[RESULTS/OPINION] WWF Monday Night RAW/WCW Monday Nitro (1/27)

 - Quick Shotgun Saturday Night (1/25) Recap:
  * Bret "Hitman" Hart defeated Mankind via disqualification following
    interference by Owen Hart.
  * Was revealed that earlier in the day at Madison Square Garden that Savio
    Vega turned on Ahmed Johnson, possibly joining the Nation of Domination.
  * Rocky Mavia defeated Savio Vega via disqualification following
    interference by the Nation of Domination.
  * Jake "The Snake" Roberts defeated Salvatore Sincere.
  * Sycho Sid defeated Crush via disqualification following interference by
    the Nation of Domination.

I still don't get Shotgun Saturday Night and, given the miserable state of
wrestling on TV in Minnesota, I don't expect to anytime soon.

WWF Monday Night RAW: Taped 1/20.
Hosted by Vince McMahon, Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler.

 - AHMED JOHNSON vs. CRUSH (w/ The Nation of Domination)
   They run the clip of Savio turning on Ahmed during a tag match at MSG.
   Crush comes out with Clarence Mason and the rest of the NOD, and goes to
   work early on Ahmed. Crush's entire offense seems to be limited to
   punches: punches down on the floor, punches to the back of the head,
   punches in the middle of the ring, etc. Oh yeah, he can choke too. Jerry
   Lawler calls Crush's entourage of rappers "street punks," which is most
   likely an inside USWA joke. Just before the first break we see Faarooq
   has come to the entryway by the RAW sign to look on.

   Back from the break Crush has taken control. He comes off the corner
   turnbuckles to deliver what I'm guessing is a punch, but Ahmed stops him
   cold in midair with a dropkick. Ahmed then clotheslines him to the floor,
   follows, and throws him back in. While Crush occupies the ref, Faarooq
   runs to ringside and attacks Ahmed, slamming him into the ring steps (the
   favorite foreign object of choice these days in the WWF. More guys hit
   steps there than guys go through tables in ECW). Faarooq tosses him back
   into the ring where Crush awaits to deliver the heart punch and the pin.

 - They air a promo for a special installment of RAW to air on Thursday,
   February 13th. This is the week that the USA Network usually preempts RAW
   for the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, which they have done for years.
   (It also usually sparks rumors on the Net-by people who don't know any
   better-that RAW has been cancelled). It will be live, featuring Shawn
   defending the title in a rematch against Sycho Sid. It's being billed
   as "Thursday RAW Thursday," which I assume is a play on "Sunday Bloody
   Sunday."

 - Shawn Michaels comes out for an interview in the ring. He tells McMahon
   that he understands that Bret Hart isn't happy with him, and that "Stone
   Cold" Steve Austin isn't happy with anyone. Bret Hart then comes out and
   tells Shawn that he's rooting for him to win, because he doesn't want to
   face anyone else at WrestleMania. Bret may even "watch his back," if
   Shawn gets the meaning. McMahon reminds all that Sid may be the champ at
   that time. Next out is the Undertaker, who tells Hart he respects him,
   but is sick of hearing how Bret has been "screwed." He points out that he
   should have won the strap at last year's Royal Rumble. "It's time for
   that," pointing at the World Title belt, "to come to the darkside!"
   Turning to Michaels he says "give your soul to the Lord, because that
   belt, and your body, belong to me!" McMahon then introduces Steve Austin,
   who has Jim Ross in tow behind him. Austin does not enter the ring, but
   speaks from the floor. "I may be the toughest 'S.O.B.' in the WWF, but I
   recognize an ambush when I see it. From where I stand right now, I see
   three crybabies and little boy blue!" Austin says he's waiting for the
   no-DQ "Final Four" match at In Your House because that's his type of
   match. He then turns to leave and we see Vader waiting at the far end of
   the aisle. Austin then turns back to the ring and says why wait, teases a
   run into the ring, then leaves, exchanging words with Vader on the way
   out.

