Lucha Libre Hidden Gems Collection
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Scott Hudson, Jim Ross, Brian Pillman, Hugo Savinovich, Carlos Cabrera, Jim Cornette, Dio Maddin, Aiden English, Vic Joseph, Larry Zbyszko, Josh Matthews, Santino Marella

So here we have a look at one of the things that WCW really did right. The introduction of the cruiserweights, mainly those from Mexico, gave them a unique feeling and it made for some outstanding matches in the process. That should make for some interesting options here, as there were so many of these things that it’s easy to forget how great some of them were. Let’s get to it.

From WCW Saturday Night, May 8, 1999.

Psychosis vs. Blitzkrieg

Psychosis works on the arm to start as we hear about his Cruiserweight Title reign only lasting a week after being Blitzkrieg in a four way. Blitzkrieg slips out of a wristlock to start and sends Psychosis outside, meaning we get a quick breather. Back in and Blitzkrieg misses some dives, only to get kicked in the mask. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Blitzkrieg’s hurricanrana doesn’t work very well.

The fans get on the crooked referee Charles Robinson as Psychosis hits a quick hiptoss. An elbow sends Blitzkrieg into the ropes but he dropkicks Psychosis to the floor. That means a big running flip dive for the first really big spot, only for Psychosis to dropkick him out of the air back inside. A handspring elbow connects for Blitzkrieg but a top rope superplex is broken up. The guillotine legdrop finishes for Psychosis at 6:13.

Rating: C+. This feels more like a match that was included for the people involved, though I never got much out of Blitzkrieg. The big flip dive looked good, but it’s not like there was anything here that wasn’t done better by others. That being said, I always thought Psychosis was underrated so it was nice to see him get a win here.

From Shotgun Saturday Night, April 5, 1997.

Discovery/Ludxor/Super Nova/Venum vs. Abismo Negro/El Mosco/Histeria/Maniaco

The best known name here in America is Histeria, who would become known as Super Crazy. Nova and Maniaco start things off and of course the fans are chanting for USA. Maniaco faceplants him to start and hits an electric chair as commentary talks about Ken Shamrock. Nova is back up with a fireman’s carry slam into a slingshot elbow before Maniaco misses a charge into the post.

Brian Pillman, on commentary, says he would have no trouble putting these guys in custody if they messed with the school lunch program. I’m going to assume that’s a topical line as Ludxor comes in to take over on Mosco. We get a LENGTHY period of dead air on commentary as Ludxor clotheslines him out to the floor for a twisting dive, meaning it’s Negro coming in to kick Discovery down. Pillman: “Translation: he’s abysmally black.”

We’re clipped for a commercial to Venum knocking Histeria down and hitting a top rope hurricanrana. Histeria is sent outside for a big flipping dive before Nova grabs a spinning armdrag. Venum gets a hurricanrana and Negro hits a big running flip dive as even commentary is impressed with the athletics. Ludxor hits a super armdrag and loads up a Sharpshooter on Maniaco…but leans forward for a pin instead at 7:31 (that’s a new one).

Rating: B-. This was almost fascinating in a way, as commentary clearly had no idea what they were watching and it was just a bunch of people flying around. That being said, it was rather entertaining and WAY out of the norm for this period in the WWF. The fans didn’t have much of a reason to care but they got into it by the end, which is a good sign.

From Super Astros (the WWF’s lucha libre show), May 2, 1999.

Hardy Boyz vs. Papi Chulo/El Merenguero

Chulo is better known as Essa Rios and Mereguero would be Jesus Castillo of Los Boricuas. Jeff and Chulo start things off with Jeff kicking away but getting sent outside, where he pulls Merenguero face first onto the apron. Chulo joins them so Matt hits a big running flip dive to take everyone out. Back in and the Hardys hit their double elbow into the fist drop/flipping backsplash combination. Matt slugs away at Merenquero and gets two off a top rope moonsault.

Jeff’s springboard moonsault gets two but Chulo’s cheap shot from the apron lets the rudos take over. A double suplex drops Jeff and he rolls outside, where Chulo is right there with a big running flip dive. Back in and Merenguero misses a charge into the post, allowing Matt to come in and clean house. Everything breaks down and Chulo hits a pop up dropkick to send Jeff outside, where Mereguero hits a suicide dive. Back in and Chulo hits a spinning faceplant to drop Matt, setting up a shooting star for the pin at 5:13.

Rating: B-. This had a bunch of spots together though they didn’t really reach a point where things got to a different level. You could see the Hardys turning into the kind of team that would quickly get to the top of the division, while Chulo and Mereguero didn’t exactly do much to stand out. This was included due to the Hardys, which is an acceptable enough reason.

From WWC, January 6, 2001.

Mascarita Sagrada/Octagoncito vs. Pierrothito/Piratita Morgan

Sagrada and Octagoncito take it to the floor to start but get sent into each other for the collision. A backbreaker has Sagrada in more trouble and they all get inside with Morgan going after Sagrada’s mask. That doesn’t work so it’s a reverse Beverly Bomb to keep Sagrada in trouble instead. A double dropkick hits Sagrada as well before Pierrothito beats up Octagoncito in the corner.

We settle down to Sagrada on the apron, where he watches Octagoncito get beaten down like a moron. Sagrada comes in and gets double teamed until Pierrothito kicks Morgan by mistake. Octagoncito comes back in with a top rope hurricanrana and then a standing version to send Morgan outside. Pierrothito comes back in with a superkick to Sagrada, who comes back with a quick armdrag.

Sagrada’s hurricanrana gets two on Pierrothito but Morgan is back in to go after Sagrada’s mask again. Sagrada strikes away at Morgan and drops Pierrothito but the rudos are up with a double backdrop to Octagoncito. Back up and Octagoncito grabs the back of the villains’ tights, which makes them accidentally hit the referee. Pierrothito kicks Morgan to the floor by mistake and Octagoncito is there with a running flip dive off the apron. That leaves Sagrada to la majistral Pierrothito for the pin at 7:14.

Rating: C. This is one of those matches that is kind of hard to follow as it’s more of a special feature that only fits for certain kinds of wrestling. The size difference made it easy to get behind Sagrada and Octagoncito, though the match was kind of messy in various parts. They were playing it serious though and I’ll definitely take that over the comedy that you often get with such matches in America.

From Superstars, February 9, 1997.

Hector Garza/Octagon vs. Fuerza Guerrera/Heavy Metal

Metal takes Garza down to start as commentary talks about Metal’s father being the referee. Guerra comes in for a running dropkick to Octagon as Ross tries to tell us what he can about both, which is limited at best. Octagon sends Guerrera outside for a suicide dive into the barricade, leaving Garza and Metal to slingshot in for a showdown. A handspring elbow hits Garza but Metal seems to slip off a springboard moonsault.

It’s back to Guerrera for a slam on Octagon and a Samoan drop lets Guerrera go up. Octagon catches him up on said top and brings him back down as there is a disturbing amount of empty seats opposite the hard camera. A super armdrag brings Guerrera down and Octagon grabs a Black Widow. That’s broken up so Garza hits a top rope moonsault press for two on Metal.

Commentary gets lost on which team is which and we go split screen to Paul Bearer talking about Vader vs. Steve Austin later in the show. Back to full screen and Guerrera dropkicks Garza outside and then clotheslining him back inside. Garza hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two with Metal making the save. Metal sends Garza outside for a big flip dive but Octagon crucifixes Guerrera for the pin at 7:56.

Rating: C+. As usual, the athleticism is rather impressive and you can tell everyone in here knows what they’re doing. The problem is it rarely feels like the matches are building to anything and it comes off more as a collection of moves until the ending. That being said, it’s nice to have something fresh and different on the shows, though the lack of fans in the stand is not a good sign.

From 205 Live, September 24, 2019.

Humberto Carrillo vs. Angel Garza

They’re cousins who don’t like each other, though Aiden English is fairly obsessed with Carrillo. Commentary mentions that it’s Garza’s birthday, sending English into a rant about all the presents he would get Carrillo for his birthday (fruit baskets are discussed). They go to the mat with Garza working on the leg as English is going on about buying WWE2K games and surfboards and Browns tickets and Circuit City gift cards, as the gag is going on so long that it’s becoming funny again.

An exchange of armdrags goes to Carrillo but Garza pops up and it’s a standoff. We pause so Garza can TAKE OFF HIS PANTS, allowing him to dropkick Carrillo outside. A middle rope moonsault takes Carrillo down on the floor and Garza slowly hammers him down back inside. Carrillo gets tied in the Tree Of Woe for a running dropkick to the knee and we’re off to something like a seated abdominal stretch.

Back up and Garza dropkicks a handspring elbow out of the air for two and it’s back to the abdominal cranking. Carrillo fights up and backflips into a moonsault for two, followed by a high angle springboard armdrag. A missile dropkick hits Garza for two but he’s back up with some dropkicks of his own for two of his own.

Carrillo’s top rope back elbow drops Garza right back and it’s off to a rocking horse. Garza reverses into one of his own, which is broken up as well, leaving them to collide for a double down. Back up and Garza misses a charge into the post, allowing Carrillo to hit the Aztec Press for the pin at 13:44. English: “I’ll get him snacks, I’ll get him sodas!” Maddin/Joseph: “IT’S NOT HIS BIRTHDAY!” English: “Well it will be someday!”

Rating: B. Oddly commentary was the big feature part here, which is a nice thing to see as the action was quite good. 205 Live is a show that was never going to be a big deal because the cruiserweights were considered unimportant, but the wrestling itself was usually awesome. That was the case here, with two guys who knew each other rather well getting some time and coming close to tearing the house down.

From WCW Pro, December 21, 1997.

Juventud Guerrera vs. El Dandy

Feeling out process to start before they trade some shots to the face, with Dandy getting the better of things. Guerrera is right back with a springboard hurricanrana to the floor but Dandy fights back and hits a middle rope legdrop. A kick to the mask and a headbutt between the legs have Guerrera in more trouble but he gets two of his own off a sunset flip. Dandy slams him down and goes up, only to miss a dropkick. A springboard…I guess flipping dropkick finishes Dandy at 3:39.

Rating: C. This is one of the weirdest, or at least least accurately named, collections from the WWE Vault as there have not been many “gems” in this set. That was the case again here, with two guys just having a short match that didn’t stand out in any real way. I don’t get why this was included, though there is something to be said about having Dandy anywhere.

From Saturday Morning Slam (I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a match from this show), November 3, 2012.

Sin Cara vs. El Local

Local would be Ricardo Rodriguez under a mask. Cara takes him down to start and Local runs, with Marella saying Cara’s flips remind him of dancing in high school. A hurricanrana sends Local to the floor, where Cara hits a slingshot dive. Back in and Local manages to send him into the corner and grab a waistlock as Marella goes through a rather extensive list of muscles used in jumping. Cara sends him outside without much trouble though and we take a break. We come back with Cara fighting out of another waistlock and hitting the rope walk armdrag. A corkscrew hilo sets up the springboard Swanton to pin Local at 4:52.

Rating: C+. Weird lighting aside, this was perfectly fine, which was the case with most of what Cara did. It was odd to see Local getting in the ring, as he was mainly an NXT house show guy. This isn’t exactly a gem, but it was certainly something hidden, as Saturday Morning Slam is one of the more forgotten shows you’ll see.

From Super Astros, December 20, 1998.

El Hijo del Santo/Negro Casas vs. Apolo Dantes/Jose Estrada

Casas throws Dantes down to start and it’s off to Santo, who gets kneed down by Estrada. That’s enough for Dantes to come in and stomp Hijo down in the corner. The array of downward kicks continue until it’s back to Estrada. Some double teaming keeps Hijo in trouble, only for Dantes to miss a top rope backsplash. The rather needed tag brings in Casas to clean house, including a running clothesline. Everything breaks down and Casas is sent into Hijo. The rudos are sent into each other as well, leaving Hijo to hit a Swanton, immediately followed by a suicide dive. La majistral finishes Estrada at 6:16.

Rating: C+. This was another case of having important names included, as Hijo and Casas are worth including. At the same time, it was nothing more than a generic tag match, with the rudos offering pretty much nothing of note. I still like the Super Astros stuff being included, even if it was light years behind what WCW was doing.

From a Monterrey, Mexico house show, April 3, 2004.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero

Mysterio is challenging and Chavo Classic is with Guerrero. We’re joined in progress with Guerrero stomping away and then faceplanting Mysterio for two. The bodyscissors keeps Mysterio down and Guerrero even goes for the mask, with Chavo Classic offering a distraction. We get some VERY loud spot calling (granted in a handheld camera shot match at a house show) until Mysterio makes the rope.

A rollup gives Mysterio two but he gets elbowed right back down. Classic goes for the mask again, which seems to fire Mysterio up enough to fight back and sent Guerrero outside. The referee cuts off a dive though, only for Mysterio to flip dive onto both Chavos. Back in and Guerrero dropkicks a springboard out of the air for a double down.

Guerrero’s sunset flip doesn’t work as Mysterio gives him a basement dropkick and goes up top. The sunset bomb is blocked so Guerrero gives him an over the shoulder backbreaker for two more. Mysterio slips out of a second attempt though and hits a hurricanrana before taking out Classic. A Code Red gives Mysterio two but the 619…I’m not sure as the camera misses it, but Guerrero is up with a Gory Bomb…for the pin at 9:30.

Rating: C+. What in the world? It’s a house show in Mexico and Mysterio LOSES? I get that the title is on the line but make it a non-title match or have it be a countout. Just don’t have Mysterio, who was in Mexican flag themed gear, lose. It’s a guaranteed way to kill the crowd, which was all because the result was wrong. Heck make it a handicap match or something but let Mysterio win at the end.

Overall Rating: C+. I really wasn’t as into this one as previous editions, mainly due to how bizarre some of the choices wound up being. I get the idea of putting on some random matches, but egads there was nothing else that could have ramped up the quality a bit? It’s not like they’re bad matches for the most part, but calling these “Hidden Gems” is a big stretch in most cases. Not their best work, though there is some interesting variety here. Oh and it’s described as “90 minutes” but it only runs 75. What’s up with that?

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

More Awesome Battle Royals
Commentators: Michael Cole, The Miz, Antonio Cesaro, Vince McMahon, Randy Savage, Kaitlyn, Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield, Gorilla Monsoon, Lord Alfred Hayes, Chris Cruise, Larry Zbyszko, Roddy Piper, Jim Ross, Les Thatcher

See there are battle royals, and then there are awesome battle royals, but these are the battle royals that were awesome, but not quite awesome enough to make the original batch. Yeah there isn’t much to say about a set like this, but that’s the case with most battle royals. I have no idea what they can do to fill in nearly two more hours of this stuff but let’s get to it.

From Main Event, December 26, 2012.

Battle Royal

Brodus Clay, Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, Darren Young, Drew McIntyre, Epico, Great Khali, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Jinder Mahal, Justin Gabriel, Primo, Santino Marella, Ted DiBiase Jr., Titus O’Neil, Tyson Kidd, Wade Barrett, William Regal, Yoshi Tatsu, Zack Ryder

For a future US Title shot against Antonio Cesaro, on commentary. A bunch of people go after Khali to start so he tosses Tatsu without much trouble. Primo is tossed as commentary discusses battle royal strategy. The Prime Time Players go after Khali, which goes as well as you would expect. Cesaro and Miz argue about their accomplishments, with Miz listing off his rather impressive resume, which would only get bigger.

Things slow WAY down until McIntyre (a good 40lbs lighter than he would later become) is out, but he pulls Kidd out as well. Gabriel and Mahal are out too, triggering a brawl at ringside and a likely tag match. We take a break and come back with Jey Uso being tossed and Regal going out after him. Marella tries to hammer on Epico in the corner but gets sent to the apron. That just lets Marella skin the cat and pull Epico out, leaving Clay and Khali to slug it out. Khali kicks him in the head and tosses him out. Some big chops have O’Neil in trouble and Jimmy Uso is out as well.

More chops have more people in quite the agony as we take another break. We come back with the Prime Time Players circling Khali and they get him on the mat, which is a rather dumb idea in a battle royal, with Cesaro pointing out the idiocy. The Players finally annoy Khali too much so he dumps both of them, plus Rhodes (with a nasty chop) and Sandow.

We’re down to Marella, Ryder, Barrett and Khali, with Marella hitting the Cobra on Barrett. Ryder goes after Barrett but Marella tosses Ryder out. Barrett gets rid of Marella, leaving Barrett and Khali. A big boot puts Khali down and Barrett hammers away but Khali shrugs that and chops him out for the win at 18:16.

Rating: C+. Khali was oddly motivated here and put in more effort than I’ve seen from him…maybe ever really. I love seeing this kind of thing as it’s such a nothing, random battle royal that it made me wonder who was going to win. That’s a nice feeling to have and it didn’t feel anywhere near as long as it came off. Nice job.

From Saturday Night’s Main Event XXIX.

Battle Royal

Hulk Hogan, Jake Roberts, Tanaka, Shawn Michaels, Kato, Earthquake, Jimmy Snuka, Marty Jannetty, Warlord, Mr. Perfect, Haku, Greg Valentine, Tugboat, Jim Duggan, British Bulldog, Hercules, Paul Roma, Big Boss Man, Texas Tornado, Barbarian

It’s a brawl to start with Hogan choking Earthquake in the corner, with Roberts helping him out. Jannetty gets rid of Roman, who knocks Jannetty out as well. We settle down to a bunch of slow fighting, with Perfect being brave enough to go to the middle rope for a right hand to Boss Man. Hogan and Valentine take turns elbowing Perfect in the head as Bulldog is tossed out.

