Dark Pegasus Video Review: The History of the Intercontinental Championship (Disc Three)

Posted by J.D. Dunn on 11.30.2008

The belt falls from prominence but still provides a few gems.

The History of the Intercontinental Championship, Disc Three
by J.D. Dunn

Your host is Todd Grisham.

Intercontinental Title: Kurt Angle vs. Chris Jericho (w/Chyna, 02.27.00).
Chyna gets her own entrance for unknown reasons. Kurt was already the European Champion at this point, but he wanted a real title belt, so here you go. He had not yet reached the deity-like level that he would from 2002-2005, but then he was only three months into his Fed career. He drop toeholds Jericho into the ropes, but Chris backdrops him over and hits a springboard dropkick. To the floor, Jericho bangs his arm on the post with a missed clothesline to set up some later psychology. Jericho moonsaults off the ringsteps and catches Kurt in the face. He goes up, but Kurt crotches him and hits a belly-to-belly to take over. Jericho blocks a backdrop and hits the butterfly backbreaker, but Kurt stays on top with a chinlock. The crowd informs him that he sucks. Jericho fights out and explodes with a spinning wheel kick. He follows up with a flying forearm for two. Jericho blocks a huracanrana and hits a double powerbomb. Kurt reverses the cover to a cross armlock. It's commonplace now, but that was some innovative wrestling (if you count ripping off UFC as innovative). Jericho makes the ropes and puts Kurt in the Walls of Jericho. Angle makes the ropes and heads to the floor. Jericho follows, but Chyna gets bumped trying to keep Kurt from using the belt. Jericho suplexes Angle back in, but Kurt blocks the Lionsault with the belt to pick up the win and become Eurocontinental Champion at 10:14. Referee Earl Hebner tries to convince Tim White to reverse it, but White refuses. Kind of shocking for the time because Jericho was considered an heir apparent to the babyface throne. ***

Intercontinental Title, Triple Threat: Eddy Guerrero vs. Chris Jericho vs. X-Pac (10.12.00).
No Mamacita for Eddy at this point. X-Pac inexplicably continues to exist at this point. Jericho goes after X-Pac for the placeholder feud they were having around this time. Eddy takes his monster bump off a Jericho reverse monkeyflip. Eddy stands back and lets X-Pac hit the Broncobuster on Jericho. Pac and Eddy team up. Yeah, that's gonna last. Eddy, of course, double-crosses him. See, that's a little thing that tells the fans who they should pay attention to and who they shouldn't. Guys who turn on other guys are worth watching. Guys who get turned on are just in the way. Not surprisingly, the fans start an "Eddy" chant. Jericho comes back and nails Eddy, but X-Pac sneaks in and lowblows him. That leads to the X-Factor, but Eddy dropkicks X-Pac off the cover and gets the pin himself at 3:48. Typical Eddy goodness, although I'm not sure why this is on the DVD. **

And we get a preview of one of 2008's main event feuds.

Intercontinental Title: Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy (04.12.01, Smackdown).
The Two-Man Powertrip had a mini-feud going on with the Hardyz and Lita, including a VICIOUS beatdown where Steve Austin beat Lita like she was… well, Debra. Jeff gave Stephanie the Twist of Fate in retaliation, so Hunter was irate and wanted Jeff in the ring. Hunter had just won the IC Title from Jericho, which started a trend of the title bouncing all around until it was meaningless because no one ever feuded over it, they just traded it. It's still that way today, actually. Anyway, this goes like every other Jeff Hardy match. Hunter shoves him around and beats on him, but Jeff hits the occasional big move to pop the crowd. Hunter blocks the rail run with a belly-to-belly suplex. Jeff reverses a whip and comes off the apron, but Hunter powerslams him on the floor. Hunter takes over back in and whips Jeff hard into the corner. Jeff hits a Russian Leg Sweep (possibly the worst in the business) and goes up. Hunter shoves the ref into the rope, crotching Jeff. The ref gives him what-for, so Hunter shoves him down and goes for a superplex. That brings out Matt Hardy (who was supposed to be recuperating at home) to nail the Game with a chairshot to the face. One Swanton later and we have a new IC Champion at 8:07. The match is a great example of what Jeff does best – take a beating. Pre-injury HHH is awesome as always, and it was a nice moment, even if it would be short-lived. I would have liked to have seen the WWF just do this feud on PPV instead of the tired Brothers of Destruction versus Two-Man Powertrip matches. **1/2

