WWF Coliseum Video Collection: The Ultimate Warrior (1989)

WWF Coliseum Video Collection: The Ultimate Warrior (1989)

Coliseum Video compilation. The front cover features Ultimate Warrior looking like an ad for steroids 

Warrior hosts in the studio. Oh, that poor editor. Thank God for closed captioning! Did they ever have Ahmed Johnson host one of these? Apparently Warrior has left Parts Unknown for Italy

Warrior opens the tape by reminding us not to smoke. No mention of other drugs, however. Good thing, I’d hate to think that he was a hypocrite

Warrior Slim Jim ad. Honestly, he was as good (if not better) than Randy Savage in the role

Warrior music video. Just clips of him doing his thing, set to his (admittedly awesome) theme music

Ultimate Warrior v Hercules: From Wrestling Challenge in Salisbury Maryland on February 7 1988 (taped January 27). Pretty subdued entrance from Warrior, compared to his usual sprints and shakes. Hercules wants to do a tug of war with the chain, and of course takes a cheap shot once Warrior engages. Warrior ends up snapping the chain, so Hercules attacks him with the chain for the DQ at 1:57. This wasn’t good, but I appreciate that they tossed this on, instead of the WrestleMania IV match I’ve seen a million times. It was just an angle anyway, and at least now I have some background on that WrestleMania match. DUD

Warrior clarifies that he was just casually walking around, when the voices in his head suddenly told him to get to Madison Square Garden in time for SummerSlam

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Honky Tonk Man v Ultimate Warrior: From SummerSlam, August 29 1988 in New York City. This is supposed to be Brutus Beefcake challenging for the title again, but he's been injured by Ron Bass on Superstars two days prior (kayfabe), so Honky makes an open challenge to anyone who wants a shot. And, boy does he get an answer: the Ultimate Warrior charging down the aisle, and totally obliterating him in 0:27 to win his first Intercontinental Title! As a match, it's nothing, but as a blow off to the long Honky Tonk Man title run, it's terrific - the entire thing from Warrior's entrance to exit is just one sustained pop. Plus, it saved us from having to watch Honky and Beefcake stink up the ring on another pay per view, so there's that. DUD

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Ultimate Warrior v Honky Tonk Man: From the January 7 1989 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, taped December 7 1988 in Tampa Florida. Honky tries running away, but Warrior drags him back down the aisle to take his medicine. Again, I don't think this Honky fella quite understands the finer points. It's one thing when he was the champion, quite another as the challenger. Warrior press-slams him into the ring and actually uses a leapfrog during a criss cross - beating Honky all around the ring. Honky takes a cheap shot with Jimmy Hart's megaphone to turn the tide, but Warrior gets bored, and starts no-selling. Series of turnbuckle smashes set up a splash, but Honky lifts his knees to block, and covers for two. Warrior quickly gets bored again, however, and a jumping shoulderblock finishes at 5:07. Kinda figured he'd kill the Shake Rattle 'n' Roll there, but I guess not. Just shows how well booked to their strengths the SummerSlam 'match' was. ½*

Warrior wants to force Greg Valentine and Haku to bow down to him. Kind of a random pair of guys to threaten, but whatever works

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Ultimate Warrior v Greg Valentine: From Prime Time Wrestling on June 19 1989 (taped February 3) in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Warrior blasts him with a shoulderblock right away, so Jimmy Hart distracts him, and Warrior takes the bait on the outside. That allows Valentine a sneak attack, but Warrior no-sells it, so Greg bashes him with the shinguard to turn the tide. Warrior sells, but even a weapon shot doesn’t warrant a one count from him! Valentine with chops in the corner, but Warrior shrugs them off, and ragdolls him with some turnbuckle smashes. Bodyslam follows, but an elbowdrop misses, and Greg delivers one of his own for two. Greg with a snapmare to give himself time to climb, and he dives with a flying axehandle as Warrior gets to his feet. Warrior is done with selling, however, and starts making a random comeback. Jumping shoulderblock finds the mark, so Hart comes in with the shinguard, but Warrior catches him before he can use it. Warrior presses Jimmy into Greg, and then nails Valentine with the shinguard for the pin at 3:44. This was the last match of the evening, and the crowd seemed burned out, barely responding to anything during the actual bout, and heading for the exits the moment the bell rings. Not that this match gave them much to get behind. DUD

