Big Boss Man & the Bodyslam

Big Boss Man vs. The Hurricane WWF Metal 2/2/02

ER: When you have less than 3 minutes to work with it comes off extra impressive to me when you can build to big moments within the minuscule narrative you created. We start with Hurricane trying to just take Boss Man off his feet any way he can, not budging him with a shoulderblock and getting the back of his head elbowed after a couple of failed bodyslam attempts. Boss Man throws Hurricane around with real strength, a nice mix of Boss Man's power and Hurricane's big bumping, and Boss Man's right hand variations in the corner look real mean. Boss Man had a limited moveset at this point but was super smart about utilizing every little movement and making stories out of those movements. Here, Molly hits him with a missile dropkick behind Nick Patrick's back and slips out of the ring, but Boss Man uses his slide to the floor to chase after her, sliding out of the ring and chasing her back in, and upon sliding back in Hurricane intercepts him and uses his chase momentum to actually hit that bodyslam. The crowd erupted for that bodyslam like Hurricane had just won the match, or even a title. Hurricane tries to take it too far and hit the chokeslam, but Boss Man shrugs him off, sends him into the ropes, and puts him away with the Boss Man Slam. How many throwaway bodyslams have you seen in all your years of watching wrestling, and here's Boss Man constructing a short match to make one actually feel like a major highspot. That's the story here.

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ROH at UMBC 10/12/18

TKG: So I haven’t been to an ROH show since maybe Sinclair maybe earlier. But a couple guys at bar had gone to All In (my favorite story being asking Blue Meanie at Meet and Greet if he had any of his merch in XXL and him responding “Of course all I have is 2XL and up” and they were talking about going to ROH in Baltimore and a couple more guys were down for it, and I was like “sure”. We kind of got lost stumbling around UMBC for a while but got there a little way into the Jeff Cobb v ROH trainee match

Jeff Cobb vs. trainee

TKG: This was surprisingly back and forth. The trainee had a second who you expected was the manager who was going to eat a bunch of suplexes after match and didn’t. I was told that was trainee’s tag partner who was legit injured. Not sure why he was out there.

Briscoes vs. Beer City Bouncer/Bryan Milonas

TKG: Also thought this was going to be worked less evenly. Briscoes still have that kind of Sabu/Sandman aura of anything can happen. Mark did a kick through ropes, chairs were thrown in air, guys were thrown into guardrails and there was a tower suplex spot. But this was mostly really impressive showcase for Mark and Jay’s selling as they really made you believe in the Bouncer/Milonakas team and made you buy into idea that any moment all hell could break lose.

Marty Scurll vs. Hurricane

TKG: Last two matches had no real face/heel structure and then this one which was advertised on paper as hero v villain and they could have theoretically worked as Hurricane heel v Scurrl face but….Scurrll is super over with crowd and was going to get cheered for everything and any move done against him was going to be booed. First four minutes I thought they were going to go with a Hurricane heel v Scurll face dynamic with Helms working over Scurrl in a cloverleaf. But then it Scurrl just went to his stuff. Scurll was also a guy who had a real Sabu/Sandman what the fuck is he going to do feel when I first saw him on tape but here he was just a guy running through his stuff some heelish (match died whenever Scurll slapped on a hold), some faceish, some just there…till a shmozz finish. Post match, Hurricane’s mask is stolen and Helm’s makes sad-contemplative-and then-serious-Command Bolshoi-with-mask-off face.

Summe Sakai and____________vs. ____________&_____________

TKG: I think Sumie Sakai’s tag partner may have been an Adam Cole girlfriend, cousin or sister or just facially looked like Cole as audience yelled “Adam Cole Baby” whenever she hit a move. I think her belly ring may have snagged the woman who speared her which was kind of interesting but this felt like it went way too long. I went to find the Brothers Cooke during this and we talked wrestling and they’re both still hilarious. No intermission, I swear ROH used to have intermissions.

They do a backstage interview segment with Bubba Ray hosted by Caprice Coleman. Always liked Coleman, is he no longer wrestling? He kind of did more bug out eye selling off Ray’s mic work then necessary but fine interview segment.

