If there's one thing you can consistently count on Vince McMahon to provide, it's a product built entirely on a petty desire to "get back" at anyone he feels personally threatened by. In 1989, Ted Turner had completely taken over Jim Crockett Promotions, transforming it into World Championship Wrestling, and "Billionaire Ted" went right to work trying to overshadow Vince. This included running five WCW pay-per-views in '89, one more than the WWF. Turner kept that business model in place in '90 and '91, even adding a sixth big event with an annual collaboration with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Vince, likely furious at the thought of anyone making more pay-per-view revenue than him, added a fifth event to the calendar, This Tuesday in Texas. It was an interesting experiment, and one that was far from a success, at least in the financial sense. Pay-per-view buyrates had been slumping since early 1990, and This Tuesday in Texas followed that trend with about 400,000 buys. In fairness, that was higher than what Survivor Series brought in, but apparently the number was too low for an annual Tuesday event to be considered viable. The fact that this show came just six days after Survivor Series likely didn't help, as most fans at the time would be conditioned to only getting four pay-per-views a year, and may not have been able to adjust plans to attend or view a fifth. As for the quality of the show itself, my hopes weren't high heading in. Survivor Series was a disaster, but a lot of what made that show so terrible was the need to promote this one, and the card here is definitely stronger, with the massive addition of the grudge match between Randy Savage and Jake Roberts.
- This Tuesday in Texas comes to you from the Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, a notable venue in the area for hosting concerts, rodeos, and basketball. Unfortunately for the WWF, they only managed to bring in just 8,000 people for this show, well below the venue's capacity of 11,700 for wrestling shows. The company returned to the Coliseum for Survivor Series in 1994, and drew 10,000, so you can tell that interest in this event wasn't extremely high. Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan are on the call.
- Our opening contest is for the Intercontinental Championship, as Bret Hart defends against Skinner. This is an odd choice of opponent for one of the hottest rising stars in the company, as well Skinner's "swamp man/crocodile hunter" gimmick is intriguing and fresh, he feels out of place challenging for a title on pay-per-view. This match wasn't awful, as Steve Keirn, the man behind the Skinner persona, is a very capable worker, but the action was too basic to be memorable. Monsoon and Heenan try their best to make it seem like Skinner has a chance, but Bret securing the tap with the Sharpshooter always felt inevitable.
- Oh yeah, it's time for Randy Savage and Jake Roberts. Both men are putting in some of the best work of their careers right now, and the crowd is psyched to see this personal feud play out. After some backstage promos, Savage charges Roberts from behind and the fight is on. Randy dominates early, but Jake takes back control by focusing of Randy's injured forearm, a clever piece of psychology. But Savage manages to escape the DDT by ramming Roberts into the turnbuckles, before nailing the flying elbow drop, and it's all over, just like that. The finish was deflating after six minutes of intense brawling that could've easily gone far longer, but the war is far from finished. Savage looks to gain revenge by punishing Roberts with the ring bell, a callback to Savage's feud with Ricky Steamboat in '87, but the referee intervenes and Jake takes advantage. "The Snake" strikes with a DDT, then another, and with Randy unconscious, Jake brings out a black bag, intent on setting his vicious King Cobra loose on Savage once again. A distraught Miss Elizabeth gets involved, trying to save her husband, but Jake is just inspired to do even more damage. Roberts hits Savage with a third DDT, then slaps Elizabeth, much to the dismay of the crowd. Jack Tunney and a second official finally get the situation under control, but this saga isn't over yet. Backstage, Jake crows about causing even more distress to the married couple, while Randy totally loses it during his interview, blaming himself for Elizabeth's misfortune and promising vengeance. This was all executed to perfection, as though the actual match was far shorter than I would've wanted, the action was riveting and the post-match segment solidified this feud as the hottest in the company. Jake is such a terrific heel, totally remorseless and an absolute menace, while Randy sells an unhinged but still entirely relatable babyface better than anyone. It's such a shame these two never got a pay-per-view main event together, and they could've worked absolute magic.
