411 Video Review: Starrcade '87
Posted by Brian Cole on 11.01.2001
And you thought I only did the International Report :)
Welcome wrestling fans, this is Brian Cole, and welcome to my first installation of the WrestlinGod Video Rebiew. In this issue I will recap the NWA's very first PPV, Starrcade '87 "Glory Bound". The PPV however drew very low ratings because Vince McMahon decided to run against them and created the Survivor Series, which left cable companies deciding which event to air on their systems. As you all know, it's needless to say who won this battle. Starrcade took place on Thanks Giving Night 11/26/87 live from the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Ill., in front of a crowd of around 8,000 drawing $180,000 at the gate. Thanks to the WWF's Survivor Series Starrcade only drew a 3.3 on PPV ratings and only drew in around $820,000 on the Closed Circuit market.
We open the show with Jim Ross & Tony Schiavone and they quickly send us to ringside.
- MATCH #1 - Sting, Jimmy Garvin & Michael Hayes vs. Eddie Gilbert, Rick Steiner & Larry Zbyszko
Let me try to shed some light on the reasoning behind this match. Jim Crockett had recently purchased 5 out of 6 men in this match from the Bill Watts UWF Promotion. There was no necessary reason for anyone more than Sting & Gilbert to be in this match other than to get a lot of fresh faces noticed. Sting had recently left Eddie Gilbert's stable, leaving only Hot Stuff & Rick Steiner to fend for themselves. This didn't sit well with Hot Stuff International and they decided, what the hell, lets get Larry Zbyszko and have a 6-man tag at Starrcade against Sting and 2 people of his choice. Sting in return, chose fellow UWF member Michael Hayes and Jimmy Garvin of the NWA for the hell of it. This match is so important they give it a whole 15-minute time limit. Te bell sounda and Steiner attacks Sting from behind with a clothesline. Steiner takes a dive at Sting but Sting moves and Rick falls to the outside. Sting with a plancha on Steiner to the outside and throws him back in & delivers a dropkick. This brings in Hayes & Garvin who also hit dropkicks on Gilbert & Zbyszko and then throw the 3 heels into each other sending all 3 of them to the outside while the faces celebrate in the ring. Steiner re-enters the ring yet again and ties up with the Stinger. Sting with an arm wringer and tags in Hayes. P.S. comes in and continues the arm wringer. Hayes tags out to Garvin who whips Steiner off the ropes and into a backdrop. Wow that's one more bump than Steiner would take today. Steiner backs into his corner & tags in the Living Legend, and the two guys with the least reason to be in this match tie up. The two begin with a tie up and Zbyszko sends Garvin off the ropes and attempts a backdrop. Garvin declines the invitation for the move and kicks Larry square in the face and makes the tag out to Hayes. Hayes in with a back elbow on Larry and Zbyszko tags in Hot Stuff. Hayes with a side headlock on Eddie but Gilbert sends Hayes off the ropes. Eddie attempts a clothesline but Hayes holds onto the ropes and no ones home. Gilbert tries a right hand but P.S. blocks it and hits one of his own knocking Gilbert into the wrong corner. Eddie attempts to tag before realizing he's in the opponents corner. Sting pops Hot Stuff who then has a chance to tag out but doesn't. Hayes grabs Eddie and tags in Sting and here we go. Sting now off the middle rope with an elbow to Gilbert's arm. Sting with an arm wringer on Eddie but Hot Stuff shoots Sting off the ropes. Sting leap frogs over Eddie and returns with a botched clothesline of sorts but Eddie sells it anyway. Sting back to the arm wringer but Gilbert fights his way out & slams Sting to the mat. Rick Steiner is tagged in but runs right into an armdrag by Sting and into an armbar. Garvin is tagged in & Steiner goes for a backdrop but the Gorgeous one turns it into a sunset flip for a 2 count. A tie up and Steiner brings Garvin into the heel corner. Larry is tagged back in and hits a karate kick to Jimmy's mid section and a powerslam for a 2 count. Gilbert is tagged in and hits Garvin with an atomic drop and