Intercontinental Title vs. European Title, Ladder Match: Rob Van Dam vs. Jeff Hardy (07.22.02).
The European Title had outlived its usefulness, so it's being merged with the IC Title here. RVD dropkicks a ladder into Hardy on the outside and hits a moonsault off the apron. Jeff catches up with him and yanks him off. Van Dam prepares to use it as a javelin, but Hardy dropkicks it out of his hands. DUELING LADDERS! Van Dam doesn't do so well, but he does hit Jeff with a jumping spinkick. That sets up a handspring splash. Jeff catches him going up again, though, and Russian Leg Sweeps him off the ladder. Jeff hits a Swanton on the ladder onto RVD. They fight on the top of the ladder, and RVD hits a sunset bomb. That sets up Rolling Thunder. RVD goes up a ladder, and Jeff goes up a nearby ladder. Van Dam kicks it over, and Jeff nearly brains himself on the landing. Van Dam follows him down with a frogsplash. That allows Van Dam to go up and collect the unified IC Title at 6:55. Bump, recover, bump, recover, bump, recover. I get a lot of feedback that tends to call *anything* with a bunch of big spots a "spotfest." That's not entirely accurate. This is a spotfest. It's just a collection of spots with no discernible story to tie it all together. Imagine taking a collection of your favorite action movie scenes. Yeah, they look cool, but without the story to set them up, they're meaningless. **1/4

Intercontinental Title: Randy Orton vs. Edge (07.11.04).
Orton was starting to receive a lot of vocal support from the fans, which would explain his ill-fated face turn. Headlockery to starts, but it's the good kind where they actually work off the headlock into other sequences like the criss-cross. Orton gets steamrolled but controls the match with clubs to the chest. Edge comes back with a flying forearm, so Orton bails and grabs his title. Edge hits a sliding dropkick, though. Back in, Edge hits a missile dropkick for two as the fans start to get behind Randy. Edge sets up for the spear, but Randy punts him in the face to counter. That sets up a neck vise, and the fans start to go back and forth. Randy tells them he doesn't need their help. He slaps on the chinlock, although people were just starting to notice his reliance on it, so it was not yet the ORTONLOCK~! Edge elbows out and dropkicks Orton out of the sky. They tease a double KO and then slug it out from their knees. The Edge-o-matic gets two. Orton sets up for a superplex, but Edge shoves him off. Orton lands awkwardly on the ropes. Randy unties one of the buckles, distracting the ref so he doesn't see Edge roll Randy up for two. The Impaler gets two, and now the fans are starting to root for Edge again. Orton drops Edge on the exposed buckle and puts his feet on the ropes for two. That sets up an RKO attempt, but Edge shoves him to the corner. Randy leapfrogs a spear attempt, sending Edge into the middle turnbuckle. That sets up an RKO attempt, but Edge backslides him, tosses him into the exposed buckle, and finishes with the spear at 26:37. This was heralded as a classic at the time, but there are too many dead spots early on. It really finishes strong, though, and that's what people remember. Randy's IC Title streak, which was approaching Honky Tonk Man levels, was finally over. The idea was to set up Edge as a babyface avenger, working his way through Evolution until a big showdown with Triple H, but they made his so edgy (no pun intended) that the fans actually turned him heel before that could happen. Edge had to get to the main even through other means. ***1/4

