The Wrestling Doctor 12.16.08: Reload - KOTR 1995

Posted by W.S. Thomason on 12.16.2008

You haven’t read it yet but you already know that it’s got to be a better idea than King Mabel…

THE WRESTLING DOCTOR

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THIS WEEK'S PATIENT: RELOADING KING OF THE RING 1995

Reloads of comic books, film franchises – particularly the highly-lucrative
James Bond and Batman revamps – and other media have become quite popular in recent years as the sheer amount of entertainment available has grown tremendously while the attention spans of many audiences has shrunk in equal proportion. Maybe wrestling writers can jump on this over-hauled bandwagon and re-book some of the weaker shows of the past – and fill a few weeks' worth of columns to boot…

My main criteria for a reload are that:
• The show was considerably disappointing if not outright horrendous.
• Changing the show, even significantly, would not radically alter wresting history. (For example, I would not rebook Survivor Series 1997 because of the Montreal Screwjob, but I would work over Super Brawl 93.) A truly mediocre show does not have any major long-term impact.

There is no better show with which to begin such an experiment than the 1995 King of the Ring. Universally recognized as the worst WWF/WWE PPV ever produced, the show occurred during the middle of The New Generation movement but did nothing to advance those stars. The show, in fact, did little for anyone except for Mabel – whose push was widely recognized as a bad idea before it was certain that it would even occur.

The main event of the show featured WWF Champion Diesel teaming with new face Bam Bam Bigelow to defeat Million Dollar Corporation rivals Psycho Sid and Tatanka. Bret Hart got revenge on Jerry Lawler in a "kiss my foot" match at the show where their rivalry began in 1993 and, of course, there was the eight-man single-elimination King of the Ring Tournament.

The King of the Ring tournament opened with newly re-gimmicked Savio Vega taking the spot of legitimately-injured ally Razor Ramon and gaining a count-out win over Tag Team Title co-holder Yokozuna; The Roadie (Road Dog / BG James – then just a lackey) pinning (an un-Plugged Sparky yet non-Hardcore) Bob Holly; a newly-turned face Shawn Michaels going to a 15-miute draw with Kama the Ultimate Fighting Machine; and Mabel handing The Undertaker his first pinfall loss since the 1991 mini PPV Tuesday in Texas - with plenty of interference from Kama, then UT's chief rival. A weak first round to say the least.

The semi-finals saw Vega beat The Roadie. Mabel received a bye due to the Michaels-Kama draw, and the big man used this advantage and massive girth to defeat Vega in the final and re-christen himself King Mabel – as the angry throngs in Philadelphia pelted the ring with garbage in a legitimate expression of disgust at the booking, not the heel.

Absent from active competition on the show were Intercontinental Champion Jeff Jarrett, defending King and Tag Team Title co-holder Owen Hart, recent top tier stars The British Bulldog and Lex Luger, Cliq main stay The 1-2-3 Kid (who I believe was injured), and the recently pushed Hakushi. The WWF had run the first two-hour monthly In Your House card in May, so in the corporate mind it was no longer as important to include top names of each show. However, the King of the Ring had become the important fifth full pay-per-view in 1993 and a lot was expected from the show by an audience not yet accustomed to monthly PPVs.

The 1995 King of the Ring was so insignificant that the only change that would come from re-booking it would be an end to the push of Mabel. But since the big man was gone from the WWF by the end of 1995, it would not have mattered much. Mabel's later identities as Viscera and Big Daddy V would not be affected.

The actual tournament needed a winner who would not only benefit from the push, but who would continue to make the King of the Ring title respectable in the eyes of the fans. Both Harts had done that, but Mabel certainly weakened the franchise. The winner did not necessarily have to be someone who needed to get over – an established star winning KOTR (like Bret Hart in 93) on their way to bigger things could do a lot to enhance the event's reputation as a (warning: bad pun ahead) king maker.

You know you loved it. And you're welcome.

For these reloads, I may not re-organize the entire show, but in this particular case, the only things that can be left of the booking mess are some studs. I am not going to do a move-by-move re-book of each match; I am more interested in the impact of the outcome on the storyline rather than how each match ends.

1995 KING OF THE RING RELOAD

Diesel, Shawn Michaels, & The Undertaker over Psycho Sid, Tatanka, & Kama: Here's the great thing about generic heel stables master-minded by a devious manager prior to 1996: any combination of the guys could be used in any match at any time. Heel stables were so interchangeable it is like the concept was designed by Eli Whitney. Such is the case here – Sid is feuding with Diesel and Michaels, and Kama with The Undertaker. Tatanka is technically battling Bam Bam Bigelow, but the stable concept allows him to be squeezed in as the third man for DiBiase's minions. He's also going to take the fall. Sorry to spoil that ending…

Michaels' return from injury at the hands of Psycho Sid should not have been wasted on a draw with Kama, especially when HBK was jonesing for revenge. It was clear by June 1995 that the WWF was going to send Michaels to the moon, so his first PPV match as a newly-turned face should have been big time. Diesel and Michaels could use this match to reaffirm their reunited partnership and their place at the top of the WWF. The Undertaker needed to be a part of the card, but a one-on-one match with Kama was not feasible if those two were to meet at Summerslam. The result would be this New Generation dream team that would hit all of their big spots, ending in a Sweet Chin Music-Jack Knife-Tombstone combination on Tatanka. Sid and Kama would scurry away, left to fight at another poorly-done PPV.

Kiss My Foot match: Bret Hart over Jerry Lawler: One match I would not change would be the Hart-Lawler match, as it made sense in the context of their feud and this particular card while giving The Hitman something to do until he re-entered the WWF Title picture.