then begins putting the boots to Jimmy Jam. Hot Stuff with a back breaker for another 2 count before Garvin gets his foot on the ropes. Eddie slams Garvin but misses with an elbow. Gilbert tags back in Steiner who cuts Jimmy off from making a tag of his own. Steiner hits a beautiful powerslam and nearly gets the win. Rick now with a bearhug on Garvin& backs Garvin into the corner. Steiner now with an Irish whip & follows in with a clothesline but no ones home. Zbyszko is quickly tagged in and goes right into the abdominal stretch on Jimmy. Garvin slips out of the hold with a hiptoss and finally makes a tag out to Sting. Sting comes in fresh and wipes the mat with all 3 men for a moment before Zbyszko catches Sting off guard. Gilbert is tagged in and now works over his former protégé. Eddie sends Sting over the top rope to the concrete but for some reason isn't DQ'd. Gilbert now with a suplex for a 2 count followed by a knee drop. Gilbert tags in Larry who tries for a suplex of his own but Sting reverses. Larry gets the tag back in to Rick Steiner. Steiner comes in and puts Sting right into the sleeper hold. Sting counters real quick with a jawbreaker onto the Dog Faced Gremlin. Zbyszko gets tagged back in and tries for an Irish whip but Sting reverses it and Larry goes chest first into the corner. Larry tags in Hot Stuff and with 2 minutes to go in the match Sting makes the hot tag to Michael Hayes. Hayes with an Irish whip and a backdrop on Eddie and now all 6 men are in the ring. Isn't it amazing how quick a wrestler can regain his momentum after he makes a tag out such as Sting just proved? We got 3 versions of the 10 punch in the corner going on. Hayes hits a bulldog on Zbyszko and thinks he gets the win but the ref points out Larry's foot was on the ropes. Michael with a sleeper now on Larry but the ref is distracted with getting the wrestlers out of the ring which enables Eddie to drop an elbow on the back of Hayes head. Larry tags in Rick with 25 seconds to go. Rick applies a bear hug and into a belly-to-belly suplex on Hayes. Rick tags back in Hot Stuff who sends Hayes off the ropes. Hayes with an inside cradle for a 2 with 15 seconds to go. Gilbert shoots Hayes off again and Hayes now with a sunset flip and gets the 1…2…and no…the time limit has expired. In my honest opinion the ref is buyist as he could've counted the complete 3 but stop counting a second before the bell sounded. Sting hits Steiner with a Stinger splash after the match for good measure. The result of this match is a Time Limit Draw. (Rating: **, No story is being told but at least these guys tried and the submission holds were short)
- MATCH #2 - UWF Heavyweight Champ Steve Williams vs. Barry Windham
To my knowledge this was the last time the UWF Title was defended before being dropped. Let me attempt to explain why this match is taking place. Williams was another star purchased in the UWF buy by Crockett so they had to get his name out there. He defends his UWF title against Barry Windham, a fellow baby face, for some odd reason. There's no heat going into this match and no heels either but I guess they figured instead of giving both these guys decent matches, lets give Dusty Rhodes & Lex Luger more air time on the show and bury Windham. Did I just say "Bury Windham"? Ahh, never mind. The two begin with a crisscross and Williams stops that with a hip toss followed by a giant press slam on Barry. Barry slides behind Dr. Death during the press slam attempts and rolls Steve up for a quick 2 count and both men are back to vertical base. Williams now with a waste lock but Barry reverses it and takes Steve down. Steve sits out and pops Barry over onto his back and the two men get back to their feet again. Steve looks to be going for a fireman's carry but Barry mis-communicates the spot and goes for a sloppy version of an armdrag and armbar. Barry really blew that spot. I changed my mind, bury Barry. Both men roll to the outside before Barry breaks the hold and I'm sensing a little tension as the two stare each other down. Windham with a side headlock and takes Steve over and then a gut wrench suplex. Williams gets back up