Alex Wright defeated Sabu by DQ
Sting (c) defeated VK Wallstreet to retain the WCW US Title
Randy Savage defeated Scott Norton
Hulk Hogan (w/ Jimmy Hart) (c) defeated Lex Luger by DQ to retain the WCW World Title
Week two takes us out of the mall and into a small arena. It’s a pretty intimate setting, with the ring only a few steps away from the entrance. Again, it maybe doesn’t look big league, but I really liked it. Plus it meant both Hogan and Luger in the main event weren’t gassed out getting to the ring. Bonus!
One real noticeable thing in this second episode was the added emphasis on trying to bury WWF. This is the first episode where Bischoff gives out the RAW results, which I’m sure sounded great in his head backstage but just came off badly. Also, the commentary team rattle off the phrase “where the big boys play” so many times that it now occupies the same dark corner of my mind that “WWE Universe” does. Hopefully, I can empty that recycle bin soon.
Mongo isn’t the best of commentators, but he is always hyped. He brings an energy to the show that is a positive overall and Heenan does a great job of getting a bit of banter going back and forth. We get a recap of Luger’s debut and the making of the main event between him and Luger, with Hogan continuing his fascination with calling everything stinky. This was a good way to start the show as it shows that you have a big main event coming later that people should stick around for.
Sabu’s debut was a car crash as expected. I always enjoyed Sabu as a performer, but he’s one of the least graceful wrestlers you’ll ever see. Every second move looks like it has as much chance of breaking his own neck as his opponents. He manages to defeat Alex Wright, only for the decision to be overturned after an ill-advised and dangerous-looking tablet spot post-match. It still feels weird seeing him in a WCW ring. He’s a man out of place, which will be rectified shortly.
Ric Flair’s nonsensical promo about Arn being a bitch for calling his wife and kids from his hotel room instead of out slapping strippers in the ass with him was weird, but it took an even darker turn when Lex Luger wanders out for absolutely no reason and Flair, smitten with Flexy-Lexy keeps referring to him as “Package”. An odd segment for sure… but it wasn’t boring.
You may notice in the span of a week Michael Wallstreet has become V.K Wallstreet. You see the former Irwin slating the New-Gen WWF wasn’t enough for Bischoff, so he decided to swap out Michael for V.K. Vincent Kennedy (McMahon). Hilarious stuff. Unfortunately, he didn’t get a personality transplant at the same time, but what he did manage to acquire was one of the worst singlets I have seen in a long time. It somehow manages to be both plain and awful at the same time, with his walkout gear looking like a Poundland Million Dollar Man. Sting does at least get the clean pin in 4 minutes.
Lots of chat about Vader going AWOL on the show. In reality he had already been fired for a backstage brawl with Paul Orndorff that he reportedly got the worst of. He had originally been scheduled to face Hogan on this show but WCW had known in advance that this wouldn’t be happening and decided to go with the AWOL story. It won’t be long before Vader finds his way over to Titan, where Vince will struggle endlessly between pushing him because he’s big and burying him because he came from WCW. Injuries also don’t help.
The Norton v Savage match was an interesting one. They let Norton beat the piss out of Randy, for the most part, putting him over big, but the ending was a convoluted mess. Kamala and Shark of the Dungeon of Doom waddle out and as Shark tries to enter the ring he collides lightly with Norton, knocking the mammal spark out, on top of Norton. This allows Savage to hit the elbow drop from the top rope, where the ref proceeds to count, instead of calling the coastguard, regardless of the 450lb guy clearly blocking any kick-out attempt. We even get a sighting of the Zodiac post-match, but Ed Leslie will be discussed in due course.
In the main event Hogan looked like a man out of time coming out to the ring. The live crowd went mild as he fired through his pre-match routine. You see on the surface, Hogan v Luger for the WCW World Title is a huge match to put on TV. Especially in 1995. But even the youngest of kids in the audience could smell a fuck finish a mile off here. Watching on TV the match almost seemed like a backdrop for Bischoff to bang on about what a step-up in competition this was for Luger after where he had been. It’s where the big boys play I believe. Anywho, after Hogan went through his entire comeback to minimal reaction, the Dungeon of Doom runs in right as he has the visual three count.
Post-match Sting and Savage come out to help clear off the heels. Hogan gets on the mic and points the finger at Luger as the Dungeon didn’t attack him. Savage takes his on-again, off-again pals side while the Stinger backs Luger. This all ends with Luger agreeing to be on Hogan’s team at the PPV on Sunday so long as he gets a title match down the line. The segment built the War Games match for Fall Brawl well.
This was another good episode of the show. Not on the level of the week before, but certainly solid. Obviously, WCW had more than one weekly TV show, but Nitro does feel like it is focusing too heavily on the main event scene. From Bischoff’s point of view, I get it. He wants to put his best foot forward. Everything is better in moderation though.
On this night Nitro did a 2.4 rating to RAW’s 2.5. A really good start for Nitro in their first head-to-head show.
-Craig 🧐