This is the first of the WrestleMania DVDs that are broken into 2 parts.  In my version it’s a double sided DVD with only a couple of matches on the flip side.  There are 16 matches [...]]]> Event: WrestleMania IV
Date: March 27, 1988
Venue: Trump Plaza (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Attendance: 18,165

This is the first of the WrestleMania DVDs that are broken into 2 parts.  In my version it’s a double sided DVD with only a couple of matches on the flip side.  There are 16 matches on the card – the most in WrestleMania history.  I remember this being a HUGE event as the whole Hogan/Andre thing had gone down in months previous with twin referees.  Incidentally if you’ve never seen THAT fiasco you need to check it out… it’s pure brilliance.

20-Man Battle Royal
Bad News Brown defeated nineteen other participants by last eliminating Bret Hart
For the second time in 2 WrestleMania’s, Bret Hart is the last person eliminated in a 20-man battle royal (he was also eliminated last by Andre The Giant at WrestleMania 2).  Bad News plays the part of bad ass heel to perfection.  For those that don’t remember Bad News, he was essentially the first person to play the “Stone Cold” character that Austin would make so famous – he hated EVERYBODY.  Good guys, bad guys, etc.  He and Hart team up toward the end of the match to eliminate their common foe.  Hart’s posing to the crowd and the announcers begin talking about how Hart and Brown have made a deal and they’re going to split the prize money.  Bad News hits Hart with his finisher (The Ghetto Blaster) and tosses Hart out of the ring to win the day.  This year, Hart takes revenge immediately and starts a feud at the same time.  After being double crossed, Hart comes back into the ring and destroys the trophy that Brown was presented with after winning the match.  The feud that followed was the first time that I remember Hart being a singles wrestler worth watching.

First Round Tournament Match
Ted DiBiase (with Virgil and André the Giant) defeated Jim Duggan
Before this match starts Gorilla and Jesse go to great lengths to let us know that only the winners will advance.  If there is a double DQ or count out those participants will not move on.  In retrospect this is a dead giveaway of what’s to come and if I’d known then what I know about the wrestling business I would have been pissed that they essentially gave me the results of the Hogan/Andre match before the tournament even started.  These first round matches are 15 minute time limits which is a good thing as most of them aren’t all that great.  DiBiase carries Duggan through a couple of minutes playing the cowardly heel to perfection.  The finish comes when Duggan goes for his three-point-stance tackle and Andre pulls his feet out from under him.  Duggan goes to retaliate and Andre cold cocks him.  DiBiase covers for the pin.  Not a bad match considering Duggan is involved.  HOOOOOOOOOO!

First Round Tournament Match
Don Muraco (with Billy Graham) defeated Dino Bravo (with Frenchy Martin) by disqualification
Muraco and Bravo are both ripped up here (especially Muraco) which tends to lead to bad matches.  This one is actually pretty good.  It’s tight and relatively quick with Bravo hitting a pile driver on Muraco only to have “The Rock” kick out.  Muraco regains the advantage and gets the win by DQ when Bravo pulls the referee in front of him to avoid a flying forearm by Muraco.  Would have liked to see a clean finish but Bravo’s the heel here so a DQ fits with the storyline.

First Round Tournament Match
Greg Valentine (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Ricky Steamboat
Steamboat comes to the ring with his son “The Little Dragon” for pretty much no reason.  Gorilla makes a reference to Steamboat as “the excellence of execution” which would go on to be Bret Hart’s moniker.  Jesse Ventura also makes a reference during his match to his friend Barry Blaustein who would eventually make the outstanding wrestling documentary Beyond The Mat.  Now that we’re beyond that… let’s get to the match.  One word… PHENOMENAL!  I honestly think this match was wasted on a first round tourney match.  Tons of back and forth with numerous close calls and teased finishes.  Valentine gets the win when Steamboat comes off the top with a cross body block and Hammer rolls through for the pin.  I’m not sure what kinds of politics were going on in the locker room but Steamboat is getting buried and it’s a shame cause he brings out the best in just about everyone he works with.

First Round Tournament Match
Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated Butch Reed (with Slick)
Nice little first round match here.  Reed is playing the huge heel here with Savage the super hot baby face.  Ventura and Monsoon talk repeatedly about how Reed needs to use his power to win this match.  Ventura goes on a rant about how he’d much rather have Slick at ringside with him rather than Liz.  This of course leads to Reed paying more attention to Liz than he should.  That momentary lapse allows Savage to catch Reed and slam him off the top.  The Savage flying elbow gets Randy the victory and sends him to the second round against the winner of the next match.

