On Brand Segunda Caida: The Johnny Smith/Taz Feud

I was always fascinated by ECW's usage of Johnny Smith, basically the only US promotion to actually use him. He had a small TV feud with Taz that resulted in two fun matches, with the latter a feud ending submission match: 

Johnny Smith vs. Taz ECW Hardcore TV 10/1/96

ER: This was a good match that didn't have much crowd reaction, Taz really wasn't getting the heel reaction I would have expected, and possibly it was because the casual fan wouldn't know much about who Johnny Smith was. Most of the heat of the match came from Bill Alfonso. But again, it was a good match. Booking Taz really was some smoke and mirrors, as it's wild how much Smith hulks over Taz. Smith is a rock solid guy and I liked the way they worked a couple headlock exchanges, thought Smith had a tight drop toehold, both threw themselves into shoulderblocks, nice high floor basics throughout. It wasn't what the crowd wanted to see necessarily, but it was professional and hard hitting so they never actually turned on it. I thought they did a good job working from holds to strikes to throws, ramping up the action steadily over 9 minutes. Smith threw two nice dropkicks, his standing dropkick going high and making nice contact, and his back bump missile dropkick hitting Taz right in the chest. Loved the spot where Taz caught him after a leapfrog, the two struggled over a waistlock, and Taz eventually dumped Smith with a nasty German suplex. They set up the finish really well as Taz sunk in the Tazmission, and I liked how they called the match instead of letting Smith tap. They set up a submission match, even though Taz does a bunch of heel backhand burials after the match (he let the submission go so Smith wouldn't puke, but also told him he was tough), and then Styles weirdly talks about how Taz outshone Smith on the mat and standing, which is a weird way to put over the heel.

Submission Match: Johnny Smith vs. Taz ECW Ultimate Jeopardy 10/5/96 (Hardcore TV 10/15/96)

ER: This submissions rematch was not nearly as cohesive as their first match. The first encounter had a real satisfying build, ramping up steadily over the run time. The build throughout isn't nearly as strong in this one, though it does bring a few cool different things. I wish they would have done more with the opening matwork, with both guys taking turns cockily getting into par terre to challenge the other to do something about it. I have no idea what Taz's actual mat skills were, but I know Smith can go and it would have been really cool to see some mat scrambles. Both are built solid as hell, and that's where a lot of cool parts come from: thick arms working chokes and throwing heavy clotheslines. Smith has a real underrated clothesline, throwing it right to the chest but keeping his arm stiff, so that it really looks like a guy taking a bat to the chest. The problem was that neither guy (Taz especially) wanted to show much vulnerability, so it's tough to build to any interesting submissions. Smith works the arm a bit but selling wasn't really a Taz strong suit, so while a nice Fujiwara could have lead to a nice false finish it just leads to Taz standing back up. The finish looks good, as Smith had been getting to the ropes and countering out of suplexes throughout the match, and the final near escape is cool: Smith breaks a waistlock and starts to get away, but Taz grabs him by the legs and lifts him over with a wheelbarrow suplex before getting the Tazmission. If you combine the best elements of their two matches you could get a great match, but instead we are left with a really good match and a fun match, which is fine.

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The King Can't Recall, Recall Your Name

Jerry Lawler v. Tazz MCW 11/4/00 -FUN

ER: I mean I had to know the piledriver no sell was coming but this one was annoyed me the most out of the Tazz series, mainly as it was kind of done as a mid-match throwaway, in a match that was already a scant 5 minutes. I mean it was used the same way you would use a ducked clothesline, just a way for Tazz to transition directly back to offense. But the only thing he does to capitalize is just punch Lawler a few times. Pretty big waste of a spot that should be a huge moment in a match against Lawler. I'm actually pretty surprised Lawler would agree to something like that. Seems like something most workers would have an issue with when going over the layout. All that aside, I actually enjoyed the match. Maybe not quite as violent as their brief WWE feud, but Tazz plunked Lawler in the forehead a couple times, Lawler was wearing his boss white tights/black singlet get-up and worked around Tazz nicely. He threw a bunch of cool punches and surprised Tazz from behind with the dropkick. Really great fistdrop that I've never really seen him throw before, as this was more dropping down to a knee the way Roman Reigns punches the mat before the Superman Punch. It looked great. Also gotta love that when Lawler committs to hitting the fistdrop, his missed fistdrops look just as great. Tazz moves on one from the middle rope and Lawler really jams his wrist on it. You can feel the knuckle pain.

