Slobberknocker Central Monday Night Recap #245
July 24th, 2000

The Opening Word:

Over the weekend I had the choice of picking up a Japanese diecast robot 
off of eBay, or buying the Fully Loaded PPV.

I chose the robot.

I did break down at the last minute and tried to order the PPV too, but the 
order wouldn't go through. It would either accept the order, but just show a 
black screen with a "this channel will be available shortly" message; or it 
wouldn't work at all, popping up a box with the customer service number of 
my local cable company. After about ten minutes I gave up. A few hours later 
I went online to check out the results of the show.

I'm not sure if I missed much or not. Most reviews agree there were some 
decent matches on the show, some throwing out "Match of the Year Candidate" 
for the Triple H/Chris Jericho match, but most seemed to agree that from a 
storyline standpoint, little happened.

The WWF has an excellent opportunity to do something on RAW this week to get 
fans talking. The last month went by very much by-the-numbers, with the top 
stars of the WWF plugged into matches with lower-level stars, the intention 
being to coast a month while hopefully elevating some of those lower stars.

Next month is SummerSlam, a PPV the WWF can't really afford to coast into 
like they did Fully Loaded. After SummerSlam comes the jump to TNN. Either 
the WWF pumps up the product now, or they wait until after SummerSlam and go 
into the network jump with a big story, or they save the big stuff for the 
jump itself.

(Or they have no "big stuff" up their sleeves--a real possibility which I 
hate to even think about right now.)

I hope they kick things into gear this week.

---

I think I was a bit harsh on Nitro last week. I really didn't care much for 
the show, and I stand by my feelings on the matches on the show, but I 
didn't really address what I saw as some positives on that show. The 
wrestling, as unimpressed as I was, was still leaps ahead of what WCW had 
been doing in recent months.

As much as I think Johnny Ace's influence has been too blatant and 
heavy-handed in certain matches, his addition to the booking team (as match 
coordinator or organizer or whatever it is he's officially called) has been 
a plus to WCW.
 
The booking, and attention to detail, has also improved. Whether it's 
because Vince Russo has kept himself off TV and become more focused, or it's 
because he's smartly relying on the talents of those who ran the show the 
few weeks he was gone, or simply because he's finally got an idea of what 
can work and what can't in WCW, the writing has seemed tighter and smarter 
in the weeks since Russo's return.

Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash staying off TV helped things too.

Last week's Nitro showed a glimmer of promise: a glimmer which was mostly 
extinguished on the following night's installment of Thunder. Gone was the 
smart writing and logic of the night before. Back were the crappy angles and 
characters Nitro had managed to avoid. Match quality was back down in the 
toilet.

Worst off all was the overbearing presence of Kevin Nash, who made an ass of 
himself and made WCW look pretty silly too, during the course of one of the 
most self-serving, lie-ridden wrestling "shoot" speeches ever televised. 
It's hard to respect a company that airs an interview with one of their top 
stars in which they basically come out and say wrestling is fake, dismiss 
the current World Heavyweight Champion by saying he was "given" the title, 
blasting the company's biggest star (Goldberg), and twisting history to make 
it look like they were the biggest star ever in the business. Had a heel 
said this it would have been a great speech to draw heat, but it was all 
said as if it were the truth, with nary a word of it disputed by the 
announcers. We're supposed to look upon Kevin Nash as if he's some kind of 
hipster renegade who will say anything and do whatever it takes to keep from 
being held back by WCW. The reality of the speech was that Nash came off 
looking like a whiny, egotistical, lying, hypocritical loser who--if we are 
to take him at his word--will go back to the WWF when his contract runs out 
if he's not given the World Title at the New Blood Rising PPV.

The scary thing is Nash probably believes everything he said. Even scarier 
is the idea that WCW wants us to believe it too.

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

WCW Monday Nitro:
Live/Taped: Live.
Length: Two Hours+.
Location: Cleveland, Ohio.
Hosted By: Tony Schiavone, Scott Hudson & Mark Madden.