First Round Tournament Match
One Man Gang (with Slick) defeated Bam Bam Bigelow (with Oliver Humperdink) by countout
I’ve always been a big Bam Bam fan and I also have fond memories of OMG so I was really looking forward to this match.  I remember Macho vs. OMG so I knew the outcome of this match but had no recollection of how it went down.  For the couple of minutes that they’re going at it, this is a good little match.  Bam Bam goes into the ropes and Slick pulls down the top rope and sends Bigelow to the floor.  He gets back to the ring apron and the ref continues to make the count right in his face (a super quick count I may add).  From here we get a cheap Bam Bam count out putting Gang into the second round.

First Round Tournament Match
Rick Rude (with Bobby Heenan) and Jake Roberts fought to a time-limit draw
Prior to this match we get an interview with Hulk Hogan.  It’s COMPLETE rambling.  Hogan goes on a rant about how he’s going to carry the Hulkamaniacs on his back when the Trump Plaza falls into the ocean… um… kay.  The match itself is average at best.  Obviously there is no winner here so it’s a LONG match (at least by comparison to some of the other stuff on the card).  A couple of times during the match the crowd goes with the BORING chant which I think is a bit harsh.  Both Rude and Snake are working hard in there.  There’s some good back and forth here and it’s a pretty even match throughout.

The Ultimate Warrior defeated Hercules (with Bobby Heenan)
I’ve never been a huge Warrior fan.  Sure he’s got all kinds of charisma but when it comes to his in-ring stuff I’ve always thought he left quite a bit to be desired.  This is typical big man stuff and it’s the beginning of a two year long push for the Warrior (which of course would culminate with him and Hogan at WrestleMania VI).  Warrior no sells a few Hercules clothesline attempts and then proceeds to beat on him for a few minutes.  The end comes when Hercules hits Warrior with a suplex and the ref counts both men’s shoulders down.  Warrior gets his shoulder up at the last second to give him the victory.  As this wasn’t part of the championship tournament and there was no title on the line it kind of feels like a throwaway match.

Quarter-Final Tournament Match
Hulk Hogan and André the Giant (with Ted DiBiase and Virgil) fought to a double disqualification
This match right here is why we’re having the tournament in the first place.  Hogan beat Andre at WrestleMania III which started it all.  The rematch was finally held at the first ever Main Event show where we were given the now famous “Twin Dave Hebner” angle in which Andre won the title and then sold it to The Million Dollar Man.  WWF President Jack Tunney declared the title vacant which necessitated the tournament.  After only about 5 minutes or so, the match turns into a complete cluster fuck with Million Dollar Man and Virgil getting involved and with Hogan and Andre both using chairs.  They both get DQ’d and are out of the tournament.  After the match, Hogan gives Virgil a suplex on the outside of the ring (a real weak looking suplex) and the proceeds to pose down as if he’s won the title.  The net net of all of this is that the winner of the NEXT match will get a bye into the finals.

Quarter-Final Tournament Match
Ted DiBiase defeated Don Muraco (with Billy Graham)
DiBiase is out alone with no Virgil and no Andre.  Knowing what I know now I’m really glad to see that DiBiase gets a victory on his own without any outside interference.  As these guys are wrestling for the second time the matches are getting shorter but this on gets going quickly.  DiBiase ends the match after an outstanding looking clothesline / slingshot on the top rope.  It’s on to the finals for DiBiase!

Quarter-Final Tournament Match
Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated Greg Valentine (with Jimmy Hart)
Savage is out once again and Elizabeth is looking better and better throughout the night (which is saying something!)  Another serviceable match that lasts around 6 minutes or so.  Valentine has the upper hand for the majority of this match and is really working Savage over with some power moves, chokes, etc.  Savage pulls the victory out of nowhere when Valentine goes for the figure four and Savage turns it into a small package for the pin.  Solid match though it’s looking like Savage is getting tired.

WWF Intercontinental Championship
Brutus Beefcake defeated The Honky Tonk Man (c) (with Jimmy Hart and Peggy Sue) by disqualification
The Honky / Beefcake feud was one of my favorites from this time period.  It was played to perfection with Beefcake coming SO close to getting the title and always coming up short.  This match was no exception as both guys were on their game.  Honky goes for his finisher and Beefcake manages to get out of it.  He slaps on his sleeper in the middle of the ring and Honky’s lights are going out FAST.  Jimmy Hart does the only thing he can do to hold onto the title for HTM and knocks the referee out cold with his megaphone.  Beefcake gets a tiny bit of revenge when he gives Jimmy a haircut while Honky is still “asleep” in the ring.  Hated to see Beefcake lose here but there’s really something to watching the heel Honky Tonk Man hang onto the title time after time.

