WWF Prime Time Wrestling (January 12, 1988)

 

Original Airdate: January 12, 1988

Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan from the studio

Bret Hart v Paul Roma: From Hamilton Ontario Canada on December 29 1987. Bret jumps him to kickstart things, and he pounds away for a bit, before casually dumping him out of the ring. Roma forces his way back in with a slingshot dropkick, and he throws a series of right hands to knock the Hitman to the outside, where Bret stalls him out. Hart tries a cheap shot on the way back in, but Roma is ready for him, and Bret ends up in an armbar. Bret tries a bodyslam to escape, but Roma holds on through it. Bret tries a snapmare, but Paul holds on through that as well. Basic sequence, but few guys do them, and they’re so great. Hart finally escapes with a whip into the ropes, and he plants a boot to the midsection as Roma rebounds. Bret puts the boots to him from there, and a headbutt finds the mark. A pointed elbowdrop gets him two, and Hart snapmares Roma into a chinlock from there. Roma fights free, and tries a sunset flip, but Bret blocks, and chokes him down behind the referee’s back. Hart dumps him to the outside for Jim Powers to tend to, and where the fuck are Jim Neidhart and Jimmy Hart?! What kind of heel lets the babyface come out there with backup, and he’s all by his lonesome. No wonder he had to turn face a few months later. Roma beats the count, so Hart hits him with a legdrop for two, then a standing dropkick for two. Bret keeps coming with a vertical suplex, but Roma reverses, though he’s too battered to follow up, and Bret drops an elbow. Bret tries a 2nd rope axehandle, but Paul manages to block, and he goes on the comeback trail. An atomic drop sets up a clothesline for two, and a bodyslam sets up a 2nd rope fistdrop for two. Hart tries a bodyslam, but Roma counters to a rollup for two. Irish whip, but Hart reverses, and catches him with a backbreaker on the rebound, then goes to a 2nd rope elbowdrop for the pin at 13:00. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him beat anyone with that - and it wasn’t even the pointed version! He should have beaten more guys with some of those, which would have made the finishing sequence he adapted later feel more consequential. ** 

Ultimate Warrior v Steve Lombardi: From Hamilton on December 29. Warrior just kind of power walks to the ring at this point, so clearly they were still working the kinks out. Boy, they drew a good sized house here in Hamilton, it’s no wonder that they came back for the Royal Rumble special the next month. Gorilla is all over Lombardi right away, noting that he graduated from the ‘Terry Garvin School of Self Defense,’ and suggesting that he’s patterning himself after Pat Patterson. Warrior with the press-drop at 7:43. They still had a ways to go with the Warrior character at this point. DUD

From Wrestling Challenge, Craig DeGeorge brings Ted DiBiase out for a podium interview about his failed efforts to purchase the WWF Title, and Ted introduces a new wrinkle: bringing Andre and Heenan out. Ted has paid Heenan handsomely for Andre’s services, and the angle now is that Andre will go out and win the title from Hulk, and then turn it over to DiBiase. And, much like at The Main Event, Andre just can’t say ‘World Wrestling Federation title,’ though at least this time he just says ‘world world wrestling federation…’ and trails off, instead of calling it the tag title, or whatever. Great angle 

Koko B. Ware v Iron Mike Sharpe: From Hamilton on December 29. Joined in progress with Sharpe in control, but it doesn’t last long, and Koko kills him with the brainbuster at 4:35 shown of 6:03. DUD

DeGeorge is in the control center for Special Report, with a look at the search for the dog ‘affectionately known as Matilda.’ I’m pretty sure ‘Matilda’ is her name, not a term of affection, like ‘cutie,’ or something. Ya fuckin’ moron. Anyway, President Jack Tunney is taking action, suspending the Islanders until Matilda is returned

Dan Spivey v Lanny Poffo: From Hamilton on December 29. Joined in progress with Spivey holding a bearhug - and immediately getting criticized by Monsoon and Nick Bockwinkel over his execution. Well, you knew that was inevitable. Dan with a neckbreaker at 3:01 shown of 8:41. Too much cut here to rate it, but what was left was inconsequential. 

Gene Okerlund catches up with Ricky Steamboat, who will face Rick Rude in a singles match at the Rumble Royal. Or, you know, the name that it’s actually called

Cowboy Lang v Lord Littlebrook: From Paris France on October 23 1987. Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Fuck no. Lang with a double-underhook cradle at 12:16. DUD

Demolition v Billy Jack Haynes and Brady Boone: From Houston Texas on December 11 1987, with Boone subbing for Ken Patera. The babyfaces kickstart things, and Haynes presses Boone into Smash for a two count. Boone has gone to the trouble of finding matching gear with Haynes for this, so I’ll take them seriously, I guess. Billy holds an armbar, but Smash fights to a vertical base, so Brady tags back in. The babyfaces dominate Smash with quick tags, until Ax is able to throw a cheap shot on Haynes, and Demolition gain control. Boone manages to tag in, but instead of running wild, he falls into the same predicament, and Demolition work him over. They probably got confused by the matching gear, and started the heat segment on the guy there. Haynes gets the hot tag and gets to properly run wild, since he’s not, you know, a jobber. A running powerslam on Smash gets two, and Roseanne Barr the door, we’ve got a kettle on! Boone tries going for the finish, but he’s, again, a jobber, so it doesn’t go well. And then Smash just clobbers him with a hotshot at 11:15. ½*

BUExperience: The Hart/Roma match was fun, but the rest of this entire episode was junk, and not worth your time.