WWF Survivor Series Showdown (11.11.91) review 

 

November 11, 1991 (aired November 24, 1991) 

 

I wasn’t going to do this, but it literally popped up on YouTube when I searched for Survivor Series, so fuck it. I’ve never seen it before. We’re in Utica, New York at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. Crowd is not very big and the card is terrible. Yay. Hosts are Vince McMahon and Bobby Heenan.  

 

 

Earthquake vs. Big Bossman 

You can tell the company is absolutely on its ass here. Vince and Heenan are clearly in front of a green screen, and the commentary isn’t recorded live. The crowd is ‘early RAW’ territory. About 5k. It’s not a small building, but you can see how the company has fallen off in the past few years.  

 

These two put in a shift. There’s very little wrestling, but they have a good slobberknocker. IRS pops down here as part of the upcoming Survivor Series team warfare, rather than an ongoing friendship with Quake. They’re partners at the upcoming show and indeed IRS feuds around the horn with Bossman afterwards. Quake’s lengthy control period after IRS’ arrival kills the match dead. Typhoon and Jake Roberts run in, followed by the LOD and that’s the end of the match. *. This started out ok but quickly got into a dull rut and an obvious Surivor Series run in plug. 

 

Video Control gives us some clips from last week.  

How did they ever blow this? An absolute tap in main event for WrestleMania. The WWF champion versus the “real” world champion.  

Anyway, Taker pops out of a coffin and bashes Hogan in the back of the head with the urn. Savage and Piper run in for the save and Taker no sells their chair shots for a cool visual.  

This was excellent work all round here. Flair talking them in, Taker’s total no selling and Hogan selling the upcoming DOOM of Survivor Series. 

 

Bushwhacker Luke vs. Blake Beverly 

Considering Mike Enos’ only good singles match was against Chris Benoit, I don’t think he’s going to carry Luke to something watchable here. This is just for children. There’s no merit to it beyond that. This is Prime Time Wrestling too, so they can just do adult entertainment instead. Luke wins with a roll up. DUD. Holiday camp bullshit for eight year olds. 

 

Promo Time: Big Bossman & LOD 

Bossman yells about “LAW AND ORDER AND JUSTICE!” Sid Justice? The gimmick here is that these three face four men at Survivor Series as Randy Savage hasn’t been reinstated and Jake is on the other team as captain.  

It was originally SID on the team, as is shown in this graphic. I dig the OUT being stamped across his face. Jim Neidhart has one of those too. He’ll be replaced by Sgt Slaughter. Big Bully Busick is still on the graphic though! His spot is going to Hercules. 

 

Video Control takes us to footage of Jake Roberts winning on TV this week. Randy is on commentary. Jake baits him into the ring by calling him soft and a “gutless yellow stinking coward”.  

Jake ties Savage into the ropes and dumps out this King Cobra.  

Haha, fantastic. I love that Jake just leaves the little fucker to snack on Savage for ages and then can’t shake it loose. Brilliant TV. While Savage stumbles around all fucked up on snake venom, Liz runs down there screaming and Piper is trying to help but Jake waves the snake in his FACE. There are children crying.  

And I LOVE this shot. The snake has no interest in Jake at all. Jake is a snake. They’re two snakes, chilling out, watching the horror they’ve inflicted. Incredible. Five stars.  

We get Jake out for a live interview, and his music has “trust me” added to it. He gives off star power here beyond anything he’d previously had. Quite how this didn’t end up a big run on top is anyone’s guess. Presumably because of Jake’s “personal demons”. He was RED HOT here. Instead, he lost to Undertaker at Wrestlemania VIII and didn’t work in the fed again until 1996. Jake tells it that he was offered a spot in creative, and that promise was reneged on, so he asked for a release. Went to WCW and Bill Watts fired him. So instead of the hottest run of his career, he went into the void. He was the best promo in wrestling at this point, and his act was on fire. It’s mad to think it didn’t go anywhere. An all timer fumble for all concerned.  

