This week Throwback Thursday celebrates the rich history of SummerSlam by revisiting the SummerSlam ’95 go-home edition of WWF Superstars, as seen on the WWE Network and Peacock, that aired 29 years ago this month!
The early 1990s had been a time of contraction and near depression for the entire pro wrestling industry.
Sex and drug scandals, Vince McMahon’s high profile federal steroid trial, a national recession, and stubborn unemployment, had devastated all of pro wrestling, putting a slew of promoters out of business and greatly diminishing the strength of the once untouchable World Wrestling Federation (WWF).
But as the summer of 1995 drew to a close the WWF’s business seemed to be improving. Television ratings, pay-per-view buyrates, live event attendance, and gates had finally turned the corner, with gates up over 40% from the same period the year before and attendance up 12%.
The economic recovery was giving families, be it in person or on television, the opportunity to enjoy live wrestling once more, and promotions big and small were looking at ways to maximize that interest.
For the WWF that meant rebuilding. The so-called “New Generation” initiative had placed the spotlight squarely on young, hungry talent. Aside from Ted DiBiase, Jerry Lawler, Bob Backlund, and King Kong Bundy few older, established stars remained active on the Federation roster.
The “New Generation” initiative was a time when young talent like 1-2-3 Kid, Owen Hart, Bret Hart, Undertaker, Diesel, Razor Ramon, Tatanka, Jeff Jarrett, Yokozuna, and Shawn Michaels, were busy building new legacies and making fresh history rather than coasting on past triumphs and glory.
For the (distant) number two World Championship Wrestling (WCW), in the midst of their own rebuilding campaign, the future went squarely through the past.
On the backs of established WWF stars like Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Jim Duggan, Meng (“Haku”), Big Bubba Rogers (“Big Boss Man”), the Shark (“Earthquake”), Zodiac (“Brutus Beefcake”), Bobby Heenan, and “Mean” Gene Okerlund, WCW had begun to redefine itself and, int he process, gain a fair bit of national traction.
Now, with the wind at their back, WCW was making their move. Two weeks after this edition of WWF Superstars aired, on September 4, 1995, WCW would debut their new Monday NITRO program, going head-to-head with the WWF’s flagship Monday Night RAW, and sparking the vaunted “Monday Night Wars” era.
WCW’s more aggressive posture couldn’t have come at a worse time for the WWF. Though numbers had begun to turn around, the creative output fans enjoyed on television was less than stellar. In June, the 1995 King of the Ring event drew the lowest pay-per-view buyrate in WWF history to that point with just 160,000 homes purchasing the event live.
As the industry was moving towards more realistic action and storytelling, the childish, campy gimmicks, goofy angles, and phony promos of the mid-’90s WWF were wearing on the Federation faithful while the new monthly pay-per-view model put added strain on fans’ already strained pocketbooks.
With SummerSlam ’95 right around the corner, hopes were high that the WWF could begin to put an end to one chapter and build towards something new, something fans could better invest their time and money in that would better position the WWF for the future.
The top story in the WWF the week this edition of WWF Superstars aired was the build to SummerSlam ’95.
The top matches heading into the show included WWF Champion Diesel defending the title against the “1995 King of the Ring” “King” Mable and the highly anticipated WrestleMania X “ladder” rematch between Razor Ramon and WWF Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels.
Other marquee matches at SummerSlam ’95 included the Undertaker facing Kama in a “casket” match, Bret Hart doing battle with Dr. Isaac Yankem, DDS (Jerry Lawler’s “personal” dentist), and the “grudge” match between Bertha Faye and WWF Women’s Champion Alundra Blayze.
With that all out of the way, let’s head on over to the WWE Network on Peacock, hit ‘play’, and see how well this edition of WWF Superstars holds up in 2024!
It should be noted that the WWE Network and Peacock have this edition of Superstars listed as having aired on Friday, August 25, 1995, when it in fact aired on Saturday, August 26, 1995.
