Monday Night Raw 9-11-95 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, September 11th, 1995
Canton Civic Center
Canton, Ohio

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We get a pretty good hype video for the double main event. We then get a new Raw intro that features the Superstars on top of Titan Towers. They show the clip of Razor Ramon hitting Dean Douglas with a right hand backstage at SummerSlam. 

Razor Ramon vs. British Bulldog

With the roster they have right now, this is a pretty big time match for Raw. Razor gets off to the quick start and hits Bulldog with a clothesline to the outside. Bulldog eventually gets to show off his strength by hitting a press slam as we go to commercial break. When we come back, Bulldog hits a body slam for a 2 count. He goes for the powerslam, but Razor grabs the ropes and falls on him for a 2 count of his own. Bulldog quickly hits a body slam and then climbs to the top. Razor meets him there and throws him off. We get some shenanigans where Razor accidentally throws Bulldog into the referee, knocking him out. He gets him up for the Razor's Edge and hits it. Out comes Dean Douglas and he takes forever to eventually hit Razor off the top rope, making Razor look like a dope for sitting there forever just kind of waiting for it. 1-2-3 Kid comes out to try and make the save, but Douglas takes care of him too. Bulldog hits the running powerslam and goes for the pin. 1-2-3 Kid goes off the top rope, but Bulldog moves and hits Razor instead. The referee sees it and calls for the bell. Bulldog then drops Kid on the top rope. Cornette gets in a few cheap shots on Kid while Bulldog attacks Razor. They are calling this a victory for Bulldog since Kid hit Razor. This was pretty much slams and punches, but the multiple stories being told was a nice touch.

Match Rating: **

When we come back from commercial, Vince is in the ring with Razor and Kid. Kid claims he didn't cost Razor the match, but Razor cost him his match on Superstars. He says Razor always treats him like a Kid and wants to take him on next week. Razor goes on for a little bit about the bookworm and then eventually accepts his challenge.

We get a quick video with a fake Van Halen "Right Now" rip off song telling us that our fan friendly WWF President, Gorilla Monsoon, decided it would be fun to have Owen Hart and Yokozuna take on Men On A Mission. 

Rad Radford & Brooklyn Brawler vs. Smoking Gunns

Who missed the trip that made this team tonight? The Gunns come in smoking and hit some fun offense. Bart runs into the knee of Radford behind the back of the referee and in comes Radford. The Gunns get back on track and hit the Sidewinder for the victory. The Gunns usually are a nice spark when they get their chance on TV, so this was fine.

Match Rating: 1/2*

We get a Goldust promo talking about Undertaker. I do not remember that and they didn't end up feuding for long after his debut.

Isaac Yankem vs. Scott Taylor

Leave it to Glenn Jacobs to ruin the show. This gimmick is so dead in the water after 1 match. He hits the DDS and puts us all out of our misery. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Todd Pettengill time and he's here to make fun of NBC moving to Mad About You. Just as you all were expecting. He talks about the Triple Header match, assuming all of the participants retain their titles until then. Even as a kid, I knew that wasn't happening. Todd talks about rumors of Yokozuna and Owen Hart causing a disqualification, but Gorilla says "Not so fast". If anyone is disqualified, they lose their title. Jim Cornette's photo in the match graphic is something special. They show Sid walking to the ring, but we go back to Todd so that he can talk about Waylon Mercy vs. Savio Vega. 

Intercontinental Championship Match
Sid vs. Shawn Michaels

Only $25 for Shawn Michaels' hat and they even throw in the dorky glasses with it! Shawn Michaels gets a dorky entrance where he talks to us before heading out and we get a commercial break first. Michaels uses his quickness and wits to outmaneuver the big man. Michaels skins the cat and then hits Sid with a dropkick to the back. Sid knocks Michaels out of the ring and Vince tries to sell that he hasn't healed from his ladder match yet. When we come back from commercial, Michaels is able to counter out of a powerbomb attempt. Michaels hits a top rope crossbody and gets a 2 count. Michaels hits a kick to the gut and then 2 superkicks for the victory. That was a pretty big letdown given the buildup and who was involved. It very much felt like "just a match". Michaels then teases stripping and Vince is loving it. Bret wasn't wrong, it was a stupid babyface gimmick. Vince is still gutter trash. 