and applies a side headlock of his own but Barry counters with a weak back suplex but Williams holds onto the headlock and even the NWA crowd is chanting "BORING". Williams shoots Barry off the ropes and I assume is going for a rollup but here comes more big time mis-communication. I'm telling you someone who never watched wrestling much less a mark could see these blown spots. Windham just slides around the roll up and continues to hit the ropes to attempt the spot again. Williams goes for a leapfrog but gets head butt in the nuts by Windham accidentally. To this day I assume this was part of the finish but then again Windham was so lost and confused as to what was going on in the ring, who knows. Steve sells the ball shot and Barry allows Dr. Death to regroup. Windham with a headlock take over and Williams gets out. Williams with a shoulder block sends Dr. Death down and attempts a flying body press but Steve moves and the momentum carries Barry over the top rope to the concrete. I'm waiting for a heel turn but I get nothing more than a staggering Windham re-entering the ring & put straight into an Oklahoma roll for the win. Your winner and still UWF Heavyweight Champ, Steve Williams. (Rating: So much confusion and lack of spots gives this a ¼* at best)
- MATCH #3 - Rock 'n' Roll Express vs. Midnight Express (Scaffold Match)
Out first we see the U.S. Tag Champs, Stan and Bobby the Midnight Express with manager Jim Cornette and bodyguard Big Bubba "Boss Man" Rogers. And now, here come the Rock 'n' Rolls and we're ready to go. The point of this match is the Rock 'n' Rolls and the Midnight just hate each other, good enough for you? The Midnights climb to the top of the scaffold as does Gibson. For some reason Ricky Morton decides to stay in the ring where Big Bubba conveniently attacks him and gives him the Bubba Spike/Boss Man Slam. The Midnights begin to double team the cross eyed Gibson smashing him face first into the scaffold. Oh, by the way the point of this match is to knock your opponents off the scaffolding. Morton at this point grabs Cornette's tennis racket and beats Bubba with it. After Rogers leaves the ring, Morton climbs the ladder to join the match. Morton works over the Midnight with the racket and calls to the crowd, who pop big time. This match must've been made for the people in the cheap seats. All 4 men are crawling around and presumably blading. Eaton throws salt/powder into the eyes of both Rock 'n' Rollers. Lane pounds on Gibson while Eaton nearly knocks Morton off the scaffold. Eaton goes to hit Gibson but Robert ducks and Eaton's supposed to hit Lane at this point but everyone is so scared of falling they all tremble slowly to the scaffold floor. Morton nails Eaton with the racket but Eaton fires back with the old rake to the eyes. Gibson continues to choke Lane on the Scaffold banister. Lane turns it around and tries to pitch Gibson onto the concrete while Eaton grabs the racket and goes to work on Ricky. A bloody Gibson & Morton double team Lane who is hanging off the ladder. Eaton hits Gibson from behind with the racket and Lane is still hanging now from the bottom of the scaffold. Robert & Eaton trade blows until Gibson gets the racket. Ricky & Lane are fighting on the ladder and Gibson has Eaton wobbling on the top of the steel structure. Lane uses the scaffold bottom as monkey bars but Morton catches up with him and sends Stan to the mat below. Eaton retreats from Gibson but Robert pitches Ricky the racket who uses it on Bobby. The Rock 'n' Roll's double team Eaton until Bobby's hanging below the scaffold. They beat on Bobby's arms until he drops and the match is over. Bubba climbs up to go after Morton but Ricky gives Rogers a nut check and scurries down the ladder, what a hero. The winners of the match are the Rock 'n' Roll Express. (Rating: **, considering it was on a scaffold these guys did the best they could)
- We go back stage with Bob Caudle who interviews Jimmy Garvin for some reason. Garvin is with Precious & Michael Hayes by the way. Jimmy said he didn't win, but he didn't lose either. Hayes looks weird playing baby face & Garvin seems uncomfortable.