Intercontinental Title: Savio Vega over Jeff Jarrett by count-out: This match would originally be booked as the PPV blow-off to the tired Razor Ramon-Double J feud. Ramon and Jarrett had recently traded the IC Title on a pair of Canadian house shows (in addition to feuding over the strap since January), so a conclusion was needed. Ramon's injury would allow Vega to step in, as he had been introduced at the first IYH show saving The Bad Guy from JJ and The Roadie. Razor would be in Vega's corner. Vega would get in a flurry of offense, The Roadie would help JJ regain the advantage, and finally Ramon would neutralize the future Road Dogg. Jarrett would take the cowardly heel road and bail for the count-out loss. Vega would be established as a legitimate part of the roster and JJ would be free to move towards a feud with Michaels.

King of the Ring Tournament

First Round
Bam Bam Bigelow over Yokozuna by DQ: One thing about PPV in this era is that it was important for a company not to blow off all of their feuds in one night, since house shows generated most of their revenue and those cards needed long-term programs. Not booking a newly-pushed face like Bam Bam against rival Tatanka and the rest of the Million Dollar Corporation would freshen up match-ups without tremendously weakening the PPV. A classic battle of big men, this match would end in disqualification after Owen interferes, followed by the Million Corporation giving a beat down that is punctuated by a couple of Banzai drops. Bam Bam would sell the rib and core injuries through the rest of the tournament, yet his feud with DiBiase's boys would not be overlooked or forgotten by the booking. Asbury Park's second most-famous resident gets to play the face who fights through all of the odds, building up his character in the process.

Owen Hart over Adam Bomb: Bomb is at the end of his run with the WWE. This one won't last more than two minutes. Owen big sells a flurry of Clarke's power and wrath(!), before sneaking out a sudden and heelish pin.

Hakushi over Bob Holly: Hakushi was being pushed as a poor man's Great Muta and, while he had a great move set, he did not set the WWF on fire like he could have. Bob is a year removed from Sparky Plug, and about four from being Hardcore. This could be a good match at about five minutes, with Hakushi picking up a clean win.

British Bulldog over Lex Luger: Both guys go into this show as faces and partners. The match would be caused by the luck of the qualifying draw, and would be built up by the prospect of partners squaring off. The bout would be a largely face vs. face / power vs. power affair with tempers flaring near the end. Luger would wind up hurting himself with a fall to the floor, and Davey Boy would capitalize with a quick pin. Tension would build as Vince poorly foreshadows things to come.

Semi-Finals
Bam Bam Bigelow over Owen Hart: The drama! Bigelow has to face the other half of the tag team champions. This match would be a classic contrast of styles between guys who knew how to work. To my knowledge they never wrestled (but I could very well be wrong). Owen gets an advantage with his quickness and Bigelow's limited mobility, and works over the ribs. Bigelow manages to over-power the defending King in the end to book his spot in the final.

British Bulldog over Hakushi: Part of this is my wanting to see Davey Boy in his mid-nineties prime face off against Muta. We get a good match here with big moves, but the Bulldog takes advantage of another accident situation to get the un-face like win.

Final
British Bulldog over Bam Bam Bigelow: If you are going to turn someone pre-Monday Night War, do it right – at a big PPV in a situation that matters, not on Raw the week before Summerslam. The Bulldog takes advantage of Bigelow's injuries and, despite a late comeback from the Beast, gets the win with help from Jim Cornette, who appears at ringside. The Bulldog is now a heel, and joins the tag champs in a second beat-down of Bigelow before claiming the crown.

The Bulldog would be a logical choice for King in the cartoonish-WWF sense, as he is British, but from an angle perspective it would perfectly set up his program with Diesel. The Bulldog's turn on Big Daddy Cool shortly before Summerslam 95 made little sense in terms of promoting that PPV, as it distracted from Diesel's match with King Mabel (not that a lot of folks were paying attention anyway). Davey Boy would have been a much better – and believable – opponent for Diesel at Summerslam, as he matched well in the power department, had a solid pedigree, and actually had a reasonable shot of becoming WWF champion. Their feud could have carried over through In Your House 3 and 4 and led into the Diesel-Hart Survivor Series showdown. The KOTR title would also give The Bulldog an immediate boost as a singles heel.

The Lex Luger element could also have been initially used in the feud, with a possible turn also teased for "Made in the USA" until he bolted for WCW – making that great moment even more legendary. The only gap that Davey Boy's early heel turn would create would be in the tag team scene. Owen Hart and Yokozuna would need a team to beat on house shows over the rest of summer, but that's what The Smoking Gunns were for. Mabel's lack of push would have left The Undertaker searching for a fall feud, but that could have been remedied easily with an array of generic heels; after all, the WWF had access to caskets of all sizes.

THE PAPERWORK
Reloads are just a way to rethink the cards of the past, and a great way for wrestling nerds to waste time (if you have gotten this far, that's you, too). Post or email suggestions for future reloads – I'll probably do this periodically in 2009. Slamboree 1996 may be next up on the table.

I built a cool chart to show the progress of the tournament, but for some reason it puts a large gap between the text and the chart itself. Scroll down to take a look. If any HTML folks know what's going on, give me a shout. Much obliged…

First Round	Semi-Finals	Final
Bam Bam Bigelow over Yokozuna (DQ)	Bigelow over Owen
Owen Hart over Adam Bomb		Bulldog over Bigelow
Hakushi over Bob Holly		KOTR: British Bulldog
British Bulldog over Lex Luger	Bulldog over Hakushi