On the very first edition of In Your House, the WWF promised fans one thing above all else: somebody was going to WIN A FREE HOUSE IN FLORIDA.

This week on Grapple City Rewind, Bradley and Aaron head back to May 1995 for a bizarre slice of New Generation-era WWF featuring Bret Hart vs. Hakushi, Diesel vs. Psycho Sid, Jerry Lawler’s fake mom, Todd Pettengale’s unholy mullet, screaming fans losing their minds for The Smoking Gunns, and one referee who somehow got trapped in the ropes.

We break down:

• Bret Hart pulling double duty
• Hakushi’s fake tattoos and underrated offense
• Diesel’s weird Beatles promo
• The house giveaway heard around the world
• Why this show somehow feels charming despite the chaos
• And whether the FIRST In Your House PPV is a PLAY, PAUSE, or FAST FORWARD

Plus:

• WWE Backlash 2026 thoughts
• Braun Breakker’s rise
• Danhausen & Minihausen chaos
• Asuka vs. Iyo Sky reactions
• Listener comments from the Grapple Gang

Call the Grapple Gang hotline anytime:
📞 626-657-SLAM

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New episodes every week covering the best, worst, weirdest, and most unforgettable wrestling PPVs of the VHS era.

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

We just got back from WrestleMania in Vegas… and now we’re rewinding to one of the strangest, most uneven WrestleManias of all time.

This week on Grapple City Rewind, we dig into WWF WrestleMania X (1994) — a show that somehow opens with an all-time classic… and then spends the rest of the night trying to live up to it.

Two Bret Hart matches in one night because one beating isn’t enough.
Two Yokozuna matches because gravity demands sacrifice.
Two Intercontinental Champions who both think they’re the real one.
One ladder match that has to carry the entire show.

We break down Bret vs. Owen, the chaos of the double main event, the Lex Luger push quietly dying in real time, and the absolute fever dream energy of fake Bill Clinton wandering around like everything’s normal.

Is this actually a great WrestleMania?
Or just a mess held together by one iconic match?

We’ll decide.

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

Bradley and Aaron rewind to WrestleMania 1 (1985)—the show that launched a billion-dollar empire—and break down all the chaos: nine matches, celebrity overload, bear hugs for days, and barely any actual wrestling.

From Liberace and Muhammad Ali to King Kong Bundy’s 9-second squash, this is less a wrestling show and more a bizarre cultural time capsule.

Plus, we kick things off with thoughts on the current product, including AEW Dynasty, and run through our WrestleMania predictions before heading back to where it all began.

Does it deserve its legendary status… or is it just weird?

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

WrestleMania season rolls on in Grapple City Rewind, and this week Bradley Palermo and Aaron Fink dive headfirst into WrestleMania XII—a show defined by contrasts, chaos, and one of the most famous main events in wrestling history. From the jump, it’s clear this isn’t your typical Mania: we’ve got a bizarre mix of New Generation weirdness, Attitude Era seeds being planted, and a main event that dares to go a full 60 minutes.

Before getting there, the guys break down the current product during WrestleMania season—questioning crowd reactions, the blurred lines between heel and babyface, and whether WWE even cares anymore if fans follow the script. Then it’s back to 1996, where a stacked six-man tag kicks things off with nearly a literal ton of humanity in the ring, and somehow still manages to swerve expectations.

From there, things get strange. Very strange.

Roddy Piper vs. Goldust spirals into a cinematic backlot brawl complete with OJ-style freeway footage, sound effects that feel dubbed in from another dimension, and one of the weirdest endings ever aired on a WrestleMania broadcast. Meanwhile, a “throwaway” match features a not-quite-yet Stone Cold Steve Austin quietly inching toward superstardom, reminding everyone how quickly things were about to change.

The show continues with an absurd clash of eras as Ultimate Warrior steamrolls Hunter Hearst Helmsley in under two minutes, followed by a surprisingly divisive big-man battle between The Undertaker and Diesel that splits Bradley and Aaron right down the middle.

