-I had a pretty good weekend. Took a brief trip to see my family, celebrate my dad’s birthday, and to go to homecoming at my old church. The guest speaker was the pastor when I was around 10. He and his wife both said I look the same, just with gray hair.
-Today, Project 45 lands in the year 1992 as we take a look at a very special episode of WWF Superstars from December 12, 1992.
-In December 1992, I was a freshman in high school. Bill Clinton had just been elected president and my wrestling fandom was huge.
-This episode of WWF Superstars was shown on December 12, 1992. It was recorded on November 24, 1992 from the Ervin J. Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio.
-Intro.
-Vince McMahon and Bobby Heenan welcome us to Superstars. McMahon says that the main event of the Royal Rumble will be announced and Heenan says he's excited because if you want to talk about royalty, he is excited to bring on the man who is royalty himself, The King Jerry Lawler. Hell has frozen over as Lawler makes his debut as the Superstars color commentator. He thanks Heenan for the introduction and says Jack Tunney begged him to come here to share his knowledge of wrestling. They run down what we are going to see this week.
-The Nasty Boys Knobbs and Sags vs. John Rechner and The Brooklyn Brawler: Rechner is the future Balls Mahoney. Knobbs and Brawler start as McMahon puts over the Nasty Boys, who have recently turned face. Brawler drives Knobbs into the corner. Knobbs reverses it and hits Brawler with some big forearms. Brawler reverses a corner whip, but misses the charge when Knobbs moves. Knobbs hits him with a clothesline. Knobbs hits Brawler and runs him into Sags' outstretched boot and Sags is tagged in. Sags with an elbow to the midsection. Sags with an Irish whip and a back elbow. He follows that up with a pump handle slam. Brawler comes back with a rake to the eyes and Rechner is tagged in. He hits Sags several times and Irish whips him, but Rechner drops his head too early and Sags hits him with an elbow to the back of the head. He runs Rechner into Knobb's arm pit. Sags then steps on Rechner's face. Knobbs tagged in. Sags with a corner whip to Rechner and then whips Knobbs in after him to hit Rechner in the corner. Knobbs follows that up with a bulldog. Sags tagged back in and he climbs up top and hits the pit stop on Rechner to pin him.
-Update with Mean Gene Okerlund. Mean Gene has a Royal Rumble update and announces Bret Hart vs. Razor Ramon for the WWF championship. Mean Gene then shows highlights from past Royal Rumbles and announces the winner will face the WWF Champion at WrestleMania.
-Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Jean Paul: Paul with some early offense. Bigelow takes over as Doink is shown in the audience. He doesn't have a name yet. Bigelow wins after a flying headbutt. Doink throws a bucket of confetti at Bigelow.
-Event Center with Sean Mooney. The Big Boss Man talks about being an instrument of Justice in the WWF. Money Inc. and Jimmy Hart talk about being the tag team champions again and how aware they are of the Nasty Boys and will handle them. Reverend Slick with information and a sermon about the Royal Rumble. He preaches hope and tells people to have a happy day.
-Marty Jannetty vs. Duane Gill: Jannetty with a wrist lock into a hammerlock and a double leg takedown of Gill. Jannetty turns that into a front face lock as the clown is shown again down the aisle. Gill comes back with a wrist lock of his own. Jannetty with a go behind into a monkey flip on Gill. Jannetty with a flying leg scissors to Gill. Shawn Michaels is shown on the split screen and Vince McMahon asks him where Sensational Sherri is and he says he doesn't know as Jannetty has changed to a waist lock on Gill. Jannetty with a corner whip and Doink is back at ringside. Gill with a reversal and he hits Jannetty with several right hands. Gill with a corner whip, but Jannetty moves on the charge and Gill hits the corner post. Jannetty kicks Gill a couple of times while he is up on the turnbuckle. Jannetty pulls Gill down off the ropes and Gill reverses an Irish whip. Jannetty comes back with a front face slam and then pins Gill after a top rope fist drop. Doink throws a pail of water on Jannetty as he is leaving.
-Nailz vs. Mike Collins: Last appearance of Nailz on your TV screen folks as the next day at the Green Bay tapings is when he confronts and then attacks Vince McMahon. Nailz starts out by choking Collins. He stops after the three count, but starts back in the opposite corner. He then throws Collins halfway across the ring. Nailz with some left and right hand punches to Collins to knock him back down. He chokes Collins on the ground for a three count before picking him up and corner whips him. He then kicks Collins in the midsection while he is trying to get up. They were starting to push the never realized Undertaker/Nailz feud that instead gave us Giant Gonzalez at the Royal Rumble. Thanks a lot, Kevin Wacholz. Nailz with an Irish whip. Collins ducks a clothesline attempt, but Nailz hits him with another clothesline as soon as he comes back. Nailz with an Irish whip and a sleeper and Collins immediately goes out. Nailz then throws Collins out of the ring.
-Vince McMahon talks about Super WrestleMania for the Sega Genesis.
