WWF RAW is WAR (August 18, 1997)

Original Airdate: August 18, 1997

 

From Atlantic City, New Jersey; Your Hosts are Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, and Jerry Lawler

 

Vince brings Rick Rude out to start, and holy shit, it is a SEA of signs in the crowd this week. Really getting into the Attitude Era now. Vince wants clarification about what Rude's deal with Shawn Michaels is, but Rick isn't especially loyal to Shawn one way or the other, he'll provide muscle to anyone who has the cash to pay the premium. This was a weird promo, and fell flat. It's like Rude was still trying to cut a short podium promo with Mean Gene, and didn't really understand the new format and style of this era yet

 

Backstage, WWF European Champion Davey Boy Smith and Owen Hart prepare for the Legion of Doom

 

Backstage, Shawn Michaels is giving Commissioner Slaughter an earful. I think. They're standing in the dark

 

Davey Boy Smith and Owen Hart v The Legion of Doom: Owen and Animal start, and Animal powers him around. A weak catapult sends Owen into a shot from Hawk, and Hawk tags in to add a neckbreaker. Fistdrop follows, and a cross corner whip sets up a corner clothesline, but a second charge misses, and Hawk bumps to the outside. Bulldog quickly pounces to send him into the steps out there, and Owen delivers a backbreaker on the way back in. Davey tags in with a hanging vertical suplex for two, and they cut the ring in half. Hawk manages a double knockout against Davey to allow both to tag, and Roseanne Barr the door! Animal press-slams Owen, but a distraction from Smith allows Hart a spinheel kick. He goes up with a flying bodypress, but Animal catches him in a powerslam. In the chaos, the Godwinns sneak in, and Animal gets bashed with the slop bucket, allowing Owen to pin him at 4:39. The LOD looked really broken down and terrible here. Afterwards, all three teams brawl, ahead of the planned Fatal Four-Way match at Ground Zero that ended up not happening. *

 

Mankind is not sure how he can possibly coexist with Undertaker after everything they've been through, but he's ready to find out tonight

 

Shawn Michaels is sick of being painted into a corner, and he's not going to take it anymore. Someone should probably remind him that whenever someone gets painted into a corner, it's always their own fault

 

Brian Christopher v Flash Funk: Sunny acts as the guest ring announcer. In a rare, bush league moment, Flash's entrance music/video play, but Christopher comes out. Sunny rolls with it nicely... "introducing first, from Philadelphia... or maybe not." And then Vince goes completely silent, likely chewing out the poor production guys out. Though, he ain't wrong. I really don't get what they're going for with having Lawler acting as Christopher's biggest cheerleader, but also vehemently denying being his father. Christopher plays with him for a bit, but Flash gets fired up, and slams him a couple of times, then dropkicks him to the outside. Funk with a baseball slide, but he loses control on the way back in, and Christopher uses a full-nelson facebuster. Dropkick off the middle leads to a northern lights suplex, and a hangman's clothesline follows. Christopher goes to the top for the flying legdrop, but Lawler distracts him by telling him he should use a piledriver, and Funk knocks him off the ropes. That allows Flash a flying 450 splash at 3:40. Christopher is a good worker, but his endless showboating between moves is really annoying. And not 'heel heat' annoying, just annoying annoying. * ¼

 

Undertaker doesn't give a shit who his partner is, so long as he gets his hands on Shawn Michaels tonight

 

Ken Shamrock v Sultan: Vince notes that Shamrock won a battle royal in Boston over the weekend, and hypes WrestleMania XIV in the same breath. Seamless. Ken goes for a takedown early, but Sultan fights off an anklelock attempt, so Shamrock clotheslines him over the top. Ken follows for a whip into the steps, but Sultan reverses, and Iron Sheik whacks Shamrock with his flagpole. Inside, Sultan uses a backbreaker for two, but a corner charge misses, and Ken bodyslams him. Clothesline and a belly-to-belly suplex connect, so Sheik tries a distraction, but Shamrock suplexes him as well. I'm surprised he actually took a bump there, considering he was barely mobile less than four years later at that Gimmick Battle Royal. Ken adds a rana on Sultan (to a big pop), and the anklelock finishes at 3:16. Shamrock was getting great reactions, and his work was improving all the time - he really should have ended up becoming a bigger star than he did. *

 

The Nation of Domination join us to show off new member Rocky Maivia. Faarooq explains that they dumped Ahmed Johnson because he's 'too white' for their group, which may be the only time in history anyone has ever accused him of that. Wait, but Rocky is all cool? Rocky cuts a bitter promo on the fans for turning on him during his Intercontinental title reign, and it's interesting that one of the best promo guys in history... isn't so great at this point. But, boy, he sure improved quickly. Rocky calls the DOA out for being a 'racist group,' and considering some of the rumors that have come out since then, maybe he had a point. The DOA show up on the TitanTron to refute those claims, and they challenge the Nation to meet them in the parking lot to settle things

