WWF Saturday Night's Main Event #24 11/25/1989

WWF Saturday Night's Main Event #24 11/25/1989

The Ultimate Warrior does a promo on Andre The Giant. He says it's like Jack and The Beanstalk and he will chop him down to size. Bobby Heenan and Andre The Giant respond. Heenan mocks him for using fairy tales and says this isn't a fairy tale, this is over 7 feet tall and over 500lbs of reality. Andre says Warrior was a champ but no more. He says when Andre gets the belt back, he will send Warrior back to the land of Nod? where can live happily as a loser like he is.

Dusty Rhodes does a promo. He says he's the common man and will teach The Big Boss Man a lesson. He says he will touch him that justice is a lady and justice is blind. He says justice is for all the people. The Big Boss Man and Slick respond. Slick says Dusty is a common thief and stole the equipment of the finest American crime fighter since Batman.

The Genius does a promo. He says he's alone with Hulk and says he's bigger than him. He says his head is much fatter and his belt will look splendid on him. Hulk says we will find out how smart Genius is when Genius tries to solve a problem Einstein and Socrates couldn't solve - Hulkamania. He asks what he will do when Hulkamania runs wild on him.

Jesse Ventura and Vince McMahon welcome us to the show. Jesse says Hulk never faced an opponent like The Genius. Jesse says law and order will find its place in Boss Man vs Dusty. He says we will see a new Intercontinental champ in Andre The Giant. Jesse says Vince put on 6lbs and asks if he ate a whole pumpkin pie.

We see clips of Warrior's history with Andre. Warrior has a wrestler on his shoulder in August 1989. He has words with Heenan then Andre chokes Warrior from behind and shakes his head.

Bobby Heenan and Andre The Giant are interviewed by Jesse Ventura. Jesse says Andre has a huge psychological advantage over Warrior. Heenan says The Ultimate Maniac has felt Andre's huge hands around his neck. He said he felt the breath leave his body and feels the IC Title slipping off his waist. Jesse asks if Rick Rude will be jealous if Andre becomes champ. Heenan says it's all in the family.

Heenan says Warrior has broken more vows than The Gabor Sisters. Heenan says vows are meant to be broken, just like Warrior's neck. Andre says he's the man who will do it and Heenan says, "let's go break some necks".

Mean Gene Okerlund interviews The Ultimate Warrior. Warrior says fear is the air that cowards breed. He says it's the first taste of defeat. He says he only feasts on the fruit of victory.

WWF Intercontinental Title - The Ultimate Warrior (c) vs Andre The Giant

Andre pounds his chest. Warrior shakes the buckles and is hit from behind. Andre chokes Warrior. Warrior tries a shot but is choked on the ropes more. Andre headbutts Warrior out. Warrior chokes Andre with his singlet and makes his ride on the ropes. Warrior misses a clothesline and goes over the top.

Andre boots him and hits shots to the gut. Andre holds Warrior's arms back behind him. Warrior powers out and hits a big lariat on Andre. Warrior lariats Andre out of the ring. Warrior clubs on Andre outside.

We go to break and return. Andre is having trouble getting in. Andre hits Warrior from outside and chokes Warrior with the rope. Warrior double chops Warrior in the neck. Warrior bearhugs Andre. Andre chokes Warrior's neck and headbutts him.  Warrior jumps into Andre's shoulder in the corner then Andre bearhugs him.

Warrior clubs on Andre and Andre headbutts Warrior in the gut. Warrior hits Andre in the gut then chops him. Andre headbutts Warrior. Warrior running lariats Andre, getting him tied up in the ropes. Warrior runs at him and runs into Andre's boot. Heenan grabs the IC title, gets in the ring and misses a shot with it. Warrior nails Heenan and clubs on him. Warrior throws Heenan into Andre and the ref calls for the bell. Warrior wins via DQ.

Warrior tries to hit Andre with the belt outside but Andre blocks it.

Thoughts: This was ugly. Andre really couldn't do much. It was unintentionally funny at times here as you could visibly see Andre and Heenan look scared to death at some of Warrior's offense.

Jesse Ventura interviews The Genius. Genius does a poem talking about how he will win the title. He says he's 10 feet tall between the hair and says he will rely on his IQ. Jesse says Henningway and Frost got nothing on Genius.

Mean Gene interviews Hulk Hogan. Hulk says Genius has a high IQ but a low tolerance for pain. He says how come Genius doesn't know he can't win mathematically here? He says his 3 Demandments x his 24 inch pythons x The Hulkamaniac's equals victory. He says roses are red, violets are blue, The Hulkster's a wrestler, Genius, what are you? Gene says we will have an all-out battle and not a poetry lesson.

WWF World Title - Hulk Hogan (c) vs The Genius

Gen offers a left-handed handshake and they play around offering alternating handshakes. Genius stretches and frolics around. Hulk pushes Gen out. Hulk pushes Gen over and Gen kips up. Hulk hiptosses and slams Gen. Gen goes out to avoid a big boot.

