Smackdown 06/14/13: Go Away Show
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Chris Bosh knows it’s hopping time!
DO IT NOW!
Chris Bosh knows it’s hopping time!
DO IT NOW!
You’re as cold as ice. You’re willing to sacrifice our love…
In what they’re calling the “Super Mario” edition of the show, Joe, JT, Jorge, and G discuss the week in pro wrestling. We talk wrestling television of course, celebrate Bully Ray’s title victory at LockDown, appreciate Punk’s heeldom, and debate on whether the Highlight Reel was the worst segment in WWE history or not. We catch That Damn Double C being WRONG about this week’s WWE trivia, and have to research the actual answer online. We also catch him trying to sneak in the lyrics to Toto’s “Africa.” That sneaky Aussie bastard. In the news, we talk about health insurance for wrestlers as Daffney’s lawsuit with TNA has come to an end. We get updates on Jake Roberts from DDP’s Accountability Crib. We find out which Divas has been contacted for a WWE return, and find out that TNA has been rejected by every single former knockout they reached out to for one of their one night only PPVs. All this, and much, much more on BWF Radio 66!
BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 66 (MP3, 2:06:54)
This week’s break song was “Put Up Your Dukes” by Race. Buy the album here!
Today I read the news: Paul Bearer passed away. I remember when I first started watching wrestling was just before Wrestlemania XII. And one of the most unique characters of that time was Paul Bearer. I was a huge Undertaker fan and still am. Out of the wrestlers I mark out for the most-Piper, Double-A, Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer-few of them compare to the mark-out feeling I get when I see the Undertaker. The Undertaker was unique. He had one of the greatest ring presences to ever grace our screens, with respect to Flair. And when it came to aura and mystique, there were few who could touch The Undertaker, if anyone.
So why am I talking about The Undertaker when I’m reflecting on the Life of Paul Bearer? Well, it was hard to separate the two. As imposing and terrifying as the Undertaker was, Paul Bearer was the other half of him. You could not have had the Phenom Undertaker without Paul Bearer in his early days. They tried with Brother Love, but the character just missed something in the early days. It wasn’t until Paul Bearer became part of the Undertaker’s character that the character clicked. Eventually the time came for Paul to break away and the Undertaker soared, but without Paul, I’m not sure we would have seen the Undertaker we have now.
One thing that stands out to me is how Paul was able to take anything, no matter how awful and make it into something good. Let’s face it. The Impostor Undertaker storyline in ’94 is one of the cheesiest things I’ve ever seen in wrestling. (And I’ve lived through Katie Vick, Kane-Shane McMahon and The Giant falling off Cobo Hall yet winning the world title.) Yet with all the players involved-Ted DiBiase, Brian Lee, The Undertaker & Paul Bearer-they made my inner kid believe in everything going on. Take the Kane storyline. Out of nowhere Paul Bearer was revealed to be the father. As preposterous as that sounded, through that interview with Jerry Lawler where they didn’t know the camera was running, he put together all the pieces. There was his return in the mid-2000’s that caused him to be buried alive in concrete by the Undertaker himself. With respect to all involved, there wasn’t anyone who could salvage that.
The Undertaker and Paul Bearer were something special. How many times has the WWE tried the supernatural thing since then to little or no success? Mordecai? The Boogeyman? Kevin Thorn the Vampire? Countless other names I can’t remember because of their failure? Due to the stage presences of both men, they were able to make this something special and make countless dollars off this.
There were so many great memories from him. There was the aforementioned Impostor Undertaker storyline. There was the feud with Diesel where Diesel did the unthinkable. He put his hands on Paul Bearer. That was back in ’96 when things still mattered. There was the Paul Bearer turn that broke my heart for a long time. Kane didn’t have much of a shelf life. Paul helped to give him fuel that kept him around today. There was the surprise appearance at Wrestlemania XX, where I remember marking out like a little kid for seeing him again. In 2010, Undertaker once again feuded with Kane. I remember seeing turning to Smackdown (which is something I never do), and I waited for him to appear from the casket. I was like a little kid watching him over and over again.