Kato is sent out and Roberts follows him, only to get the snake out and basically bring the match to a screeching halt. We take a break and come back with Tugboat and Hogan slugging out it, which is broken up by Warlord, earning him some praise from fans everywhere. Hogan dumps Warlord and Tornado is tossed as well. Earthquake gets rid of Duggan but gets tossed by Hogan. Kato is eliminated but Tugboat gets rid of Hogan in a surprise.

Hercules and Tugboat are tossed as well and it’s suddenly a midcard match. Boss Man slugs away at Perfect, who dropkicks him into a backdrop from Barbarian for the elimination. Michaels dropkicks Haku out and we’re down to Michaels, Perfect, Valentine and Barbarian. A dropkick staggers Perfect but Michaels is sent out, leaving us with three. Valentine manages to get rid of Barbarian and gives Perfect a heck of a chop. Some elbows let Valentine send Perfect to the apron but Perfect sends him out for the win at 12:31.

Rating: C. As was the case with the other Saturday Night’s Main Event battle royal, the match just DIES when Hogan is eliminated. It doesn’t help that Hogan was eliminated by Tugboat of all people, as that made for a rather pathetic moment. Perfect winning is fine, but this was disappointing to say the least.

From Monday Night Raw, April 22, 2013.

Divas Battle Royal

AJ Lee, Aksana, Naomi, Tamina Snuka, Layla

Yeah five women for a future Divas Title shot. AJ jumps into Tamina’s arms to start and gets kicked in the face for her efforts. Layla (who should be the crowd favorite as we’re in England but receives no reaction because…well look at the match) kicks Aksana out and Naomi/Layla hip attack Tamina. Naomi is out as Kaitlyn jokes about Layla’s gear being flag themed, with Cole trying to avoid various commentary. Layla kicks Tamina out and AJ is still out cold off the superkick. She picks the dead weight AJ up…and AJ tosses her out to win at 3:19.

Rating: D. If you only have five women for a battle royal, just don’t have the battle royal. This was in that weird period for the women where they had some people who were trying but it was still not exactly being taken seriously. Hence a five woman battle royal which lasted about three minutes and featured one of them being laid out for a good while.

From WCW Saturday Night, November 8, 1997.

Lucha Libre Battle Royal

Lizmark Jr., Super Calo, Villano IV, Villano V, Silver King, Hector Garza, El Dandy, Ciclope, La Parka, Halloween, Psychosis, Damien, Juventud Guerrera

Ok then. It’s a brawl to start and Dusty Rhodes is having WAY too much fun with this. Halloween is out and Damien misses a running dropkick in the corner. Lizmark moonsaults onto Damien and Rhodes is THRILLED with El Dandy being involved. The Villanos take over and Psychosis tosses Ciclope for a NASTY crash on the floor. Damien is out and Guerrera punches his way out of a powerbomb from Lizmark. Dandy tosses Lizmark (more like Lizmark tosses himself), sending Dusty into “ALL RIGHT! ALL RIGHT! EL DANDY IS STILL IN THERE!”.

The Villanos are both out at the same time (Rhodes: “They’re kin. They might as well go out together.”) and King is dropkicked out as well. Garza is backdropped out and Dandy gets rid of Calo, only to be kicked out by Parka (Rhodes: “Bless his heart. He did good!”). Guerrera monkey flips Parka and hits a heck of a springboard spinwheel kick. Psychosis gets Guerrera in an electric chair but Parka chairs Guerrera in the back and they’re both out, giving Parka the win at 7:00.

Rating: C+. Dusty Rhodes was the absolute star of this thing as he was having an absolute ball with the match. There are very few things as fun as listening to an energized Dusty Rhodes doing commentary when he gets to have fun and that was on full display here. The match was nothing, but dang the commentary was a blast.

From sometime in the mid to late 80s (possible December 1, 1986 in Fayetteville, North Carolina).

Bunkhouse Stampede

Ricky Morton, Bobby Eaton, Bill Dundee, Jimmy Garvin, Robert Gibson, Jimmy Valiant, Manny Fernandez, Italian Stallion, Krusher Khrushchev, Dennis Condrey, Arn Anderson, Rick Rude, Paul Ellering, Animal, Ivan Koloff, Tim Horner, Bobby Jaggers, Don Kernoodle, Barry Windham

I’m not even going to try to list everyone here as the audio isn’t great and the camera angles miss a bunch of the entrances anyway. It looks like we have about twenty in there but there is no commentary so it’s even more confusing. Some trashcan lids are brought in to make things even more violent though there are only so many elimination attempts. Fernandez and….someone go outside and seem to be out as Animal trashcan lids Koloff.

Horner (I think) is out as the ring is still way too full for much of note to go on. Jaggers is out and so is Khrushchev, who pulls someone with him. There goes Kernoodle as Anderson chokes Morton and Ron Garvin is out. Morton is tossed as the ring is finally clearing out a bit. Morton helps Gibson get rid of Rude, only for Gibson to be eliminated as well. Valiant is out and there goes Jimmy Garvin, followed by Ellering. We’re down to Anderson, Eaton, Animal, Condrey and…I think it’s Barry Windham.

Either way, Animal gets rid of Anderson and Condrey is tossed, followed by who I believe was Windham. That leaves Animal to hit Eaton with some kind of a whip plus a dropkick. Condrey gets in a cheap shot from the floor but Animal fights back and gets rid of Eaton for the win at 12:48.

Rating: C+. You can only get so much out of something like this as it’s just a wild brawl, but that’s the entire point. The idea was something like “come as you are” so a lot of them were in street clothes to make it feel more authentic. Then again there were also a bunch of trashcan lids involved so it could only be so serious. Good, fun brawl here though and a nice hidden surprise.

From Prime Time Wrestling, July 6, 1992.

Battle Royal

Beau Beverly, Blake Beverly, Virgil, Skinner, Koko B. Ware, Kato, Owen Hart, Brian Knobbs, Duane Gill, Jerry Sags, Tito Santana, Texas Tornado, Joe Mato, Tatanka, Jim Brunzell, Bret Hart, Barry Horowitz, Ron Starr, Sgt. Slaughter, Rick Martel, Ted DiBiase, IRS, Bret Johnson, Berzerker, JA Gooden, C. Martinez, Bob Bradley, Bob Knight, Bruce Mitchell, Gary Davis, Joe Holland, Jim Powers, Al Hunter, Scott Palantonio, Barry Hardy, Nick Ganger, British Bulldog

I got at least seven or eight of those jobbers’ names wrong, though they did at least get individual entrances. Berzerker is on the floor and pulls one of the jobbers out and beats him up, leaving Hayes to mock the guy for getting this kind of a match. Various jobbers are tossed out as commentary has no idea who these people are thus far. Berzerker finally gets inside as Powers is tossed out.

We take a break and come back with Martel and Gill being tossed out. Skinner dumps Tatanka and Santana does the same to DiBiase, followed by IRS going out. Owen and Virgil are gone too and the Beverlys and Bret are out as well. There goes Kato as the ring is suddenly FAR less full.

Sags is tossed and we’re down to Skinner, Bulldog, Berzerker, Santana, Ware and Tornado. Ware and Santana are tossed out rather quickly and Skinner actually gets Bulldog out. We’re down to Berzerker, Tornado and Skinner, which is one of the weirdest final groupings I’ve ever seen. Tornado slugs away at both of them but Berzerker comes back for the double elimination and the win at 9:58.

Rating: D+. Yeah not much to this one, with a good chunk of the entrants being jobbers who commentary couldn’t even identify. The idea here was to just have a spectacle of a match and that went well enough. They didn’t do anything special but again, the whole appeal was in having that many people involved at once, which went fine.

From New York City, New York, July 12, 1986.

Battle Royal

Junkyard Dog, Greg Valentine, King Tonga, Jimmy Hart, Billy Jack Haynes, Harley Race, Lanny Poffo, Iron Mike Sharpe, Pedro Morales, Brutus Beefcake, Tony Atlas, Moondog Spot, British Bulldog, Dynamite Kid, SD Jones, Johnny Valiant, Sivi Afi, Moondog Rex, Tony Garea, Big John Studd, Bobby Heenan, King Kong Bundy

A bunch of people go after Studd to get rid of him as Hart hides underneath the ring. Bundy is out as well, followed by Heenan (oh man seeing Heenan and Hart trying to have a match could have been great), who stops to yell on commentary for a bit. There goes Jones, followed by Sharpe and valiant.

Garea is tossed and Race is gone as well to get rid of the rest of the Heenan Family. There goes Afi and the Bulldogs dropkick the Moondogs out, leaving Dog and Haynes to lock up. Beefcake dumps Kid as Hart is still hiding underneath the ring. Morales is out and then Beefcake goes as well, leaving Valentine against five good guys.

Valentine manages to toss Hayes and Tonga, leaving Valentine, Dog, Bulldog, Poffo and Hart underneath the ring. Poffo and Bulldog are both tossed with Dog being sent through the ropes, where he finds Hart hiding. Dog throws Hart back inside and gets in a fight with Valentine. The two of them go over….and Hart wins at 12:57.

Rating: C. Call this one goofy fun, as it was a bunch of people doing their thing until Hart could come in and steal the win like a cowardly heel should. Hart would be able to brag about this for the better part of ever and that’s exactly how it should have been done. I had a good time with this, even if it was just a countdown to the obvious ending.

From WCW Pro, November 18, 1995.

Battle Royal

Dave Sullivan, Nasty Ned, Disco Inferno, Cobra, Mark Starr, Frankie Lancaster, Barrio Brother Ricky, Barrio Brother Fidel, Buddy Lee Parker, James Earl

Why? It’s a standard brawl to start and yes Disco wants to check his hair. They fight around the ropes until Lancaster is gone, followed by Cobra and Starr. A quick series of eliminations leaves us with Parker and Earl (regular partners) to beat on Disco, who fights up and tosses both of them for the win at 5:03. Disco is more annoyed at his hair getting messed up.

Rating: D+. The thing that interests me the most here is how many shows WCW had and kept running for YEARS. Pro went on until 1998 and was basically forgotten unless you happened to catch it at random. Case in point, any match where Disco Inferno is the biggest of the ten stars is not exactly a high level match, but it was a feature here.

From Superstars, February 16, 1991.

Tag Team Battle Royal

Nasty Boys, Power & Glory, Rockers, Legion Of Doom, Demolition, Bushwhackers, Orient Express

For the Wrestlemania Tag Team Title shot and only one member of a team has to be eliminated. They start the usual exchange of punching, with McMahon saying it’s too much action to call. Demolition loads up the Rockers in a double gorilla press but Marty pulls Shawn down in a smart move. A double superkick eliminates Smash and Demolition is out, followed by the Bushwhackers being thrown out.

Marty accidentally knocks Shawn out and we’re down to Power & Glory, the LOD, the Express and the Nasty Boys. Hawk dumps Kato to get rid of the Express and Animal gorilla presses Tanaka out for a bonus. Roma is sent through the ropes so Animal throws him back in (Piper: “No Animal! The other way!”). Hercules throws Roma at Animal, who pulls him out of the air and easily tosses him. We’re down to the Nastys and the LOD…but Roma crotches Hawk on top and dumps him out 6:19.

Rating: C. I’ve seen this one a few times before and it’s one of those ideas that works rather well. I’ll take it over some of the other ways to set up a title match and it was cool to see a bunch of teams getting to mix it up. The LOD were clearly the smashing machines here and it shouldn’t be a surprise that they would be champions in about six months.

From Smoky Mountain Wrestling TV, January 28, 1995.

Battle Royal

This seems to be more of a Royal Rumble with Robert Gibson in at #1 and New Jack in at #2. Jack kicks him in the face to start so Gibson grabs a small package, with commentary pointing out the instincts taking over. Chris Candido is in at #3 and teams up with Jack on Gibson with a string of elbows. Gibson manages to survive in the corner and it’s George South coming in at #4. The slow brawling ensues and it’s Boo Bradley (Balls Mahoney) in at #5 to go straight after Candido and toss him out. Buddy Landel is in at #6 and they start pairing off and Tommy Pitner is in at #7.

We take a break and the Dirty White Boy is in at #8 to chase Landel out and then go after him as well. So that’s two out, with Bryant Anderson in at #9. Anderson grabs an armbar on Bradley until Mustafa Saed (Jack’s partner) is in at #10. Saed and Jack collide for a double elimination as Bradley chills in the corner for a bit. The Wolfman is in at #11 and goes after Bradley, which doesn’t go well. D’Lo Brown is in at #12 and helps toss Gibson.

Scotty McKeever is in at #13 and Anderson is gone. Bradley and Brown are both out and it’s Unabomb (later known as Kane) is in at #14 for a bunch of powerbombs. Unabomb clears the ring and is left alone until Ricky Morton is in at #15. Morton strikes away as well as he can until Eddie Gilbert is in at #16. Gilbert wastes no time in throwing powder in Morton’s eyes for the elimination and apparently Gilbert and Unabomb both win (good for $5000) at 14:35.

Rating: C+. This was the Unabomb show and they clearly knew they had something special with him. He was huge, he could move, and he had a great look. Don’t bother trying to make it any more complicated than that and it should work. The rest of the match had some fun moments, but Unabomb stood out WAY above everyone else. And not just because he’s tall.

Overall Rating: C. Battle royals are hard to do in the first place, but I liked what they did here as it was a nice mixture of stuff. Rather than just having one battle royal after another, this featured different kinds of matches rather than the same wrestlers doing the same battle royals. It’s a set that was well set up and I’ll absolutely take that.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Uncensored 2000
Date: March 19, 2000
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Mark Madden, Mike Tenay

I might as well take another look at some of the shows on the WCW YouTube channel so we’ll go with something from the terrible days of the promotion. Well terrible is kind of a stretch, as I’ve always had a soft spot for this year. This is the show that tends to be more hardcore and violent, and in this case it’s YAPPAPI time. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at Lex Luger hurting Sting and various other people, so tonight Sting is back for revenge. The other big matches: Hogan vs. Flair and Sid vs. Jeff Jarrett. That’s…really not a great lineup.

Various people arrive, including someone we don’t see in a limo. That’s never good. Like, at all.

Schiavone: “We’re getting ready to break some heads!”

Cruiserweight Title: Psychosis vs. The Artist Formerly Known As Prince Iaukea

Prince, with Paisley (better known as Sharmell) is defending and we’re in the weird unmasked Psychosis (with Juventud Guerrera) era. Hold on though as the bell rings and some music plays, with Chris Candido coming out to join commentary as a surprise. Psychosis starts fast by knocking Prince outside for a big dive (Candido: “I can do that.”) but Prince is right back inside to hammer away. A running shoulder drops Guerrera for two and Prince sends him outside as Candido wonders where his own (unnamed) valet is.

Back in and Prince pulls out the hair a bit before dropping a knee for some near falls. A super hurricanrana drops Prince and they….I’m not sure what it was supposed to be but Psychosis snaps off a gordbuster. Paisley offers a distraction so Juventud kisses her, earning a whipping with his own shirt. For some reason Paisley tries to take his belt off as Psychosis hits a guillotine legdrop. Psychosis lets up on the pin for no apparent reason, allowing Prince to hit a middle rope DDT and retain at 7:21.

Rating: C-. Like most Prince matches, this wasn’t bad, but it was really, really dull. There was nothing about the Prince that made you want to see him and having him do this gimmick didn’t make things any better. Psychosis was little more than a random challenger and he added almost nothing. Finally you have Candido, who felt like a total afterthought and did pretty much nothing here, which sums up a lot of his time in WCW.

Bam Bam Bigelow isn’t sure what the Wall is doing but he’s going to stop him tonight.

XS vs. Norman Smiley/The Demon

XS is Lenny Lane/Lodi, now a couple of stereotypical party guys, but Miss Hancock comes out for commentary. She’s not happy with her for turning her down so she’s managing Smiley and Demon instead. Smiley comes out of Demon’s casket, but gets scared by the pyro. It’s a…well not really a brawl to start but Demon and Lodi fight to the floor and Norman (in Demon paint) gives Lane the Big Wiggle.

The spinning slam is broken up so Norman brings in the Demon, who gets caught in the wrong corner. A double clothesline gets Demon out of trouble and it’s back to Norman, who is quickly caught with a Skull Crushing Finale. The Demon makes the save and Norman’s Conquest gives Norman the win at 3:42.

Rating: D-. Why was this on pay per view? XS was as low level of a team as you can get and yet they were at least a regular team. Smiley and the Demon might have teamed together occasionally but it was there for the gag of Smiley as a demon and nothing more. It wasn’t funny and thankfully it was short, with Hancock sounding more like a heel than anything else here.

Post match XS blames Hancock for the loss and seem to try kidnapping her, with Demon and Norman making the save so Hancock can dance.

Billy Kidman, with Torrie Wilson, apologizes to Booker (not T., which we’ll get to later) before their tag match. Booker says if Kidman is going to be there, he needs to be there.

David Flair and Crowbar, both in neck braces, want Daphne to stay in the back. She agrees and then smiles once they leave.

We recap the Wall’s recent path of rage, involving him beating up people like Bam Bam Bigelow, David Flair and Crowbar, with Bigelow (Wall’s mentor) standing up against him. I’ve heard far worse stories.

The Wall vs. Bam Bam Bigelow

They slug it out to start and Bigelow hits a splash in the corner, followed by a clothesline to cut Wall off. A top rope headbutt connects for two but Wall is right back with a big boot. They fight out into the production area, with Wall chokeslamming him through a table for some sparks and a DQ at 3:20.