Intercontinental Title, Cage Match: Ric Flair vs. Triple H (Taboo Tuesday — 11.01.05).
Hunter attacked Flair for not being up to snuff anymore, so Flair begged for a cage match. Lawler sets up the "Old Yeller" premise that would set up Flair's real retirement match in 2008. They slug it out, and Flair bleeds pretty early on. Hunter gives him a spinebuster and rubs his face in the mesh. HHH drops a decidedly Flairish knee between Flair's eyes and goes up. Flair catches him, and they brawl on the top rope. HHH produces a chain and loads up the ol' fist. Flair gets his boot up to block, though. He goes for the figure-four, but Hunter punches him with the chain for two. Hunter drops a knee on the back of Flair's neck and applies the figure-four. You know how we talk about Ric Flair wrestling himself? Usually, that means he's carrying himself and the other guy might as well not even be in the ring. Here, he's wrestling a guy who's wrestling just like him, right down to the mannerism. It's like Babyface Ric Flair that faced Terry Funk vs. Evil Ric Flair that tried to kill Ricky Morton. Flair turns the figure-four over, so Hunter releases and goes for it again. Flair boots his ass into the cage, though. Now Hunter is busted open. Lots o' juice tonight. Flair unloads on him and clips the knee a few times. That leads to the real figure-four. Hunter squeals like a pig but tosses the ref into Flair to break it up. Well, that's unique. Flair goes up, but this time he's just trying to get out of the cage. Hunter catches him anyway but pays for it with a flying fistdrop. LOW BLOOOOOOW! "Right to the balls," says Joey Styles. Flair crawls to the door, but Hunter catches him and drags him back in. Flair drags the ref's chair back in with him, but Hunter stomps on it and takes it away from him. Hunter raises it overhead, but Flair grabs THE TESTICULAR CLAW! Turn your head and cough, muthafucka! He backdrops Hunter on the chair and hits him with one, two, three – THREE CHAIRSHOTS! Huh, huh, huh. Flair scurries out of the cage at 28:44. This was like Flair's Greatest Hits with Hunter playing the part of every heel Flair ever faced when he was a babyface. He even worked in a Harley Race-like headbutt (as opposed to when Jim Ross calls things Harley Race-like). It was really a fine little example of storytelling, and a brutal bloodfest with meaning to the blood. ****

Money in the Bank vs. Intercontinental Title: Rob Van Dam vs. Shelton Benjamin (04.30.06).
Shelton looks like he's trying out for an extra on "Miami Vice." Ross and Lawler make backhanded comments about the infamous Ross Proctology segment on Raw several months ago. RVD tries so rudimentary stuff to start, allowing Benjamin to show off his athleticism to get out of it. Benjamin potatoes Van Dam early, and Van Dam sends him to the floor with a spinkick, frustrating him. Benjamin avoids Rolling Thunder by rolling to the floor, but Van Dam catches him off his guard with a pescado. Benjamin then one-ups him with a sunset flip over the top rope into a powerbomb on the floor! Sweet Jebus! Shelton takes over from there and works over the back of Van Dam. Benji hits a running kneelift from the apron and goes back to the chinlock. Van Dam makes the ropes. Benjamin stays on the back with a series of slams and goes back to the chinlock. Rob elbows out of the Exploder, but Benjamin counters the Rolling Thunder to a Samoan Drop for two. Van Dam shoves Benjamin off the top, but Benji uses his vertical leap to jump right back up and superplex Van Dam! That gets two, and Benjamin locks in a bodyscissors. Van Dam avoids a dropkick and punts Benjamin in the face. A spinning wheel kick sets up Rolling Thunder. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Van Dam hits the Split-Legged Moonsault for two. RVD tries to set up the Five-Star Frogsplash with a monkeyflip, but Benjamin lands on his feet. Rob has to settle for a spinning wheel kick. Benjamin avoids the Five-Star and spikes him with a DDT. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Rob gets his foot on the ropes. Shelton comes off the top with a crossbody, but Van Dam rolls through for two. Van Dam ranas Benji down. Benjamin grabs the MitB briefcase, but Van Dam hits him with the Van Daminator to the case. The academic Five-Star Frogsplash finishes, and Van Dam picks up the Intercontinental Title to go along with his Money in the Bank title shot. Interesting choice, considering Van Dam is considered a shoe-in to win one of the two world titles in a few months. This was not the classic that many thought it could be, but it was a nice little match. ***1/2