HOUR ONE:

 - Lance Storm comes out and demands that the Canadian national anthem be
   played. As it is the Canadian flag lowers from the ceiling. Mark Madden
   channels Bobby Heenan by insisting on singing the lyrics. Storm has a few
   words for his PPV opponent, Mike Awesome, then throws out an open
   challenge to defend his Canadian (U.S.) Heavyweight Title. You know, I
   had to laugh last week when Storm did his speech about the belt, and I
   realized he was cribbing it, almost word-for-word, from Shane Douglas'
   NWA title win in 1994. Storm looks surprised for some reason when Big
   Vito comes out. After a brief verbal exchange Vito agrees to put his
   Hardcore Title on the line as well.

   LANCE STORM vs. BIG VITO
   Vito does some hardcore stuff, which Storm sells for about ten seconds.
   They then go into a wrestling sequence, consisting of Storm doing a move,
   covering, Vito kicking out, move, cover, kick-out, move, cover, kick-out.
   Vito then goes on the offense and gets his three unsuccessful pin
   attempts. He then picks Storm up, allowing Storm to roll forward,
   underneath Vito, and come up from behind with the Maple Leaf, Storm's
   half-crab finisher. Vito taps out. Storm wins the Hardcore Title.

   Booker T is in the building.

 - Booker T comes out and trashes the "player haters" in the back like Jeff
   Jarrett. Goldberg then comes out to rebut. Goldberg says he didn't care
   about Booker until Booker stuck his nose in *his* business last week.
   They agree to fight, but here comes the Cat, who as commissioner says
   he's decided that there will in fact be a vote, by the fans, on the WCW
   website to choose who will face Booker. Sting is one of the names on the
   list. The fans in the arena are really behind Goldberg getting the shot.

 - Schiavone describes tonight's show as history in the making. Hudson says
   there are "rumors" that the Internet has been booking WCW, and tonight
   it'll happen for real. The contender list includes: Sting, Goldberg,
   Billy Kidman, Lance Storm, Mike Awesome, Kanyon, Buff Bagwell, Shane
   Douglas, Stevie Ray & Vampiro. Kidman, who joined the crew for color
   commentary, announces that to celebrate Torrie Wilson's birthday he's
   brought videotape the two of them made, and will play it sometime during
   the show.

 - MISS HANCOCK/DAVID FLAIR vs. LT. LOCO/MAJOR GUNS
   Total garbage. Madden and Kidman talk about the tape during the whole
   match, Kidman saying "that's on the tape!" any time something vaguely
   sexual takes place in the ring. Guns rolls Hancock up for the win.
   Hancock then rips Guns' top off. Guns acts dismayed, even though she
   herself usually rips the shirt off every time she comes out. Can't they
   design an outfit for Miss Hancock to wrestle in? What's the point of
   doing a t&a match in which one of the competitors wears an outfit that
   shows off neither "t" nor "a" and she can't wrestle because she has to
   keep pulling her skirt down (and the camera cuts away before you can see
   anything anyway)? Are they worried we fans won't recognize her if she
   wore anything other than that stupid suit?

   Jeff Jarrett is pissed because he hasn't gotten a title shot. The Cat
   tells him if he can't handle it he should pack up his banjo and leave.
   Jarrett flips out and clears the Cat's desk. The Cat says Jarrett can
   have a title shot against the Tag Team Champs: Kronic.

   Pamela asks if that's really Sting under the mask? He says yes, and tells
   the booking committee that he's taking off his stupid mask tonight.

 - Goldberg says if anyone other than he gets chosen for the title shot
   he'll put them in a bodybag.

 - Brian Adams finds Bryan Clark laid out from a guitar shot.

 - JEFF JARRETT vs. BRYAN ADAMS
   Schiavone says they are experiencing record traffic on the WCW website,
   and that fans will have a hard time connecting to place their votes. I
   tried voting for Stevie Ray but it wouldn't take my vote. I got a "server
   is down" message regarding the Qtopics site running the poll. 

   Jarrett holds his own against Adams until Clark finally comes out.
   They're going to give him the High Times through the announce table, but
   the ref tries to stop them, so they put the ref through the table
   instead. Jarrett runs away through the crowd.

   Vampiro, now made up to look like a member of the Insane Clown Posse,
   says he can take care of the Great Muta. He asks the Cat to be the guest
   referee, to watch his back, because his lackeys are so pitiful.   

 - Shane Douglas chews out Torrie for making a kinky video with Kidman.

