Powers of Pain (a face tag-team)?

[BlackJackRobby]

I was looking at some old WWF PPV posters, and they had Demolition placed on the heel side, and the Powers of Pain on the face side for the 88' Survivor Series.

I don't ever remember them being a face tag team, but it seemed they were on the face team and ended up winning the match.

That was the second huge tag team version, with 5 teams on each side. If one member was eliminated the whole team was.

BTW I loved that idea then and now.

["Hollywood" Cactus Matt]

I can accurately describe what a Young Stallion, a Killer Bee, a British Bulldog, and a Rocker are. Ask me what a "Power of Pain" is, and I draw a blank.

Also, this will probably be moved to (W)rest since it isn't exactly Current, just so you know.

[Stu]

The PoP were a face team during their first couple months in the company. Come Survivor Series, they and Demolition were supposed to be pulling a double switch. However, it didn't immediately come off as well as Austin/Hart. Thus, at the end of the match, Demolition had to come back out to "remind" the crowd who it was supposed to be cheering for.

[Mac]

They still should have let the Conquistadors win that match. The Demos costing the PoP that match would have been some additional good fued bait. Demolition was so great, due in large part to the theme music.

[Tyfo]

mikeybadnews said:

They still should have let the Conquistadors win that match. The Demos costing the PoP that match would have been some additional good fued bait. Demolition was so great, due in large part to the theme music.

I love when the PoP are on the outside helping Fuji up and the ref is counting, and you see a Conquistador in the background jumping up and down while the ref nears 10.

Sadly, the Pain makes it back in and the Conquistadors run came to an end

[MolotovMocktail]

Since I was only 5 when this happened, what was the kayfabe reason behind the double turn?

[Cheeba]

mikeybadnews said:

They still should have let the Conquistadors win that match.

I completely agree. Demolition and PoP should have fought to a double count-out or something. That would have been the great upset of the 80's if that had happened.

[Squirrel Master]

If memory serves me right, The Demos spurned Mr. Fuji, thus completing their face turn and the Powers of Pain showed him some love, making them evil.

[lildude8218]

I was just reading that they taped a few episodes of Superstars before Survivor Series that weren't going to air until AFTER Survivor Series. So they had an untaped/unaired Brother Love Show where Brother Love said that Demolition couldn't win a match without help from Mr. Fuji. They said they would prove him wrong later, came out without Fuji, and won the match. This was done to explain him not being at ringside for the folks in attendance and to keep the double turn at Survivor Series a surprise.

[Aceorton]

lildude8218 said:

I was just reading that they taped a few episodes of Superstars before Survivor Series that weren't going to air until AFTER Survivor Series. So they had an untaped/unaired Brother Love Show where Brother Love said that Demolition couldn't win a match without help from Mr. Fuji. They said they would prove him wrong later, came out without Fuji, and won the match. This was done to explain him not being at ringside for the folks in attendance and to keep the double turn at Survivor Series a surprise.

That's interesting.

With Brother Love publically doubting them, though, I guess Demolition was officially babyface in that town before Survivor Series. The crowd would have been cheering for them.

[Mac]

Demolition were too over as heels. Power of Pain were kinda sorta over as faces. So I guess the turn made sense until it got kinda pathetic that this arse kicking duo had one member with a beer guy and a bald spot.

[dannyrctv]

I read about the supposed Brother Love appearance in PWI as happening before Survivor Series but NEVER saw it so I guess it didn't air.
It was a suprise after the PoP being vicious heels in the NWA(WCW) feuding with the Road Warriors and then showing up in WWF as faces.I never saw their debut or even when theywere announced.I found out by seeing an ad for a house show where Tito Santana was teamind with the PoP against Demolition and I think Fuji.
I think the angle was after Strike Force lost the tag belts to Demolition at WM and then injurring Santanna's partner In SF,Rick Martel in the rematch,he brought in the PoP as back up.If I'm correct.

The PoP pain were soon given a manager the Baron(Baron Von Rashke) who was great I thought.This was the strange era of the baby face managers as Sir Oliver Humperdink managing Bam bam Bigelow and now the mysterious Baron who was actually inducted here at Wrestlecrap.The Baron looked & dressed like Emperor Palentine from Star Wars.He acted all evil and sinister.The PoP had no mic skills so the Baron was added.

