The Furious Flashbacks – CHV The British Bulldogs

The Furious Flashbacks – CHV The British Bulldogs

Davey & Dynamite rock 1986 like the proverbial hurricane

This was another of my recent EBay acquisitions. I’ve always been a big fan of the Bulldogs. Being English that’s probably not a shock. So I decided to pick this up to see what kind of commercial work the WWF did with them when they had a top class tag team division. Normally I don’t bother with Coliseum Home Video so this could well be the first review I’ve ever done of a CHV. The run time on this is 90 minutes and features…Bulldogs v Bundy/Studd. Highlights from Wrestlemania 2 where the Bulldogs beat the Dream Team for the WWF tag titles. Bulldogs v Moondogs. Davey Boy Smith v Jim Neidhart and Dynamite Kid v Bret Hart. Plus the Bulldogs in training.

SHILL – There is a huge amount of shilling as the WWF attempts to make the viewer buy a bunch of Silvervision crap. I dig the wrestling scroller…

They did it to honor their gods…

They did it to honor their kings…

They did it to train their soldiers…

They did it to compete…

And they did it for fun.

Host for this tape is Scheme Gene Okerlund. He says it’s the first tag team feature tape. Okerlund often gets the shitty end of my stick because I just don’t like him very much. Interestingly enough though Okerlund didn’t debut in the wrestling business until he was 32, which is monumentally late even for an announcer. He started out with the AWA in the 1970’s before being poached by Vince McMahon in 1984. He was one of the many who took the big paycheque from WCW and moved there in 1993. He came back to the WWE in 2002 to spend 2 years hosting the occasionally entertaining Confidential program. But this tape isn’t about him. The match commentary comes from Gorilla Monsoon and Luscious Johnny V. Having said that they’re merely the lead in guys for the matches and Jesse Ventura takes over for match one.

The British Bulldogs v Iron Sheik/Nikolai Volkoff

The Bulldogs waste no time in attacking the hated duo before Volkoff could even finish singing the Soviet national anthem. That is until Sheik starts cheating and hits a clothesline for 2. Davey comes back with a roll up for 2. Volkoff in but he misses in the corner and DK comes in with an axe handle off the top into the shoulder. Sheik comes back in though and hits a gutwrench suplex for 2. Sheik, I always liked. Most people don’t. DK blocks another suplex and hits a vertical suplex. Sheik recovers quicker and pins for 2. DK sunset flips him for 2. Volkoff back in with a one armed choke lift. Piledriver gets 2. Sheik back in but the heels miscue. Hot tag to Davey who cleans house. Davey hits a running powerslam for 2. Volkoff had to save. Davey sets early on a whip and gets punted in the chest. Lots of heat on the Bulldogs here. Sheik has the Camel Clutch on and it should be over but DK makes the save. The MSG fans sure are throwing a lot of crap at the ring. Volkoff goes to slam Davey but DK missile dropkicks his partner on top for the pin at 6.41. *1/4. I would argue it was too short but they’d already exhausted the tag team formula by that point.

Dynamite Kid v Bret Hart

JIP with Bret bailing and complaining of a hair pull. Monsoon & Alfred Hayes on this one. DK catches Bret going for a dropkick and slingshots him into the buckles. WHAMMO sayeth Gorilla. Bret gets owned after that with DK making him look foolish. Awesome snap suplex from DK gets 2. Clip. BOO! Bret is working at the arm now. DK reverses around him and backdrops out of the wristlock. DK runs into a knee to the gut and Bret uses the hair to cheat. Bret drops a few elbows and adds a legdrop. Outside where DK gets slammed on the floor. Back in DK gets worked up and hits a sunset flip for 2. He’s still worn down from that slam on the floor though. Bret throws forearms but whiffs with the European uppercut. He goes for another but gets a backslide for 2. Looks like they screwed that up the first time. DK gets out of a backbreaker attempt and hits his own. Bret ties DK in the ropes and charges but Dynamite moves out of the way so Bret crashes and burns. DK hits him with a terrific clothesline and a flying headbutt. He drags Bret up hair first as a receipt for the one he took. Bret takes a huge front turnbuckle and DK kneedrops him. It’s almost as if DK is getting revenge for all of Bret’s offence. DK hits a great back suplex for 2. Bret got folded up like an accordion there. DK drops a knee off the buckles for 2. Hayes is going mental about that kickout and the crowd are psyched. They start moving at speed and DK is going so fast he trips over Bret on a step over. DK gets a waistlock but Bret runs him through the ropes. The production team manage to miss the finish but it looked like some form of roll up as DK gets the pin at 11.04. ***1/2. Could have easily gone much, much longer. They had such terrific chemistry and moved at such speed.

