On Brand Segunda Caida: Bob Cook in WWF Pt. II

Bob Cook vs. Duke Droese WWF Wrestling Challenge 5/28/95

ER: This was practically constructed as if Cook were the underdog babyface and Droese was the mean heel. Droese goes to a chinlock less than a minute in, which just comes off odd. I am not opposed to the chinlock as a move, and Droese has a nice one because he has big arms and locks it in, but it's so strange to do one so early in the match - a match designed to showcase Droese, no less. Did he get unexpectedly winded? Possibly. But this might be one of the few examples I've seen of a babyface showcase squash where the babyface hits a long chinlock in any part of the match. How many *heel* squash matches do you see a chinlock used? It's weird. This is weird. Cook gets to fight out of the chinlock with a nice wristlock, even if it's fleeting as Droese just tosses him to the mat. Cook fights from his knees with a nice punch to the stomach and gets to fire one off standing. And Droese doesn't opt to finish Cook off with the trash compactor, instead hitting a great high rotation powerslam and then coming off the ropes with a nice high windup elbow drop. That chinlock has really thrown me off today. I'm sure the answer is simple, but I may take a break from wrestle writing to think about that babyface squash match chinlock.

Bob Cook vs. Adam Bomb WWF Raw 5/29/95

ER: This is surely the peak of the WWF Bob Cook, I absolutely loved this match. This was go go go, an absurd amount of offense packed into barely 2 minutes. And it was rather competitive, Bomb working fast and light while Cook would catch him with gorgeous punches or shoulder shots to the gut. Adam Bomb actually seemed really good in 1995, like he was really figuring everything out. He is a big guy who was working like Barry Windham here, and that's a great step for Bomb. Bomb worked some nice Windham style armdrags and a big hip toss, with Cook feeding him quick on bodyslams and backdrops, and getting up for a big back suplex. But Bomb had a real charm here, and took a lot of time to connect with the crowd after moves, with Cook being a perfect canvas for an Adam Bomb showcase. Bomb was gone from WWF just a couple months later, even though he was kept strong on his way out. I don't know what happened, but I think they gave up on him too early; he could have been a big part of 1996.