 - Sting leads the voting with 35 percent. Goldberg follows at 30. My Stevie
   Ray (2 percent) vote still hasn't gone through. Kidman sits at the bottom
   of the list with 1 percent of the vote.

 - VAMPIRO (w/ the Insane Clown Posse) vs. THE GREAT MUTA
   No match. Muta joins with Vampiro and all four Brothers in Paint
   (including the Demon) beat on the Cat. I would assume the Jung Dragons
   will now side with the Cat against these guys. Schiavone starts talking
   like they're going to a commercial, but with RAW just starting, they stay
   with the action, as the Cat goes after the ICP.

   Booker T says "boo-yah!" to Pamela. Goldberg paces. Last chance to vote
   for Stevie Ray!

HOUR TWO:

 - BOOKER T vs. ???
   Booker T comes out first. The lights dim and Sting's music plays.

   BOOKER T vs. STING
   Out comes Sting, but he's jumped on the stage by Goldberg, who had been
   hiding underneath the Turner-Tron. Goldberg drops him with the big kick
   (big crowd boo), which Madden points out was the same move that put Bret
   Hart out of commission. Officials are quickly on the scene to keep
   Goldberg and Booker apart. The fans are totally confused about what and
   who they should cheer for. Goldberg grabs a mic and says that even though
   Booker has the belt, he's still The Man.

   BOOKER T vs. GOLDBERG
   The first move in Goldberg just sort of runs into Booker. They go to the
   floor and Goldberg slams him against the ring steps. The announcers,
   cowed, tell Goldberg that he's The Man. Goldberg says "f*** you!" (muted)
   to the crowd. Booker has been busted open. In the ring Goldberg slaps on
   an arm submission. Stevie Ray comes out and throws in the towel, and the
   Cat tells Goldberg that he wins the match because Booker can't continue,
   but because Booker didn't submit, and wasn't pinned, Goldberg doesn't win
   the title.

 - Booker demands another go-around tonight with Godlberg.

 - BUFF BAGWELL (w/ Judy Bagwell) vs. "POSITIVELY" KANYON
   No match. Kanyon doesn't come out--the DDP theme song playing a couple
   of times. Judy Bagwell tells Kanyon to bring his "f***ing ass" (muted)
   out. "Does she eat with that mouth?!" Buff tells here she can't say that
   on TNT. Judy says she'll say what she wants, and calls Kanyon a
   son-of-a-bitch. Buff says he wins, and does his little dance as his music
   plays. Judy then does the dance. The camera by which we're seeing all of
   this is suddenly laid on the mat, and the cameraman attacks Buff. It's
   Kanyon, wearing a rubber mask that makes him look like Triple H. Kanyon
   drops Buff with the Kanyon Kutter, then chases Judy outside, where he
   dumps her in the trunk of a waiting car.

 - Buff sets off in his car to find Kanyon.

 - Kidman reminds Torrie what's on the tape.

 - SHANE DOUGLAS (w/ Torrie Wilson) vs. MIKE AWESOME (w/ Fat Chicks)
   Yes, Awesome comes out with three fat chicks. Funny moment: a woman in
   the second row can be seen talking on a cell phone and waving to whoever it
   at home she's talking to. Awesome dominates at first, though at one point
   he has a lot of trouble executing a springboard dive to the floor. After
   he tosses Douglas back in Torrie jumps on Awesome's back. Douglas takes
   over, performing one of the lamest restholds I've ever seen. Douglas
   grabs Awesome's head and twists it maybe 45 degrees. Awesome comes back
   with a series of clotheslines. He goes up top, stopped by Torrie grabbing
   his leg. As the ref deals with that Douglas pulls out a chain. Suddenly
   Kidman appears on the big screen. It's THE tape, showing Kidman in a
   towel in a hotel room. Torrie is waiting under the covers. Kidman slips
   in with her, throws the towel out, and the two wiggle beneath the
   blanket. We, of course, can't see anything. That doesn't stop Torrie and
   Douglas from being so distracted that they don't see Awesome getting a
   barbell, which he uses on Douglas. Awesome gets the pin. Kidman appears
   up on the stage, waving a pair of Torrie's panties. Lance Storm then
   comes in, but Awesome plants him with a running powerbomb. Bad match,
   okay angle, but the tape wasn't anything to see.