And then… the main event.

Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels in a 60-minute Iron Man Match. No falls. No shortcuts. Just endurance, psychology, and two of the best to ever do it pushing each other to the limit. The guys unpack the pacing, the crowd dynamics, the subtle storytelling, and how this match both holds up and feels like a blueprint for everything that came after.

It’s WrestleMania XII—equal parts awkward, iconic, experimental, and essential. And Grapple City Rewind is here to break it all down.

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

Collision in Korea 1995 is one of the strangest events in wrestling history. WCW and New Japan brought a massive show to North Korea, drawing over 300,000 people… but something felt completely off. The crowd barely reacted, the atmosphere was eerie, and even solid matches felt lifeless. We break down the weird vibe, standout moments like Flair vs Inoki, and why this is a “watch it so you don’t have to” show.

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

Hulk Hogan. The Rock. Sixty-eight thousand screaming fans in Toronto. And somehow… a broomstick gets involved.

This week on Grapple City Rewind, Bradley Palermo and Aaron Fink head back to WWF WrestleMania X8 (2002) — the strange transitional moment where the Attitude Era crashes head-first into nostalgia. The nWo has arrived, Limp Bizkit is blasting through the arena, and the WWF is suddenly leaning hard on legends again.

But nothing on this show matters more than Icon vs Icon:
Hollywood Hulk Hogan vs The Rock.

What starts as a simple dream match quickly turns into one of the loudest crowd reactions in wrestling history, with Toronto hijacking the entire narrative and accidentally resurrecting Hulkamania in real time.

Along the way we also get:

• Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Scott Hall in a beer-soaked brawl with the nWo lurking
• Ric Flair bleeding buckets against The Undertaker in a brutal fight for the Streak
• Kurt Angle and Kane throwing each other around like refrigerators
• The chaotic Hardcore Championship insanity
• Nu-metal everywhere you look
• And one of the weirdest tonal WrestleManias WWE ever produced

It’s legends, blood, nostalgia, and a crowd that refuses to follow the script.

Because sometimes WrestleMania history isn’t written by the booking.

Sometimes the crowd decides.

🎙️ Grapple City Rewind — where we revisit the wildest, weirdest, and most unforgettable wrestling pay-per-views of the VHS era.

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

Grapple City Rewind heads back to the gritty ECW Arena in February 1996 for CyberSlam 96, Bradley Palermo and Aaron Fink break down the chaotic compilation-style event featuring Taz squashes, a completely unhinged Brian Pillman segment, dancing babyface Bubba Ray Dudley, triple dog collar madness, and the only true wrestling clinic of the night Too Cold Scorpio vs Sabu, we debate whether ECW’s wild run-in heavy style still holds up, question Meltzer’s dud-heavy ratings, revisit Cactus Jack vs Shane Douglas in a brutal chair shot spectacle, compare modern crowd energy after attending AEW Dynamite live, and discuss The Smashing Machine and how MMA crossover stories shaped the aura of workers like Taz during the 90s

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.

Grapple City Rewind heads to No Way Out 2000 as Bradley Palermo and Aaron Fink break down Kurt Angle vs Chris Jericho, Dudleys vs New Age Outlaws, the infamous Mae Young pregnancy storyline with Mark Henry, Kane vs X-Pac chaos, Too Cool vs The Radicalz, Big Show vs The Rock controversy, and the brutal Hell in a Cell main event between Triple H and Cactus Jack. Was this Attitude Era PPV a hidden gem or just main-event dependent? We give it our Fast Forward, Play, or Rewind rating and debate whether the Foley vs Triple H war saves the show.

This episode brought to you by Weber4Law - your tag team partner when life body-slams you out of nowhere. Call (818) 502-9200 or visit https://weber4law.com/

(626) 657-SLAM

Email: Grapplecitypod@gmail.com

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Music by Bradley Palermo & The Shadow Queens.

Created by Bradley Palermo & Aaron Fink.