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Ultimate Warrior v Haku: From Prime Time on February 6 1989 (taped January 29) in Los Angeles California. Haku attacks before the bell, but Warrior blocks him in the corner with a boot, and drills him with a shoulderblock. Bodypress follows for two, and a Warrior wins a criss cross with a hiptoss, but misses an elbowdrop. Haku tries one, but misses as well, and Warrior gives him an atomic drop. Into the corner for chops, and a cross corner whip sets up a corner splash, but Haku sidesteps. That allows Haku a snapmare, and he grounds Warrior in a nervehold. Warrior fights to a vertical base, so Haku tries a turnbuckle smash, but Warrior reverses. He tries a ten-punch count from there, but Haku counters with an inverted atomic drop, and he cracks the champion with a chop. Shoulderbreaker gets him two, so he goes back to the nervehold, but Warrior escapes again, and makes a comeback. Bodyslam sets up a splash, but Haku lifts his knees to block, and that’s the end of the comeback. Another nervehold and a bodyslam set up a splash, but this time Warrior lifts his knees to block, and it’s comeback time again in Los Angeles! Warrior with a vertical suplex to set up a splash at 7:17. This wasn’t quite a lost classic or anything, but it was definitely much better than I was expecting. *

Warrior discusses his youth, which apparently included being locked in cages as a method of training for one day having to face the WWF Champion. Yeah, I’m guessing child protective services ain’t buying that one either

WWF Title v WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Randy Savage v Ultimate Warrior: TV taping dark match from Binghamton New York on February 15 1989. Well, if this tape has taught me anything, it’s that Warrior really really upped his gear game after the first IC title reign. Macho attacks as he climbs into the ring, but Warrior fights off the blitz, and knocks him to the outside with a jumping shoulderblock. Warrior chases to press him back into the ring, so Macho bails, and suckers Warrior into giving up the high ground. That allows Macho to clobber him, and he dives with a flying bodypress, but Warrior catches him, and leaves him in a tree of woe. Warrior with chops, and a corner whip, but Savage dodges the charge in. That allows Randy a high knee to send Warrior to the outside, and Macho dives out after him with a flying axehandle. Savage snaps his throat across the top rope on the way back inside, and a kneedrop gets the world champion two. He grounds Warrior in a chinlock from there, but Warrior fights free so Macho clotheslines him down for two. Flying axehandle gets him another two, so Savage tries a vertical suplex, but Warrior reverses for two. Warrior makes a comeback, as Rick Rude shows up at ringside. Warrior hits an atomic drop for two, but he argues the count, and Macho schoolboys for two. Warrior fights him off with a facebuster, but a splash lands on the knees, and covers for two. Savage unloads, but Warrior starts no-selling him, and he finds another comeback, but this time makes the mistake of chasing after Rude instead of staying focused. He gets his hands on Rude, but that allows Macho to recover, and he dives at him with a flying axehandle on the floor. Savage rolls back in, and Warrior is counted out at 8:18. Well, you knew you weren’t getting a clean finish, obviously. These two always had great chemistry, even here in one of their earliest matches together. ** ½ 

Warrior clarifies that he wants revenge on Rude, and will take his ‘medicine’ to get himself ready for the battle

We take a look at the Super Posedown from Royal Rumble 1989

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Ultimate Warrior v Rick Rude: From WrestleMania V on April 2 1989 in Atlantic City New Jersey. Warrior rushes the ring while still wearing the title belt - Rude hurting his knee when he tries to knee him on instinct. Warrior throws the challenger around as the crowd finally shows some signs of life, and grabs a bearhug at center ring. Rude's selling to make Warrior look like a complete powerhouse was just brilliant here. Rick rakes the eyes to escape, and plants a gorgeous missile dropkick on the champion, but it only gets one. Warrior pops back up and delivers a pair of bodyslams, then goes back to hugging him like a bear. Rick rakes the eyes again, so Warrior blitzes him, but a splash hits the knees, and Rude piledrives him for two. Jawbreaker gets two, and Rude can't even swivel his hips due to Warrior's beating! That was always one of my favorite Rude touches, and something I absolutely despise about today's product. With the exception of a few guys, everyone still does the same full on celebration after a win now, regardless of how grueling the match was. Rick keeps going to work, but Warrior starts powering up, and nails him with a jumping shoulderblock and a pair of facebusters. Backbreaker and a big clothesline set up a few corner whips, but a stinger splash misses. That's enough to setup the Rude Awakening, but Warrior blocks, and blasts him with a short-clothesline to send the challenger to the outside. Warrior tries to vertical suplex him back in, and executes it - only to have Bobby Heenan sweep him from the floor to allow Rude to topple him for the title at 9:42. Rude's lean physique and propensity to oversell made Warrior look like a beast here, and it made for a very entertaining bout. Smoke and mirrors never looked so good! Easily Warrior's best match ever to that point, that much is for sure. ** ¾

We get clips of some of the Rude/Warrior rematches at various house shows following WrestleMania 

Warrior signs off, again mumbling about injecting things into bodies. This tape is becoming a weird confessional 

BUExperience: This was a fun tape. Not any great wrestling, but a few good matches, and a fun time spent with one of the most over the top stars in one of the biggest eras of the promotion.

A good addition to your Coliseum Collection