 - Douglas charges the production truck to get the tape. Kidman, meanwhile,
   has hit the ring and says he has copies of the tape: enough for everyone
   in the building. They then show the Jung Dragon getting all horny
   watching the tape, and Kiwi appreciating what he sees as he's ironing
   shirts. Douglas calls Kidman a son-of-a-bitch and vows revenge.

 - Hey, there's a Steel Cage over the ring, and it's being lowered ...

 - CAGED HEAT MATCH
   The rules here make little sense. Of the four tag teams in this match
   (Mark Jindrak & Sean O'Haire, the Filthy Animals, Sean Stasiak & Chuck
   Palumbo, the Filthy Animals), only three will go on to face Kronic in a
   four-way match for the Tag Titles at the PPV. Therefore, whichever team
   is the last one left in the cage will miss out on this match. Actually
   the rules make sense--it's the actions of the wrestlers that don't. No
   one really makes much of an effort to get out of the cage. Jindrak &
   O'Haire are "eliminated" first when they're thrown out of the cage, thus
   they get to be in the PPV match. Stasiak & Palumbo are next when they get
   sick of fighting and simply walk out, locking the door behind them. Konan
   cuts the lock off the door, and Juventud Guerrera and Corporal Cajun are
   eliminated when Juvi dives out of the ring onto Cajun, knocking the two
   out the door. Somehow Disco Inferno ends up on top of the cage. Inside
   the cage, meanwhile, a ladder is brought out and General Rection and Rey
   Mysterio climb up, going through the trapdoor section. A table is set up
   in the aisle and they tease Captain Rection doing a dive off the cage,
   which would have been crazy if they had done it, and a disappointment
   (huge boos from the crowd) when they didn't. Rection fights with Mysterio
   and Disco. Rey and Rection then climb back down, and moments later
   Rection leaves the cage, meaning the Filthy Animals have been eliminated
   from the Tag Title match at the PPV. Just an ugly, ugly match.

   Booker tells Stevie Ray he's going to win the match for the people.
   Intentional or not, it's yet another thing WCW has Booker T doing which
   seems derivative of the Rock.

 - Goldberg shoves Stevie Ray through a window. What, another commercial?!
   It's friggin' 10:00 PM!

 - BOOKER T vs. GOLDBERG
   Goldberg jumps Booker in the aisle and dominates from there. Jeff Jarrett
   suddenly runs in and delivers a chairshot to Goldberg, which the big man
   no-sells. The Cat then comes in and tangles with Goldberg. What a mess.
   Out of nowhere Booker gives Goldberg a Rock Bottom--I mean a Book End,
   and scores the upset pin. The crowd pops, but only for a second. Goldberg
   gets up immediately, floors Booker, then wipes out the security team as
   the show fades out.

 - This Wednesday: Nothing announced.

 - Next week: Nothing announced.

Comments:

This is the type of show which seemed alright--good, in fact--as you watch 
it live (and in bits and pieces during the second hour as RAW was also on), 
but looking back at it as a whole, it doesn't really hold up.

The show started strong with the Lance Storm match, and the hour as a whole 
was solid (albeit lacking in quality wrestling). The "vote on the website" 
stuff was corny though, and as the second hour unfolded the whole ploy 
became pointless, as the match the fans supposedly voted to see never even 
took place. Instead we got two Booker/Goldberg matches, neither of them any 
good, and a bunch of other stuff which just seemed thrown out there to fill 
the time between the two big matches.

Throw in the awful cage match and you wind up with a show not too deserving 
of praise--precisely the type of show we've come to expect from WCW.

Did Johnny Ace just do what he does for the first match? After that one we 
got: 1) no finish, 2) no finish, 3) match ended with no pinfall or 
submission, 4) no finish, 5) foreign object finish, 6) awful cage match, and 
a main event with a supposedly no-no run-in (two, actually) and a pinfall 
shoehorned in to avoid yet another no finish.

Chalk up another heel turn, with Muta joining Vampiro & the ICP. I think 
Russo has turned someone on every show since his return. (Were there any 
turns on Thunder last week? I can't remember.)

I don't think they even mentioned Kevin Nash's name tonight. Maybe they've 
rethought that whole angle--and bless them if they did.