Rating: D. What was that? Well other than another TV style match which happened to be on the pay per view that is. The idea of Bigelow trying to stop the monster is fine, but could you at least let them have a decent fight first? The match didn’t even make it four minutes and Wall never felt in any real danger. Why was this here?

Immediately after the match, Crowbar and David Flair jump the Wall, with Crowbar getting him up onto the scaffolding. Wall chokeslams him through the stage in a pretty awesome crash. Ah, that’s why the match was there. Wall gets to do his signature look, which is NO WAY like Bubba Ray Dudley’s look after he powerbombed people through tables. We pause for Crowbar to be put in an ambulance as wrestlers watch.

Brian Knobbs dedicates his Hardcore Title match to Bigelow and Crowbar. Uh, thanks?

Hardcore Title: Brian Knobbs vs. 3 Count

3 Count is defending in a gauntlet match. In one of the most bizarre choices of all time (and this is WCW), Knobbs’ theme music at this point is….a rock version of My Sharona. Naturally since this is WCW, they don’t seem to get the definition of GAUNTLET match, as 3 Count goes after Knobbs at the same time. They jump Knobbs together to start but he easily fights back with trashcan shots.

The Pit Stop puts Moore and Karagias down but Helms, wearing a mask to protect a broken nose, is immune. I’m not sure that makes sense but Knobbs is sent into a ladder, setting up some splashes off of said ladder. Knobbs is back with a fire extinguisher and a chair to Helms for the first pin (Knobbs’ music plays because even WCW doesn’t get it).

The table is pulled out and Karagias is powerbombed through it for the second fall. Another table is set up but Helms is back in with a dropkick to Knobbs…whose foot it is in the ropes so it doesn’t count. In a hardcore match. Which is called a gauntlet but isn’t. Knobbs throws a ladder over the top onto Karagias and drives a trashcan onto Moore for the final pin and the title at 6:55.

Rating: D-. Do they not know what a GAUNTLET match is? If you want this to be an elimination match then fine, just call it that instead. But no, the idea is to just call it a gauntlet match when that has nothing to do with anything. You might as well say Knobbs is challenging in an Icepick Donkey match, because it has as much to do with a gauntlet as this mess did. It wasn’t even like Knobbs was in any danger here, even with 3 Count’s cool dives off the ladder. Oh and one more thing: BRIAN KNOBBS IS WINNING A TITLE ON PAY PER VIEW IN 2000. Stop that!

Harlem Heat 2000 is ready to…..I have no idea, as it’s Big T (Ahmed Johnson) yelling. Now, you might remember earlier that I said his name was just “Booker”. That’s because the story is Booker has lost the rights to the Harlem Heat material, which somehow included the middle initial T. I’m not kidding.

Vampiro talks about doing bad things and how people like Fit Finlay drive him to do them.

Booker/Billy Kidman vs. Harlem Heat 2000

Torrie Wilson, J. Biggs (Clarence Mason) and Cash (a big bodyguard) are here too. Ray stomps on Booker to start as Biggs talks about how he doesn’t care what happened to Crowbar. Kidman comes in for a dropkick so it’s off to Big T., who powers Kidman down. Booker fights up but the numbers game gets to him. Kidman is taken outside and held so Big T. can dive over the barricade to take him down.

That’s fine in theory except Big T. barely clears the barricade and only grazes Kidman, who doesn’t even leave his feet while Big T. faceplants. And that’s his post WWF run in a single moment. Back in and Big T. spinebusters Kidman for two but Kidman bulldogs Ray out of the corner. The Book End plants Ray with Big E. making the save, followed by a double spinebuster. Kidman dives in for the save and Ray is sent outside. That leaves Booker to kick Big T. into a rollup for the pin at 6:59.

Rating: D. And that might be the second best match of the night. That dive summed up everything about Big T.’s time here, as it was just embarrassing to see what used to be one of the coolest looking stars in years reduced to an embarrassment because he can’t do it anymore. Just dreadful here, with Booker and Kidman looking fine as a team but having absolutely nothing to work with on the other side.

We look at the Wall attacking Crowbar again.

Recap of Vampiro vs. Finlay. Vampiro is the young punk and Finlay is here to teach him some respect.

Vampiro vs. Fit Finlay

Falls Count Anywhere. Finlay hammers him down to start and hits a clothesline for a bonus. Vampiro is back up and hits a top rope spinwheel kick to drop Finlay, who shrugs it off again. Instead Finlay grabs a chair, which the referee takes away, allowing Vampiro to kick Finlay down again. They go outside and Finlay is sent into the announcers’ table but Vampiro gets too cocky and is sent over the barricade.

The fight heads out into the concourse and into the men’s room (where Finlay had promised to take him). Finlay slams a stall door onto his head but Vampiro is back with a trashcan to the ribs. Vampiro climbs onto the top of a stall but gets trashcanned out of the air. Now it’s time to go back into the concourse and even outside, which doesn’t last long. Finlay backdrops him onto the concrete but gets sent into concrete column. The Nail In The Coffin (Michinoku Driver) finishes for Vampiro at 8:39.

Rating: C-. I guess the idea here was to have Vampiro become a future star but…he just wasn’t very good. The spinwheel kick looked good but the rest was just a bunch of standard hardcore stuff. That doesn’t really make me want to see Vampiro do anything and he doesn’t exactly stand out. Finlay was his usual good self and Vampiro isn’t totally awful by any means, but he isn’t this next big thing that WCW seemed to think he was going to be.

Vampiro goes back into the arena to celebrate with the crowd.

Jeff Jarrett gives the Harris Twins a pep talk but they seem confident.

Disco Inferno and the Mamalukes are ready to retain the Tag Team Titles.

Tag Team Titles: Harris Twins vs. Mamalukes

The Twins, still part of the NWO, are challenging in a No DQ match. Vito and Ron start things off with Vito taking over to start, as Disco Inferno is already annoying the rest of commentary. Don comes in and hammers away but gets pounded down. A low blow drops Vito, who is right back up to knock Ron down. Johnny comes in for a double double ax handle to the chest, followed by something like the Harris’ H Bomb to Ron.

Don is back up to send Johnny outside and into the barricade, followed by a side slam back inside. The slow beating allows Johnny to fight back up with a clothesline, allowing the needed tag off to Vito. House is cleaned and a top rope elbow gets two, followed by a Hart Attack for two. Vito is sent outside so a double flapjack can connect for two more. A double spinebuster gets two more with Vito making the save. Inferno comes in and hits Ron in the face with the belt for two, leaving Ron to hit Johnny with the belt. The H Bomb gives Don the pin and the titles at 8:47.

Rating: D. The fans’ silence during this match sums up the issue: the Harris Twins are a perfect example of a team who is fine on paper but falls apart as soon as you get away from said paper. They’re just so, so, so boring and there’s no way around it. At the same time you have the Mamalukes and Disco Inferno, which a story that has gone on for so long that it stopped making sense months ago without ever being interesting in the first place. Boring match and the Twins winning the titles is about the worst result imaginable.

Fit Finlay says he beat respect into Vampiro but the better man won tonight. Now keep the fire burning from here on out.

Team Package (Lex Luger/Ric Flair/Elizabeth in a terrible name) is ready for Sting and Hulk Hogan tonight.

We recap Dustin Rhodes vs. Terry Funk, with Rhodes attacking Funk to continue the Funk vs. Dusty Rhodes feud. This resulted in Funk pulling out a chicken and saying it was Dusty’s son. Funk then knocked Rhodes out with the chicken, because that was a thing. Therefore, it’s bullrope match time.

Rhodes promises to make Funk bleed and retire him.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Terry Funk

Texas Bullrope match and yes Funk brings a chicken with him. Funk does a Foghorn Leghorn impression and says he thinks he sees a chicken in the ring. The only difference between Dusty and Dustin is Dusty is a lot fatter, but Funk has Dustin’s younger brother here. Cue a man in a chicken suit, causing Dustin to run up the aisle, where Funk hits him in the head with the chicken.

The bell rings and Funk beats him into the ring, where Funk whips him with the rope. Some left hands in the corner have Rhodes in more trouble and the cowbell to the head gets two. A low blow gives Rhodes a breather and he knocks Funk into the ropes to keep up the beating. Rhodes pounds him down on the floor and they finally bother attaching the rope about four minutes into the match. A belly to back toss gives Rhodes two and the bulldog onto the cowbell gets the same.

Cue the Chicken to go after Rhodes, who beats the Chicken up, complete with clucking sound effects. Funk is back up with a low blow and of course he wants a microphone. He’s changing the rules and now it’s an I Quit match (the previous rules said you could only win by pinfall). The referee doesn’t like that so Funk hits him with the cowbell and demands that Rhodes quit. Rhodes finally quits, which doesn’t count, so he hits Funk in the head with the cowbell again. A piledriver onto the cowbell gives Rhodes the pin (which counts) at 9:01.

Rating: D+. I have no idea what to make of this, as it wasn’t a bullrope match for a good while, but then it was kind of an I Quit match and then Rhodes won by pinfall, as is usually the case. Oh and something about a chicken. Throw in the fact that we’re doing Rhodes vs. Funk (of any generation) in 2000 and acting like fans care is bizarre enough. Even in Florida.

Sid expects Jeff Jarrett to do something stupid and he’s ready to move on to bigger and better things. Was that insulting to Jarrett? I’m not sure.

We recap Sting vs. Lex Luger, which involves Luger breaking A LOT of arms (as in probably six or seven people, many of whom were wrestling in casts on this show). Now it’s time for Sting to get revenge.

Sting vs. Total Package

This is a lumberjack match, with the wrestlers Luger has injured standing around the ring. Oh yeah and it’s THE TOTAL PACKAGE now instead of Lex Luger, because that was the big change he needed. Before Sting comes out, Luger apologizes to the lumberjacks for breaking their arms. He has a backup plan though and brings out his own lumberjacks, who have their own unnecessary casts.

Luger jumps Sting to start and the fight is on, with Sting knocking him outside. Back in and Sting gets to stomp away and the jumping elbow gets two. Luger is sent outside and the lumberjacks (including Doug Dellinger) get to stomp away. Back in again and Sting is sent outside for a change, with Luger’s lumberjacks hammering on him. Cue Tank Abbott (no cast) to knock Dellinger out and leave, because Abbott is a weird guy.

All of the lumberjacks brawl to the back, leaving Luger to chinlock Sting, as Ric Flair and Elizabeth come out. Flair and Vampiro (who was apparently still there) brawl at ringside until Flair gets inside to chop Sting. This goes as it has gone for over ten years now but Luger ax handles Sting down.

Elizabeth hits Sting in the back with the baseball bat so here is Jimmy Hart, with a Hulk Hogan weightlifting belt, to chase her off. Luger loads up the Rack but Vampiro hits him with the bat (the referee looks at it happen and glares at Vampiro, allowing Sting to hit the “Stinger” Death Drop (as Schiavone can’t even get that right) for the pin at 7:01.

Rating: D-. I’m sure he was on a huge contract and all that, but who in the world thought it was a good idea to put Lex Luger in this prominent of a role in 2000? The guy hadn’t been interesting in a very long time at this point and while the arm breaking thing was something different, it was still only going to get him so far in yet another match with Sting. The fact that this was the third decade in which they had been working together in some fashion isn’t a great sign, and the results showed badly.

Tank Abbott says he took out Doug Dellinger because he can, and accuses Dellinger of taking his money.

We recap Jeff Jarrett vs. Sid for the World Title. Jarrett keeps getting title shots and has a history of cracking Sid with a guitar. End of build.

The limo door is opened but we don’t see who is in it.

The format has been changed, as this match was scheduled to go on last. Sid’s response? “Oh let’s go.” And he heads to the ring.

WCW World Title: Sid vs. Jeff Jarrett

Sid is defending and Jarrett’s US Title isn’t on the line. Before Sid shows up, Jarrett goes on a rant about how he’s tired of getting ripped off so he has something up his sleeve. He also promises that the NWO girls will show some skin if he wins the title. Sid drops him with a clothesline to start and then pounds him into the corner for the right hands. The chokeslam is broken up with a rake to the eyes so Sid takes him outside for a slam onto the announcers’ table. The beating goes into the crowd before Sid chokes against the barricade.

Cue the Harris Brothers to jump Sid, even going inside to stay on him, as Jarrett argues with the referee in the aisle. Back in and Jarrett pounds him down, followed by the sleeper. That’s broken up so the Harris Twins offer a distraction, only for Sid to send Jarrett into the belt (as held by Don) for two. The chokeslam is broken up with a low blow and the referee gets decked (because that matters in this match). The guitar to the head knocks Sid silly and Jarrett calls in….crooked referee Slick Johnson. Hulk Hogan follows him out and cleans house, including dropping the leg on Jarrett so Sid can get the pin to retain.

Rating: D. So not only did they have a terribly dull match, but somehow, HULK HOGAN is needed to beat Jeff Jarrett. Hogan drops the leg and puts Sid on top for the pin. This is getting into 1995/6 territory of Hogan having to be there to save everyone and that’s one of the last things you want to see happen. Sid was even fine as champion, but it doesn’t matter when you’re having Hogan wedged into the top spot over him.

Post match here is Scott Steiner (apparently the person in the limousine) with a guitar to Hogan’s back. The villains wreck Hogan but Sid is up for the save. Cue Ric Flair and it’s time for the strap match.

Ric Flair vs. Hulk Hogan

Strap match, four corners variety. Flair whips and stomps away to start as Jimmy Hart (with his eyes bugging out) comes to the ring to play cheerleader. It seems to work as Hogan fights up and hammers away but Flair manages a cheap shot back inside. Some choking with the strap has Hogan in more trouble but he’s back up to whip away with the weightlifting belt.

The beating continues on the floor before Hogan rains down the right hands in the corner. A bite to the head busts Flair open and Hogan keeps hammering at the cut. Flair manages to go up and gets slammed down, with Hogan sending him outside for a clothesline. Hart gets in some whips as the squashing continues. Cue Lex Luger to chair Hogan down and leave, allowing Flair to whip Hogan back to ringside. A low blow drops Hogan again and Flair unhooks himself for the sake of chasing Hart.

They hook up again with Hart getting in as well, only to get taken down. Flair goes after the knee and drags Hogan to two corners and then a third before using a foreign object to knock Hogan silly. That’s enough to break the chain so the corners are broken…and Flair covers Hogan for two. That triggers the Hulk Up and Hogan knocks him silly to get three buckles but Luger is back. Hogan boots him down and drops a leg to pin Flair at 14:26 (the referee is fine with this).

Rating: D-. There’s a clip from Family Feud where the question is asked “Do you understand the concept of this game?”. That’s what I’d want to ask here, as it seems like they just kind of changed the rules halfway through. That’s dumb enough on its own, but they tried to do the same thing in the other match involving two people being tied together (because they did that same gimmick twice in about an hour). Hogan gets to slaughter Flair again though, because that’s what he did most of the time, and if that involves changing the rules as they go, so be it. Horrible main event, which shouldn’t be a surprise whatsoever.

Hogan touches the fourth buckle to really rub it in. Posing ends the show. Wait: why was it a big deal that they changed the order of the last two matches? That was treated as some kind of a big plot point and it didn’t seem to matter at all.

Overall Rating: R. For Reset, which is what this company did three weeks later. On April 10, WCW decided to tap out and completely relaunch everything, because the place that the shows were at, spearheaded by this one, was so bad that they didn’t think there was a way out. Think about that for a second. This show was so bad and put the company in such a place that WCW just blew up its continuity and started over. It might not seem possible to get that low, but WCW decided that was the best course of action.

And really, can you blame them? The matches ranged from passable at best to WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE, with rules literally being changed in the middle of matches and the same pairings we’ve seen for years now being trotted out again and again. The end result of the main event was Hogan pinning Flair to win a match where you have to touch all four corners. This was meant to be celebrated due to reasons beyond my comprehension.

That’s on top of the Harris Twins as the Tag Team Champions, XS, Psychosis and David Flair getting pay per view time, plus a group named Team Package and a fight over the letter T. This show was an all time disaster and I can’t blame them for just giving up. Hogan is doing some of his worst stuff here and unfortunately he’s not alone. I have no idea what good came out of this show, and apparently neither did WCW.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Luchamania 2
Date: April 17, 2025
Location: Neonopolis, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: TMD, Joe Dombrowski

This is from Super X Grand Prix Championship Wrestling in case you need quite the mouthful of a promotion. As you can probably guess, this is going to be a lucha themed show and that could go in a variety of ways. Hopefully we have some good quality here because these things can go nuts in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

We open fast with Juventud Guerrera getting in a fight with Gringo Loco. Apparently their singles match will be merged into a tag match with Jack Cartwheel and Super Crazy, who were scheduled for a singles match of their own. Running an angle at the start of a show is kind of a weird way to go.

Speaking of weird, we go with a split screen of commentary and the empty ring.

The ring announcer polls the fans on the new main event and gets a special cheer for the nonfunctional microphone.

We then stall for a good while as we wait on the opening match, with commentary making Monday Nitro jokes.

Mondo Avion/BackSeat Boyz vs. Team FSW

The latter would be Dahmir Morningstar/Jimmy Jack/Phil Godfrey. Jack, who appears to be a country boy, atomic drops Avion to start and it’s quickly off to Morningstar, who gets taken into the corner. JP Grayson comes in with a middle rope shot to the ribs but Morningstar hits a quick dropkick for two. The rather big Godfrey comes in for a backdrop but it’s off to Tommy Grayson to stomp away.

We pause for Godfrey’s headstand so Tommy strikes away, only to get caught with a fall away slam. It’s back to Jack vs. Avion with the latter hitting a dropkick to take over. JP comes back in to stomp away in the corner but Jack suplexes both Graysons. The tag brings in Morningstar to pick up the pace and strike away, only to be sent shoulder first into the post. Tommy hits a basement dropkick to drop Morningstar and a Paisan Elbow into a legdrop gets two.