 

Million Dollar Championship 

Virgil (c) vs. Ted DiBiase 

Here it is, the end of the Virgil run. His money win was at Summerslam. You can’t leave Ted’s vanity belt on him. He absolutely sucks so you can’t really keep pushing him. It was a hot angle brother, that’s all you could have hoped for. Despite Virgil’s uselessness in the ring, the match is decent. DiBiase bumping around and doing incredible work to polish a turd. It helps having Sherri out here too. Virgil’s own offence, when you take away the DiBiase bumps, is so weak though. Repo Man repossesses the million dollar belt and when Virgil sees him, Repo Man whacks Virg with the belt and his run as a relevant guy ends. **½. Fair play to Ted here. He dragged something decent out of Virgil. That takes HARD GOD DAMN WORK, SIRS.  

 

Post match: Tito Santana, now officially rebranded as “El Matador” runs in to stop Ted from further humiliating Virgil. He’s humiliated enough tbf. He’s Virgil. His WWF career after this is mostly B-show matches and Royal Rumble appearances. He is on Mania this year but that’s about it. 

 

Promo Time: Jim Duggan 

He announces his teammate and replacement for Jim Neidhart at Survivor Series; Sgt Slaughter. This is Sarge turning babyface after that run as an Iraqi sympathizer. Considering his last TV appearance was at Summerslam as part of the “Triangle of Terror” in the Match Made in Hell this is quite the face turn. 

 

Skinner vs. El Matador 

This match has been gimmicked up the wazoo. We’re entering that heavily gimmicked era, which eventually collapsed when Attitude started. Tito has left his work boots in the back and switched to El Matador boots. Anyway, this is ten minutes of headlocks and choking. Flying forearm eventually puts Skinner, and the crowd, out of their misery. DUD. It wasn’t even a good forearm.  

 

Promo Time: Hulk Hogan 

Hogan points out he’s been hearing about the demise of Hulkamania for 8 years but it’s still going. Oh, but not for much longer brother. Hogan again speaks of his training, prayers, and vitamins. Oh, that drug scandal is coming, dude. Hogan also claims he’ll “live forever”, which, as of 2026*, is not true. It’s interesting he specifically states the red in his gear stands for the blood of Christ here. I mean, shit, that’s certainly a statement. I have such strong belief in my character that I actually believe I was put here by God himself. I don’t have that kind of confidence, jack.  

 

*Just in case of a zombie Hulkamania apocalypse, brrrrrrrrother.  

 

Hercules vs. Roddy Piper 

I had a moment here where I thought Herc had already left but that’s early 1992. Piper’s offence is very Three Stooges during this babyface run. He’s lacking the intensity and aggression of his 80s heel run, where he was truly fantastic. All that’s left is the Looney Tunes goofiness. It’s actually pretty sad. Thank It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia for bringing back the real Piper later in life. Seeing something in him that was long gone. His selling in this is really, really goofy too. Bulldog finishes for Roddy. *¼  

 

Promo Time: Ric Flair 

Flair runs through his team; his manager Bobby Heenan and his consultant Mr Perfect. Imagine having three talkers like this in one unit. It’s almost not fair. Ted DiBiase is on the same Survivor team too. It’s great seeing Flair get so excited here yelling about Piper and Bret. Fabulous stuff. So full of energy.  

 

The 411: 

1991 WWF is generally terrible, but they had these two incredible hot angles here. Unfortunately, neither of them is leading to a match at Survivor Series. Savage and Roberts takes place at This Tuesday in Texas and Hogan versus Flair doesn’t happen at all. Unless you count the Royal Rumble. It’s mad to have two angles that hot on a show that leads directly into a PPV, and neither of them are on the PPV. It’s worth seeing this for a few historical purposes; the snake bite, the Hogan/Taker/Flair stuff, and the end of Virgilmania. You can skip over crap like the Skinner match and Bushwhacker Luke. You know what; I don’t hate it.  

 

I’ll be back for Survivor Series next, which will probably take a week to watch because it’s an hour longer and the quality isn’t much higher. Plans beyond that: This Tuesday in Texas, some FMW, AJW end of year show, WWF/SWS Wrestlefest and Starrcade. Plus anything else I can find (CMLL? CWA Catch Festival?) I might also watch some WCW TV’s for the lead in to Starrcade. Then it’s on to the wrap up, awards and 1992.