WWF Coliseum Video Collection: Off the Top Rope (1995)

 

WWF Coliseum Video Collection: Off the Top Rope (1995)

Coliseum Video compilation. The front cover features Lex Luger hiptossing Tatanka. Just like he did to Yokozuna on the deck of the USS Intrepid that time

Ted DiBiase hosts from the studio

Yokozuna v Adam Bomb: From Monday Night RAW on July 25 1994 in Bushkill Pennsylvania (taped July 1). Yokozuna knocks him around to start, but Bomb wins a slugfest, and uses a criss cross to make Yokozuna move. That allows Bomb a pair of clotheslines, and a jumping shoulderblock sends Yokozuna to the outside. Back in, Adam stupidly calls for a test-of-strength, so Yokozuna just chops him down for being such an idiot. Yokozuna with a corner whip, and Bomb rebounds into a clothesline. Yokozuna goes to a nervehold, and man, I’m usually really accepting of Randy Savage as a commentator, but he’s being super annoying and obnoxious here. And pairing him with a guy like Jim Ross is a really bad clash. Bomb escapes the hold, so Yokozuna clotheslines him, but an avalanche misses. That allows Bomb another series of clotheslines, and a DDT takes Yokozuna off of his feet. Bomb keeps coming with a flying clothesline, and an elbowdrop follows, but here’s Kwang to trip him up. Bomb goes to the outside to brawl with Kwang over it, and he’s counted out at 6:45. This wasn’t great. ¼* (Original rating: ¼*)

Davey Boy Smith v Jim Neidhart: From RAW on October 3 1994 in Utica New York (taped September 26). Owen Hart tries to distract Bulldog, but Davey fights through the sneak attack, and Neidhart ends up on the outside. Back in, Bulldog tries a headlock, but Jim whips him into the ropes. It backfires when Bulldog hiptosses him, and a criss cross ends in Smith using a drop-toehold into an armbar. Savage is on commentary here as well, but much more tolerable when paired with Vince McMahon. Neidhart gets the ropes, and they do a test-of-strength, dominated by Anvil, but Bulldog fights free. Bulldog with a leglock, but Neidhart escapes, and rattles the ring with a corner whip. That puts Davey down for a cobra clutch, but Smith fights free. The tries a highknee, but gets clobbered, and Jim grounds him in a chinlock next. Or a ‘semblance of a chinlock,’ per Vince. I love it. Bulldog fights free again, so Owen pulls the top rope down as they criss cross, and he takes a spill over the top. That draws Bret Hart down to even the odds, and he helps Smith get back in, but the damage has been done. Inside, Jim works him over in dull fashion, with hold after hold, punctuated with lots of punching and kicking. “Holds like this make me glad I’m a broadcaster,” notes Macho. Probably shouldn’t say stuff like that in front of Vince if you don’t mean it, Randy. No wonder he got the wrong impression! Neidhart misses a 2nd rope elbowdrop, allowing Bulldog to make a comeback, and a vertical suplex gets him two. That draws Bob Backlund down to get into it with Bret, and while Bret is distracted, Owen attacks Davey for the DQ at 12:30. Neidhart was not good, but Smith gave it an effort, and it had enough psychology to be above terrible. ½* (Original rating: DUD)

