[6.0] "A very long rumble match, which starts off with the constellation of two clashing tag team champions. Apart from Curt Hennig's workrate, there's not much to see after Andre's elimination, until the Mega Powers once again reel off the soap opera. The Bossman has to take the blame for the fact that Hogan, who was fairly eliminated afterwards, is a pretty vindictive little fruit. That's a bad look for a super babyface, just like later in the 92 Rumble against Sid. Big John may come as a bit of a surprise at the end, but given his previous long break, it should bring some emotion. But it doesn't, as the crowd storms out of the arena before he can really celebrate. That feels strange. You can give six points rounded up."
[7.0] "First rumble with 30 men and it included names like Hulk Hogan, Macho Man Randy Savage, Andre the Giant, and the winner was BIG JOHN STUDD! Watching the little promos before it informed me that this was Studd's first appearance and match in over 2 years which made this victory nothing but sweeter. The promo for the Twin Towers (Akeem & Big Boss Man) was something that caught my eye because of Akeem constantly fucking dancing which made laugh like fuck to be honest. Memorable eliminations such as Andre with the Snake being thrown at him was really memorable and another one for me that comes to mind is the Red Rooster being eliminated by DiBiase by getting irish whipped into the corner and just kind goes up and over from it which was pretty cool. This rumble also featured a tag team starting at 1 & 2 with Ax & Smash respectively getting those numbers. Hulk Hogan getting eliminated made me feel that they were really trying to show that getting a late number is more effective as nowadays it doesn't shock people if No. 1 won the rumble so Hogan getting eliminated actually surprised me even though I knew Studd won the match. Just before Akeem gets eliminated he creates another moment as he gives to grab DiBiase by the trunks and just shows the world his asscrack which I did chucke to. The Fact Akeem/One Man Gang (Same Person) has now finished 2nd and 3rd in the 2 only rumbles so far is a crazy fun fact. Overall i actually enjoyed this rumble, now onto 1990 ->"
[7.0] "Good 2nd Rumble, the first one with 30 participants and It had some good moments, and a good winner like Big John Studd, after eliminating Ted Dibiase and Virgil who came to do his part, 7/10 [****]"
[7.0] "The first real royal rumble. 30 people instead of 20, real star power, and it felt important even if there wasn't a title shot guarantee yet. There were like 6 possible winners, very few wasted jobber Entrants, and some memorable moments like Warlord getting merked in 2 seconds, Hogan dumping out Savage, and Andre running away from a snake. Much more fun that people give it credit for, but Studd was kind of a boring winner. Should've been Dibiase tbh."
[7.0] "The very first Royal Rumble match with 30 men was fun. There were many talents here which made the Rumble interesting. I was surprised that Hogan didnt win the Rumble but he didnt need it at the same time. The end got kinda slow with not many main eventers being there besides Ted Dibiase and Studd. Studd ended up winning it which was cool. It was definitely better than the last years Rumble, 30 men is way better and more exciting."
[6.0] "Fairly standard royal rumble. Some subpar spots but also some really good eliminations (Jannetty had the best one). This year they had all of the big stars in the rumble. Studd winning and then not doing anything at Mania was a surprising choice."
[6.0] "Despite not that strong enough star power and still no stakes or a something worth competing in the match for, it's still bit of an improvement over the first ever one in 1988 with an increase in competitors with the now traditional 30 people and it was still pretty decent for what it was."
[6.0] "An improvement on the first Rumble match that's for sure. You start to see the "Every Man for Himself" come into play and more spots taking focus. Demolition facing off against each other, The Mega Powers colliding and Jake returning to the ring to chase Andre out with the snake all adding something to it. Sadly, outside of this there isnt much, but this is progress. Big John Studd was blowing gas by the time this one was done!"
[5.0] "[2.5*] Even though the spots have improved and the creativity has increased, the quality was very sad. I saw it a few days ago and all I can remember is the fat guy, Andre The Giant being eliminated because of a snake and the stare down of the mega powers and Ted Dibiase trying to buy the win of the match."