 - THE BRITISH BULLDOG (w/ Owen Hart & Clarence Mason) vs. DOUG FURNAS
   Furnas is accompanied by his partner Phil LaFon. Furnas starts things off
   with a dropkick following a leapfrog and the usual jockeying for
   position. The Bulldog kills some time down on the floor. Furnas drives
   him into the corner once he's made his way back in. He Irish whips the
   Bulldog to the opposite corner and follows with a chest ram, merely
   steamrolling into him, splashing him against the turnbuckles. After a
   quick two count down on the mat he lays in a few kicks, then applies a
   high vertical suplex. Another two count follows. The Bulldog then kills a
   little more time by rolling into the corner, causing the ref to back
   Furnas off. Furnas goes to work with a few chops, then another whip to
   the opposite corner. This time the Bulldog moves out of the way of
   Furnas' charge. Furnas goes up and over the top to the floor, landing at
   Owen Hart's feet. The Bulldog follows him out and drops the top half of
   the ring steps on him. The Bulldog reenters the ring and does a
   somersault, as McMahon announces that Ahmed Johnson is somewhere in the
   back looking for the Nation of Domination.
 
   They return from the break and we see Ahmed, wielding a 2X4, kick the
   door open to the NOD's dressing room. The door frame breaks. The room is
   empty.

   Meanwhile the Bulldog has continued to dominate. Furnas tries to come
   back with a few chops, but the Bulldog puts him down with a clothesline.
   The Bulldog sets up either a piledriver or powerbomb, but Furnas turns it
   into a back bodydrop. After a few chops, the Bulldog hits a snap suplex.
   Then, as if things couldn't get any slower, Bulldog applies a headlock.
   He takes Furnas up again, but he escapes. The bulldog bounces off the
   ropes and is met by a dropkick. The Bulldog is whipped into the ropes and
   Furnas applies a belly-to-belly suplex. He follows this up with another
   whip and a powerslam. The Bulldog will only stay down for a two count
   however. Furnas then tries a huracanrana, but the Bulldog blocks it,
   dropping Furnas to the mat headfirst. Furnas kicks out at two. Owen jumps
   up on the apron with his Slammy award trophy. LaFon jumps up as well and
   the ref is occupied by this. Bulldog whips Furnas into the ropes, but
   Furnas reverses it and the Bulldog slams into Owen, his head hitting the
   Slammy. Furnas rolls him up for the pin, but the Bulldog kicks out. Owen
   enters the ring and Furnas sends him back out with a shot, bounces off
   the ropes, and Sunset Flips over the Bulldog. The Bulldog, instead of
   going over backwards, grabs Furnas' feet and drops down, folding him up.
   The ref makes the three count.

   After Furnas and Lafon have left Owen tries to raise the Bulldog's hand
   in victory, but the Bulldog will have none of it. He's upset at Owen's
   meddling and his hopping around with that Slammy in his hand. The Bulldog
   grabs the Slammy and Owen fights for it back, like a small child with a
   toy. Clarence Mason tries to step in and the Bulldog seems to resent
   this. Again he refuses to let Owen raise his arm, then tosses down the
   Tag Title belt after looking to the crowd, which is chanting "Bulldog!"
   The Bulldog does cool down, putting off the face turn for another day.
   Owen and the Bulldog will defend the belts against Furnas and LaFon at In
   Your House, and I'm betting we see not only the turn then, but the title
   change hands as well. This was an okay match, but had little energy. I
   don't quite understand this lowkey build Furnas and LaFon are getting.

 - They again show Savio Vega's turn, as well as footage from Shotgun
   Saturday Night.

 - VADER/MANKIND (w/ Paul Bearer) vs. THE GODWINNS (w/ Hillbilly Jim)
   They show footage from a press conference in Toronto, which in part
   announced the WWF's signing of Tiger Jeet Singh's son, Tiger Ali. Also
   McMahon announces that for the first time since 1989 they will be airing
   the Royal Rumble on RAW next week. Not the entire PPV, but the Rumble
   match itself. Let the pissing and moaning begin!