Match Rating: **

Shawn Michaels and Diesel are celebrating backstage and Dok Hendrix is there to interview them. Mostly nonsense. 

After another commercial break, we get a preview for next week's episode. Like at this point, wasn't anyone halfway interested in seeing what Nitro was switching the channel? 

This was a halfway decent show, but one that felt like it could have been something special and they seemed to have no interest in that. They have been talking about the Sid/Michaels match for weeks and we just got basically a Shawn squash. Sid was just in main events for months and they could have told a good story. 

Overall Rating: 48%

Superstars 9-9-95 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, September 9th, 1995
Canton Civic Center
Canton, Ohio

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This is maybe the debut of the new WWF logo in the rock intro? Vince talks about the definition of "debut" with Dean Douglas taking on 1-2-3 Kid today. We then get our Monday Night Football ripoff Superstars theme song, "Are You Ready?". Jerry Lawler is with Vince McMahon this time.

Man Mountain Rock vs. Jean Pierre Lafitte

They're pulling off all the stops here today. MMR hits an elbow to the head and then clotheslines him over the top rope. Rock suplexes him back into the ring, but Lafitte is then able to slam him face-first into the mat. He ties up him up in the ropes and hits a series of splashes before the referee can assist Rock. Rock goes for a sunset flip, but can't get him over and again Lafitte slams him to the mat. Rock hits an overhead belly to belly suplex, which actually was pretty nice. Rock misses off the second rope and Lafitte hits the Cannonball for the victory. Lafitte continues to look good no matter who he is in there with. 

Match Rating: *1/4

It's time for Todd Pettengill to talk about the third In Your House. He alludes to the triple header main event, but goes onto Bret Hart taking on Jean Pierre Lafitte. Bret says that Lafitte will be coming into his house and calls Lafitte a slimeball. Razor Ramon will be taking on Dean Douglas in a new match. Another new match is Savio Vega taking on Waylon Mercy. 

We get a hype video for the Shawn Michaels/Sid match on Monday. This was a well done video package for a feud that actually has a pretty lengthy story. It's kind of crazy they did it on Raw during this era. Sid then makes a lot of loud noises and Shawn says he's going to close the final chapter. 

1-2-3 Kid vs. Dean Douglas

Hopefully this means that we don't have to watch any more of his backstage skits. Douglas gets an early body slam in before running into a few kicks from the Kid. Kid then hits a somersault dive that kind of connects. Douglas tries to suplex him to the floor, but Kid blocks it and suplexes Douglas back into the ring. He goes for a somersault dive off the top rope, but Douglas moves out of the way and hits a back suplex into the commercial break. Douglas and his wedgie are dominating the match until Razor Ramon comes down to ringside. Kid pushes Douglas into him and he rolls him up, but Douglas kicks out at 2. Razor comes in and attacks Douglas and we have a disqualification. Kid isn't happy about it and gives Razor a shove. Kid tries to calm him down and we leave in the middle of it. The match was fine, but never got into the final act. 

Match Rating: *3/4

We go right to Goldust in front of a 100% real backdrop. The character wasn't quite as weird as what it would become. 

Coming September 30th, WrestleMania XI: The Special. That was the first time I saw those matches, as I started watching again after it aired. 

Owen Hart & Yokozuna vs. AC Conner & Tony Williams

Poor D"Lo gets to feel the wrath of the champions here, but is able to get out without getting squashed. They leave that Williams, who gets hit with a Yoko belly to belly suplex. Owen takes the glory by picking up the pinfall. This was nothing.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Next week, we get the dream match of Henry Godwinn vs. King Kong Bundy.

Tatanka says the pain Shawn Michaels felt at SummerSlam is nothing compared to what he will feel next. 

Shawn Michaels vs. Tatanka

Tatanka finally gets his rematch from WrestleMania IX. Tatanka comes out like a guy who has a really bright future (and he certainly does), but then Michaels comes back and hits a top rope double ax handle. Tatanka is able to toss Michaels over the top rope and slow things down in his favor. Out comes Sid to take a closer look before his match in two days. When we come back from commercial, Tatanka goes off the top rope and lands into Michaels' boot. The pace quickens and it ends with Michaels hitting Sweet Chin Music and picking up the victory. The final segment was solid stuff an the rest was good enough. 

