WCW Halloween Havoc 1989 Results and Review Better Wrestling VHS Series

In an effort to go back and watch more and more wrestling, I have decided to review older VHS tapes. As you may or may not know, at the height of my tape collecting, I had 1400 wrestling videos. I had amassed a huge collection before getting married and selling it all off. Now with the network, you can relive the action. As such, here we go, a review of the 1989 classic Halloween Havoc from the Philadelphia Civic Center in Pennsylvania. Before a crowd of roughly 7,000, this was one hell of a night for wrestling, and here are my thoughts.

Halloween Havoc 1989 (October 28, 1989)

Tom Zenk defeated Mike Rotunda

You may know Mike Rotunda as IRS in the WWF but here he was part of the Varsity Club. As for Zenk, he’s known as Z-Man and he didn’t really get to far in WWE as far as I know. However, he has some serious talent. He reminds of Rick Martel, and well he was part of the Pan Am connection. This was a 13 minute, finesse wrestling match, with some good spots overall, and classic old school wrestling action.

The Samoan Swat Team defeated The Midnight Express and Dr. Death Steve Williams

This wasn’t half bad. It was a match that was fast paced, hard hitting, and featured a lot of crowd interaction. The crowd was going insane for everything that each team did, especially when Jim Cornette got involved.

Tommy Rich defeated The Cuban Assassin

Not a good match. Rich was looking old. Cuban Assassin was on his way out, so this must’ve been the bathroom break match.

The Fabulous Freebirds defeated The Dynamic Dudes (Tag Team Title Match)

Holy crap, Johnny Ace and Shane Douglas coming out with skateboards and neon gear! This was hilarious to see, and a bad idea. However, the match featured The Fabulous Freebirds, and they were the champions in this match. Michael Hayes came out without the tag title, and Garvin had one around his waist. That seemed odd to me. Overall, the match wasn’t half bad, and the Freebirds were way over with the crowd, and of course after around 11 minutes, they won this one.

Doom defeated The Steiner Brothers

Holy crap, The Steiner Brothers were over, and they were so fast in ring. Doom is Butch Reed and Ron Simmons and they had a hard time keeping up with the Steiners. Also, note, Nancy Benoit was the manager of Doom. Whatever the case is, the Steiners lost this one after getting distracted. However, they put the boots to Doom, and Scott Steiner was really impressive in this one. Holy crap, the dude can move, and the Frankensteiner is a thing of beauty.

Lex Luger defeated Brian Pillman (United States Championship)

Lex Luger and Pillman tore the house down in my opinion. This match was just under 17 minutes, and the two put on a classic. Pillman was flying around, but Luger was doing power moves and trying to ground and pound his way through this one. Eventually Pillman missed from the top rope, and Luger capitalized. A great overall match in my view.

The Road Warriors defeated The Skyscrapers

This was another hard hitting tag team match. Holy crap was it hard hitting. The Road Warriors weren’t selling as much, and you could tell. It was very noticeable that Sid Vicious was NOT as tough as Hawk or Animal. The match went by nicely, but it was The Road Warriors that got the win with a DQ finish. A young Teddy Long was here, so that was interesting.

Ric Flair and Sting defeated The Great Muta and Terry Funk in a Thunderdome Cage Match with Bruno Sammartino as special guest referee

And away we go, the main event was an insane wrestling match, that was very strange. The Thunderdome cage match was supposed to have an electrified top. I didn’t really see that come into play much. However, this match turned into a brawl fast, and you will absolutely be surprised how ripped Terry Funk was in 1989. Furthermore, Sting and Flair teaming without Flair turning on him. Muta was undefeated at this point, and the four guys in this match absolutely fought a hard hitting brawling cage match. Not a lot of blood or anything, but a lot of just straight chops, suplexes and Sting flying off the top rope a lot. Good overall main event, but a little old school for many tastes.

Halloween Havoc 1989 Overall rating: 8 out 10

The best part of this show was the U.S. Title match, alongside the Steiners and the Samoan Swat Team. This type of wrestling was far and away better than the WWF product at the time, that’s for sure. I had a blast with this one, and the crowd reactions are the best with this. The crowd was distinctly involved with all the matches, and the main event had them going absolutely insane.

I recommend buying Halloween Havoc 1989 on VHS, because it's unedited. If you see it on the network, the music, and some of the signs, and broadcast has been edited for time, and WWE's only standards! Click here to get the UNEDITED version. 