The Islanders (Haku and Tama) and Bobby Heenan defeated The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid) and Koko B. Ware
Six-man tag action that includes Bobby Heenan and Koko B. Ware.  This has crap just written all over it.  There’s a really bad storyline behind this where the Islanders have kidnapped Matilda the bulldog.  Heenan is in this match in full dog catcher gear.  Eventually we get to a point where all 6 men are in the ring.  The referee finally gets some control back, sending the Bulldogs back to their corner.  The Islanders proceed to pick up Bobby Heenan and drop him on Koko B. Ware for the win.  That’s right… Koko got pinned by Bobby Heenan.  “Hall Of Famer” Koko B.Ware got pinned by Bobby Heenan.  Can you tell that I’m still bitter that Koko is a hall of famer?  He sucks.  Period.  Fucking bird man.

Semi-Final Tournament Match
Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated One Man Gang (with Slick) by disqualification
Savage is back for his 3rd match of the night.  Liz is wearing her 3rd outfit of the night and is now in a beautiful black evening gown… yowser.  Gang has a huge advantage here as he’s MUCH larger than Savage and has been sitting out since the first round after receiving a bye.  After some early offense from Savage, Gang takes over with some power moves.  Slick gets into it with Elizabeth which draws the the eye of the referee.  At this point, Slick slides over and tosses his cane to OMG who cracks Savage over the back of the head with it.  With Savage in the middle of the ring, Gang chooses NOT to throw the cane out and pin the man, but rather continues to try and hit Savage with it.  He keeps this up until the referee turns around and catches him in the act.  Savage to the finals!

WWF Tag Team Championship
Demolition (Ax and Smash) (with Mr. Fuji) defeated Strike Force (c) (Rick Martel and Tito Santana)
I’ve talked many times in the past about how I’m not a big fan of tag team wrestling, but Demolition is probably my all time favorite duo.  From their entrance into the federation they began running people over and I absolutely LOVED it.  Martel and Chico are the reigning champs and I remember thinking that there would be no chance that they’d be able to hold onto the titles against the unstoppable Demolition.  Some good power moves here from the demonic duo and some great high flying moves from Strike Force.  The unthinkable almost happens as Martel has Smash in a Boston Crab dead center of the ring for a LONG time.  Tito hits his flying forearm on Axe knocking him to the floor.  Tito then goes after Mr. Fuji who throw his cane into the ring.  Axe cracks Martel over the back of the head and Smash roles over to get the pin and the titles.  Thus began the longest tag title reign in WWF history – 478 days!

Tournament Final For The WWF Championship
Randy Savage (with Miss Elizabeth and Hulk Hogan) defeated Ted DiBiase (with André the Giant)
Andre accompanies DiBiase to ringside but Virgil is no where to be found.  Jesse and Monsoon continue to go on and on about how many times Savage has wrestled and that DiBiase is rested after receiving a bye into the finals.  About three or four times Savage goes into the ropes and Andre trips him (of course behind the referee’s back).  Savage then sends Elizabeth to the back presumably to get her out of harms way.  During this time, DiBiase takes the upper hand and really starts to lay into Savage.  A couple of minutes later Liz returns with none other than Hulk Hogan to even the score outside the ring.  The next time Andre gets involved Hogan is right there with a chair to ensure that Savage doesn’t get destroyed.  At this point, Savage and DiBiase go back and forth until DiBiase locks in the Million Dollar Dream right in the middle of the ring.  Andre’s got the referee distracted and Hogan sneaks in and slams DiBiase with a chair.  Savage recovers and hits DiBiase with the elbow to get the 1-2-3 and the championship.  Savage and Liz stick around to celebrate with Hogan and the show goes off the air.