Edits for this edition of WWF Superstars are not an issue on the WWE Network and Peacock. Context, meanwhile, is excellent. All past edition of WWF Superstars, dating back to the series relaunch on April 18, 1992, as well as all past editions of Monday Night RAW and all prior WWF pay-per-view events, are available for you to enjoy right now on the WWE Network and Peacock!
WWF Superstars #176 (WATCH)
Date: August 26, 1995 (TAPED: Aug. 15, 1995) – Location: Portland Civic Center, Portland, Maine
Attendance: 4,683 – TV Ratings: N/A
Commentators: Vince McMahon & Dok Hendrix – Interviews: Dok Hendrix
IN POP CULTURE:
Number One Song: “Kiss From A Rose” (Seal)
Number One Album: E. 1999 Eternal (Bone Thugs-n-Harmony)
Number One on Television: Seinfeld (NBC)
Number One Film in Theaters: Mortal Kombat (Linden Ashby, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Robin Shou, Bridgette Wilson, Talisa Soto, & Christopher Lambert)
U.S. President & Vice President: Bill Clinton & Al Gore
CHAMPIONS AT THE TIME:
WWF World Heavyweight Champion: Diesel (November 26, 1995, Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, from Bob Backlund; Diesel was subbing for an “injured” Bret Hart, who lost the World title to Backlund at Survivor Series ’94 in a “submission” match)
WWF Women’s Champion: Alundra Blayze (April 3, 1995, WWF Monday Night RAW, from Bull Nakano; this title match marked Nakano’s final match in the WWF)
WWF Intercontinental Champion: Shawn Michaels (July 23, 1995, WWF In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks, from “Double J” Jeff Jarrett)
WWF World Tag Team Champions: “The King of Harts” Owen Hart & Yokozuna (April 2, 1995, WWF WrestleMania XI, from the Smoking Gunns (Billy & Bart); Yokozuna was Owen Hart’s mystery tag team partner)
After the typical WWF signature of the era we get a replay from last week’s edition of Monday Night RAW of “British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith tricking and then turning on WWF Champion Diesel, helping Mable squash Diesel. This is followed by the usual WWF Superstars open of the era.
Following the show open we head inside the Portland Civic Center where Skip & Sunny make their way to the ring for this week’s opening contest.
As Sunny cuts a walk-and-talk promo Vince McMahon & Dok Hendrix, talking over Sunny, welcome us to the show, talking about how chaotic the WWF is with SummerSlam ’95 right around the corner.
McMahon then talks about Skip being the only wrestler to ever lose a match to Barry Horowitz (doing it twice) while Dok shouts about finding out why Davey Boy Smith turned on Diesel.
We then get an on-camera with Vince McMahon & Dok Hendrix. McMahon hypes the matches to come and Hendrix’s upcoming interview with The Undertaker later in the hour.
Hendrix hypes the interview and shows off his Undertaker merchandise, saying the Undertaker’s bread’s “been in the oven, but it ain’t been on that long”. Dok promises to asks the hard, probing questions about what Undertaker plans on doing to Kama after Kama attacked the “Creatures of the Night” last week.
—Singles Match (1:18)
Skip w/Sunny vs. 1-2-3 Kid
Skip was preparing for a match with perennial enhancement talent Barry Horowitz at SummerSlam ’95. The WWF was trying to replicate the success they had with the upset fueled 1-2-3 Kid by doing the same with Horowitz.
1-2-3 Kid, meanwhile, was preparing for a light heavyweight showdown with Hakushi that would open SummerSlam ’95.
This is an even, fast-paced match to start, with Kid and Skip trading the momentum before Kid sends a flustered Skip to the floor where Kid delivers a beautiful dive from the top rope to Skip on the floor.
Kid has the advantage until Skip blocks a head scissors attempt from Kid in the corner, pancaking Kid as we head to a mid-match Peacock ad-break.