We hit the chinlock for a bit, followed by a modified Vader Bomb out of the corner for two more. A triple kick in the corner gets another near fall but Morningstar finally gets in a high crossbody for a needed breather. Godfrey comes in to clean house, including a side slam. JP cuts him off with a missile dropkick and a double lifting slam plants Jack. Avion’s top rope splash is enough for the pin at 13:57.

Rating: B-. Fairly by the numbers but still effective six man here, with enough high flying to make it feel like the traditional lucha match. It was a fun way to get the show going and the fans seemed into it so they were going well to start here. The Boyz were a good heel team, with Avion not really feeling that different from his partners. Jack and Godfrey aren’t your traditionally sized lucha guys, but they were fine in what they were doing.

Commentary talks for a good while between matches. I’m not sure if this is planned or some sort of delay but how can you not have your second match ready? This isn’t exactly a major show so you can’t have your wrestlers set to go? The entrances for the second match start about fifteen minutes after the previous match ended. That’s pretty much fifteen minutes of dead air and that’s not a good idea at all.

El Mexikal vs. Aztek King vs. Norman Harras vs. Vaquero Fantasma

Commentary has been turned WAY down, to the point where it’s almost just a whisper. Fantasma rolls across the ring to start and they all stare at each other a bit. Some dropkicks leave Fantasma and Mexikal in the ring, where they pose instead of fighting. An exchange of armdrags send both of them down and that’s up for a standoff. Fantasma dives over the top onto Harras before King and Mexikal get back inside.

A spinning faceplant puts Mexikal down but Fantasma is back in with a crossbody. Harras seems to miss a shot to Fantasma, who reverses a suplex into a rollup for two. Back up and Harras plants Fantasma for two before kicking him outside. King comes back in with a clothesline, followed by a big dive out to the floor. Mexikal and Fantasma get back inside to trade running shots in the corner until Fantasma gets two off a rollup. Mexikal kicks Fantasma in the head and hits a corkscrew shooting star press for the pin at 7:34.

Rating: C+. This was the usual all over the place match, albeit without as many high spots. Instead it was four guys running around and doing their thing, with Harras being a bit less high flying than the others. That’s a perfectly fine thing to see and more what you might have expected from a show like this one.

And now, more stalling between matches. Thankfully they trim it down here to only about nine minutes.

Arkangel Divino vs. Ultimo Maldito

We do get some graphics here, which is nice as fans might not be familiar with these guys. Maldito flips him off rather than shake hands before being backed into the corner. That doesn’t last long so Divino shoulders him down and hits a running hurricanrana. Maldito rolls outside so Divino takes him down with a big running flip dive. Back in and a basement superkick gives Divino two and a Lethal Injection connects for the same. Maldito comes back with a discus lariat for two and they head outside, with Divino getting chopped up against the post.

Back in and something like a dropkick version of Shattered Dreams gives Maldito another near fall. Divino is back with a Code Red for two more and a superkick connects, setting off an exchange of strikes to the face. A Canadian Destroyer plants Maldito again and we get a double down. An armdrag sends Maldito outside and Divino hits a moonsault to take him out again. Back in and Divino’s moonsault hits raised boots, followed by a bottom rope moonsault for two. A super hurricanrana gives Divino the pin at 8:28.

Rating: B-. Nice enough match here as they aren’t hiding that this is a basic good vs. evil match. As usual, it’s a good sign when you have a match where you can tell what is going on despite not being familiar with the wrestlers. They were working a basic match but did it fairly well, which I’ll definitely take over screwing up a bunch of stuff.

Respect is shown post match. That’s a nice Maldito.

The time between the matches is cut way down here, making it feel almost normal.

Rey Horus vs. Laredo Kid

Kid won’t shake hands to start and tells the fans to shut up. Horus gets knocked into the corner to start and a flip dive connects. Back up and a big slap rocks Horus again before Kid gets to rain down right hands in the corner. Horus fights up and snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor, setting up the required big dive. Back in and Kid kicks him down for two more, complaining about the count in the process. Horus grabs a standing Spanish Fly for two but Kid might kick him low. A Michinoku Driver gives Kid two but Horus is right back with a Code Red into a rollup for the pin at 6:45.

Rating: C+. Another perfectly watchable match here but they can’t have two of the better stars on the show go a few more minutes? They were just getting going and then it was time to wrap it up in less than seven minutes. I’m not sure why these matches are going so short but it’s not helping what could be some good matches.

And now, more stalling, with commentary talking about a Ric Flair cosplayer to fill time. Eventually they talk about the main event, but we’re pushing twenty minutes between the end of the match and the start of the entrances of the main event. That’s insane.

Juventud Guerrera/Super Crazy vs. Gringo Loco/Jack Cartwheel

The brawl is on to start and it’s Cartwheel and Guerrera (who is in great shape) in the ring. Cartwheel takes him into the corner but Guerrera fights out as the other two come in. Loco and Cartwheel collide so Cartwheel grabs the referee to hide. That doesn’t work overly well but Cartwheel is back up with a handspring elbow to Crazy in the corner.

An assisted moonsault gets two on Crazy and Loco’s Swanton gets the same. Crazy fights up for a knockdown and it’s off to Guerrera to pick up the pace. The Juvy Driver hits Cartwheel for two but Loco is back up. Cartwheel misses a dive off the top though and gets caught with another Juvy Driver for the pin at 7:01.

Rating: C+. The biggest surprise here was Guerrera being in crazy good shape. You have Crazy who is huge compared to his ECW days but Guerrera didn’t look that good twenty years ago. The match was a pretty standard story and that’s not a bad way to go, with Guerrera looking good in his comeback for the win. Cartwheel taking the pin was a bit weird, but it could have been a lot worse.

Overall Rating: C+. Where is the rest of this show? The video runs less than two hours and we had about forty five minutes of action bell to bell. There were ridiculously long stretches between matches and while I’d assume some of that was for the sake of merch tables, there has to be a better way to go about doing this. I liked what we saw and the wrestling itself wasn’t bad at all, but DANG this was a weirdly put together show.

Results
Mondo Avion/BackSeat Boyz b. Team FSW – Top rope splash to Jack
El Mexikal b. Aztek King, Norman Harras and Vaquero Fantasma – Corkscrew shooting star press to Fantasma
Arkangel Divino b. Ultimo Maldito – Super hurricanrana
Rey Horus b. Laredo Kid – Code Red
Juventud Guerrera/Super Crazy b. Gringo Loco/Jack Cartwheel – Juvy Driver to Cartwheel

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Halloween Havoc 1998
Date: October 25, 1998
Location: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Attendance: 10,663
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, Bobby Heenan

So this popped up on the WWE Vault channel and I might as well look at it again. This show is more infamous than famous, with an all time terrible match, a pretty great main event, and one massive headache for WCW as the show went off the air late, resulting in a bunch of people not even seeing the ending. Let’s get to it.

In the glory and chaos of WCW, every match carries the passion and dreams of countless wrestling fans. To make these classic moments more unique and worth collecting, you can choose Custom Medals to remember these immortal moments.

Customized medals can not only perfectly capture the essence of each game but also add exclusive elements according to personal preferences, whether it is the player’s iconic moves or the classic moments of the game, they can be presented one by one. Whether it is as a souvenir collection or as a gift for someone who also loves wrestling, customized medals are the best choice to convey passion and respect.

The opening video is rather serious and looks at a bunch of the bigger matches. Of all the things WCW spent money on, this wasn’t one of them.

Dang that pumpkin set is awesome.

Commentary talks about the show, with Heenan throwing on a mask to annoy Schiavone as only he can.

The Nitro Girls are here for the first time and are promised to be back. I get the appeal of having cheerleaders out there, but are they doing anything more than filling time?

Here is Rick Steiner to talk about how he’s looking at Scott Steiner as just another opponent. Cue Buff Bagwell to say everyone is sick of Scott so he’ll have Rick’s back. And yes, Rick falls for this, showing that the University of Michigan isn’t much in the academic department. Also, this could have been done on any given Nitro or Thunder rather than being on the show.

TV Title: Raven vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho is defending in what appears to be a bonus match. Before the match, Raven sits in the corner and says his recent losing streak is NOT his fault. He doesn’t feel like wrestling tonight and he wasn’t told in advance so he’s not going to do it. Jericho says not so fast because he is buyrates, people in the seats and rock and roll. Calling Raven a loser is enough to draw him back in for the bell, with Jericho stomping away and swinging Raven’s jacket.

Back up and Raven sends him outside for a dive, meaning it’s time for a whip into the steps. A dropkick has Jericho in more trouble but Raven is back with a quick hot shot to take over. They go outside again with Jericho’s dive only hitting the barricade. Back in and Jericho suplexes his way out of a sleeper before taking off a turnbuckle pad. Naturally Jericho goes head first into it and a clothesline gives Raven two.

The Liontamer goes on but Raven makes the rope (rather than tapping out in a hurry as he has been doing lately) and hits a quick Even Flow for two. Jericho low blows him into a bridging German suplex but cue Kanyon for and attempted distraction. Instead Jericho reverses the Even Flow into another Liontamer for the tap at 7:42.

Rating: B. It’s nice to see Raven getting to have a good match as he could certainly go in the ring when he had the chance. It helped that he was in there with Jericho, who was really starting to come into his own around this time. You could see the star power and it made him someone you wanted to see, which is quite the valuable thing to have.

Jericho’s over the top celebration is great.

Here are Hollywood Hogan and Eric Bischoff for a chat. Hogan says he’ll keep it short and then goes into a long rant about laying out his nephew Horace, because he wanted to prove you needed to be in the NWO. As for tonight, he’ll beat up the Warrior, for life. There was absolutely no need or this to be on the show.

Meng vs. Wrath

Hoss fight time and they go straight to the floor to start with Meng being sent into the barricade. They get inside, where Meng rams his own head into the buckle over and over. Wrath hits a middle rope clothesline but the Meltdown (pumphandle powerslam) is escaped, allowing Meng to hit a kick to the face. Meng strikes away in the corner and hits a running clothesline but the Tongan Death Grip is countered into a Rock Bottom for two. The Meltdown finishes for Wrath at 4:23.

Rating: C+. Not much time for this one but they hit each other rather hard for few minutes that they had. It made Wrath look good too, which was a bit of a mini project at the time. They certainly needed to build someone up for Kevin Nash to beat later, because beating someone on a winning streak set him up to beat someone else on a winning streak. I mean, it’s not like WCW could have used someone like Wrath, who was getting over around this point with wins like this one.

Billy Kidman is down to face either challenger to his Cruiserweight Title.

Disco Inferno vs. Juventud Guerrera

For a Cruiserweight Title shot later tonight. Disco takes him into the corner to start and stomps away, setting up a side slam for two. Juventud snaps off a headscissors and, after messing something up, sends Disco crashing out to the floor. An anklescissors takes Disco down again but he’s right back with a running clothesline. The not very tight chinlock goes on before Juventud fights out and sends him to the floor for the big dive.

Back in and the Juvy Driver is countered into a neckbreaker for a very delayed near fall. The Macarena (yes it is 1998) takes too long and Juventud rolls him up for two, only for Disco to fall down into low blow. Disco goes up and gets crotched down, setting up a super hurricanrana. Juventud’s top rope flip dive connects but Disco is back with a quick piledriver for the pin at 9:40. Ignore Juventud’s shoulder being on Disco’s leg rather than the mat.

Rating: C. This is another good example of a match that could have taken place on Thunder instead of here as it was hardly anything pay per view worthy. Disco did his basic stuff until the piledriver while Juventud was flying around as well as he could have, albeit to limited results. And we even get more Disco later!

More Nitro Girls.

Here is Scott Steiner for a chat. He’s been with his freaks so coming to Vegas is a breather. Scott heard Rick Steiner and Buff Bagwell getting together, so tonight he and the Giant will make it a Tag Team Title match (ignore that Scott HALL and the Giant are the champions right now, hence neither of them having a belt at the moment, even if Giant should have one). Giant comes out to agree so here is JJ Dillon to say that if the champs lose the titles, Scott will face Rick one on one immediately after.

So that’s another bonus match being added. And we’re having a tag match instead of a singles match because the tag team knows they would win a tag match but if they don’t, then it’s the planned singles match, even if the non-champions have already lost the titles. Yes this is 1998 WCW and somehow, it would get far, far worse.

Fit Finlay vs. Alex Wright

We hear about Finlay breaking Wright’s dad’s leg years ago as Finlay takes over on the wrist to start. An elbow to the face has Wright in more trouble but he knocks Finlay down and stomps away. Back up and Finlay hits him in the face for a knock out to the floor. Wright gets dropped face first onto the barricade and they head back inside, where a running crossbody sends both of them crashing back to the floor. Back in again and Finlay misses a charge into the corner, allowing Wright to grab a neckbreaker for the pin at 5:10.

Rating: C. This was mostly Finlay beating Wright up for about 90% of the match until Wright caught him with one move at the end. The match was something that felt like it belonged on Saturday Night more than a pay per view yet here it is, adding another match to this marathon show. Commentary didn’t even pretend like this was anything important either, making it feel even less important.

Note that we’re over an hour into this show and pretty much NOTHING has happened. We’ve had one good match, which wasn’t advertised, a match to set up a title match later, and two pretty much nothing matches. Yeah there’s other stuff coming, but feel free to GET ON WITH IT.

Ernest Miller is on WCW.com and brags about his greatness.

Saturn vs. Lodi

This isn’t what I meant by “GET ON WITH IT”. Saturn works on the arm to start so Lodi bails outside and grabs his signs (they’re his thing), only for Saturn to sweep his leg out. A suplex drops Lodi again and a whip into the corner makes it worse. Saturn hits some suplexes and the Death Valley Driver completes the squash at 3:49.

Rating: C-. Saturn got to massacre Lodi, though I’m not sure why this match actually needed to take place on the pay per view. Saturn smashing the Flock’s mascot isn’t a pay per view match but rather something that should be in the second hour of Thunder. That’s the theme of this whole show so far and that isn’t good to see, even if I’ve always liked Saturn.

We look at Buff Bagwell rejecting the NWO. Totally. For real.

Nitro Girls.

Cruiserweight Title: Disco Inferno vs. Billy Kidman

Kidman is defending and grabs a headlock to start with limited avail. An exchange of wristlocks doesn’t go very far either so Kidman grabs a slingshot armdrag. Disco drop toeholds him throat first into the ropes but Kidman sens him outside for a crash. Back in and Kidman misses a top rope splash though and we hit the chinlock.

Disco lets go and dances, followed by a belly to back suplex for two. The dancing middle rope elbow misses but Disco is right back with the piledriver for two more. A gordbuster gets another near fall so Kidman calmly faceplants him. The shooting star press retains the title at 10:50.

Rating: C. Again, the problem is Disco doesn’t do anything beyond simple stuff and that didn’t leave Kidman in any real danger. Other than maybe the piledriver, this was just waiting around for Kidman to win. It doesn’t help that this was the second Disco match of the night, again making things feel rather extended for no apparent reason.

Tag Team Titles: Rick Steiner/Buff Bagwell vs. Scott Steiner/Buff Bagwell

Rick and Buff are challenging and if they win the titles, Rick gets to face Scott “for fifteen minutes”. Scott distracts Rick to start and Giant slugs away to take over. An atomic drop puts Rick in more trouble and it’s off to Scott for some shots from behind. Rick fights up with right hands in the corner and an elbow connects. Buff wants the tag though and OF COURSE he turns on Rick with a low blow, because that’s something WCW loves to do.

Commentary tries to sound shocked because that’s what they have to do as Buff runs off. Scott chokes and knees away on the ropes before Giant comes in to pull Rick up at two. It’s back to Scott so Rick fights up, only to get cut off with a low blow. For some reason Giant goes up and accidentally missile dropkicks Scott, leaving him hung up in the ropes for a funny visual. Rick gets up, Steiner Bulldogs Giant, and wins the Tag Team Titles at 8:23.

Rating: D. Other than the Giant hitting that dropkick, this was the point where the good in-ring side mostly falls off, as there is only so much you can get out of another SWERVE from Bagwell and the slow hammering offense from the Steiners. And of course Rick and Buff are the new champions, which would somehow lead to Rick teaming with Buff’s mother Judy Bagwell, say it with me, because WCW.

Rick Steiner vs. Scott Steiner

Scott tries to leave with the Giant but Rick goes after him for a ram into the steps. They get back in and Scott charges into a boot in the corner before being sent outside again. Another low blow (four on the night between all of the brawling) drops Rick again and Scott hits a running crotch attack against the ropes.

Rick grabs a belly to belly…and a guy in a Bill Clinton mask (and a suit) jumps the barricade, beats up security, and is handed a slap jack by an interfering Stevie Ray to knock Rick and the referee cold for the DQ at 3:32. And of course it’s Bagwell. Hold on though as Scott covers Rick and Buff makes the referee count, with Rick kicking out. The Frankensteiner gets two but Rick fights back and hits the Steiner Bulldog for the pin at 5:02.

Rating: D-. So Bagwell wore jeans for the tag match, ran to the back, put on a suit and mask so he could interfere in the ensuing singles match before unveiling himself. This would be after Buff and Rick won the Tag Team Titles from a team who weren’t he actual champions to set up a match which was already scheduled but was technically canceled before being put back in, despite not being “for fifteen minutes” as advertised. I have no idea how any of this was supposed to work, but it certainly didn’t.