 

Earlier today, Goldust and Marlena played with their daughter on the beach. I know Vince said we're looking at 'Dustin and Terri,' but based on the way they're dressed, I'm not entirely convinced we're not looking at Tony and Carmella

 

Hunter Hearst Helmsley ain't afraid of no ghosts

 

Out in the parking lot, the Nation brawls with the DOA. But what a fancy parking lot

 

Brian Pillman v Jesse James: Pillman is still in a dress this week. It's a nice touch that they gave him a different dress each week. Pillman fights off a hammerlock, so Jesse lifts the dress up to mess with him, and Brian goes crazy. James fights him off and delivers a corner clothesline, but a flying shoulderblock misses, and Pillman plants him with a DDT. Looks like it's over for Jesse, but Goldust shows up to attack him, getting Brian disqualified at 1:46. Even for a sub two minute match Pillman looked like he had no business in a ring anymore. Afterwards, Pillman challenges Goldust to a rematch, offering to put his career on the line against Marlena's services for thirty days. Goldust refuses, so Pillman goads him by claiming to be their daughter's real father, and that tears it for Goldust. Well, you can't blame him for getting upset, Pillman does have a habit of impregnating women. Plus, you know, he was a Horsemen. DUD

 

Vader v Patriot: WWF Champion Bret Hart shows up on the ramp, distracting Patriot, and allowing Vader to attack from behind. Vader with an avalanche, followed by a short-clothesline, and the crowd couldn't care less. Criss cross allows Patriot to come back with a jumping clothesline, and he unloads in the corner, then crotches Vader on the post. Flying shoulderblock gets him two, and a bodypress is worth two. Sunset flip, but Vader blocks with a sit-down splash, and adds an elbowdrop. Splash gets two, and another elbowdrop connects. Slam sets up the Vaderbomb, but Patriot lifts his knees to block, and he makes a comeback. Swinging neckbreaker gets him two, but he runs into a bodyblock, Vader covering for two. Slugfest follows, and Patriot gets the better of him with the Uncle Slam at 4:54. Vader needed to fuck off to ECW to get his mojo back, because he was unmotivated and uninteresting at this point. And that's a shame, considering he likely still had a lot to offer as a worker. Afterwards, Vader beats Patriot down, though I guess he didn't hold much of a grudge, since they ended up as a tag team by October. But then Bret comes in to try and get his licks on, but that pisses Vader off, and he snaps the Canadian flag. That draws the Hart Foundation out for a beat down, but Patriot makes the save. So, I guess he REALLY doesn't hold much of a grudge then. ¾*

 

Earlier today, Ross sat down with Steve Austin in Austin's Philadelphia hotel room. Why does a hotel room in Philly have a Tex-Mex theme? Also, what the fuck is Steve doing in Philly, anyway? Is he going back to ECW? They were hyping this sit-down interview all show long, but there's not much to this at all, as he swears revenge on Owen Hart, though not in an especially engaging manner

 

Undertaker and Mankind v Shawn Michaels and Hunter Hearst Helmsley: Mankind and HHH start, and Mankind pops him with a backelbow right away. Clothesline follows, so Shawn tries running in, but Mankind backdrops him. They manage to get him into the corner for a double team, but Mankind fights them both off again, and Undertaker tags himself in to try and grab Shawn, but Michaels wisely bails. The dust settles on Undertaker and Helmsley, and HHH pounds him into the corner for Shawn to abuse, but Undertaker responds by backdropping HHH over the top onto his partner. Shawn fires off a Superkick from the apron to rattle Undertaker, and they try to double up in the corner, but Undertaker cleans house. Shawn responds by calling for Rick Rude to join them at ringside, but Hunter still ends up in a Mandible Claw while trying a 2^nd rope axehandle. Chyna saves, allowing Michaels to tag in, and he nails Mankind with a jumping forearm. Blind tag to Hunter sets up a beautiful combo, right out of the Rockers playbook there. The heels go to work on Mankind, but he manages to block the Superkick with the Claw. HHH runs in to save with a Pedigree, but Mankind blocks, and ends up headbutting Hunter in the Helmsleys. That allows the tag to Undertaker, and Roseanne Barr the door! Legdrop on HHH gets two, and he finally grabs Shawn, sending him flying into the guardrail. Undertaker attacks on the outside, so Rude comes over with a chair, but gets chased off. The distraction allows Michaels to get hold of the chair, however, and he absolutely SMASHES it into Undertaker's face for the DQ at 10:14. This was a good little TV main event, and is pretty notable as essentially the birth of Degeneration X, to boot. ***

 

BUExperience: This one just flew by. Fun stuff across the board, even if not the most consequential episode.

 

Monday Night Wars Rating Chart

	8/18/97
Show	RAW	Nitro
Rating	3.2	4.0
Total Wins	17	75
Win Streak		58
Better Show (as of 8/11)	38	50