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Rating the Rumbles

Postby Ali » Jan 08, '17, 12:44 pm

Rating the Rumbles - 1988

In 1987, Pat Patterson came up with a match type that would go on to become one of the annual staples of WWE: the Royal Rumble. In all honesty, the Royal Rumble is easily my favorite match type of all time. There's a lot to like about it, and its almost always fun to watch, so I have decided to watch and review every main Royal Rumble MATCH. I am not going to concentrate on the rest of the Pay-Per-View cards, just the Rumble matches themselves. I will take into account the general storylines going into the match, as well as their aftermath, but mainly, this is about the matches.

On October 4, 1987, the first Rumble match took place in St. Louis, Missouri, in front of a crowd of less than 2,000 people. One Man Gang won by last eliminating Junkyard Dog. No footage of this exists, and WWE forgets this ever happened. The REAL story of the Royal Rumble begins on January 24, 1988 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Another thing WWE likes to sweep under the rug is that the first Rumble event was not a Pay Per View. It was available on cable, on the USA Network, in fact. But enough revisionist history, lets get to the action.

This Rumble is a bit different from future Rumbles, in that it only has 20 men as opposed to 30, and the contestants enter every two minutes. But we can consider this a case of Early Installment Weirdness. This match has a lot going for it early on. Bret Hart and Tito Santana start the match, Jake "The Snake" Roberts makes the first elimination, and "The Natural" Butch Reed gets the dubious honor of being the the first man eliminated from the match. The inaugural Royal Rumble clocks in at 33 minutes, and is won by "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, last eliminating One Man Gang.

This first Rumble is definitely experimental, but it is still an engaging and satisfying match to watch. The storytelling is rather simple: faces and heels go after each other. The heel-face balance is kept pretty even throughout, with the heels getting the advantage in spots where it made sense. Its basic psychology, and it works.

The only problem I can see with the match is purely retrospective: Jim Duggan never really goes on to any great success after this. He would lose in the first round of the WWF Championship tournament at WrestleMania IV, and whatever title opportunities he would have, be it for the Intercontinental or WWF Title, would usually end in a disqualification or count-out. He would go to WCW in 1994 and win the US Title there, but he lost it pretty quick. Still, his American Patriot gimmick is a classic, and this will always be a feather in his cap.

Overall, my final rating for this match is a 7/10. It doesn't do anything particularly wrong, but it really isn't anything special aside from being the first one. Still, its a fun match, and a great starting point for the Rumble concept. From here, the Rumble will only get bigger and better, with the 1989 match gaining some real star power...
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Hanley! » Jan 08, '17, 5:01 pm

Looking forward to reading the rest of your reviews for these. It feels weird and wrong looking back on it that Duggan won the first Rumble, because he doesn't feel like a big enough star. But it's the winner of the second Rumble that really comes across as a mistake looking back on it. There's really no reason they shouldn't have given the win to Dibiase.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Ali » Jan 09, '17, 12:09 am

Rating the Rumbles - 1989

From Houston, Texas, on January 15, 1989, we get the Pay Per View debut of the Royal Rumble. And this match is bigger, containing the now-standard 30 men that we are now used to. Its also now the actual Main Event of the show! The last event was actually finished off by a two out of three falls match between the Islanders and the Young Stallions. But here, the Rumble takes off.

In addition, this Rumble actually has a lot of Main Event talent in it. Andre the Giant, Mr. Perfect, Ted DiBiase, even Hulk Hogan and WWF Champion "Macho Man" Randy Savage are in the match! In the 88 Rumble, the biggest star in the match was Jake "The Snake" Roberts. Just by the talent level alone, this feels like it means a lot more than the first one.

This match even starts out incredibly, with the first two participants being Ax and Smash of Demolition, who were Tag Team Champions at the time! And they go at it, too! They fight each other for the entire opening! To see that is a fun departure from the very even Face-Heel matchups of the first Rumble. This truly gets across the concept of "Every Man for Himself" right away and I love it.

This match is full of great moments, too. From Jake the Snake using Damien to scare Andre the Giant into eliminating himself, to Hulk Hogan eliminating the Warlord in two seconds, these are highlights that the WWE still plays because they are massive moments. The biggest moment by far, however, is the beginning of the Implosion of the Mega Powers, but we will get to that.