He had so many signatures. There was the “Ohhhhhh, yyyeeeeeeesssssssss” he was so famous for. I still do that. It’s not at the same level as “Brother” or “What?” but it’s still pretty impactful. When I was telling my wife he had passed away this morning, I described him as the “Oh, yes” guy. (And yes, I did it in his voice, or my feeble attempt at his voice.) I still remember how he would say, “The urn.” Any time I hear the word urn, I immediately think about him. And that voice was so eerie and so spooky. With respect to the Macho Man, it was probably one of the most recognizable voices of his time.
I never had the chance to meet Paul Bearer. I swear I had to have seen him live a time or two. (My first ever then-WWF show had a Kane appearance that must have been around Badd Blood ’97, so I think Bearer was there. It was just a long view from where I was.) I used to follow him on Facebook and after the birth of a grandchild, there were comments congratulating him and wishing him well. He took the time to like every one’s comments, including mine. I know it may have been little, but I thought it was pretty awesome. In the pre-Attitude era and in the Attitude era, there were fewer personalities who made a bigger impact. Brother Bearer, Uncle Paul, Mr. Pringle, thank you for your time on this Earth.
Well, this was a huge night for MPX. This is by far their biggest crowd, and there were lots of new faces. So for anybody who might doubt them, Colt Cabana & Jimmy Jacobs are draws. I was somehow able to convince my lovely wife (whose favorite part about indy wrestling is I leave the house for the night) to join me for this night. As somebody who’s been with this company nearly from the beginning, it was amazing to see how far they’ve come.
Dark match: JD Kross vs. Jerome Daniels
Daniels is my wife’s favorite patient after one time he had a concussion and she was the nearest nurse. Kross needs to work on the physique. Guts are fine. They just need to look like they’re getting smaller. Ben Wylde is someone who’s spent a lot of time working on his physique, and not that he’s Chris Masters, but there’s improvement. Jerome was great in front of the live crowd. With exception given to Palmer, he is probably the best at keeping the live crowd engaged. The move of the match was this corkscrew kick. I had an Oh, wow moment when it happened. Jerome put on the hold and made Kross tap out.
Winner: Daniels
We had the introduction of the commentators. The crowd still did not react to Hawke. I wonder if it’s because his current entrance doesn’t do anything to solicit boos. Oddly enough, the one fan who boos him sat behind me.
First match: Kanoa w/ Kyle Davis vs. Gregory James w/Kyle Valo vs. Matt Palmer vs. Jimmy Jacobs
Well, one cannot accuse Jacobs of any ego issues as he worked the first match on the card. Palmer is looking a little more chiseled. If you’re reading this for the first time, and you have not ever seen a Matt Palmer match, go to www.smartmarkvideo.com & check out an Anarchy Championship Wrestling DVD. He is one of the best wrestlers in North America you’re not watching. I’m going to use a name that Kyle Davis reminds me of and I do not use this name lightly-Paul Heyman. There are so many ways that he parallels what Heyman is capable of. Palmer-Jacobs was great. These guys have worked before and were totally even. My inner smark was quite happy seeing this. During the match, Kyle received a call on his cell phone (Paul Heyman much?) and took the mic. Mike Foxx had arrived and Kanoa had to leave the match to help Foxx prepare. Looks like we might be doing a build to a Kanoa face turn. I’m not quite sure Kanoa as a heel has run its course yet. After Kanoa left, the three remaining continued their really good match. Greg was able to jump in and do the flip-floppy moves. Jimmy bumped and sold like a pro. Total class act. I wrote down that it was a good match and wanted more.
Winner: Greg
They’ve been leading towards Barrett and Greg forever. With the build-up they’ve given this, this should be one of the most anticipated matches ever. They did a pretty funny vignette where Steven Kirby was trying to explain to Frankie Fisher who his opponent was going to be. Cute.
