him. Turnbuckle smash gets reversed, and Marty adds a series of them while he's in the neighborhood - flopping Owen for two. Hart fires back with a somersault cradle for two, but a dropkick misses, and Marty hooks his own somersault cradle for two. Sunset flip gets two, so Owen tries a catapult into the ropes to slingshot into a cradle for two. Overhead belly-to-belly suplex gets two, and a flying bodypress is worth two. Rollup, but Marty hits the deck, and Owen goes crashing to the outside – Jannetty then following with a plancha! He tries bringing Owen back in with a vertical suplex, but Hart counters with a bridging German suplex for two - only to have a vertical superplex countered with a bodyblock for two! Big criss cross sees Marty twist his knee, but Hart shows no mercy - sweeping him down into the Sharpshooter at 8:14. The finish felt kind of blah, but it worked in hammering home Owen's new heel direction. Good, fast paced action here. ***

Main Event: Casket Match: Yokozuna v Undertaker: Yoko's WWF Title is not on the line here. Yoko attacks from behind with an avalanche while Undertaker is busy getting his entrance gear off, but a second one hits boot, and Undertaker slugs away. Jumping DDT puts the big man down, but a jumping elbowdrop misses, and Yoko clotheslines him over the top. Mr. Fuji tries to Pearl Harbor him out there, but Undertaker snaps the Japanese flag in half, and Yoko hops out to brawl - only to end up eating steps. Well, he eats everything else, so why the hell not? I've always thought that it was cute that he was known for drinking Diet Cokes, as if that was fooling anyone. Yokozuna reverses a second trip into the steps, and sends Undertaker into the post to take control of things on the outside. Inside, Yoko steamrolls him with a clothesline, and squashes what's left of the Undertaker with a legdrop. Casket time, but Undertaker fights out of it at the last second, and hits a jumping clothesline. Ropewalk forearm, but Yoko pulls him down off the top, and he tries a turnbuckle smash, but Undertaker no-sells it, and chokes him in the corner. Cross corner whip gets reversed, allowing Yoko a clothesline, but Undertaker sits up! Yoko responds with a belly-to-belly suplex, and he prods the Dead Man to make sure he's not sitting up. He looks done, but then pops up anyway, so Yoko grabs his salt bucket - only for Undertaker to get it away from him, and knock his fat ass out! The traffic conscious portion of the crowd knows what's coming, and start running for the door already. And, indeed, 'Taker rolls the big tuna into the casket at 9:05. Pretty shitty, but at least no one levitated. ¼*

BUExperience: No hidden gems here, but a solid little house show. I wouldn’t have felt cheated if I’d paid to attend back in ’93.

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