Match Rating: **

We go back to Todd and we get the In Your House commercial that they have used before. He talks about the triple header main event. We hear from Shawn Michaels and then Sid. The whole triple header kind of spoils the outcome of the Sid match, no? 

We get a Raw preview that hypes up Shawn/Sid and Razor Ramon/British Bulldog. Someone saw Nitro. Hakushi faces Skip next week here on Superstars. We get more of the new theme song and see highlights of the show. 

I thought this was a pretty good episode. They are trying to make the new season feel important before they go back to their usual ways. You rarely get 3 feature matches on a Superstars, so I'll take it. 

Overall Rating: 58%

Judgment Day 2007 Review

Sunday, May 20th, 2007
Scottrade Center
St. Louis, Missouri

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Ric Flair vs. Carlito

This is Carlito's first chance to be the angry heel since being poked by Flair. It just is getting harder and harder for Flair to keep up at this point. Triple H and Orton were able to get good matches out of him a few years earlier, but they are very good at working his style. Carlito works the arm of Flair and then puts it up against the ring post and hits him with dropkick. Jerry Lawler starts to wonder what winning this match means to both guys and JR just ignores him. This match slows down to a crawl and I'm not really sure why this match is getting double digits. Flair makes his comeback and hits a chop block. Flair works the leg and slaps on the Figure Four in the middle of the ring. Carlito taps and that is all. I'm not really sure what that did for either guy, but I guess I'll see how it plays out again. I have no recollection, so it must not have been anything great. 

Match Rating: *3/4

Shawn Michaels is backstage and they show what Orton did to him on Raw. Michaels then says that it was rumored that he wouldn't be here tonight. Orton then runs in and attacks him. 

Handicap Match For The ECW Championship
Shane McMahon, Umaga & Vince McMahon vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley starts out hot, taking out most of his aggression on the McMahons. Umaga accidentally splashes Shane in the corner. Lashley hits him with a Spear and then hits a Dominator on Shane. That's enough to pin him and regain the ECW Championship in about 75 seconds. After the match, Umaga attacks Lashley and Vince says that in order to be the ECW Champion, he has to beat the champ. He takes his belt and heads to the back. That's Attitude Era booking 101. This was a squash, but they did make Lashley look good.

Match Rating: 1/2*

The doctor is checking on Michaels and tells him that he's not allowing him to go out there tonight. 

CM Punk vs. Elijah Burke

It's a pretty good sign that they're chanting Punk's name despite him being on the show that no one cares about. Punk's ribs are taped up here for the record. Punk does a delayed vertical suplex. Is this the only time he ever did that? For some reason I do remember him doing that in this match, but never thought about if he ever did it again. It really is a good sign that these guys are getting a good reaction here in a good wrestling town. Punk hits a springboard dropkick to Burke on the apron, sending him to the floor. Punk then hits the rare suicide dive that looks like it hurt his opponent. Back in the ring, Burke is able to pull Punk off the second rope and hurt those ribs. Burke works on the ribs for a bit until Punk comes back and hits a superplex. We get some back and forth until Punk hits some clotheslines. Punk hits the knee in the corner, but Burke counters the bulldog and shoves Punk in the corner. Burke misses the Elijah Express. Punk goes for the Go To Sleep, but Burke hits the Elijah Experience for a 2 count. Burke props Punk up on the top rope and Burke hits the Elijah Express. He goes for the pin, but Punk is able to grab the bottom rope. Burke goes for another Elijah Experience, but Punk lifts him on his shoulders, hits the Go To Sleep and picks up the win. That was a solid match that I am shocked got as much time as it did. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

Edge is interviewed backstage and tells us that the Rated R era has begun.

Randy Orton makes his entrance and tells the ring announcer to announce him as the winner. Just as he's about to, Michaels' music hits and he walks out in pain. What a rebel.  

Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels

Orton runs and hits Michaels with a fist to the head as the bell rings. Orton then hits him with a DDT and Michaels kicks out. Orton has him up and is considering a RKO, but just lets him collapse to the floor. He then lifts Michaels up and props him on the top rope for a super RKO. Michaels is able to fight out of it and then shoves him off. Michaels then tunes up the band, but then collapses again. The referee checks on him and Michaels pulls himself up by the ropes. The referee looks at him in the eyes and calls the match. Michaels still is having balance issues, so Orton grabs him and hits the RKO. Michaels' wife then runs in the ring checks on him and is in tears. He is then stretchered to the back. This wasn't really a match, so it's hard to rank. This also feels like it was better suited for Raw rather than a pay per view. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Great Khali starts yelling things while holding John Cena's WWE Championship. He does lots of yelling and then Ranjin Singh translates it to if Cena wants some, he can come get some. 

World Tag Team Championship Match
The Hardys vs. Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch

JBL and Michael Cole get to announce this one since 1 of the 4 are on SmackDown. Makes sense. The big storyline here is that Cade and Murdoch are being good sports about their loss to the Hardys. They actually have done a nice job getting you interested on what will happen. Jeff eventually gets a hot tag, but Murdoch rolls out of the ring and takes a breather. Jeff takes out Murdoch's legs with a dropkick on the apron, but then misses with a somersault over the top. The challengers are now able to corner Jeff and still maintain their good sportsmanship. He's able to fight his way over to Matt and we get a nice hot tag from Matt. He hits his signature bulldog/clothesline combo and gets a 2 count. He hits a Side Effect, but Murdoch is able to break up the pin. That distraction allows Cade to his a spinebuster for a nearfall. Matt comes back with a Twist Of Fate, tags in Jeff and he hits the Swanton for the victory. They got a lot of time and the Hardys were very over with the crowd. The match was good enough, but never got to the next level. They shake hands after the match.

Match Rating: ***

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Edge vs. Batista

Batista is fueled by anger and goes after Edge early on. He misses in the corner, hitting his shoulder on the ring post and gives Edge his opening. After slowing it down a little too much, Batista catches Edge with a clothesline when he comes off the second turnbuckle. I'd like to think the person with the "Vince Is My Idol" sign would like to reconsider their stance. Edge goes for a Spear, but Batista catches him with one instead. Edge gets his shoulder up at 2. Batista starts shaking the ropes and goes for the Batista Bomb. Edge gets out of it and is able out of it. Batista hits a spinebuster, but Batista's knee buckles and Edge rolls him up for the victory. That was a disappointing match in many ways. It mostly felt like a filler main event on SmackDown.

Match Rating: **

Two Out Of Three Falls Match For The United States Championship
MVP vs. Chris Benoit

I always have had a soft spot for this type of match, mostly because at the time WWE hardly ever had them. Then came that era where every match on Raw was like that and probably ruined it for me. 2007 me was very excited for this, 2024 me is ready to move on for obvious reasons. The crowd is not into this at all, so that's not a good sign. I'm a little surprised with the placement on the card, this feels like it should have been earlier on. MVP works on the knee, but Benoit comes back with the German suplexes. He puts on the Crossface, but MVP is able to get his foot on the bottom rope. Benoit gets on the Sharpshooter, but again MVP gets to the ropes. Benoit has MVP up for an electric chair, but MVP gets down and hits the Playmaker to win the first fall. That move is still so awkward. They tried to come with a clever way to hit that move and it still just takes forever to do it. This match just seems to crawl along until MVP rolls up Benoit and wins the match (and the title) 2-0. The crowd did not care either. 

Match Rating: *1/2

Happy with forking over $40 for this show? Well, you're in luck. You can spend another $40 in 2 weeks and see most of the same matches!

WWE Championship Match
Great Khali vs. John Cena

Khali walks out with the title belt that he stole from Cena. Khali levels Cena with a clothesline right off the bat and then a right hand that knocks Cena out of the ring. Khali throws Cena into the steps and tosses him around the ring a few times. Cena is able to avoid a leg drop and then hits a blockbuster for a 2 count. Cena tries to capitalize, but then runs into a spin kick. Khali puts on the dreaded nerve hold until Cena fights out of it and gets him tied up in the ropes. He takes advantage as long as he can until he runs into a chop. Khali knocks Cena out of the ring again, but this time Cena dropkicks the steps into Khali's legs. Cena hits the top rope leg drop and puts him the STFU. Khali's legs are clearly under the ropes here, but he taps and Cena retains his title. I remember at the time just assuming that there would be a DQ finish here and couldn't believe they ended his streak with so little hype. I mean, the guy can't wrestle, but this was about the best case scenario. They followed the old school formula and it worked as well as it could.

