Demolition © vs British Bulldogs - Boston - 8/6/88 (non-title)
MD: Of the British Bulldogs matches easily available that we haven't yet done, this is the most interesting. The Wrestlefest one has the cool outdoor setting and fun bits of commentary where Superstar tries to convince Alfred to manage the Bulldogs. The SNME one has an absurdly hot crowd and the insane Demos promo with Jesse. The 1987 Toronto Tag Tourney one has the healthiest Dynamite. I like this one more than those. That said, it's pretty much the Bulldogs formula. Davey starts out. He and Dynamite look good. Something happens. Dynamite gets beat up for a while. Davey comes in with the hot tag. Dynamite comes back in. Finish. So we'll just point out the cool stuff.
The shine period at the front is actually really good. Davey looks GREAT. Nice, nice forearms on Smash. The sunset flip out of the corner spot looks good. The back and forth arm stuff with Davey and Smash looks really good in this match. None of it is just going through the motions. The Bulldogs are spry and doing lots of phantom switches. Demos are great using their power to control the ring. Dynamite is pretty good at using his quickness and ring savvy to counter that, with a nice little leg grapevine on the armbar to add some extra leverage, with Ax looking good, reaching for the tag but being too far away. Actually a lot of neat little things from Dynamite in this match. The Bulldogs get to show a bit more than usual with their neat arm-work. Ax hits an awesome headbutt to make a tag, but Dynamite cuts it off with a quick drop toe hold. Demos are definitely getting out wrestled here which usually doesn't work for long. Still, power wins out as Smash does a pretty good arm drag reversal spot and and reverses a headscissors takedown attempt by carrying Davey all the way to the turnbuckle (with a GREAT facial too) and it looks like Davey is going to be the FIP for once, but the ref gets in the way and he hits a good shot off the ropes and the running power slam, tagging Dynamite in for the headbutt. Bulldogs are looking like a thousand bucks here.
Anyway, Smash comes in to break up the pin and that's the shine goes out. The mauling begins. Dynamite does lean into everything, bless his crippled heart. Ax has somehow lost his chest... thing which is weird as I'm not even sure how that happens. Even after dozens of matches, Demolition's gear is still a mystery to us. AH! I went back. He took the straps off and put them in his tights. I have no frigging idea why since he doesn't do this in any other match. I assume he somehow gets Lawler-power out of it though. Unlike Crush, Smash has an awesome backbreaker. Amusing in here is that Superstar doesn't know who Dave Hebner is apparently. Somewhere in here Fuji hits a KILLER cane shot to the throat on DK while Ax has him in the neck-vice, and shortly thereafter, another shot out on the floor. Big suplex from the apron in from Smash. A great DK jaw-breaker out of an Ax chinlock leads to the hot tag. It wasn't a very long heat segment but they sure made the best of the time that they had.
Anyway, we all know Davey's awesome at the House Of Fire stuff and he is here too, including some great headsplitting clotheslines. Eventually Davey eats a foot and Smash misses an elbow and we get a mini hot tag back to DK who hits the wraparound clothesline. Then Smash suplexes himself for DK and we get chaos leading to the finish. Fuji distracts Davey. DK gets Smash in the Octopus. Ax crushes his skull with an axhandle, and that's the 3-count. This is the same as the wrestlefest finish but that used the cane. I think the axhandle looks better.
Anyway, I'm not sure if this was better than most of the Bulldogs/Demos matches. It actually had a little less heat considering that the longer shine period and the shorter FIP period, but I wanted to find something that was different than the Italy match and this is at least a little bit different. It's one of the better showcases for the Bulldogs in 1988 at least and shows how the Demos could help make another team look good and still come off as devastating even with only a short period to be on top.
VR: In the dvdvr tag touney the Bulldogs/Demos poll turned semi heated. But I hope it did not seem like I hated the British Bulldogs. There was lots to love about them. Its interesting how going over these matches that Dynamite seemed more like the ring general/solid hand and Davey Boy was the spectacular dynamo with snazzy looking offense.
Anyway this match is from August 1988 and I think the last Bulldogs/Demolition match. Bulldogs are gone by November.
The tone of the match feels much more like a British Bulldogs match. Smash and Davey Boy start off. Liked Bulldog retaliating with forearm blows to Smash and Smash regaining control with a knee to the gut. They do this spot where Davey Boy avoids the corner charge and hits a sunset flip. Which looks out of place a minute into the match.
Davey Boy is controlling Smash with an arm bar. They do the switching in and out while the ref is distracted.
Ax is tagged in and he has had enough beating Dynamite into the ground with a fine set of clubbering. Really love how Dynamite was selling here. First getting up really fast the getting gradually slower and slower. Some guys just become a lump. Or don't sell til they collapse.
Dynamite regains the advantage with a arm bar. I like how Dynamite works over an arm. He does it with meaning rather than a way to kill time. Also liked how he slipped his leg around Ax's, then turns it into a hammerlock. Ref is distracted and Davey Boy switches out.
Again Davey Boy has Ax grounded and Bulldogs make this stuff look more dynamic than most.Dynamite Kid switches out but Ax headbutts him and tags out but Smash is hit with a droptoe hold.
Love this spot where Smash turns an attempted hiptoss into a armbar. There is this one spot where Davey hoist up Smash for the power slam but stops and slams him. I think he realized it was too early. So he just slams him and Dynamite headbutts Smash off the second rope. Like how Dynamite got up like a spring.
Ax is back in and he starts laying into Dynamite and chokes him with his S&M singlet. Is that thing a modified regular singlet or a custom made outfit?
Now its a Demolition match. Ax put Kid in the head vice. Smash distracts the ref and Fuji hits Dynamite with the cane. Liked Kid's sell here. He popped up then collapsed. Smash is in clubbering while Ax keeps the front face lock on. I should note Ax is wrestling without the top of his singlet. He actually loks like more of a badass now.
Dynamite is on the floor and Fuji nails him in the gut again. Dynamite is really good at selling. Then again I heard he refused to sell if a guy did not lay it in.
Big suplex from Smash. Love Dynamite's spazam selling. Ax locks on a chin lock. Really like the way its done. With the hand on the wrist pulling back.
Davey Boy gets the hot tag and he goes thru Demolition.After slamming both Demos, Davey Boy screams and the crowds goes nut. He gets the visual pin on Ax. After a bodypress Ax kicks Davey Boy in the face.
We get another brief heat section on Davey Boy. Til he tags Dynamite. Who goes after both Demos. Hits the snap suplex on Smash but Ax breaks up the pin. This brings in Davey Boy and its broken down. Dynamite locks on the Octopus hold. This brings Fuji up on the apron. Davey Boy gets off of Ax to attack Fuuj. This allows Ax to clobber Dynamite for 3.
This was a good match. Though it felt like the cliff notes version of a longer match.
MD: There is a 20 minute Demos/Bulldogs match that we haven't seen. Anyone see it?
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