[5.0] "better match then the first one for sure. Still theyre having just weird winners that dont make any sense. And still the winner doesnt recieve a title shot which is just disappointing and a big miss i mean it is right there anyone with a brain would have done it from the start. The first half of the match is great but after the hogan and macho man spot the match goes down and sucks honestly. Million dollar man shouldve won this. Not to good of a rumble but the first half is fun. 3.50 stars"
[6.0] "A clear improvement from the first Royal Rumble by bumping the participants from 20 to 30. The only thing lacking from the match know are clear stakes and a reason to win the Royal Rumble."
[8.0] "I don't grade matches on a curve, so with what a royal rumble match has to offer compared to the average match, you won't see me go below the 7/10 mark too often. I did grade the original 1988 rumble match at a 7, but I think this one shows some improvement, especially in the depth of participant quality and upping the participants from 20 to 30 men. Unfortunately, we still don't have the all-important #1 contendership stipulation that makes the rumble match truly significant to the year's upcoming storylines. Anyways, for me, this is just on the right side of the 8 borderline and mostly only held back by a pretty lame winner booking and a bit too much rope/corner-riding throughout the match. WWF was still trying to figure out a good match flow for the rumble matches to get some actual ring work mixed into the elimination attempts, but they at least improved on the original offering in terms of wrestler quality depth and by adding a few extra fun storyline spots. The Mega Powers stuff was notable, as was the spectacle of Damien being unleashed into the ring and Andre the Giant eliminating himself in a panic, an indelible image."
[6.0] "And thus begins the tradition of 30 man rumble matches. Like the first one, this match also has big historical significance. Thats about it. Nothing in this match is really special at all. Id say that this is way weaker than I originally thought prior to a rewatch, but goddamn this was pretty boring. I still think its better than the first one by a tiny bit, though. Lets break it up into acts: Act 1 - pretty much a copy and paste from the first one with a group ganging up on the odd man out but this time its Demolition, Garvin, Hennig, and Valentine bullying André. Act 2 - house show worthy wrestling; not bad but not exactly great, theres some solid moments plus Perfect and Michaels working together was nice. Act 3 - the Megapowers takeover; this part is without a doubt the best act because youve got some great workers in this portion (Brain Busters, The Rockers, Megapowers, Perfect); this part really continues until Hogan clears the ring. Act 4 - the fuck, we didnt have to do this last year part; its pretty fucking boring from here until the end. Its pretty much a 20 man Rumble but they started a 10 man Rumble immediately after. Nobody from the first 22 entrants is there at the end. Its aggressively average for the last 15 minutes or so. Outside of Studd not wanting anyone elses help, theres nothing really else to point out. Beefcake and Hercules have a nice elimination as does Rooster, but thats it. I wanna stop talking about this match, so well move on to the MVP section of this review. I think Hogan is the pretty obvious MVP. Even though he was only in for about 10 minutes, the guy had 10 eliminations (8 of which are in the Hall of Fame). The only other real candidate is probably Perfect. He was the Iron Man here, but it was still very similar to Brets performance the previous year. He lasted under a half hour and only got 1 elimination. Hell, Studd had 2 eliminations at the very end and won, so he might be 2nd place in the MVP race. This match sure is something. Dont exactly recommend. Its long. Id say a light 6, but its over an hour so that doesnt help. Final rating: **3/4"
[4.0] "The match is broken down into sections. 1. Andre. 2. Workrate guys. 3. Megapowers. 4. End of match guys. The Andre stuff is pretty good because everyone gangs up and tries to get him out and nothing works because it's Andre. It takes Jake chucking his snake into the ring for us to progress to part two. In the workrate guys section we get some of the best work of the match with the likes of Savage, Perfect and the Rockers in there. They create space for themselves and work some smart stuff. It is quite flat but it's passable. The Megapowers section is where the match picks up. Hogan and Savage, as an act, were head and shoulders above everything in the company. No one is close to them and Hogan "accidentally" throwing Randy out adds to their ongoing storyline. Then we hit the last section and everything just grinds to a halt. There's no real story here, beyond DiBiase coming in last, and everyone hugs in the corners for the last 20 minutes. It drags the whole match down. You can tell this is the first time they've done a 30 man rumble because the planning is sparse. Too sparse. It has decent highs but not enough and not consistently throughout."