General Thoughts

• You go from 93k fans at WrestleMania III to just over 18k here.  Sure it’s at Trump Plaza which was HUGE at the time but to me that’s a step back.
• I remember Vanna White being a big name but they really go all out here to tout her “star power”.  Bob Uecker is apparently infatuated with here and is going to great lengths to find her.  Boring.
• It’s a shame that Rick Steamboat left the WWF for a while after this.  He’s an outstanding performer and deserved a better run with the Federation.  For further detail check this out.
• As I watched the final match it really pissed me off that not only did Savage not get the victory clean, but Hogan stayed around for the pose down.  Sure they were probably already laying the groundwork for the Mega Powers main event at WrestleMania V but it just rubbed me the wrong way.  This was Savage’s moment in the sun and he should have been able to enjoy it on his own (with Liz of course).
• The older I get, the more I appreciate the heels.  Growing up I was always a “good guy” fan but I’m really starting to realize how difficult it is to be a really good “bad guy”.  Not only do you have to know how to wrestle, but you’ve got to be able to do all the underhanded stuff too… and make the crowd hate you.  These are the kinds of things that were lost on me when I originally watched these shows back in the day.
• This is a REALLY long show.  That said, it’s not the longest show (WrestleMania V is a few minutes longer) but this one FEELS long.  I think it’s basically due to the fact that there are a ton of matches (each in the 6-10 minute range).

This is the first WrestleMania that I remember a hype for outside of the wrestling world.  In addition to the pre-event hype, I remember vividly seeing on front page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer sports page [...]]]> Event: WrestleMania III
Date: March 29, 1987
Venue: Pontiac Silverdome (Pontiac, Michigan)
Attendance: 93,173

This is the first WrestleMania that I remember a hype for outside of the wrestling world.  In addition to the pre-event hype, I remember vividly seeing on front page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer sports page the next day a huge photo of Hogan and Andre.  In my mind this is the first time that WrestleMania was really an “event”.  The opening shots of the crowd are very impressive and the venue is so big that the wrestlers need to be carted in from the dressing room.

The Can-Am Connection (Rick Martel and Tom Zenk) defeated Bob Orton and The Magnificent Muraco (with Mr. Fuji)
I’ve gone on record with my distaste for tag team wrestling and this one really didn’t do a whole lot to change that.  First off… what’s with tag teams that LOOK the same?  Zenk and Martel are essentially the same dude with the exception that Zenk walks like he’s got a stick up his ass.  The good guys get the win when they hit a cross body block on Muraco in conjunction with a schoolboy.  Not a terrible match but nothing more than a crowd warm up in my opinion.

Billy Jack Haynes and Hercules (with Bobby Heenan) fought to a double countout
Very happy to say that the WWF is finally getting it and giving us some storyline recaps before the matches.  To make a long story short this is full nelson vs. full nelson.  Hercules is REALLY getting into character in his pre-match interview when he makes reference to “When I used these chains thousands of years ago”.  Um… OK.  Billy Jack looks like a cross between a gay leprechaun and Randy Savage.  How’s that for a mental image?  Hercules is the first to lock on the full nelson but alas his fingers aren’t locked.  For some reason I kept thinking of the Sly Stallone flick Over The Top here cause we all know, that in arm wrestling if you move your thumb over 2 inches you’re definitely going to win.  In any case we get both wrestlers out of the ring and Billy Jack chooses THIS time to lock on his full nelson.  After the fastest 10 count in the history of the WWF both wrestlers are counted out.  After the match, Hercules uses his 1,000 year old chain to bust open BJ to further the storyline.

Hillbilly Jim, The Haiti Kid and Little Beaver defeated King Kong Bundy, Little Tokyo and Lord Littlebrook by disqualification
OK… one question.  Who did Bundy piss off to go from main eventing WrestleMania 2 to being part of a 6-man midget match at WrestleMania III?  And while we’re on the subject – a MIDGET match?  Come on WWF.  I know times have changed but who thought this was a good idea?  Believe it or not, this one is actually rather entertaining until Bundy drops an elbow on one of the little guys and gets DQ’d.  Then of course all the midgets ban together with Hillbilly Jim to protect their downed brethren.  Funny little (no pun intended) match but not much more than filler.

Loser Must Bow match
Harley Race (with Bobby Heenan and The Fabulous Moolah) defeated The Junkyard Dog
One of the things that I’m noticing while re-watching these events is just how far we’ve come from a politically correct standpoint.  During one of his pre-match interviews JYD says something to the effect of, “I’m as black as the day is long.”  This sort of thing doesn’t bother me in the slightest but there’s no way that a statement like this would make it on the air today.  OK, end social observation.  This is a decent little match for what it is.  Harley Race is way past his prime here and I’m not sure that JYD was ever all that great of an in ring performer.  Race gets the victory with an “out of no where” belly to belly suplex that really didn’t look all that devastating.  JYD give a little curtsy to fulfill his “loser bows” stipulation and then proceeds to hit Race with a chair and put on his cape to a huge pop from the crowd.

The Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) (with Johnny Valiant and Dino Bravo) defeated The Fabulous Rougeaus (Jacques and Raymond)
This match is here for a couple of reasons.  First, it was to showcase the Rougeaue brothers who were going to be getting a big push in future months.  Second it was the start of the Brutus Beefcake face turn (when he became “The Barber”).  To make a really long and boring story short, The Rougeaus hit their finisher (as I like to call it the Balls-to-the-Face) but don’t manage to win the match.  Dino bravo gets involved knocking one of the Rougeaus out allowing the Dream Team to get the pin.  Beefcake (for some reason) isn’t happy with this turn of events and doesn’t leave the ring with Valentine, Bravo and Valiant.  This becomes important in the next match…

Hair vs. Hair match
Roddy Piper defeated Adrian Adonis (with Jimmy Hart)
I commented in my WrestleMania 2 review about how out of shape Adrian Adonis was.  A year later and the WM2 version of Adonis looks slim in comparison to his WM3 counterpart.  This is billed a Piper’s “retirment match” which in retrospect is fucking hilarious seeing as Piper is STILL active in wrestling to this day.  All of that said this is a great match.  It’s hair vs. hair with Piper “on his way out” so you pretty much have to assume that he’s going to win but they do a nice little swerve ending with Adonis putting Piper to sleep only to celebrate one second too soon and not allowing Piper’s hand to hit the mat the third time.  Brutus Beefcake runs to Piper’s aid helping him to wake up which allows Piper to slap on a sleeper of his own getting the victory.  Beefcake holds Jimmy Hart down as Piper shaves Adrian’s head.  Beefcake gets in on the action as well creating his “Barber” persona which he’d have for many years.  My most memorable moment of this match is when Adonis comes to and realizes he’s lost the match and has his head shaved.  Piper shows him a mirror which Adrian punches and clearly mouths “WHAT THE FUCK!!!”  Hilarious.

The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) and Danny Davis (with Jimmy Hart) defeated The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid) and Tito Santana
Before this match Jesse “The Body” Ventura is announced to the crowd.  Not sure why as he doesn’t do or say anything.  I suspect it’s simply because Predator was opening shortly and they wanted to get his name/face out there some more.  On to the match.  There’s nothing worse on a big card (I.E. WrestleMania) than a filler match.  That is except for a 6-man tag team filler match.  There’s some semblance of story line here as Danny Davis is a corrupt referee that has essentially give the tag titles to the Hart Foundation and has caused Tito to lose the IC title.  That’s not enough to keep me interested in this snooze fest that ends with Davis hitting Davey with Hart’s megaphone for the win.  Yawn.

Butch Reed (with Slick) defeated Koko B. Ware
Butch Reed makes his debut against future WWE Hall Of Famer Koko B. Ware.  And please don’t even get me started on why in the HELL Koko is a Hall Of Famer.  Koko does what he does best – loses a match.  Afterward, Tito Santana continues his WrestleMania tradition of getting involved where it makes absolutely no sense and come to the ring and beats up poor Slick.

WWF Intercontinental Championship
Ricky Steamboat (with George Steele) defeated Randy Savage (c) (with Miss Elizabeth)
Part of the reason that I’ve really been looking forward to WrestleMania III is due to the fact that this match was on the card.  It’s one of my Top Ten WrestleMania Matches and it’s always a joy to watch it.  Part of what made this match amazing was the back story which the WWF does a great job recapping.  Essentially Macho Man crushed Steamboat’s larynx and put him out of commission for a couple of months.  This is Steamboat’s last chance to get revenge and the title.  The crowd is into this match from the start and literally gets to a frenzy through a series of close finishes.  This match is pure brilliance as Savage and Steamboat go back and forth with some really slick moves.  Macho hits his flying elbow but the referee has been knocked out so he doesn’t get the win.  Savage then goes to the outside and grabs the bell which he used to injure Steamboat’s larynx.  George Steele gets involved and takes the bell away from him.  Savage then turns his attention back to Steamboat and picks him up for a body slam.  Steamboat reverses the slam into a small package and pins Savage clean in the center of the ring for the victory.  If you’ve never seen this match you owe it to yourself to do so… it’s a classic.