Skip is in control as we come back from break, scoring a number of near-falls as the crowd begins to chant for “Barry”. Soon enough Kid ducks a Skip clothesline and connects with a standing spin kick.
Kid pours on the offense before scoring a near-fall with a frog splash off the top. Kid lands a second spin kick that sends a reeling Skip against the ropes where Kid attempts a third spin kick. Skip ducks, though, and Kid misses the kick, landing hard in the ropes before crumpling to the floor.
With Kid on the floor, and Skip distracting the referee, Sunny lays in a few kicks to the mid-section of Kid. As Sunny gloats about her actions Barry Horowitz arrives to help Kid, sending Sunny scurrying.
Kid gets to his feet as Skip drops to the floor to confront Horowitz. While Skip and Horowitz argue at ringside, and Kid stumbles his way back into the ring, the referee beings his count.
Soon enough the referee counts Skip out at 4:34 to give 1-2-3 Kid the win via count-out.
WINNER is 1-2-3 Kid (Count-out, 4:34)
After the match, Skip & Sunny lose it at ringside as a happy Barry Horowitz heads to the back with Skip & Sunny in quick pursuit.
Next we cut to the “Report Card” segment for the week with the incoming Dean Douglas.
Douglas welcomes his “class” and says that he’s going to give his “mid-term” grade to one of his “formerly incomplete” students, the 1-2-3 Kid. Through the use of video, Douglas says, he’s going to see if Kid has made any improvement in the WWF.
Douglas then reviews the definition of the word “redundant” (“exceeding what is necessary”) as we see slow-motion footage from the prior match between Kid and Skip.
When in the ring with a wrestler the caliber of Skip, Douglas says, one can not “go to the well one too many times” on a move like the spin kick. Though Kid connected with the kick earlier in the match Kid made an “egregious error” later in the match, missing the kick against the ropes as Skip ducked out of the way.
In light of this mistake, Douglas says, he’s grading the 1-2-3 Kid as “redundant” with a grade of “H-I”, for “Hopelessly Incomplete”. “Until next time,” Douglas says, “you are dismissed.”
We cut to the arena then as McMahon talks about someone grading Douglas in the future before hyping an appearance from “Psycho” Sid as Dok hypes his upcoming interview with the Undertaker.
We then head to the Stridex “SummerSlam ’95 Insider” with Todd Pettengill. Pettengill hypes Sunday night’s SummerSlam ’95 pay-per-view and gives us a rundown of the announced card.
Pettengill then turns to the “ladder” rematch between Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon, a match some are calling the “battle of the century”, Pettengill says. Pettengill then sets up and tosses to a pre-taped promo from Razor Ramon.
Razor says that he’s got nothing to lose and everything to gain in the “ladder” match. Shawn Michaels, meanwhile, has “nothing to gain” and will lose his “precious gold”.
Shawn Michaels is next, saying that not a day goes by where somebody doesn’t walk up to Michaels and remind him of the “ladder” match “in ’94” (at WrestleMania X).
And each and every day HBK gets out of bed the pain reminds him of the same “ladder” match. The person HBK has to thank for that is Razor Ramon.
People ask why Shawn Michaels wants a “ladder” match rematch with Razor and admits that he needs to get the win back. So in Pittsburgh, at SummerSlam, HBK is going to climb the ladder and stake his claim as the “greatest athlete” in WWF history.
Back in the studio Pettengill hypes the PPV one more time before wrapping the segment.
McMahon hypes the Rad Radford/Bret Hart match to come before hyping an appearance by “Psycho” Sid to come after our first Peacock ad-break.
Coming out of the break we get a promo for next week’s Bret Hart/Waylon Mercy main event on WWF Superstars.
“Psycho” Sid then makes his way to the ring. Before we get the bell, though, we cut to a Peacock ad-break, after which we get a promo for Stridex pads.