The big problem with this match is the same as the last one: the winner. Big John Studd wins by eliminating Ted DiBiase, but nothing ever comes of this. Studd would merely referee the WrestleMania V encounter between Andre the Giant and Jake Roberts before leaving the WWF altogether in June of that year. And in a match with this much star power, to not push the winner to the moon just doesn't make a lot of sense.

Who would I have booked to win? As unpopular as it might be, I would give it to Hulk Hogan.

See, Hogan and "Macho Man" Randy Savage were teaming up as the Mega Powers. Hogan had been in Savage's corner when the latter won the WWF Championship at WrestleMania IV, and they had been aligned for so long. They were the two biggest stars in the company, but by the Rumble, tensions were beginning to rise. In the Rumble itself, Savage was on the verge of being eliminated by Bad News Brown when Hogan came to his aid. Unfortunately, Hogan ended up taking out both Brown AND Savage. Savage got upset and ran in to yell at Hogan, until Miss Elizabeth came out to calm them down.

Now, its not like the Hogan-Savage feud NEEDED any more fuel on the fire, but how cool would it have been if Hogan won the Rumble? Savage could've claimed that Hogan eliminated him when he had the chance, because he KNEW he couldn't throw out the Macho Man otherwise. It just happened to look like an accident. Again, it might not have really added anything major, but Big John Studd winning was kind of a waste.

I give this match an 8/10. It feels bigger and better, there are great moments in it, and it is overall better than the 1988 match. However, the lackluster winner brings it down again. It could have been incredible with a better winner, but alas, it was not to be. We'll see if they finally know what to do with a winner come 1990...
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Everlong » Jan 10, '17, 1:40 pm

You know, I've gone back and watched a lot of old WrestleManias, but I've never actually watched any of the Royal Rumbles that came before my time of watching wrestling. With how much I enjoy the rumbles, this seems like something I should do.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Messiah » Jan 11, '17, 8:41 pm

Everlong wrote:You know, I've gone back and watched a lot of old WrestleManias, but I've never actually watched any of the Royal Rumbles that came before my time of watching wrestling. With how much I enjoy the rumbles, this seems like something I should do.


I love re-watching Rumbles. Always fun even when you know what is going to happen.

My favorite is probably 2001, so will be interesting to see how you rank that.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Ali » Jan 14, '17, 7:41 pm

Rating the Rumbles - 1990

January 21, 1990. Orlando, Florida. The third ever Royal Rumble event is set to take place. The Rumble matches have been good thus far, but with lackluster winners. Will this one be better? Let's find out!

Getting to the issue with these Rumbles, is that it is quite boring to write about the in-ring action. A is fighting B on one side, X and Y are trying to take out Z, Q is going after J, its usually the same. Luckily in these early Rumbles, its still experimental, so they are trying new tactics to keep it fresh. Case in point, Ted DiBiase, who was #30 last year, is the first entry here.

What they do here with DiBiase is another new spin. He gets the jump on Koko B. Ware and eliminates him before the next entrant even hits the ring. The third entry, Marty Jannetty, suffers a similar fate. It really fits the idea of DiBiase being an opportunistic, cunning heel, and it helps keep things a bit fresh.

The other thing they do here, for the first time, is play the music of a new entry. That's one thing I especially love about the Rumble, the crowd's excitement when the buzzer sounds and the music hits. Its something that I really missed in the first two matches... although bizarrely, it stops at #4. I don't get it.

Overall, this match is solid, and it has a few memorable moments. Roddy Piper and Bad News Brown eliminate each other, setting up their WrestleMania VI encounter. Ted DiBiase lasts an astonishing almost-45 minutes. We get the first big Group Elimination, when five men team up to take out Earthquake. And of course, the big confrontation between Hulk Hogan and The Ultimate Warrior.

At one point, Hogan and Warrior are left alone in the ring, and they put on a fun display of being two equal opponents before knocking each other down. Then The Barbarian comes in and interrupts it, but it sets up the WrestleMania VI match perfectly. You get a nice teaser of what's to come. And by not ending the match with these two, it leaves the question of "who's better" unanswered, which gives you another reason to want to see these two go at it at Mania.