We recap Scott Hall vs. Kevin Nash. They were best friends, but their loyalty to Hollywood Hogan and the NWO (and money) have split them up so they’re finally having a match.

Scott Hall vs. Kevin Nash

Hall throws his drink into Nash’s face and hammers away to start. They go out to the floor where Hall gets in a microphone shot and chokes with a camera cord. We pause for the referees to check on Nash’s eyes so Hall mocks him before dropping Nash with more right hands. Hall mocks being drunk as the fans chant for the Wolfpac, which is cut off by Hall’s slam.

Some right hands in the corner have Nash in trouble but he says bring it on, setting up the big side slam. Hall fights up with more right hands but has to bail from the threat of a Jackknife. Back in and things reset a bit, with Nash shoving him down without much trouble. Hall grabs an armbar but Nash shrugs it off and stomps him down.

Nash’s running crotch attack against the ropes keeps Hall in trouble and some knees in the corner (Nash: “How about a double? Would you like a double?”) makes it worse. The straps come down and Nash hits the Jackknife (or Jackhammer according to Schiavone), followed by a second. The crotch chop is enough to let Hall walk out for the countout at 14:21.

Rating: C. This was a storyline match instead of a more traditional version and in this case, that’s the right idea. Hall got in his usual stuff here but Nash gets the big dominant performance, with the actual result not mattering. At least it felt like this mattered in the slightest though and even made sense, which is a chance of pace from most o the rest of the show.

US Title: Sting vs. Bret Hart

Hart is defending and bails to the floor to start as commentary talks about the personal issues that are more important than the title. They don’t bother saying WHAT THOSE ISSUES ARE but that’s WCW for you. Hart gets back inside, the bell rings, and Hart bails to the floor again. Sting follows him outside and throws Hart back inside to hammer away in the corner. A head first ramp into the mat gives Sting two but Hart goes after the eyes to take over.

Hart drops a leg for two and we hit the chinlock, which is broken up even faster than usual. Sting’s comeback is cut off with a bulldog out of the corner but the middle rope elbow is countered into a failed Scorpion Deathlock attempt. Back up and Hart tries a leapfrog but grabs his knee, with even Heenan saying the fans are tired of being lied to all night. Hart gets in a cheap shot and drops the middle rope elbow for two as things slow back own. A drop onto the barricade has Sting in more trouble and Hart decks the referee.

With the referee down, Sting starts the comeback, with both of them jumping over the referee in a funny bit. Hart gets crotched on top and a top rope superplex somewhat lands on the referee to leave everyone down for awhile. The Stinger Splash hits the post so Hart hits him with the baseball bat over and over. A middle rope bat shot lets Hart finish what used to be Sting with the Sharpshooter to retain at 15:06.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t great but I’ll take a match between two stars with a definitive ending. Hart basically destroyed Sting here and the ending was a way to write Sting off for a bit. It’s good to see him get a win after the incredibly messy start to his WCW run and it worked well enough here, even if Hart was clearly not anywhere near what he was back in the WWF.

Sting does a stretcher job as commentary wonders what is wrong with him.

Hollywood Hogan vs. Warrior

Warrior beat him eight and a half years ago, then showed up to say that he can do it again. Hogan panicked and here we are for a showdown, which has the potential to be a disaster. Naturally Hogan stalls on the floor before the bell before a big right hand knocks him into the corner to start. Warrior cranks on the arm and Hogan is already bailing out to the floor again.

We get the tease of the test of strength but Hogan goes with a cheap shot to take over. Now they do the test and Warrior goes down as the attempt to recreate an iconic moment falls flatter than expected. Back up and they do the criss cross until Warrior shrugs off a slam and clotheslines him to the floor. They slowly brawl around ringside before Hogan gets back inside and decks the referee.

Cue the Giant, who hits Hogan by mistake (as he falls apart just before leaving the promotion), allowing Warrior to clothesline him out to the floor. There’s no referee to count, so Hogan grabs a belly to back suplex (see, because that happened in 1990 too) for a delayed two. Hogan whips him with the weightlifting belt bu misses some elbows as Warrior rolls away. This includes rolling towards Hogan, because left and right is too complicated here.

Warrior misses the splash but comes back with Hogan’s weightlifting belt to whip away. The referee breaks it up so hogan grabs some flash paper, which sets off a fireball…which doesn’t go anywhere near Warrior’s face. Warrior hammers away, including some ax handles to the head. A low blow cuts Warrior off and Hogan drops leg but Warrior fights up. Cue Horace Hogan to chair Warrior in the back so Hogan can grab the trunks for the win at 14:33.

Rating: F. Normally I would say something like “this was sad” but in this case, it was just pathetic, almost all of which has to be put on Hogan. As there is pretty much no way that this was Warrior’s plan for the match, instead we had far worse versions of the spots from their legendary match with both of them older and Hogan not being the kind of character who fits in this match at all. This really was one of the worst matches I’ve ever seen and it was all about making Hogan feel better after putting Warrior over almost nine years earlier. Lucky us.

Post match Hogan loads up lighter fluid but security breaks it up, not wanting to see any more of this either.

The WWE Vault version cuts out the entrances for the next match and we go straight to the ring.

So this is where the show gets infamous. As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve mentioned the timing issues that the show has had throughout the whole night. That is because the show was pretty much entirely out of time here, with the pay per view window of 11pm (or whatever it was) having about three minutes left as the World Title match was still left to go. As a result, a bunch of people lost the feed for the show and didn’t get to see the main event, forcing WCW to show it for free on Nitro.

It’s one thing to have a show go a little bit long, but this was asking for almost fifteen extra minutes and all because of a bunch of bonus matches, completely unnecessary promos and stuff like the Nitro Girls. It came off like WCW didn’t care what they did and just thought everyone would go along with them and that isn’t how things worked. While this wasn’t some death blow, it was a really big own goal and that’s not something the company could afford around this time. Things would get worse in a hurry, but this one is infamous for reasons of “WCW screwed up big.”

WCW World Title: Goldberg vs. Diamond Dallas Page

Goldberg is defending after Page earned the title shot by winning WarGames. Page charges at him a few times to start but gets shoved into the corner over and over by the raw power. They lock up and crash out to the floor as there is some rather strong electricity going here. Back in and Page tries a legsweep so Goldberg does a standing moonsault to avoid, only to get swept down instead for a quick staredown.

An armbar sends Page to the ropes but the threat of a Diamond Cutter gets him shoved outside again. Back in and Goldberg shoulders him right back outside but Page grabs a neckbreaker for a needed breather. Page’s front facelock is countered into Goldberg’s neckbreaker for a change and a side slam gets two. Goldberg kicks him into the corner but the spear hits the post, with the fans getting back into it as Page has an opening.

The top rope clothesline gives Page two and a spinning DDT connects but Goldberg pops back up with a heck of a spear. The shoulder is too damaged to hit the Jackhammer though and Page grabs the Diamond Cutter, which has the fans going rather nuts. The rather delayed cover gets two so Page tries a suplex, which is reversed into a not great Jackhammer (which is kind of the point) to retain the title at 10:29.

Rating: B. This was the first time Goldberg had what would be considered a full match, with Page not being able to hang with him throughout, but having the one big move that could actually threaten Goldberg. The pop from the Diamond Cutter was great and it’s a very good match and Page clearly walked through it, though it was more just a really solid showing rather than a classic. Still though, Goldberg’s best WCW match by a mile and Page’s road to the world title continues.

Goldberg shows respect to end the show in a hurry.

Overall Rating: D+. The interesting thing here is that there are some good matches on here (main event, opener, Sting vs. Hart, a few other ok ones) but e pluribus gads the bad parts are horrible. Hogan vs. Warrior is an all time bad example of what happens when one person gets everything they want, the Tag Team Title/Steiners stuff is a terrible mess and pretty much the entire first hour is a waste of time and a ridiculous waste of the fans’ money. Throw in the whole total disaster with the pay per view slot and this really is an elite level disaster.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

A Tribute To The Extreme 2
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentator; Joe Dombrowski

It’s Wrestlemania Weekend in Philadelphia so you knew something like this was coming. The show is exactly what it sounds like as Battleground Championship Wrestling (local indy) is presenting a special night for ECW. There are various ECW wrestlers on the show and the Dudleys are going into the arena’s Hall Of Fame, which should be special. Let’s get to it.

Here is Team 3D to a hero’s welcome to get things going. The fans thank them but Ray says thank you instead. Ray talks about being in a much worse version of this building in 1997 and hit the first 3D right in here. They went on to become the most successful team in history and it was because of the fans. Thank you for showing up for either Team 3D or the Dudley Boyz. D-Von does the catchphrases and you can tell that they’re both loving this.

Team 3D vs. Atshushi Onita/Tommy Dreamer

Dreamer is a mystery partner but…..it’s the ECW Arena. What was the mystery supposed to be? Believe it or not, Dreamer has something to say before the match. He agrees that this is awesome and this is the point of a place like this. Dreamer is here with Onita because of a talk that Onita, Dreamer and Ray had at WrestleCon in Dallas a few years ago. They talked to Terry Funk on the phone and Onita was given the phone, which left him in tears. Without Funk, there would be no Onita or Dreamer so for that they are bonded forever. With that, Dreamer hits Ray in the head with a microphone and let’s get started.

Believe it or not, it’s a brawl to start with the Dudleyz being knocked down and the referee getting misted by Onita. They fight to the floor to keep up the brawl, with commentary saying Ray and Dreamer are probably fighting about Busted Open Radio. Dreamer’s sends Ray face first into a woman’s chest and then rings the bell on D-Von’s crotch.

A plastic table is brought in and Onita is busted open off something in there. D-Von hits Onita with popcorn as Dreamer hits the Flip, Flop and Fly on Ray for a double knockdown. Back in and the Dudleyz switch places on What’s Up to Onita before it’s time to get the tables. A 3D puts Dreamer through the table for the pin at 7:52.

Rating: C. I don’t think there is any secret to the fact that this wasn’t about having a top level match or really anything close to it. Instead, this was about the Dudleyz getting back in the ring for one more match in the arena where they started. There is nothing wrong with that and while the match was little more than a garbage brawl, that was pretty much entirely the point.

Respect is shown post match. Dreamer grabs the mic (again) and talks about how D-Von and Onita have had health issues but they had to do this one more time. Oh and thank you Paul Heyman for everything. And the fans too. We’re still not done as Onita says….something about ECW.

We pause to clean up the ring, with the ring announcer grabbing a broom as well.

Here is our host for the evening, the Blue Meanie! The fans chant for the BWO, with Meanie talking about how that was supposed to be a one off appearance but the fans made it go on for years. Meanie thanks the fans and Battleground Championship Wrestling and the building which changed wrestling forever.

Shane Douglas vs. CW Anderson

Francine is here with Douglas and seems very happy to be here. Douglas asks the fans to treat them like they did in 1994 and the rather insulting chants almost have Francine crying. Francine hasn’t forgotten everything they’ve sang and chanted at her over the years and she DESERVES RESPECT! They can walk out right now but instead just get Douglas’ opponent out here.

Douglas grabs a headlock to start as commentary talks about how great he was, despite other promotions telling him no over and over. They’re quickly on the floor with Douglas whipping him into the barricade but getting rammed face first into the apron a few times. Francine offers a distraction though, allowing Douglas to get in a low blow on the way back in. Another Francine distraction doesn’t work as Anderson blocks the low blow and hits a basement clothesline. Francine comes in and gets spanked, leaving Anderson to hit a superkick for the pin at 5:39.

Rating: C. As you can probably guess, the wrestling itself isn’t the point of this show. This is about getting people out there in front of the fans one more time and having a quick match to make it a wrestling show rather than a reunion. I’m a bit surprised that a star as big as Douglas lost, but let the fans be happy I guess?

Post match Anderson bows down to Douglas and we get some hugs. Anderson goes to leave but Douglas says hang on. We look at the Hall Of Fame banners as Douglas talks about how this place used to be infested with rats and a terrible place to be, but there was nowhere in the world better for wrestling. Douglas brings up people like Bam Bam Bigelow and Chris Candido, but Anderson showed up closer to the end. Anderson worked hard and got over and, after getting in a quick shot at Vince McMahon, Douglas tells the fans to applaud themselves and give us one heck of an ECW chant.

Crowbar vs. Danny Doring

Crowbar has his lackeys Vanessa and Percival with him. They fight over a lockup to start with Doring hitting a chop, allowing him to strut. A suplex puts Crowbar down and Doring knocks him out to the floor, where Percival cuts off a dive. Vanessa offers a distraction so Doring can get in a cheap shot to take over.

A neckbreaker over the ropes into a slingshot splash gives Crowbar two but Doring drop toeholds him down. The Rings of Saturn is broken up and Crowbar grabs a Sky High into something like a surfboard. We’ll make that a camel clutch, with Doring making the ropes. They head outside with Crowbar hitting a Vader Bomb off the barricade for a big crash.

Back in and they slug it out with Doring no selling some shots to the face. Doring sends Crowbar outside for a flip dive, which takes out Percival as well. Since it’s ECW, we get a chair brought in for some shots to the back, with Vanessa pulling the referee at two. Crowbar clotheslines Vanessa by mistake so Doring plants him, only to have Percival break it up. A northern lights suplex onto the chair gives Crowbar the pin at 13:19.

Rating: C-. Of all the matches on this show to get this much time, they picked a guy who was best known for a comedy tag tam and a guy who is barely remembered in ECW? This was a really weird choice and the match was boring on top of it, making this quite the mess. The other matches at least had some nostalgic charm to them but this one was just mostly dull.

Respect is shown post match. Crowbar says they didn’t spend much time together in ECW but they got to know each other and now they are brothers.

Alvin vs. Jason Knight

Alvin is a rather large Battleground Championship Wrestling guy with no connection to ECW and Missy Hyatt in his corner. Knight on the other hand has been mostly inactive for about nine and a half years and is in rather good shape. Knight grabs a hammerlock into a headlock takeover before firing off forearms to the chest.

Back up and Knight knocks him down a few more times, only for Hyatt to grab the rope. A corner splash gives Alvin two and he sends Knight outside. With that adding nothing, it’s back inside where Alvin hits another splash. The fans don’t like Alvin so he hammers away and goes up, only to miss a middle rope elbow. Hyatt offers a distraction so that Alvin can get in a brass knuckles shot for the pin at 7:23.

Rating: C-. Just like the previous match, this one was lacking the fun or special feeling that made the show fun for the first part. Alvin getting the win over an ECW guy isn’t exactly interesting and it was a slow match to make it worse. I’m not sure what the thinking was here, as it’s fine to push one of your regulars, but doing it at a tribute show is a bit weird.

Post match Alvin gets the mic and is told to shut the f*** up. Alvin: “I HAVEN’T TALKED YET!” Alvin mocks Knight and calls ECW, Knight, the Dudleyz, Shane Douglas and various other ECW legends “myths”. Cue Sandman through the crowd and we get the big Metallica entrance, which is still awesome. Alvin keeps calling him a myth and an f’ing drunk, with Sandman giving a funny “is this guy serious?” look. Sandman whips out a beer and canes Alvin down, then does it again as per the fans’ request. This is the definition of harmless nostalgic fun.

We seem to get an intermission (cut from the recorded version).

Joel Gertner vs. Bill Alfonso

Battleground Championship Wrestling owner Tim Embler (who can’t stand Gertner) is at ringside. Gertner mocks the idea of Alfonso calling it down the middle but says Embler has no idea of how to call it down the middle. Embler wasn’t here for the first half of the show but he’s here now because he’s taking sides. Gertner does his usual limerick about Embler, suggesting that he’s here for Alfonso, with his whistle, due to his fondness of blowing. As a bonus, we have Tod Gordon as guest referee.

We get a weapons check and Gertner has a bottle of ether. And a manicuring set, which is totally not to stab Alfonso. And a pen, which is there to clean his shirt. Alfonso throws the ether at Gertner, who wants a DQ, but the match hasn’t started yet. We’re still not ready to go yet, because Gertner has a note note.

He is unable to wrestle due to a variety of wrestling injuries, such as a broken meniscus in his nasal cavity. The note is from his mother, who apparently knows about Gertner’s swollen groin. Gordon says ring the bell, so Gertner offers money ($1 bills) so Gordon drops down for a trip, with Alfonso getting the win at 32 seconds. Funny stuff here and nothing wrong with that.

Post match Gordon has Embler get in the ring and praises him for what he has done. Embler says he will never allow the flame of the extreme to be extinguished. He hopes Paul Heyman dedicates his Hall Of Fame induction speech to the fans because this doesn’t work without them. Embler and Gordon leave so here is Krisitan Ross (one of Gertner’s goons) to jump Alfonso and bust him open. The fans want Rob Van Dam and Ross mocks the RVD pose but security takes Ross out instead. Well that’s disappointing. Even if you don’t have Van Dam, you don’t have one legend there to make a save?

Rhino vs. Masato Tanaka

This should hurt. Tanaka backs him into the corner to start and we get a clean break. A wristlock sends Rhino into the ropes before he grabs a wristlock of his own. That doesn’t work for them so they head outside, where Rhino’s chop hits the post. Back in and Tanaka slugs away, with Rhino telling him to bring it. Tanaka gets the better of things and grabs a chinlock…but Rhino fights up and hits the Gore for the pin at 9:13.

Rating: C. This was another disappointing match as I was expecting more from two guys who might be a bit older but are still active. I’m not sure I get why they cut this so short, as while I didn’t need some big violent bloody brawl, I could have gone for more of….anything. This could have been worse and Rhino winning is fine, but where was the rest of this one?

