Sunday, August 21, 2016

A Taste of the New Generation: Broken Harts: WWF Monday Night Raw: November 7th, 1994



Raw is live this week in Bushkill, New York as we enter the last batch of tapings before the Survivor Series. It's a big night of action as we open with a tag match between brothers and brother in-laws. It's WWF Champion Bret Hart and the British Bulldog taking on Owen Hart and Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart.  It's Vince McMahon at the announce table, and as previously stated last week, "Macho Man" Randy Savage is no longer with the WWF. Read the previous edition on why. So, now joining McMahon as color commentator is...


Jerry "The King" Lawler, who besides his new duty as the Raw color man will also have an edition of the King's Court tonight with the 1-2-3 Kid. If it's like last time, this will be awkward and poor.


Before the bell can even ring, Bret and Bulldog get on the attack of their familial foes.  They whipe Owen and Neidhart into each other and follow with a double clothesline to Anvil and a toss of Owen to the outside. When things get back in control, it's Bret and Anvil to start. Bret rakes Anvil's eyes into the ropes. Neidhart whips Bret in the corner, but get gets a clohtesline for his troubles. Bret reverses a clothesline, but gets caught into  bearhug from Neidhart. Bret bites the face to escape, wrings the arm and tags in the Bulldog.

Bulldog tries shoulder blocks, with the third taking down Anvil. Anvil gets a thumb to the eye and tag in Owen as the duo double team Davey Boy. Bulldog gets a whip and a clothesline followed by a hard whip to the corner and a big back body drop. Owen tries a back drop, but the Bulldog turns it into his patented stalling suplex. Cover only gets a two. Owen gets a leg lariat  to regain momentum abd follows with an inverted atomic drop. Tag to Anvil as they hit a double wishbone.


After a long chinlock, Bulldog breaks free, but gets a knee to the gut, taking him down again. Cover by Anvil for a two count.  Tag to Owen as they hit another double clothesline. Owen keeps the offense down on the Bulldog for a couple minues, eventually ramming Bulldog face first into Anvil's foot. Tag to Anvil who gets a gutwrench suplex for a two count. Owen chokes Bulldog in the corner as we go to break.

When we return, Bulldog gets a sunset flip for a two count. But Owen comes back with an enziguri for a two count. Tag back to Anvil who lands a powerslam for two. Anvil applies a front facelock as Bulldog tries to reach for a tag. But Owen cuts Bret off at the pass. Bret chases Owen around the ring until the referee stops him, allowing the heels to hit a Hart Attack. cover, but Bret breaks the count.


Owen goes up for a cross body, but Bulldog turns it into a cover for two. Bulldog tries a tag to Bret, but Owen turns it into a rear chinlock. Bulldog breaks Owen's hold by slamming him into the corner. Owen comes back with uppercuts, but gets dropped into a backslide for two. Bulldog is rammed back into Anvil's boot as Anvil is tagged back in. He wears down Bulldog some more with a knee to the throat as we go to break again.

When we return, both Bulldog and Owen collide into each other. Bulldog crawls to Bret as Anvil distracts the ref. The duo try a double team, but Owen collides into Anvil. Bret is finally tagged in as he gets a double noggin knocker on both Anvil and Owen. He wears down Anvil with punches, followed by some for Owen. Bret gets a bulldog out of the corner and covers for two. Backbreaker and a patented Bret elbow drop gets a two count. Owen gets two knees to the back of Bret allowing Anvil to try a slam, but Bulldog dropkicks Bret into Neidhart. Owen gets a dive onto Bret, but Bret kicks out at two. Bret ducks a double clothesline and clotheslines Anvil. Bulldog gets Owen out of the ring and rams him into the steps as Bret locks in the sharpshooter for the win.

A really good opener for this episode of Raw. Lots of action, double team work and very little slow momentum. I will say that I think they had Bulldog in the "face in peril" spot for a little too long, but Bret's tag in was still very energetic and fun to watch. But then again, any Bret match is an automatic winner.


