Monday Night Raw - November 20th 1995

• Raw kicks off with a recap of last night’s Survivor Series PPV. The big news is that we have a new WWF Champion. Bret Hart won an awesome match with Diesel (which included the first announce table spot in WWF history) to win the title with a small package and then sore loser Diesel attacked him with two Jackknife powerbombs, laying out a bunch of referees in his wake too. 
• In the opening match the 1-2-3 Kid battles Hakushi. Vince recaps his dramatic heel turn and joining of the Million Dollar Corporation last week as well as his victory at Survivor Series and involvement in Razor Ramon’s match. Razor calls in during this match and in between calling the Kid a stick man and a punk, promises swift and brutal revenge for the betrayal. This is a really good match between two very talented wrestlers. Marty Jannetty comes to ringside during this match trying to get his hands on the 1-2-3 Kid - he needed Sid’s help to beat Marty last night and he’s upset about it. He’s restrained by referees and escorted to the back so that this match can continue. Hakushi has gotten pretty popular - his comedy “learning about America” gimmick is working. A well timed trip by Ted Dibiase allows the Kid to follow up with a spinning heel kick which gives him the victory. After the match Jerry Lawler interviews Ted Dibiase and the 1-2-3 Kid. Dibiase calls him a wise investment - he won his first outing at Survivor Series and won again tonight. He’s so proud of him, and rubs salt in the wound of both Marty Jannetty and Razor Ramon. That brings party Marty down to the ring but Sycho Sid quickly follows and gets there before him. Sid and the Kid beat down Marty two on one and finish him off with a Powerbomb on the floor while Dibiase and the Kid hold back the referees and stop them from saving him. Sid tells everyone that THIS is what you get when you mess with either him or the 1-2-3 Kid. 

• In the Slamjam, Dok Hendrix (who seems to have stolen Todd Pettengill’s job) he tells us the first two matches announced for In Your House 5 in December - the WWF title match and a Hogpen match between Henry Godwin and Hunter Hearst Helmsley. The more exciting news is that Big Daddy Cool has arrived at the arena unexpectedly and after a segment with him chatting to buddy Shawn Michaels backstage, Diesel heads down to the ring during a Skip vs. Savio Vega match and attacks both men, grabbing a mic. This all feels very unscripted and exciting which is cool, especially for late 1995. Diesel sarcastically suggests apologising to Bret and the fans for his actions but says he won’t be doing that - he’s not sorry, he’s angry that he lost the WWF title and slept like a baby last night. He had a big smile on his face for the first time in a year because he’s now the real him, not some corporate puppet created by Vince! He says that for the past year he’s been forced to smile and be more politically correct and corporate and now he can be himself without all that BS weighing him down. It gets a cheer from the crowd and an apology from Vince, who was not acknowledged as the owner of the company on TV making this feel very unscripted and real. He puts on sunglasses and tells Shawn Michaels that he better be with him. He gets a mixed reaction as he leaves. This was awesome. When he gets backstage he finds Shawn Michaels who gives him a hug and some support as he leaves the arena.

• Speaking of Shawn Michaels, he’s in tonight’s main event against Owen Hart. This should be an amazing match if it’s given time. There’s been a lot of talk both at the PPV and here tonight about how Shawn Michaels may not be 100% after the vicious beating he took outside a nightclub in Syracuse, New York. I talked about it at the time and he does look healed up but there is an unmistakable bruise under one of his eyes - it had only been a few weeks since he was given that concussion. He sells as an underdog for Owen Hart who keeps up the pressure with neckbreakers, leg drops and sleepers. He’s working on HBK’s head and neck. This show has had a good bit of “reality” injected into WWF television with Diesel and it continues as while Michaels dances and poses he suddenly gets dizzy and collapses. Owen reacts like he is worried and goes over to converse with Mr. Fuji as the referee checks on Michaels. Vince McMahon leaves commentary and silently gets into the ring to check on him and after a commercial break Vince looks emotional as medical staff tend to an unconscious Shawn Michaels. Jerry Lawler leaves commentary too and goes to check on Vince so this entire segment plays with no commentary while fans are shown looking emotional and fighting back tears. Before the show ends, HBK does wake up and we hear one of the paramedics telling Pat Patterson that he is going to be OK. This type of segment - playing on a real life injury for drama and trying to convince fans something serious has happened “for real” was done to death over the next few years in wrestling but this segment was very effective I thought, especially in the neon-90s, cartoony world of the New Generation. This whole episode of Raw marked a dramatic shift in storytelling as the polished, fake world of WWF gave world to real life and let fans glimpse behind the curtain all while still maintaining the illusion. Well done, a great episode of Raw from start to finish.