Pitbull Revolution vs. Da Baldies/HC Loc

That would be Alec Odin/Gary Wolfe/Traxx vs. Angel/Tony DeVito with Loc. Street fight and it’s a brawl to start, with Wolfe hammering on DeVito as we get the New Jack tradition of having the music playing throughout. They head outside as the fight is all over the place and Traxx FU’s Loc through a chair. It’s time for the box of Legos but Angel saves Loc. Instead it’s Traxx being shoved onto them, with Loc hitting a middle rope elbow for two. Wolfe cleans house with an Anthony Durante (Pitbull #1) flag and it’s time for the ladder around the neck, with a shot to the face finishing DeVito at 6:22.

Rating: C. So that happened. This was supposed to be the big wild, hardcore brawl and it only worked so well with the people involved. I didn’t care for Da Baldies back in the original ECW and watching them almost twenty five years later didn’t make it much better. It was barely a match and rather a bunch of wild spots, which is about all it was ever going to be. You had to have something like this on the show so they might as well get it out of the way.

Samoan Gangsta Party vs. FBI

That would be Samu/Lance Anoa’i (father and son) vs. Little Guido/Tommy Rich. Samu and Rich start things off with the latter working on the wrist as commentary gives us a brief Anoa’i Family Tree history. It’s quickly off to Guido….but Rich would rather have a dance off. Lance busts out a Worm and the FBI does their own version, only to have Lance deck them from behind.

Guido gets knocked to the floor, where he hits Lance in the face with a drink to…well not do much really as Lance takes over back inside. The Samoan drop gives Lance two but the Superfly Splash misses. It’s back to Rich to clean a few of the rooms before going to the floor with Samu. Lance superkicks Guido for the pin at 6:34.

Rating: C. Is it bad that I was wanting more from the dance off? Lance looks like someone who could be something somewhere with some better coaching as he certainly has the look and the lineage. Guido is an older guy who can still do well enough in the ring, while Rich and Samu are the really old guys who are there to make this feel special.

Post match the FBI teases brawling again before hugging, as is their custom.

Juventud Guerrera vs. 2 Cold Scorpio

Before the match, Juventud says this is his last match in the United States. He loves the fans but he is sick of the backstabbing and the politics in this country. On May 18, he’ll have a big show in Mexico and that’s his last show there too, so come check it out. Scorpio grabs the mic and doesn’t buy Juventud saying that he’s going to retire. Eh ok he is lying and drops a bunch of F bombs on the fans.

Scorpio slugs away to start and knocks the mask off before dropping a leg. The slingshot flipping legdrop connects before Scorpio takes him down for a hair pull. Juventud flips out of a sunset flip and hits a basement dropkick. A middle rope crossbody gives Juventud two and a dropkick just annoys Scorpio. Juventud gets knocked down but avoids a moonsault. A running knee finishes Scorpio at 6:02.

Rating: C+. This one at least had a slightly faster pace, but it was still only so good. I’m not sure what the point was in having Juventud lie to the fans, insult them, and then get the win but the people didn’t seem to mind. This was still one of the better matches of the show, mainly due to the talent involved.

Tajiri vs. Super Crazy

The fans rather approve of this as they lock up to start. They fight over wrist control as commentary explains the history between the two, which really was quite nice. Nothing happens on the mat and the fans are rather split. Crazy manages an armdrag out to the floor and Tajiri is happy to take a breather. Hold on though as cue Mikey Whipwreck to ask what the f*** is going on. Forget the chain wrestling because it’s midnight in Philadelphia this needs to be a Mexican Japanese Death Match!

Tajiri takes the hint and they brawl out into the crowd, with Crazy already busted open as they come back to ringside. Some chairs are thrown inside and a piece of a door to the head rocks Crazy again. The ladder is put between Crazy’s legs in the corner for the big chair shot and Tajiri kicks him down for two.

We hit the chinlock for a needed breather (and some near falls) before another kick gets another two on Crazy. They had outside (with Whipwreck very interested) with the beating continuing for a rather delayed near fall. Crazy manages a quick backbreaker and some right hands in the corner but Tajiri is back with the Tarantula. Tajiri misses the Buzzsaw Kick though and Crazy mists him into the rollup for the pin at 11:50.

Rating: B-. This feels like a pairing where they might not have worked together in years (and they hadn’t) and still have a good match because they know each other that well. Of course they weren’t as good as they were twenty plus years ago but this was still the best match of the night and likely would have been with or without the rule change halfway through. Good stuff here, and it did feel like the renewing of a classic rivalry.

Overall Rating: C+. I don’t think there’s any secret to the fact that this show was about the atmosphere and nostalgia rather than the wrestling. In a way that makes sense, as ECW was rarely about the wrestling (with some exceptions) and was mainly about the fans having a good time. That’s what they did here, and while they didn’t have all of the ECW legends (which would have made the show run WAY too long), they had enough to make the whole thing work well enough.

With that being said, this show needed some tweaks, as there is a stretch near the middle that REALLY drags. They might have been better off by closing with the Sandman stuff or the Dudleyz’s match, just for the sake of going out on their biggest notes. In short, the show was good when it focused on ECW and bad when it focused on the non-ECW, which is kind of the point of a show like this one. What we got was good but with another daft of the rundown, this could have been a fair bit better.

However, the important thing here though was to pay tribute to ECW and that is exactly what this felt like. As was said many times on here, it’s hard to believe that a lot of these people are going to be able to get back in the ring again so letting them do this at a pretty well put together show is a nice way to go. The tributes and nice moments were what mattered most, as a lot of the people felt like they were saying goodbye to one of the most important venues in modern wrestling history.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Impact Wrestling
Date: November 16, 2023
Location: Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

Things got more interesting last week as we are on the slow road towards Hard To Kill and the return of TNA. Last week saw a heck of a main event as Alex Shelley successfully defended the World Title against Jonathan Gresham. He’ll probably need a new challenger before he faces Moose in January though and we might find out who that is tonight. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening recap.

Tag Team Titles: Kenny King/Sheldon Jean vs. ABC

ABC is defending. King and Austin start things off with the latter working on a hammerlock. Austin gets taken down for a headlock on the mat but is right back up with a headlock takeover of his own. The champs take King into the corner for some kicks to the head but Jean pulls Bey to the floor. A posting has Bey in more trouble and the beating continues back inside.

Bey avoids a charge though and it’s back to Austin to pick up the pace. A springboard spinning kick to the face gives Austin two on King but Jean is there to break up the 1-2-Sweet. Instead King grabs a tiger driver for two as everything breaks down. Jean’s pop up neckbreaker gets two on Bey, who is right back with a running flip dive onto King. The 1-2 Sweet retains the titles at 7:23.

Rating: C+. This was nice while it lasted but it didn’t last that long. There is only so much that you can get out of a match with just over seven minutes, even if ABC is as good as they are. King and Jean are a nice combination as well, but they were little more than a quick challenger of the week on the way to the champs’ next serious competition.

MK Ultra control the Knockouts division and are here to reshape your reality.

Moose vs. Heath

Brian Myers is here with Moose. They slug it out to start until Heath rolls him up for two. That’s enough for Moose to bail to the floor and Heath sends him into various objects. Back in and Moose sends him hard over the top for a crash, followed by some choking inside. Heath manages to hurricanrana his way out of a powerbomb attempt though and Moose is outside again.

There’s a dive to take him down and a leg lariat connects for Heath back inside. A powerslam gives Heath two but Myers offers a distraction, allowing Moose to hit the release Rock Bottom. Another one is countered but Myers throws the briefcase in and blocks the Wake Up Call. Moose spears Heath down for the pin at 5:56.

Rating: C+. That makes two matches that could have been something but then wound up getting off too soon. About six minutes is hardly enough time to get anywhere and that was on display here. I still like a lot of what Heath has been doing lately by playing it more straight and that could take him somewhere, wherever that may be.

Post match the beatdown is on until Rhino makes the save.

Post break Moose and Myers accuse Rhino of being jealous. Therefore, Moose vs. Rhino at Final Resolution.

Rascalz vs. Laredo Kid/Black Taurus/Juventud Guerrera

Lucha Rules with Konnan on commentary. Kid and Miguel get things going with the former snapping off a running hurricanrana. Taurus comes in for a superkick but the Rascalz take it to the floor. Back in and a double elbow drops Kid for two, followed by the choking on the ropes. Miguel hits Three Amigos for two, leaving commentary to wonder if that was a tribute to Eddie Guerrero or not.

Juventud dropkicks Miguel and Kid knocks him down for two more. A distraction lets the Rascalz snap Kid’s throat across the middle rope as the villains take over. Kid manages a sunset bomb to Miguel and Juventud gets the tag for a high crossbody. One heck of a clothesline hits Miguel (the other Rascalz are allowed to do something if they’re interested) and Taurus adds a pop up Samoan drop.

The 450 is broken up though and Kid gets catapulted into a superkick. A triple dropkick gets two on Kid with Guerrera making the save. Reed is back up with his running jumping cutter over the top to the floor (that always looks good), followed by a slingshot Codebreaker to Juventud. Another cutter hits Taurus but he’s back up with a spear. The spinning piledriver finishes Reed at 11:54.

Rating: B. This was exactly as advertised and they had a nearly nonstop match that went about twelve minutes. That’s not something you see every day and it was quite the showcase. I’m a bit surprised to see the Rascalz lose though, especially with Reed taking the fall. He only debuted last week and he’s already losing here, which isn’t a great first match. Those cutters looked very good, but then he got pinned a few moments later so there wasn’t much of an impact.

Steve Maclin/KiLynn King vs. Jordynne Grace/Bully Ray

Ray locks up with Maclin to start before Ray runs him down without too much trouble. Maclin takes over on the arm and hands it off to King to stay on said arm. That doesn’t last long either as Ray takes over on King’s arm and cranks away a bit as well. Grace comes in to fire off some forearms but King muscles her into the corner, which isn’t something you see very often.

That’s shrugged of as well and it’s back to Ray, who goes up for some reason. That earns him a distraction from Maclin so King can take Ray down for two. Ray spears Maclin so it’s back to the women with Grace taking over. A Vader Bomb gives Grace two and King accidentally kicks Maclin in the face as everything breaks down. The Juggernaut Driver finishes King at 6:50.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure why but this feud is kind of working for me. Ray is still bouncing back and forth between good and bad but he’s making it work well enough. It’s also nice to see King move into something more prominent as she’s good enough to hang in the role. At the same time, Maclin shifting into this kind of a role rather than in the main event suits him better, making this an oddly interesting story.

Post match Ray teases hitting Grace with the Call Your Shot gauntlet trophy but hands it over. Ray even shows respect, much to commentary’s shock.

Trinity vs. Sonny Kiss

Non-title. Feeling out process to start as they flip around to escape wristlocks. Neither can grab a hurricanrana or hit a dropkick, meaning it’s time for some dancing. They take turns with the wiggling in the other’s face before Trinity hits a high crossbody for two. Kiss is back with a spinning wheelbarrow slam for two, followed by a standing moonsault for the same. There’s a handspring elbow in the corner as the fans are split.

Trinity is back up with a springboard spinning kick to the face, followed by the splits splash for two more. The split legged moonsault gives Trinity two more and some frustration is setting in. Kiss is back up and puts Trinity on the middle rope for a running flip kick to the ribs (that looked good). Not that it matters though as Trinity is back up with a Bubba Bomb for the pin at 8:02.

Rating: C+. This was a way to get Kiss into a singles match and it worked well here, as the athleticism was certainly on display. That being said, with the Trinity vs. Jordynne Grace match all set for Hard To Kill, it’s hard to imagine Trinity losing a match on the way there. Good stuff here, even with a not so shocking ending.

The Motor City Machine Guns are ready for Josh Alexander/Zack Sabre Jr. at Final Resolution.

Will Ospreay vs. Josh Alexander

Ospreay’s IWGP UK (or United States) Title isn’t on the line. Alexander takes him down to start but a hurricanrana sends him outside. We take a break and come back with Ospreay chopping away in the corner, only to have Alexander knock him right back down. The ankle lock goes on before Alexander switches it over into a quickly broken Sharpshooter. Ospreay is back up with a running boot to the face and a backbreaker gets two.

It’s too early for the Oscutter so Ospreay sends him face first into the buckle instead. Ospreay’s hurricanrana is countered into a powerbomb backbreaker for two. That’s enough for Ospreay to roll outside and there’s the running crossbody to the back to put him on the floor. Back in and Alexander whips him into the corner a few times as Ospreay’s back is getting banged up.

We hit the chinlock but Ospreay bites the hands for a rather creative escape. Ospreay hits a handspring kick to the head and there’s a springboard forearm for two. Some chops in the corner just fire Alexander up and a spinning torture rack slam puts Ospreay down again. A super Regal Roll gives Alexander two more but Ospreay is right back with a sitout powerbomb.

The Cheeky Nandos Kick rocks Alexander again but Ospreay misses a corkscrew moonsault and bangs up his leg. Alexander is right back with the ankle lock and neither of Ospreay’s escapes last very long. Ospreay makes the rope for the real escape and a small package gets two. Now the Oscutter can connect for two but the leg gives out on the Hidden Blade. They bang their heads together and trade forearms until Alexander grabs Rolling Chaos Theory for two.

The ankle lock goes on again and Ospreay gets out again, setting up a Spanish Fly for another near fall. Ospreay hits another Oscutter and tries the Stormbreaker, which is reversed into a piledriver to give Alexander another near fall. The Hidden Blade and Storm Driver 93 give Ospreay two each so another Hidden Blade into the Stormbreaker finishes Alexander at 25:04.

Rating: A-. This was what you would have expected from these two and then some as they had a heck of a match. What mattered here was having Ospreay in an Impact ring and get in a big showcase match, which is why you put Alexander in there with him. It’s a little strange to see Alexander take another fall so soon after the Bound For Glory loss but at least it came in a great one. Outstanding match here and one of the best Impact has had in a long time.

Overall Rating: B. The show took some time to get going but eventually things got rolling and the great main event capped it off. It was a rather good show and makes me want to see more Impact, though I’m still scared to see what might happen when it’s TNA again. Anyway, I can certainly take an awesome main event and a slate of good matches up and down the card otherwise. Good show, as tends to be the case when Impact is feeling things.

Results
ABC b. Kenny King/Sheldon Jean – 1-2-3 Sweet to Jean
Moose b. Heath – Spear
Black Taurus/Laredo Kid/Juventud Guerrera b. Rascalz – Spinning piledriver to Reed
Bully Ray/Jordynne Grace b. Steve Maclin/KiLynn King – Juggernaut Driver to King
Trinity b. Sonny Kiss – Bubba Bomb
Will Ospreay b. Josh Alexander – Stormbreaker

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Dynamite
Date: August 4, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

We’re back in Jacksonville for Homecoming as we have the fifth week in a row with some kind of a special themed show. That could include a lot of different things, including Chris Jericho vs. Juventud Guerrera of all people. Why? Well he wrestled in WCW in the 90s so he’s fair game. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Juventud Guerrera vs. Chris Jericho

MJF is on commentary and Jericho has to hit a move off the top to win. The once again masked Juvy chops away to start and grabs a headscissors to send Jericho outside. Air Juvy takes Jericho down again and but he slips out of the Juvy Driver back inside. Jericho takes him outside and chops away, followed by a high crossbody for two back inside. Jericho forearms him down but runs into a superkick (MJF: “I taught him that.”). A low kick to the face sets up the Rings of Saturn to Jericho, who powers up with ease.

Jericho hits a top rope ax handle for two, with frustration setting in. Jericho knocks him down and goes for a cover, which isn’t how this match works. With that not working, Jericho goes up again but Juvy catches him with the right hands to the head. The super hurricanrana is countered into the Walls but Juvy grabs the rope. Another kick to the face gives Juvy two more and the Juvy Driver gets the same. MJR wants Aubrey fired for the slow count as Juvy takes Jericho up top. That’s fine with Jericho, who shoves him down and hits a top rope Judas Effect for the pin at 9:49.

Rating: C. This was a lot better than I was expecting, but it was another legends match which didn’t exactly blow the roof off. It also didn’t exactly feel like a bit followup to the Nick Gage match last week, but they probably should have taken a step back as you can only go so far. Juvy looked like an older version of himself here but that’s exactly how is should have been.

Post match here is Wardlow to wreck both of them, allowing MJF to announce that Labor #4 is Jericho vs. Wardlow. That match needs a special referee, and MJF will be the perfect choice.

The Lucha Bros are here sans Pac. Andrade El Idolo comes up with his entourage, with Chavo Guerrero offering money, cars etc. That’s going to be a no, with the Lucha Bros leaving because Death Triangle is family.

The Dark Order is ready for a chat but Hangman Page shows up, drink in hand. Page takes blame for the loss last week and says he can’t keep blaming himself. For now, it is time to go their separate ways, even though he still loves them. They agree to let him have his space.

Daniel Garcia/2.0 vs. Darby Allin/Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston

Sting is with the good guys. Before the match, 2.0 (formerly Ever-Rise in NXT) says it is time to show what they can do. During Moxley’s entrance, JR talks about how great it is going to be in Cincinnati. He quotes Major League (and gets the first word wrong), which is about the Cleveland Indians. Anyway we start fast with Garcia getting some early near falls on Allin. A blind tag brings in Matt Lee to send Allin into the corner but a quick roll into the corner allows the tag to Kingston.

The chop off goes to Kingston and it’s time to stomp Lee down in the corner. A chop block cuts Moxley down though and we take a break. Back with Kingston and Garcia hitting a double clothesline but Garcia cuts off the tag. Moxley has had it and comes in to wreck everyone, allowing Allin to hit the dive to the floor. Back in and Moxley this a clothesline into a neckbreaker to drop Garcia. The Paradigm Shift sets up a Coffin Drop to put Garcia away at 7:20.