WWE Smackdown 4/14/2016 Results and Reviews First Time Matches For Once

WWE Smackdown has come and gone, and it was live from San Diego, California! The opening showed Maryse bringing out The MIz for MIZ TV. The Miz sucks, but I guess that means he’ll get heat. Maryse is hot as hell. Enough said. IMG SRC wwe.com

Baron Corbin defeated Zack Ryder

Zack Ryder showed up and wanted a match, but instead he had to battle Baron Corbin, and well, that didn’t end well. The match wasn’t half bad, albeit short. Corbin got the win, and it was cool to see the End of Days finisher yet again. Ryder’s on a downward spiral, but at least he got a Wrestlemania moment, right?

Emma defeated Paige

Not a terrible match. Paige is getting buried lately. Not sure why. Maybe it’s because she was a “diva” for so long.

Enzo Amore and Big Cass defeated The Ascension

The Ascension is done, simple as that. They have been buried and buried. This was a fast paced match, good action, and it was Enzo and Cass that got the win to move on in the tag title tournament. I liked it a lot, great action, fun stuff here.

Aj Styles defeated Alberto Del Rio

This was one hell of a match. Del Rio and Styles work well together, and each moment towards the end was definitely a war. Styles and Del Rio are so crisp here, holy crap. This is the type of hard hitting, fast paced wrestling that should be featured all the time with WWE. With wrestling like this, podcasters that only review 1 show will absolutely need to start looking into what the WWE is doing. This was an outstanding match up in my view, with Del Rio showcasing how much he’s improved. If you are going to watch one match this week, check this one out for the inverted superplex, holy crap!

The Vaudevillains defeated Fandango and Goldust

This was a short match, and didn’t really do much for the tournament. It was fast, not a burial, but not great. Fandango can wrestle, Goldust still has it, but hey, it’s time to put over the new guys, right? That’s all this was. The Vaudevillains move on in the tournament.

Sami Zayn defeated Chris Jericho by Disqualification

This was a good overall match, with lots of back and forth. However, Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens broke things up and the match was over. Overall a nice match up, ruined by Kevin Owens breaking into the match to beat up Zayn. Good thing Ambrose was on commentary, and that’s that.

WWE Smackdown 4/14/2016 Results

Baron Corbin defeated Zack Ryder
Emma defeated Paige
Enzo Amore and Big Cass defeated The Ascension
Aj Styles defeated Alberto Del Rio
Sami Zayn defeated Chris Jericho by Disqualification

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/12/2016 Results and Review Shane McMahon Running Things

This is a review of the HULU version of Monday Night Raw. It was Shane McMahon’s second time running the show, and it’s quite interesting to see him out and setting up matches, etc. I liked it. He announced a tag team tournament, and a first match with Cesaro and Owens. Holy Crap! Let’s get into the review. Image SRC WWE.com

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/12/2016 Review

Cesaro defeated Kevin Owens

Owens was supposed to get a title shot if he could defeat Cesaro. Well, Cesaro and Owens put on a high caliber match up. It was fun. Cesaro’s corkscrew elbow was a marvelous thing, if you saw it. Holy crap was that good! Cesaro and Owens, wow, what a Raw match up. I loved it.

The Dudleys defeated The Lucha Dragons

I forecast that The Dudleys will wrestle Enzo and Cass. As for this, a standard tag affair, with a few good spots, and overall interesting elements. I liked it.

Kevin Owens getting thrown out of the building was grand. I loved it.

Roman Reigns getting booed was loud on Raw, the WWE didn’t edit the Audio for Hulu that’s for sure.

Natalya defeated Charlotte by DQ

This wasn’t half bad, I liked it. But again, Charlotte got to keep the title, because Flair got involved.

The Usos defated The Social Outcasts

This match was boring, but it got really exciting when Carl Anderson and Luke Gallows AKA The Bullet Club came out and beat the crap out of the USOS!

Aj Styles defeated sami Zayn

Holy crap! This was a stellar match up. The spots you’d expect occurred, with Zayn getting some great shots at Styles. However, it was Styles that was able to reverse things and make it out alive in this one. Zayn is quite the worker, and Styles is great in ring here. I’ve been impressed thus far with his WWE run.

The Highlight Reel turned into The Ambrose Asylum. Jericho and Ambrose will be fighting soon, this was ok, I guess.

Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns defeated The League of Nations

This was a mediocre match, and I didn’t care about it. Another tag team main event? Bray and Roman win, I went back to bed, you hated it, I didn’t think it was great, another waste. SOS if you ask me. Shane running things or not.

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/12/2016 Results

Cesaro defeated Kevin Owens
The Dudleys defeated The Lucha Dragons
Natalya defeated Charlotte by DQ
The Usos defated The Social Outcasts
Aj Styles defeated sami Zayn
Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns defeated The League of Nations

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/5/2016 The Night After Wrestlemania 32 Results and Review

Here we go, American Airlines arena in Dallas, Raw! This is an incredible night right? Well, this review is based on the 90 minute version of the show since I don’t have cable, and watch this show via HULU. Yep. Images source wwe.com.