Gen goes out to do some math on his scrypt, writing down Hulk's size and writing, "Hulk Down". Gen armdrags Hulk and skips around. Gen slaps Hulk and Hulk gets mad. Gen backflips, cartwheels and frolics around more. Hulk then running clotheslines Gen twice and bangs his head off the buckles. Hulk hits punches on Gen then running back elbows him. Hulk then does Gen's frolicking.

Hulk hits an atomic drop and mocks Gen's selling. Hulk backdrops and elbow drops him. Hulk hits corner punches on Gen then Mr. Perfect grabs Hulk's title. He says that is not a perfect champ and not a perfect belt. He puts his gum on the belt. Hulk goes out to chase him. Gen dropkicks Hulk into the post.

Gen hits punches on Hulk. Gen moonsaults him off the buckles for 2. Gen hits punches and Hulk hulks up. Hulk hits punches then big boots him. Gen rakes Hulk's back. Hulk rakes Gen's eyes and back. Gen is body slammed over the top rope to the floor.

Perfect checks on Genius and Hulk pushes Perfect out of the way. Perfect clocks Hulk with the WWF title. Genius gets the win via countout as Jesse goes on about what an upset this is. Genius and Perfect then run for it with Perfect stealing Hulk's title.

Thoughts: I didn't see what lead up to this, but there's nothing that could really make me buy Genius as any kind of serious opponent for Hulk. Hulk was taking down Andre and Bundy and Genius is going to pose a threat? No way. Genius should not have gotten the countout win here. There wasn't a lot of wrestling at all in this one with Genius frolicking around for most of the match. I wasn't a fan of this at all.

We see clips from July 1989. The Boss Man had won a squash and Dusty came out and took the nightstick so Boss couldn't dish out more punishment. Slick grabs handcuffs and tries to cuff Dusty then Dusty hits boss with the night stick.

Mean Gene interviews The Big Boss Man and Slick. Gene says Dusty stopped post-match beatdowns from Boss 3 times. Slick says that makes him a 3-time loser and a habitual criminal. He says he's subject to the full length of the law. Boss says the law is to feel the pain, the whole pain and nothing but the pain. Slick says to have faith in their penal system as Husky Toads will be complete rehabilitated. Gene says they are the definition of cruel and unusual punishment, saying Boss is cruel and Slick is unusual.

Mean Gene interviews Dusty Rhodes. Dusty says he's here to show America that justice does prevail. He says he's a common man. He says when he saw the bully Boss Man take liberties with opponents, he said no more. He said the common people need a common man to lead them and he said he's that man. He says Slick must pay the penalties and the punishment for aiding and abetting Boss. He says that means this court is adorned.

The Big Boss Man vs Dusty Rhodes

Jesse says Dusty's song should say "he's just a common thief, he's a common criminal". Dusty wants Slick ejected. Slick shows his manager's license to the ref. Dusty throws it. Boss misses a shot and takes punches and elbows from Dusty. Boss hits knees on Dusty then Slick chokes Dusty. Slick goes for a cheapshot on Dusty and is caught. Boss hits Dusty from behind then sends him into the post.

They trade shots and Boss hits shots to the arm. Boss puts Dusty's arm in a hold then back elbows him. Boss eye rakes Dusty then misses a corner splash. Dusty hits shots on Boss and punches him. Dusty misses a an elbow drop then leg lariats him on the ropes.

Slick has Boss' night stick. Boss wants it and Slick gets into an argument with a "fan" over it (who would turn out to be Sapphire). Dusty then rolls up Boss and wins the match.

Thoughts: This was pretty much all striking here and was mostly Dusty getting beaten up. There was nothing too special about this. The finish was rather weak as well.

The argument with the fan continues after and Boss yells at her. The fan then hugs and dances with Dusty in the ring.

Mean Gene Okerlund interviews The Red Rooster. Red says he's in the best shape of his life and says Mr. Perfect better not count his chickens before they hatch.

Jesse Ventura interviews Mr. Perfect. Jesse asks Perfect what he was doing out there with Hulk. Perfect says he won't discuss this until his match tonight when he will make everything clear. Jesse asks why he's facing Rooster tonight. Perfect said he wants to add another perfect win to his record. Then he says Jack Tunney will realize he is the #1 contender to the title.

Mr. Perfect vs The Red Rooster

Genius does a poem for Perfect before the match. Perfect slaps him and shoves him on the ropes. Perfect hits punches then Red kneelifts him. Red armdrags him. Perfect trips him then Red hammerlocks him. Red side headlocks him and is backdropped. Perfect snapmares him and pulls his neck forward. Red sunset flips him for 2 then Perfect punches him.

Perfect twists the neck then Red headbutts him. Red hits some shots and Perfect flurries him with shots. Red hits a bulldog then bangs Perfect's head off the mat. Red back body drops him for 2. Perfect hits a nasty looking lariat then hits a perfectplex for the win.

