WWF at San Jose Arena (May 30, 1997)

Original Airdate: May 30, 1997

From San Jose, California 

Opening Match: Bob Holly v Leif Cassidy: I can never seem to wrap my mind around Holly still doing the race car driver gimmick in the Attitude Era. I associate it so strongly with the New Generation that it’s jarring, but then this point in 1997 was still a very transitional one. Posturing to start, and they feel each other out, Bob dominating. Cassidy tries a hiptoss, but Bob reverses, and delivers a bodyslam. Holly with a trio of corner whips, so Cassidy bails to the apron, and clotheslines Holly when Bob goes after him. Cassidy drops him with a superkick on the way back in, and a clothesline gets him two. Cassidy works a bow-and-arrow, but Holly escapes, and hooks a rana for two. Backdrop, but Cassidy blocks, and delivers a vertical suplex to set up a flying moonsault, but Bob rolls out of the way. Holly makes a comeback, planting a dropkick on him for two, and unloading a ten-punch in the corner. Cassidy is dazed, allowing Holly a lariat for two, but another rana gets countered with a sitout powerbomb at 5:57. Solid opener. * ½ 

The New Blackjacks v Doug Furnas and Philip LaFon: The heels attack before the Blackjacks can get their entrance gear off, but they fail to hold control, and the Blackjacks clean house. The heels decide to walk out, but the Blackjacks chase them up the aisle, and drag them back inside. The dust settles on Blackjack Bradshaw and Doug, and Bradshaw side suplexes him. Elbowdrop finds the mark, so he passes to Blackjack Windham for a tandem backelbow. Windham is looking more like Stan Hansen than Barry Windham at this point. Windham with a vertical suplex for two, and he passes back to Bradshaw for a big boot and another elbowdrop for two. LaFon helps with a cheap shot to allow Doug to turn the tide, and a mulekick leaves Bradshaw down. The heels go to work, until Bradshaw manages to reverse a suplex on LaFon, and that’s enough for the tag - Roseanne Barr the door! Windham falls prey to a tandem suplex, but Bradshaw puts his foot on the ropes at two, then switches off with him - catching an oblivious Furnas with a cradle at 6:48. This was fine. *

Rockabilly v Jesse James: Rockabilly attacks before the bell, and pounds Jesse down to start. He dumps him to the outside, but James turns the tide on the way back in, and delivers an inverted atomic drop. Clothesline knocks Rockabilly over the top, so he decides to walk out, but Jesse goes after him. Did the agents get their first computer in the office that week, and decide to play with the copy-and-paste feature, or something? Rockabilly fights him off with a DDT for two on the way back into the ring, and he works him over. Clothesline, but James ducks, and throws punches to trigger a comeback. Backdrop, but he telegraphs it, and Rockabilly counters with a DDT for two, before finishing with a swinging neckbreaker at 4:51. This was pretty rough. DUD

Hunter Hearst Helmsley v Goldust: HHH tries attacking before the bell as well, but Goldust must have gotten the password for the computer, because he sees it coming. Well, of course he was computer savvy, he married into the York Foundation. Goldust knocks him around, and they spill to the outside, where HHH meets the steps. Inside, Goldust keeps unloading on him, but Hunter fights off a ten-punch with an inverted atomic drop out of the corner. Criss cross allows Helmsley a high knee, and it’s his turn to unload in the corner, complete with a cheap shot from Chyna. Hunter works him over, and a kneeling facebuster sets up a kneedrop for two. Mounted punches follow, and a sleeper looks to put it away, but he gets busted using the ropes before he can force a submission. That allows Goldust to recover, and he makes a comeback. Bulldog gets him two, and a cross corner whip flips Helmsley over the top to the outside. Nice bump there. Goldust tries a vertical suplex back into the ring, but Chyna sweeps his legs, and Hunter topples for three at 9:54. Dull stuff. ½*

