WWE Recap: Saturday Night Main Event (November 1985)

The show opens with a series of interviews. Bobby "The Brain" Heenan puts over King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd. Hulk Hogan talks about keeping thing legal. Jesse "The Body" Ventura talks to Roddy Piper about his interruption of Uncle Elmer's wedding ceremony. Meanwhile Mean Gene introduces us to Terry Funk, who spits tobacco juice on the camera. Then it's time for the show.

This one comes to us from Hershey, Pennsylvania. Vince McMahon and Ventura are our announcers for the night. It's Halloween time, and Ventura, who is always dressed like he did so in the dark, is even more outlandish with his headgear.


Terry Funk w/ Jimmy Hart vs Junkyard Dog

Pre-match, we're shown footage of a previous event, where Funk attacked JYD with a branding iron. In the present, JYD is looking for revenge, and yanks Funk into the ring without waiting for a bell. He also goes after Hart, who hides under the ring. The crowd is really into it as the Dog tosses Funk in and out of the ring, chases after the Mouth of the South, and slams Funk down on the concrete more than once. A loud "JYD" chant breaks out. In the end, Hart climbs onto the apron, distracting JYD and the ref. Funk slams Hart's microphone into the back of JYD's head and gets the pin. Winner: Terry Funk

After the match, Hart brings the branding iron into the ring to "brand" Junkyard Dog. JYD blocks the attempt, though, and turns the tables. He knocks Funk out of the ring, then punches and brands Jimmy Hart. The crowd was very into this one, and Ventura did a great job reacting to the action. He's really good as the heel announcer.




Pie Eating Contest

More non-wrestling shenanigans on Main event. We're introduced to several wrestlers in their Halloween costumes, including Randy Savage (Yay!!) and Elizabeth as Tarzan and Jane, Nikolai Volkoff as Robin, Bobby Heenan as Davy Crockett, King Kong Bundy as Abe Lincoln, Iron Sheik as Batman (sort of, since it's a generic snake logo on his chest), Tito Santana as Zorro, Hulk Hogan as Hercules, and Lou Albano as Julius Caesar. Shew. Albano and Bundy are the competitors, and Albano wins. It should be noted that he appeared to actually eat most of his pies. Bundy seemed to spit an awful lot back out. Anyway, who cares?




Piper's Pit with Hillbilly Jim, Uncle Elmer, and Cousin Junior

Cowboy Bob Orton comes in with Piper. They discuss the wedding incident from the previous episode, and Piper blames Jesse Ventura. Jim challenges The Body to say it to Uncle Elmer's face. Cowboy and Piper trip Junior, and punches get thrown. Ventura nearly gets double-teamed, but he slides away and the heels flee.




Pumpkin Dunking Contest between Bobby Heenan and Cousin Junior

This is, again, a waste of time. Again, it was disgusting looking. Bobby Heenan wins. Let's just move on.




Big John Studd and King Kong Bundy w/ Bobby "The Brain" Heenan vs Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant

Hogan and Bundy will start things off. Andre dwarfs even Bundy in size. Hogan attempts to bodyslam Bundy early on, but fails and Bundy takes advantage. Andre gets in, and chokes Bundy with his ring attire. They go back-and-forth and Andre accidentally knocks out the referee. All four men come into the ring, and eventually the face duo clears everyone out. After a commercial, the faces remain in control, until Andre gets hit from behind by Bundy, causing his arms to become entangled in the ropes. Hogan tries to help, but is grabbed by Studd, then splashed by Bundy. The two heels begin beating on a helpless Andre. Finally, Hogan gets back up and takes out Bundy. Studd is next, and then they run. Winners: Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant via disqualification

It seemed like a cheap DQ, but the crowd got what they wanted in the end. As always, all of these giants in the ring make for slow action. They're never going to be great for TV.




"Macho Man" Randy Savage vs Tito Santana (Intercontinental Championship)

Savage gives a pre-match interview and is awesome. The action is fast and furious to start, as expected. Savage starts to wear down Santana with a headlock, then goes to the top rope, but Santana is ready for it. Savage escapes to the outside, but Tito follows and they fight there. Time runs out and both men are counted out.  Winner: Double count-out. Tito Santana retains the championship

This match wasn't nearly long enough. Savage showed what he brings to the ring, and it was exciting, though brief. The WWF was definitely a better product once the Macho Man came in. Santana had a good showing as well. This feud just needs more time.




Roddy Piper Trick or Treat Segment

This was stupid. Long story short, Piper messes with some kids' candy, but the jokes on him. The candy he stole was chocolate-covered hot peppers.




Kung Fu Challenge: Mr Fuji w/ Don Muraco vs Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat

Yes. You read that right. Kung fu challenge. Sigh. Footage is shown of Fuji and Muraco choking Steamboat with a strap, then hanging him from the top rope. Pretty wild stuff for 1985. The Dragon received a huge pop on his way to the ring. The two do a lot of fake-looking karate kicks and chops on each other. It's mixed in with some wrestling moves and creates a very weird match. Fuji takes control until he tries for a suplex, which is reversed by Steamboat. The Dragon then climbs the ropes and nails Fuji with a jump kick for the pin. Winner: Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat

After the match, Muraco comes into the ring and spits red liquid into Steamboat's eyes, then he and Fuji go on the attack. They leave him helpless in the ring. The match was pretty stupid, but Steamboat is clearly a star and loved by fans. The beatdown only makes them love him more.




The Pumpkin Pass

The final competition of the night is the Pumpkin pass, from neck to neck. Gene takes the opportunity to flirt with Elizabeth. The good guys win when Piper is unable to make a successful pass to Elizabeth. Macho Man and Piper berate her for costing them a win.




Overall Impressions

This one was far too jammed with Halloween gimmicks to be good. We got four matches, but one was the big men, which was slow and boring. We did get a look at Randy Savage for the first time, and though it was brief, it's easy to see why he became such a star. His charisma was second to none. The future is definitely bright at this point, with guys like Savage and Steamboat ready to add excitement to things.

Winners: 
Randy Savage and Tito Santana: They looked really good, and a rivalry between them is a welcome break from all the lumbering big men.

Losers:
All of us: The Halloween gimmicks were brutal to sit through, and the best match was only a couple of minutes long.  




Things I Would Change

All of these gimmicks on every episode of Main Event just take away from the wrestling. Fans should be given matches, not nonsense.

The giant vs giant matches suck.