This Week in DVR: Common Barbarism

COMMON BARBARISM, TEDDY
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live this week on my DVR or online. Here's what stood out:

Matches

The RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma and Johnny Goodtime) vs. Erik Watts and Joey Ryan on NWA Hollywood - Neat little tag match. It started to catch my eye early on, when Goodtime was doing the back leapfrog spot over Ryan. Ryan tried to catch him, but Goodtime used momentum to throw Ryan back into the turnbuckles with his legs. The follow up was pretty good too, using the corner as a weapon effectively. Watts got a "You can't wrestle!" chant, but it wasn't deserved. He was serviceable here. Good team synergy by both squads here.

Scorpio Sky vs. SoCal Crazy, NWA Be the Star Television Championship Tournament Finals, NWA Hollywood - Really good good guy vs. good guy main event. It was very much a formula match, with mat wrestling and simple submissions to start into a quickening into teasing bad blood going into the big finish. A lot of really cool moves here, even if some of the selling was a bit questionable. I liked the knee twist/seated ab stretch that Crazy busted out, and that snapmare driver that Sky broke out was slick. Good cap to a very notable tournament.

Wade Barrett vs. Trent Barretta, Superstars - Fun little pseudo squash match. Barrett came off his best match with another strong performance, playing the bully role, while Barretta did what he always does well, bumping, flying and bouncing around. That corkscrew senton thing he did off the guardrail was pretty epic. Good little opener.

Santino Marella vs. Primo Colon, Superstars - This match served as the palate cleanser from the two squash-type matches into the main part of the show, and it worked well in that regard. Again, Santino showed why it's not just all about workrate or MOVEZ. I loved the sequence of hip toss blocks. Primo snuck in some really, really good psych there by working the Cobra arm over after Santino showed his hand mid match. Solid stuff.

Zack Ryder vs. Drew McIntyre, Superstars - This one started out a bit slowly, but they started dropping bombs on each other, and the finishing flurry was pretty epic. Around where McIntyre used a spinebuster to acquaint Ryder's back with the ring apron is where it picked up for me. I also loved Drew Mac's counter of the Rough Ryder into a powerbomb. More than any other match on Superstars this week, this one felt like it could have been on PPV, or at least as a RAW main event.

Mark Haskins vs. Alex Shelley vs. Robbie E vs. Zema Ion vs. Jesse Sorensen vs. Tony Nese vs. Kid Kash vs. Austin Aries, X-Division Gauntlet, Impact - Pure junk food. A little bit of sloppiness, and no one was really able to get their oeuvre going except Sorensen and Aries, but it was a pretty good sampler platter. Aries coming in at the end after Kash took out Sorensen was a really good touch.

Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Ezekiel Jackson, Intercontinental Championship Match, Smackdown - Shortish match, but it had quite a few really good nuggets. I really liked Rhodes exiting the ring, and the incensed Zeke following him out, which lead to Rhodes dropkicking the ring steps into Zeke's leg. I might have liked it more if it went a couple more minutes, but it was decent. Don't sleep on Zeke as a wrestler.

Justin Gabriel vs. Tyson Kidd, Smackdown - Again, it could have used a few more minutes, but Kidd is becoming that sort of high level squash-but-not-squashed opponent for guys they've got high hopes for. He had a good match with Daniel Bryan two weeks ago, and this was a nice display too. Gabriel's going to be an exciting guy to watch in singles. Love his 450.