[4.0] "The first 30 man rumble and it shows. The big plus this match has is the build to WM5 regarding the Mega-Powers. The seeds of paranoia beginning to take form in the mind of the Macho Man in one of the best builds to a WM main event ever (even though Hogan could clearly be the heel as well). A good crop of talent and star power helps the match from being a complete write off, especially seeing the Brain Busters in their only rumble match. Besides that, no big spots or moments to take away. Combine that with the bizarre choice of Studd as the winner puts this rumble way down in my rankings."
[4.0] "I dont remember exactly when i watched this but i probably watched it a few years ago and i dont remember anything about it so i guess it was bad, wrestling in 1989 was pretty bad overall compared to now so a 4 rating is justified in my opinion. For the time it was ok i guess."
[6.0] "Enjoyed parts of this, mainly the logical booking at the start to have everyone go after Andre, more seeds being down for the Mega Powers implosion, and especially the storyline of DiBiase buying the #30 position. Unfortunately, the 10 minutes between Hogan being eliminated and DiBiase coming in are so slow and I didnt care for the ultimate winner."
[6.0] "So, I really like this Royal Rumble. And I think it was so close to being one of the best of all time, but some big problems prevent that. Let me explain why I have such a high opinion of it, though. It's logical. It's logical in a way almost no other Rumble is. What do I mean by that? You don't have any babyfaces being super men here. None of the faces went against all odds. The winner wasn't someone small who drew a super early number that conveniently lasted until the end. As anti-climactic and perhaps as unsatisfying as the winner was, who was it? It was a very big man who got a very late draw and was able to take a very small amount of punishment while he was in there. Exactly who you'd logically expect the winner to be. Savage was tossed 'accidentally' by Hogan to end his night. Hogan himself was just worn down. He didn't get a late enough draw, and took a beating, and in the end, the Twin Towers were too much for even him to overcome and he got tossed because he had nothing left in the tank. It doesn't make either of those guys look weak, and it makes logical sense. The luck of the draw, and who was in the match when determined the pace. It also advanced a lot of storylines going into Wrestlemania 5. So while I ADORE that this was such a logical Rumble that just made so much sense...it just wasn't pleasing as a fan. The action in the match was pretty good for Rumble standards, but lacked many truly big moments. And after Hogan got tossed, a few numbers later, the crowd realized that there wasn't any big faces left for them to root for and checked out. When DiBiase came out, and they realized they didn't care about any of their 'choices, ' they seemed to just politely be waiting for the match to end. If this match had another big babyface (perhaps maybe Warrior selling his injury from the pose down) that got a late draw, and got eliminated third to last or second to last to give the fans someone to support, this would have ended perfectly. Still logical, but more satisfying. I think the WWF learned a lot with this match. They learned that, regardless of what they want the outcome to be, you ALWAYS need SOMEONE that the fans can really get behind to be there close to the end to prevent them from checking out. I truly wish more Rumbles would be this logical in terms of kayfabe but also made it more interesting. I want to love this match, but the average match quality and the deflating ending just hold me back from thinking of it as a true classic."
[4.0] "Der Anfang des Royal Rumbles ist noch ganz nett, es gab ein paar kleine nette Storylines. Jedoch mit der Zeit, besonders nachdem Hogan alle besseren eliminiert hatte, dann kamen nur noch in meiner Meinung nach sehr mittelmäßige bis schlechte Wrestler rein. Es ist gar nichts mehr wirklich passiert."
[4.0] "The beginning of this is actually kinda fun with Demolition and Andre. It's tough for Andre appearances from this era to not look sad. He obviously can't hold himself up but guys like Perfect and Ronnie Garvin do a good job making him look good. At least he gets a good looking elimination on Jake. And there's the classic revenge Jake gets on him. Good workers through most of this so it's not as boring as it could have been, but it's still pretty slow. Like many subsequent rumbles, Shawn Michaels is the star of the middle third of this and manages to keep things interesting enough. Plenty of star power though, something you can count on with these old rumbles. This match really runs out of gas once Hogan's thrown out. It's all scrubs and Ted Dibiase for the final third and this match could have been a solid 6 but gets a 4 for this lackluster final third. Watch the first half, and check out once Hogan hits the floor."
