The Name on the Marquee: WWF Spectrum Wrestling (11.07.87)

Posted by Adam Nedeff on 11.10.2009

The road to Survivor Series takes a quick detour in Philadelphia.

-So if you remember the last installment of Spectrum Wrestling, I think we'd all feel better if we just pretended that it was some sort of practice event for when they did the real house show next month. And here we are at next month.

-Your hosts are Dick Graham & Craig DeGeorge.

DINO BRAVO (with Johnny V) vs. BRADY BOONE
-Dino outmuscles Boone on the lock-up, then shoves him into the ropes. Forearms and chops by Dino as Dick already declares this to be a pier six brawl. Boone reverses a clothesline attempt, then shoulderblocks Dino and catches him with a flying bodypress for two. Dropkick gets another two. Crowd is really into Boone, by the way.

-Armbar is clamped on by Boone. Bravo gets to his feet and Boone switches to a wristlock. Bravo reverses to a hammerlock, but Boone flips free, then trips him up with a drop toehold. He keeps working the arm until Bravo elbows free and chops the back of his neck. Dino follows with a clothesline and then puts the boots to him. Piledriver by Bravo and he could probably finish, but instead he tosses Boone to the floor and Johnny V stomps away before tossing Boone back in. Floor looks a lot cleaner this month, by the way.

-Bearhug by Dino is broken by a lethal hand-clapping. Side suplex by Bravo could finish, but he gets greedy again and misses an elbow. Boone starts throwing kicks and knees. Series of punches and chops, followed by an Irish whip, but Boone misses a charge. Dino hits a side suplex, and, having learned his lesson, he goes for the pin immediately to finish. 1 for 1. If nothing else, we saw which of these guys SHOULD have been pushed.

YOUNG STALLIONS vs. BOLSHEVIKS
-Volkoff is wearing black tights tonight, which is another one of those things to file under “You know you shouldn’t care, but it’s different so it’s distracting you.”

-Bolsheviks attack before the bell, but they clear Zhukov out of the ring quickly and double-team Volkoff until he goes outside. Stall session follows until we finally settle on Zhukov & Roma to start properly. Shoulderblock by Roma, followed by a hiptoss. Bodyslam by Roma, then a side headlock. Powers comes in to apply his own side headlock, which would require enough cooperation from Boris that it annoys me to think about it. Powers hits a bodypress out of nowhere for two, then goes back to a side headlock. Roma hits an axehandle and clamps on his form of the side headlock again. Powers clotheslines Zhokov down for two. Back to the side headlock, and Roma cheers him on by telling him to “Crank it up, Jim!” Do you see what he did there?

-Bolsheviks get desperate and try some double-teaming, but Zhukov takes a boot to the gut and Volkoff gets caught in a side headlock. Powers sends him into the ropes and drop toeholds him in position for an elbow from Roma. And back to the side headlock. Volkoff sends him into the ropes and Zhukov catches him with a knee to the back. Volkoff goes to work from there with forearms and stomps to the back. Knee to the gut, and then Volkoff Irish whips Roma and catches him on the rebound with a bearhug. Clap your hands, Paul, for the love of god! Clap your hands!!!!

-And GUESS how Paul winds up breaking the hold. You’re welcome, Paul. Volkoff goes for a body vice, but Roma slides free and goes for a sunset flip. Volkoff punches him and sends him into Zhukov’s boot. Zhukov tags in and chokes Roma over the top rope, and Volkoff does the same for good measure. Zhukov continues choking away and smacks him with another big boot for two. Zhukov tries his own bearhug, our fourth overall for tonight’s card. Volkoff sees Roma start to revive, so he yanks him over to the evil Russian corner and they beat on him until Volkoff goes for the pin and gets a three-count that we have to ignore so the match can continue.

-The crowd starts to show signs of fatigue as Volkoff connects with the press backbreaker. Powers breaks the attempted pinfall that time, and Volkoff tries again with a kneedrop. Roma rolls out of the way, and a double shoulderblock wipes out both men. Double tags are made and Powers is a house of fire. Bolsheviks collide and Powers drops Zhukov with a backdrop. Donnybrook erupts and the opposite of a pretty common spot takes place as the Russians Irish whip the Stallions into each other. Roma is wiped out completely and Zhukov KOs Powers with a hard clothesline to get the pin. 1 for 2. Blah match.

BAM-BAM BIGELOW (with Oliver Humperdink) vs. KILLER KHAN (with Mr. Fuji)
-One’s on his way up the ladder and one’s on his way down. They were destined to bump into each other on their respective journeys. Camera actually focuses in on a pro-Khan sign, with an impressive drawing of him along with the message “We want SPEW!”

-Bigelow backs Khan into the corner and breaks cleanly. Khan returns the favor, but takes a cheap shot at Bigelow and capitalizes as Graham suggests that Khan doesn’t understand “Crean break.” Yes, he actually says this.

