WWF Coliseum Video Collection: The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith (1993)

 

WWF Coliseum Video Collection: The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith (1993)

Coliseum Video compilation. The front cover of the tape features Davey Boy, and promises to show us his greatest matches. So, Bret/Bulldog from SummerSlam is a given here, right?

Sean Mooney hosts from the studio. How did Lord Alfred Hayes get passed over for this one? He must have been in the dog house. Ahem

Davey Boy Smith v Warlord: From This Tuesday in Texas, December 3 1991 in San Antonio. Both guys size each other up to start, and Davey controls a power exchange by clotheslining him over the top. He tries following with a plancha, but Warlord catches him, and rams him right into the post. Turnbuckle smash on the way back in gets reversed, however, and Davey dives with a missile dropkick before tying Warlord up in the ropes for some abuse. Bodypress, but Warlord dodges, and Smith crashes right into the ropes as a result. Warlord recovers with a backdrop, and a corner whip sets up a bearhug. Well, you knew that was coming at some point. Davey starts to slug free, so Warlord cuts him off with a belly-to-belly suplex, and he pounds him with some lumbering offense. Another backdrop is countered with a piledriver, but Warlord counters back to the backdrop - Smith countering with a sunset flip for two, but running into a clothesline as they pop up. Full Nelson looks to finish, but Davey won't quit, and Warlord ends up releasing him after about forty minutes in the hold. Okay, it might have been slightly less time than that, but it certainly FELT like forty minutes. Warlord keeps after him, but misses a corner charge, and Bulldog capitalizes with a 2nd rope flying clothesline. Hanging vertical suplex gets two, but Warlord topples him during the Running Powerslam for two. Clothesline, but Smith counters with a crucifix for the pin at 12:45. Like their WrestleMania match, this was kind of lumbering, but not totally worthless. *

Davey Boy Smith v Rick Martel: Dark match from a TV taping in Biloxi Mississippi on March 10 1992. Martel initially controls with some speed, but gets caught in a headlock, and dominated. Martel manages a neat escapes where he climbs over the top rope onto the apron to free himself of the hold, but it backfires when Davey uses the top rope as a slingshot to force him back in. Smith works an armbar from there, but gets dumped to the outside, and Rick takes over on the way back in. Rick works him over, but Davey comes back with an atomic drop, followed by a series of clotheslines, until Martel bails. Bulldog forces him back in, and a slingshot sunset flip looks to finish, but Martel reverses the cradle - only to get caught using the ropes, allowing Davey to finish the move at 5:21. Not much to this one. ½*

Davey Boy Smith v Shawn Michaels: From Prime Time Wrestling on March 16 1992 (taped February 17) in Tampa Florida. The video quality looks really rough here for something that was taped for TV. They measure each other to start, and Shawn takes a bump over the top following a clothesline. Back in, Bulldog grabs a headlock, so Shawn forces another criss cross, but a monkeyflip attempt is blocked with a headbutt drop. Davey grounds him in a wristlock, but Shawn wants to run around again. Hiptoss, but Bulldog blocks by simply being big, and throws a clothesline. That's enough to get Sensational Sherri involved for a distraction, and Shawn lands the superkick to turn the tide. Michaels with a backdrop and a backelbow ahead of a chinlock, but Davey starts to escape, so Shawn dumps him to the outside. Sherri taunts him out there, allowing Michaels to dive off the apron with a clothesline, and Smith takes a hard spill into the guardrail out there. Shawn with a flying axehandle for two on the way back in, and he grounds Bulldog in a chinlock. Bodyslam sets up a 2^nd rope elbowdrop for two, so Shawn goes up again with a 2^nd rope axehandle - only for Bulldog to block with a gutpunch this time. He unloads turnbuckle smashes, and Shawn takes a bump to the outside following a corner whip. Davey drags him back in for a press-drop across the top rope (balls first), and so Sherri jumps on him for the DQ at 7:33. And then afterwards, Bulldog beats her up, since that was totally acceptable behavior for a babyface in 1992. Apparently. ** ¾

