all that. Also, just so you know, the Acolytes are Farooq and Bradshaw. Kicking things off here are Mideon and Christian. Christian gains control with a spinning heel kick. Gangrel delivers a kick to Bradshaw, but he no-sells it. After hammering away on Gangrel in the corner, Bradshaw hits him with a fallaway slam. Edge blindly tags Gangrel and then they double-team Bradshaw. A crucifix by Edge gets 2. However, a spinebuster by Farooq stops him in his tracks. Mideon connects with a delayed suplex and gets a nearfall. Edge gets a sunset flip on Mideon, but the referee is distracted by Farooq. Bradshaw brawls with Gangrel and Christian to allow Farooq to attack Edge on the floor. Edge is clearly the gothic face-in-peril right now. Crowd chants “Mideon sucks” even though he isn’t even in the ring. Ouch! Edge jawjacks Farooq, but can’t crawl over and tag. Mideon charges at Edge, but gets booted. Then Edge spears him from the second rope. Edge finally tags Christian, which gets no response. All six men are in now and the Brood are in control. Now only Christian and Bradshaw are left and Christian hits Bradshaw with a tornado DDT. That gets a nearfall. Christian does a 10-punch count in the corner, but Bradshaw stops him with a powerbomb. He covers, but Gangrel makes a save. Edge nails Bradshaw with a missile dropkick and Christian covers him, but Farooq breaks up the pin. As everyone continues to brawl, Viscera comes out and splashes Christian against the apron. He throws him in the ring where Bradshaw delivers his big clothesline. That is enough to easily put Christian away.

Bottom Line: This could have been a good match had the Brood dictated the action. But as fate would have it, they didn’t and we’re left with a dull opener. Had the Brood gotten a chance to get more over as faces, this might have been better. Since they hadn’t, this wasn’t a very good choice as an opener. Plus, you’ll never win any favors from me when you factor Viscera into your finish. * ½

Snow tries a Pearl Harbor attack, but Holly blasts him with the hardcore title. He gets a 2 count out of that. It doesn’t take long for the fight to head to the outside. After Holly nails Snow in the head with a jug of water, the fight spills into the crowd. Back at ringside Snow moonsaults himself onto Holly and that gets a nearfall. In the ring, Snow abuses Holly with a hockey stick. Snow sets a table up in the ring, but Holly nails him from behind with the hockey stick. On the floor, Holly gets hit with a cookie sheet. Holly suplexes Snow in the aisle and gets a nearfall. The two fight to the back and the crowd boos. Holly attempts to use a kitchen sink on Snow, but Snow sprays him with a hose. Now they are outside throwing each other into an assortment of vehicles. Holly shoves Snow into a dumpster and then jumps in after him. From there, they head into the production truck. Snow tosses Holly out and he lands on the hood of a car. A follow-up elbow drop by Snow gives him a nearfall. As the two head back inside, we get a double feature of the elbow drop. However, if you stay focused on the live screen, you can clearly see the cut from the pre-filmed outdoor brawl to the now live shot of them back in the arena. Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy WWF. Back in the ring, Snow cracks a frying pan over Holly’s head. Snow opts not to cover Holly and instead puts him on the table. As Snow climbs up top, Holly nails him with the frying pan. Then Holly climbs up and superplexes Snow through the table. Holly manages to roll over and cover, but somehow only gets 2. Snow grabs Head and wallops Holly with it. Snow covers and scores the pinfall to finally win the Hardcore title.

BL: After a solid brawl, the ending was a bit lackluster. After months of trying to win the title, all it took for Snow to win was a Head shot? Personally, the table spot should have been the finish. Weak finish aside, these two once again designed some neat, yet brutal looking spots. Now if only they could improve on their editing. ** ¾

- The Undertaker has a pep talk with his Ministry. He spouts the usual clichés about death and destruction and then finishes with a promise of a tragedy yet to come. You mean Mideon getting a match on PPV wasn’t the tragedy?

The prestige of the Intercontinental title continued its downward spiral as the belt changed hands not once, but twice in the last month. First Goldust defeated Road Dogg for it and then he was beaten by the Godfather. This is obviously the rematch to that encounter. The Blue Meanie, who’s accompanying Goldust, does a hilarious imitation of Sable’s “grind” before the match. The Meanie approaches the hos, which distracts the Godfather and allows Goldust to attack him. The Godfather quickly recovers and dumps Goldust to the floor. Goldust considers walking, but the Meanie coaxes him back to the ring. A legdrop by the Godfather gets 2. The Meanie trips Godfather coming off the ropes and then Goldust clotheslines him to the floor. On the outside, the Meanie continues to attack the Godfather. Back inside, Goldust gets a nearfall with a clothesline. Goldust tries to use some powder, but the Godfather kicks it back in his face. The Meanie comes in to help his friend, but Goldust knocks him down thinking it’s the Godfather. Still blinded, Goldust delivers Shattered Dreams to Meanie. Is he deaf too because the Meanie and the Godfather sure don’t sound alike. The Godfather kicks Goldust and covers. The Meanie tries to make the save, but the Godfather moves out of the way. The Godfather whips Meanie into Goldust and then delivers the Ho Train. The Godfather follows that up with the Death Valley Driver and picks up the win.