Match Rating: **

This wasn't quite as bad as I was thinking it would be, but that doesn't mean it was good. There were no memorable moments or matches and a lot of the storylines are mediocre at best. Cena gave a great performance and it was good to see Punk over with the live crowd in a non-ECW environment again. 

Overall Rating: 38%

Off The Grid, Volume 50: Clash Of The Champions VIII: Fall Brawl '89 Review

Tuesday, September 12th, 1989
Carolina Coliseum
Columbia, South Carolina

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Off The Grid, Volume 50:

I didn't realize I was "already" up to 50 of these. We get a highlight of Sting coming to save Ric Flair from Great Muta and Dick Slater before going live to the arena. Jim Ross and Jim Cornette are the announcers tonight. They go to Gordon Solie, who is with Gary Hart. He dismisses any issues in his camp. 

Samoan Swat Team vs. Road Warriors

These teams get right to business, with the Road Warriors dominating early. These two teams actually seem like a good fit in the ring. The crowd is very into it, which is par for the course for this era of the Road Warriors. I just realized that this just about a month and a half after probably the peak of this promotion, which is Great American Bash 1989. We get the old Road Warriors make a tag, but the referee didn't see it. The match breaks down, Dangerously's phone gets involved and the Warriors hit the Doomday Device for the win. After the match, Paul E. Dangerously smashes his phone in anger. This was fun for a short match.

Match Rating: **1/4

Halloween Havoc is coming. 

Cuban Assassin vs. Z-Man

This is the debut of the Z-Man. This is about as vanilla of a match as you can get. Z-Man doesn't look particularly impressive and wins with a sleeper hold on both the Assassin and the audience.

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show Governor Carroll Campbell with Ric Flair declaring today as Ric Flair day. 

Ranger Ross vs. Sid Vicious

Ranger Ross is about as dorky of a character as there is. I'm glad I get to do a few Sid matches here after his unfortunate passing. I have always liked Sid since the first time I saw him in 1991 WWF. I always thought he was underrated in the ring and always a fun character. He is also one of the best squash match wrestlers in history. He does exactly that here and just destroys old dorky Ross here for a fun match.

Match Rating: 1/2*

They show Missy Hyatt and Robin (aka Woman) going shopping together. They're in a limo and Robin is buying everything. They probably blew their entire budget on this crap. 

Gordon Solie is with the Fabulous Freebirds to talk about their match with the Steiner Brothers. They're sick and tired of getting no respect around here. 

NWA Tag Team Championship Match
Steiner Brothers vs. Fabulous Freebirds

Robin and Missy are wearing their new attire from their shopping trip. Such excitement! I just realize that Wikipedia shows the attendance to this show as 2,600 and the arena holds 12,401. Yikes. The crowd sounds like a lot more than 2,600 to their credit. Michael Hayes' chest hair is just on a different level here. Back to my attendance comment, it truly doesn't look like it's that empty, but who am I to doubt Wikipedia? Cornette lets me know that Scott Steiner is only 24 years old here. I still would have loved to have seen the Steiners in the WWF a few years earlier to see what they could do in that environment. The Steiners having both Robin Green and Missy Hyatt in their corner is just bizarre to me. As is usual with a Freebirds match, there's a lot of heel stalling. Rick catches Hayes for a power slam and then catches Garvin off the top rope for another one. After an overhead German suplex with a release, Hayes is able to move out of the way of a charging Rick. Garvin then hits a DDT, but Scott is able to break up the count. Rick gets thrown into the metal guardrail and then a clothesline back in the ring. Rick is able to hit a hot tag and for some reason they decide to show the crowd during it instead. Scott comes in and hits the Frankensteiner on both opponents to a huge pop. Scott is running the ropes and we are only able to see him stumble and that's enough for him to get caught with a DDT and the Freebirds to retain their titles. It's clever that they had the camera set up that way, but the only problem is there was a camera man in the shot from the other side. They argue if it was Missy or Robin who did it. You can see Missy wasn't in the area, so there isn't much mystery there. Anyway, the match was pretty good, but nothing special. 