—Singles Match (13:40)
“Psycho” Sid w/Ted DiBiase vs. Brian Walsh
“Psycho” Sid was originally booked to face Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental Championship at SummerSlam ’95, with the match being announced on television, before the match was scrapped in favor of the “ladder” rematch between Michaels and Razor Ramon.
With the Intercontinental title match out the window Sid, who was no longer involved in any kind of match at SummerSlam ’95, was in the early phases of a program with Henry O. Godwinn.
This match, meanwhile, is a total squash. Sid is all over Brain Walsh from the opening bell, beating the bejabbers out of Walsh.
Following a sidewalk slam and leg drop, Sid drops Walsh with a big boot. Sid then lands a one-handed chokeslam and the powerbomb for the 1-2-3 at 2:45.
WINNER is “Psycho” Sid w/Ted DiBiase (Pin, 2:45)
Following the match, as Sid looks ready to snap, we cut to this week’s Goldust vignette.
With the “Hollywood” sign in the background, Goldust says that he drips, revels, and bathes in “stardom”, which is why they call him “Goldust”.
In time, Goldust says, the “Heartbreak Kid” will witness a “real star” not a “figment of a mere boy’s imagination”. And there will be a “permanent vacancy” at the “Heartbreak Hotel”.
So Goldust says, “come with me if you want to live”. “Hasta la vista, baby!”
After putting a bow on the Goldust vignette Vince McMahon tosses to the ring where Dok Hendrix, clad in Undertaker merchandise, stands ready (and terrified) to introduce the Undertaker for an interview.
Paul Bearer arrives first, pushing a large casket to ringside where Dok joins him. Dok shows off the merchandise gimmicks before fearfully asking Bearer about what he and Undertaker are going to do about Kama.
Bearer begins by asking Dok about the gimmicks Dok is wearing, calling Dok a “wolf in sheep’s clothing”. Dok tries to defend himself but Bearer tells Dok that he is no “Creature of the Night”, that the fans are the true “Creatures of the Night”.
The “casket” match, Bearer says, is “Undertaker’s specialty”. If one were to take a “slow stroll through the World Wrestling Federation’s cemetery” they would see the “tombstones” of the wrestlers who have “gone down” to the Undertaker.
There’s a new tombstone in the cemetery, Bearer says. It’s blank right now, but it won’t be long before the chisel starts to work, printing the name “KAMA”!
Dok, not looking to start trouble, begins to play Devil’s advocate, noting that Kama is a “triple threat” with his expertise in jiu-jitsu, karate, and wrestling. Lately, Dok says, it looks like Kama has had the Undertaker’s “number”.
Suddenly the lid of the casket bursts open and the Undertaker, shooting to his feet, turns to face a terrified Dok Hendrix.
As Hendrix tries to move away he offers the Undertaker the microphone. It’s “payback time”, Undertaker says. Kama may have all of the “physical attributes” to be a “supreme fighting machine”, but there’s “two things” Kama lacks: “heart” and “soul”.
The attack on the “Creatures of the Night” (which we again see as Undertaker speaks) did nothing more than to seal Kama’s fate. For at SummerSlam, Undertaker says, as “easy” as Undertaker “strolls in and out” of one of his caskets, Kama will “stroll into the dark side” where Kama’s soul will belong to Undertaker.
Kama’s soul will also belong to the “Creatures of the Night”, whom Kama “perpetrated” the “crimes” against. So when Kama feels the chill on his neck Kama should know that the “purple hand of justice” follows, and that when SummerSlam is over Kama’s soul will be sealed in the casket.
For all of the “Creatures of the Night”, Undertaker says, Kama will “rest in peace”.
Undertaker leaves the ringside area as McMahon hypes the “casket” match and we head to the next Peacock ad-break.
After the break we get an odd WWF “new fall season” promo.
Next we head to Vince McMahon & Dok Hendrix at the announce position where Dok gloats about the interview before McMahon sets up and tosses to a replay of Davey Boy Smith turning on WWF Champion Diesel this past Monday night on RAW.
