Tag Archive: Asian Nation

  1. MPX Back to School-August 18, 2012

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    MPX’s Back to School is in the books. (See what I did there?) Thanks to the characteristic awful traffic, epically torrential weather and WTF side-road configuration, I ended up getting there late and halfway into the dark match. So sorry to Tad Wylde & Kros/City for missing it.

    It took me a while to sit down and get my bearings. I sat down just in time to see the intros. Kate looked gorgeous and leggy as usual. We were treated to the title match being first.

    First match: Frankie Fisher (c) vs. Matt Palmer

    The match started, Matt did his finisher on Frankie and pinned him in Sheamus/Daniel Bryan time.

    Winner, and new champion: Matt Palmer

    Then Frankie started complaining and they restarted the match. I yelled out, “Dusty Finish” (and I usually try not to get involved).  However, they did the exact same thing and Palmer walked out as champion. If you read my writing, you know I’m a huge Matt Palmer fan. Having him as champ adds a certain credibility outside the company. If you do not know the name Matt Palmer, please learn it.

    I’m a little mixed on the next segment. There was a trivia contest between the two members of Tad Wylde and the Asian Nation. The build-up was a little different than Guy A beats up Guy B. So it was refreshing that the creative team is trying out new things. However, as I go into cranky old white man mode, I do not go to pro wrestling to watch trivia contests. But they had a little girl come in and clinch the trivia contest. It was about the kids and that’s what mattered.

    Second match: James Hawke vs. BC

    Hawke is beginning to get a bigger crowd reaction. And BC is great. He understands the crowd and has so much charisma. He has no character; he is just himself. I liked the decision of putting BC here in this match, because as a heel, all you have to be is contrary to him. The work looked a little clunky in places. But BC’s role was to make Hawke look good, and that went well.

    Winner: Hawke

    They showed a video of Haiden attacking Barrett Brown. Best I can figure out, somebody needs to call the police.

    Third match: Kanoa vs. Steven Kirby in a Lumberjill Match

    This match was joined by special guests: The North Texas Derby Revolution, whom can be found here. Between the Europa Expo and MPX, they are on an all-out publicity blitz. The match was Kanoa fighting Kirby with the ladies of the derby skating around the ring. Steven Kirby, formerly known as WASP, is going through a transition to being himself. His “self” is apparently very Irish-American. Kanoa showed a little bit of his comedic range. My only thing is was this out of character for him? But the match was pretty decent. When Kanoa got knocked out of the ring, the derby girls would make sure to hit him as they skated by. My major complaint was that this match did not fit the intensity their current feud. It was a showcase for the girls and might have better fit Tad Wylde facing a tag team. I’m not sure who else I would have put in the match with the roller girls. It’s like watching an episode of Mad Men and then one episode of Mad Men is the Harlem Globetrotters playing the Washington Generals. There were some stiff chops and some good work. Mike Foxx interfered followed by Scott Murdoch to force it into a “No contest.”

    Winner: No Contest

    Everybody wanted it to be a tag team match. I’m glad that it didn’t. They are willing to wait and let the story play out naturally.

    Fourth match: $Payday$ (c) vs. Kenny Steele for the Prospects Championship in a Last Man Standing Match

    This was a big blow-off to their feud. The guys really brought it in their intensity. They beat the living s*** out of each other. $Payday$ got his first ever “That was awesome” chant with his moonsault off the ring apron onto Kenny. They brawled and ended up at the tires for the crossfit training. Kenny put $Payday$ in the tire and rolled him back to the ring. One thing I liked is that $Payday$ was able to have a different type of match, yet he still found a way to include his athleticism in it. There was a sunset flip onto the ladder that drew $Payday$’s 2nd “That was awesome” chant of the night. At another point there was a spinebuster onto a ladder. For the finish, Kenny did a powerbomb onto the crossfit tire. That drew a first for me: a heel getting a “That was awesome” chant.

    Winner, and new Prospects champion: Kenny Steele

    For both guys fighting their first Last Man Standing Match, it was a pretty good brawl. I would have liked to seen more drama and focus on winning the match. But end to a very nice feud.

    Fifth match: Scott Murdoch vs. Mike Foxx

    I love that Mike Foxx is being used as a gatekeeper to build the next generation. I loved Murdoch’s intensity and focus. It was almost Lesnar-like. Foxx had his patented scowl. The first time these two met together, it somewhat lacked in the intangibles. This match did not. Both were firing on all cylinders. There were some chops where I was pretty sure somebody was going to get decapitated. It ended when Kanoa came back in followed by Kirby.

