Everyone remembers their first time. Some memories may not be so good, others may be remembered fondly. But before you get the wrong impression of my blog this week, what with innuendo even John Cena can be proud of, I'm talking about remembering my first experience with PPV. I thought that this month I would take a look at the 1995 Royal Rumble. Let the reminiscing and retrospective begin!
So besides the fact that my Grandfather correctly predicted 75% of each Rumble winner from showing him the entire collection about a year back, I have fond memories of this PPV. Mainly because as a young tot, it was my first experience with PPV. While I didn't order it, I rushed to get it when it came out on Coliseum Home Video. Who could resist the calling of one Todd Pettengill talking about free gifts? Ah, the days. But for me it was wanting to know what this entire 30-man over the top rope battle royal was all about.
First, let's look at the card;
1.) Jeff Jarrett vs. Razor Ramon (c)
- Intercontinental Championship
2.) The Undertaker (w/ Paul Bearer) vs. IRS (w/ Ted Dibease)
3.) Diesel (c) vs. Bret Hart
- WWF Championship
4.) 123 Kid/Bob Holly vs. Bam Bam Bigalow/Tatanka (w/ Ted Dibease)
- Vacant WWF Tag Team Championship
5.) 30-man over the top rope Battle Royal.
So looking at this card, really one would think it wouldn't be that good but for me personally, it wasn't half-bad. Of course this PPV holds a special place in my heart because I was just starting to watch wrestling but looking back, it still holds up for me. Here are some random thoughts;
To this day I sometimes wonder why Bret Hart and Diesel wasn't after the tag match or even the rumble itself for that matter. But it's pretty obvious when the finish was a Draw. Sure, no one likes it, but the match itself did something that quite honestly we don't see enough of today. People REALLY doing whatever it takes for a title that means something. Predetermined or not, Bret Hart and Diesel told a good story that left the fans wanting more. Eventually leading up to a November match where Diesel turned heel and Bret won the title at Survivor Series '95. Their matches weren't the best I've seen by far, but they were still very good.
As a kid I was a big Razor Ramon fan. I still remember how irked I was that he continued the match with "Double J" and lost the title. I was pissed! Yet it was a example of a heel really playing the heel and putting the "Bad Guy" in a spot where the crowd can't help but root for him. Even if he was a little bit on the stupid side to continue the match. >.< The finish protected Ramon but gave the crowd a bit of a shock after the failed Razor's Edge attempt. Hell, Jarrett just played a great obnoxious heel. Between his introductory vignettes in the WWF, to his MMA stuff in TNA now. Can't deny the guy that.
The Rumble Match itself is mainly known for showcasing the first win for someone who starts in at #1 and ends up winning the whole thing. A great performance all around for HBK in this match as well as even the British Bulldog. I really enjoyed both of them looking exhausted as they were the last two in the match, along with some shennanigins from Bret Hart coming back to take out Bob Backlund and Owen Hart. Nothing much to me really stands out but I just remember enjoying the match. When we had gimmicks like "Duke the Dumster Drosey", "Mantaur", "Kwang", and "Aldo Montoya", that certainly goes to show how full-go the WWE was at that current point with certain oddities. Seeing Lex Luger vow to win but still fall short was interesting and how he eliminated Mabel and Mantaur made his character stick out more as the guy that "hip-tossed" Yokozuna, heh. Come to think of it, why didn't Mantaur stick? Come one! He had Jim Cornette as a manager!
Apart from the 1995 Royal Rumble, I also think back to the 1994 PPV, where as a kid I wanted to see what happened before I even started watching wrestling and even that show gave me a ton of enjoyment at an early age. Even a bit of the creeps with the "rising" Undertaker. However one line sticks out to me as I'm sure it does to a plethora of other wrestling fans;
"... AND THAT'S WHY I JUST KICKED YOUR LEG OUT OF YOUR LEG!"
Ha. Awesome.
My last thought on the 1995 Royal Rumble is the event of an underdog winning a title. An underdog team actually. The 123-Kid and Bob "Sparkplug" Holly knocked off the favorites to win a tag team tournament, Bam Bam Bigelo and Tatanka. This certainly didn't make Ted Dibiase a happy camper and thus, he and Tatana left Bam Bam after being pinned by the 123-Kid. I specifically remember a nasty dropkick that busted open the mouth of Bam Bam. He sold the hell out of it too. He did a great job selling the crowd before getting into a scuffle with NFL Hall of Fame Linebacker, Lawrence Taylor. A fun exchange and one that, as I was learning about if wrestling was real or not, made me really wonder if they almost fought "for real". Ah, the days of innocence. Or ignorance. Either way I was only about 9 years old so cut me some slack, heh. Thanks for reading!
What about all you readers? What are some of your favorite Royal Rumble memories? I'll be sure to share more in the coming weeks including a look at the 1994 Royal Rumble and 2008 Royal Rumble. I'll have them both up in the next two weeks and this week I'll have an in-audience perspective from RAW since I'll be in attendance this Monday with Jenn. Until then, be sure to check out some of my archive columns over at;
www.potcf.blogspot.com
Also, the next episode of Perspectives of the Common Fan will air on a special night, Tuesday, January 11th, at 9 PM EST/8 CST. Head on over to www.blogtalkradio.com/potcf and chat with us or call us to share your thoughts on anything wrestling related. At that very site you can also find our archive shows all the way back to as early as April/May of 2010. And while you're at it, subscribe to our podcast over on iTunes, just search Perspectives of the Common Fan and follow us on Twitter @TheCommonFan. Lastly, throw some comments and feedback on our Facebook page over at www.facebook.com/thecommonfan or E-Mail us at potcfpodcast@gmail.com. Thanks again and Happy New Year!
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