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/5/2016 Review

Vince McMahon showed up to start things off, and the crowd was absolutely hot. He told people to enjoy the show, and then came out Shane McMahon! Shane came out and said thank you, and goodbye.

But, that’s not enough for Vinnie Mac. He said, “NO ONE OUTSTAGES ME”, so he went on a tirade as Shane McMahon was walking away.

The turn about? Shane McMahon will be running Monday Night Raw tonight! The crowd exploded!

The New Day defeated The League of Nations in a Tag Team Title Match

This wasn’t just a rehash of last night. It was a fast paced, easy going match, with a few spots, but mostly a telegraphed New Day victory. It wasn’t half bad, but you knew this was going to go the way of the New Day. They retain the titles.

Post match, The League of Nations Brogue (or as I call the BRO) kicked Wade Barrett out of the group. This was interrupted by The Wyatt family! They brawled! This wasn’t half bad, but it’s not much of a statement in my view.

Vince left this show and said it was going to be a disaster. The editing of Raw was odd, to say the least.

Apollo Crews defeated Tyler Breeze

This was a clinic, wow, Crews is very good and crisp in the ring. Tyler Breeze got buried, absolutely buried. He’s on his way out, he has to be. His gimmick is terrible, he gets losses, he can’t possibly be getting a push forward. Crews, wow, what a specimen and what an arsenal of moves. A good overall debut, squash, but hey it was entertaining at least. I liked it.

Roman Reigns came out to a chorus of boos, and you know, good reason. No one wanted him as champion. Reigns cut a cool promo, where he didn’t cater to the boos, and then said he’d beat the crap out of anyone that came out to the ring.

Chris Jericho showed up, and rightfully so, he’s on a roll. He demanded a title shot, but was interrupted by AJ Styles! Man, I love this guy, this was a good segment, with Reigns just watching the two banter about who gets a shot. Kevin Owens showed up as well, and he said he wanted a shot as well! Holy crap! Then Sami Zayn showed up! This crowd absolutely exploded, and my house was rocking too, all 5 of my cats were going nuts for Zayn! This ended in a melee, where Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens fought, then Styles and Jericho fought, but it ended with Roman Reigns spearing Jericho! This may very well lead to an elimination chamber match, I think. We’ll see what happens, this was a good segment overall.

Zack Ryder came out and the Miz showed up to demanded a title shot.

The Miz got his title shot right away, and boom, the match started right after this promo. I liked this, I love fighting champions.

The Miz defeated Zack Ryder for the Intercontinental Championship

The Miz and Zack Ryder had an ok match, but it really got good when Ryder’s dad (front row ringside) got involved. He pushed The Miz, and that caused Maryse to come out and slap Ryder’s dad, and it served as enough distraction for The Miz to get the Skull Crushing Finale to get through and pin Ryder. New Champion!

The formal presentation of the Women’s Title was really cool, and Lita, wow she’s beautiful. This ended with all the women leaving Charlotte inside the ring alone to throw a tantrum. It ended with Natalya getting into fisticuffs with the champion. This should set up the next feud.

The Dudleys defeated The Usos in a tables match

This was a cool match, as The Usos are exciting to watch. However, this time it was the Dudleys won big time. I liked it. The Dudleys pushed through and won this one, and I loved seeing the finish with the Usos going down through 3 tables!

Speaking of tables, backstage Sami Zayn was doing an interview and was interrupted by Kevin Owens! Owens power bombed Sami Zayn through a table! Man this is getting good.

Enzo and Cass came out and blew the roof off the building, and I was marking out huge bro! The Dudleys got trashed on the mic, and it was great. What a way to debut a team. I’m glad that the WWE is pushing up new guys, and these guys are definitely fun to watch.

Zayn could not compete, so Shane McMahon put in a replacement. I thought it was going to be Triple H, but it wasn’t. It was CESARO! That’s right Cesaro is back!

Aj Styles defeated Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, and Cesaro in a fatal four way for the number one contendership

This was a 4 star classic for me. Everyone fought hard, everyone had spots, everyone nearly won, but it was Aj Styles that got the victory here and he will be the first one to challenge Roman Reigns for the WWE title! This is huge! AJ STYLES!

Great overall Raw, even if it was only the HULU edition. I loved it.