-We get a staredown and they trade slaps, which the crowd pops for like they’re watching the tail end of Steamboat-Flair. Bam-Bam atomic drops Khan out of the ring and does a cartwheel to celebrate. Khan stalls for a moment, then comes in and offers a friendly handshake. Bam-Bam refuses, so Khan just beats Bam-Bam down and chokes him on the bottom rope. Fuji goes to work with the cane, and Oliver makes his way over there to put Fuji in his place. And that’s all he does. Just threatens Fuji. I get that he’s a face, but why didn’t the WWF face managers ever get involved? Arnold Skaaland, Captain Lou Albano in his later years, Oliver Humperdink, Superstar Billy Graham…They would never DO anything, even when handed an opening like that to do so. Humperdink should have been beating Fuji into the floor for doing that. Or at least interfering himself in the match later on to say “Two can play that game!”

-Back in the ring, Khan goes after the throat with chops and a big legdrop for two. As Dick & Craig note, it only got two because he hasn’t mastered it like the Hulkster, who has the legdrop down to a science.

-Khan Irish whips Bigelow, but Bigelow meets him with a clothesline and a forearm for two. Bodyslam and a diving headbutt get another two. Irish whip by Bigelow and now Khan counters the charge with double chops. Mist missed, and Bam-Bam hits a dropkick and goes in for the kill with a big splash to get the three-count. 2 for 3. Not great, but good.

TAG TEAM TITLE: STRIKE FORCE (Champions) vs. ISLANDERS
-Strike Force has just won the belts and being the erstwhile fighting team that they are, they are going to go ahead and put the title on the line for this match, already signed. By the way, when you ride someone’s ass about screwing up something, it’s only fair to acknowledge when it’s corrected; the Spectrum is doing a MUCH better job with the entrance music tonight. Also, just to get Gorilla Monsoon to shut up about it for a while, this match will have two referees.

-Slugfest erupts right away between Tito & Haku. Tito hits a Thesz press for a quick two-count, then takes a free shot at Tama. Side headlock by Tito and Haku sends him into the ropes. Shoulderblock gets nothing. Haku tries for a headbutt and misses. Martel comes in and does a hot-tag caliber ass-kicking on Haku until a backdrop is countered and Haku goes to work with forearms. Martel dodges a bodypress. Haku goes to the eyes and Tama tags in, but Martel sweeps his leg and Tito steps in to apply a side headlock. Tito gets distracted by Haku and that allows Tama to attack from behind. Referee deals with Martel’s complaining while the Islanders stomp double-mudholes into Tito. Tama bites him and headbutts him down. Front facelock as Dick Graham notes that the fans seem to be telling the Islanders that they’re #1.

-Haku sends Tito into the turnbuckle and chokes him. Islanders are putting on a clinic of distracting the referee for free shots, and now the commentators are complaining that the two referees aren’t doing much better than one. Front facelock by Haku and we get the same spot that the Bolsheviks did earlier in the night, bringing Tito into the Islanders corner. Haku accidentally thrust-kicks his partner and Tito is able to make the hot tag. Martel is all over Haku with a backdrop and bodyslam. He slingshots Haku into Tama. Tito comes in with a flying forearm, but Tama breaks the tag and we have a free-for-all. The second referee gets fed up and comes inside the ring. Both referees get shoved on their asses, and both call for the bell, which I guess would make this a double-double-disqualification. 3 for 4. These guys had outstanding chemistry.

-Craig DeGeorge notes that there are rumors abounding about some sort of injury that may affect the scheduled Brutus Beefcake-Ted DiBiase match. Dick Graham is looking forward to the Intercontinental Title bout, saying that he talked to Honky earlier and he’s ready for anything. A fan holds up a sign reading “Kick him in the groin, Elizabeth!”

-So indeed, Ted DiBiase arrives in the arena on crutches and says that Brutus Beefcake is still going to be embarrassed and humiliated tonight. Just not by him.

BRUTUS “The Barber” BEEFCAKE vs. VIRGIL (with Ted DiBiase)
-As a special extra stipulation, the first commentator to say, “Well, Virgil doesn’t have to worry about getting a haircut from Brutus Beefcake!” will be fired.

-Beefcake turns his back to taunt DiBiase and pays for it. Virgil attacks from behind and chokes him out. Referee reprimands him and DiBiase takes advantage by choking Brutus with his crutch. That works so well that he throws in a few quick punches. Virgil elbows Beefcake down and follows with a “forearm using a fist.” He goes to the top rope but gets caught on the way down with a shot to the gut. Big boot by Beefcake, then he makes a wish. Three atomic drops by Beefcake, and then just to be a dick, he lays into Virgil with a series of fists. Virgil tries to reverse a clothesline, but Beefcake just meets him with a high knee to win. 3 for 5. And Dick Graham is fired.

-Post-match, Beefcake settles for spraypainting Virgil, but DiBiase attacks with his crutch and Beefcake is laid out.