Bully Ray vs. Jonathan Gresham

TKG: I had mostly seen early niche grappling Gresham and on way to show talked about this match not making any sense on paper. I’ve no memory of ever seeing Bubba work a mat exchange. But it ended up easily being my favorite match on show. Bubba comes out takes the mic and does less profane but more obese Joel Gertner mic work. He calls out audience talking about how there is no one with any athletic experience in the crowd, challenging people to fight him, mocked fans inability to hit him with streamers and talking about how proud he is of his New York heritage, mocks the Orioles does more about the greatness of New York, when Gresham comes out he points out that supposed fan favorite got no standing ovation and cheers (of course leading to crowd standing and cheering), don’t anyone say Tracy Sucks, don’t call me Paula, etc mic work and it was great. The women's match may have been face v heel but not sure, this was first one on show where it was really clear and Bubba doing essentially Dirty White Boy’s “I’m from New York” act but without any of DWB’s big brawling spots made for a really fun match. I have no idea how this will play out on tape but live this was the match of the night. Bubba brought a table in ring which got knocked over and forgotten for a big chunk of match, no one chants for wanting tables at this point and I was super looking forward to idea of match with table in ring where never gets used. Eventually set up and you get the PE in WCW, guy brings table in ring to eat a spot on table. But outside of that no real big bumping a couple chair shots , just match structure, selling and cool setting up of face offense and comebacks. Gresham with dropkicks, an octopus, sleeperhold and chair stuff was perfectly at home in this match too. Gresham not niche guy but well rounded in way wouldn’t be out of place working fired up babyface opposite no knee pads Budro.

Cody Rhodes/Team Macktion vs. So-Cal Uncensored

TKG: SCU started with some “I hate the locals “ mic work which was absurd to do after the Bubba match where entire match was built around I’m from New York City. Rhodes and Kazarian are apparently co-owners of a cigar company and both wear wearing shirts advertising it and they did a bit at beginning of match where they cut an insincere commercial shocked to see the other in matching shirt and talking about the cigar company they owned together. In the 90s I remember wrestlers telling me about how Jimmy Valiant was a genius because he understood the money in wrestling wasn’t in the gate but in the merch sales, and he wouldn’t want to work main events but instead the last match before the intermission to increase merch sales and would make sure to work a gimmick he was selling at his merch table into the match. He understood that better than anyone not named Vince Sr or Jr. With internet on demand sales, you don’t need to actually spend the time hawking wares at table and can work a semi main. The Gabe by way of Heyman booking is you work this spotfest multiperson match at end of show to send crowd home happy and enthusiastic. PE v Eliminators, Chilly Willy, Balls v Baldies, Smackdown Six, SAT v. XL/Devine Storm, Special K, Second City Saints v Generation Next, etc. This was that although worked in the semi-main. Christopher Daniels was kind of a known quantity in 2002, felt like a guy from a veteran of earlier generation as opposed to rest of ROH guys who were experimenting and trying to find themselves work out something new. Everyone felt like that here or maybe less like that and more like I was watching a solid workrate sprint between Riggs, Kidman, and Riggs v Riggs, Riggs, and Kidman. Both a throwback style and match that was less of a “HOLY SHIT I have never seen that before” and more like an AJPW old man wrestling match/or Russo era WWF where it was all built on pops for signature spots. It was interesting, nothing was missed that I noticed, Cody & Kazarian had more presence than I expected and fans left it happy. Some un-masked white guy named Savion came out with a belt and started filibustering about how he’s beaten everyone and deserves respect.

Jay Lethal vs. Silas Young

TKG: This was a fine title match with challenger coming out confident, champ takes control with wrestling, challenger responds to wrestling with putting up dukes and wanting fisticuffs instead, some ringside brawling, champ continues to control with wrestling, challenger keeps on threatening dukes, they do a I have a reversal of your reversal segment, than heel takes over for a big run, face champ tries finisher and build finish run. I dug this. The “reversal to reversal segment” never became as corny as those things can become. That’s a segment that normally goes about three minutes longer and it didn’t. Segment that often ends in a standoff restart and it didn’t do that either. It ended right where it should have with heel control. For a match where heel challenges fisticuffs, I never bought that it would happen. But this won the crowd back after the 6 man. Post-match Cody came out to challenge for the title and was interrupted by Kenny King who did the same speech as Savion about all the people he had beaten and how he was deserving of title. I haven’t seen King since maybe a Jeff Peterson memorial and he was really good at doing this bit and kind of stupid to have Savion who isn’t as good stumbling over the same talking points earlier on the show. Cody then did a Tommy Dreamer, Triple HHH, Ian Rotten post show state of the biz thanking fans for coming, “we do this all for you, and this company that means so much to us” speech. Cody was surprisingly endearing at that speech. He moves really well from smarmy to Eddie Marlin sincere and then back and then back again.

