My Favorite Wrestling: WCW Worldwide 3/13/99 & 3/20/99

3/13/99

Damian vs. Hak

Well this was some damn enjoyable WCW right here. This was awesome, probably the most Damian offense I've ever seen in any of his WCW matches. He gets a couple dives (including a really nice somersault tope) and a moonsault, bunch of nasty looking singapore cane clotheslines and shots to Hak's throat, and a sick running knee to the face (using a chair to springboard off). Hak has some crazy bumps, including one where he dumps himself onto his own head geting thrown into the guard rail (which seemed to be a regular Sandman spot). One of the most fun 3 minute matches I've ever seen.

Mike Enos vs. Booker T

Well this SHOULD have been awesome, as Enos is always more than game, but Booker just threw some of the sloppiest kicks possible in this match. All sorts of goofy spin kicks and some of them just looked lame. Still, it was a long match and quite competitive. Enos looked real good. Every time he would go on offense the match would get good, then Booker would throw some sort of back leg front back spin forward jump kick and Enos would try his damndest to make it look like something that would hurt a man.

3/20/99

Barry Horowitz vs. Ernest Miller

This was disappointing as it only goes about 45 seconds. Barry was really making Cat's kicks look painful, and then it just stopped. I know my heart is in the wrong place by being disappointed by an Ernest Miller match (I mean, what is the best case scenario when you watch an Ernest Miller singles match?), but 45 seconds? That's just pointless.

Kaz Hayashi vs. Raven

Well good grief THIS is (maybe) far and away the best match I have watched for this project so far. It is insanely great and totally out of left field. I was expecting a squash just like the previous match and thankfully I couldn't have been more wrong. Raven gave Kaz EVERYthing in this match, and Kaz looks like one of the best in the world in 1999 (just checked, he was #32 on the DVD500 for that period, so maybe that notion isn't so crazy...). There is so much awesome stuff in the match, it is easily one of my favorite sub-5 minute matches EVER. Kaz takes some insane bumps, including a missed somersault senton over the top to the floor. He hits TWO sentons off the top rope (with Raven under a chair!), they both take a beating from the other, and this is just too awesome. For a guy who is a total joke these days, Raven looked pretty damn good in '99. Made me excited to see other Raven matches from this time period. This match NEEDS to be seen by everybody.

*Goodhelmet informed me right after I'd seen this and was gushing about it to him, that apparently it is on one of the earlier Schneider comps. So I'm like 10 years late to this party. But better late than never! Go buy that comp!