Retro Review Ratings From Fightful Select: WCW World War 3 1998!

NOTE: You can see our full RETRO REVIEW PODCAST on this show at FightfulSelect.com!

 

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Wrath defeated Glacier
4.25/10

  • Huge "Glacier Sucks" chants. Glacier and Wrath brawl into the crowd.
  • I was a fan of Wrath back in the day. The Meltdown was a favorite move of mine. He turns Glacier inside out with a clothesline. 
  • The announcer is talking about Wrath being on Mortal Kombat in January, and discuss the benefits and detriments of wrestling before a battle royal.
  • Wrath didn't let go of the choke in the corner by four. He should have been DQ'd.
  • Wrath using the ropes when he didn't need to. Seems off-putting in retrospect. This match has no real psychology. Just Wrath choking a lot and not getting disqualified.
  • Wrath hits the buckles with all the speed of an anvil, then eats a couple of really terrible kicks from Glacier.
  • Glacier goes for the Ice Pick, but it's countered into a Meltdown. This gets a big pop.

Stevie Ray (w/ Vincent) defeated Konnan via DQ
4/10

  • A battle of NWO Hollywood and NWO Wolfpack. The nWo theme is so iconic, and the Wolfpack theme was a slapper. Konnan's catchphrases are really over. 
  • WCW producers don't mind switching cameras forever on an abdominal stretch from Konnan. 
  • Tony Schiavone has to cover for Konnan when a kick whiffed by a mile. Schiavone says the kick was blocked but he still went down. Shiavone seems really on his game tonight. 
  • There are a couple of big, stiff clotheslines and slow bumps. Stevie Ray is back up and walks into a Face Jam, then accidentally gets Slapjacked by Vincent.
  • The ref calls for the bell after Konnan won't stop a beating. This was bad.
  • Booker T comes in to make the save, but Stevie says he doesn't need his brother's help. These two looked like STARS.

Sonny Onoo & Ernest "The Cat" Miller defeated Saturn & Kaz Hayashi
3.75/10

  • Lots of powdering from Miller and Onoo.
  • "He can't wrestle with glasses on" -- Heenan. "Yes he ca---well then take the glasses off!"- Tony.
  • The timing on strikes these days is so much better than back then. You get kicked and the bump is delayed  back then.
  • Onoo tags in and has some seriously good kicks. They don't do anything to Hayashi, but they looked nice.
  • Miller hilariously Sparta Kicks Hayashi, but Saturn tags in and hits some great suplexes. Saturn has some nice kicks of his own.
  • Man, Ernest Miller is as green as goose shit. 
  • Onoo gets force tagged, and put in a submission by Saturn. Miller accidentally hits him, and then takes a hilarious jumping sell on a double dropkick.
  • Hayashi's selling was really bad, but everything is over.
  • Why does Tony call roundhouses a "back leg front kick?"
  • Saturn is a house of fire, but Ernest Miller kicks him so Onoo can pin him.
  • Another trash fire.

WCW Cruiserweight Championship
Kidman defeated Juventud Guerrera (c) to become champion
6.5/10

  • Gene Okerlund goes off about Juvi wearing lWo colors. Eddie Guerrero says Rey Mysterio needs to learn to make sacrifices for his family. This was a bad promo
  • Juventud was only 24 years old here. He's also the best in-ring wrestler on the show so far.
  • Juventud gets a Rocker Dropper, Kidman gets a sitdown power bomb, powerslam and slingshot legdrop.
  • The old WCW rings look like they had no give. 
  • There is a nearly catastrophic spot where Juvi does a top rope huracanrana to the outside on Kidman, who is on the apron. To this day, this spot almost never works.
  • There's another near botch when Juvi jumps from ring to ring with a double springboard dropkick, which ends up okay but could have been terrible. Kidman follows up with a beautiful dropkick.
  • Kidman does a move that will become known as the Mark Of Excellence. He goes from ring to ring with a big body press. The crowd doesn't like it, but Juvi did get the shoulder up. 
  • A super Frankensteiner hits for Juvi, as does a Juvi Driver, but he's too exhausted to pin Kidman. 
  • Juvi goes for a 450 and lands on his feet, but had a huracanrana in too deep and Kidman can't kick out when he was supposed to. 
  • Kidman capitalizes on the dumb idea that anyone would ever have to powerbomb him and follows up with a wheelbarrow suplex. 
  • Rey Mysterio reappears and keeps Kidman from getting pulled off the top rope. Kidman wins with the Shooting Star Press for the win. This was a good watch.
  • Eddie and the lWo come out and beat down Kidman and he wants an answer from Rey. Wasn't his answer costing Juvi the title? Rey throws the lWo shirt and they give chase. 