Hogan ends up winning the match, which I am fine with. If the WWF were a bit more daring, it would've been cool to see Mr. Perfect win it, but I understand still wanting to end the show on a high note for the fans. The crowd is into it, too. They add a lot of excitement to the whole thing, even if I did get a bit bored at times, but that might just be the nature of watching only Rumbles for a while.

Overall, I rate this an 8/10. The Hogan-Warrior stuff is the highlight, and this is at peak Hulkamania. Everything about this match is solid, even if nothing quite pushes it over the top. We'll see if it gets there in 1991.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Ali » Jan 23, '17, 11:36 pm

Rating the Rumbles - 1991

Miami, Florida. The 1991 Royal Rumble is where I think the match really took off. If you ask me, this is where the WWE really got the inklings and ideas that would solidify the match as more than a fun gimmick, but a match that could have serious consequences and implications. The first Rumble was a midcard novelty, the second one was good but ultimately inconsequential, and the third was used to put over then-WWF Champion Hulk Hogan. But this one had a few more quirks to it.

For one thing, the WWF Champion, the Ultimate Warrior, was not in the match. It seems like a no-brainer nowadays, but the title was actually defended on the same Pay Per View card for the first time. Warrior squared off against Iraqi sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter (1991 was weird...) and actually lost the belt due to interference from Randy Savage. This is important to understand going into the Rumble itself. Also, just before the Rumble, during an interview with Hulk Hogan, Mean Gene Okerlund is informed that Sgt. Slaughter was defacing the American flag, and Hogan is incensed. Keep that in mind.

Bret Hart draws #1 for the second time, starting things off against Dino Bravo. The thing is, this match itself is kind of slow in the beginning, with very few eliminations going on. In fact, I notice that whenever there's an odd number of people in the ring, Hitman just seems content to sit in the corner and let the others duke it out. That'd be one thing if he were the match's "Ironman", or even a cowardly heel, but he only lasts 20 minutes and he's a pretty popular face. Its a bit odd, is all I'm saying.

What makes it weirder is that the actual Ironman, Rick "The Model" Martel, an arrogant bad guy, seems to always be doing something in the match. Him and Greg Valentine last the longest, and are always active. Still, that's no comparison to number 18, who never showed up, and thus, lost via forfeit. Turns out it was supposed to be Randy Savage, who was apparently chased out of the building by the Ultimate Warrior.

Also, one of the funniest moments in Royal Rumble history deserves a mention, Bushwhacker Luke entering and exiting the match in four seconds, never breaking his trademark stride. Great moment. On the most basic technical level, its not great. The action is kind of slow-paced, but it still works very well. However, what really sells this match is the storyline, both coming into and going out of the match.

See, what the WWF did brilliantly is that they set up and finished a lot of storylines. The Ultimate Warrior lost the WWF Championship to Sgt. Slaughter due to the interference of Randy Savage, leading to their Career vs. Career match at WrestleMania VII. The Rumble was essentially the feud ender between Hulk Hogan and Earthquake, with the former last eliminating the latter to win the match. This victory, coupled with Hogan's anger at the new Champion defacing the flag, led to him being named the #1 Contender, leading to the Hogan defeating Sgt. Slaughter at WrestleMania to win the title.

Overall, I gotta give this match another 8 out of 10, bordering on a 9. The action itself is fine, but its the storytelling that really does it for me. In my mind, the story is just a little more important. And I have to believe that the powers that be realized just how important the Rumble can be in telling a story here. I think this is the match that started the whole stipulation of the Rumble winner getting a Mania title shot. But that would have to wait another year, as 1992 had an even bigger prize at stake.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Ali » Jan 24, '17, 10:01 pm

Rating the Rumbles - 1992

Emanating from the Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, New York, the 1992 Royal Rumble was obviously the biggest one to date. Why? Because for the first of only two times, the major world championship was on the line. Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker had been battling over the WWF Championship for some time, but due to controversial finishes to the matches at Survivor Series and the This Tuesday in Texas event, WWF President Jack Tunney ordered the title to be vacated, with the new Champion being the winner of the Royal Rumble match.

