WCW SuperBrawl V (Version II)

Original Airdate: February 19, 1995

From Baltimore, Maryland; Your Hosts are Tony Schiavone and Bobby Heenan

Opening Match: Paul Roma v Alex Wright: Roma attacks from behind while Wright is dancing around, then takes him down for an elbowdrop to the leg. Paul with an ugly press-slam, but he gets caught with a sunset flip for two, and Alex armdrags him down for an armbar. They trade reversals off of that, as Roma's tag partner Paul Orndorff makes his way out to observe from ringside. Roma with a pair of elbowdrops and a three-alarm no-release backbreaker, and he dumps Alex to the outside, where Orndorff surprisingly keeps a good distance from the rookie. Roma keeps shoving him to the outside for Orndorff to abuse, but Orndorff doesn't seem interested. Wright tries a slingshot back in, but Roma sidesteps, and comes him for two. Wright with a backslide for two, and an inside cradle for two - both cradles looking very awkward. Roma grounds him in a chinlock, but Wright slugs free, only to miss a dropkick. That allows Paul to come off the top with a flying elbowdrop, but he pulls Alex up at the count of two. Roma misses a charge, however, which allows Wright a series of European uppercuts, and he tries a hiptoss, but Roma doesn't cooperate. No matter, Alex keeps coming with a spinheel kick for two, but a flying twisting bodypress ends up in the ropes. Not sure if that was intentional, or if Roma botched that on purpose. Paul with a bodyslam, but he gets distracted talking to Orndorff, and Wright schoolboys him for three at 13:20. And barely, as Roma kicked out right at the fall there. This one apparently led to Roma's release from the promotion, as he was supposed to make Wright look good here, but went into business for himself instead, no-selling a bunch of Alex's stuff, and generally making him look like a incompetent. ½* (Original rating: ¼*)

Jim Duggan v Bunkhouse Buck: Buck attacks before the bell, looking like he's trying to get his hand down the front of Jim's tights, but Hacksaw fights him off. They spill to the outside, where Jim tries to ram him into the post, but Buck reverses. Back in, Duggan wins a criss cross with a kneedrop, and he slaps on a chinlock. That quickly turns into the worlds ugliest armbar, and Duggan delivers an atomic drop for one. If JR were still calling WCW matches at this point, we'd be getting a 'bowling shoe ugly' line right about now. The Wright/Roma match didn't even have proper cooperation, and it looked less awkward than this is coming off. Jim with a series of turnbuckle smashes, but Buck bops him with his cowbell to turn things around, and he dumps Duggan to the outside. Back in, Buck works his own chinlock, but Duggan slugs free, and delivers a backdrop for two. Now HE gets a turn at working a chinlock again, but Buck gets into the ropes, and they slug it out. Duggan with an elbowdrop for two, and it's back to the gosh darn chinlock again. I can't even muster enough passion for this junk to bother with the real words. Duggan with a bodyslam and a kneedrop for two, and more chinlocking occurs. I don't think even a Reese Witherspoon/Jay Leno death match would feature this many chinlocks. Duggan with a ten-punch count, and he slows things down again with a hammerlock. Just get to the fucking finish already! But, hey, at least it wasn't a chinlock. Duggan with yet another bodyslam, so Colonel Robert Parker tries to interfere before the inevitable chinlock occurs, but it backfires, and Jim gets the pin at 11:56. Legitimately terrible. –½* (Original rating: -*)

Kevin Sullivan v Dave Sullivan: The rematch no one wanted to see! They start slugging it out before Dave even manages to get all the way into the ring, and he hits a pair of bodyslams to set up some mounted punches. A terribly sloppy backelbow sends Kevin to the outside (how do you mess up an elbow?!?), and back in, Dave unloads with turnbuckle smashes. Ten-punch count follows, and a backdrop gets two. They then mistime a clothesline, and then mistime a spot where Butcher is supposed to trip up Dave as he runs the ropes. Holy shit this is falling apart badly. Dave ends up on the outside, where Butcher puts the boots to him, and at least they manage to get through THAT without any glaring botches. Back in, Dave tries a charge, but hits boot, and Kevin chops away at him. Dave responds by biting Kevin's stomach, but that only goes so far, and he gets dumped to the outside again, where Butcher rams him into the steps. This match desperately needs to go home. Inside, Kevin hits a straddling ropechoke, but a second one misses, and Dave starts mounting a comeback. Yes! The finish must be within sight! Butcher tries a distraction before he can put his away, however, and Kevin schoolboys for the pin at 7:17. Yep, the same general finish three matches running. If the last match was 'bowling shoe ugly,' then this one is the other shoe. -* (Original rating: DUD)