The Legion of Doom v Crush and Savio Vega: The heels stall to start, and tease walking out on the match, before getting dragged in. That gives us Hawk and Vega to start, and Hawk runs wild on him. Dropkick knocks Vega back to the outside, so Hawk chases, but gets clobbered after giving up the high ground. That allows Vega a backdrop, but Hawk counters with a matslam, and passes to Animal. Animal barrels into him with a shoulderblock, so Savio tags out as well, and Crush tries matching power with Animal. They measure each other for a bit, before settling into a test-of-strength, and more measuring. Animal finally gets the better of it, and he clotheslines Crush over the top, before passing to Hawk. Crush rakes Hawk in the eyes on the way in, allowing a tag to Vega, but Hawk fights a double team off. Cross corner charge, but Savio side steps, and Hawk takes a bump to the outside to turn the tide. The heels go to work on Hawk, until he decides to no sell a piledriver from Crush, and delivers a neckbreaker. Hot tag to Animal, and Roseanne Barr the door! The heels go for a double team, but it backfires, and Animal scores the pin on Crush at 8:01. ¼*

Rocky Maivia v Mankind: Mankind stalls in the early going, jawing with the fans, as Rocky shakes his fists at him from a distance like a jobber. Rocky gets him in a standing side-headlock once they get going, so Mankind tries whipping him into the ropes, but Rocky shoulderblocks him. Mankind dumps him to the outside to buy time, but attempting to attack him out there backfires, and Rocky unloads with turnbuckle smashes on the way back into the ring. A flying axehandle gets him two, so he holds Mankind in a fujiwara armbar, but Mankind fights back to a vertical base. Headlock, but Rocky escapes, and delivers a backdrop, followed by a dropkick. Back to the armbar, until Mankind escapes, and a waistlock reversal sequence ends in Maivia getting dumped again. Mankind capitalizes with a baseball slide, and he follows to the outside to feed Rocky the steps. Rock tries a slingshot sunset flip for two on the way back inside, but Mankind fights him off right away with a double arm DDT for two. Chinlock, until Rocky fights free, but Mankind is ready with a backelbow. Cross corner whip works, but the charge in doesn’t, and Rocky gets fired up. He makes a comeback, so Mankind tries cutting him off with the Mandible Claw, but Rocky counters with a uranage for two. Floatover DDT follows, allowing Rocky to get to the top with a flying bodypress, but Paul Bearer is distracting the referee. That gives Mankind enough recovery time to kick out at two, but his sneak attack fails, and Rocky delivers a shoulderbreaker for two. Rocky thinks it’s a three, but Mankind was in the ropes, and the confusion allows Mankind to get the claw on at 11:55. Basic, but not dull. *

Ahmed Johnson v Faarooq: Ken Shamrock acts as the special guest referee for this one. Faarooq tries getting Ahmed to join the Nation of Domination before the match, but that backfires on him, and Ahmed runs wild. Faarooq bails, but Ahmed chases, and posts him before rolling him back in. Faarooq manages to fight him off on the way back in, but he misses a corner charge, and Ahmed hammers him. Faarooq goes to the eyes to buy time, and he manages a shoulderblock. Again, but Ahmed blocks with a spinebuster, and the Pearl River Plunge looks to finish, but Savio Vega runs in. Shamrock suplexes him, but the distraction allows Crush to run in with a chair, and he knocks Johnson silly for Faarooq to pin at 2:13. For two guys who worked together forever, these two had no chemistry at all. DUD

Main Event: Undertaker and Steve Austin v Davey Boy Smith and Owen Hart: Undertaker unloads on Owen to start, and a corner whip rebounds Hart into a choke. Tag to Austin, and Steve unloads on Owen with rights, then wins a criss cross with a knee. Stomp to the groin leads to a 2nd rope pointed elbowdrop for two, and Austin attempts to humiliate him by applying a sharpshooter, but Bulldog comes in to save. Davey unloads on Steve in the corner, but a cross corner whip backfires when Steve clotheslines him for two. Tag to Undertaker with a ropewalk forearm for two, and he passes back to Steve to crank on the arm. Austin with a straddling ropechoke for two, before passing back to Undertaker for a bodyslam. Legdrop, but Owen takes a cheap shot before he can deliver it, and the heels double up on the distracted Dead Man. The heels cut the ring in half from there, until Undertaker nails Owen with a clothesline during a criss cross, and Steve gets the hot tag. He runs wild, so Brian Pillman runs in on him for the DQ at 8:43. That was a pretty lame finish, even for a house show. Afterwards, the Nation run in to attack the babyfaces as well, but a series of stunners and chokeslams clean house. ¾*

BUExperience: This wasn’t a terrible house show, and I’ve definitely seen worse, but I also wouldn’t bother with it.

DUD