Second match: Athena vs. Jordynne Grace
So I was really looking forward to this match. Athena is a darling of the indies, and I think with time, so could Grace. The fans were not very forgiving in this match. This is not the most perfect match I’ve ever seen the two have, and to be honest there were a few botches, but every match had one just about. I’m not sure how many times these two have worked together, but I know the chemistry can be hard until you find it. The fans were brutal and heckled some pretty awful things. There was a guy who legit weighed 3 times Grace yelling out,” Jenny Craig.” And Grace works really hard on her physique and does not deserve that from the crowd. I think this will be a full blog topic later on, because I’m still pretty steamed. Nevertheless, Athena was Athena and proved why she is one of the top talents in the world. And I thought Grace did some pretty incredible stuff in the ring. She had some nice, hard-hitting, stiff moves. They won chops of the night until Danny Saint.
Winner: Athena
I think there is enough talent in Texas/Oklahoma/Louisiana/Arkansas to have a legit women’s division. Andy Dalton then came out. I love Evil Dalton. He’s one of Texas’ best treasures. He challenged Scott Murdoch to a chop contest, which is kind of like belly-flopping onto a porcupine. Dalton got a chop in and Murdoch took it and had a pretty red chest. When it came time for Dalton to take a Murdoch chop, Dalton wanted to keep his shirt on. And then he attacked Murdoch with a cookie sheet. You want to dent a cookie sheet, hit Scott Murdoch with it. A great angle to start off the Murdoch-Dalton. I’m really looking forward to this feud.
Third match: Kristopher Haiden vs. Joe Angelo Garcia
This was a match with some nice build-up. Haiden continues to be one of the most over heels in the company. I wrote down that this match was better than the crowd reaction. The crowd didn’t seem that into it. Garcia’s mannerisms remind me a lot of another wrestler that I don’t mention often or use his name lightly-Chris Benoit. Not saying that he’s the second coming, but there are some flashes where I see him in the in-ring work.
Winner: Haiden
After the match, Franco D’Angelo came out and congratulated Garcia on a strong fight. I would like to have Franco come out to my work after I mess up and give me motivational speeches.
During the intermission, Colt Cabana, Jimmy, Athena & Grace were out and about in the crowd with doing what Cliff Compton refers to as “the hustle.” Grace did not have a lot of visitors at her table which was a shame. Were she not already adorning my Man Room Wall, I would have bought something more. I got to briefly discuss AIW and WSU with Athena, which made me mark out as always.
Fourth match: Li Fang w/Nigel Rabid vs. Jiggle-O James Johnson
Johnson came out of retirement (which lasted longer than several Terry Funk retirements) to continue his feud with Li Fang. Johnson had his own brand of intensity. He was still engaging with the crowd yet focused. There was so much intensity and anger in this story. Johnson was on fire. There were a few moments when our eyes got big. Johnson did a kick that sounded like a decapitation. There was also a springboard stunner that Li Fang somehow kicked out of. Li put Johnson in a crossface with Johnson tapping out.
Winner: Fang
Johnson really put over Li in this match.
Fifth match: Tad Wylde (Ben Wylde & Viktor Tadlock) (c) vs. 4D (Dave Dunnings & Dax Daring)
On paper, you wouldn’t think that the team of Daring and Dunnings would work, but somehow it does. Dax is Matt Palmer on a smaller scale in his underrated-ness. If I do a list of my best local wrestlers you’re not watching, Dax is going to be towards the top of that list. One of the biggest reactions of the night was Tadlock’s hair. It looked like the love child of Moe of the Three Stooges and a medieval page.
Last blog, I mocked the new “Wylde” tights for being a little too awkward. This time he had some bicycle shorts or something underneath. The match went pretty well. The newer people in the crowd really weren’t connected with either team so they weren’t lost but just not invested in this match. I love seeing Dax whenever I can. Dunnings’ work is always very solid. And Tad Wylde are becoming a tag team unit. They even had a pretty good finisher.
Winner: Tad Wylde
4D congratulated them afterward. It was nice to see that sportsmanship.
Sixth match: Frankie Fisher vs. Colt Cabana
That’s right. I just wrote Colt Cabana in a LIVE show recap. If I am correct, I remember a few years ago, when Frankie was taking a donation to bring in Colt Cabana. And here he finally was. Frankie was probably the best wrestler to go against Colt because Frankie does comedy probably better than anybody, with respect to Zero. So it was a really fun match. Frankie and Colt kept the crowd engaged. There were plenty of funny spots. My wife became a fan of Colt Cabana after that match. Kanoa came in and interfered in the match. It was ruled a no contest.