Daniel Bryan vs. Alberto del Rio, non-title match, Smackdown - Wow, the chemistry between these two is amazing. They told a really good story surrounding Bryan's arm and his determination to defeat the Champion. del Rio's arm work combined with Bryan's selling set a strong overtone for the match that didn't falter and went to the very end. Despite that, Bryan showed his moxie and his determination. I think the best part of that trope was Bryan countering the back superplex into a mega press. The finish worked, and despite the increasingly lazy announcing by Cole, with his almost magic switch from NERRRRRRRRRRRRRD to "o hai guise, bryan is bringin it lol", it was a mostly pleasing experience.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - Really good show this week. I wasn't crazy about the beginning, even if the brawling on the outside limited Buggy's greenness and provided as something INFINITELY better than the last time I saw them, which was in a never-a-good-idea blindfold match. I guess I didn't like it because it meant this feud was going to continue, but hey, as long as people keep bringing "BUGGY IS HOT" signs to the Showcase, she'll keep getting pushed. Because being hot is all that matters for women wrestlers, amirite guise? The matches after that were pretty decent, although it bums me out that I just watched perhaps the last Joey Ryan NWA Hollywood match ever. Place is going to suffer without him. Hell, they're losing Ryan, they lost Austin Aries and if the rumblings turn out to be correct, they'll be without Colt Cabana before long too. But hey, at least they have Scrap Iron and Scorpio Sky, and I'm not saying that with any twinge of sarcasm. I swear.

Superstars - I really do sound like a broken record when I do this little paragraph. "Wrestling is good. Hate replay of RAW's main event. Lather, rinse, repeat." But yeah, it was more of the same. Again, I'm not sure if the overlap between Superstars audience and RAW's is less than 100% (at least on Superstars' end), but it's still tiring to have to fast forward through wholesale replays, especially when they just released at least one guy that could have given me a pretty good match instead of rehashing what I saw Monday.

Impact - Slow episode, I don't know, the idea of Sting/Flair in 2011 doesn't appeal to me. The idea of Crimson/Angle would be a better-constructed heat source if not for two things. One, Crimson is too green for his push, I think. He's not as bad as the meme says he is, but at the same time, you can tell he can't even spar with serious Kurt Angle (who isn't nearly as good as goofy Angle was back in the day). Two, the shooty stuff here is badly executed. WWE has shown us that blurring the line isn't bad if it's done right, but the difference between Punk and Angle is the difference between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Los Angeles Dodgers right now. I'd have repurposed it to have Angle state that he was tired of the young guys being fed to him so that they'd eventually replace him, rather than being fed to him so he could make them look good. One has an element of reality but still works within a wrestling angle. The other is ham-handed way of trying to be edgy that sounds, at least to me, cringeworthy. I dunno.

Smackdown - When Cody Rhodes came out at the beginning of the show, I got a distinct Chris Jericho vibe, because he was clearly sent to save us from ol' Peanut Head Teddy Long and Randy Orton, whose promos are still a registered controlled substance as a depressant in several states. I loved his scathingly true appraisal of Orton's win over Christian at SummerSlam. "Common barbarism"... it's effective because it's true. I thought Smackdown was a winner this week for the most part. The wrestling was good as shown by the honor roll. The battle royale at the end wasn't the best one they've ever done, but I liked a lot of what Henry was doing during it. The apron jousting between Sheamus and Wade Barrett at the end was a really cool visual as well. del Rio's promo here was really good too, almost as good as Monday's. I love how happy he gets when talking about destroying Mysterio. It's great.

Weekend Wrap-Up: Iron Women, Hardly Hardcore and Hollywood Ouster

New Champion, New Heel?
Photo Credit: ImpactWrestling.com

- So, is an event really hardcore if there's only one hardcore spot in the whole thing? I'm not sure people would have cared if Impact Wrestling gave them a good show in Hardcore Justice, but the consensus seems to be that they failed to deliver. Two new Champions were crowned last night, Kurt Angle the new World Champion (after, in many people's view, pointlessly turning heel) and Winter dethroned Mickie James to become the Knockouts Champion. I can get behind the latter because Winter, nee Katie Lea Burchill, is pretty awesome, but the former just sounds more like bad Russo writing. Also on the card, Crimson defeated Rob Van Dam in a Bound for Glory Series match to continue his undefeated streak. Anyone else get the feeling that he's going to main event their signature PPV, only to lose via shenanigans? After the match, Jerry Lynn appeared again and got in RVD's grill, meaning more RVD/Lynn rematches in the future.

- Rey Mysterio apparently hurt his knee at a house show this past weekend, with it being so severe that they ran an injury angle the next night to shorten his match against Alberto del Rio. Some reports are calling it a "tweak", but with his knees, a tweak can still be serious business. He's expected to work around the injury and appear at SummerSlam, which afterwards, hopefully he'll get a fucking vacation. The man needs to just go home, sip margaritas with his wife and relax for a bit so he can come back before the end of the year, refreshed, recharged and ready for the Internet to find new ways to slur him because they don't like his finishing move.