[5.0] "The first half or so of this match was decent, but once the Mega Powers were out of this match this match kinda stunk; besides maybe the very end. Hogan really was not a the face for a lot of what would come of the Mega Powers feud; this is when they are about to explode and Hogan is here eliminating his friend Savage and eliminating Boss Man illegally; he comes across as an asshole. Of course this is the Rumble Big John Studd won, and I'm sorry but he should not have been in the ring, it was painful to watch. The story with Ted Dibiase buying the number 30 spot just to lose was pretty fun; along with unofficial number 31 Virgil."
[5.0] "It was better than last year in terms of booking, but it still didn't feel like the proper Royal Rumble Match. They had some nice things here with Hogan and Savage lightning up their future feud, but Hulk was too much of a prick for a face (eliminating Savage and illegaly throwing out Boss Man). After Mega Powers were out there was almost nothing to look for, as Studd looked like a different guy here. I remembered him from the first WrestleManias where he had this nice heel persona and some character, but here he was basically a blant babyface with no charisma at all."
[8.0] "Amazing start with Ax and Smash. Andre was good despite his condition. Savage and Hogan were clear highlights. The Warlord spot was historic. Akeem did well. DiBiase and Studd was a great ending. Shame Studd didn't do much after winning"
[8.0] "The first PPV version of the Royal Rumble, which had a ton more star power then the original the year before on the USA Special. The memorable opening with Ax and Smash going at it to the Jake "The Snake" Roberts segment with him returning to eliminate Andre to the Mega-Powers friction all made this match interesting. The early sections were more interesting, but once the Big Boss Man was eliminated, it's all downhill from there with the least interesting Rumble winner probably ever had. I have no problem with Big John Studd, but the last section with Studd and DiBiase going at it seemed to drag on and on forever and he was gone by the end of the year, so nothing was gained from his win.. Still, the overall aspects of the match put it above the previous year by a long shot."
[7.0] "Better than the first Royal Rumble in pretty much every way, but there is still room for improvement. This match feels a lot more eventful than the previous one, with memorable moments like Ax and Smash facing off, Andre running from Damien, or the Warlord's abrupt elimination that WWE would highlight in hype packages for years to come. They do a much better job of ensuring that there are stories playing out through the majority of the match than they did in the first Rumble. It's definitely a fun match, but there are two bit issues with it for me. The first is that the match peaks with Hogan's elimination, and they didn't really have enough star power or storyline to sustain the remainder of the match and end on a high note. Similarly, my other issue is that you really feel the length of this match. Where some Rumbles fly by, this one feels very long, and there are definitely moments that drag. Despite these flaws, this was a step in the right direction and an enjoyable Royal Rumble."
[7.0] "Definitely an improvement over the first one but still a bit of a mixed bag. The first third was fantastic with Andre the Giant being the focal point. As soon as he was eliminated the match went into a bit of a lull before the Mega Powers livened things up again. The Macho/Hulk drama was top tier, and it was even fun seeing guys like Koko B. Ware and one of the Bushwhackers going after Hulk. Hulk's tantrum and subsequent elimination of the Big Boss Man was utterly absurd, however. Everything after that was pretty ho-hum, with Big John Studd being a rather questionable winner. ***1/2"
[3.0] "Match is a bit over an hour. There's 10-15 minutes of this which are good, the rest is just boring, aimless brawling with nothing interesting happening."
[6.0] "Well the WWF finally got the Rumble formula down here. They got the entrants timed out pretty evenly and they expanded the roster to 30 men. Ax and Smash kicking things off helped set the mood of "every man for himself" and the first 2/3rds was great, but once Hogan got chucked out, it killed the crowd. Big John Studd winning made no sense in the long run because his in ring career was pretty much over thanks to injuries and age and even if he wasn't in decline, what were they going to book him for? The WWF landscape had changed so much since he left in 86 and most of the guys that were there when he was were gone by this point. 3 stars out of 5. Again, the crowd died off when it was just a match amongst the mid card jobbers. The only two guys in this thing towards the end who were big names at the time were Dibiase and Beefcake."