Monday Night Raw - November 27th 1995

• The show opens with promotion by Vince and Lawler for a medical update on Shawn Michaels, an interview with Bret Hart and the main event of Undertaker vs. Kama which is marketed as Undertaker’s “final chance to regain the power of the urn”. Alright then. 
• In the opener Rad Radford (who comes out to what I know as the Headbangers theme song) vs. Ahmed Johnson. It’s a quick and easy victory for Johnson with promotion for his match at In Your House with Dean Douglas. Post match, Jerry Lawler interviews Ahmed and insults his intelligence. He’s about to attack King but Dean Douglas came out to confront him instead. Ahmed wants a fight right then and there but Douglas tells him he’ll take him to school at the PPV. They’re held apart by referees as the show goes to commercial.

• I said that at Survivor Series it was the end of the WWF’s women’s division but we get one final appearance in a tag team match. Aja Kong and Alundra Blayze are on opposite teams and out of respect I’m not going to try and spell their partner’s names but they’re two Japanese ladies. I’m not sure exactly how many appearances we have left from these ladies but I’ll have more to say about them in the first show of the next Preview. No spoilers. This is a good match - the Japanese girls especially move really quickly and hit hard with clotheslines and dropkicks. There’s some really nice springboards off the ropes too which get a good reaction from the 1995 crowd. A brutal back suplex dumping Alundra’s partner on the head gives Aja Kong the win. Bizarrely Vince and Lawler spent a lot of his match talking about Princess Diana who I guess was in the news at the time, including a weird bit about how Aja Kong believes in safe sex just like Diana who is in the commercials for a Norwegian condom company? I have no idea what Vince is talking about. So strange.

• There is a video updating us on Shawn Michaels medical condition. He’s fine, but maybe pushed himself a little too hard a little too soon and needs some time to properly heal from his post concussion syndrome. In 1995 the knowledge of concussions in sports and how serious they were was sorely lacking and even in 2026 there still needs to be more work done.
• The returning Brother Love (a return NO ONE asked for) interviews the new WWF Champion Bret Hart. There’s points where Bret looks like he’s trying not to laugh at Bruce Pritchard’s goofy preacher gimmick. Brother Love’s point is that the Hitman is in fact a Marked Man and that everyone is gunning for him and the WWF title. He keeps asking Bret questions and then not letting him speak. Interestingly he mentions that The Undertaker wants a shot at the WWF Championship. That seems a little out of the blue but is definitely a good thing. He mentions that Bret likes to make his family cry - fighting his brother Owen and now fighting his brother in law at In Your House, tearing the Hart family apart. Bret finally speaks; he tells Diesel that he’ll pay for what he did in their next match and Undertaker that he’ll cross that bridge when he gets to it. They keep mentioning the 1992 Summerslam main event and Bulldog defeating Bret in their only singles match. Bret says he plans on getting his redemption at In Your House and retaining his WWF title. Bret’s music plays and he’s about to leave when he’s attacked by Bob Backlund who clamps the Hitman in the Crossface until he’s finally restrained by referees. That is also out of the blue as these two haven’t interacted since Wrestlemania but I guess the point is that EVERYONE is after his WWF title.

• Hunter Hearst Helmsley battles John Chrystal. Henry Godwin cuts a promo from his farm letting HHH know that he’ll introduce him to all of his pigs in person at In Your House. He also slopped Howard Finkle over the weekend which seems mean. Triple H puts down the jobber with a Pedigree to win this match with ease. 

• In a prerecorded interview Owen Hart is proud of himself for having injured Shawn Michaels and Jim Cornette says that everyone is now afraid to fight him. Owen has an open contract to wrestle anyone brave enough to accept at In Your House. He says he’ll hospitalise them just like he did to HBK.

• Kama enters with Ted Dibiase for the main event with The Undertaker but he’s on crutches and so won’t be able to wrestle tonight. He does a terrible job of acting hurt so Vince is all over him for faking it. He still has the Undertaker’s melted down chain around his neck. Ted Dibiase says that he has a replacement for Kama - Sir Mo. Vince smells a rat. He knows King Mabel is here tonight too and thinks this is a plot to ambush the Deadman. He’s probably right isn’t he? Undertaker is still wearing the awesome spooky Phantom of the Opera style mask he debuted at Survivor Series to protect his real-life shattered orbital bone. With some distractions and cheap shots by both Kama and Dibiase Mo manages to get some offence in. In the end though, it’s only Sir Mo so after Dibiase and Kama leave he drills him with a chokeslam to win the match. King Mabel comes to ringside but is too slow to grab what's left of the urn. Undertaker has regained the necklace but the other man given credit for the breaking of his face Yokozuna comes to the ring. Undertaker hands the necklace to Paul Bearer so he can square up to Yokozuna but with him distracted, King Mabel attacks Bearer and steals the urn. Undertaker chases after him and Yokozuna just…stays in the ring. 
• There’s a final commercial break and some promotion for next week’s Raw but that’s how the show ends. So Undertaker only had his urn back for about 90 seconds. I’d tell you what next week’s big promoted matches are but…you’re about to read about it! 