- Steve Williams now enters the interview area and talks about his great match with Windham, poor fool is delirious. Dr. Death puts over the Sooners and Windham and heads for the showers or the bar or something.
- MATCH #4 - NWA TV Champ Nikita Koloff vs. UWF TV Champ Terry Taylor
This is a match to unify both TV belts. One again no story line but at least there's a reason for this match. The two men tie up and Koloff backs Taylor into the corner for a clean break. They lock up again and Terry with an armdrag but Nikita pops right back up to his feet. Taylor with a side headlock and is pushed off the ropes and runs into Koloff's massive shoulder. Another tie up and Taylor breaks clean. Taylor goes over and has a word with corner man Eddie Gilbert and comes right back in with yet another tie up. Terry with a wristlock on Nikita but Koloff is no selling. Koloff reverses the hold and take Terry to the mat and into an armbar. Terry goes into the ropes for a break but Koloff pulls him back in and continues the armbar. Excuse me ref, I know you're Earl Hebner and all but aren't you suppose to break the hold now. Taylor gets out of the hold and gives Nikita a turnbuckle smash but Koloff blocks and hits Terry with one. Taylor does a Rooster strut and is whipped hard into the corner. Taylor fires back with a fist but Koloff no sells and re-applies the wristlock and takes it down into a hammerlock. Nikita eventually rolls it over into a pin for a 2 count. Taylor regroups on the outside with Gilbert then returns to the ring where he gets slapped. The two trade blows but Nikita no sells everyone and just pummels Terry. Koloff hits a backdrop and gets a 2 count. Terry rolls back to the floor and talks with Hot Stuff. Koloff drags Terry back in and whips him into the far corner. Koloff charges in and catches Taylor's knee. Taylor goes for a pin with his feet on the ropes but Koloff still manages to kick out. Koloff goes right back into the hammerlock on Taylor to keep him grounded but what's the point when you no sell everything anyway. Nikita shoots over into a half nelson but Taylor grabs the ropes. Terry gives Nikita a few jabs in the corner and a snap mare before Nikita moves from Taylor's elbow drop and re-applies the armbar. Terry works his way up and out again n head butts Taylor. Koloff eventually no sells, knees Taylor in the gut and drops him in a choke hold. Koloff rushes in with a Sickle but no ones home and he runs into the corner. Taylor stomps Koloff to the outside and drops him across the guardrail and posts Nikita arm first. Taylor now distracts the ref and Gilbert drops Nikita's arm across the ring apron. Taylor with a snap mare and drops a knee on Nikita's arm and then to his head. Two count by Taylor and Koloff is already Hulking up. Terry fights back and bends Nikita's arm around the top rope to apply more pain to Koloff's arm. Taylor sends Koloff off the ropes but it's reversed. Koloff ducks down and Taylor tries for a sunset flip, but what happens, you guessed it…Koloff doesn't budge and nails Taylor in the forehead with a big right. Taylor comes back and goes for a suplex but, that's right, Koloff reverses it. Terry comes back again and pounds on Koloff but Nikita no sells some more and hits the 10 punch in the corner until he gets distracted by the ref and Taylor uses the leverage to hit an inverted atomic drop. Taylor gets a 2 and argues with the ref which allows Koloff to roll Terry up for a 2 count of his own. Taylor stomps away on Koloff and goes for a piledriver but…yup…Nikita reverses that too, into a backdrop. Nikita chases Terry around ringside and back into the ring where he gets caught with a knee lift. Gilbert adds insult to injury hitting Nikita from behind. Taylor slaps on the Figure 4 and gets a little assistance from Hot Stuff in the process. The hold is broke after the ref sees the extra help. Terry begins to argue with the ref and Hot Stuff grabs Koloff. Taylor charges in and Nikita moves. Terry knocks Eddie off the apron and Nikita hits Taylor with the Russian Sickle clothesline for the win. Your winner of the match and new UWF & still NWA TV Champ, Nikita Koloff. Silly fools, didn't they know Nikita was stronger than Taylor, Gilbert, a guardrail & a ring post combined? (Rating: *½, Nikita used far to many rest holds to hide the fact that he can't work, should've just let Taylor work him over but that would ruin his Road Warrior/Goldberg like character.)