So come Survivor series as the feud between Demolition and PoP was picking up steam,both teams were opposing captains gainst each other.Demoltion with all the tag team heels on their team which include dteh Brain Busters as wellas teh jobbers known as the Conquitadors. And would you believe the PoP captaining the baby face team with the Bulldogs,Rockers,and the Hart Foundation.All those teams are now legends and the Powers of Pain never really elevated beyond this era.When you look at it on paper it's hard to fathom them captaining over these great teams.

Anyways I watched this live on PPV and was wondering where the PoP's manger the Baron was.Typically back then the WWF would NEVER mention changes but just pretended it was normal the PoP came out there by themselves when teh past severall weeks on TV the Baron was accompanying them.

This was a great SS match one of the biggest surprises was the Conquistadors being there at the end.I'm sure most including myself expected them to be the first to be eliminated.I was even shocked they were on the team but then again there needed to be an even count of heel teams to oppose the faces even though the Conquistadors were seen losing on a weekly basis.

Anyways there was no hint there was going to be major turn with Demolition becoming faces and the PoP becoming the heels.So no one was expecting it.When it came down to the Powers of Pain being the last team remaining against Demo & the dors,Fuji for some reason jumped up on the ring apron waving his cane like he wanted to hit one the PoP while demo was in control.it happened so fast had it not been for the play by play of Gorilla Monsoon & Jesse Ventura,no one would have known what was going on.
The live audience obviously didn't know.Smash of Demolition was about to bounce off the ropes but Fuji held them open & Smashe wnt flying between the ropes and hit the floor and got counted out.
The camera man missed it as it looked like Smash accidently fell through the ropes.the crowd laughed.
Again only the play by play and Ax yelling at Fuji about holding the ropes and then teh Demos body slammed him and left him there.
taht's when the PoP suddenly stopped and went and helped Fuji to his feet and brought him to their coner where he helped the PoP cheat to finish off the hapless Conquistadors.The crowd thought Fuji was now a face and were cheering as the PoP hoisted him up on their shoulders and celebrated.
then Demolition came back to the ring and cleaned house and the crowd was booing them.Mean Gene did an interview with the PoP & Fuji afterwards.This was the first time I've ever heard the Warlord & Barbarian speak and boy did their mic skills SUCK!No wonder they never talked before that or again after this!!
So then Demo were officially faces and were really over too.They kind of had to turn face because they had pretty much beaten all the baby face teams so they needed to start battling the heel teams.I'd of rather seen heel vs heell matches but WWF didn't do that back then
Do the PoP got their asses kicked by Demolition at the next WM,tehn theyy split up in to singles wrestlers shich failed and Demolition would eventually go back to being heels and rejoining Fuji with Crush as their 3rd member.
Did i explain everything??

[Aceorton]

Conspiracy theory: Fuji is a shapeshifter, and the Baron was actually Fuji in an alternate form. He appeared in his natural form at the Survivor Series.

[willywonka666]

As an aside, I recall the POP leaving the NWA and it was explained by their manager Paul Jones, that he had signed them up for a series of scaffold matches against the Road Warriors for the Great American Bash tour and they chickened out.

[Cheeba]

willywonka666 said:

As an aside, I recall the POP leaving the NWA and it was explained by their manager Paul Jones, that he had signed them up for a series of scaffold matches against the Road Warriors for the Great American Bash tour and they chickened out.

I remember this as well. Paul Jones came out on NWA tv and bashed the PoP for being cowards, which was surreal considering he had just been managing them weeks earlier. Ivan Koloff & The Russian Assassin took their place in the scaffold matches. Lucky them.

[Blindkarevik]

It seemed to me that Vince created Demolition to re-create the Road Warriors when they were the end-all, be-all heel tag team. However, at this point.. the Road Warriors became faces and still remained intensely over... so when the Powers Of Pain came in, Vince wanted them to be his version of the face Road Warriors. They didn't take off as well as he wanted, Demolition were over.. so the double-switch was made.

I honestly think the way the Road Warriors dominated their feud with Demolition when they finally did join Vince was how the PoP/Demos feud was supposed to go.