What the World Was Watching: WWF Superstars – June 22, 1991

Vince McMahon, Randy Savage, and Roddy Piper call the action, taped from Tucson, Arizona.

Jake Roberts’ squash match from Prime Time Wrestling is the first bout on the program.

SummerSlam will take place on Monday night, August 26!

Gene Okerlund’s Update segment recaps Tugboat’s heel turn last week and how he is now known as Typhoon. The Natural Disasters and Jimmy Hart put themselves over as the strongest force in the WWF and Andre the Giant will not be able to stop them.

The Beverly Brothers (w/Coach) defeat Rob Jones & Terry Zeller when Beau pins Jones after an elevated mat slam at 2:35:

Zeller was known as the Thrillseeker on the independent circuit, wrestling in various promotions in the Southwest throughout the late 1980s to mid-1990s. He did a few jobs to talent in 1990, losing to Brutus Beefcake, Akeem, and Bad News Brown.

The Beverly Brothers, named Beau and Blake, were Wayne Bloom and Mike Enos. Both were trainees of Eddie Sharkey and started working in 1988 for the AWA. Starting as singles, or in the case of Enos as a referee, they went on to form the Destruction Crew and won a tournament for the AWA Tag Team Championship in October 1989. As a result, they became the only tag team to win Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Rookie of the Year award. In 1990, the duo had a stint in WCW as the Minnesota Wrecking Crew 2, having Ole Anderson as a manager, and they wrestled under masks because they were still working for the AWA.

The Beverlys wear awful neon-colored capes that do not match their purple ring gear. In the split screen, the team and Coach do a promo about how they are mean, vicious, and smart and will become the next tag team champions. There were no vignettes to preview the Beverlys arrival, a sign that the company was not expecting much of them. Their gimmick is also not clear, so fans just see two blonde guys acting cocky. The squash does not show anything special, but the finish gets a reaction as Blake hoists Jones into the air and Beau drives his head into the canvas. That finish is not given a name yet, but it is a great finishing maneuver.

Sid Justice is coming!

The British Bulldog (20-0) pins Bill Lucas after the running powerslam at 2:26:

As the match goes along, McMahon inquires whether Savage is engaged to Elizabeth. If so, he says their wedding would be bigger than Prince Charles and Diana. The Bulldog keeps racking up wins as his feud with Mr. Perfect over the Intercontinental Championship appears to be over.

Irwin R. Schyster (5-0) pins Jim Cohler after the Write Off at 1:33:

Schyster reminds fans on the house mic that they will be caught for cheating on their taxes soon enough. He directs a warning to Piper that he is going to give him special attention. This is a lead-in for house shows where Piper began teaming with Virgil to face DiBiase and Schyster. The crowd is quiet for most of the squash, but Schyster does throw a good flying clothesline and his fast work makes this better than his other outings to this point.

The Big Bossman is the guest on the Funeral Parlor. He puts the Undertaker and Paul Bearer on notice and warns the Mountie that a jail cell is in his future.

Okerlund does a report on the WBF Championship.

Greg Valentine (10-3-1) beats Billy Gatlin via submission to the figure-four leglock at 2:23

This is Valentine’s first Superstars match of the year. Gatlin has his beard shaved so that he has lines on both sides of his face. Savage wonders aloud if Elizabeth is interested in him while McMahon and Piper challenge him to propose. Fans are told that Gene Okerlund will do an in-depth report on the Savage-Elizabeth relationship next week. Valentine works over the knee and applies the figure-four, treading water in the midcard. That is a dangerous place to be without a program because it means you are bound to be jobbed.

Intercontinental Champion Mr. Perfect and Coach say Sid Justice reminds them of themselves. Hacksaw Jim Duggan adds that Sid looks like his kind of guy too.

The Undertaker’s squash from Prime Time Wrestling is shown.

Tune in next week to see the Texas Tornado, Virgil, and the Dragon in action! The Natural Disasters will make their debut! And Sergeant Slaughter will be the guest on the Funeral Parlor!

The Last Word: This was a step down from last week’s episode because there were no new or exciting angles. The Beverlys are another addition to the tag team division, which now has five heel teams versus three babyface teams. While their presentation needs work, they proved to be capable in the ring. Like Mr. Perfect, though, Coach fits them as well as a cactus fits inside of a balloon.

Up Next: Wrestling Challenge for June 23!