WWF Title Cage Match: Bret Hart v Owen Hart: From SummerSlam in Chicago Illinois on August 29 1994. Owen jumps Bret as he enters the cage, and unloads in the corner. Bret fights him off with an inverted atomic drop and a clothesline, so Owen rakes the eyes to keep control, and he chokes his older brother with his own shoulder straps. Into the cage, but Bret manages to block, and he drops the Rocket with a DDT. Legdrop follows, and Bret decides to climb, but Owen pulls him down half way up, and fires off a leg-feed enzuigiri. Owen makes his own climb, but Bret side suplexes him down to stop the effort, and the Hitman crawls for the door. Owen grabs the ankle to stop him, so Bret bulldogs him, and tries for the door again. That leads to a fun game of leapfrog as both guys tease escapes through the door, and Owen ends up slamming him off the top rope as Bret tries another climb. He climbs, and even nearly makes it out this time, before Bret manages to pull him back over for a slugfest on the top rope. Owen gets the better of it, and dives at his brother with a flying dropkick, then immediately starts climbing again. He makes it over the top, but Bret pulls him back, and goes over the top himself! That leads to another slugfest, and Bret is able to bash him into the cage to knock the challenger to the mat - only to lose his footing in the process, and fall himself! That allows Owen to go for a piledriver, but Bret counters with a backdrop, and a criss cross ends in a double knockout spot. Owen recovers slightly ahead, and goes for the door, but Bret is able to stop him - Owen desperately holding onto the ring apron to try and pull himself out. Bret puts him down for a pointed elbowdrop, and he makes a climb, but Owen grabs a leg to pull him back as the Hitman straddles the top of the cage. Bret tries kicking him off, but Owen rips at the leg, and the Hitman ends up crotched across the top rope! Owen crawls for the door, but Bret pulls him back for a headbutt drop to the groin - only to miss a 2nd rope flying elbowdrop. That allows Owen to climb, and he makes it over the top before Bret is able to grab him by the hair - Owen left literally dangling over the arena floor! Bret pulls him back over for a slam to the mat, and he tries to climb, but Owen stops him with a Samoan drop. He tries a toss into the cage, but Bret reverses, and that allows him to climb again, but Owen stops it with a side superplex. He adds a piledriver to try and subdue his big bro, and Bret is barely stirring as a worn Owen makes another climb. Bret manages to follow him up, but can't hold his own in a slugfest - saved only when Owen crotches himself on the top rope in the process. Bret crawls for the door, and very nearly gets out, but Owen is able to hold on to stop him! They're doing a fantastic job of teasing escapes here, with some real close calls, and lots of drama. Bret with a catapult into the cage, but he's so dazed that he crawls for the wrong corner to try for the door, and by the time he rights that ship, Owen is able to stop him. Owen punishes his brother with a cross corner whip, but a reversal sequence ends in Bret ramming his challenger into the cage. He climbs, and looks to have it locked up, when Owen manages to grab him through the bars, and pull him back in. That's one thing I loved about the blue bar cage compared to the mesh style ones: you could work spots where guys had to reach through the bars. Owen hammers him with a spinheel kick, and he gets very close on a climb attempt, but Bret pulls him back at the very last second! Again, great escape teases here - wonderful drama, and expert timing. Slugfest on the top rope is won by Bret with a swinging kneelift, but Owen is able to stop him from finishing his climb with a few European uppercuts. Criss cross ends in Owen hitting a clothesline, but both guys are battered, and both are left looking up at the lights. Owen recovers, and climbs, but Bret manages to save the title by vertical superplexing him off the top of the cage! Bret has no follow-up though, and he barely has enough left to crawl for the door. That allows Owen to put him in the Sharpshooter, and the King of Harts has it well applied, but Bret manages a reversal anyway! He holds it until he simply can't any longer, then makes a climb, but Owen is able to use the hair to pull him back over the top - both guys taking a bump back down to the canvas! Owen climbs, but Bret is hot on his tail, and both guys end up making it over the top to the outside of the cage. They trade blows out there, and Bret very nearly knocks Owen to the floor, but Owen ends up hanging from the bars, trapped! That allows Bret to hop down, and he retains at 32:08! This has been called the best bloodless cage match, or the best escape rules cage match, but I think I'd go as far as to say this is simply the best cage match ever, full stop. And one of the best matches ever, regardless of genre. It didn't have a lot of the high spots more modern versions had, or the blood some of the older versions had, but they built tremendous drama through brilliant timing, and it was all supported by a terrific angle. Both guys showed tremendous conditioning here as well, going thirty two minutes without a single real resthold, and little stoppage. Also lots of credit for being able to follow their all time classic WrestleMania match with something that managed to be completely different, but equally fantastic, which is no small feat. A masterpiece. *****

Lex Luger v Tatanka: From Albany New York on October 19 1994. We have the underrated Gorilla Monsoon/Stan Lane commentary combo here. Tatanka sneak attacks, but Luger fights him off, and Tatanka ends up on the outside, stalling with DiBiase. I like how, now that Lex is a babyface, they’re opening calling his loaded forearm a ‘tool in his toolbox,’ as opposed to something illegal. Tatanka manages a cheap shot when he finally comes back in, and he unloads, but Lex fights him off again, and corners him for a ten-punch count. Tatanka with an inverted atomic drop to shake him off, but Lex rebounds with a clothesline, and corner whips him. Luger with mounted punches, so Tatanka hooks the tights, and dumps him to the outside. That allows Tatanka to feed Luger the steps, and Tatanka takes control as they head back inside, working Luger over. Tatanka with an elbowdrop for two, so he delivers a second one for another two. A third one also gets two, and man, do you really think you’re going to put him away by spamming fucking elbowdrops? Tatanka goes to a chinlock, until Lex fights free, so Tatanka throws a knee for two. Luger fights back, and goes on the comeback trail, but they spill to the outside, and it’s a double countout at 11:00. This was pretty dull. ¼* (Original rating: DUD)

BUExperience: This is one of those cheap one hour jobs where the host only shows up to bookend the tape, and there are no skits or other segments outside of the matches. Only one of the four matches here is an exclusive (though it aired on other home video releases, and it wasn’t very good anyway), and while the cage match is an all-time classic, it’s hardly hard to get a hold of in 2026. Or, even back in 1995. 

Not a good addition to your Coliseum Collection.