Saturday Night's Main Event - October 85

Saturday Night's Main Event 2

Promotion: WWF

Date: 05/10/85

Commentators: Vince McMahon & Jesse Ventura

Announcer: Howard Finkel

The show starts with Mean Gene talking to Nikolai Volkoff and his manager Classie Freddie Blassie. Volkoff is facing Hogan tonight for the title, and says after he wins he will tell Russia to press the button to destroy America. We go to a snippet of Hogan doing a typical promo, saying when he's done with Volkoff the only flag flying will the red, white and blue. We then go to Mean Gene who is with Uncle Elmer and Hillbilly Jim, one of whom is getting married on the show later. Piper interrupts and says lots of gibberish, and gets cut off by the opening titles

Vince runs through the planned schedule, while Jesse laments at the prospect of the marriage due to happen. Jesse is also wearing huge yellow and black glasses, which look amazing. We then head to the ring for the first match

Match 1 - Nikolai Volkoff w/Freddie Blassie vs Hulk Hogan (C)

Singles match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship 

Volkoff sings his Soviet Anthem, Hogan is with Mean Gene saying he's going to bring the American flag to the ring with him. The match may as well be Evil Russia vs Saintly USA, as all Russians around this time get booed out the building. 

Hogan gets in the ring, waves the flag around and turns his back when passing the flag to someone on the outside. Volkoff attacks straight away with stomps, strikes and headbutts. Hogan's vest is ripped off and Volkoff chokes Hulk with it. Volkoff tries to slam Hogan's head into the turnbuckle but Hulk  blocks this and turns the tables his way, and starts to go on the attack.

He lands a clothesline and elbow drop combo and a rare headbutt. Volkoff is then booted over the top rope, and Volkoff gets back into it by shoving Hogan into the ring post. Volkoff beats Hogan to the mat back inside the ring and lands a double ax handle from the second rope. Hogan's in trouble and Volkoff manages to hit him with a big back breaker. Rather than go for the pin he poses to the crowd, giving Hogan enough time to recover so when the pin happens Hogan kicks out at 2.

Volkoff tries to get Hogan into osition for a piledriver, but Hogan is able to power through and back body drops the Russian to the mat. Volkoff is still on the attack and gets another 2 count after a body slam. The kick out starts a Hulk Up, he starts puching Volkoff, but gets whipped to the corner. Hogan moves out of Volkoff's way when he charges at him, sending him to the mat. Hogan runs against the ropes and hits the leg drop to get the win

Winner - Hulk Hogan by pinfall (Leg Drop)

Meh, not a bad match to get things started but nothing particularly exciting either. Volkoff had the upper hand for most of the match and mainly beat down on Hogan, although he did hit a big back breaker. There wasn't really much doubt that Hogan would win in the end, and the crowd loved seeing Hogan turn it around. 2/5

Hogan grabs the Russian flag, spits on it and uses it to shine his boots, causing Jesse to call Hogan a discgrace. Hogan grabs the USA flag and poses around the ring. He's then with Mean Gene, basically calls Volkoff dumb, and then says he can't wait to see Mean Gene play keyboards at the wedding later in the night.

Mean Gene is now with the hillbillys talking about the wedding and a match one has later on. Back to the ring for the next match

Match 2 - Jerry Valiant vs Uncle Elmer w/Hillbilly Jim & Cousin Junior

Singles match

Valiant charges and goes for a crossbody but gets caught by Uncle Elmer. Elmer bodyslams Valiant, pins him and wins.

Winner - Uncle Elmer by pinfall

Run. Catch. Squash. 1/5 

Finkel announces the match ended in a new WWF record time of 6 seconds. They show the previous record, King Kong Bundy beating SD Jones at Wrestlemania. Mean Gene is with Uncle Elmer who says Valiant should have kept his coat on if he didn't plan on staying.

Jesse is now in the ring for a Body Shop segment with Bobby Heenan. Jesse talks about Paul Orndorff, Heenan saying that he made Orndorff a star only for Orndorff to fire him as his manager on national TV. Heenan has put a $50,000 bounty on Paul Orndorff, which it sounds like Roddy Piper has taken up. Heenan says Orndorff should retire. Mean Gene is now with Orndorff, who says Piper isn't man enough to take out Orndorff. 

Match 3 - "Mr Wonderful" Paul Orndorff vs Rowdy Roddy Piper

Singles match

Piper is with Gene now and says if Heenan doesn't pay up the $50k he will rip Heenan's throat out, and says Orndorff needs to cover himself in baby oil to look good. He also takes shots at Uncle Elmer and his planned wedding. 

The match begins as a slugfest with Piper on top. It's all physical and Orndorff fights back. Jesse calls it a street fight with ropes around it. Piper DDT's Orndorff before stomping and striking Orndorff out of the ring. He misses a chair shot, and Orndorff slams Piper's head into a table a couple of times. Piper gets back in the ring, Orndorff throws in a chair and climbs to the top rope and lands a jumping elbow attack. Piper has jelly legs and takes a back suplex. 

Orndorff starts to punch some more but Piper pokes him in the eyes. Both men go down after a shoulder block. Piper goes for a running splash but Orndorff raises his knees. Mr Wonderful then lands a running crossbody, and both men fall out over the top rope. Both men are counted out as they carry on brawling ignoring the referee's count.