WWE Monday Night Raw 4/5/2016 HULU Results

The New Day defeated The League of Nations in a Tag Team Title Match
Apollo Crews defeated Tyler Breeze
The Miz defeated Zack Ryder for the Intercontinental Championship
The Dudleys defeated The Usos in a tables match
Aj Styles defeated Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, and Cesaro in a fatal four way for the number one contendership

WrestleMania 32 Results and Review The Rise of The Roman Empire

WrestleMania 32 live from Dallas Texas. I wanted to be there live, but couldn’t make it. I have no friends. Next year, however, I may buy a ticket and fly into Orlando and enjoy it. I may even start a podcast. Oh, and if you’re reading this, drop me a line sirjorge AT gmail, if you’re interested in writing for this blog. IMAGE SRC WWE.COM

The general consensus that I saw on Twitter was definitely interesting. A LOT of so called podcasters and websites trashed the show. In fact, a big middle finger to Joey Numbas of Wrestling Soup, Pro Wrestling Illustrated, Nodq.com and others that completely trashed the show. Big F-U!

If you do not like WWE or didn’t like it, TURN IT OFF! No one is forcing you to watch, or comment. You make money off of WWE, by writing, commenting, podcasting, and more. Shut up about it. Don’t like the show? Get a job with WWE and change things from the inside. Idiots. GD idiots.

Now, on to the results and review from me, after watching it all!

Kaliso defeated Ryback in a US Championship Match

This was not a terrible match. Kalisto is really cool sometimes, and the overall match psychology worked. The finish was great, with Ryback hitting the exposed metal turnbuckle and getting rolled up. I liked it. It was a good match.

Team Total Divas defeated Team Bad and Blonde

This was an ok match. Lana was extremely stiff, and the star for me was Naomi. Wow. This was beautiful, she’s such an amazing athlete. Wow, totally impressed by her. As for Total Divas? Meh.

The Usos defeated The Dudley Boyz

The Usos aren’t grand. The Dudley Boys lose. It was cool to see the Usos going through tables onto The Dudleys. That was the best part of the match, great spots in my opinion.

Zack Ryder won the Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match that featured 7 total competitors

This was awesome. I had a lot of fun watching this. Every guy took some insane bumps. Stardust pulling out a polka-dot ladder was great. I loved that. The Miz was close to winning but Zack Ryder jumped through. Not only that, the finish, wow. Kevin Owens head was placed inside a ladder and left for dead! Ryder wins, and I loved it, great finish, no one saw it coming.

Chris Jericho defeated AJ Styles

These two wrestlers put on a clinic of wrestling. 5 stars in my view. Aj Styles is absolutely amazing, absolutely the best competitor that should have been in WWE a long time ago. The level of competition in TNA and other areas just doesn’t match up, this was beautiful. Chris Jericho is absolutely great here, and winning was definitely great.

The League of Nations defeated The New Day

Well, this didn’t go well for The New Day. The New Day was great as usual, but they lost to the “Bro” kick. This ended in a dance off with Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley, and Steve Austin getting the crowd completely going. Other than that, this was a forgettable match. Oh, and how can I not mention the giant box of BOOTY O’s cereal that the New Day came out of.

Brock Lesnar defeated Dean Ambrose in a street fight

This was great. Great overall, Lesnar won. I don’t like the guy, after he was interviewed and said he basically didn’t care about the business nor did he care about the fans. He just wants to make money, and Vince McMahon pays big checks for him, and he cashes them. F this guy. Lesnar wins after an F5 onto a stack of chairs. Ambrose is done, finished, give the guy a week off.

Charlotte defeated Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks for the Women’s Championship

The new women’s belt was debuted on the show. Charlotte won a stellar match. Throw out psychology and just sit back and enjoy some of the best women’s wrestling of all time. I called the finish, and loved the way the booking went to Charlotte, being a strong champion.

The Undertaker defeated Shane McMahon in a hell in a cell match

This was slow, slow match. I didn’t really care for it, until my heart was going insane when Shane climbed the cell then jumped off! He missed. He absolutely missed. He was dead. Shane was taken out on a stretcher. Undertaker wins, and well, that’s the end of that. Shane’s jump was absolutely insane, that’s all I can say.

Baron Corbin won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

Now this was interesting. DDP came out, Tatanka came out, Baron Corbin was there, and SHAQ came out too. It was fun. This was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the finish. However, Corbin just lost to Austin Airies at NXT Takeover, so this booking decision seemed odd to me. I still had a lot of fun with this.

The Rock and Cena defeated The Wyatts

I hated this. I don’t care for The Rock, I don’t care about Cena, and the Wyatts again get buried. Oh well.

Roman Reigns defeated Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

This was a slow moving match and the finish, wow. Reigns spears Stephani, wins the title and there was a lot of boos. This was insane. Reigns is the champion; no one threw trash in the ring.

I loved this year’s Wrestlemania. I loved it. I thought it was a fun show, and enjoyed it a great deal. I had a couple of beers, a pizza, and it just was fun. I loved it. If you didn’t like it, then perhaps you shouldn’t watch wrestling any longer.