Overall fun show with both Bubba v Gresham and Lethal v Young being things I would be interested in revisiting.

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CWF Mid-Atlantic Worldwide Episode 116

Episode 116

1. Ethan Alexander Sharpe vs. Mitch Connor

ER: Cool match, never threatened to overstay its welcome. Connor stuck close to Sharpe (love the E# boots, by the way. Have I just not noticed these before? I remember his boots having $$ on them, but my brain could have just filled in that lie) and kept clubbing with chops and meaty fists to the neck, and best of all he keeps doing all these short butterfly suplexes. I've never seen Connor use them in this way before, just bullying his way in close to E# and chucking him low. Sharpe was scrambling and mean, and I like him much more when he's mean than when cracking jokes. His jawbreaker was really great, and the hard uppercut flash finish was deserved. Fun stuff.

PAS: Between this and Cain Justice match I am becoming a Mitch Connor fan. He kind of wrestles like a UWFI American, like Dan Bobish or Gene Lydick. Lots of grinding wrestling, short throws and clubbing shots. I loved how he smothered Sharpe and how Sharpe used distance to be able to land shots. I loved the big uppercut finish and it really felt like a KO blow. Kind of bummed we didn't get to see a Tom Watson at the British open old man run from Connor, but this may have been the best I have seen Sharpe look, so no beef.

2. Cam Carter vs. Smith Garrett

ER: It's not bad to have an occasional surprise finish like this in a tournament. I'm disappointed as I was interested in seeing these two match up, but the big uppercut looked good.

PAS: I read ahead a bit and know where this is going, and I don't care for it at all, outside of that it was a fun 30 seconds.

3. Cain Justice vs. Chip Day

ER: Well this one had me cursing the 10 minute time limit of these 1st round Weaver Cup matches. These two have a pretty great 9 minutes, but then have to play beat the clock in the final minute, so it shifts the tone of the cool match we were getting into forearm exchanges and played out indy wrestling Frye/Takayama fighting. I'm at the point where even if the Frye/Takayama spot looks good, I'm just over it. They did it well, but I thought it was a dumb finish as there wasn't any immediacy to the match for any of the previous 9.5 minutes. Before that finish (and not just how the finish was handled in the closing moments, but the fact that it means neither guy advances, which sucks) I was loving this. Cain is the guy I pretty much want to see against everyone right now, and Day is an especially fun opponent for him. Cain has no problem eating Chip's strikes, not playing along with hold set-ups (loved him rolling out of the ring before getting his elbow stomped, both guys really building to the stomp like a rollercoaster that slows down as it approaches the summit) and still throwing in at least one crazy bump to the floor (with no shoes!! This guy is nuts!). My favorite move of the match was Cain's figure 4 stump puller. The stump puller is an underutilized move. It's really painful, just lifting a few inches and you feel it all up the back of your leg. But I don't think I've seen anyone lock the other leg in a figure 4 before, just adding extra leverage and preventing the person from somehow striking with the free leg/knee. The fact that he eventually rolled back with it was even cooler. So we had that finish, and then we get a long tease for a match restart. Day says that Johnny Weaver wouldn't want a match ended this way, Stutts gets involved, Cain claims he doesn't care about the tournament and walks out. BUT then he runs back in and cracks Day in the back of the head! I'm immediately flipping out for the restart overtime match...but that's it. Match over, no actual restart, neither man still advancing. A real letdown of the finish. I wanted Cain to make a run to the finals, not be used to give someone a Bye.