    Winner: No contest

    Really loving the feud going on with these four. As part of the main event, Zero the Antihero came out and asked to be on the main event team. Now if Mike Dolenz did not have a team ready, should have really been deserving of staying GM? Haiden walked out and beat up Zero, incapacitating him. Since Headbanger and Saint came out to Zero’s rescue, they were asked to be part of his team.

    Main event: Gregory James, Danny Saint, Claudia & Frankie Fisher vs. Kristopher Haiden, Matt “The Choice” Andrews, Regrub & Carrion Arcane in an elimination match for control of the company for 90 days:

    I was surprised by the choice of Claudia, but it made sense. Frankie didn’t. He had just lost the title. Why was he out there seemed to be a little off to me. This was perhaps one of the top matches of the night for me. There were lots of complex stories going on here. Claudia held her own and even pinned Choice. She also did a moonsault on Regrub earning a “That was awesome” chant. Frankie looked good in the match and even got some chants. I liked how even though he was on the face team, he still wrestled like a heel. It ended up with the last two being Greg & Arcane. Haiden, who had just been eliminated, attacked Mike Dolenz with a chair. It distracted Greg enough to where Arcane was able to get the pin.

    Winner: Arcane

    Being that he won control of the company, Kyle Valo took the mic and  announced the changes that would be happening.

    All in all… I’m liking Valo taking over as lead of the company. He’s better on the mic and entertains the heck out of me. I liked the $Payday$-Steele match. I loved the crossover of the derby girls (my kind of eye candy), even if it didn’t make sense in the bigger picture. And of course Matt Palmer being champion means nothing but good things. Not everything clicked, but they are focused and concentrating on letting the stories play out naturally rather than giving us too much too early. I am very intrigued to see where they go from here.

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  2. MPX-Indeed 5/26/12

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    I still remember when I decided I wanted to support indy wrestling and sent a message to my buddy and told me about this new place he had started working. I remember how small and “work-in-progress” this company was. But they concentrated on their strengths: great characters and storylines that kept you coming back. Tonight they had Funaki. Like, THE Funaki. Smackdown Announcer #1. Indeed. That Funaki.

    They opened it up with Funaki coming out to speak to the fans. He was interrupted by the Asian Nation who invited him to become a junior member. Good stuff. And of course it went into fisticuffs. I think everybody was involved except for Kate.

    First match: Barrett Brown vs. Kristopher Haiden

    I of course would like to congratulate Barrett on his recent graduation from high school. This kid is already one of Texas’ best and he JUST NOW graduated high school. Barrett has improved a lot over the past year. He’s adding more and more different kinds of offense into his matches. If you have never seen this guy wrestle before, go look him up on Youtube. Haiden does a great job being the bully. When it comes to being the bully, I think he’s the best in MPX and one of the best probably in Texas. He gave Barrett a clothesline from Hell and got the pin.

    Winner: Haiden

    Haiden asked to be announced as “The Cruiserweight Slayer.” I like Cruiserweight Crusher better. It’s alliteration. We had angry Headbanger come out because he didn’t have a match. He wanted an opponent. He was given Frankie Fisher AND Jason Silver. I liked angry Headbanger. These past few months, he has gotten to show off his range.

    Second match: Tad Wylde vs. Regrub & Matt Andrews w/The Following

    Masked Guy (I still haven’t figured out what his stage name is.) is looking a little skinnier. The classiest thing all night was when Tad Wylde thanked the military. What I thought could have added a nice dimension was asking all the military people to stand, but no biggie. They can do that in November. What Choice lacks in size, he makes up for in personality and commitment. He is a good storyteller and somebody you want to get over your story. Tad Wylde is a pretty good tag team. They work well and did some cool double-team moves. Ben played the face in peril very well. One of the biggest moves of the night was Tadlock doing a plancha. For those unfamiliar with Tadlock, that’s like Rhino doing a plancha. Good, fun match with Tad Wylde getting the victory.

    Winner: Tad Wylde

    I like how they are building up Tad Wylde.

    Third match: Scott Murdoch vs. Danny Saint

    I like both these guys and they were quite entertaining in this match. I’m going to love a Saint-Murdoch feud. The fans win. The chests of Saint and Murdoch do not. These guys were brutal (in a good way). I wrote down I was really happy to not be either. I also wrote down one word at one point, “Wow.” These guys really laid it on the line. I watched a DGUSA DVD yesterday that had some of the best in-ring work I’d ever seen. This was not that type of match yet still kept just as engaged in it. It was still just as intense and emotional and brutal.