BL: If this was just a match between the Godfather and Goldust, I would chalk this up to harmless fun. However, knowing that this was also for the Intercontinental title, I shed a tear. Comedy matches and title bouts should not be one in the same, especially not on a PPV. It’s pretty obvious at this point that the writers had no clue what to do with this division. They were just shifting it from one over star to the next with no logical feuds to thread the title changes together. ½ *

- Michael Cole interviews Al Snow about his big win, but it ends up turning into a debate between Snow and Head as to who won the match. Gee, I’m surprised they didn’t take that further and have Snow feud with Head for the Hardcore title.

So evidently the Outlaws are tired of trying to be singles stars already and are giving this tag thing another try. Good move, says I. Road Dogg asks Debra to show us the puppies, but Jarrett won’t let her. As part of some bizarre consolation, Road Dogg has Badd Ass show us his ass instead. Before he can give us the full moonshot, the heels attack him and Road Dogg. They quickly isolate Badd Ass, but he comes back with a dropkick on Owen. Jarrett and Road Dogg are in now and Jarrett begins to work on Road Dogg’s neck. Road Dogg retaliates as the crowd begins a “show your puppies” chant. The shaky legs kneedrop gets 2. Everybody comes in and the Outlaws hit tandem dropkicks. As the referee tries to regain control, Owen nails Road Dogg with an enziguri. A dropkick by Jarrett knocks Road Dogg to the floor. Road Dogg catches Owen in a backslide, but the referee was distracted by Jarrett. Owen hits Road Dogg with a spinning heel kick and covers, but Badd Ass breaks up the pin. A powerslam by Jarrett gets 2. Jarrett and Road Dogg both appear to try a move, but end up colliding into each other. Owen applies a sleeper on Road Dogg, but he manages to escape and reverse the hold. Owen gets free and then he collides in the middle of the ring with Road Dogg. Both men tag out and the fresh Badd Ass cleans house. Badd Ass powerslams Jarrett for 2. All four men are in the ring and the Outlaws hit tandem 10-punch counts. Debra gets on the apron and distracts Road Dogg long enough for Owen to attack him. That is short-lived as Road Dogg comes back and hits him with the pump handle slam. He covers, but Jarrett breaks up the pin. After the Outlaws miss their dropkicks, Owen locks Road Dogg in the Sharpshooter and Jarrett attempts the figure four leglock on Badd Ass. However, Badd Ass shoves Jarrett off and then connects with the Fameasser on Owen. Badd Ass covers and gets the 3 count. What a surprise, Badd Ass makes the winning cover.

Postmatch: The Outlaws celebrate by having Badd Ass moon the crowd and Road Dogg dance. Let’s leave the celebrating for once the cameras are off, ok fellas?

BL: A pretty formulaic tag match and a little on the short side actually. I felt the face-in-peril segment could have been longer and more dramatic. Then again, the fans only seemed to be concerned with Debra’s puppies, so maybe it didn’t matter. Nothing wrong here, but it did nothing to showcase anybody’s talent. It’s a shame that Owen did the job on what would end up being his final PPV match. ** ¼

- Michael Cole asks Shane McMahon if he can be an impartial referee in tonight’s main event. Shane gives his word on his grandfather’s grave that he will be. As for the other McMahon man, his father, Shane simply refers to him as “Vince” and says he better stay out of his way.

- Speaking of Vince, Kevin Kelly gets his take on Shane’s actions. Vince warns Shane to watch what he says and hopes he doesn’t make a big mistake. Then Stephanie butts in and says she knows Shane will be true to his word. Oh how I miss the sweet, naïve Stephanie.

Boiler Room Brawl: Mankind vs. The Big Show

So even though Big Show turned face after leaving the Corporation, he kept his feud going with Mankind for reasons that elude me at the moment. Show enters the boiler room and searches for Mankind. Mankind attacks him from behind with an assortment of weapons. Show comes back by throwing him into a cabinet. Mankind breaks a bunch of pieces of sheet rock over Show’s head, but when he runs at Show with a trash can, Show boots it back into his face. Show puts Mankind in a shopping cart and then wheels him in to some tables. Mankind grabs a big piece of glass and breaks it over Show’s head. Show’s head and Mankind’s hand have been busted open. Mankind grabs a ladder and climbs it, but Show gets up and chokeslams Mankind off it and through a pair of tables that also had glass on it. Nasty, nasty bump there. Show is dominating Mankind, who is leaving bloody handprints everywhere. Mankind stops his momentum by opening up a valve that blows steam in Show’s face. Mankind tosses Show and he crashes to the floor and a bunch of pipes fall on top of him. The burial allows Mankind to crawl to the door and escape to victory.