Todd Pettengill is here with the Survivor Series report. He brings up how some guy named Billy Jasper didn't order last year and got arrested for stealing a video copy (Wut). The card is as follows:

Undertaker vs Yokozuna in a casket match with Chuck Norris as enforcer

Bret Hart vs Bob Backlund in a submission match for the WWF Championship

The Bad Guys (Razor Ramon, the Headshrinkers, the British Bulldog and the 1-2-3 Kid) vs the Teamsters (Owen Hart, Jim Neidhart, Jeff Jarrett, Shawn Michaels and Diesel)

Guts & Glory (Lex Luger, Mabel, The Smoking Gunns and Adam Bomb) vs the Million Dollar Team (Tatanka, King Kong Bundy, Bam Bam Bigelow and The Heavenly Bodies)

Clowns Are Us vs the Royal Family (ugh)


Vince gives a quick shout out to a pair of production crew members who suffered an accident while setting up Raw tonight, wishing them a speedy recovery.


Up next, it's Bam Bam Bigelow (With Ted Dibiase) taking on Tyrone Knox. Bigelow gets in some punches. Knox gets some punches and ducks a clothesline, but gets hit with a shoulder block. Bam Bam follows with a whip and a clothesline. She gets some headbutts to the midsection out of the corner and follows with a big hiptoss. He locks in a chinlock and follows with some stomps. He chokes Knox in the corner and follows with some more stomps and fists. Knox ducks a clothesline and hits one of his own, but it doesn't fase Bam Bam who continues the offense. After some more chinlocks and a clothesline in the corner, Bam Bam finally finishes Knox with a dropkick and an enziguri for the three in a long, boring squash.


Vince gives his thanks to Randy Savage for his long run in the WWE and wishes him nothing but the best. See, this makes me believe the whole Stephanie rumor is less true. If Savage had done that, Vince would have never given him a sendoff of any kind. Hell, he didn't even give that to Hulk Hogan.


It's the King's Court with the 1-2-3 Kid up next. Lawler states that the Kid and his spindly arms are in some trouble as he has to face Bob Backlund next week. Kid stumbles through his promo saying that he hopes Backlund isn't too preoccupied with Hart to face him next week. Backlund tries another of his sneak attacks..


But the Kid is too quick for him this time, landing a few spin kicks to send Backlund out of the ring.  Bret heads to the ring to supply backup for the Kid, but Anvil and Owen  tell the raging Backlund to back off.


Our last match of the night is Doink the Clown in action against Pat Tanaka.  Doink is flanked by Dink, Wink, and Pink. Reminder: I hate this. Doink gets some hiptosses early on. Atomic drop and a clothesline follow. He gives a low five to Dink as he follows with arm wringers. Tanaka turns around with some dragon screws and some kicks of the leg. Sadly he doesn't kick Doink's leg out of his leg as he gets a sunset flip, but Tanaka keeps the offense. More kicks the leg until Doink gets a back suplex, a knee drop and the Whoopee Cushion (Sans fart noise) for the three. Post-match, Doink steals Lawler's crown and places it on the heads of his critter-filled clowns. He tosses it back to Lawler as his cavalcade of freaks make their exit.


Hey kids! Vince wants your Dollar! It's the Survivor Series opinion line where you can ask the important questions like what you think is the more effective submission hold, Bret's Sharpshooter of Backlund's Chicken Wing. Or you can just shoot the shit with Paul Bearer if you like.


Lawler is quite pissed at his little royal family since they really did nothing to stop the clowns from causing mischief. Vince shills the card for next week including the debut of "The Portugese Man O' War" Aldo Montoya. That will indeed be something to behold. The clowns return to cause more mayhem with the royal family and I continue to hate all of this.


We end Raw with an interview with Bret Hart. He says that he will be in the corner of the 1-2-3 Kid when it comes with Bob Backlund next week. He stumbles a bit in his promo, but it gets to the point.


This was an average Raw that started really hot with the opening tag match and got duller and duller as things went on with a long and boring Bam Bam squash and the average Doink shenanigans that I'm already sick to death of. In the end, I'd say give the tag match a watch and avoid the rest of this B- edition of Monday Night Raw.

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