   The shtick here is that Mankind won't tag out to Vader. Why should he...
   Vader ripped his ear off! He does eventually tag out and Vader comes in
   for a bit to deal out punishment. Then it's Mankind back in and he
   applies the Mandible Claw to Phineas. Henry Godwinn enters and clothes-
   lines both men over the top rope. Phineas slips back into the ring and
   tries to suplex Mankind in over the top. Vader hustles over and grabs the
   rope, allowing him and Mankind to whip Phineas back over the top and out
   to the floor. Henry rushes over and drives both Mankind and Vader away
   from his fallen inbred kin.

   Another commercial break passes and Mankind is back in the ring
   stomping on Phineas. Mankind whips him into the opposite corner, but
   misses the followup. Both Henry and Vader are tagged in and Henry has the
   hot hand, sending Vader reeling. Godwinn bodyslams Vader. Vader is back
   up quickly and the two trade blows and missed moves. Vader sends Godwinn
   to the floor, then drops down and grabs him while Mankind retrieves a
   chair. Vader holds him in place as Mankind charges. Henry moves, not
   exactly at the last second either. Mankind still comes on and bashes
   Vader in the head with the steel chair. Mankind has a sly smile on his
   face as Henry slips back into the ring, the Godwinns winning by countout.

   Before they can resolve this issue they shout something about Ahmed
   Johnson and cut to the last commercial of the show. They come back with
   less than two minutes remaining and a shot of Ahmed swinging his 2X4 at
   one of the Nation's rappers (one of PG-13), then tossing him into the
   open trunk of a white stretch limo. He slams the trunk shut and the car
   speeds off. 

 - Next week's main event: The 1997 Royal Rumble Match, plus highlights from
   the WWF's card at the Toronto Skydome.

Comments: An okay installment of RAW, but nothing special. The Bulldog match
with Furnas was disappointing. Both guys seemed out of it. Assuming Owen and
the Bulldog split, that leaves Furnas and LaFon at the top of a seriously
depleted tag team division.

Savio Vega's turn works... a little. I doubt it will draw all that much
heat, but it will keep Ahmed occupied while they build up the Nation of
Domination, and build up to an Ahmed/Faarooq rematch.

The entire Intercontinental Title situation was forgotten this week, which
pretty much goes to show how low down on the ladder Hunter Hearst Helmsley
is these days. If Marc Mero's going to be making a heel turn, they would
seem to be taking their time about it. We also don't know if the Goldust/
Helmsley feud will continue, or if Goldust will feud with the new heel Mero.
Maybe Mero won't turn heel and he'll go back to feuding with Helmsley? Does
Rocky Maivia fit into all this somewhere? I don't care what they do, so
long as they mix the IC title in it somewhere and dump Helmsley.

The entire "Final Four" scenario is pretty hot, but seems a bit predictable.
Something pretty strange would have to happen to make it wind up as anything
but Shawn vs. Bret at WrestleMania. I wouldn't rule out Sid regaining the
belt at the Thursday RAW, then the Undertaker winning the elimination match.
That would set up a dual main event of Sid vs. Undertaker for the belt and
Shawn vs. Bret in a grudge match. Maybe a cage match?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 - Quick NWO Souled Out (1/25) Recap:
  * Masahiro Chono defeated Chris Jericho.
  * Big Bubba defeated Hugh Morrus in a Mexican Death Match. Morrus was a
    substitution for Konnan. Bubba hit Morrus with a motorcycle.
  * Jeff Jarrett defeated M. Wallstreet. Horseman Steve McMichael aided
    Jarrett in the win while Arn Anderson watch from the crowd.
  * "Buff" Bagwell defeated Scott Riggs. Bagwell's new finisher is the "Buff
    Blockbuster."
  * Scott "Flash" Norton defeated Diamond Dallas Page. Page claimed to be
    with the NWO, then hit Norton with the Diamond Cutter. Page left through
    the crowd. Norton won by countout.
  * The Steiner Brothers defeated The Outsiders. Steiners apparently won the
    WCW Tag Team Titles. Referee Nick Patrick was knocked out and WCW
    referee Randy Anderson made the count, Scott Steiner pinning Scott Hall. 
  * Eddie Guerrero defeated Syxx in a Ladder Match. Guerrero regained
    possesion of his WCW U.S. Title belt.
  * Hulk Hogan defeated The Giant. The Giant was frustrated by Nick
    Patrick's refusal to make a pin count, so the Giant chokeslammed him.
    The rest of the New World Order attacked, ending with Bischoff giving
    Hogan a guitar to use on the Giant.
  * NOTE: The PPV also featured a "Miss NWO" contest and what has been
    reported as a "really bad punk/metal" band.