Scott Steiner had the night off for his honeymoon. I for one didn't miss him 
a bit. Nor Rick Steiner, Tank Abbott, 3 Count, and most of the others who 
didn't make it on TV his week.

Judy Bagwell ... why? Buff Bagwell doesn't exactly come off as manly 
fighting to save his mommy.

I seriously doubt that website poll was legit.

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

WWF RAW is WAR:
Live/Taped: Live.
Length: Two Hours+.
Location: Austin, Texas.
Hosted By: Jim Ross & Jerry "The King" Lawler.

WWF RAW:

 - Commissioner Mick Foley makes his way to the ring. He says it's his job
   to make sure the WWF delivers on a PPV, and that the WWF did so at Fully
   Loaded. He talks about how brutal the Val Venis/Rikishi cage match was.
   Moving on to Kurt Angle and the Undertaker, he says Angle has demanded a
   rematch with the Undertaker, which Foley, as a fan of seeing Angle get
   his ass kicked, agrees to. He then tips his hat off to Triple H and Chris
   Jericho. Finally, upon addressing the WWF Championship situation at the
   PPV, Foley is joined in the ring by Chris Benoit and Shane McMahon.
   Benoit demands a rematch, tonight. Shane says the one constant in the
   WWF, when his dad was running it, grandfather was running it--even when
   Steve Austin was running it--was that the referee's decision was final.
   Foley retorts that times change. Foley says he'll give Benoit's demand
   consideration. Benoit says that's not good enough, and just about to go
   after Foley when Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley comes out. She says she
   supports her brother Shane's claim that Benoit should get a title
   rematch. Foley jokes that at one point he thought she was a moderately
   attractive girl, but that lately he'd have to go along with Chris
   Jericho's assessment of her. She slaps him. Foley, no longer in the mood
   to play around, says if she and Shane like to get so involved in
   wrestling matters, tonight he'll book the two of them together in a tag
   team match against opponents to be named later. Neither Triple H nor
   Benoit can interfere either, or they're all fired. This whole interview,
   not quite clocking in at twenty minutes (but close enough), started out
   strong, but ended up going nowhere.

   The Rock has arrived.

 - ROAD DOGG vs. STEVE BLACKMAN
   X-Pac sits in on commentary. He says Road Dogg thinks he's a better
   singles competitor than a tag team partner, and as such he and X-Pac now
   have a thing going to see who can do better in singles competition. This
   match ends up looking a lot like the match Blackman had on Sunday Night
   Heat against Sho Funaki. Blackman gets the pin after kicking a chair at
   the Dogg's head. X-Pac says he'll take a shot at Blackman on SmackDown!
   (Given the fact that X-Pac NEVER loses singles matches anymore you can
   bet he'll be our next Hardcore Champion.)

   Triple H arrives, and immediately Stephanie starts whining about the tag
   team match she's in. She tries to explain how she got into the mess, with
   Triple H getting aggravated that he's no sooner arrived and he's already
   got problems to deal with. He then spots some flowers on a table and asks
   if they're part of another Chris Jericho plot. "Why don't you read the
   card?!" she snaps. Triple H instead throws the flowers against the wall.
   Stephanie, about to cry, says they weren't from Jericho or Kurt Angle,
   they were from her ... for Triple H! Both the audible crowd reaction, and
   that of Triple H, are priceless.

 - SHANE MCMAHON/STEPHANIE MCMAHON-HELMSLEY vs. ???
   Lita comes out--one half of the opposing team. Shane gets on the mic and
   says it doesn't matter who the other opponent is, because he won't let
   any harm come to his little sister (the inference being he'll never tag
   her in). Out comes ... the Big Show! Shane's face shows shock and horror,
   and he runs away, the Big Show chasing close behind (well, not that close
   ... Big Show's sporting a Big Beer Gut). That leaves Stephanie and Lita
   to go at it. The crowd is going nuts for Lita. Oh, if only the Women's
   Championship were on the line here! Lita kills Stephanie, going up top
   for a final moonsault to put her away for good. Out comes Trish Stratus.
   No! Trish knocks Lita off the ropes, then whips her with a strap.
   Stephanie joins in and the two leave her laying. I know this builds to
   something, but a win by Lita here would have blown the roof off.

   The Big Show's looking for Shane.