Winner: No contest
Main event: Barrett Brown (c) vs. Danny Saint w/Claudia vs. Mike Foxx w/Kyle Davis & Kanoa
It was nice to see that this was still the main event, even with the huge names on the show. The first time Danny main-evented in MPX, I don’t think anybody ever thought he had a snowball’s chance of winning the belt. Tonight he was believable. All 3 looked like they wanted it and belonged there. Saint won the award for chops of the night. Barrett took some pretty crazy chops from Saint and absorbed the blows. Kanoa distracted the referee while Foxx had Barrett pinned. Barrett took the win and retained.
Winner: Brown
After the match, the Following came in and started attacking Brown and Saint. Out to his rescue came a returning Carrion Arcane showing lots of fire and a huge crowd reaction.
All in all… Was again such an emotional experience. Dallas area is not known for getting in big indy names. To get Colt and Jimmy was a pretty big achievement. The crowd was really packed and it really was standing room only. The opener was great, Li-Johnson was really good, Colt-Frankie left me in tears, and it all ended in a strong main event.
1. Gary Jay vs. Darin Childs
Either Darin is really great at selling or he had a legit sprained ankle. Speaking for somebody who has had one, walking to the ring, much less competing in a match is a small miracle. Gary’s work was really good as always. It was a really strong first match, though I thought it was a bit short.
We had a Barrett Brown promo. He needs a mouthpiece. He has such an amazing presence in the ring; he just needs the promo ability taken off his plate.
2. Barbi Hayden & Bolt Brady vs. The Takeover
Barbi is probably one of the best wrestlers you’re not watching. This is the first time I’ve ever seen Barbi as a face, which is funny because she’s one of Texas’ top heels, male or female. This is my first time to see Miss Maulie. I’ve only had the chance to see Jaykus Plisken once and it was when I was ring announcer so I was running around trying to find my bearings. He has a great look and is a born main-eventer. He has such a presence. I wonder if he needs a mouthpiece to help preserve the gimmick. I liked Maulie’s work here. And Bolt earns his name as he is-sorry, I have to-“electrifying.” The pumphandle slam into the knee breaker thing was incredible.
Jojo Bravo cut a really nice promo heeling Ricky Romida. Bravo is where ACH was a few years ago.
3. Ricky Romida vs. Carson
Add Carson to the list of best wrestlers you haven’t heard of. The match itself started off as Andre the Giant vs. Cary Elwes from Princess Bride. The strategy was that you had a little man (which Carson isn’t) trying to take down the bigger man. Romida looked strong, and Carson put him over as a monster, which he’s not really that big. I was impressed by both’s work here. I believe we had a story told.
4. Jeffery Gant vs. Athena
When I see Gant, I wonder where the rest of him is. Athena is just in a class by herself. This match was way more competitive than I thought it would be. The longer it went, the more Gant impressed me. I might call him the Texas Spike Dudley. I found myself liking this match a lot more than I thought I would. This was a great showcase for Athena’s submission skills, but both looked great in this match.
5. Davey Vega vs. Barrett Brown
I was told how great this match was from a very impartial source-Brown’s dad. (Yes, that sentence was in jest). If you have never seen Brown, he’s worth it. You have Texas’ future vs. the U.S.’ future. (Give Barrett time. He’ll be the U.S.’ future too.) He was able to hang with Vega and he looked pretty good in the ring against a top tier indy talent. It was very emotional to watch this kid that I’ve watched ever since he was 16 get to wrestle in what is probably the biggest stage in Texas. He did really well in there against Vega. The scary part is that Barrett is only 18 and has no limit to where he goes.