Rating: C. This could have been worse and I could see 2.0 being on Dark or Dark Elevation. I’m not sure if they need to do anything more than that as this tag division is completely bloated already, but I can see why they are getting a chance. Garcia was the star of the team and will likely get at least another look, which he should.

Video on Brian Cage vs. Ricky Starks, with Starks knowing that the FTW Title is his ticket to the top. Cage says he’s going to bring the intensity because who’s better than him?

The Elite is still having fun with a basketball, with the Young Bucks asking if there is anyone left to come after their Tag Team Titles. That would be no, because they are going to have to be buried with their belts. Kenny Omega talks about how Hangman Page blew it at the buzzer and now the fans don’t care about him anymore. Brandon Cutler goes up and cuts down the net. Note that Omega was wearing a Cookie Monster shirt. As in CM.

Christian Cage vs. Blade

Bunny is here with Blade, who gets in a fight with Christian on the ramp. Christian hammers him down to the floor but Bunny gets in Christian’s face. That doesn’t quite work as Christian decks Blade again and goes back inside. Bunny grabs the foot again but here is Leylah Hirsch (her opponent tonight) to fight her to the back. Christian grabs the reverse DDT for two but Blade drops him ribs first across the top as we take a break.

Back with Blade stomping on Christian but missing a charge into the post to send Blade outside. Christian hits the big dive but is too banged up to do anything about it. Back in and Christian wins a slugout, allowing him to stand on Blade back for the middle rope choking. There’s the middle rope elbow but Blade is right back with a powerslam. Blade teases going after the turnbuckle but it is a ruse so brass knuckles can be grabbed. Not that it matters as Christian spears him down for the pin at 9:50.

Rating: C+. This was another nice match, even if it didn’t hit that next level. Christian is piling up wins and I’m curious to see where that is going. Cage getting a pay per view title shot is hard to imagine but it is the kind of thing that we might be seeing. It isn’t the worst idea, but it seems like there might be better options.

Dax Harwood goes on a heck of a rant about how Santana and Ortiz watched Cash Wheeler’s arm be busted open so badly that he nearly lost it. This isn’t funny and it isn’t over between them.

Here are Britt Baker and Rebel for a chat, but since chats don’t last long without being interrupted around here, it’s Red Velvet to interrupt. Velvet says Baker doesn’t look good in red but Baker says she beat Velvet in three minutes last time. That was when Velvet was an enhancement talent (Velvet’s words) but now she is 22-4 with 7 straight wins.

Baker says the match is on if it’s Tony Khan approved, which it will be because she’s the golden girl. We’ll do it on the big stage in her hometown of Pittsburgh next Friday. Rebel tries to get in a crutch shot but Velvet knocks her away, only to get jumped by Baker. This is just a one off match and that’s fine, because Baker’s reception next week is going to be other worldly.

Chavo Guerrero has gotten Fuego del Sol to work for Andrade El Idolo, but del Sol isn’t happy with being told to shine shoes. Andrade destroys him.

Here is Hangman Page for a chat but he only gets out a “well” before the Elite interrupts him. Page says he has something to say to them, so the Elite joins him in the ring. Kenny Omega sees this as a plea to rejoin the Elite, but Page says not quite. Omega thinks Page is a try hard just like all of these people. They have been thinking about accepting Page’s faults, but they don’t have failures in their group. Page slaps him in the face but the beatdown is on in a hurry.

Cue the Dark Order but Evil Uno and Stu Grayson holds them back. A Magic Killer and some BTE Triggers have Page rocked but it’s Frankie Kazarian running in to take out some of them. The beatdown is on though, with Michael Nakazawa even throwing in the basketball. Omega belt shots Page to leave him laying.

We look back at Lance Archer destroying Dan Lambert.

TNT Title: Lee Johnson vs. Miro

Johnson, with Dustin Rhodes, is challenging and gets powered around to start. The driving shoulders in the corner have Johnson in more trouble. Johnson jumps over him out of the corner and strikes away, only to get tossed with a belly to belly. Game Over sends Johnson bailing to the floor though and we take a break. Back with Miro holding a bearhug but Johnson slips out and slugs away as well as he can. A dropkick puts Miro outside and Johnson hits back to back suicide dives, followed by a big running flip dive.

Miro tries to catch Johnson but falls over, allowing Johnson to throw him back inside. A high crossbody gets one on Miro and Johnson kicks him in the head again. More superkicks rock Miro but he catches the fifth (yes fifth) superkick. Johnson slips away again though and hits the big superkick, setting up a frog splash for two. Miro escapes the fireman’s carry though and kicks Johnson in the face instead. Game Over retains Miro’s title at 9:28.

Rating: C+. This was a good example of giving it everything you have in a rough spot. It worked out pretty well too, with Johnson doing more than I would have expected here. At the end of the day though, Miro should be holding that title for a long time to come and it seems like he will be. Good enough match here, which was a nice surprise.

Christian Cage thanks Leylah Hirsch for the save (while singing the Golden Girls theme) but he has some friends. Best Friends. Next week on the debut of Rampage though, he is ready to be #1 contender.

Bunny vs. Leylah Hirsch

The winner gets an NWA Women’s Title match. The Hardy Family Office and the Best Friends are all here too. Hirsch tries an armbar and Bunny bails to the floor. Back in and Hirsch works on the arm a bit until Bunny sends her outside. Bunny runs into Kamille (the NWA Women’s Champion) in the front row though and we take a break.

Back with more of the women’s division watching at ringside as Hirsch fights up. Hirsch knocks her into the corner for two but COMPLETELY misses a moonsault. Bunny is right back with a Death Valley Driver for two but Down The Rabbit Hole is broken up. Hirsch gets the cross armbreaker for the tap at 8:15.

Rating: C. I don’t think there was much drama to this one as Bunny isn’t going to get a major title match against Kamille. Hirsch getting a one off title shot will work well and it took a nice performance here to get her there. Just don’t let her try any more moonsaults, because that really didn’t work.

Post match, Hirsch and Kamille have a staredown, with Kamille being more than a foot taller.

Mark Sterling says Jade Cargill hasn’t been wrestling because it has been all about growing their brand. Cargill will be back on Dark Elevation next week and the sky is the limit, because she is that b****.

Malakai Black vs. Cody Rhodes

Black has a skull mask with horns for his entrance and it works rather well. Cody isn’t sure what to do to start so Black goes after the leg. That’s reversed into a Figure Four attempt until Black rakes the eyes to escape. A legsweep takes Cody down and we hit the half crab to keep him in trouble. The rope is grabbed and Cody is right back with the Cross Rhodes attempt, which is broken up with ease. Cody goes up and is kicked right back down, sending him through a ringside table. Back in and Black Mass knocks Cody silly for the pin with a boot on the chest at 4:43.

Rating: C+. Yeah that worked and it’s how this should have gone. Black Mass is one of the best finishers in wrestling today because it’s a really obvious idea: kick the other guy in the head really hard. Black ran through Cody here and even though this is for the sake of filming the Big Show, he put Black over perfectly here. Nice job.

Post match Black leaves and Cody talks about legacy. He got into the business at fifteen as a referee and he wanted to win the title that they stole from his daddy in the Garden. Time flies and goals change though and it takes Cody a second to get up. The fans are already singing the GOODBYE Song as Cody uses a crutch to get to his feet. Cody talks about how he fired them instead of them firing him (meaning WWE) and then he met Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks.

Now this isn’t just an alternative because they’re competition. They set this table and now it’s time for someone new to eat. He has been around everywhere and has been so lucky. There have been some outside people and maybe there has been some in-fighting with the other Executive Vice Presidents but they are here. For him, this is the AEW Amphitheater and he thanks the fans.

Cody takes off his boot (a sign of retiring)….and Malakai Black breaks the crutch over his back. Black steals the boot and glares a lot to end the show. I’m glad they didn’t tease the full on retirement angle here as AEW fans are smart enough to know why Cody is going to be gone. Also, well done on bringing Black back in, because it would have been annoying to have him get that kind of a win and then just leave while Cody did his thing.

Overall Rating: C+. This felt like they were taking their foot off the gas a bit and that’s ok. We’ve had four weeks of major shows and what we got here still worked. They kept advancing the stories forward and with All Out in about a month, it means they can set up the actual matches in the next week or two. What we got here was fine enough, but it was one of the slower paced shows they’ve had in a bit.

Results
Chris Jericho b. Juventud Guerrera – Top rope Judas Effect
Jon Moxley/Darby Allin/Eddie Kingston b. 2.0/Daniel Garcia – Coffin Drop to Garcia
Christian Cage b. Blade – Spear
Miro b. Lee Johnson – Game Over
Leylah Hirsch b. The Bunny – Cross armbreaker
Malakai Black b. Cody Rhodes – Black Mass

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

IMG Credit: Prestige Wrestling

Attribute Of The Strong
Date: June 29, 2019
Location: Bossanova Ballroom, Portland, Oregon
Commentator: Joe Dumbrowski

It’s another show from Independentwrestling.TV as I get everything I can out of a free trial. This is from Prestige Wrestling, a promotion out of the northwest with some names I’ve actually heard of for a change. I’m not sure what to expect from this but that can make it more fun at times. Let’s get to it.

As usual, I have no idea what is going on here with characters or storylines so I’m sorry if I miss anything in advance.

Sweet there’s commentary on this one. That was a major problem last time.

Ethan HD vs. Sonico

I’ve seen Ethan before and Sonico is your local luchador. The ring looks rather big, probably WWE size at least. The fans immediately go with a BOTH THESE GUYS chant as the lighting looks like one of those recreation scenes on Dark Side Of The Ring, complete with the handheld camera work. Sonico takes him down into a front facelock so Ethan crawls backwards to escape. A test of strength goes a little better for Ethan as he takes Sonico down but can’t break his bridge.

Ethan’s jumping stomp misses, with Ethan saying it was that close. Fair enough and a smart warning as grown men stomping down onto the chest can be damaging. Sonico’s mask comes unhooked so Ethan helps put it back together, meaning we need a hug. A quick victory roll gives Sonico two and Ethan has to duck a swinging kick to the head so we can have a standoff. Another hug winds up being some shoving, allowing Sonico to bounce off the ropes into a wristdrag.

Ethan tries the same and can’t get up to the middle rope for a funny bit. It’s Sonico picking up the pace and hitting a springboard shoulder to put Ethan on the floor. The suicide dive nearly sends Ethan into the corner of the small arena and the fans are rather pleased. Sonico chops him around the ring, even having Ethan sit on a chair for a rather big one. Back in and Sonico hits a basement dropkick in the corner for two, followed by a quickly broken Figure Four.

Ethan tells him to bring it on so Sonico drops him with a left hand to the face. To be fair, he did ask for it. Some running knees in the corner have Sonico in trouble and a Death Valley Driver gives Ethan two. Things get a bit more aggressive with Ethan stomping him down in the corner, meaning it’s time to head to the floor. A chop nearly attaches a poster to Sonico’s chest and a bottom rope superplex gives Ethan two more. Ethan clotheslines his head off for another two but Sonico sends him throat first into the middle rope.

That means a top rope double stomp to the back and a missile dropkick as Ethan is rocked for a change. There’s a Sling Blade into a suplex (called a brainbuster) for two on Ethan but he’s right back up with a springboard kick to the head. Sonico rolls outside so it’s a springboard moonsault to take him out as this is getting WAY more time than I was expecting. Ethan returns the top rope double stomp to the back and hits a running shooting star press for two more.

Sonico’s reverse hurricanrana plants Ethan but he can’t follow up. It’s Ethan up first and a shot to the head sets up a tiger driver for the next near fall. Sonico is back up with a lifting DDT and Ethan flips him off and spits at him after the comeback. That’s too much for Sonico, who knees him in the back of the head for the pin at 19:30.

Rating: B. That was FAR longer than I was expecting but it was a rather entertaining back and forth match. Ethan started off being respectful and having fun but eventually got a lot angrier and more disrespectful. That told a nice story for the match and I had a good time with this. That’s how you need to open a show and I’m looking forward to seeing what else they have for the rest of the night. Nicely done.

They shake hands post match.

Cole Wright vs. Mike Santiago

So a bit of a weird thing here: they show a graphic for every match, which is perfectly fine. What’s strange is that it shows all of the show’s information, including where to go for tickets. To the show that you’re already watching. Santiago seems to be the villain here as he has been saying that Wright, who is new around here, isn’t in his league. The wristlock has Santiago in some early control as we hear about the Prestige Championship picture.

The battle of wristlocks goes to a standoff and Santiago chuckles from the corner. They fight over a top wristlock until Wright hits him in the face to make Santiago go a bit more serious. A running clothesline gets one and a Codebreaker gets double that, so Santiago gets smart and knocks him outside. That means a kick from the apron before squeezing Wright’s head against the post.

Back in and the chinlock keeps Wright down and a big forearm gets two. The running knee to the face misses but Santiago is fine with a dropkick to take Wright back down. Wright is back on his feet for the slugout with Santiago getting the better of it for two. A missed crossbody out of the corner makes it even worse for Wright but Santiago is getting frustrated off the near falls. Santiago’s tornado DDT gets a slightly delayed two so it’s time to punch Wright in the face.

Another near fall means it’s time to yell at the referee, which allows Wright to roll some German suplexes. Santiago runs him over for two more, but walks into a spinebuster for Wright’s first big shot in a good while. Wright grabs him by the waist to send Santiago bailing to the ropes out of fear of something unclear. With that broken up, Santiago nails a knee to the face and grabs a fisherman’s buster into a small package to put Wright away at 14:46.

Rating: C. This was another one with a story though the action wasn’t as entertaining. Santiago wasn’t all that impressed by Wright to start but had to worker harder to beat him. The problem was that I didn’t quite buy that Santiago was in any real danger as Wright was more surviving than competing. The spinebuster was good but other than that, there just wasn’t much going on here. Not bad, but it only went so far.

Post match Santiago says cut the music. He told everyone that Wright didn’t have a chance, which has been the case with so many people around here. Santiago wants better competition and he’s tired of being up local guys.

Black Sheep vs. Drexl vs. Jaiden vs. Nick Radford

One fall to a finish. Drexl has been mentioned a few times and seems to be a bigger deal around here. Radford has glasses and a book, with the fans not seemingly that into him. This seems to be a new look for him and while he wants to say something, Drexl, with a huge beard, cuts him off as we’re ready to go. The bell rings and Radford gets the mic but the fans cut him off this time.

Radford has something to read for us: erotic fan fiction poetry, which seems to please Drexl. The poem is about the four way and how the four of them could have a bit of fun. Jaiden takes the book away and the double teaming is on (make your own jokes). Sheep and Jaiden hammer away on him but Drexl is more interested in reading the book. Jaiden kicks Radford in the face but gets hit in the face with the book for his efforts. More book shots from Drexl set up a nasty paper cut for Jaiden as we’re in Jimmy Havoc world.

Sheep and Radford are fine with watching as Drexl cuts Jaiden’s mouth as well. With Sheep remembering he’s in the match, Drexl and Radford fight over the book on the floor as Jaiden, seemingly fine from the cuts, flips across the ring. That doesn’t go well as Sheep catches him for a slam into the corner, setting up a toss over the top onto the other two. Back in and Radford has the book again, with Drexl telling him to finish the story. He even brings Radford a chair so he can read more easily.

Radford gets to the part about Jaiden, who tries to break it up and gets sent face first into the chair for his efforts. Then Sheep is sent face first into Radford’s crotch and Drexl pelts the chair at Sheep’s head. Another chair is set up in the middle and it’s a Tower of Doom to send everyone but Radford through them. As a result, Radford loads up the book again but gets pulled into the Tree of Woe and then a trashcan. Sheep spears the trashcan, leaving Drexl to hit a sitout Death Valley Driver for the pin on Jaiden at 11:22.

Rating: D+. I’m not sure what to make of this, but I know I’m not a big fan of comedy like this. The book deal was more bizarre than funny which made for a rather different match. Maybe this is a match where I need to know the people a bit better, but this didn’t do it for me. It wasn’t the worst and it didn’t last that long (remember that the reading went for over two minutes at the beginning), but this mostly missed for me.

Post match Drexl hits himself in the head with a chair. Various others leave annoyed.

Juventud Guerrera vs. TJP

This could be interesting. Juvy, in his mask again, streams his entrance in one of those things that always seems cool, no matter how common it might be. Before the match, Juvy does his Rock impression, which has been going on longer than Rock’s entire career now. He also puts over TJP as the first modern Cruiserweight Champion and then goes with a LET’S GET JUICY chant. Uh, yeah. Anyway they shake hands and we’re ready to go.

Juvy snapmares him down early on but doesn’t follow up in a show of respect. A battle over wristlocks means a lot of spinning and flipping away until TJP anklescissors him down. TJP has to bounce out of a headscissors and a basement dropkick puts Juvy on the floor. An exchange of leapfrogs takes us to a standoff and the fans are rather pleased with what they’re seeing.

That means another handshake but Juvy takes a breather by laying across the ropes ala Eddie Guerrero. TJP does his own Eddie pose, but Juvy says HE loves Eddie more. One heck of a chop drops TJP and the double arm crank is on. Some running shots in the corner rock TJP again with Juvy throwing in some swearing for flavor. Now we pause so Juvy can yell at a fan, allowing TJP (known defender of fans) to hit a springboard hurricanrana to put them both down.