Steiners

  • Scott Steiner and Buff Bagwell are out with some nWo ref with a whistle. He's very animated. It's a young Slick Johnson.
  • It looked like Brian Adams wanted to be Diesel so bad here. The nWo Hollywood are all beating up Rick Steiner.
  • nWo bring out Rick, who gets beaten up by Scott. 
  • Goldberg makes the save with a huge spear after Scott flips him off. I can't put into words how over Bill Goldberg was at this point. It's insane. 

 

Hall vs. Nash doesn't happen

  • Scott Hall is out with the entire nWo, sans Hogan, Steiner and Buff.
  • Eric Bischoff has orchestrated a setup, and they're all jumping Hall.
  • Nash comes in a house of fire and beats up Less Cool Diesel. The Outsiders clear the ring. 
  • Back-to-back big advertised matches that don't actually happen, but I think the crowd is pretty happy about this one. There are big "Outsiders" chants.
  • Hall goes for a "Too Sweet," but Nash won't do it. 

WCW Television Championship
Chris Jericho (c) (w/ Ralphus) defeated Bobby Duncum Jr. to retain the title
6/10

  • Chris Jericho calls Lee Marshall "Flea Marshall." 
  • WWE has dubbed Jericho's "Break the Walls Down" theme over his WCW theme. It's so weird to see him walk out with Ralphus to this.
  • The announcers won't shut up about Hollywood Hogan not being there tonight. 
  • The world lost Bobby Duncum just about 15 months later, tragically. WWE would love to have a Bobby Duncum today. 6-foot-4, 275 pounds, blonde hair. Played the cowboy role well. He had some Arena Football experience and played for the Texas Longhorns. 
  • His clothesline on Jericho was too close to the ropes. After a little brawling outside, Duncum gets a shoulder breaker, which we don't see enough of today.
  • Duncum keeps working the shoulder, and does a standing leg drop to Jericho's shoulder, and follows up with an arm bar.
  • Jericho scores a Lionsault and a nasty looking senton, but Duncum is able to land a superplex.
  • Duncum's front powerslam is vicious, and he comes off the second rope with a Celstial Elbow, which is like a Vader Bomb elbow.
  • Ralphus distracts Duncum, allowing Jericho to crack him HARD with the title and win.

World War 3
WCW Title Match At Starrcade
Kevin Nash wins
3/10

  • Why the hell are there refs IN THE RING? Also, eliminations count over, through, under ropes, pin and submission.
  • Nash eliminates about six cruiserweights. Cruisers are dropping like flies. At least ten of them are gone. Nash's ring is empty and he gets to take a breather until 20 are left.
  • Hall fallaway slams some total scrub over the top.
  • Six guys jump The Giant. We're talking Benoit, Saturn, Chavo, Eddie, Wright and Disco. 
  • There are lots of eliminations -- about 40 in nine minutes. Zero pins or submissions. There's a funny spot where Scott Hall laughs after smacking Mysterio. 
  • Saturn is all too happy to jump into the middle ring. He and Cat eliminate each other. This is maybe the first WW3 match I've watched through and it's awkward.
  • Anyone under 220 pounds is thrown out. 
  • I can't convey how much of a mess this is. Fans in the crowd are taking their shirts off.
  • Bam Bam Bigelow runs in and gets beaten up by everyone. This is WCW trying to work a shoot. Goldberg and Bam Bam fight.
  • K-Dog hilariously eliminates himself. 2 Horsemen, 3 Wolfpack and 1 nWo member in The Giant. They gang up and eliminate the former winner. 
  • What is there to say about this? People get eliminated. There's no build up,
  • Nash eliminates Luger and Hall to win. This sucked ass.
  • I hope one day someone adds eliminations and times to World War 3 battle royals on wikipedia.

WCW United States Championship
DDP (c) defeated Bret "The Hitman" Hart
4.75/10

  • The crowd is not very pumped for this match, which starts outside the ring. 
  • Bret hits a DDT, and a nice Russian leg sweep. The "Excellence of Execution" nickname is appropriate.
  • DDP reverses a Tombstone into his own. He hits a nice belly-to-belly suplex and discus lariat, before an early and terrible variation of the Styles Clash, the Pancake. 
  • DDP drops a foreign object, and puts on the worst Sharpshooter I've ever seen on Hart. I wonder how many times Bret had to correct opponents on how to do that. Schiavone and Heenan had THE BALLS to say it was a good one. 
  • Hart goes to work on DDP's leg on the ring post and does the posted Figure Four. 
  • DDP counters Bret Hart's rope senton by kicking him over the top rope and going at Bret with a posted Figure Four of his own. 
  • DDP tries to use a chair, but Bret pushes DDP into the ref. 
  • Hart steals the knucks from the ref and punches him while Slick Johnson has DDP distracted.
  • Slick calls for the bell in a Sharpshooter, even though DDP didn't tap.
  • The first pop for the match is Mickey Jay confronting everyone, setting up a Diamond Cutter for the win for DDP.
  • This was really lame until the end.
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