We see “King” Mable call out the Allied Powers (Davey Boy Smith & Lex Luger) before Davey Boy arrives with WWF Champion Diesel in tow.
Davey Boy then explains that Luger is away due to a “medical emergency” before asking Diesel to take Luger’s place in the tag match against Men on a Mission.
We then see Diesel on the verge of finishing off Mo when “King” Mable enters the ring. As Diesel stares down Mable, Davey Boy Smith enters the ring and waylays Diesel, turning heel in the process.
Mable drops Diesel with the belly-to-belly before we see Mable holding Diesel for Davey Boy to slap and, eventually, powerslam. Mable drops the leg drop on Diesel before posing with the WWF Championship belt.
Next we see Jerry “The King” Lawler gloating with Jim Cornette, Davey Boy, and Men on a Mission about the attack, calling Davey Boy’s attack the “biggest shock since Pear Harbor”. Lawler asks why Davey Boy did what he did but neither Cornette nor Davey Boy want to discuss it. All Cornette says is that surprises will keep coming for Diesel.
We then cut to a pre-taped promo from “King” Mable. Mable calls Diesel “Big Daddy Fool”, saying he always knew Diesel was “a fool”. Mable never knew Diesel was “stupid”.
Diesel has fallen into Mable’s “royal plans” three times now. If Diesel thought the last one was “the big one”, Diesel hasn’t seen anything yet. At SummerSlam Diesel will see the “grand finale”, and Mable will be the next WWF Champion.
Next we cut to a pre-taped promo from WWF Champion Diesel, who says he must have taken the first three “installments” of Mable’s “royal plan”. The last one, with Davey Boy jumping Diesel from behind, was the “last straw”.
Each time Mable has put his hands on Diesel he’s done damage, “spilled some diesel fuel”, but Mable was careless and got some on himself. At SummerSlam, Diesel says, he’s going to take a “blowtorch” to Mable.
And when it’s “all said and done” it will be “Armageddon” in Mable’s “little kingdom”. This is followed by the next Peacock ad-break.
—Singles Match – JIP (28:29)
Henry O. Godwinn vs. Brooklyn Brawler
We join this one already in progress as we come out of the ad-break. Brawler evades a pair of Godwinn clothesline attempts before running into a powerslam.
Godwinn takes the fight to Brawler as McMahon & Hendrix push the Godwinn’s issues with the “Million Dollar Corporation” and tease Godwinn’s future problems with Sid.
Godwinn grounds Brawler with a armbar before Brawler goes to Godwinn’s eyes. Brawler’s attempted rally that is cut short after Godwinn slams Brawler off the top rope, a la Ric Flair.
In a flash Godwinn puts Brawler in position for the slop drop to score the pinfall win.
WINNER is Henry O. Godwinn (Pin, 1:54, JIP time)
After the break Henry Godwinn drops the slop bucket on Brawler.
We then head to a shot of office phones as someone calls the offices of Dr. Issac Yankem, DDS. The caller is told that Yankem is busy with Bret Hart at SummerSlam but will be available for major surgeries and extractions “next week”.
Back in the Portland Civic Center we see Rad Radford make his way to the ring before heading to our next Peacock ad-break.
After the break Bret Hart arrives and we get an AOL promo complete with uncensored phone number as McMahon hypes the WWF on AOL and we head to another Peacock ad-break.
Coming out of the break we see Bret give his sunglasses to a lucky fan at ringside as Jean Pierre Lafitte steals Bret Hart’s leather jacket from the ring attendant, igniting one of the most bizarre storylines in WWF history.
Bret tries to stop Lafitte but Radford attacks Bret from behind to get the match going.
—Singles Match (31:40)
Rad Radford vs. Bret “Hitman” Hart
Bret Hart was gearing up for his “grudge” match with the debuting Isaac Yankem, DDS, at SummerSlam ’95, part of Bret’s on going war with Jerry “The King” Lawler.