Postmatch: As soon as Mankind exits, he’s jumped by the Bossman and Test. They take him back into the boiler room, but at this point, Big Show has arisen and makes the save. He chases off the Bossman, while Mankind gives Test Mr. Socko.

BL: A short, but brutal affair. You would think, given the year that Mankind has been through, he would be looking to slow down by now, but he’s still going full steam. A much different match from the first boiler room brawl as this one was heavy on action, but light on drama. This really did nothing for either guy, but it certainly wasn’t the worst use of them on a PPV. **

- Triple H and Chyna are interviewed by Cole and they proceed to rundown X-Pac in a pretty bland manner. They’re fresh off their heel turn and haven’t found their groove yet, so there’s nothing really to snark about here.

They begin by exchanging some manly slaps to the face. X-Pac’s speed allows him to gain an early advantage. HHH sidesteps X-Pac and tosses him outside. Chyna tries to bait X-Pac, but he catches HHH going for a sneak attack. The two brawl by the announce table with HHH dishing out most of the punishment. HHH boots a charging X-Pac, but he comes back with a spinning heel kick. X-Pac kicks HHH down in the corner. As he goes for the Bronco Buster, Chyna distracts him, which allows HHH to move out of the way. The missed Buster appears to have caused X-Pac to injure his neck. Sensing blood, HHH goes right after that injury. A rolling neckbreaker by HHH gets 2. Now HHH uses a variety of restholds to supposedly weaken X-Pac’s neck. X-Pac escapes, but then is dropped with a facebuster. That gets 2. As HHH distracts the referee, Chyna attacks X-Pac on the floor. X-Pac catches HHH in a small package for 2. A sleeper is applied by HHH as the crowd grows restless. X-Pac begins to mount a comeback with a pair of spinning heel kicks. A DDT by X-Pac gets a nearfall. HHH goes for the Pedigree, but X-Pac escapes and gives him a lowblow. The fight goes back outside where X-Pac whips HHH into the steps. X-Pac tries to do a baseball slide, but HHH pulls the referee in front of him. In the ring, X-Pac hits the X-Factor, but there’s no referee. Chyna comes in and gives a lowblow and DDT to X-Pac. All of a sudden, the lights go out and here comes Kane. He comes in the ring and chokeslams both HHH and Chyna. Kane sets both of them in a corner and then leaves. X-Pac gets up and gives Bronco Busters to both of them. However, after delivering one to Chyna, X-Pac turns around and gets nailed with the Pedigree. HHH covers and that’s all she wrote.

BL: A very disappointing outing here. Given the friendship between these two, I would have thought they could have delivered something better. They told the appropriate story by having HHH focus on X-Pac’s neck, but they did it in the least interesting way possible. Way too many restholds. The finish stunk too. HHH received a chokeslam and a Bronco Buster, yet popped back up easily to deliver a Pedigree and have it just end. Based on the performance and crowd reaction, this was not a good start for HHH’s heel run. ** ¼

This feud came about after Shamrock rescued Stephanie McMahon, who had been taken by the Ministry and then Taker retaliated by trying to sacrifice Ryan Shamrock (which was just a way to write her out of storylines). Both men come out swinging to begin. Taker takes control of the match by hitting the ropewalk. A big clothesline by Taker gets 2. Taker charges at Shamrock, but misses and crotches himself on the top rope. Shamrock begins to work over Taker’s left leg. A big boot and a back suplex put Taker back in control. Shamrock appears to do a sunset flip, but instead of going for a pin, he grapevines Taker’s leg. A hiptoss is blocked by Shamrock, who then wraps himself around Taker’s leg again. A bored crowd begins a “We want Ryan” chant. On the outside, Shamrock stomps on Taker’s ankle as it laid on the steps. After exchanging punches, Shamrock puts an armbar on Taker. Taker catches Shamrock jumping off the apron and rams his back into the post. After hitting Shamrock with a backbreaker, Taker just holds him across his knee. Must…not…fall…asleep. Now Taker puts Shamrock in a bow and arrow. Taker hits a legdrop, but Shamrock holds onto the leg and wraps his body around it. Shamrock charges at Taker, but gets booted. A hurricanrana by Shamrock gets 2. Shamrock goes for the ankle lock, but Taker quickly powers out. Shamrock goes for it again and this time Taker can’t escape. Bradshaw runs out with a baseball bat, which causes Shamrock to release the hold and go after him. When Shamrock turns around, Taker grabs him for a chokeslam. Shamrock reverses the move into an armbar. Now Paul Bearer gets on the apron to distract Shamrock. Shamrock comes back and hits Taker with a belly-to-belly suplex. Then Shamrock tries to deliver a Tombstone, but Taker reverses it and plants him with one. Taker covers and just like that it’s over.