POST MATCH Jim Neidhart comes out here to complain about the pinfall and they give DK a kicking but Davey saves and press slams Bret. So we get…

Davey Boy Smith v Jim Neidhart

Anvil does a drop down looking for a monkey flip but Davey is quicker so he just stamps on Anvil’s face. Davey has power as well as speed and tries to shoulderblock Anvil over. He can’t but he trips Anvil up into a leg grapevine. Anvil is so pissed off he bails out of the ring. Davey has his number here and hits a dropkick. Anvil is frustrated and outclassed. Anvil resorts to cheating with a choke. He clubs away using his size to his advantage. Davey catches him with a clothesline in the corner and it’s clear by this point from their somewhat sloppy approach who the stars were on these particular teams. Although Davey got better later. Anvil manages a Snake Eyes and kneels on Davey’s neck to get the pin at 5.27. He might have had the ropes too. ½*. It made good sense for a while then just fell apart.

The British Bulldogs/Lou Albano v Greg Valentine/Brutus Beefcake/Luscious Johnny V

Tag teams with managers added match here. Valentine quickly finds himself getting hammered, no pun intended, by all the babyfaces including Albano. He even tags in to work over Valentine’s arm. Davey makes sure he’s not in there long. Valentine hits a backbreaker and Beefcake gets in. He side headlocks and punches at him. V in to kick at the fallen Davey and the heels give him a double boot in the corner. Valentine in and Davey is well isolated already as the Dream Team cuts the ring off. DK gets in and Valentine clearly wants to keep in charge as he throws a lot of forearms to cut DK off. DK then runs into a knee but connects enough with a clothesline that Valentine sells it with the Flair face bump. Valentine gets back into it quickly and hits a backbreaker for 2. Hammer goes up top but DK throws him off. Shouldn’t have gone out of his element. Beefcake tags in and forearms DK before brawling with Davey. Beefcake gets his ass kicked in the face corner while DK lies around selling. The heels pick him off and Beefcake is able to escape to take advantage of that fact. Neckbreaker gets 2. V tags in again to pound on DK some more. The Dream Team choke DK while V has the ref distracted. Valentine in and he hits a piledriver for 2. DK is taking a hellacious beating. Valentine hooks up the Figure Four and Albano runs in to save. Crowd actually boos that. V goes after Davey, which gets him pounded. Valentine gets dropkicked. Beefcake gets one too and V gets running powerslammed but Valentine is on hand to stop the pinfall. The managers brawl. Valentine gets powerslammed as well for 2. Davey sets too early on a backdrop but Hammer gets suplexed after his own is blocked. DK comes back in to headbutt Hammer and Davey comes in with a small package for 2. The ref can’t see the shoulders down and Monsoon rags on him for that. Bulldogs come in for a double shoulderblock. DK hits another one of those great snap suplexes for 2. Everyone piles in after that. Bulldogs connect with dropkicks and Beefcake gets rolled up at 12.20 even though he’s not legal. **1/4. Fun enough formula tag.

Tag titles – Dream Team (c) v British Bulldogs

From Wrestlemania 2. JIP and I’ve seen it uncut anyway. Safe to say it’s a pretty good match, miles better than anything else on the Wrestlemania 2 card. Full WM2 review is here as this is so clipped there’s less than 3 minutes. Full version is ***1/2. This isn’t.

ON LOCATION – Gene Okerlund is with Shirley Temper who owns Diamond Gym, which is where the British Bulldogs train. Ricky Steamboat also trains there. We get a look at the Bulldogs working out. Okerlund gets distracted by a girl walking past but the Bulldogs are more focused, which is why they’re the tag team champions.

Tag titles – British Bulldogs (c) v The Moondogs

Normally jobbers the Moondogs are made to be legitimate challengers by some impressive selling from the champs although there’s precious little to make look good as the Moondogs just pound away with no real aim or purpose. Good lord the Moondogs are awful. Spot does a horrific delayed sell on a clash of heads and then stops selling it again. What? Davey sells for 5 minutes before eventually there’s a hot tag, which the ref misses. Awww! Rex hits up the ropes but gets knees coming down. Now there’s another LOOOOOOONG fake out for a hot tag with Spot breaking it up. Davey hits a “crossbody” where he barely even leaves his feet and that gets 2. Davey hits a suplex and NOW there’s a hot tag. That only took 7 freakin’ minutes. DK unloads with headbutts and hits the clothesline. Up he goes and hits the diving kneedrop. Rex breaks up the cover and chucks DK over the ropes. Davey takes offence and comes in to wail on him. DK gets back in by diving off the top over the brawling Davey & Rex and hitting a crossbody on Spot for the pin at 8.14. *. Not good but at least Dynamite Kid looked awesome at the end.