- An interview with Jack Gregory (whoever that is) and Magnum T.A. First, let me state I have no hatred for Magnum but he billed the Koloff/Taylor match as the most hard fought match he's ever seen. Hard to watch I can by but hard fought, common. Secondly, Jack Gregory says the Road Warriors are facing Arn & Tully Anderson. I don't know who this guy is but thank God I never heard of him again.
- MATCH #5 -Tag Champs Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard vs. Road Warriors
Here's the skinny, Arn & Tully are the champs the LOD are the #1 contenders, simple enough. Arn & Tully enter with manager J.J. Dillon followed by the Road Warriors w/their manager Paul Ellering. Hawk starts off right away grabbing Arm by the throat. Arn knees Hawk in the gut and attempts to whip him off the ropes but Hawk reverses. Hawk charges in but catches a knee. Arn climbs to the top rope but Hawk presses him off. A tie up now and Arn with a side headlock but Hawk powers out into a top wrist lock and drops the leg on the arm of Arn. They tease a manager fight on the outside and Arn tags in Tully. Tie up and Hawk powers Tully to the mat. Tully charges back in and gets caught with a clothesline. Blanchard rolls to the outside but is met by Animal who presses Tully back through the ropes into the ring. Tully again rolls out and teases leaving the ringside area. Hawk grabs Tully and sends him back into the ring where Hawk delivers a dropkick for a 2 count. Animal gets tagged in & throws Tully into the corner. Animal charges in but catches Tully's knee. There must be something about no sellers and running into knees. Tully climbs to the top and leaps off with a cross body but Animal catches him and powerslams him to the mat for a 2 count. Tully tags Arn back in and Animal sends Arn into the corner. Arn jumps up into the air and allows Animal to run underneath and into the corner. However, Animal turns around and catches Arn with a clothesline. Tully runs in and he too gets hit with a clothesline, which doesn't make the camera. Hawk is tagged back in & puts Arn in a bear hug but Tully knees Hawk in the back to break the hold. Arn & Tully double Irish whip Hawk across the ring but Hawk comes bouncing out with a double clothesline on the Horsemen. These guys are getting less offense than Taylor did against Nikita. Tully is now seemingly the legal man & Hawk tags Animal back in. Hawk presses Tully into Animal's bear hug. Animal eventually turns the bear hug into an inverted atomic drop. Animal drops Tully with several right hands and a dropkick. Arn is tagged back in and goes for the piledriver but Animal reverses it into a backdrop. Another press slam by Animal, ok we get the point, you guys are roid monsters. Hawk is tagged in as well as Tully. Hawk goes for, you guessed it, a press slam, but Arn trips up Hawk and injures his knee. Arn & Tully begin working on Hawk's leg and wrap it around the post, the duo even use a chair on it. Arn hits his infamous DDT and gets a 2 count before Hawk presses him off like nothing. Tully goes for a Figure 4 leg lock but tries to turn it into an inside cradle but it sucks so Tully goes right back to the knee. Arn is tagged back in and goes for the spinning toehold but is kicked off into the corner. Tully comes back in and this time gets the figure 4 on Hawk. Back in comes Arn who decides for no reason to work on Hawk's upper body now. Eventually Arn catches Hawk's knees in the crotch area and Animal is tagged in. Animal with a dropkick on Arn and an elbow on Tully. Tully goes to the outside and trips up Animal. Youch ! Referee Tommy Young takes one of the nastiest bumps I've ever seen to the outside, now there's a reason to sell a ref bump. All 4 men are in the ring & Animal backdrops Arn over the top rope (remember that spot). LOD double clothesline Tully out of the ring & hit Arn with the Dooms Day Device from the top. A second referee comes in and makes the count, and the Warriors win the gold, or do they. Moments later Tommy Young re-enters the ring from the bump he took and exclaims he saw Animal backdrop Arn over the top rope, which is a DQ in the NWA, and reverses the decision. The winners and still champs via DQ, Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard. (Rating: **½ , better than Nikita's match thanks to Arn & Tully, crowd participation helped as well)
- Ahhhh ! It's that Jack Gregory guy again with Magnum T.A.
