WCW Halloween Havoc ‘93

1. Harlem Heat and Equalizer vs. Shockmaster, Ice Train, and Charlie Norris – 3
2. Paul Orndorff vs. Ricky Steamboat – 6
3. British Bulldog vs. Lord Steven Regal – 4
4. Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes – 5
5. Nasty Boys vs. Marcus Bagwell and Too Cold Scorpio – 5
6. Sid Vicious vs. Sting – 6
7. Rick Rude vs. Ric Flair – 7
8. Cactus Jack vs. Vader – Texas Death Match – 7

The show opened with a bunch of brats trick-or-treating, mysteriously arriving at the front door of none other than Tony Schiavone, where he ultimately turned into a gigantic monster. No, I’m totally not making this shit up.

The opening six-man wasn’t horrible, but, I’ll be damned if it wasn’t very good either. The worst part of the match was anything involving Equalizer (Dave Sullivan) as he was just absolutely worthless. Ice Train was too muscular for his own good, and was the main target for the heels. Stevie Ray potentially hard a shit stain on his trunks, but I can’t confirm it.

Orndorff and Steamboat was really good; I was surprised that these two veterans, at their age, put forth such a tremendous effort in a match drenched in physicality. There was intense brawling and solid matwork, and Steamboat’s yellow trunks were hot. Bulldog couldn’t really hold his own against Regal for whatever reason, be it laziness or drug-induced lethargy. They did the customary time-limit draw shtick that Regal did to death during his TV title reign.

Austin and Rhodes work very well together, and while I may have not liked this as much as their match two years prior at Halloween Havoc ’91, it was still moderately good with flashes of excellence. It didn’t seem to carry the weight or importance of the aforementioned bout between them, but was still perfectly okay. I think I liked the concept of Bagwell and Scorpio against the Nasty Boys more than I actually enjoyed what it truly was. I liked the dynamic of the big burly brutes against the clean-cut, highflying youngsters. The good guys wore the Halloween colors of orange and black, and did a little dance before the match; which strangely made me happier than I’ve been since Bob Orton Jr. got his “injured” arm x-rayed in that ridiculous skit long ago. They neutralized Bagwell for much of the match, and he took a couple of nasty bumps, including a particularly revolting spill to the floor, and subsequently a hard slam on the ground. Missy Hyatt was at ringside wearing her bra, barely covered by a tiny white denim jacket, and sporting a heinous short haircut. Later that night she’d do the monster mash – and by that, I mean she got nailed anally by a half-dozen of the boys in the back… simultaneously.

Sid and Sting started off tame, but Sting’s epic comeback was near perfect, as the crowd was ravenous as if their face-painted hero could do no wrong. It totally reminded me of the monster heel against the underdog face scenario, which was made popular during this era, and was a great bit of nostalgia wrapped up into a passable 10-minute match. Rude and Flair was fantastic, and should have scored an 8, had it not been for the horrible finish featuring bumbling prop guys, confused refs, and a foreign object that looked like fake vampire teeth. Rude’s signature trunks were great per usual, featuring a gigantic jack-o-lantern on his ass. Rude’s selling of his leg throughout the match was brilliant psychology, and he was certainly worthy as their major champion.

Unlike the last match, the main event should have likely scored lower, say a 6 or so, but it was such a spectacle that I couldn’t help but give it props. The main thing you need to know about this match is Cactus bumps like a madman. Then you’ve got Vader throwing deadly shots, Jack bumping on the concrete, they’re using goofy stage props, plenty of steel chair goodness, Harley Race’s rugged manliness at ringside, an unbreakable table, a massive moonsault, and so much more. The ending, where Race supposedly shocked Jack with a cattle prod-like instrument was laughable, as it was clear he didn’t really shock him, and Foley sold it like he was being murdered. Overall, I enjoyed watching the show, and deeply miss Halloween Havoc in general, arguably the best concept pay-per-view series ever.