I haven't seen this yet, but the majority of the reactions that I've read
about it have been overwhelmingly negative. I've read one good review, and
another that gave it points for having a different look. Sounds like the
best match was the Guerrero/Syxx Ladder Match, which most have labelled as
tame compared to past ladder matches. To me it sounds like it came off just
as I figured it would.

WCW Monday Nitro: Live.
HOUR ONE: Hosted by Eric Bischoff, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash.

 - They show footage of the Steiner's Tag Title victory. Bischoff says they
   are going to resolve this situation right off the bat. They call out
   referee Randy Anderson. Bischoff asks Randy how he got into the PPV.
   Anderson says he was invited by the promoter. When asked how much he paid
   for the ticket he says it was a gift. Bischoff then says that there is a
   policy against WCW employees accepting gifts from other WCW employees,
   and that accepting the tickets violated it. Even though Randy Anderson
   just had a tough year, (including an operation of some sort), he was
   fired. This was VERY painful to watch. (Wait a minute... didn't Eric
   Bischoff recieve a motorcycle as a gift from Hogan)?

   Bischoff then calls out the Steiners. Out they come, and Bischoff informs
   them that they are hereby stripped of the titles, and demands that they
   relenquish the belts. Rick tosses his to the Outsiders, but Scott, as a
   challenge, drops his. "Pick that up!" yells Bischoff. Rick picks it up,
   then drops it again. Bischoff goes into a rage, telling them that they
   won't be getting paid for quite some time because of that. Nick Patrick
   retrieves the belt as Bischoff orders the Steiners into the ring. Since
   a Tag Title match was advertised, the Outsiders will defend the belts
   later in the show. What they don't explain is if this is a second
   Outsiders title reign, or a continuation of the first. Bischoff didn't
   invalidate the title change, he just stripped the Steiners of the belts
   and "awarded" them to the Outsiders. WCW declaring the title change valid
   and the Steiners getting the belts back at some point in the future is
   also a possibility.

   Bischoff has nearly done the impossible: he's managed to drag some real
   heel heat out of me. I already hated the guy. Now I hate him, his
   character, his persona, his actions, every single aspect of his very
   existence. He's made me forget that it's just an angle. I now find myself
   rooting for him to be chokeslamed. I would buy an "I Hate Eric Bischoff"
   t-shirt if they made them. Were I at a live event, I'd throw a drink at
   him. Myself and little old ladies would spit on him.

 - THE STEINER BROTHERS vs. THE FACES OF FEAR
   The usual power match between these two teams. Back and forth, with the
   Faces dominating and the Steiners rallying to win. Scott Steiner reverses
   a vertical suplex by Meng into a belly-to-belly suplex for the win. The
   Harlem Heat and Sister Sherri are show watching from seats in the crowd.
   Bischoff, meanwhile, mostly forgets his new persona and calls the match
   straight. Hall and Nash alternate between ridiculing the Steiners and
   acting impressed by their moves.

 - Tony Schiavone and Larry Zbyszko come out to commentate for the rest of
   the first hour. Tony says the Steiners were "stripped" of the titles,
   indicating that this would be the Outsiders' second title reign. They
   show still photos from Souled Out.

 - THE GIANT vs. ROADBLOCK
   The Giant squashes the big rookie. In a bit of an eyebrow raiser the
   Giant dropkicks Roadblock, who then tumbles over the top rope and lands
   on a table, snapping it in two. He finishes him off with a chokeslam.
   The Giant then commandeers a mic and challenges "Hollywood" Hogan to a
   match later in the show. (Bischoff had announced earlier that Hogan was
   in the building).