The Honky Tonk Man (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Jake Roberts (with Alice Cooper)
I tell you… as time goes by I enjoy Honky Tonk Man more and more.  I don’t think I really appreciated him all that much back in the day but damn can he play a heel with the best of them.  Jake was never all that great in the ring but he’s one of the best ever when it comes to portraying a character.  This is tight little match with some good back and forth action before Honky uses the ropes to get the pin.  In retrospect this match is an obvious setup for the Intercontinental Title run that Honky went on as well as future programs with Jake.  After the match Alice Cooper gets involved and drapes Damien over Jimmy Hart.  The post match stuff was a complete waste of time but not surprising when you’ve got a “celebrity” like Alice Cooper in the ring.

The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff (with Slick) defeated The Killer Bees (B. Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell) by disqualification
I’m shocked that this match was as late in the card as it was.  It was a decent little tag match with outside interference by Hacksaw Jim Duggin causing the Bees to lose.  Hacksaw is on his anti-all-things-not-American kick and of course has vowed never to allow Volkoff to sing his Russian national anthem (which we all know he does all the time).  I honestly don’t remember where this feud went but this match is an obvious setup for that.  Unfortunately for Bees fans this is essentially the last of their heyday as they went onto get repeatedly squashed by Demolition.

WWF Championship
Hulk Hogan (c) defeated André the Giant (with Bobby Heenan)
This match made my honorable mentions on my Top WrestleMania Matches and after re-watching it I think I might have been wrong in making it just an honorable mention!  This match is outstanding!  Hogan is a huge dude and he’s absolutely dwarfed by Andre.  Typically “big men” matches are pretty boring but this one simply isn’t.  Hogan goes for a slam at the very beginning of the match and hurts his back.  Andre nearly gets a pin in the first 30 seconds of the match.  From there Andre essentially beats on Hogan for a good couple of minutes with Hogan playing it perfectly.  Hogan makes a brief comeback which Andre squashes.  There are a couple of complete “rest holds” in here (bear hug) but both men are really making it look great.  Andre whips Hogan into the ropes and goes for a big kick which Hogan ducks and follows up with a big forearm that knocks The Giant to the mat.  Hogan goes for a scoop slam which I don’t care what you say is damn impressive.  He finishes off Andre with a patented leg drop for the 1-2-3.  Real American and pose down follows “giving the crowd what they want”.

General Thoughts

• THIS is finally what WrestleMania should be.  It feels like a big show.  The matches deliver.  I’m guessing this is the first time they were able to deliver what Vince McMahon had in mind when he dreamed up the concept.
• Whatever happened to the concept of a “stable” of wrestlers?  The Heenan Family, The Four Hoursemen, Jimmy Hart’s crew?  These days the best we’ve got is DX and they’re simply a tag team.  I miss stables who had one another’s backs.
• The intro packages are finally up to snuff here.  This is the first WrestleMania where you can sit down and watch it without knowing the history (as they give you enough of the storyline to be caught up).
• There are a couple of references in here to the “Federettes” (ring side girls).  It’s the only time that I remember them every being referenced in WWF history.
• Celebrity involvement blows.  I don’t mind so much when they’re announcers, timekeepers, etc. but when they are in the corner of the wrestlers you just KNOW that they’re going to get involved.  Leave the fighting to the wrestlers people.
• There have been hundreds of matches in WrestleMania history.  Any show that produces two of my all time favorites is a show worth watching.

As you can see above, this is the first (and I believe only) WrestleMania event to [...]]]> Event: WrestleMania 2
Date: April 7, 1986
Venue: The Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York, The Rosemont Horizon in Rosemont, Illinois, and The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 40,085 (combined)

As you can see above, this is the first (and I believe only) WrestleMania event to come to us from different locations.  Essentially we get 3 “main events” – one from each of the locations.  On the mic we get Vince McMahon and Susan Saint James (really WWF – this is the best “celebrity” you could come up with?) from New York.  In Chicago we get Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund, and Cathy Lee Crosby (of That’s Incredible fame) and Jesse Ventura, Lord Alfred Hayes, and Elvira follow up from LA.  Ray Charles starts things off with a rendition of America The Beautiful which wouldn’t really be noteworthy except for one thing.  During the performance they ran some patriotic photos on screen.  Again… this wouldn’t be noteworthy until the last two shots.  The first was Hogan pointing to the American flag.  The second and final shot in the montage was just Hogan.  I know this was the beginning of Hogan being “The Real American” but come on WWF.  With Hogan being in the main event did ANYONE see him losing after this?