    Winner: Double Countout

    Can we already name this MPX Feud of the Year? Kyle Davis interviewed Kanoa. “I’m going to beat people. Who’s next in line?” Not a lot of depth to it, but we’ll see where he goes from here.

    Fourth match: Bling & Sting vs. Asian Nation

    It was nice to see tag team wrestling that meant something. $Payday$ had a great plancha. He’s becoming more smooth and more fluid. There was good comedy. WASP & “Just” Johnson both do comedy really well. I wonder if Nigel might be a little wasted on this tag team. I think James is really good on the mic and doesn’t need any help. I do think Nigel works as an “outside-the-ring” presence. But then again, I’m not sure where you use Nigel if not with the Asian Nation. Anything that keeps Nigel in front of the crowd works for me. I wrote down that it was a fun match with lots of intricate stories. Kenny Steele walked out and stole $Payday$’s belt. $Payday$ went to tag in WASP while he was still recovering after being in the ring for a while. $Payday$ went after him. The two-on-one advantage proved to be too much for WASP.

    Winner: Asian Nation

    Well, with Tad Wylde, The Following, Asian Nation, Bling & Sting, a possible Cash & Carry return, Dunnings & Red, I believe, MPX, you have a tag team division.

    Fifth match: Joshua City vs. Jerome Daniels

    This was Joshua’s debut match so he gets “First Match Immunity.” However, I don’t know if it’s Jerome, but this was actually a pretty good match. Joshua has a lot of personality and kind of understands that it’s due-paying time. As I have learned, it’s not easy cutting your first promo. It takes something to listen to the crowd and be reacted to. I’ve seen a few debuts in MPX. Some I wish I could unsee. This is probably the best debut I’ve seen at MPX.

    Winner: Jerome

    Jerome is supposed to be built-up to be fighting the big match against Frankie and took a little longer than he should have to beat Joshua City, making his MPX debut. James Hawke came out after the match saying that the people were supposed to love him were booing him now. He listened to the crowd and followed them where they took him. This is the John Cena heel turn we’ve all been waiting for.

    Sixth match: Nobe Bryant vs. Kanoa

    I’ve had the chance to see Nobe since back in the day. The man is a great athlete and has an amazing look. Kanoa has a good arrogance to him. Both guys are really good athletes and  had some good agility for their size. Nobe tried to keep the crowd engaged (which sometimes really needs to happen with this crowd). And with respect to Murdoch and Saint, Nobe won for chop of the night. I wrote down that it was a good, decent match. Kanoa won unexpectedly.

    Winner: Kanoa

    Looks like they are giving Kanoa a nice push. I’m intrigued to see what he has for us.

    Seventh match: Frankie Fisher (c) vs. Gregory James vs. Jason Silver

    Well, who wouldn’t want to see James-Silver? I wrote down that I liked the beginning. Frankie is a good smarmy heel. There were some good dynamics. You had James and Silver who are friends but Frankie used that to his advantage. The action was very fast-paced. I was surprisingly able to keep up with most of it. Greg is becoming quite the storyteller. Storyteller + Agility = ∞ limits. Frankie submitted Jason Silver while Greg was outside the ring.

    Winner: Fisher

    This is definitely the strongest I have seen Frankie looked. He looked like a credible champion.

    Main Event: Carrion Arcane w/The Following vs. Sho Funaki

    I’m going to try to see how many times I can fit the word “Indeed” into this match. Seriously, it was fun. We had Funaki live before our crowd. Arcane got in a lot of offense. Funaki did what he did best and one of the reasons he was kept around in the WWE for so long. He sold. The match was very well laid out. After a good night of wrestling, we got to see Funaki get a pin out of nowhere.

    Winner: Funaki

    All in all… The night was pretty decent. The crowd was packed and lively. Some people were worried about it being BYOB for the first time. As Arcane said, “We have a Murdoch.” They left us with some nice questions. That is what a wrestling company needs to be, especially with a lot of people who normally wouldn’t be there. Special props need to go out to Daniel and Anthony the refs. These guys were active and engaged in hot weather doing a very athletic activity for several matches. Joshua had a nice debut. Murdoch and Saint tore down the house. Frankie looked like a real legitimate champion. And I do believe we have the development of a tag team division.

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