And just who was in the middle of the controversy? Who was at the center of all of this craziness? Who was involved in both of the matches' finishes? None other than the Nature Boy, Ric Flair.

Here's the thing. At the time, the Monday Night Wars were not a thing, and the rivalry between the WWF and WCW was there, but not nearly as heated as it would become. That all changed when Ric Flair, arguably the biggest name WCW had, got into a series of disputes with WCW President Jim Herd, culminating in Flair leaving WCW and taking the WCW Championship Belt with him. Flair and the Big Gold Belt started showing up on WWF TV, with Flair calling himself "The Real World Champion", and taunting the WWF's biggest stars.

This was absolutely unprecedented at the time. Sure, people had gone from WCW to WWF and vice versa, but even back then, Vince McMahon had an obvious disdain for WCW/NWA talent. The treatment of Dusty Rhodes, turning the charismatic American Dream into a polka-dotted buffoon, is legendary. But even Vince knew when gold fell into his lap, so Ric Flair got treated with reverence.

The match begins with the British Bulldog and Ted DiBiase, but DiBiase is quickly taken out, and Ric Flair comes in at #3. And honestly, I can't put off the result any longer. Ric Flair lasts over an hour, and to the shock of everyone, wins the WWF Championship. And he could have been a coward, as he was a heel at the time, and there were times that he did leave the ring, but for the most part, he spent the majority of his time fighting. And I have to give mention to Bobby Heenan on commentary, his work is stellar. He is doing his job to sell Flair, but he also truly gets across the panic of drawing #3. You feel the fear, the relief, the joy, it all comes through.

My only complaint about this match is the finish, and to a lesser extent, the aftermath. The problem with the finish is that Hulk Hogan really comes off as a whiny, entitled jerk. Hogan is trying to eliminate Flair, but Sid Justice comes up behind him and throws him out. Hogan then yells at Sid, grabs his arm, and assists Flair in eliminating him. This just seems odd for the top good guy in the company to do, and even through WWE's editing and revisionist history, you can tell that the audience doesn't really buy it either. Its one thing for Hogan to be upset at Sid, who was his friend, but it is beaten into our heads that the Rumble is every man for himself. And if they used this moment to turn Hogan heel, that'd be one thing, but they make Sid the bad guy. It just doesn't work.

As far as the aftermath goes, it just sucks that we didn't get a WrestleMania VIII main evented by Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan. It was a dream match that fell into their lap, but they didn't make it happen. Hogan was leaving the company for a hiatus, so he ended up facing Sid, while Flair defended the belt against Randy Savage, in a losing effort. We would have to wait until Hogan jumped ship to WCW to get that face off.

Overall, I give this one a 9/10. The only thing holding it back from a perfect score is the finish, but that aside, everything about this match is fantastic. The action, the storytelling, the commentary, it all works beautifully. I wish I could say the same for 1993.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby The Legend » Jan 25, '17, 6:00 am

The '92 Rumble is one of my top three of all time for most of the reasons that you mentioned. It was the first time and one of the only times that they really strung a story together and didn't break off it as well.
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Re: Rating the Rumbles

Postby Messiah » Jan 25, '17, 9:45 am

Ali wrote:My only complaint about this match is the finish, and to a lesser extent, the aftermath. The problem with the finish is that Hulk Hogan really comes off as a whiny, entitled jerk. Hogan is trying to eliminate Flair, but Sid Justice comes up behind him and throws him out. Hogan then yells at Sid, grabs his arm, and assists Flair in eliminating him. This just seems odd for the top good guy in the company to do, and even through WWE's editing and revisionist history, you can tell that the audience doesn't really buy it either. Its one thing for Hogan to be upset at Sid, who was his friend, but it is beaten into our heads that the Rumble is every man for himself. And if they used this moment to turn Hogan heel, that'd be one thing, but they make Sid the bad guy. It just doesn't work.


Didn't Hogan do a lot of heel stuff back in the day? I remember when I was watching a lot of the old PPVs, he would do a lot of cheap stuff. So it wasn't totally out of the ordinary for him to do that to Sid. I agree though I didn't like the finish of the match that much either. Just felt underwhelming.
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