Draw - double count out

They billed it up as a physical contest and that's what we got. Short and entertaining, this looks like an angle that could have legs and carry on for a while yet. 3/5 

Piper & Orndorff brawl down the aisle, even going under Vince & Jesse's table, and then into the back, Piper locking Orndorff out of a dressing room.

It's the wedding now. Jesse says Mean Gene is like Phantom of the Opera on the organ. Uncle Elmer has put on a tie over his usual clothes. Hulk and Andre the Giant lower the ropes for the bride. The hillbillys and Lou Albano are also in the ring. People start throwing things at the bride, I think her name's Joyce, when she says her vows. Jesse is hilarious commenting on this and can't start laughing. 

When the audience is asked if there is a reason why these two shouldn't be married, Piper walks down to the ring with a mic, saying he objects, and that the whole wedding stinks, and leaves. Vince is made up when they're announced man and wife. We see the reception, basically a barn with a pig running round.

Mean Gene is with Heenan now and his team of Bog John Studd and King Kong Bundy. They slate Andre the Giant calling him the number 3 giant in the company. 

Match 3 - Big John Studd & King Kong Bundy vs Andre The Giant & Tony Atlas

Tag team match 

Before the match starts, we watch footage from Toronto a couple of months previously where Studd and Bundy double team Andre, to give this match some meaning.

Andre and Bundy start in the ring, Andre just lays a choke on as soon as the bell rings. Bundy is in the corner getting beat down and choked some more, and uses Tony Atlas to headbutt Bundy. Atlas is tagged in, and Bundy begins to fight back, but misses an elbow drop. Studd is tagged in, but takes loads of headbutts. Atlas tries a bodyslam but fails, and also misses a dropkick after whipping Studd against the ropes. Studd beats on Atlas then attacks Andre. When everyone's back is turned, Bundy sneaks into the ring and running splashes Atlas on the mat. 

Andre is tagged in, and Studd backs off into the rope. Andre beats Studd out the ring, and Bundy attacks Andre from behind. Studd, the legal man, rams Tony Atlas' back into the ring post, while Andre is avalanched by Bundy, then shoulder blocked by Studd. The referee calls for the bell, disqualifying Studd & Bundy

Winners - Andre The Giant and Tony Atlas by DQ

Not much really happened here other than Andre beating people up and Tony Atlas doing lots of headbutts. Atlas is a really big buy, but the 3 dwarf him in comparrison. I guess this one won't be over for some time, but I doubt Tony Atlas will be incolved in this feud any longer. 2/5

Andre fights back against the two monsters but 2 on 1 isn't good. Hogan runs into the ring to help out his old friend and they clear the ring. Gene is in the ring with them all, Hogan says he and Andre have something to announce but they won't reveal it just yet.

We then watch a segment of Mean Gene on safari, looking for George The Animal Steele. He finds him, Steele calls camels sheep, does elephant noises, calls a weasle Heenan, calls a hippo Bundy, and says a tiger comes from Detroit. Steele then runs into bushes.

Match 5 - Tony Garea & Lanny Poffo vs The Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake) w/Luscious Johnny Valiant (C)

Tag Team match for the WWF World Tag Team Championships

The Dream Team won the titles from the US Express, and we see a clip of them doing just that. Beefcake blinded Barry Windham with something to get the win. Gene says that the US Express will be at ringside watching this one.

I don't know anything about Garea and Poffo, although the internet tells me Poffo is Randy Savage's elder brother, and Garea is a 5 time tag champ. 

Greg Valentine and Poffo start with The Hammer on top early on. Poffo is bodyslammed and Beefcake is tagged in. Poffo gets the better of Brutus and lands a moonsault off the top rope from nowhere, but Valentine is in to make the save. 

Beefcake is on the attack and brings Valentine back in. Poffo tries to escape to his own corner but he can't get away. Beefcake is tagged back in and beats of Poffo some more. After kicking out of a pin attempt, Poffo leaps to his corner and makes the tag to Garea, who truns things round, landing strikes, a hip toss on Beefcake and then dropkicks both Dream Team members. Beefcake kicks out of a jumping cross body, and The Hammer is tagged in after a back elbow. Valentine slaps on the Figure 4 Leg Lock and Garea taps

Winners - The Dream Team by submission (Figure 4 Leg Lock by Valentine on Garea)

Beefcake got beat up while Valentine was mostly untouchable in this one. Poffo was quick and athletic, and his moonsault was pretty good. Garea gave the impression of an old school tough guy, but this match wasn't all that great to be honest. 2/5

The Dream Team beat down Garea and celebrate in the ring with their manager. We then go to the wedding reception. Jesse isn't happy there and just mumbles in the corner. Captain Lou Albano says he taught Cousin Junior to eat with his left hand. Larry Poffo gives the happy couple a poem. Mean Gene breaks a glass. Hillybilly Jim gives Elmer and Joyce a toast. 

Mean Gene has surprise friend, Tiny Tim. He rambles on gives them a ukelele. Jesse gets up and reads out a poem of his own, saying wrestling and romance don't mix. People get up to confront Jesse, he tries to back away but is tripped by Hillbilly Jim into the wedding cake. I wonder if there's a theme going on here....

Vince is sat with Mean Gene and Hogan, saying he has word that Bobby Heenan has signed off on Studd & Bundy vs Hogan & Andre to take place on the next SNME.

This wasn't quite as good as the first show wrestling-wise, but the shows have done a decent job of introducing characters to the screen and giving you a basic idea of what they're about. The next SNME takes place 4 weeks later, just 5 days before The Wrestling Classic, so I expect some build up for that.