We’ve floated into October 1996 and WWE is presenting another IYH with a spooky main event. Let’s dive into WWE In Your House 11.
I love looking at these older promotional posters and this one wasn’t bad for 1996. I mean, it would sell the appeal of the PPV even if neither guy ended up facing each other.
Low-Tier
Sycho Sid vs. Vader is a match I would’ve loved to see on paper. I dig both wrestlers but this match was in mediocre waters. Something just didn’t really click.
Vader rocks when doing his thing depending on the size of his opponent and what kind of party the match is. With Sid, it really depended even when he was doing his thing.
Sometimes his approach worked and other times it didn’t. The length of the bout was fine but this just wasn’t it. On Raw, this would’ve been fine.
Mid-Tier
Owen Hart and The British Bulldog taking on the Smoking Gunns again was definitive mid-tier. It was shorter than their last In Your House showdown for the Tag Team belts and still felt like another Raw confrontation.
Given that In Your House was basically a two-hour pre-Attitude Era Raw that you paid for, it was a fairly solid bout. I won’t need to see it again in PPV form, though.
Goldust challenging for Marc Mero’s WWE Intercontinental title was also solid. These two work well together and put on another good competitive bout.
HBK vs. Sid wasn’t bad either and had a lot of story going in. On one hand, I’d say that it needed more time but on the other, I’m afraid to say how much because either Sid would’ve delivered or it would’ve been a lengthy, meh bout.
It’s totally in extremes, folks.
Exotic-Tier
The opener with Steve Austin taking on Young Triple H was really good. It was a match that you might have ended a 1996 Raw with if there was a hot feud or story behind it.
A match that had a story behind it and was one of the more consistent feuds from the second half of 1996 was The Undertaker vs. Mankind.
This one was the legendary Buried Alive Match that fit both of their personas perfectly. mixed a good brawl, some drama, and theatrics.
Honestly, this is the kind of match and approach that would’ve been the missing links between post-Hulkamania and the Attitude Era if the New Generation didn’t exist.
WWE In Your House 11 Verdict: Mid-Tier (6/10)
The show wasn’t bad if you watch it as an episode of Raw and not an actual PPV. I mean The Undertaker vs. Mankind was a bona fide PPV main event and would’ve made for an awesome cap to Raw.
Overall, WWE In Your House 11 was a solid show as PPV. It felt short, didn’t really drift into a lull pace-wise, with a third strong exotic-tier bout this would’ve been a really good show.
While Austin vs. HHH and Taker vs. Mankind were the star bouts of the PPV, I really recommend the main event.
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