This video, posted recently to Richard Land’s YouTube channel, was from a WWF show in Philadelphia on 8/15/87 — almost exactly 29 years ago.
Hard-body Baby-Face, Rick Martel was between Tag Team partners, having recently broken up with Tom Zenk but not yet paired with Tito Santana. So they booked him in a Singles Match against one of the Islanders — Haku.
Haku’s partner — the sadistic Tama — also enters the ring and strips down to his tights as if he, too, is going to wrestle Martel. That sure caught my attention!
Totally unfair — this thug should be locked up!
Before the ref can force Tama out of the ring, the Islander’s pounce on the white-clad hero and beat him down gang style. They both pepper their kneeling target with a rain of Forearm Smashes and dirty Barefoot Rib Kicks.
Martel soon fights back and over-powers his two attackers, so order is restored for the moment. One might expect the official — having seen Tama’s brutal savagery — to ban the cheater from ringside. But no — the bastard is allowed to stand outside the ring and watch his partner wrestle Martel, a constant threat just drooling to get his hands on Martel again.
Wow, this High Flyer is totally dominating with those powerful legs!
Martel is presented as an unbeatable Stud early in the match, flying around the ring and embarrassing big, slow Haku with Drop-Kicks and flashy Flying Headscissors.
Here the Heel eats a mouthful of white spandex as Martel clamps his thighs around Haku’s ears, then rolls back and sits on his chest, his nutsack resting on the victim’s chin.
The narrative being presented is that Haku is no match for the spectacular Hero in White. Only with the treacherous help of his partner at ringside can this chump over-power Martel. Stay tuned, wrestling fans…
Went to the well once too often!
When Martel tries for a second Balls-in-the Face Headscissor, Haku falls back and dumps him onto the top turnbuckle, utterly stunning the stud.
Sexually assault me once, shame on you. Sexually assault me twice, and you’re going to feel a steel Turnbuckle between the eyes.
I always loved Haku’s dramatic, over-exaggerated Karate Chops.
Next we are treated to a beautiful, action-packed assault on the helpless Martel. Haku is a ruthless mother, repeatedly kicking the Fan Favorite with his dirty feet, driving fingers into his throat Karate style, and delivering painful blows that look especially rough and painful.
The implication is that this Islander is a blood-thirsty savage, not civilized or socialized like the clean-cut body-builder in the white clothing. The brutality of the Beast makes the hero’s situation seem even more hopeless (and therefore HOT!)
Whoever dressed Martel in white deserves a raise.
Martel likes to sell his pain by kicking his boots around — I always enjoy seeing that. Here he submits to our gaze, spreading his legs open and allowing us to ravish his manhood with our eyes.
Earlier in the match, when he sat on Huku’s face, his bulging trunks symbolized his prowess and heft as a man. Now he is degraded by being forced to lay down and present his bulge and taint for our visual inspection. How the mighty has fallen!
In a dramatic Chinlock spot, Martel depicts his strength being slowly drained by Haku, his powerful arms flexing and erect at first, but slowly growing weak, deflating like tires with nails in them as Haku flexes his big biceps to milk the hold. Eventually Martel’s arms turn to floppy rubber that the ref raises and drops loosely to his sides. His power is drained.
THIS is the dickish cruelty we’ve been craving from Tama!
The best move of the match occurs after Martel is thrown out of the ring. With the ref distracted by Haku, Tama attacks from behind. He hoists Martel up above the ropes, and Martel foolishly, obediently opens his legs, thus leaving his nuts exposed.
Sure enough, Martel gets crotched on the top rope, his testicles wrecked, utterly neutered and left curled up nursing his aching nuts. This unfair cruelty on spectacular swole pretty-boys like Martel is exactly why pro wrestling got to me, and I keep coming back for more.
Tama strikes the vulnerable Martel with a metal chair.
But these dirty savages are not done punishing Martel yet. Haku drapes the ragdoll on the middle rope, then distracts the ref again. This enables Tama to bash a metal chair into Martel’s skull to totally knock him out.
As usually occurs when the civilized Thinking Man wrestles the stereotypical primitive Beast, the worst attack occurs on the man’s brain, disabling his advantage over the savage — his thinking abilities.
HEY! The match is over, so leave that man alone!
The moral of the story is that a man needs a partner. Power is derived from relationships with other men. Martel must pay a terrible price for breaking his successful homo-social bond with Tom Zenk. He would be wise to hook up with Santana as soon as possible and try to get some revenge on these beastly Heels.
Check out Tama, being a total dick by stomping on Martel one more time long after the match is over. Post match assault on the Helpless Hero is always a pleasure to witness.
What a hot match! Muscleman Martel in white, getting destroyed by cheaters, ganged up on. And my favorite – getting a little too cocky and getting tripped up, signaling the beginning of the end for our Hero. These kind of matches is what got me into pro wrestling also – unfair matches ending in muscle punishment moves even after the bell rings. Great!