WCW World Tag Team Title Match: Harlem Heat v The Nasty Boys: The rematch no one wanted to see, part II! Booker T starts with Brian Knobbs, and he they trade ranas right away, then settle into a fast and furious reversal sequence on the mat, that ends in Booker hooking a magistral cradle for two, but getting caught with a brainbuster. Haha, NO! None of that actually happens. Bet I fooled you though, didn't I? Booker ends up on the outside after crotching himself across the top rope, and Jerry Sags tags in to hit him with a headbutt drop to the groin on the way back in. More crotch related offense from Sags with several inverted atomic drops for two, so Booker goes to the eyes to shake him off, and tags out to Stevie Ray. He hammers Sags, but misses a charge in the corner, and Knobbs tags back in for some double teaming. The challengers work on Stevie's leg, but then everyone kind of forgets about that, and Booker dropkicks Sags over the top, where Sister Sherri rams him into the guardrail. I've never found Sherri to be especially attractive, but she definitely hit her peak during her time with the Heat. The Heat go to work on Sags, as Tony and Bobby seem to have a hard time staying on the same topic. Perhaps Paul Roma was messing with their headsets. I feel like these matches would be a lot more interesting if they reversed the heel/face roles. It's really hard to get behind the Nasties as babyfaces. Booker misses a 2^nd rope pointed elbowdrop to allow Jerry a powerslam, and there's the tag to Knobbs. He's an outhouse of fire, and Roseanne Barr the door! Brian with a double-DDT on the champions, and he splashes Stevie, but Booker saves at two. That allows Sherri to come off the top with her shoe, but she ends up hitting Stevie, and the Nasties are the new champions at 17:06. Unfortunately for them, another referee runs out and reverses the decision, since apparently they tossed Booker over the top rope during the brawl at the end. Four for four with the shitty finishes thus far tonight. This practically seemed like an all-time classic compared to the last couple of matches. ½* (Original rating: ¼*)

Dustin Rhodes v Blacktop Bully: Commissioner Nick Bockwinkel joins us to bounce Meng from ringside before the bell. They missed an opportunity here, as there's a fan dressed like Meng sitting in the front row, and they totally could (and should) have had Colonel Parker try to get Bockwinkel to take him away instead. Rhodes unloads on him to start, managing a jumping clothesline and a ten-punch count, but Bully clips the knee before he can get too far. Bully misses a charge, however, and Rhodes delivers a pair of corner whips to send him to the outside. Back in, Dustin works a mat-based headlock, and a shoulderblock gets him two. Onto an armbar, but Bully escapes, and they criss cross - Rhodes delivering a high knee and a pointed elbowdrop. He works the arm in dull fashion, so Bully tries a cross corner whip, but Rhodes is ready with a 2^nd rope flying backelbow. Again, so Bully tries to duck, but Dustin expects it, and head fakes him. Vertical suplex gets two, and a sunset flip is worth two. Bully knocks him to the outside with a right hand, so Parker tries a cheap shot, but that ends badly for him, so Bully hops out to deal with Dustin himself. He ends up getting sent into the steps, but does manage a clothesline for two on the way back in, which Rhodes sells with a zeal. Bully dumps him back to the outside for Parker to successfully abuse Dustin, and Bully side suplexes him for two on the way back in. Chinlock, but Rhodes slugs free - only to miss a bodypress, and end up taking a spill back to the outside. He didn't take that with his usual enthusiasm tonight. Bully follows out to ram Rhodes into the apron, and a vertical suplex hits, but a 2^nd rope flying axehandle doesn't. That looked terrible. Rhodes mounts a comeback, and the bulldog looks to finish, but Parker gets Bully's foot in the ropes at two. Rhodes takes him out, and tries to finish Bully with a vertical suplex, but Parker sweeps Dustin's leg from the outside, and Bully topples him for three at 16:09. What is with these long ass matches tonight? At least when the WWF had to book this roster, they were smart enough to pack the card full of matches, and keep each one short enough not to expose anyone. WCW was still booking like they had a card full of workers. ¾* (Original rating: ¼*)