PAS: I also was a little bummed that both of these guys got eliminated (if they wanted a draw, there were plenty of "eliminate both guys" candidates last week), but I dug this match. Cain has set a pretty high standard for his matches lately, and the tourney format kept this from being at the level of the top tier Cain matches, still it was a nifty little scrap. I loved Cain switching up his attack and going after the knees, and how that slowed down Day's kick attack. Figure four stump puller was cool, but I am intrigued by a possible new leg submission he is concocting, he should steal the Trauma's spinning figure four. Finish was a little lame, but I get why they kicked in gear for the last minute, the commentary kind of sold it as a rookie mistake by Cain, he lost track of time and had to accelerate his attack recklessly. During this match I figured out that Chip Day looks exactly like Chris Eigeman which was pretty distracting.

ER: Chris Eigeman crossed with John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees

PAS: The preview for the documentary looks pretty cool, I was a big fan of Richards v. Lee and the idea of a documentary about a single match is pretty great.

4. Roy Wilkins vs. Chet Sterling

ER: Not a bad match, and normally I'm the guy who is all about the under 10 minute matches, but somehow KNOWING that matches are only going 10 minute max kind of takes me out of them a bit, especially knowing that things just end in a draw at the 10 minute mark. 10 minute matches are great, but 10 minute matches with the Beat the Clock stip seem more forced. Still, both guys know each other and know how to craft a professional match. I didn't think a lot of strikes looked great in this, but the match was kind of made by the bumps and the misses. Wilkins missing a big crossbody, or Sterling getting totally upended by the golf swing uppercut, both guys being generous with the other. I thought the finish was really good, with Wilkins locking in a really nasty cross-legged stretch muffler, really bending and cranking on Sterling. Stutts was good at putting over the time relative to the submission, saying there was no way Sterling could last 90 seconds in it. And Sterling knows this, scrambles to free himself and convincingly reverses the sub into a pinfall.

PAS: I liked this more then Eric I think. I am not a Sterling guy, but I thought this might have been the best CWF match of his I have seen. I thought he bumped and sold really well, and I liked the draw tease roll up finish. The Wilkins missed crossbody bump to the floor right into the Sterling dive was awesome looking. Wilkins has a bunch of cerebral attacks, I love how he uses ring placement to trip up and disorient his opponents.

5. Shane Helms/Chet Sterling vs. Arik Royal/Roy Wilkins

ER: Royal comes out after the match and lariats Sterling in the back of the head, but is then surprised by a Shane Helms surprise return. I assume he hasn't been back in the Sportatorium in a few years (but I was also surprised to see him taking big bumps in TNA earlier this year, as last I heard was that he had been in a bad accident and could no longer wrestle. Obviously my information is dated). And usually impromptu matches aren't this good and aren't this much damn fun. Helms can clearly still go, still bumps hard for shoulderblocks, still throws some of the absolute best corner punches in the biz. Usually impromptu tags end short and unsatisfying, this one actually gets plenty of time and has a nice build. Royal and Wilkins stooge around plenty for the returning star, but they still get to hold onto their local mean streak. Sterling has a nice run as a fighting FIP; he wasn't just strictly selling for a Hurricane hot tag, he was holding his own but coming up short, but still firing back with punches and eventually hitting a nasty DDT. Royal can really come across big time, and that Face Jam is an awesome move, loved how they set it up like the Hart Attack. All Stars know how to deliver a feel good ending without actually coming off weak, and that's a testament to their quality. I was expecting a light breezy match and it ended up being my favorite of the show, all four guys brought it.

PAS: In 1998 I remember seeing Shane Helms and Venom fight Madd Maxx and the Gemini Kid in a street fight at an OMEGA show. Helms did a plancha off a soda machine and Venom chokeslammed Madd Maxx through a couch that I had been sitting on. So it was fun to see Helms two decades later in another fun tag match against a team lead by the now Coach Gemini. Two matches in a row I have dug Sterling, he was a great face in peril and led to a really fun Helms hot tag. I loved him catching the Slaughter/Kernodle Cannon to set up his chokeslam. All-Stars are a great heel team, I could see them having a fun regional run in the 1980s, All-Stars v. Fabulous Ones would have been awesome. I do think the All-Stars have been losing a lot lately, they really need to lay some folks out.

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