 - JEFF JARRETT vs. EDDIE GUERRERO
   Oh, how great this match could have been! They start off fast with
   Guerrero applying a headlock. Jarrett armdrags Guerrero to the mat, then
   does a strut (which Larry calls the "Ric Flair Shuffle"). Guerrero snap
   mares Jarrett to the mat and applies a chinlock. Jarrett escapes and
   locks Eddie's arm behind his back. Eddie escapes and applies a headlock,
   is whipped into the ropes, hits a shoulderblock, bounces off more ropes
   and ducks under a leapfrog. Jarrett hooks him on the rebound and tries a
   hiptoss, but Eddie reverses it by trying one of his own. Jarrett escapes
   with a short clothesline, then starts another strut, which he aborts to
   lay in a kick. He then whips Eddie into the corner, follows, and monkey-
   flips him back out, but Guerrero lands on his feet running. Eddie bounces
   off the ropes. Jarrett tries to press him in the air, but Eddie nails a
   dropkick. Eddie covers for a two count.

   Tony Schiavone meanwhile announces that some of the WCW staf have "found"
   something that the fans will be interested in, and they will show it
   shortly. Larry warns him not to give it away.

   Jarrett is whipped into the ropes and comes back with a swinging neck-
   breaker on the rebound. Another whip to the ropes and Eddie tries a
   Sunset Flip over Jarrett. Jarrett tries to block this by bending over and
   punching Eddie, but Guerrero slides out from underneath and Jarrett
   punches the mat. Eddie lands a fist, then small packages Jarrett for a
   two count. They both get up and Jarrett nails a clothesline. Jarrett gets
   a two count. Jarrett applies a suplex, then drapes Guerrero's throat over
   the second rope and jumps on him (like Big Bubba always does). More
   whipping into the ropes and Eddie pulls out a crossbody block. Again into
   the ropes and they collide, both dropping to the mat. Jarrett is back up
   first and whips Eddie into the ropes. Eddie catches Jarrett with a
   headscissors takedown. Eddie then blocks a few right fists and nails a
   reverse Atomic Drop, followed by a European uppercut which drops Jarrett
   to the mat. Eddie then does a suplex, which he drops into a Brainbuster.
   He signals for the Frog Splash. Before Eddie can convert, Jarrett is up
   and suplexes him off the top. Jarrett then signals for the figure four as
   the camera cuts to Debra and Steve McMichael coming down the aisle.

   Noooooo! It was just getting good!

   Jarrett puts Eddie in the corner and lays in a couple of rights. Eddie
   switches places and lays in a few shots of his own. Down on the floor
   Debra is telling Mongo to hit Eddie so that would win. The ref pulls
   Guerrero out of the corner after a five count. Mongo climbs onto the
   apron with the silver briefcase and hits Jarrett instead, signalling to
   Debra that he doesn't care about Jarrett. The ref sees this and
   disqualifies Guerrero because of the outside interference. Jarrett gets
   the win, which oddly enough seems to please Debra (a win any way you can
   get it). She goes over and raises Jarrett's hand, then Mongo drags her
   away.

   I hate it when they ruin a good match with a dumb, meaningless finish
   like this.   

 - Tony plays the footage of "Rowdy" Roddy Piper defeating Hulk Hogan at
   Starrcade with a sleeperhold. Eric Bischoff had been supressing the
   footage since december 29th. the footage starts: Piper drops Hogan to
   the mat in a sleeper. The ref raises Hogan's arm once... twice... and the
   tape cuts out. Tony asks what is going on and is told Bischoff entered
   the video truck and removed the tape. Out comes Bischoff with the tape
   and he warns Tony, and everyone else in WCW, never to try anything like
   that again. He then breaks the tape and walks out. Bischoff, you son of
   a...

 - ULTIMATE DRAGON (w/ Sonny Onoo) vs. BILLY PEARL
   Who? Kid looks like David Sammartino, and seems to have gotten his moves
   from Alex Wright. Dragon schools him, finishing him off with a moonsault
   and a Dragon Suplex.