Sting and Randy Savage v Avalanche and Big Bubba Rogers: Sting and Macho as a super team should have happened more. Sting starts with Avalanche, and the big man shoves him around to start, but runs into a flurry of clotheslines. Sting tries sending him over the top, but Bubba takes a cheap shot from the apron to stop that effort, and he tags in with a backbreaker. He goes up to add a flying splash, but Savage crotches him on the top turnbuckle to stop it, and Sting capitalizes with a vertical superplex. He and Randy pinball Bubba in the corner a bit, and a clothesline sends Bubba to the outside, where Savage comes off the top with a flying axehandle. Bubba regroups with his partner on the outside for a bit, but Macho still manages an armdrag when Rogers re-enters. High knee knocks Bubba into the corner to allow Macho a schoolboy for two, but he fails to cut the ring in half, and Avalanche gets the tag. Savage goes toe-to-toe with him, but stupidly tries a bodyslam, and gets toppled for two. I know he must have been feeling good about his muscles because he started wrestling without a shirt again during this period, but let's not get crazy. Avalanche misses a charge, allowing the tag to Sting, but he fails to get the Scorpion Deathlock on. Both partners run in, and Roseanne Barr the door! Stinger Splashes all around, but he ends up getting overwhelmed after several rounds of that, as Ric Flair (seated in the crowd) taunts the babyfaces. That nearly earns him a beat down from Savage, which hilariously prompts the poor security guy to try and intervene. Don't do it, dude. Avalanche works Sting over, but Savage gets the tag, and he comes in hot. Bodyslam sets up the Flying Elbowdrop on Bubba, but the referee is too busy trying to restore order to count. Meanwhile, Sting comes off the top with a flying bodypress on Avalanche, and that does get the pin at 10:17. Six matches in, and we've finally hit on something watchable. ** ½ (Original rating: ¾*)

Main Event: WCW World Title Match: Hulk Hogan v Vader: Michael Buffer's intro of Vader is nearly an hour long, but fails to mention that he's the reigning WCW United States champion. They measure each other some to start, with Vader absorbing all of Hogan's blows, but Hulk unable to do the same. Short-clothesline and an avalanche leave Hulk bailing to the outside to regroup, but the challenger is on his tail. Whip into the rail, but Hulk reverses, and Vader takes a bump into the first row - nearly crushing Ric Flair in the process. That poor security guard is earning his money tonight. Back in, Hulk corners Vader with a flurry of rights, and a ten-punch follows. Clothesline puts Vader on his ass, and a big boot sets up a clothesline to send the challenger over the top! Back in, Hulk pounds him down in the corner, but a bodyslam attempt ends badly when Vader topples him. Vader with a shoulderblock and a short-clothesline, and a slam sets up the Vaderbomb for two. Vadersault, but Hulk rolls out of the way of that one, and they spill to the floor again. Hulk sends him into the rail, then blasts him with a chair out there, but a clothesline on the way back in misses, and Vader plants him with a chokeslam. He adds an elbowdrop, then goes to town on the Hulkster in the corner. Hanging vertical suplex gets two, but it also triggers a HULK UP!! Fists of Fury! Big Boot! Legdrop! One?!? Hulk can't believe it, and immediately argues with the referee, but who is his ass kidding? It's not like it was even a close call. That allows Vader to attack, but the referee gets bumped in the process, and there's no one to count when he drills Hogan with the powerbomb! Seeing this, Flair decides to hop the rail to try and revive the official (in rather violent fashion), but Hulk kicks out of a splash once the referee is back in the game. Big boot and a clothesline send Vader over the top, so Flair now attacks Hogan directly, and that's a DQ at 15:09. Apparently, the original finish called for both guys to bleed, and the referee would stop the match due to blood loss to set up a no holds barred rematch at Uncensored, but corporate concerns over bad publicity relating to violence in wrestling caused them to change it to what we got here instead. ** (Original rating: ***)

BUExperience: What a terrible show. I mean, Starrcade set a pretty low bar, but they actually managed to lower it again here. This one actually did good business for WCW at the time (on the strength of the Hogan/Vader match), but the card itself is a real turd. Bad finish after bad finish (mostly to set up rematches at Uncensored), matches booked to run way past their bedtimes, cheap looking production values – you name it, this had it. This would probably easily ‘win’ worst pay per view of the year ‘honors’ during any other year, but 1995 was so horrible that it would be unseated several times before 1996 rolled around. Stay far away from this one.

DUD