BILLY JACK HAYNES & KEN PATERA vs. DEMOLITION (with Mr. Fuji)
-I somehow don’t anticipate a decisive finish for this one. Demolition attacks during the entrance, but wind up Irish whipped into each other with some pretty impressive impact. Haynes wails on Smash and Patera tags in and takes him out with his weasel whacker. Atomic drop by Patera. Smash reverses a whip but misses a charge and Patera gets a two-count. Bodyslam by Patera and Haynes comes back in to continue the beating. Fuji hooks the leg from the outside and Smash capitalizes with a forearm. Ax comes in and axes Haynes. Smash comes back in and puts the boots to him, and now Demolition gets around to double-teaming for a few moments. Ax & Smash trade off choking Haynes, causing the referee to “get his Irish up.”

-Neck vice by Ax. Demolition double-teams again and Haynes starts to get in some offense, but Smash trips him up so Ax can attack. Elbowdrop misses, and Patera tags in and kicks and punches away. Backbreaker and a series of stomps. Ax blocks a charge with a boot at Smash stomps away to capitalize. He finally does the obvious thing and works the arm. Haynes complains and Demolition capitalizes by double-teaming. Ax tries to pull the cast off. Smash tries his luck, then Ax takes another crack at it. Patera hits a fluke clothesline and makes the tag and now Haynes cleans house, battling both Demos, including “Crash.” Full nelson is clamped on. Ax tries to break it, so Patera comes in to take care of him, and Fuji sneaks in with the cane to KO Haynes, and Demolition picks up the win. Patera tries to avenge the loss post-match, Demolition attacks, and Patera & Haynes clear the ring. 4 for 6. Pretty enjoyable see-sawing.

IVAN PUTSKI vs. GREG “The Hammer” VALENTINE (with Johnny V)
-Valentine practices throwing punches before the bell, so as soon as the match start, Putski runs right over and starts throwing a flurry of punches and no-sells everything Greg throws at him. That’s a really neat spot to start. A “faggot” chant inexplicably starts. They try a test of strength and obviously Putski wins. He clamps on a side headlock and won’t let go. And he continues to not let go.

-Valentine takes the hint from the crowd and back suplexes free. Putski recovers quickly and faceplants him. Valentine starts to throw chops, and that works for a while. Putski throws punches and rams Valentine into the turnbuckle. Chinlock by Putski, and he switches into a side headlock and hits a series of hard punches on the top of Valentine’s head. Valentine retreats before attacking on the apron, using the top rope for a little help. Back inside, Valentine hits a series of forearms. Falling elbow gets two. They trade punches. Polish hammer sends Valentine out of the ring, but Valentine hooks Putski’s leg and bangs the Pole against the pole to injure him. Valentine comes back in and works over the leg a little more, and the figure four gets the submission…or not. We have a really confusing finish as Putski keeps yelling, “No! No!” The referee calls for the bell, but Putski insists that he never submitted, and he runs off Valentine with a chair. What the hell was that? 4 for 7.

INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE: HONKY TONK MAN (Champion, with Jimmy Hart) vs. RANDY “Macho Man” SAVAGE (with Elizabeth)
-Honky promises a bonus concert for the fans after he wins. Savage chases Honky out of the ring and chases him all over the floor, getting his hands on him and ramming him right into the guard rail. Elbows on the apron by Savage and Honky tries to retreat, but Savage follows him and attacks again. Honky attacks him on the way back inside. Savage tries for a backdrop, Honky tries to make it a sunset flip, and Savage punches free. Jimmy tries to get a free shot with the megaphone, but it’s a weak shot, so Savage goes after him. Honky gets his hands on the megaphone in the meantime and catches Savage coming off the top rope. Honky puts the boots to Savage and rams him into the top turnbuckle.

-Savage starts coming to life with punches, but misses a charge. Honky drops an elbow for two. He ties Savage’s arms in the ropes and stomps away. Savage gets free, but Honky continues the assault, then takes a time-out to go after Elizabeth. Seeing Elizabeth in danger is like spinach for Savage and he immediately beats the hell out of Honky until he starts pleading for mercy. Jimmy Hart tries to interfere, but winds up getting knocked off the apron by Honky. Savage comes off the top rope with the axehandle. Double shoulderblock knocks out both men and Honky crashes on the mat, while Savage falls out of the ring. Jimmy Hart tries to stop him from going back inside, but Savage threatens to kick his ass. Honky recovers and goes after Savage, and in the melee, Savage gets his hands on the megaphone and hits Honky with it. In fact, he hits Honky so hard that it knocks him back into the ring. Honky retains, but Savage steals the belt and chases him off. 5 for 8. Weaker than their SNME effort, but they worked well together, it was a good brawl, and best of all, you BELIEVED it. These guys really did a good job conveying mutual hatred here.

-That's the end of the show. We'll see you at the Survivor Series, and here's Game Show Utopia.

The 411: Good night of action, with some true feuds being spotlighted instead of just random pairings of stars. No truly bad undercard matches, but no surprises either. The good-looking stuff looks good, and the weak-looking stuff looks weak. Worth a look.

Final Score:  6.3   [ Average ]