 - "Mean" Gene Okerlund interviews the Four Horsemen. These things are
   starting to wear a bit thin. Everyone seems to be on the same page except
   for Debra McMichael this time around. Flair gives his support to the unit
   as a whole. Arn congratulates Benoit on his demolishing Sullivan last
   week. Mongo tells Debra that Jarrett just isn't going to be a Horseman.
   Debra says she has always supported Benoit as a Horseman. Benoit taunts
   Sullivan.

 - LEX LUGER vs. RON POWERS
   Torture Rack. Lex then gives an interview where he talks about how tough
   the NWO is (apparently he's only just figured this out).

HOUR TWO: Hosted by Tony Schiavone, Bobby "The Brain" Heenan and Mike Tenay.

 - As always, they recap the events from the top of the show.

 - THE AMAZING FRENCH CANADIANS (w/ Col. Parker) vs.
   "THE ENFORCER" ARN ANDERSON/STEVE "MONGO" MCMICHAEL (w/ Debra McMichael)
   Obviously Arn has to wrestle the bulk of this match, so the Canadians
   dominate. Mongo is eventually tagged in and lays both Canucks out with
   lariats. He then hits Carl Oulette with a shoulderblock to the knees. He
   whips Jacques Rougeau into the ropes and clotheslines him in the gut.
   Having hit his stride, he then whips Carl into the ropes and back
   bodydrops him. He hoists Rougeau up over his head, holds him there, then
   dumps him on Oulette. Carl catches Jacques and sets him down, so Mongo
   clotheslines the two. He picks them up and whacks their heads together a
   few times. Col. Parker then tosses the Canadian flag to Oulette. Mongo
   points this out to the ref, who heads over to disarm Carl. Debra takes
   the opportunity to toss Mongo the briefcase and he puts Rougeau out with
   it, covering for the pin.

 - Lee Marshall phones in from Memphis, Tennessee. Next weeks show could be
   a big one. I'd bet Piper shows up, as well as something signifigant
   happening involving Jarrett in his hometown.

 - THE OUTSIDERS (w/ Syxx) vs. THE EXTREME
   Ray Darling and Devon Storm debuted on Saturday as the "Extreme Team."
   The Outsiders, who are totally unsuited to work the same type of match,
   quickly crunch them for the win. Hall hits one of them with the Outsider
   Edge, then steps on his chest for the pin.

 - KEVIN SULLIVAN (w/ Jimmy Hart) vs. "DESPERADO" JOE GOMEZ
   Sullivan annihilates Gomez in about a minute, dragging him around the
   ringside area and stomping on his belly for the win.

 - "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan comes out for an interview conducted by Eric
   Bischoff. Hogan belittles all his opponents of the last few months:
   Savage, Piper and the Giant. Sting and Savage are shown looking on from
   the crowd in the upper deck. Hogan and Bischoff claim Sting is with the
   NWO, and perhaps Savage would like to join as well. Hogan says he'll
   fight the Giant tonight, then pose for all us lucky fans.

 - DEAN MALENKO vs. JERRY FLYNN
   A fairly easy win for Malenko. Flynn on occasion is able to use his
   slightly larger size to take the advantage, but Malenko is able to
   maneuver Flynn into the Texas Cloverleaf.

 - A uniformed guard comes out and hands tony Schiavone a telegram. Tony
   reads that is meant for him,and that he's to read it aloud. Tony looks it
   over then asks for a house mic and announces that the WCW Championship
   Committee has ruled that Hogan must defend his title against Roddy Piper
   (should he accept) at SuperBrawl next month in San Farncisco. Tenay
   points out that Piper has already said he's wrestled his last match, but
   that he may be too proud to go out the way he did. The letter mentions
   that Ted turner himself is supposed to get a copy of the ruling.