 - THE GODFATHER (w/ Ho's) vs. BULL BUCHANAN (w/ Steven Richards)
   The stipulation here is if Bull wins, the Godfather can't bring out
   anymore Ho's to the ring. If the Godfather wins, Richards has to stop
   censoring the Ho's. Jim Ross says Richards doesn't understand the First
   Amendment. I'm not sure Ross does either. MONSTROUS "Save the Ho's!"
   chant by the crowd. The Godfather looks like he's going to win, so Steven
   goes after a chair. Two Ho's try to stop him and he pushes down one and
   gives the other a Steviekick! Richards then nails the Godfather with the
   chair as he's doing the Ho Train charge into the corner. Bull does an
   impressive looking flip up onto the turnbuckles, comes off the top, and
   covers for the pin.

   Shane ducks behind a car, hiding from the Big Show. The Big Show proves
   he's smarter than he looks by realizing Shane's probably hiding OVER
   THERE BY THE CAMERMAN. Shane runs up and over a car to escape.

WWF WAR ZONE:

 - KURT ANGLE vs. THE UNDERTAKER
   Angle says he's conquered his fears, but it doesn't look like it here, as
   he spends much of the time trying to run away. When he gets his hands on
   him he plants Angle with a chokeslam.

   Shane McMahon comes out of the crowd, the Big Show in hot pursuit. Uh-oh,
   I already see where this is going. Shane runs into the ring--straight
   into a waiting Undertaker choke. The Big Show comes in and asks the
   Undertaker to let him have him. The Taker passes him off, then turns to
   deal with Angle. Big Show grabs Shane, then releases him, as everyone in
   the arena suddenly realizes what's about to happen. Shane bounces around
   in front of the Undertaker and tells him to look behind him. The
   Undertaker turns, meeting a clothesline from the Big Show! Big Show,
   Shane and Angle all stomp on the Undertaker, who--gosh almighty--actually
   sells the beating. Left laying, the Undertaker waves off all help as he
   struggles to get to his feet, as the fans cheer him on.

 - Michael Cole tries to get a word with the Undertaker, but is cut off when
   the Big Show, Angle & Shane all attack. Shane drops a "concrete" cinder
   block on the Undertaker's knee. Undertaker screams in pain.

 - Chris Jericho, left arm and ribs bandaged, comes to the ring. He says
   drew Triple H's blood at the PPV--tasted his blood--and liked it. He'd
   like another piece of Triple H. Triple H appears on the Titan-Tron and,
   after giving Jericho props for proving himself, bashes him by saying he's
   obviously not at Triple H's level. Triple H declines to step into the
   ring with Jericho. Y2J says that just means Jericho will have to track
   Triple H down backstage. Triple H says come get it. The camera follows
   Jericho from the ring all the way to Triple H's dressing room. The two
   tear it up, trashing the room in the process, until officials flood in to
   break it up. Another segment that started out great but didn't really go
   anywhere.

   Shane wishes Benoit luck in his match against the Rock, and leaves Kurt
   Angle behind to lend a hand if needed. Shane & the Big Show then pile
   into a limo and depart.

 - Kane is in the building.

 - SCOTTY TOO HOTTY vs. TAZZ
   Scotty hits the Worm, but Tazz gets the easy win with the Tazmission.
   Rikishi then waddles out to chase Tazz off.

   Mick Foley tells Edge & Christian they'll face the Dudley Boyz and Hardy
   Boyz in a three-way tonight. Kane then bursts into Foley's "office" and
   demands a match with the Big Show, Shane, Angle & Benoit. Two of them are
   gone, so Foley will see what he can do. I like how Mick always sets up
   shop in the dankest, dingiest corner of the building--the total opposite
   of the nice office the Cat usually has over in WCW--and always has a
   cactus on his desk.

 - Commissioner Foley comes across the just-about-to-depart Angle and tells
   him he & Benoit have to face Kane & the Rock tonight. Foley then makes
   fun of the shorts Angle is wearing.

 - EDGE/CHRISTIAN vs. THE HARDY BOYZ vs. THE DUDLEY BOYZ
   The best match of the show, with way to much action for me to call (yeah,
   I'm lazy). The finish sees Edge given the 3D and covered by D-Von Dudley.
   Matt Hardy then hits D-Von with a legdrop off the top. Christian shoves
   Matt out of the ring, and Edge covers D-Von for the pin, retaining the
   Tag Team Titles.