PAS: I could easily see this being a GREAT if the either did away with that piledriver spot or placed it better, I did like the announcer attributing the no-sell to Tazz's lack of a neck. I liked the brawling a fair amount, although the finish with a unnecesary ref bump leading to Tazz missing a somersault senton was really weird. Since when did Tazz have a somersault senton? Why a ref bump before he did it? Was he worried it would take him so long to climb the ropes that the ref would count him out?
The entire match was really just a backdrop to a Memphis Power Pro invasion with Bulldog Rains, Brandon Baxter, Randy Hales and Derrick King at ringside. I just wanted to see the King v. Derrick King uncooperative interpromotional matches, Derrick King would make an awesome Tenryu.

COMPLETE AND ACCURATE KING

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All Night Long the King was Howling

Jerry Lawler v. Tazz WWF 9/24/00- GREAT

ER: We already reviewed the first match between these two and that was an awesome brawl with great build-up. This is the follow-up strap match and starts out just as awesome. Tazz ambushes Lawler right when Lawler's strap is secure, trips him up, dumps him with a cool suplex, chokes him in ways that look legitimae enough that it makes me tug my shirt collar away from my throat. Out to the floor and Tazz starts berating JR, just like in the last match. And just like that match it allows Lawler to take over and start whipping Tazz. The shots land great, all over Tazz' back and head, and I'm way into the match at this point. Back in and Lawler teases the piledriver and I'm sure it will get reversed, but he nails it...and Tazz no sells it. Just pops right back up. Another piledriver, Tazz pops back up. A third piledriver and Tazz pops back up. I'm pretty far into "fuck off" territority at this point, even when Tazz eventually sells the third one by doing a delayed faceplant. Raven debuts after that and DDTs Lawler ("That's Raven! He doesn't have a contract here!"). I guess if somebody had to no sell a bunch of piledrivers it might as well be a guy who has no neck. Match ends with the Tazmission which is confusing as I thought it was "touch the corners" strap rules. Great first 4 with a flat final 90 seconds. Like if Breaking Bad had ended with a resurrected Mike killing Walt.

PAS: This is a surprisingly great feud, might be the best in ring stuff of Tazz's career. Tazz was a viscous fuck early, just choking the hell of Lawler, and his shit talking was pretty great. I like how the bully let his mouth run and it cost him as Lawler times a comeback better then anyone in wrestling history. I actually didn't have a problem with the piledriver no-sell which is usual a spot I hate. Tazz never went back on offense and it looked less like a Hawk no sell then a stubborn guy not knowing when to stay down, if there isn't a faceplant it would kill the match, but I kind of liked the spot with it. Finish was Raveny which is always worse then Ravenless. First match was better because of the satisfying finish, but this was really worth watching.

Jerry Lawler/Chris Jericho v. Tazz/Raven, WWF 9/26/00 -FUN

ER: Pretty typical 99-01 TV match. All the guys work hard for 2 minutes, Lawler and Tazz roll to the floor causing everybody in the crowd to look up the ramp, X-Pac runs in confirming their run-in suspicions, whiffs his first kick so much that Jericho doesn't realize he was supposed to sell a kick, Raven wins after the interference. Lawler got to blast Tazz with a great middle rope fist drop, Raven had a surprisingly cool roaring elbow, and an even cooler roaring back elbow. Harmless, fine, not memorable.