 - CHRIS BENOIT (w/ Woman) vs. HUGH MORRUS
   These guys could probably put on a really good match if given the chance.
   Morrus dominates with his strength, and gets Benoit in position for a
   moonsault that misses. Suddenly a "fan" rushes to ringside; a fairly
   muscular black woman whom Nancy seems to recognize. The ref exits the
   ring to deal with this. From the other side comes Kevin Sullivan, who
   nails Benoit with a wooden chair. Morrus then drags Benoit's carcass into
   the corner and hits his moonsault. The ref reenters to make the pin
   count. Sullivan then pulls the security off this woman and he, Sullivan
   and Hart head down the aisle to where "Mean" Gene awaits. She refuses to
   say her name, but Sullivan admits he knows her. She tells Sullivan that
   he made a mistake ten years ago not picking her. Jimmy Hart says that
   women are causing too many problems in WCW today. She tells Hart not to
   compare her to any of the others, calling Woman a "fugitive from a fat
   farm," and saying Debra McMichael has "chicken legs." She tells Jimmy
   that he can't give Kevin what she can (prompting Okerlund to warn her
   that this is a family show). She leaves with Hart and Sullivan. I should
   know who this woman is, but my mental computer is coming up blank.

 - "HOLLYWOOD" HULK HOGAN (w/ The New World Order) vs. THE GIANT
   Hogan challenges both the Giant and Piper to come out (a notion that
   Heenan, Tenay and Schiavone agree with). The Giant comes out and has to
   cope with both Hogan and Vincent. He dumps Vincent out of the ring, then
   grabs Hogan for the chokeslam. Bischoff runs in and lays in some really
   weak axehandle shots to the Giant's back. The Giant releases Hogan and
   grabs Bischoff in the choke, which brings out the Outsiders. Several NWO
   members stomp on the Giant until Lex Luger runs out. For an uneasy moment
   he and the Giant stare down as the NWO stand back. Heenan and Schiavone
   start lamenting the possibility that Luger has joined the NWO. Luger then
   assumes a position beside the Giant to hold off the NWO as the show ends.

 - Next week's main event: None announced.

Comments: Not the greatest Nitro, but it managed to establish some level of
excitement and maintain it for the majority of the show. Bischoff's
performance as a heel this week was truly memorable, and should be an early
candidate for Heel of the Year.

Jeff Jarrett continues to wrestle at a level that he hadn't shown in the WWF
his last months there. He really deserves some recognition for his work in
matches that have really been unfair to him. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Bottom Line: The WWF is in danger of becoming predictable again. Showing
the Royal Rumble Match next week is a big gamble. In theory everyone who
didn't buy the PPV will tune in. On the other hand, many may not since they
already know who won it. They need next week's show to sell the following
week's Thursday special. The WWF have established the agenda leading up to
WrestleMania, they now need to concentrate on delivering good quality
matches until then.

WCW, as has been expected, is building up SuperBrawl to be a huge show.
Right now they have Hogan vs. Piper as the main event, which seemed to draw
well for Starrcade. I'm guessing Benoit and Sullivan will tangle there as
well,and that could have potential if they do something new. Throw in the
cruiserweights, resolve the Horsemen scenario and have Sting and Savage get
involved in a big way and they'll have the makings of a tremendous PPV.

I hate to admit it, but I'm buying the notion of Luger turning. I'd imagine
his motive would be money, and that the NWO would hire him to keep the Giant
occupied. If Hogan is being set up for a Piper rematch, they need to do
something with the Giant. The biggest strike against this idea though would
be the fact that Luger would be the number four man in the NWO behind Hogan,
Hall and Nash. I'm not sure if his ego could handle that. Still, it's not as
if they have anything else planned for him. He can't go after the U.S. belt
because it's held by a fellow WCW babyface. Feuding with Lord Steven Regal
over the TV Title is a possibility, but I doubt it would capture the fans'
imaginations. Turning Luger would also offset Diamond Dallas Page's recent
face turn. They haven't established any connection of any kind between Luger
and the Horsemen, and he's certainly not going to compete against the
cruiserweights, so that leaves him fighting WCW jobbers, Dungeon of Doom
lowlifes, or the less valuable NWO members. A title shot against Hogan would
be way down the road, at least after SuperBrawl. I'd wager the Giant, Sting
and Savage all got shots first. The more I think about it, the more
plausible his joining the NWO is.

Which probably makes it the best argument for it not happening.

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This Week's Winner: Nitro.

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JRP