COLISEUM VIDEO REVIEW: INSIDE THE WWF
The Undertaker vs. Crush
Crush has recently turned heel and is managed by Mr. Fuji. Johnny Polo joins Gorilla Monsoon on commentary. Polo is good, because he has enthusiasm for the product and is clearly a mark at heart. That is probably what held him back in the staunchly po-faced WWF, when the workers did it only for the money, rather than any love of the business. Not all of them of course, but a lot of them. Guys like Kevin Nash and Lex Luger were not wrestling fans, they were guys who found a profession that accepted freaks of nature. Nash has even admitted as such. With this tape being from 1993/94, it will feature lots of guys who are not over and have stupid gimmicks. Crush as a “Japanese sympathiser” is among the dumbest. I mean, what is there to be sympathetic about? Their better economy? Superior rate of employment? Lack of gun crimes? Maybe it is because wrestlers from the country who work for the WWF were often shoehorned into racist stereotype gimmicks. If so, good on that man for recognising that and taking a stand! The crowd is so darkened here, suggesting a lacklustre draw. It certainly sounds like one. This very much looks like Madison Square Garden, what with the aisle being down the centre behind the ring, but it’s not, it’s Massachusetts. The match is pretty bad, by the way. If more modern fans want a reference, just watch KroniK vs. Taker & Kane from 2001, because it is similar in its badness, and obviously features two of the same guys. This is just all slow striking and out of context selling. The bright point is Polo, who playfully mocks Gorilla for not really knowing the difference between moves, and pointing out things that fans watching would have been saying. Crush does impress with a gorilla press, doing reps with Taker before slamming him to the mat. That is some strength right there. Crush goes for a Tombstone, which is among the dumbest things you can try to do on Taker, and he reverses it into his own for the win. Stupidity from Crush, but I am pleased we get a clean finish. Pleased and shocked, I should say. Match was slow and uninspiring until the very end.
Final Rating: *