Saturday Night's Main Event XIV

Legacy Review

Saturday Night's Main Event XIV

January 2, 1988 (taped December 7, 1987) from the Capital Centre in Landover, MD

Commentary: Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura

 

The green screen work is much better this time around. It helps that it's plain black instead of a starfield. Bobby Heenan (in a neck brace) says he's stepping aside for Bundy's title match and Andre will be in his corner instead.

2 Out Of 3 Falls Match for the WWF Tag Team Championship: Strike Force (c) def The Bolsheviks (w/Slick) in 7:55- Santana teamed up with Martel during the summer of '87 to replace Tom Zenk, and they pulled the upset title win over the Hart Foundation on weekly TV in November.

FIRST FALL- Santana and Zhukov start. Solid Santana led back and forth. Quick face tags and arm work on Zhukov. Volkoff tries a press slam but Martel squirts out and gets a roll up for 2. Small package for 2. Santana hits a cross body on Zhukov. Volkoff breaks up the pin. Heel double team. Volkoff straight misses a couple of kicks or stomps on a prone Santana. Santana sells them anyway. Zhukov with a back suplex for 2. Santana dodges an elbow, dodges Zhukov and tags. Hot tag sequence from Martel. The Boston Crab gets a submission and the first fall.

SECOND FALL- Santana dropkicks Volkoff over and out. Double dropkick on Zhukov. Martel loads the Crab up again but Volkoff breaks it up. More heel double teams as the ref gets Santana out and Martel is forcer (striker?) in peril. Volkoff gut wrench suplex for 2. Santana runs in, allowing more heel double teams. Knee drop from Volkoff for 2. Martel tries a sunset flip. Midring collision. Tags on both sides. Santana has dropkicks for everyone. Flying flauta! The pin's broken up and we have a donnybrook. Volkoff gets Slick's cane. Santana dodges and Zhukov eats it. Santana rolls him up for a pin and it's over. Eh. About as good as you'll get with the Bolsheviks. *3/4

Fuji and Sika have a giant loaf of bread and giant jar of mustard to make a Damien sandwich with. Well, it's a nice change of pace from the usual "heel is scared to death" of Damien story.

 

Jake "The Snake" Roberts def Sika (w/Mr. Fuji) in 3:35- Deep Roberts armdrags. He ducks a couple of Sika punches and hits a clothesline. Shoulderblocks in the corner. Sika blocks a corner whip, hits a backdrop and rakes Roberts' back. Fuji gets a couple of cane shots in. Sika locks in the Nerve Pinch of Tormentable Agony +1. Roberts counters a backdrop with a kneelift. Short punches. Fuji grabs his foot to break the momentum. Roberts dodges a Sika corner charge, Sika Bret bumps, and Roberts rolls him up on the bounceback to win. Afterward Fuji eats a DDT and gets to play with Damien for a bit. Fuji almost completely no sells the DDT walking out, but his hat stayed glued on the whole time so who knows how much padding was in that thing? Strategery. 3/4*

 

WWF Championship: Hulk Hogan (c) def King Kong Bundy (w/Andre the Giant) in 12:09- Hogan and Andre stare down on Hogan's entrance again. Hogan wins the lockup, dodges a charge and goes around the world with buckle shots. Big chops. The big boot sends Bundy outside. Still all Hogan after Bundy gets back in so he powders to confer with Andre. Bundy powers out of an arm wringer and pulls Hogan's hair to get control. Shoulderblocks stagger Bundy, but he ducks a clothesline and pops Hogan with a back elbow. More work on Hogan's arm. Eventually Hogan punches out and successfully slams Bundy, but the elbow follow up is dodged. They trade places with Bundy getting a slam but Hogan dodging elbows until he does a mini hulk up. Corner clothesline. Bundy goes for an avalanche, but the ref is in the way and he gets squashed between Hogan and Bundy! Hogan dodges a big splash and punches Bundy out of the ring. The match pauses as a replacement ref takes over, and the clinically dead original ref does a stretcher job to the morgue. Reset with Bundy getting control. Knee drop for 2. A chop sends Hogan over and out! Avalanche! A second one! Bundy gets arrogant, takes his time and demands his usual five count. Big splash. Hulk Up! Bundy does a Bret bump, Hogan hits the legdrop and good night. Perfectly serviceable. **1/4

Now for the real money for the night. Hogan calls Andre into the ring. Andre teases stepping in, then decides not to...until Hogan turns his back. Andre chokes Hogan down. The British Bulldogs run in and try to stop him. Andre throws them out and starts choking Hogan again. More faces run in from the locker room and try to get Andre off Hogan. Finally, Jim Duggan gets in and whacks Andre with his 2x4. That gets Andre's attention in a "if you shoot Mongo you'll only make him mad" way, but it allows the faces to get Hogan out of the ring. There's a funny unplanned moment where a frustrated Duggan slams the 2x4 on the ring apron and it breaks in half.

 

Greg "The Hammer" Valentine (w/Jimmy Hart) def Koko B Ware in 7:30- Ware's just a proxy here as Valentine has been feuding with his former tag partner Brutus Beefcake. Valentine hits a quick hot shot and drops some hammers for some near falls. He goes for an early figure four but Ware fights out. Valentine slowly and deliberately climbs up the ropes and hits a double ax handle. Beefcake comes to ringside. Ware uses the distraction to get a roll up and small package for 2. Valentine slides out and jaws at Beefcake. The match stops as the ref goes out and orders Beefcake back to the locker room, which Beefcake takes forever to do. When it gets going again Valentine is right back on offense. He gets sloppy and crotches himself on Ware's knees, but Ware STILL can't get any offense in. Finally Valentine goes up top again and Ware slams him off. Slugfest. A dropkick puts Valentine down. Valentine flop off a Ware headbutt. Ware gets a fistdrop off the second rope for 2. Valentine hits a kneebreaker, locks in the figure four, and that's it. Yet another TV loss for Hall of Famer Koko B Ware, and a damn near squash at that. *1/2

After the match Beefcake comes back in and runs Valentine off. Ware holds Jimmy Hart in the ring. Beefcake comes back in and takes a bit of hair off the top with the TITATNIUN STEEL BLADES until Valentine returns to save his manager.

In the back with Mean Gene, Andre gloats about how good it felt to choke the life out of Hogan, says he's going to squeeze the title right off him, and gives Okerlund a taste as well. The show closes with a medical update on Hogan: windpipe damage, but no tracheotomy required. Also, thankfully no anal bleeding. Hogan and Andre go on to sign rematch contracts at the first Royal Rumble, and the match will take place at the next Main Event.