6. Arik Cannon vs. Matthew Palmer
Matt Palmer is the best wrestler in the world you’re not watching. I like seeing Cannon every time I get the chance to watch him. They worked really well together and had good chemistry. The thing I write about Palmer is that he never forgets he’s in front of a live crowd. There is so much innovation in this match. Not only were they great in the ring, they were great out of the ring too. This is a great DVD if you have never seen either of these. I’m not sure what they paid Cannon, but he gave you a really good match with brawling, scientific wrestling, striking, lots of blood and made Palmer look like a million bucks. Whatever they paid him, it was a bargain.
7. Pierre Abernathy vs. Darin Corbin
This was good fun. They did a tribute to the Wrestlemania VI Main Event, Warrior vs. Hogan. After 3 really excellent matches, the crowd needed come down a little bit. This was very good comedy.
8. Jessica James vs. Christina Von Eerie
This was an interesting look and transformation for James. James has got to be one of the top female wrestlers in Texas. And Christina has got to be one of the top female wrestlers in the world. She has the most unique look in all of women’s wrestling, plus she is great in the ring. Any wrestler I’ve first heard about while watching AAA is pretty awesome in my book. The match was really good. There were a few moments where I noticed the little things both did well.
9. Mojo Bravado vs. Team Havin Fun (Rachel Summerlyn & Portia Perez)
I really don’t know what to think about some of these creative decisions as Portia is one of the top heels in the world, but she is really good with Summerlyn, and Anarchy is its own creature. It gets to do what it wants to. Jojo Bravo wrestles like a face but is a heel. To call Jojo one of the next big names in Texas would not be much of an exaggeration. He has that same energy and charisma that ACH has. You can’t teach what skills this man already has. Jordan Jensen is extremely good at the heel role. And I’ve gone into detail about what I think about Summerlyn, but just to repeat, she reminds me of a really pretty tomboy. Plus, with Summerlyn, you get Machiko, who is in my opinion, one of Texas’ hottest wrestling personalities. The match was a really good match with intergender implications. Jensen puts on a heel clinic, and both ladies owned the crowd.
10. Children of Pain 2.0 vs. ACH, Summers & Genesis
Wrestling doesn’t have too many wrestlers who looked like The Thing of Fantastic Four fame. Scot Summers is one. Ryan Genesis is pretty jacked up too. I consider these two to be the top tag team in Texas. And ACH is in a category all by himself. I haven’t seen Vexx too much, but I’ve seen Silver and and Sky (the Lost Boys) live and wrestled in one of my favorite matches of 2012. Watching ACH at this point of his career at ACW is like seeing Ric Flair in Charlotte, CM Punk in Chicago, Jim Ross in Oklahoma. It’s his hometown, and that crowd has made him. The match was pretty violent and everybody carried their weight. A good main event to capitalize on a really great card.
All in all… A really good show from Anarchy. The Athena-Gant, Vega-Brown, Cannon-Palmer trilogy of matches were all really good. There are so many great underrated or undiscovered wrestlers on this card: Barbi Hayden, Bolt Brady, Carson, Jojo Bravo, Summers & Genesis & The Lost Boys. There are some top women’s wrestlers: Athena, Christina Von Eerie, Rachel Summerlyn, Portia Perez, Jessica James, so if you like women’s wrestling, this is also very worth your time and money. I’d have to definitely make this a huge recommendation.
And then Khali died.
Oh man, wrestling fans… this week was one hell of a ride. We were joined by @AliceRadley of Rational Wrestling Review and rather quickly Jorge and Alice embark us onto a pretty entertaining diatribe about… things. We roll through the week of WWE, TNA, and ROH as usual and return to the madness that is the world of The Iron Sheik. The upcoming Wrestlers vs Zombies is discussed. J.T. reveals his disdain of the product that prompts a discussion of why we watch wrestling today, with some reference to the abuse of the fans by McMahon being akin to today’s announcement of the end of the NHL lockout. Velvet Sky crashes her car because of a little snow (we call that July in Canada), Daniel Bryan wants to become the most useless superhero in the Marvel universe, Fred Flinstone gets jobbed out, and much more!
Ensure you like Jorge’s facebook page here. He need’s 503 votes, and we will be able to coerce him into joining social media! Do it now! Make fake facebook accounts and make democracy legitimate!
BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 56 (MP3, 2:07:18)
Also… here are the videos discussed on today’s episode:
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ThinkSoJoE, JT, G, and Jorge return! Joe’s SmackDown shenanigans continue (at least according to G), and pistol-whippings ensue! Discussed this week are Sunny’s recent string of arrests, Hulk Hogan’s sex tape, and a war of words between Ryback and Goldberg. We ponder the whereabouts of Christian, discuss the desire to watch Bound For Glory, and question TNA’s booking. And of course, we discuss CM Punk striking a fan on RAW, discussing whether or not wrestlers should be allowed into the stands. Take a listen at the following link!
BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 44 (MP3, 2:07:57)
This week’s break song was “Kill The Sexplayer” by Girls Against Boys. Buy it here: “Cruise Yourself” album – Song
Courtesy of Wrestling With Text
Joe, G, and JT are joined this week by WrasslorMonkey from Wrestling With Text, Jonkind from Wonderpod Online, our very own Drowgoddess, and have audio sent in by “Professor Salmon and Zwan.” This unique cast of characters spend the first hour giving their predictions and thoughts on tonight’s SummerSlam event from the WWE, and the second hour is spent, as usual, talking wrestling news. Topics of discussion this week include injuries to Yoshi Tatsu and Pope D’Angelo Dinero, reactions to Kevin Nash’s comments about Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit, A.W.’s continued ranting, JBL’s thoughts on wrestlers “stealing” moves, the Scooby Doo/WWE collaboration, Claire Lynch’s apparent TNA departure, and much, much more!
You can find our guests for this week’s show elsewhere on the interwebs. Jonkind is around on Wonderpod-Online, Wrasslor Monkey runs Wrestling With Text, Professor Salmon runs the music blog Music Times Two and works for Original Stampede Wrestling, and Zwan is behind Ailean Environmental Ltd.
Download the podcast here: BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 36 (MP3, 2:12:03)
Recently, the legendary Bruce Hart and the CEO/VP of Stampede Wrestling, Doc Knight, took time out of their busy schedule to speak with ThinkSoJoE and G of BoredWrestlingFan about the relaunch of the Original Stampede Wrestling. In the one hour interview, Bruce and Doc talk about the various promotions going around trying to use the Stampede name. Bruce tells us about working behind the scenes at the original Stampede, the innovations pioneered by the organization that were “borrowed” by others, how the lack of “grass roots” territories is effecting the wrestling business, the overabundance of gimmick matches, wrestlers who can’t work as Champions, how completely scripted matches effect the audience, and the lengths wrestlers would go through back in the day to maintain the mystique of professional wrestling as opposed to the near complete lack of mystique being maintained in public by today’s wrestlers. G asks about the late, great Ed Whalen, the original voice of Stampede Wrestling. Bruce and Doc talk about wanting the new Stampede to be a viable alternative to the WWE. Bruce discusses mistakes that are being made by promoters today, which leads to a mini-shoot on Brutus Beefcake. The duo talk about the desire to make sure their talent is properly trained, wanting to grow a new generation of talent, instead of “one dimensional stiffs,” having a reason or purpose for everything done in the ring, and the need for things to be done safely. Bruce ponders the absurdity of weapons randomly lying around under the ring. All this, and much more! Click below for the full interview.
BWF Interview: Bruce Hart & Doc Knight (MP3, 1:00:34)
For more information on Original Stampede Wrestling, please visit OriginalStampedeWrestling.com
Kamala is on Youtube discussing the charities that claim to be in place to help out older wrestlers and their health issues. Kamala has undergone two amputations of his feet, and has been unable to work as a result. Not just as a wrestler, but outside of the business as well. I am not going to editorialize here. Rather, I suggest you watch the video. He does call out most notably Dawn Marie’s Wrestling Rescue.
I do not know anything but what is shown is this video, however, I think it’s important as always to consider where you send any charitable donations. I’m poor too.
Until we hear otherwise, this is just one side of the story. Take some time to listen to a rare Kamala videocast on the topic.
[youtube IfYze8JTxm0]