Davey Boy Smith v Greg Valentine

Valentine is looking for a measure of revenge for losing at Mania. Ernie Ladd on commentary now. Alfred Hayes points out, once again, that Hammer takes a while to get warmed up. Davey swats him in the neck and works an armbar. Davey with a dropkick and Hammer begs off. Hammer goes for a kick but Davey cuts him down and hooks up the SHARPSHOOTER. That’s some time before anyone used that move, anywhere. Hammer gets into the ropes as the announcers debate the possibilities of that move as a finisher. No shit. Davey goes all British style and locks out Hammer’s legs. Hammer leans back and gets the ropes to break that up too. He bails onto the apron but Davey grabs him. They duel over a suplex and Davey wins suplexing Hammer back inside. CLIP. Hammer is now in control and he drops a knee on the sternum for 2. Headlock from Hammer but Davey back suplexes him for 2. Gorilla rags on Davey for weak covers but he’s selling fatigue. Davey finds a second wind and hits a PERFECT running powerslam for 2. Hammer bails because he’s in trouble and Davey follows. Davey gets kicked coming back into the ring. Why are all babyfaces stupid enough to fall for that? Davey is prone for the FIGURE FOUR and that should be it. Davey has just about enough left to drag Hammer into the ropes to break. Hammer goes for another but Davey throws him off. He goes for it again but Davey kicks him off this time. Davey is tired and on one leg so Hammer uses the ropes and drops a big sledge to the back of the neck for the pin at 8.44 shown. **1/2. Decent match but I’m not entirely sure what it’s doing on the tape. Davey didn’t even win and it’s a Bulldogs tape.

Dynamite Kid v Brutus Beefcake

Now we have the other halves again. Last time remember Davey lost his singles match while DK got the job done. JIP with DK shoulderblocking “The Beefer” to the canvas. It seems Monsoon has decided to call Brutus that today. DK has way too much speed so the Beefer has to just grab an arm and hang on to it. DK flips around and reverses the arm into his own armbar. Wow, is Beefcake just completely out of his depth here or what? Beefcake hits a back suplex and he’s able to build on that by hitting something that looks a bit low. Beefcake busts out a vertical suplex for 2. Ernie Ladd talks about how much modern day wrestlers spend more time in the gym and are now able to kick out of these high impact moves. DK fires up and hits the snap suplex before dropping a headbutt. Beefcake is screwed. He’s on that Dream Street I keep hearing about. He’s able to leverage DK out of the ring as DK goes for a big headbutt though. Dynamite is taking risks, which is why Beefcake has a chance. Beefcake uses an International Object of some kind leaving DK staggered. DK blocks a suplex back inside though and rolls Beefcake up for the duke at 6.36 shown. *3/4. That wasn’t bad either although the pacing was a little weird. I blame Brutus.

POST MATCH DK gets tied in the tree of woe and Beefcake puts the boots in attempting to do a number on him. Davey Boy runs out here for the save.

British Bulldogs v King Kong Bundy/Big John Studd

Total mismatch in size. The match is clearly important as Vince McMahon & Bruno Sammartino are on commentary. Studd alone, kayfabed, weighs more than the tag champs. They run double teams and double dropkicks to put Studd down. Bobby Heenan shouts at his team to slow it down and make it their kind of match. Bundy ignores the advice and misses with an elbow drop before he’s double dropkicked. Davey bounces off on his own and gets knee dropped though. Davey gets isolated and worked over as a result of his mistake. Studd misses in the corner but Davey is still in trouble. DK gets pissed off and makes a save giving Studd a sleeper. Bundy knocks him off, the ref can’t stop this and gets planted on his ass for the DQ at 4.35. ½*. Not much doing there. Davey got to sell a lot but the match didn’t go anywhere after that.

The 411: Not having a large amount of CHV experience I don’t know if it’s the norm for everything to be so clipped up and ultimately pointless. There’s no real flow to the tape even though everything is shown in order. The Wrestlemania 2 match felt like a payoff and should probably have been on last with matches shown leading up to that. The DK-Bret match is the best on the tape although Bret v Ricky Steamboat is better off the Steamboat best of I reviewed. If you can get it cheap it’s a nice piece of nostalgia concerning one of my favourite tag teams of all time. If you have to pay big money for it then don’t bother. Thumbs in the middle.

Final Score:  5.0   [ Not So Good ]