Intercontinental Title, Triple Threat: Shelton Benjamin vs. Carlito vs. Johnny Nitro (w/Melina, 06.25.06).
Carlito knocks Nitro to the floor, and he and Benjamin trade roll-ups. Nitro comes back in by springboarding over a Shelton charge. Shelton takes out Carlito instead. Carlito tosses both men and readies for a pescado, but Melina pulls Nitro out of the way. Shelton and Nitro brawl, so Carlito hits a double-jump springboard plancha. Back inside, Carlito continues with the lucha stuff by springboarding into a backflip and hitting a no-hands rana on Nitro. Things die down as they take turns pairing off and scoring pinfalls off each other. Carlito gets a Victory Roll, and he and Nitro team up with a monkeyflip into a dropkick. Nice. They then really top themselves as Nitro gets caught in the tree-of-woe, Shelton bounds up to the top rope from a standing position to superplex Carlito, but then Nitro does a freakin' Spider German Suplex! You really have to see it. Carlito sends Nitro over the top, so Benjamin sneaks up on Carlito and hits him with a roundhouse kick to the back of the head. Carlito reverses a neckbreaker and hits the Backcracker on Shelton, but Nitro yanks Carlito out and dives in for the pin and the title at 12:05. Shelton allegedly entered the doghouse for his performance here, but all three guys looked good to me, with Carlito especially looking like the star of the next generation. I didn't like the ending that much, but there were some great spots in this one, and they never became tedious. ***1/2

Intercontinental Title: Umaga vs. Jeff Hardy (07.22.07).
Umaga tears Jeff a new cornhole early. Jeff gets absolutely *nothing*. Eventually, he fights his way out of a Trapezes Hold, but he collapses under a bodyslam attempt. That's what we in the recapping biz call a "very bad idea." Jeff blocks a vertical splash but comes off right into a flying Bossman Slam. Jeff is a grease spot. It only gets two, and Jeff avoids a diving headbutt. Jeff fires off a reverse giri and a sends Umaga spilling to the floor. He follows him out with a pescado. Back in, Umaga punches Jeff down in the corner but backs off before getting disqualified. Nice play on the Vengeance match where he *did* get disqualified. He misses a buttalanche, though. Jeff hits Whisper in the Wind for two. The Swanton gets two more, but Umaga blocks the Twist of Fate and hits a thrust kick. That sets up the buttalanche and the Samoan Spike to put the pesky Hardy away at 11:20. This was about as good as a match like this can be. Jeff just threw everything he had at Umaga, but Umaga just kept swatting him aside and eventually hit him with the big move he was looking for. **3/4

Intercontinental Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Chris Jericho (03.10.08).
DERISION early on as they slap it out and get into a hockey fight. Jeff hits his splits cover, but Jericho clotheslines him over the top so we can take a break. When we come back, Jericho is chopping Jeff in the corner. Jericho misses a charge and falls to the floor. Jeff hits a baseball slide and tries to run the rail, but Jericho sends him into the announce table. Back in, Jericho gets two off a slingshot splash. Props to the guy who brought the "Michael Corcoran" sign because I don't think Union Army General Michael Corcoran gets enough props for his efforts in the Battle of Bull Run. Jericho goes to work on the back, but Jeff fights back with his usual. The slingshot dropkick misses, and Jericho blocks the Twist of Fate. That sets up the Lionsault. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Fans thought that was it. Jericho blocks another Twist of Fate and goes for the Walls of Jericho. Hardy reverses to a small package! ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Jeff avoids an enzuigiri and hits the Twist of Fate. The Swanton misses, though, and Jericho is able to finish with the Codebreaker at 8:09. Hardy was slated for greatness before screwing it up (a disturbing pattern for him). The match was a fine one to go out on, though, especially with Jericho walking the fine line between face and heel. The fans were really buying into the nearfalls at the end. ***

The 411: Hey, you can't go wrong with the IC Title, especially in the 80s and 90s. Sure, it's receded into the woodwork of importance with all of the titles the WWE has these days, but there's no denying that the IC Title matches were often better than the main event. The only thing keeping this from a perfect score is the number of repeat matches and the fair amount of filler on the third disc. It's a definite "must-have" for the first two discs, though.

Thumbs way up.

Final Score:  9.0   [  Amazing ]