PS: I liked this more then Eric, sure it was a throwaway 4 minute TV tag, but it had a fair amount of energy and I liked all four guys in this, and Lawler is the only guy I normally like. Really felt more like a short Nitro match then a short Smackdown match as they really went a workrate go-go style. Raven's Misawa tribute was pretty weird (and how the fuck is Raven alive and Misawa dead?) and I liked how he snuck in a DDT at the end. Lawler is a guy who knows how to work a short TV match and make it compelling and he brought the energy.

COMPLETE AND ACCURATE KING

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DON'T Let Lawler Walk You Home from School, DON'T Let Him Meet You at the Pool

Jerry Lawler vs. Tazz WWF 8/27/00 - GREAT

ER: I don't remember this feud at all. This was right in the middle of my college years, so there were plenty of weeks where I was worried about doing things other than watch pro wrestling. Believe me, I still watched plenty of pro wrestling (and probably mentioned that too often to girls), but it's not like I set my schedule of classes up so that I could still watch Raw and Smackdown live (or I actually almost always did that). Either way, I don't remember this feud.

So the hype video alone for this is enough to make me go "GREAT" on this. I really loved Tazz egging on JR, JR slapping him and Tazz asking him for more, and then Lawler bursting through with one of the greatest punches man has ever seen. Tazz sold it great, too, sprawling out into camera men. The rest of the build up looked super fun as well, with Tazz shattering a window with a pipe (right next to where JR was sitting! Jesus!) and Lawler hilariously ambushing Tazz by jumping off some shelves covered in cardboard boxes and punching him, and Tazz hitting Lawler with a headset (with Lawler getting awesome color from it!).

Match itself is exactly what I wanted (except for a moment or two, although one of them was a MAJOR moment). Lawler jumps Tazz while Tazz is shit talking JR, and Lawler's run of offense to start is really well set up. Lead with a dozen punches, dropkick Tazz into the turnbuckles, and hit your awesome falling clothesline after he's stumbling back from the turnbuckles. Tazz' offense aged mostly pretty well, and 2000 Tazz may be worth some revisiting. His best looking move was his thrust kicks to a fallen Lawler. Now they were helped by Lawler leaning cheekbone first into them, but I loved how they looked, painful with a strong hint of condescension. Also I loved how every time Lawler transitioned back to offense it was because Tazz was talking shit to JR.

Tazz was real great at shit talking and JR was great doing it back to him. [as he's clubbing Lawler] "Look at him JR, you scumbag!" to which JR responds, "Yeah, I see him." He was like a high end Barry Darsow with the shit talking. Overall Tazz aged better than I thought he would, even pulling weird things out of his hat like a crazy missed swanton.

Then he had to go and no sell a piledriver like all of us expected he would. That was lousy. It COULD have derailed the match, but thankfully it did not. JR got involved in a way that perfectly wrapped everything up and this whole thing was just wonderful.

PAS: I am going to second the love for the build up, I vaguely remember this feud but don't remember it being this great. Lawler has the greatest sneak punch in wrestling, that shot on Tazz in the set up was as good as his 2011 Ted DiBiase jaw jacker. Man even seeing blood in WWF 2000 (not exactly 1986 NWA) really makes you miss it in the current action.

I was really surprised to see how much 2000 Tazz was bumping, I remember the whole shooter gimmick being a work around that Paul E. created because his neck was fucked up. So it is really weird to see him working the WWF up and down bumping style and even missing a top rope flip senton. The no-sell of the piledriver was gross, but I guess it set up the finish. Still reminded me why I used to hate Tazz after liking him for lots of this match. Ross smashing the water glass on Tazz's head was a great call back finish, and this is a perfect example of how to work this kind of blow off match, and another example of how badly they shit the bed with Wrestlemania.

COMPLETE AND ACCURATE JERRY LAWLER

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