- Nikita Koloff talks about winning his match, I think. His fake accent is worse than Nikolai Volkoff's real one.
- J.J. Dillon talks about the Horsemen and their upcoming matches.
- MATCH #6 - U.S. Heavyweight Champ Lex Luger vs. Dusty Rhodes (Steel Cage)
With those horrid interviews out of the way here comes a horrid match. Let me try to explain what's going on here. Tully Blanchard attacked handicapped Magnum T.A., which in turn enraged Dusty on tv. Dusty attacked Tully with a bat and beat the living shit out of him. Dusty was suspended for a few months where he did that awful Midnight Rider routine which eventually led to Dusty's return, which is this. Luger & Dillon enter the cage and await the Dream's arrival. Here comes Dusty Rhodes and now reality is sitting in that I have to watch this entire match. The cage door is closed & locked & here we go. They lock up and Luger pushes Rhodes back into the corner. Luger charges Rhodes and tries to throw him face first into the cage but Dusty blocks and hit Luger with a bionic elbow which barely phases another no selling asshole that knows few moves if any. Luger forces Dusty into the corner again and nails Rhodes with a right. Dusty comes back dancing around the ring throwing some left jabs and the big elbow again, this time Lex sells and falls to the mat. Dusty ducks a Luger clothesline and atomic drops Lex. Luger with a side headlock and Dusty shoots him off. Luger shoulder blocks Dusty to the mat but Rhodes catches Luger in a sleeper but Lex gets to the ropes quickly. Luger snap mares Rhodes but misses an elbow drop and Dusty goes right into an armbar on Lex. A VERY LONG ARMBAR. Lex finally backs Dusty into the corner for the break. Luger charges in but misses and Dusty re-applies the armbar and turns it into a hammerlock before he lets go. Dusty begins to work on Lex in the corner but as the ref stops Dusty, Luger nails Rhodes between the legs. Lex stomps on Dusty and sends him into the cage. Lex then rakes the face of Rhodes into the cage and gets a 2 count. At this point Dusty is bleeding. Luger with another snap mare and hits his big elbow drop this time for a 2 count. Luger goes to send Dusty off the ropes but Rhodes reverses and hits somewhat of a dropkick. Lex comes back with a big back breaker and attempts a torcher rack but Dusty is just too fat. Luger chokes Dusty across the top rope and gets a 2 count. Luger, now out of moves, applies an armbar. Another very looooong armbar. Dusty finally gets up, has a nasty word for Luger, and begins no selling Luger's offense. Dusty catches a second win and again goes with those left jabs before head butting Lex to the mat. Dusty hits his god awful version of the DDT and get a 2 count. Lex gets up and charges in with a clothesline but Dusty ducks and applies the sleeper hold. The ref takes a quick bump and Dillon knocks out Johnny Weaver (the key keeper) on the outside. Dillon throws a chair in but Luger gets up to slowly and Dusty hits another horrible DDT on Lex onto the chair for the pin. The winner & new U.S. Heavyweight Champ The Booker…I mean Dusty Rhodes. (Rating: *1/2, ok for a Rhodes/Luger match)
- MATCH #7 - NWA Heavyweight Champ Ron Garvin vs. Ric Flair (Steel Cage)
The challenger makes his was inside the cage decked out in a sequenced robe that probably cost a few thousand dollars. Next out, id the champion, who is decked out in a red towel around his neck which he probably stole from the hotel he was staying at. The story here is quite simple. Flair wanted to lose the belt at the Bash and regain it back at Starrcade. No other baby faces wanted to be a joke champion but Ron Garvin figured anything's better than being Miss Atlanta Lively. Anyway, Rugged Ron won the belt and it was time to do the job back to Flair. The bell sounds and the two lock up. Ron forces Flair back into the corner and gives a clean break. Flair woo's and the crowd woo's back. The two lock up again and Flair backs Ron into the