Monday Night Raw - December 4th 1995

• The show kicks off with a recap of Dean Douglas’ 15 minute Intercontinental title reign at In Your House 4. He gets a rematch tonight while Marty Jannetty tries to get revenge on Sid for costing him the match to the 1-2-3 Kid at Survivor Series. 
• The British Bulldog kicks things off against Bob “Sparkplug” Holly. It’s certainly an energetic match but Bulldog has a PPV main event to prepare for so he wins this with the running powerslam. Lawler spends the match talking about how Bret’s sister, Bulldog’s wife, isn’t caught in the middle and is siding firmly with her husband in the match.
• Jerry Lawler interviews Mr. Bob Backlund who attacked the WWF Champion last week. He has a non-title match with Bret next week which Backlund is furious about. He wants to be God again (he means Champion) and is unsatisfied by Lawler pointing out that a win over the Hitman might help him become President. Backlund is great, it’s a shame Vince had no interest in using him more because of his age. The show goes to commercial break while Backlund is mid-rant about society and how the youth of America needs his leadership. During the break, Backlund went off through the crowd to find the sound man who cut off his mic while he was talking and locks him in the Crossface to punish him. 

• Make a difference Fatu battles the Brooklyn Brawler. A big top rope splash by Fatu gives him an easy victory.
• In the Slamjam Dok Hendrix brings us more In Your House updates; Owen Hart’s open contract has been accepted by Diesel who no doubt wants revenge for his best buddy Shawn Michaels.

• Razor Ramon defends the Intercontinental title against Dean Douglas and I expected this to be a long match taking up most of Raw but in truth it’s fairly short. Dean is struggling with a back injury which I believe was real and Razor finishes him off quite quickly with a Razor’s Edge to retain the title. 

• Brother Love has another interview segment this week and this time it’s with King Mabel. The news here is that King Mabel faces Undertaker at In Your House and Vince immediately reminds us that Mabel beat him back at King of the Ring which is technically true but he had a lot of help in doing it. Mabel claims to have been the first man to pin Undertaker (false) and the first man to injure and put out Undertaker (also false) and says he’ll do the same at In Your House. Brother Love has a big surprise for Mabel (who barks that he hates surprises) and the surprise in question is a casket, wheeled to the ring by a masked druid. Vince gets very fixated on working out who the druid is (it turns out to be Sir Mo, who Mabel believes has turned on him! The point is that Mabel’s match at In Your House is now a casket match. The casket is a custom painted castet with spray paint all over it. He loves it and thanks Brother Love for his gift. This was a weird segment but the point is, Mabel vs. Undertaker in a casket match at In Your House.

• Before Marty enters for the main event he asks Razor Ramon to have his back and keep an eye out for interference by The 1-2-3 Kid. Razor is move than happy and encourages him to go and kick Sycho Sid’s ass. Good luck to you Marty. This is another short match and as Marty fires up and battles Sid to the outside the 1-2-3 Kid runs down to get involved. Razor pursues and chases the Kid off through the crowd but the interference ends this match via disqualification. With Razor and the 1-2-3 Kid sprinting through the crowd, Sid lays out Marty with a big powerbomb and has the last laugh. Vince mentions that these four men will do battle in a tag team match at In Your House.
• In the closing moments of the show Todd Pettengill interviews Shawn Michaels’ doctor about his medical condition. He is deeply concerned about Shawn’s condition and says he may suffer from long term neurological issues and he’s not even concerned about his wrestling career he’s concerned about Shawn’s life as a human being. He basically has brain damage and any blows to the head could even be fatal. That is very dramatic and the interview concludes with the doctor saying Shawn Michaels may never be able to wrestle ever again. Vince segues that into a sappy message about how we sometimes separate the larger than life personalities on TV from ourselves - bigger faster and stronger - but they are human beings at the end of the day and we should all take some time to consider how much they risk by getting in the ring to entertain us. That’s a nice message and it is an important one. It’s not one I believe Vince McMahon actually meant sadly. 

Monday Night Raw - December 11th 1995

• In the opening match Owen Hart (with Jim Cornette, Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji in his corner) faces Jeff Hardy. Yes THAT Jeff Hardy. Diesel is shown watching the match from backstage as he’ll face Owen at In Your House and he’s not alone - in the crowd, Owen and Bret’s sister Diana, the husband of the British Bulldog, is also here tonight. There’s a lot going on in this opener. Owen finishes Jeff off with a missile dropkick and teases the Sharpshooter but then decides the jobber’s not worth it and just pins him instead. The punishment isn’t over and Owen encourages Yokozuna to get in the ring and crush him with the Banzai drop, which he does much to Owen’s joy. Will Yoko be in Owen’s corner against Diesel at In Your House? Diesel has seen enough and when Owen locks in the Sharpshooter Big Daddy Cool runs to the ring and chases off Owen and knocks Yoko out of the ring with a big boot. Vince talks a lot about Diesel’s new attitude and semi-heel turn. He tried to interview him over the weekend but was totally ignored. 