Davey Boy Smith v Earthquake: From Barcelona Spain on October 5 1991, and Davey has Andre the Giant in his corner for this, in what would be one of Andre's last appearances for the WWF. Earthquake stalls on the outside to start, getting heat by getting into it with Andre out there. They then take turns playing to the crowd to draw more heat, and it's working great. We finally get physical contact some two minutes in, as they trade lockup shoves, and Earthquake gets frustrated. He charges, but Bulldog is ready with rights, and he throws a standing dropkick. Earthquake won't go down, so Bulldog tries a running dropkick, and that's enough to send the big man to the outside. This is all so basic, but wonderfully engaging for the crowd. I feel like that type of work has been totally lost in modern times, where everyone seems to be trained to play to the cameras, and not the live crowd. Smith tries a dive off the middle, but Earthquake catches him in a bearhug, giving Bulldog a chance to engage the crowd again as he fights out of it. Bodyslam, but Earthquake topples him for two. Smith tries a sunset flip, but Earthquake sit-down splashes him to block, and he grabs another bearhug. Just realized that everyone in this match (Bulldog, Earthquake, Andre, and referee Joey Marella) are all dead. Even half of the announce team is gone as well. Thankfully, it's Mooney and Hayes, so at least ONE person from this production is still with us. Oh, and Jimmy Hart is still around too, so it's slightly less depressing. I feel better now. Earthquake works that bearhug until Bulldog is about out, and it's Earthquake Splash time, but he stops to mess with Andre instead. That gets him whacked with the Giant's crutch, and Bulldog capitalizes with a bodyslam for the pin at 7:49. Huge pop for that one. ¾*

Irwin R. Schyster v Davey Boy Smith: From UK Rampage, April 19 1992 in Sheffield England. Bulldog uses his power to dominate a feeling out process, so IRS stalls. They trade hiptosses next, with Davey dominating that as well, and sending Schyster to the outside with a clothesline. Bulldog chases after him to bash Schyster's head into Jimmy Hart's out there, and Irwin stalls some more. They trade wristlocks next - again dominated by Davey - so Schyster throws a leg-feed enzuigiri to knock him silly, and then tosses him to the outside while he's dazed. IRS pounds him out there, but Bulldog beats the count, so Schyster goes to an abdominal stretch. He gets busted using the ropes, allowing Bulldog to hiptoss his way out of the hold, and a schoolboy gets two. IRS cuts him off with a clothesline, however, and a jumping clothesline sets up a legdrop for two. Chinlock, but Bulldog manages to escape, so Irwin throws a knee to block a charge, and he tosses Smith to the outside again. Davey flies back in with a slingshot sunset flip for two, however, and Irwin has to think fast to cut him off again. Schyster with a legdrop to the groin for two, and he tosses Davey to the outside a third time, but a suplex from the apron gets countered with a hanging vertical version for two. Bulldog tries to add a splash, but Schyster lifts his knees to block, only to have a turnbuckle smash reversed - Bulldog adding a bunch more for good measure. Headbutt gets two, and a cross corner whip leaves Schyster trying to bail, but Bulldog grabs hold of the necktie to keep him inside. Another corner whip, but this time IRS reverses, and he grabs the briefcase while Jimmy distracts the referee. Unfortunately for him, Bulldog blocks it, and the Running Powerslam finishes at 12:48. Nothing special, but competent, and the crowd went home happy watching their hometown hero beat-up the bad guy, and that's what matters here anyway. *

Sean Mooney signs off. We haven't seen him even once since the introductions. Why even bother having a host? Well, easy money for Mooney

BUExperience: Yeah, so this was just a lazy one hour international release, with the quick match-match-match format, without even so much as bumpers from the host between the matches. What a weird tape to release while Bulldog was actively wrestling for WCW.

Not a good addition to your Coliseum Collection