There’s a tornado DDT to plant Juvy and a high crossbody gets two. Juvy gets two of his own off a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and a Downward Spiral into the middle buckle makes it even worse. An over the shoulder backbreaker is spun into a DDT to give Juvy two more and it’s time for the Juvy Driver (I know this as Juvy makes a motion and shouts JUVY DRIVER). The shouting isn’t the best idea as TJP reverses into the kneebar with Juvy tapping….and then shaking his head no. The referee counts it as the submission at 13:34 in a weird ending.

Rating: C+. This is why you bring in someone with a reputation like Juvy. TJP is a bigger name in modern wrestling but Juvy was a big deal during one of the most important eras and a win over him means something for TJP. You have to bring in the veterans to give the younger guys (though TJP is a veteran as well) a boost. Good match too as the show has been rather entertaining so far.

There’s some confusion over what happened but Juvy definitely tapped. A guy with a camera who I assume is an authority figure decides we’re getting five more minutes because SLAPPING THE MAT OVER AND OVER while in a hold doesn’t count as a tap for some reason. They kick away at each other as commentary tries to explain that it was a controversial ending. The Juvy Driver and Detonation Kick are both countered and Juvy rolls him up for the pin at 15:10 total. That had to be a botched finish earlier because otherwise there is no reason to do something so messy and so fast.

Post match Juvy raises his mask and praises TJP again. Juvy didn’t tap (yeah he did) and would love to face TJP again at some point. TJP says he knows Juvy didn’t tap but he’d want five more minutes with him even if he had. He left WWE to chase his freedom and he’s honored to face another former Cruiserweight Champion. Hugging ensues.

Team C4 vs. Eh Team vs. Konami Code vs. 4 Minutes of Heat

Elimination rules and the Konami Code is the only one I’ve heard of. The Eh Team (Lance Pearson/Chase James) are Canadians, 4 Minutes of Heat (Eddie Pearl/Ricky Gibson (not Robert’s brother, who was also a wrestler)) are rockers, Konami Code (Julian Whyt/CJ Edwards) are in Castlevania cosplay and Team C4 (Cody Chun/Guillermo Rosa) are….well they’re the last to enter. There is currently a Tag Team Title tournament going on/still be seeded so there is some jockeying for position going on here.

Chun and Whyt start things off as the fans chant what sounds like “SALTY B******”. Whyt and Chun trade some legsweeps and they both miss dropkicks for an early standoff. It’s off to Rosa vs. James, with the first round consisting of getting the fans to cheer louder. Instead of going after James, Guillermo chops Gibson to bring him in.

The other teams bail from a Gibson tag attempt, leaving him to get kicked in the face. James hits some chops in the corner and it’s Pearl coming in for a save, earning himself a trip to his partner’s crotch. That happens two more times as this isn’t as funny as they think it is. A neckbreaker/powerbomb combination gets two on Gibson but a powerslam/neckbreaker combination finishes Pearson for the first elimination at 5:45.

It’s Konami Code coming in to double team Pearl with an assisted dropkick putting him on the floor. Pearl gets dropkicked off the apron and there’s the suicide dive. Chun dives onto both of them but Gibson slips on the ropes and crotches himself. More dives ensue until it’s another powerslam/neckbreaker combination to get rid of the Konami Code at 8:59.

Rosa slugs away at both of them and it’s a German suplex with an O’Connor roll for a double near fall. Chun comes back in and Rosa tries to use him as a launchpad into a Canadian Destroyer but Rosa can’t get over. Instead it’s a regular piledriver to Pearl, leaving Chun to roll Gibson up for the pin at 11:25.

Rating: C-. This had the dives and fast pace but it felt like it should have been a lot longer. The eliminations came rather fast and furious at the end and I was surprised by the final pin. In this case that isn’t the best thing in the world, as nothing really had a chance to be set up. The match wasn’t terrible or anything, but no one had a chance to stand out.

Post match 4 Minutes of Heat beat them down with the same powerslam/neckbreaker combination. Cue the likely authority figure to say he’s tired of 4 Minutes of Heat acting like this, so he’s bringing in someone they think they are: the Rock N Roll Express. Well that works, though the Express in Oregon feels weird.

Super Crazy vs. Chavo Guerrero

Chavo gets checked for weapons but just to be fair, he checks the ref too. Crazy likes the idea but doesn’t listen to the fans’ demands that he check the ref as well. We get a BOTH THESE GUYS chant and Chavo says that’s the first time he’s ever gotten one of those. Crazy takes him into the corner but gets snapmared down into an early chinlock. Back up and a wristlock seems to annoy Crazy so he takes it to the mat for a front facelock. That impresses Chavo and it’s another standoff.

An ECW chant lets Crazy get in a few cheap shots, as for some reason the fans don’t seem to remember Chavo being ECW Champion. Chavo gets beaten down in the corner and Crazy wraps the knee around the post. Back in and Crazy kicks at the leg to keep Chavo in trouble. It’s already time to head back to the floor with Chavo being thrown into some chairs.

They head back inside again for more kicks to the leg as you can’t say Crazy isn’t focused here. The chinlock switches the pace a bit but doesn’t last long as Chavo is back up with a dropkick. A headscissors into the slingshot hilo gets two and the knee is fine enough to hit Three Amigos. The Eddie chants are rolling as Chavo goes up but he has to knock Crazy back down. Something like a frog crossbody finishes Crazy at 10:49.

Rating: C. Chavo sold the knee near the end but there wasn’t much in the way of his offense changing because of it. That being said, a match between two guys far past their primes but still more than watchable in the ring is a good addition to have on the card. Having someone like Chavo makes the show feel a little more legitimate and adds some star power. He’s not the biggest name ever but he’s the biggest name on the show and he had a good match. It gives the place a little more legitimacy and that’s very important.

Post match Chavo talks about coming to Portland dozens of times for a bunch of companies Then he came back here for a show called Grimm and he loves this city. Chavo talks about all the things he loves about the place, including the coffee and the weed. This kind of a show is why someone leaves WWE because they love to interact with the fans.

Ask any big band if they have more fun playing in a stadium or a bar and they’ll pick the bar every time. Chavo puts over Crazy and the company, plus Prestige Champion Tom Lawlor. Nice speech, capped off with an EDDIE chant. Hang on though as Crazy wants to talk about how special this is as well.

Prestige Wrestling Title: Tom Lawlor vs. Simon Grimm

Lawlor is defending and that is Simon Gotch. This is a rubber match as they have split a pair of matches before this one. These two are feuding in MLW as well so there is potential here. Grimm heads to the mat to start with Lawlor not being able to do much. He can get out of Grimm’s armbar attempt but gets pulled down into a headscissors for a breather. Lawlor’s armbar has Grimm in a bit of trouble and a hammerlock puts him on the mat. Lawlor switches over to the leg and gets in a Sharpshooter, possibly becoming an honorary Canadian in the process.

With that broken up, Lawlor switches to a Figure Four as he’s certainly sticking with the grappling and submissions so far. Grimm pulls on the ankle to escape but Lawlor switches it over to a Regal Stretch while on his back. Some shots to the head get Grimm out of trouble and he goes with shots to the champ’s face. Lawlor is fine with the striking and knocks Grimm to the apron, only to suplex him back in. The guillotine choke keeps Grimm in trouble but they fall outside for the break and a crash.

Grimm finally manages to drop Lawlor onto the apron for a breather, breaks the count, and then goes back outside to kick Lawlor in the chest. Lawlor has shown he can hang in the striking so he kicks right back, has a drink, and keeps kicking. Another kick sends Grimm through some chairs as the fire is starting to come out. The referee’s requests to come back in aren’t well received as Grimm would rather hit a suplex on the floor to a big reaction.

That’s only good for two back inside so it’s bottom rope superplex time for two more. The Kimura attempt is broken up and it’s time to slug it out again. Just like the previous two times, Lawlor gets the better of it and we hit an airplane spin of all things. Lawlor puts him on the top for some running knees to the ribs, including one after three forward rolls. They slug it out again, with the low lights showing the sweat that much better. Yet again Lawlor gets the better of a battle of strikes but misses a top rope elbow.

Grimm STILL doesn’t get it with the strikes, though this time stereo big hits to the head give us a double knockdown. A German suplex drops Grimm on his head and a running knee rocks him again. The rear naked choke is broken up but Grimm can’t get the armbreaker. Lawlor is right back with the choke but Grimm uses the underneath arm to reach the rope.

Grimm gets up again and hits a cradle piledriver for two as Grimm is looking frustrated. This time Grimm goes for a rollup, which is reversed into a triangle choke for two arm drops. Lawlor flips over though and it’s a series of forearms to the head. Another triangle makes Grimm tap at 21:19.

Rating: B. Other than Grimm not getting it with the strikes, this was a very interesting and entertaining battle of two people trying to outlast the other. Grimm was good but Lawlor kept grinding him down and eventually winning when Lawlor was able to use the skills and experience. Grimm looked good here and has done a great job of making me forget what he used to be. Very good main event.

Lawlor wants to show respect but Grimm collapses to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. I wasn’t expecting anything here and I got a very good show with some good action, a few nice surprises and only one match I didn’t care for, which was more that it wasn’t my taste than anything else. This was a lot better than I would have bet on and that’s not something you can say from an indy company. Yeah it’s small and they are limited on stories, but this was a two hour and thirty five minute show with nothing bad and enough good that I’d watch another show. It’s one of the better indies I’ve seen and there are a lot of them to beat to reach that point.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Smackdown
Date: November 18, 2005
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

This is another request and it’s the Smackdown version of the Eddie Guerrero Tribute Show. On top of that, it was also taped the same night as the Raw version (double taping on a Sunday due to the European trip) which was the day Eddie passed away. I’ve grown to respect Eddie a bit more over the years so it should be interesting to see how this goes. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Smackdown World Champion Batista in a low rider to Eddie’s music for a perfect opening. Batista immediately starts crying and says he’s not sure he’s the right man to be out here. All he knows is that Eddie loved his family and loved this business. He had a lot of demons to deal with but the pain went away when he walked through that curtain. Batista has to pause a bit to fight back the tears and you can feel the real emotion here. Eddie is with God now and Batista isn’t going to let anyone ever forget him.

Eddie video set to 3 Doors Down’s Here Without You. They’re my favorite band so this is about as perfect as it’s going to get. Above all else though: that frog splash was a thing of beauty.

Clip from the Eddie documentary focusing on his childhood and family. It’s kind of weird to hear Eddie talking about his brothers and sister.

The low rider, with Batista’s title on the hood, will be in the aisle all night.

Matt Hardy vs. Carlito

This is interpromotional as Carlito is from Raw. As you’re probably going to guess, these matches aren’t going to mean a thing. Matt is freshly on Smackdown after losing the feud with Edge on Raw. It’s so strange to see Matt looking absolutely svelte. He’s probably 30 pounds lighter than he is today and looks great. Matt grabs the afro to start but gets sent outside to give Carlito control.

The announcers aren’t even bothering with the match as they’re just telling Eddie stories for a nice touch. Carlito loads up the middle rope legdrop but dives into a raised boot (still hate that spot). The Side Effect gives Matt two but Carlito grabs the Backstabber for the same. Matt comes right back with the real middle rope legdrop and the Twist of Fate is good for the win.

Rating: C. This is a good indication of how this night is going and there’s nothing wrong with that. There’s no need to try and make this show mean anything storyline wise so just go out there, have decent matches, and give the fans something to smile about. Good little match here too.

Vince gives a tribute to Eddie, who was a true craftsman. He actually tears up talking about how much Eddie loved his family, both blood and co-workers.

Another documentary clip talking about Eddie meeting Vickie then marrying, losing and getting her back.

Road Warrior Animal/Heidenreich vs. Lance Cade/Trevor Murdoch

I still have issues calling Animal and Heidenreich the LOD. This is another interpromotional match, which is probably going to be a trend all night. Cade and Heidenreich start things off with the cowboy being taken down off a hard clothesline. The announcers get in a debate over which Tag Team Titles belong on which show (which is why I just go with the show’s name and ignore the official names) as a cheap shot puts Heidenreich in trouble. That goes nowhere as he spears the villains down and makes the hot tag. Everything breaks down and the Doomsday Device ends Cade.

Rating: D+. I’m going a bit lighter on the matches tonight as there’s no reason to go crazy with the ratings, especially when the wrestlers probably aren’t all there mentally. This version of the LOD never worked as Heidenreich didn’t feel like Hawk at all. It didn’t help that the tag divisions were such a mess at this point and even interpromotional stuff wasn’t interesting.

Booker T. and Sharmell miss Eddie with Booker telling a story about getting in a fist fight with Eddie back in WCW.

Documentary stuff on the Lie, Cheat and Steal vignettes. These were some of the first things that really made me appreciate Eddie as a character instead of just a performer. This transitions into a look at all the cheating over the years, which really was hilarious at times.

A sweaty Big Show is glad Eddie isn’t in pain anymore.

Eddie talks about playing other sports but giving them up because he only cared about wrestling. We also hear about his childhood growing up around wrestling because his dad was a promoter.

Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Chavo still has blonde hair from the Kerwin White gimmick, which was completely done after Eddie passed away. JBL has image consultant Jillian Hall with him. Some forearms in the corner have Chavo in early trouble so he snaps off a headlock takeover. We hit the cheating, including a thumb to the eye to send JBL outside. That’s quite the selling for a basic move.

Back in and the crossbody is caught in a fall away slam to put JBL in control like he should be. The heavy right hands in the corner are accompanied by stories of sewage and burritos. We hit the sleeper, which looks really weird from someone so big on someone so much smaller. Or maybe it’s just that JBL isn’t good at using that move.

Chavo comes back with a dropkick and a DDT to break up another fall away slam. It’s time for a few chairs and of course Chavo throws one to JBL and falls down just like Eddie did so many times. Ok I smiled at that one. The distraction lets Chavo get in a low blow, followed by Three Amigos and a frog splash for the pin.

Rating: C-. The result here means nothing at all as this was all about paying tribute to Eddie. Chavo winning was the only possible option here as he was basically Eddie’s little brother and could wrestle the same style so well. It’s not a good match (fine enough though) but it was exactly what it was supposed to be.

Video of Eddie’s mom talking about his childhood.

The announcers talk about Eddie a bit.

Video on Eddie at Wrestlemania XX. That was the rather awesome match against Kurt Angle where Eddie took his boot off, which they played up in the Summerslam rematch. This leads to the ending of the show which is really hard to watch now.

JBL was Eddie’s arch nemesis but he was lucky enough to be his friend.

Video on Eddie winning the World Title from Brock Lesnar at No Way Out 2004.

Cruiserweight Battle Royal

Tajiri, Gregory Helms, Paul London, Kid Kash, Brian Kendrick, Scotty 2 Hotty, Nunzio, Funaki, Psychosis, Super Crazy, Juventud

Nothing on the line as Juventud is already Cruiserweight Champion. Everybody gangs up on Helms and Tajiri (the Raw guys) but don’t bother to actually eliminate either of them. Kendrick gets kicked out for the first elimination and Super Crazy goes out as well. Tajiri and Funaki follow them, leaving London to do a bunch of springboard kicks to the back. Helms and Nunzio take a double Worm.

Scotty dumps Kash and London does the same to Helms to get us down to five. Make that three as Nunzio gets rid of Scotty, leaving us with Nunzio, Juventud and London. Nunzio’s attempts at alliances don’t work and the Italian is sent out. Both guys wind up on the apron for a kicking battle until they both crawl back inside. Juventud dropkicks London out for the win.

Rating: D+. I’ve seen worse battle royals but few that were more pointless. The champ is entered into a match and then wins the thing? The division wasn’t the most interesting in the world at this point and other than having some cruiserweight stuff involved on the show, I have no idea what this has to do with Eddie.

Video on Eddie and Chyna, which was pretty awesome stuff. His kids try to figure out what Latino Heat means.

We look at Eddie’s last match, a DQ win over Mr. Anderson.

Shane McMahon talks about how cool it is to have major families like the Guerreros (and the Jarretts). He talks about what Eddie meant and breaks down in tears.

Video of the end of Wrestlemania XX with JR’s voice giving out.

Chris Benoit vs. HHH

HHH is a heel here but plays to the crowd during the entrances. Given the circumstances, that’s totally fine. An early Crossface attempt sends HHH to the ropes and we take a breather. Back in and Crossface attempt the sequel gives us the same plot (but likely fewer laughs). This time Benoit follows him out and sends HHH head first into the steps, only to get sent crashing outside as well.

Back from a break with HHH hitting some forearms to the back and getting two off a spinebuster. We hit the abdominal stretch but the powers of an EDDIE chant…..don’t really do much as HHH throws Benoit down. Your standard sleeper reversal sequence is followed by an exchange of failed finishers. That means it’s time for the rolling Germans on HHH and a Swan Dive for two. The Pedigree is countered into the Crossface, which Benoit lets go in favor of a rollup for the pin.

Rating: B. Even the announcers said this was just about having a good match and that’s what we got here. When HHH gets rid of the whole “I’m amazing and one of the best ever” stuff, he can put on some outstanding performances because he really is that talented. I liked this match for different reasons than I usually would have but it was still good stuff.

Benoit chants Eddie’s name and Dean Malenko comes out for the big hug ala Wrestlemania XX to wrap things up.

Overall Rating: A. This is a weird one to grade as the wrestling was actually good but it had nothing to do with the show’s quality. This was about celebrating Eddie’s life and nothing else. I had a lot of fun watching it and actually started missing Eddie as the show went on. I’ve never been the biggest Eddie fan but things like this, where you look back at his career and life, really show how special he truly was. I may not be a huge fan but I certainly respect him, which is probably more important.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQKDV5O

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6