- The British Bulldog and The Warlord square off up next in a WrestleMania 7 rematch. Their contest on that show was surprisingly entertaining, so I can see why this was booked, but unfortunately this didn't quite impress in the same way their previous singles match did. Part of that was how much offense Warlord got in, as his clubbing blows look extremely fake, and his submission holds are sleep inducing. When the two did get into more of the "hoss fight" style, trading some heavy strikes, it was fun, and the pinfall trading near the end was fluid. The finish certainly wasn't a highlight, as both men can't quite get on the same page for Bulldog's crucifix pin, resulting in a slow, awkward fall to the mat, before Bulldog secures the three count.
- The feud between Virgil and Ted DiBiase has kept chugging along, with DiBiase regaining the Million Dollar title with help from new ally Repo Man. Repo and Ted take on Virgil and "El Matador" Tito Santana in the penultimate match of the night, with the heels picking up the win. The action was fast-paced and crisp, especially when DiBiase was in there, and the crowd is solidly behind both faces, popping big for anything Virgil and Tito can get in. The finish was confusing, as Sensational Sherri tries to clock Virgil with her shoe, only to hit Ted instead. Virgil, like an idiot, goes after Sherri, grabbing her by the hair, which Repo breaks up with a kick to Virgil's stomach. That's enough to end it, as DiBiase covers Virgil for the win, completely no-selling the shoe spot. It just makes no sense to me to do that spot and then have Ted win moments later, and Virgil going down that easily made him look extremely soft. I guess management have already thrown in the towel on Virgil and are looking to move him down the card, but the crowd still likes him, so the least the creative team could do is make Virgil look like something approaching capable.
- Main event time, as Hulk Hogan and The Undertaker meet in a rematch for the WWF Championship. Jack Tunney booked this match after Ric Flair helped Undertaker become champion at Survivor Series, and the WWF President is seated at ringside to ensure that there are no shenanigans this time around. This match is basically a carbon copy of their previous effort, with Undertaker dominating most of it using his agility and chokeholds. Unlike at Survivor Series, no big moves are hit before Flair makes his way to ringside, and the "Nature Boy" is immediately confronted by Tunney. Hogan, the world's worst employee, decides to whack Flair in the back with a chair, and Ric falls into Tunney, tangling both men up on the ground. Flair and Undertaker cheat right back, but get thwarted at every turn, with Undertaker being smashed into a chair, and Paul Bearer accidentally striking Undertaker with their golden urn. The dirty tactics reach a boiling point, as Hogan opens the urn, grabs a handful of ashes, then throws them into Undertaker's face. In a sane world, this is a heel turn for Hogan, that man is throwing dead people at his opponents. But no, this is supposed to be "just desserts" for the heels, as a blinded Undertaker is rolled up for the win, with Jack Tunney only recovering after the three count is made. I sort of understand why the belt was put on Undertaker just to be taken away six days later, as his win at Survivor Series provided the hook for Hogan fans to tune in and watch Hulk get his gold back. And I get why the finish included so much cheating, as Tunney would vacate the belt, putting it on the line in the Royal Rumble match. But this booking did damage to everyone, especially Hogan, who came off looking more unlikable than he had since the Mega Powers split. Hulk's run at the top was coming to an end, and this booking made sure you wouldn't miss him when he was gone.
5/10
Despite not being the smash hit Vince McMahon was looking for, This Tuesday in Texas was a solid show, certainly more consistent than a lot of other WWF offering over the past few years. No match was a complete stinker, and the Roberts/Savage feud provided plenty of entertainment. This show isn't quite a must-watch, but it's only 90 minutes long, so at least it wouldn't be a massive waste of time for anyone choosing to check it out.
Next time on Henry's Pay-Per-View Reviews: Royal Rumble 1992, as the WWF title is on the line in arguably the greatest Rumble match of all time. See you soon.
- Henry
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