Results from the Nassau Coliseum

Prior to this match we get an interview with Piper.  He’s his typical self going so far as to say he’ll retire if Mr. T beats him.  One thing that I found hilarious was when he says he’ll never shave his head and paint himself black.  Ironic seeing as Piper ended up doing just that at WrestleMania VI for his match up with Bad News Brown.  The WWF can’t seem to get their shit together as these comments are running right over the first match.

Paul Orndorff and The Magnificent Muraco (with Mr. Fuji) fought to a double count out
This is a pretty piss poor start to the event.  Anything that ends with a double count out can’t be all that great.  Apparently since last year’s WrestleMania Orndorff has gone from heel to baby face as the crowd is loving him.  Muraco looks in great shape here.  Vince is clearly struggling to pull Susan Saint James along on the commentary and is forced to give us stuff like, “And Moraco is sweating profusely”.  After about 4 minutes this one mercifully comes to an end with a double count out.

WWF Intercontinental Championship
Randy Savage (c) (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated George Steele
More technical confusion after the match as we get Howard Finkel talking over a pre-taped interview with Mr. T.  The next match up is an I.C. title match with Savage defending.  This is back in the day where Savage was still a heel and George Steele is playing his face.  Steele (if you’re not familiar) has a shtick where we would “eat” the turnbuckles during his match.  During this feud he was more interested in Miss Elizabeth than he was the title.  Essentially Steele is the “Eugene” character that we’ve been given in recent years (IE, a little slow).  George is obviously terrible in the ring and Savage has to work really hard to put on a decent match with him.  To his credit Savage does just that playing the heel to perfection.  Running in and out of the ring, using Liz to his advantage and playing the coward well.  George actually kicks out of the Savage elbow during this match which I did NOT remember.  Macho pulls off the heel victory with a “foot on the ropes” pin.  A step above the previous match but still pretty damn terrible.

Jake Roberts defeated George Wells
This is early in Jake’s career as he’s still undefeated in the WWF.  He’s got his snake in toe but it’s never referred to as Damien.  Jake’s matches are never all that exciting athletically but Jake in the ring is a master of the cerebral stuff.  This is more of the same with Jake “slithering” in and out of the ring.  Wells is essentially one step above a jobber here as I believe this is his last appearance in a WWF ring.  He’s actually got the upper hand through quite a bit of the match (a fact that Vince and Susan continue to point out).  Out of nowhere comes the DDT to give Jake the victory which we all knew was coming.  Damien is placed over the prone Wells who promptly foams from the mouth.

Boxing match
Mr. T (with Joe Frazier and The Haiti Kid) defeated Roddy Piper (with Bob Orton and Lou Duva) by disqualification
We’re treated to a couple of guests prior to this first main event.  Joan Rivers looks worse at this event than she does now… some 23 years later.  This feud has been going on since WrestleMania and T and Piper are here to end things.  They obviously can’t straight up wrestle so we get a boxing match.  I wouldn’t call this “real” boxing but I found myself rather entertained while watching this match.  The first round is pretty uneventful with no knockdowns.  T goes down in the second round and Pipe goes down twice in round three.  They’re both completely punch drunk and the arms are getting REALLY tired and Piper puts an end to things by slamming T in the middle of the ring getting himself disqualified.

Results from the Rosemont Horizon

WWF Women’s Championship
The Fabulous Moolah (c) defeated Velvet McIntyre
This is really weak.  Its obviously a filler match to get something additional on the card but the fans would have been better served if they were given Iron Mike Sharpe vs.  Barry O.  Luckily this one is over after only about a minute and a half with Moolah getting a pin out of absolutely no where.  Feel free to fast forward right the fuck over this one.

Flag match
Corporal Kirchner defeated Nikolai Volkoff (with Freddie Blassie)
This one is slightly better than the previous crapfest, but not much.  So apparently the contestants in this match really care about their flags cause the winner gets to fly theirs.  Um… OK.  Kirchner defeats Volkoff in about 2 minutes and gets to fly his flag.  I tell you what.  If I was a the Rosemont for this event I’d be PISSED at this point.  They’ve seen two matches for a total of about 3 minutes of match time.  Snooze.