Match Rating: **1/2

We come back and see that other camera angle and you can see brown hair at the bottom of the screen. 

Norman The Lunatic vs. Flyin' Brian

We get action right away and then Norman screwing up his spot early on. Theodore Long provides a distraction and that allows Norman to attack Brian. Norman hits a second rope splash, but Brian kicks out at 2. Norman then squashes Brian into ring post, but goes back to it a second time and Brian moves out of the way. Brian hits a missile dropkick and a body slam. Norman catches a reverse crossbody and hits a power slam for a 2 count. The pace of this match is really good to Norman's credit. Brian catches Norman with a crucifix pin attempt and picks up the win. After the match, Long chews out Norman. This was way better than it should have been. 

Match Rating: **

Gary Hart is with Gordon Solie again and he says that Terry Funk is in the building. 

Mike Rotunda vs. Steve Williams

Williams chases after Rotunda and gets him up in a military press and does reps with him, which is pretty impressive. This is a Jim Ross dream match because he can list all of their college credentials but Cornette steals that away from Ross. I can confidently say that Rotunda's offense is just as boring here in 1989 as they are during his peak of IRS. We get a stupid finish where Williams is trying to slam Rotunda, but Rotunda grabs the rope. The referee kicks his arm off the rope and that allows him to hit the slam and pick up the win. Rotunda attacks him right after the loss, but Williams fights him off. This was dull. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Lex Luger tells Gordon Solie how great he is and how he's bigger than wrestling. 

United States Championship Match
Tommy Rich vs. Lex Luger

Tommy Rich is just one of those wrestlers whose name is a big part of this era, but I haven't seen much of. They are working a really nice match here to start, with Rich playing the underdog role well. Luger goes off the top rope, but Rich moves out of the way. Rich makes his big comeback and hits a second rope fist for a 2 count. After hitting a Thesz press, they roll outside and Rich goes for a right hand, but Luger ducks and he hits his hand on the post. Rich goes for a sleeper on the apron, but Luger snaps his neck on the top rope and that's enough for the victory. After the match, Rich goes after Luger in the aisle, but nothing really happens there. This was a good match that felt like they had some good minutes left in them. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

We go back to Gary Hart again. He has a certified letter from a doctor that performed the surgery on Terry Funk. We go to Funk in a hospital room and he's got his arm wrapped up. He says that he was close to losing his arm due to infection. He says he guarantees that he's going to get Ric Flair. 

Sting and Flair cut a promo with Sting talking about he and Flair being side by side. 

Dick Slater & Great Muta vs. Sting & Ric Flair

I'm not sure that Dick Slater is really a worthy replacement for Funk. I enjoyed Gary Hart having to turn Muta to face the camera. As you would expect, Sting and Flair are insanely over here. Not over enough to fill an arena, but over with the people they did get to buy a ticket. Muta hits a dive over the top on Flair and then Sting follows him and we have a brawl. Much like the last match, I am kind of just sitting back and enjoying the match here. This match has been just chaos for the most part. Sting has the Scorpion Deathlock on Muta, but the referee is distracted by Flair and Slater brawling on the outside. Gary Hart comes in and hits Sting in the back of the head with a roll of coins. We get more brawling and it leads to Sting getting sprayed in the face with Muta's mist. We get a referee bump and more chaos with Terry Funk coming in the ring and putting a plastic bag over the head of Flair. I guess this is a pretty infamous moment, but not one I was aware of until reading about this show. During all of this nonsense, I guess they disqualify the heels and we come back to Flair being checked on and Flyin' Brian is here now too. I mean the plastic bag thing was pretty stupid, but the match was very good. I never thought I'd give a Dick Slater 4 stars, but here I am. 

Match Rating: ****

This was a pretty good show overall, thanks to the final two matches. I wish they would have cut a match and let the Luger match go a few minutes longer. Overall though, this is a nice little nugget from one of their better eras. 

Overall Rating: 78%