corner and delivers some hard chops. Garvin gets pissed and spins Flair around and throws several chops himself and hip tosses Flair out of the corner. A "Garvin Sucks" chant begins at this point. Oh, I forgot to mention Garvin is the baby face but the crowd hates him so they pop for the heel Flair. Rugged Ron shoulder blocks Flair to the mat and then chops him a little more before Flair does his flop fall. Garvin gives Flair a big backdrop and a leaping head butt. Garvin now with an armbar on Ric and backs him into the corner for the 10 punch. Ron hits another backdrop and quickly goes for the Garvin Stomp (one of the most horrible "moves" in wrestling history). Flair get back up and the two trade blows until Flair falls. This match being no DQ Flair decides to do the best thing he could at this point, a low blow on Garvin. Flair now hits an inverted atomic drop. Ric hits a few more of his famous chops on Ronnie and snap mares him out of the corner. Flair delivers his patented knee drop for a two. Flair starts working on Garvin's leg and goes into the Figure 4 early on to the crowds delight. Unfortunately, Garvin eventually turns it over and Flair breaks the hold. The Nature Boy begins stomping away on Garvin and attempted to send Ron into the cage but Garvin blocks it twice and throws Flair into the cage and begins raking his face on the steel mesh. Garvin sends Ric into the cage yet again Flair has bladed at this point. Flair attempts to leave the cage but both men begin to fight while on the top rope. Flair bumps back into the ring but gets back up pretty quickly. Flair climbs to the top for a cross body but Garvin presses him off and puts the figure 4 on floor and the crowd is pissed. Ron breaks the hold and continues to work on Ric's leg & then sends Flair into the cage. Garvin hits a top rope body block for a 2 count. Garvin goes off the ropes and Flair attempts a hip toss but Rugged Ron counters it with a backslide. If Garvin was Kerry Von Erich this would've been over, but he's not so he only gets a 2 count. Ron rakes Ric's face across the cage yet again and chops away on him. The two climb the ropes and are fighting on the top rope again and Flair crotches himself across the top rope. Garvin goes for his sunset flip off the top that he won the title with but Flair holds on to the ropes and goes for a cover himself. The ref counts to 2 and forces Ric's hands off the ropes which allows Garvin to pull Flair on over with the sunset flip for a 2 count himself. Flair sends Garvin into the ref just as Garvin nails the big right hand of stone. Not sure why the ref took the bump because he didn't sell. Young gets right up and counts the 2 before Flair can kick out. Garvin goes for a Thesz press but Flair catches him and sends Ron head first into the cage before covering for the win. The winner and 5 time Heavyweight Champion, Ric Flair. (Rating: **, mainly thanks to Flair)
- SUMMARY: Although few of the matches have any back-stories to support the reasoning for the matches even happening, it's a solid card for the most part. The Williams/Windham match was horrid but everyone has an off night. The scaffold match was the best one I've seen to date, and the steel cage added to matches where certain wrestlers lacked in wrestling skill. Even though several of the workers on the show refused to sell I still give this PPV a decent rating.
Match of the Night: Arn & Tully vs. The Road Warriors
Overall Rating: **
- RECCOMENDATION: It's not my favorite PPV nor even my favorite Starrcade but it does include one of Flair's early title wins and a pretty good Scaffold match. Worth the buy of a simple $15 at WrestlinGods.com. This live version of the PPV is rare since Survivor Series was shown on most cable companies and the VQ is rated as VG.
That's it for my first video review here on 411wrestling and I hope to be back soon with another recap just as soon as I get the word. This is Brian Cole saying I'll see ya later.