[6.0] "A moderate Rumble, though certainly better than last year. The first half of this was fantastic with some memorable spots that are still remembered to this day. Unfortunately, after Hogan was eliminated, it all went downhill from there. The crowd was scarily dead, and nothing worthwhile was happening at all. The closing stretch, while good, doesn't justify the shitty second half. I will say though, that it at least helped build up some WM matches, which is always a good thing. No idea why Big John Studd went over as he wasn't even in the WrestleMania card in the end, and the obvious better winner was right there in Ted DiBiase. A pretty average Rumble overall, with the Hogan/Savage drama being the clear highlight of the whole thing. [***]"
[5.0] "They booked this match in three separate parts. The first one was all about Andre the Giant, who looked dominant before being eliminated by Jake Roberts. I absolutely hated that feud, and I despise the way they eliminated Andre in this match just as much. The second part was all about the Mega Powers, which was way more enjoyable and did an ace job in teasing and building up the eventual clash at WrestleMania. Finally, it was all about Ted DiBiase and the power of his wealth. I would've had him win this match and give him a big win on a big show for a change, but instead they went with the returning Big John Studd, who couldn't physically work and was out of the promotion shortly after WrestleMania V. Sometimes this was really fun to watch, while other times it was quite the struggle to sit through. So overall, I'd rate this right in the middle. Quite the average Royal Rumble match. [**1/2]"
[6.0] "Better than 88 but could have been so much better. The first half or so was good fun with good story elements but after Hogan went out it just went downhill fast with the crowd virtually silent after Hogan's departure. The lack of star power besides DiBiase in the remaining wrestlers hurt the match too and he absolutely should have won in my opinion. And boy oh boy does Akeem suck, I just can't stand it when he's in the ring."
[7.0] "Legendäre ist der Auftritt vom Warlord für lange Zeit war er der kürzeste Teilnehmer aller Zeiten. Erst Santino hat ihn durch Kane Eliminierung geschlagen. Laut Fastest Royal Rumble Match eliminations - WWE Top 10 waren es beim Warlord 2 Sekunden. Das Match stand auch im Fokus der Mega Powers wo Randy sauer war als Hulk ihn eliminierte. Das auch ein Big John Studd einen Royal Rumble mal gewonnen haben, haben sicher schon viele vergessen. Auch ein guter Royal Rumble (***)."
[7.0] "While the inaugural Rumble in 88 was a bit undercooked, being shorter, more chaotic, and lacking the interweaving stories Rumbles are known for, this one seems to be getting a lot of the pieces going. The opening with Demolition squaring off sets up the "every man for himself" idea nicely, while also showing, for a bit, how having tag team or stable members in together can be an advantage, though that happens to be a bit overdone when we see the same thing happen with the Bushwhackers, Rockers, and Brain Busters in pretty much succession. Andre pops in for some early star power and as a major giant for people to have to try to overcome, and to keep the Andre-Jake feud rolling when Jake comes in and goes right at him several times. From there, things slow down a little, as Rumbles tend to do in the middle, but again compared to last year there's more spotlight moments for the workers as they come in, like we'd get used to seeing as the match develops. Things peak again with the Hogan-Savage story, leading to quite a bit of drama for WM5, but soon enough Hogan is out and we're left with Beefcake, Terry Taylor, and Akeem to carry the load. It isn't really until Ted DiBiase makes it in at the end that things pick up once more, leading to the surprising and slightly odd decision for Big John Studd to win it. Overall, though, it's a good rumble, decently worked and with a lot of stories playing out. Not the best, but head and shoulders above the first, and a good sign of things to come."
[5.0] "Ich finde dieses Royal Rumble Match hatte so seine Höhen und Tiefen. Es hatte ganz gute Stories um Tag Teams oder auch Phasen, wo dann zum Beispiel Allianzen gegen die Favoriten entstanden sind und es hatte auch ein paar Dinge, die man vorher schon aufgebaut hatte, andererseits hatte es auch einiges an Leerlauf und auch nicht die super spektakulären Szenen. Insgesamt in meinen Augen ein solides Rumble Match, welches 5 Punkte verdient."
[6.0] "Decent enough Rumble match, certainly better than the previous year. They hadn't quite figured out how to make these things compelling yet, they didn't reach that point for a few more years but it was perfectly fine with lots of interesting stuff going on to make the time fly by."
[9.0] "Great Rumble, as most Rumbles are but I do like this one in particular. I love Andre vs. Demolition at the start, the whole angle with Jake and Andre continuing, the hot conflict between Hogan and Savage, DiBiase buying his way to the end, so much good stuff in here."