Twenty-man battle royal
André the Giant defeated 19 other participants by last eliminating Bret Hart
The guest hosts aren’t getting any better here as now we’re given the “Where’s the Beef” chick.  Talk about a blast from the past.  Luckily for the folks in attendance they finally get themselves a decent match.  We’ve got a smattering of NFL stars and wrestlers with William Refrigerator Perry getting the biggest pop (hilarious that they listed him at 304 lbs).  The Hart Foundation (dressed in blue) work well together and make it to the final 3 with Andre the Giant only to be overtaken by the big man.

WWF Tag Team Championship
The British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith and The Dynamite Kid) (with Ozzy Osbourne and Lou Albano) defeated The Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) (c) (with Johnny Valiant)
I’ve always considered myself a big Beefcake fan and for the life of me I don’t ever remember him winning a title.  Obviously I’m wrong as he’s defending here with Valentine.  The Bulldogs are being accompanied by Ozzy Osbourne which is only made weirder by the fact that Ozzy is wearing a pink suit – no shit.  Gorilla Monsoon keeps referring to Beefcake as “The Beefer” and it consistently cracks me up.  This is absolutely outstanding tag match!  Tons of tags and quick action in and out of the ring.  It sounds silly but the Bulldogs really do show what tag team wrestling is all about.  The ending is kind of weird as Dynamite sticks his head into the ring and knocks Valentine out cold while knocking himself clear to the floor and busting himself open.

Results from the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena

Ricky Steamboat defeated Hercules Hernandez
Lord Alfred Hayes is back again for a second WrestleMania and unfortunately he’s not much better from a commentary standpoint.  This is a pretty standard Steamboat match complete with chops, crisscrossing in the ring and body blocks.  Hernandez does some typical “strong man” stuff and the end comes when Steamboat hits his cross body block off the top rope.  Not great but far and away the best opening match of any of the venues.

Adrian Adonis (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Uncle Elmer
First thought: how did Adrian get a job?  Dude is so out of shape it’s not even funny.  The only possible answer is that they wanted someone to play the dress wearing fag and no one else would do it.  He’d never have a chance in modern day WWF (though that’s true for quite a bit of the WrestleMania 2 roster.  Adonis is in this match (that I coined the Battle Of The Bad Gimmicks) against Uncle Elmer who’s essentially a bad Hillbilly Jim ripoff.  One thing I will say is Adonis knows how to sell and does so like a master.

Terry Funk and Hoss Funk (with Jimmy Hart) defeated The Junkyard Dog and Tito Santana
I’ve said it before and I’m sure I’ll say it again but I’m not a huge fan of tag team wrestling.  That said, this is a pretty solid match (even though this seems like a totally thrown together match up).  There’s some GREAT heel in peril action here with Tito getting hammered.  The funks take Jimmy Hart’s megaphone to JYD’s head for the victory.  Terry Funk is selling a knee injury like it’s his job (which I suppose it is )

Steel cage match for the WWF Championship
Hulk Hogan (c) defeated King Kong Bundy (with Bobby Heenan)
We get a little vignette of Hogan training and we’re shown footage of where Bundy injured Hogan’s ribs a couple of weeks back.  This training montage takes about 9 minutes and is obviously just thrown in to give them an opportunity to put the cage together.  They go into great lengths to show that Hogan is going “against doctor’s orders” with this title defense.  This is a great cage match even though it’s the “old style” cage.  Hogan takes the advantage giving Bundy a pretty good beating.  Bundy turns the tide and starts working over Hogan’s injured ribs.  We go back and forth for a while with each guy getting the upper hand.  Finally Hogan rams Bundy against the cage busting him open.  After a failed slam attempt Hogan looks in bad shape as Bundy gives him the avalanche and a splash.  However, after the next avalanche Hogan “Hulks Up” and proceeds to power slam and leg drop Bundy.  He makes his way over the top of the cage to retain the world title.  Then of course we get the Hogan / Bobby Heenan show in the cage with Heenan obviously coming out on the short end.  All in all a very entertaining main event.

General Thoughts

• The multi-location thing didn’t work.  I tell you, I’m sure they showed the other locations up on the big screens but I’d be PISSED if I paid for a ticket and then saw only 4 matches live.
• I’d have to say that each event got better by location.  The first two Rosemont matches were the weakest on the card but the battle royal and the outstanding tag match redeemed it.
• I wish they’d have the “lead in” material on these DVDs.  This stuff is 25 years ago and hell if I can remember why feuds started.
• Overall I’d say this is a better show than the original WrestleMania.  It would have been MUCH better if they’d had it it one location and cut out some of the filler matches.