• In the WWF’s womens division Aja Kong crushes a girl we haven’t seen before who I immediately like because she’s dressed like a Power Ranger. She flips around and none of her offense looks very good before running into a brick wall of Kong. She brutalises her with suplexes and a package piledriver but keeps breaking her own pin until finally defeating her with a spinning backhand to the face which burst her opponent’s nose open. Nasty. This sadly is the last time we’ll see the awesome Aja Kong who amazingly is still wrestling in 2026. What a woman.

• My boy Todd Pettengill sits down with Shawn Michaels for his first interview since the medical scare a few weeks ago. HBK says that he feels fine and doesn’t have any of the symptoms that his doctors are worried about. He says he’s ready to return right now but the doctors don’t agree and want him to wait a little longer. He says he’ll just ignore the authority and return anyway. Todd mentions that Michaels was never WWF Champion but has had an awesome career, talking like his career might be over. Michaels has no intention of retiring and will be back to complete his bucket list and become WWF Champion. The interview turns serious and a little tense when HBK realises that Todd is trying to get him to talk about his career being over. He refuses to talk about it that; this is not a job, this is his life. Being a WWF Superstar means everything to him and he won’t even discuss his career potentially being over. This was good stuff. 

• As Ahmed Johnson makes his entrance, Dean Douglas has some words for him about their match at In Your House. This is Douglas’ last Raw appearance. I did say at Survivor Series that this was the beginning of a period with a lot of departures from the WWF and I’ll talk more about Dean Douglas at In Your House. Ahmed Johnson’s opponent is a thick jobber and the action is extremely sloppy - he’s VERY strong and throws the guy around ,lifting him with ease but he has zero finesse and just slams the guy who keeps landing more on his hips and legs than on his back. It might have been the guy’s fault but its not the first time since his debut last month that I’ve found Ahmed to look rather sloppy in the ring. He wins with the sitdown powerbomb which is now called the Pearl River Plunge. It’s a good finisher and I do still love his theme music at least. After the match Jerry Lawler interviews Ahmed again. He makes more jokes about his intelligence and Johnson just tells him to sit down and watch him kick Douglas’ butt at In Your House.

• They’ve been promoting “The Raw Bowl” in a couple of weeks but there’s no information so far on what the Raw Bowl actually is or involves. I guess I’ll find out more about that in the next Preview.
• Vince McMahon interviews whats left of the Million Dollar Corporation in the ring. Ted Dibiase calls himself, Sid and the 1-2-3 Kid a big happy family and Sycho Sid is dedicated to protecting the Kid. He calls them the next WWF Tag Team Champions. The Kid says he’s no longer interested in these people - he’s only focused on winning and on getting the money. He tells Razor that he’s twisted his mind and has manipulated and used him for years now. Sid and The Kid call themselves the best tag team in WWF history and promise victory over Razor and Marty Jannetty at In Your House. Interesting that what on the surface is a pairing of singles stars now seems to be shifting towards filling out the ailing tag team division. It's not a bad idea honestly because with so many departures lately, the Smoking Gunns are the only actual tag team I can think of at the moment and even they haven’t been on Raw all month. Sid comes across as a total psychopath screaming about how much he’ll enjoy hurting Marty and Razor.

• In the main event Bret Hart faces Bob Backlund in a non-title match. It’s an even back and forth grappling match and as they trade holds on the mat Jerry Lawler goes to speak to Diana Hart in the crowd and interviews her about the In Your House main event. They’ve made so much of a fuss about Bulldog defeating Bret at Summerslam 1992 but interestingly Bret has made it clear that there’s no ill will between him and Bulldog the way there is with himself and Owen. It seems like it’ll be a nice clean match at the PPV despite Bulldog being a heel now. Diana has negative charisma and says she’ll be happy if her husband wins without outright saying anything negative about her brother Bret. Backlund focuses his attack on Bret’s shoulder to soften him up for the Chickenwing. Bret perseveres and as he tries to lock Mr. Backlund in the Sharpshooter the British Bulldog runs down. His distraction allows Bob to lock Bret in the Chickenwing and Bulldog starts hammering on his brother in law with kicks and punches. I guess this match on PPV isn’t as friendly and clean as everyone thought. There’s no one to save Bret and Raw ends with referees trying hard to get Bulldog and Backlund to leave the WWF Champion alone.