Postmatch: Bradshaw gives Shamrock a post-match beating with the bat. Is this the tragedy Taker promised?

BL: Somehow this match managed to use more restholds than the X-Pac/HHH match did. Man, was this a snoozefest. Shamrock just kept working Taker’s leg, but there was no progression in the moves he was using to wear Taker down. Then, you had Taker’s spotty selling, which didn’t help either. Then, after all of that, you get a nonsensical, anticlimactic ending that involved Bradshaw. These two just did not mesh at all. * ¼

- The video package for the main event shows us why “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and The Rock are still feuding. After Austin won the WWF title at Wrestlemania, he was not content with the fed’s belt. He wanted his Smoking Skull title back, which was in Vince’s possession. Soon The Rock starting walking around with the belt to antagonize Austin. He even pretended to throw it in a river, referencing Austin throwing his Intercontinental title in a river a year earlier. Meanwhile, in his struggle for power against his father, Shane is out to get the WWF title back in the Corporation. He’ll help his cause by being the referee in this match.

This match is No Holds Barred and if Austin touches Shane, he’ll be disqualified and lose the title. Before the entrants come out, we see Vince put Stephanie in a limo and ask security to watch her until the show is over. I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about. Oh thank goodness, Austin found his vest. Austin runs into the ring and the two start slugging it out. The Lou Thesz Press and F.U. elbow get a 1 count. The Rock comes back with a swinging neckbreaker. Austin is dumped outside and then The Rock follows him out there. Now by the entranceway, The Rock nails Austin with a fire extinguisher. Then The Rock whips Austin into the fencing, which makes up part of the entranceway. Austin comes back by suplexing The Rock in the aisle. The favor is returned to The Rock when he is whipped into the other side of fencing. They have completely demolished the staging. Austin is using anything he can find in the tech area to attack The Rock. The Rock whips Austin into the boom camera and then clotheslines him. They finally head back to ringside and Austin whips The Rock into the steps. In the ring, Austin stomps a mudhole in The Rock. Shane stops Austin and then taunts him to attack. Austin resists and then heaves a charging Rock out of the ring. Back outside, Austin and The Rock climb upon the Spanish announce table. The Rock lowblows Austin and then Rock Bottoms him through the table. The Rock then takes Hugo Savinovich’s headset and provides us with some Spanish commentary. Austin grabs a chair, but Shane steals it and gives it to The Rock. Austin blocks the chairshot, but is then thrown over the guardrail. After a brief brawl in the crowd, The Rock brings Austin back and puts him on the other announce table. Then, The Rock grabs a video camera and films Austin down and out. He pans to the crowd and when he turns back, Austin is up to give him the double bird and a Stunner. Great spot! Back in the ring, Austin goes for another Stunner, but The Rock shoves him off and into Shane. Austin turns around and gets hit with a Rock Bottom. Shane puts The Rock’s arm on Austin and counts, but Austin kicks out at 2. Shane grabs the WWF title and swings at Austin’s head. Austin ducks and Shane hits The Rock. Austin covers and counts 1, 2, and then stops. Austin chases Shane, who runs down the aisle. Vince walks out with Earl Hebner and the Smoking Skull title. Shane yells at Vince, so Vince decks him with the belt. Meanwhile, in the ring, The Rock hits Austin with the belt and covers. Hebner counts, but only gets to 2. The Rock tries another belt shot, but Austin ducks it and hits him with a Stunner. Austin then caps it off with a belt shot of his own and gets the 1, 2, 3.

Postmatch: Vince hands Austin his Smoking Skull title. As he watches Austin celebrate, we cut to outside where the Ministry approaches Stephanie’s limo. Security has the limo drive away, but in the special limo cam, it’s revealed that Taker is driving the limo. He then delivers the famous “Where to Stephanie?” line, followed by maniacal laughter.

BL: There’s nothing like a good brawl to awake a crowd from its catatonic state and this one sure delivered. A much better match than their one last month, thanks to some creative spots and added antagonism from Shane. At this point, Austin was really starting to master the main event brawl without having it be repetitive. Nothing more to say here, this did everything right for what it wanted to accomplish. **** ½

Final Thoughts: For the majority of the show, everything was content with being mediocre. Nothing stunk, yet nothing remained in your mind once it was over. The show really began to drag with the HHH/X-Pac and Shamrock/Taker matches, but then perked back up during the main event. I suppose if you like garbage wrestling, you may enjoy the show as the highlights are the hardcore, boiler room, and main event matches. However, looking at the big picture there’s nothing significantly great about this show to warrant a recommendation from me.

Next time…