Rad Radford, the late Louie Spicolli, has the edge on Bret until they get into the ring where Bret brings Radford in the hard way.
Bret takes the fight to Radford, employing a slightly more aggressive, heelish style, until Radford lands an Arn Anderson spinebuster.
Radford has the edge now, cutting off the odd Bret Hart hope spot as he dominates the former WWF Champion with every dirty trick he can muster.
Out of nowhere Bret lands a Lou Thesz press, peppering Radford with punches before opening up on Radford. Bret lands a flurry of his greatest hits, including the elbow from the second rope, before landing the running bulldog.
Bret then gives the thumbs down to Radford and cinches in the Sharpshooter for the submission win at 4:41.
WINNER is Bret “Hitman” Hart (Submission, 4:41)
Following the match Bret celebrates his victory before we head to the next Stridex “SummerSlam ’95 Insider” with Todd Pettengill.
Pettengill hypes tomorrow night’s SummerSlam ’95 pay-per-view event and gives a rundown of the card to come. As Pettengill talks about the “casket” match between Kama and the Undertaker we see a replay of Kama wiping out a Creature of the Night on last week’s edition of WWF Superstars.
This is followed by a pre-taped promo from Ted DiBiase and Kama, with DiBiase calling out Gorilla Monsoon. Monsoon becomes WWF President, DiBiase says, and the match at SummerSlam become s a “casket” match to give the Undertaker an unfair advantage. But it won’t matter.
Kama jumps in next, saying that when he took the Undertaker’s urn Kama “took possession” of Undertaker’s “powers”. And when Kama puts Undertaker in the casket in Pittsburgh, Kama will “control” Undertaker’s soul.
Back in the studio Pettengill turns his attention to the WWF Women’s Championship bout between Bertha Faye and Champion Alundra Blayze, tossing to a pre-taped promo from Alundra Blayze.
Alundra says that she watched the footage of the attack for weeks as she laid in the hospital, reliving the pain of the attack. Bertha broke Blayze’s nose with a sneak attack, but it won’t happen again.
At SummerSlam, Blayze says, she going to prove that she is the best “WWF ladies” Champion of all-time, because when you step in the ring with Alundra Blayze “you’re gonna feel the heat!”
Back in the studio Pettengill makes the final push for SummerSlam ’95 before wrapping the “Insider” segment and sending us to the final Peacock ad-break of the hour.
Back from break Vince McMahon and Dok Hendrix make the final pitch for fans to joint he WWF on pay-per-view for SummerSlam ’95, with Dok hinting at potential shenanigans to come in the WWF Championship natch between Diesel and Mable as he gives his picks for the big matches of the night.
We then cut to an ECW-esque music video that recaps the stories of SummerSlam ’95 and sets the stage, with promo snippets, for the PPV to come that brings this week’s SummerSlam ’95 go-home edition of WWF Superstars to a close.
Final Thoughts
This is fun edition of WWF Superstars, but it’s not the greatest of go-home shows.
While we get a bit of build for just about every match on the SummerSlam ’95 card, only the HBK/Razor “ladder” match stands out as a true “main event”. The rest of the card feels, in the moment, flatter than most WWF shows of the era. While the card is loaded with talent the event was, to be sure, a one match show.
That being said, this edition of WWF Superstars features a handful of fun matches and promos that illustrate the good, bad, and ugly of the WWF’s product at the time.
While there’s plenty here to indicate a true change in creative direction, the WWF was unwilling to make a hard break from the campy booking of the past for the new ideas to land. Stuck in the middle like that, the show feels flat at times.
So if you haven’t seen this edition of WWF Superstars, or it’s been a while, this is a show well worth your time. Who knows, you may end up liking it, and that’s never a bad thing!
Already subscribed to the WWE Network on Peacock? Then you can relive this classic SummerSlam ’95 go-home edition of WWF Superstars right now or experience it for the very first time! As always, let us know what you think in the comments section below!
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