WWF 1996: On Hiatus

This week’s show kicks off with the normal Monday Night Raw intro, featuring images of the top wrestlers in the World Wrestling Federation. At the conclusion of the video, we go to the arena where the camera pans around the crowd and the commentators, Vince McMahon and Jerry “The King” Lawler welcome the fans to the first Monday Night Raw following the Royal Rumble! After they welcome the viewers from home, they go over what occurred at last night’s pay per view. The two continue to talk until they are interrupted by Vader’s theme music. Vader, who debuted at last night’s Royal Rumble, looks to be a dominant force in the future of the WWF.

Vader def. Aldo Montoya with the Vader Bomb
This match was pretty much a squash as Vader just manhandled Aldo Montoya. From start to finish, Vader threw the guy around the ring, allowing only two or three punches that had no effect. After a few minutes of domination, Vader ended Aldo Montoya’s misery with the Vader Bomb. ***

After the match, Vader walked up to the camera and yells, “I’m coming for you.”

Before the commercial break, Vince McMahon announces that tonight’s main event will be between Diesel and the Undertaker for the number one contendership of the WWF Championship!

#1 Contendership for the WWF Tag Team Championship: Headshrinkers (Fatu & Samu) def. the Bodydonnas (Skip & Zip) with the Samoan Drop
Despite the lack of crowd excitement, the in ring product was above average for a tag team match. The team teams seemed to have some chemistry going, but they could not seem to get the crowd going. A possibility for this is the fact that both teams are heel. Other then that, this match was decent, and the Headshrinkers got a shot at the WWF Tag Team titles after Samu hit Skip with the Samoan Drop. ***

A video hyping The Ringmaster airs as we return from a short commercial break. The video shows the Ringmaster dominating numerous opponents with his manager, Ted DiBiase, voicing over, stating, “The new million dollar man!”

The Ringmaster def. Savio Vega with the Million-Dollar Dream
With the exception of Vader’s opening squash match, this was probably the most disappointing match on the show. Much like the previous match, the crowd was dead for most of the match. In addition, the Ringmaster and Savio Vega just did not seem to click. However, the finish of this match was very well done, as the Ringmaster hit Savio Vega with a turnbuckle that was exposed earlier in the match while Ted DiBiase distracted the referee, and then locked in the Million-Dollar Dream to force Vega to submit. ***

Following the match, highlights from last night’s Royal Rumble air, showing Shawn Michaels eliminating Diesel to win the Royal Rumble. Shortly after that, we see the finish of the Undertaker and Bret Hart match for the WWF Championship, where Diesel interferes by attacking Bret Hart to cause the disqualification of the Undertaker! After the video, Vince McMahon states, “We will hear from both Shawn Michaels and Diesel following this commercial break!”

Backstage, we see Shawn Michaels enter Diesel’s locker room, where Diesel is preparing his match later tonight. Diesel looks over his shoulder to find Michaels standing behind him, a big smile on his face. Diesel mumbles, “Go away.” Michaels refuses and sits next to Diesel and states, “Look, I know you have some hard feelings after I eliminated you last night, but I just had to do it. I mean, either way, one of us was going to eliminate the other.” Diesel nods and Michaels continues, “Well tonight you get another chance for a title shot and I need to you to win this one so you can weaken Bret Hart for Wrestlemania, got it?” Diesel sits in silence and Michaels states, “That’s what I thought.” Michaels then walks off and Diesel shakes his head.

Goldust def. Ahmed Johnson with the Curtain Call
Up to this point, this was the match of the night. The crowd was hot, unlike the previous matches, and the two put on a hell of a match. Ahmed Johnson seemed to get the upper hand at the beginning, hitting Goldust with multiple clotheslines and spine busters. This got the crowd pumped, and it looked as if Johnson was getting even more momentum from their reaction. However, just as Johnson was setting up for the Pearl River Plunge, Marlena jumped on the apron, distracting the referee. This gave Goldust a perfect opportunity to low blow Johnson and then hit the Curtain Call. Goldust then got the pin and the victory. ****

Before the main event, interviewer Todd Pettengill had a chance to speak with the WWF Champion Bret Hart. Pettengill started by asking, “Bret, last night at the Royal Rumble, you barely came out of the match as WWF Champion. However, thanks to Diesel’s interference, you were able to retain your title. Your thoughts about Diesel?” Bret answered quickly, “Well, I don’t really know about why Diesel decided to help me of all people, but I still feel I could have defeated Undertaker by pin fall or submission. As a matter of fact, I’m going to be rooting for Undertaker so I can finally get a one on one, clean match against him.” Pettengill then asked, “What if Diesel wins?” Hart responds, “If Diesel wins he better be ready for a tough fight. No matter who faces off with me at In Your House, I’ll be ready to defend my title!” Hart walks off after and Pettengill announces, “Well there you have it, our main event between Diesel and the Undertaker will be next!”

#1 Contendership for WWF Championship: Diesel def. the Undertaker with the Jackknife Powerbomb
The crowd was absolutely on fire during this match, cheering mainly for the Undertaker. The first part of the match was mostly back and forth action, as both wrestlers switched off with locks and maneuvers. However, Undertaker got the advantage halfway through the match once he hit the Tombstone on Diesel. While it was not enough to keep him down, it did severely weaken him. Things did not look good for Diesel when Undertaker was measuring him up for another Tombstone but suddenly Shawn Michaels came down to the ring and distracted Undertaker. When ‘Taker turned around, he was met with an enormous big boot, followed by a Jackknife Powerbomb for the win. ****

Shawn Michaels enters the ring after Diesel is rewarded the victory and pats Diesel on the back. However, Diesel makes no acknowledgment of Michaels and simply walks away. Then, Vader runs out and attacks Michaels from behind. He then hits a Vader Bomb, which leaves Michaels motionless in the ring. Monday Night Raw ends with Vader standing over Michaels and yelling, “Its Vader time!”