   Trish Stratus, getting made up in the back, says she may sue Mick Foley
   for sexual harassment, for putting her in a Strap Match with Lita.

 - Jacqueline is at WWF New York signing autographs.

 - Angle expresses some doubt in having to face Kane. Benoit tells him
   everything will be okay.

 - Jonathan Coachman gets comments from the Rock.

 - LITA vs. TRISH STRATUS
   The two trade shots with the leather (rubber?) straps they have. Trish's
   top is torn off. WCW should take some notes on how sleaze should be done.
   A wild shot with the strap by Lita catches the ref in the eye. She puts
   Trish down with the Twist of Fate, then finishes her off with a
   moonsault, but the ref is still down. In comes Stephanie McMahon. Steph
   knocks Lita out with a swing of her Women's Championship belt--a swing
   that missed so much you could have tossed a frisbee in the air between
   the belt and Lita's head. Lita goes down and stays down, long enough for
   Trish to limply lay on top of her and get the pin. Lita was again way
   over with the crowd, which I should note has been pretty hot for the
   whole show--until the finish here. Luckily the Rock will be out next.

 - CHRIS BENOIT/KURT ANGLE vs. THE ROCK/KANE
   Another decent match, though it gets messy at the end. Kane isn't the
   ideal fourth for this group, but he is an improvement over the
   Undertaker. Things really heat up several minutes in when the Rock slaps
   the Crippler Crossface on Benoit, as Kane is chasing Kurt Angle up the
   ramp. Out come Shane & the Big Show, having returned (or never really
   left to begin with). The Big Show picks Kane up and slams his head into
   the WWF.com (vote on that!) logo at the base of the Titan-Tron--or tries
   to anyway, as Kane keeps slipping from his grasp. The third time it
   works. Shane runs into the ring and the Rock, seeing him, gives chase. He
   catches him about halfway up the ramp. As he turns to go back to the ring
   Kurt Angle smashes a chair across his back. Benoit, Angle, Big Show &
   Shane McMahon all stomp on the Rock. The show ends with Shane's new
   stable posing triumphantly on the stage.

 - This Thursday: Nothing announced.

 - Next week: Nothing announced.

Comments:

Hot finish, though lame that the match itself didn't have one. In a way it 
was like the Nitro main event, though a much better match.

Overall the show reminded me of Nitro in that it seemed pretty good as it 
was airing live, but comes up looking not as good upon review. The main 
difference would be that I'd rate this as a good show with some flaws, while 
Nitro was a bad show with some good moments.

What was it with the match finishes tonight? RAW seemed to be suffering from 
whatever it was that clobbered Nitro. Two matches had no finish at all, 
while three others had run-ins and interference. The wrestling was several 
notches above what we saw on Nitro though, and nothing on RAW was at the 
same level of bad as that cage match.

I thought the Big Show's return and heel turn was effective, though hardly 
what one could call surprising or original. Whenever anyone returns from an 
absence there's a strong chance they'll turn. It's probably the rare 
occasion these days when someone *doesn't* turn.

I could have sworn they said Perry Saturn was going to defend his newly-won 
European Title against Crash Holly.

I saw a lot of missed opportunities for memorable moments on this show. Much 
of it was done to sell the Fully Loaded replay, and build future storylines. 
Others were just things the WWF probably didn't think of. Example: imagine 
how cool it would have been if Jerry Lawler had interfered during that 
Godfather/Bull Buchanan match. How could Lawler sit by and not do anything 
to keep the Ho's from going away for good? Ross: "King, where are you 
going?!" Lawler: "I've got to stop this, J.R." Lawler then grabs the chair 
away from Steven, nails Bull, and the Godfather gets the pin. I guarantee 
you the crowd would have gone nuts.

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The Bottom Line:

I think that about covers it all this week.

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"Slobberknocker Central" and "Monday Night Recap" are copyright 2000 by 
John Petrie, and all opinions expressed therein are his own, and not those 
of "USLink". Check the "Slobberknocker Central" main page for info on how 
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Volume One, Number 245 of the "Monday Night Recap", July 24th, 2000.