Thoughts: What we got wasn't bad but it was obvious Red had no chance here. I'll never understand how Red was supposed to get this gimmick over.

The Rockers are interviewed by Mean Gene. Shawn says they aren't here to wrestle Bobby Heenan, just The Brainbusters. Shawn says they will win big tonight. Marty says they are The Rockers and the ring's a hard place.

Bobby Heenan and The Brainbusters are being interviewed during an argument. Bobby mocks them and is mad they don't have the tag titles anymore. Tully speaks up and said they were great two weeks ago when they still had the tag titles. Arn says they always listened to him and says one mistake don't sink the ship. Bobby says to listen to him and says they'd still have it if they listened. Tully says he only likes having them so he can walk around the country club saying he has the world tag titles.

2/3 Falls - The Rockers vs The Brainbusters

1st Fall - MJ gets out of a Tully hiptoss then slams and dropkicks him. MJ armdrags him. Tully pulls him back by the hair. MJ hits shots then flying back elbows him. Tully pulls MJ down by the hair and misses elbow drops. MJ fights off the Busters 1v2 outside. Marty slingshot sunset flips Tully and Shawn knocks Tully's hands off the ropes. MJ gets the win.

2nd Fall - Bobby argues with The Busters between falls. Tully points his finger at Bobby and Bobby jumps out of the ring. The Busters are rolled up from behind for 2 before the bell rings. The Busters take stereo superkicks then Bobby walks back to the dressing room.

Shawn and Arn trade punches. Shawn flips over Arn then hiptosses him. Shawn hurricanrana's tully into punches then Arn and Tully take double dropkicks. Arn takes a double hiptoss into a double elbow drop. Tully takes a shot to the gut into a kneelift. Shawn gets on Tully's shoulders and is pulled down over the top rope throat first by Arn. Shawn is then pinned.

3rd Fall - Jesse says he's going to talk to Heenan about this. We see him interview Heenan in the back. He asks what is wrong with The Busters. Heenan said they disgraced him and are the worst tag team he ever associated. He said they will call him back someday when they are at a soup kitchen. He says there is no room for a team that won't listen to The Brain. He tells them to go get their tales kicked and says they are fired.

Shawn is down as the 3rd fall begins. Tully pounds on Shawn. Arn hits shots on Tully then spinebusters MJ. Arn catapults Shawn into a shot from Tully. Tully comes off the buckles and nails Shawn. Shawn is then thrown out. Tully's head is banged off the buckles then Shawn top rope crossbodies him.

Arn is hit by MJ and bangs his head off of Shawn's face. Both go down. MJ is tagged in and nails The Busters. MJ slams both of them and dropkicks Arn. Arn elbows Marty in the head. Shawn top rope crossbodies Arn and gets the win.

Thoughts: The work was good but sadly the storyline here kind of overtook the match. They didn't let them all go out here and it felt a bit rushed. This was taped a month before it aired. By the time this had aired, Tully and Arn were already out of the WWF.

Mr. Perfect and The Genius are interviewed by Mean Gene. Perfect has the WWF Title and is hitting it with a hammer. Perfect says it has never been a perfect belt and says Hulk is not a perfect champ. He says he will destroy every belt until Hulk gives him a title shot. Genius says he is feeling and says he is desecrating Hulkamania and Hulk Hogan. Perfect says these are the pieces that are left of Hulkamania. He says he will destroy every belt until he gets a title shot. He says the belt will only be perfect when it's around his waist.

Thoughts: I wasn't feeling this angle. It would have worked better if Perfect had beaten Hulk or if Genius had been the one breaking the belt since he was the one who actually won.

Mean Gene holds what's left of the WWF Title. Hulk is disappointed. He says the thing is eating him alive that The Genius got his hand raised in victory over him and his Hulkamaniacs. He said Mr. Perfect cut him to the bone and is burning his soul alive. He says he spit in Hulkamania's face. He says you can't destroy Hulkamania by destroying a materialistic belt. He says millions of Hulkamaniac's will reunite and with Hulk leading the brigade, he only thing left is the ultimate encounter with him. He says that equals the perfect defeat for Mr. Perfect.

Jesse and Vince close the show. Jesse says Perfect has to be in Hulk's mind now and he can feel it. They say the next SNME is in January and the dawning of a new era. Jesse says the iron curtain has fallen and so has Hulk.

Overall thoughts: Warrior/Andre wasn't good as Andre couldn't do much at all. Warrior was not the right guy to work around that since his character didn't bump a lot. I didn't like Genius going over Hulk. Dusty/Boss was all strikes. The Rockers vs The Brainbusters had good work but Heenan fighting with The Busters was distracting and took away from their work. The match also didn't really get enough time. I didn't like the angle here with Perfect destroying the WWF Title because he wasn't the one that beat Hulk and that situation is something Jack Tunney should have to deal with more than Hulk. I didn't like this one.