-Mean Gene is on the platform and brings out Bret Hart for an interview. Mean Gene says to Hart that he has a date with Razor Ramon, but he has to defend his title also until then against Ric Flair, who says Hart is defending the title too much and is going to lose his title. Hart says there are a lot of people in the WWF that think he is setting some kind of crazy pace. That he is going to burn himself out as the WWF Champion. But he is not because it was one big accomplishment for him to be the World Wrestling Federation Champion. It goes a lot deeper than that. He wants to be the greatest WWF Champion of all time. Heenan, McMahon, and Lawler are shown looking at Bret. Heenan says he's going to go set this guy straight about a few things. Hart says he's not worried about Ric Flair. He never has been and he's never going to be and Razor Ramon doesn't scare him a bit. They are then joined by Heenan on the podium and Mean Gene asks him what he is doing there. Heenan says he is a broadcast journalist and he can go anyplace that he wants. He turns to Hart and says but I want to talk to you champ, first of all, you are wrestling Razor Ramon at the Royal Rumble, correct? Hart says yes. Heenan says what makes you think when the Royal Rumble gets here, you'll even be packing this gold champ? Because you're going to be meeting Ric Flair along the way. And if by some fluke you should get by Ric Flair, you will never survive the match with Razor Ramon at the Royal Rumble. Hart says you think so? You think Ric Flair intimidates me? He gave up to the Sharpshooter and as far as Razor Ramon goes, machismo, he doesn't have the technical ability to beat the Excellence of Execution in the Royal Rumble. Heenan gets the mic back and says I was talking. He tells Hart that Hart needs to understand something. If the right one don't get you then the left one will, and at this time, let me introduce the right one and he brings out Ric Flair. Flair gets on the mic and asks Hart if he heard Hart say that Flair was breathing down his neck? Flair says buddy, I'm in your king-sized bed with your girlfriend in my arms. I'm that close. He says two times I have been all there is. He tells Hart he better listen up, this isn't a long story, it's a short story. How Hart won the title and where Hart won the title means nothing. He will guarantee Hart this, there is an arena in the world that has this ready to pop up on the marquee. It says Ric Flair, World Wrestling Federation Champion for the third time. Hart tells him it's nice to dream isn't it. Flair says in closing, some little girl somewhere some night told Flair that Hart implied that Hart was the man. That to be the man you had to beat the man. He says well, I've got a new one for you. Being the man and staying the man are two different things, Mr. Hart. Heenan then brings out Razor Ramon. Ramon gets up in Hart's face and says Hitman, you're the Excellence of Execution, chico? He says Razor Ramon knows all about Execution. He already proved that he's the only man in the WWF who is oozing machismo and Hitman, everybody knows that Razor Ramon is the only man in the WWF who looks good in gold. After the Royal Rumble, he's going to have Hart's gold around Ramon's waist. He then flicks his toothpick into Hart's eyes, so Hart punches him. Flair and Ramon then both attack Hart and beat him down. Mr. Perfect comes out to save Hart and he and Ramon start going at it. Ramon and Flair then leave the podium. Referees and officials come out and separate the four men.
-Lance Cassidy vs. Gus Kantarakis: Cassidy is Steve Armstrong in a singing cowboy gimmick. Kantarakis with some early offense. He gets an Irish whip, misses a clothesline, and Cassidy comes back with a crossbody for a two count. Cassidy takes over and ties Kantarakis up in some moves for another two count. Cassidy with a corner whip and a hip lock out of the corner. Cassidy then goes up top and hits a flying clothesline to get the pin.
-Highlights of the Make a Wish Foundation fundraiser at Planet Hollywood with some of the WWF Superstars.
-The Undertaker with Paul Bearer vs. Barry Horowitz: Horowitz attacks Undertaker right after he gets his stuff off, but it doesn't affect the Undertaker, so Horowitz rolls to the outside and yells and points to the Undertaker. Horowitz finally gets back in the ring. Undertaker attacks Horowitz with a kick and a throat thrust to knock Horowitz to his knees. A short clothesline knocks Horowitz to the mat. Undertaker with an Irish whip, Horowitz ducks a clothesline attempt. Undertaker grabs Horowitz by the throat and choke slams Horowitz and pins him. They then put Horowitz in a body bag.
-Event Center with Sean Mooney. Papa Shango says all WWF wrestlers should beware of Papa Shango. Then blink and you'll miss it, a Max Moon promo. He says he has finally landed here in the World Wrestling Federation. He's ready to blast his opponents out of the ring and into orbit. The Beverly Brothers say they are the biggest fish in the pond and they are the best.
-They preview what's coming up next week on Superstars.
-Bret Hart says Ric Flair and Razor Ramon tried to jump him like a pack of wild jackals, but it's not going to make any difference. Flair has already made one mistake and underestimated Bret Hart once before and says Ramon has to have some wrestling background to beat the Excellence of Execution. He doesn't care if it's one or two. They are both going to pay because he wants them bad. Fade to black.
-Final Thoughts: This one hits my sweet spot of being a young wrestling fan in his early teens. Added bonus of Lawler's first appearance. Highly recommended.