- Speaking of injuries, Daizee Haze has been listed as "out indefinitely" on the official Chikara message board. Circumstantially, it's because of the injuries suffered at the hands of Mima Shimoda and Claudio Castagnoli at Chikarasaurus Rex, Night 2. It leads me to believe it's all kayfabe, but at the same time, if it is legit, here's to a speedy recovery.

- In better news, Sunday's best show arguably took place in Cleveland, OH, with PWO putting on Wrestlelution 4. I really want to give you some results here, but for the life of me, I can't find them on the Internet anywhere. Bummer. However, what I can say is that according to TWB superfan and friend of the blog Jarret Aubry, the Josh Prohibition vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Matt Cross match was SUPER AWESOME. The man knows good wrestling, so take his word for it.

- JSCW's kickoff event was Saturday night free of charge on the Seaside Heights boardwalk. Judging from the picture posted in the results post, they did alright for themselves. The main crux of the show was the Tag Team Championship tournament, which had four first round matches headlined by a tilt between the SAT and All Money Is Legal, won by the latter team. Also on the card, Dan Maff defeated Apollo Star,

- Mercedes Martinez and Lexus set a modern women's wrestling record by going 73 minutes at the WSU tapings Saturday night. Martinez, who already has one superlative in the longest current Championship tenure under her belt (and may be the longest continuously defended women's title reign ever, given that Fabulous Moolah's 27 year reign was very much sparsely defended), now has another big record under her belt. The match was stopped as a 60 minute time limit draw, but the match was demanded restarted, and 13 minutes later, Martinez won with a fisherman's buster. Also at the tapings, Roxie Cotton made her redebut as Gabby Gilbert, taking two matches. The second taping ended with a WarGames match announced for the next iPPV between the newly formed Midwest Militia of Sassy Stephanie, Jessica Havok and Allison Kay and Team WSU, comprising of Martinez, Alicia and Brittney Savage.

- NWA Hollywood got a big shakeup as Joey Ryan was ousted as the head booker AND a contracted talent. I don't know what's going on that caused the coup, but it's a shocker to me. It's also very disappointing as Ryan has been embroiled in a pretty decent feud with Colt Cabana over the last couple of months. It especially sucks given that now, the only place you can find Ryan is on PWG, and that's only once a month. Granted, one show of Ryan a month is better than none, but at the same time, I can't help but feel that Hollywood is dropping the ball here by at least not keeping him on as a wrestler, even if they want to go a different direction behind the scenes.

- Ending on a happy note, according to the PWG message boards (a lot of message board news today, eh?), not only is Finlay scheduled to appear at Battle of Los Angeles this year in the tournament itself, but TJ Perkins and the Super Smash Bros. will appear at their next card after Battle of Los Angeles. Super psyched to see the SSB get some dates outside of the East Coast and Quebec, because they're a really fun tag team. Not surprising to see them touch down in SoCal though, as PWG has been really good about importing guys from Quebec, as seen with their thrusting of El Generico and Kevin Steen into the mainstream. Looking VERY much forward to this.

This Week in DVR: I'm a Good Guy Now, Fella

It's a fellabration!
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live on my DVR and the Internet this week. Here's what stood out:

Matches

Colt Cabana vs. Joey Ryan on NWA Hollywood - Solid main event with a lot of good storytelling vis a vis Adam Pearce as the guest ref. I thought some of the TV editing cut off a good bit of this, going to commercial when Cabana was shoving Pearce. There was one flubbed spot on Cabana doing the Asai moonsault (which I can't criticize too badly because it was COLT CABANA DOING AN ASAI MOONSAULT), but the action was really good throughout. Some great brawling, and nice showboating tactics from Ryan. The DQ finish left me a little flat, but it was still a decent match.

Heath Slater vs. Trent Baretta on Superstars - Wow, who knew Heath Slater could work? Maybe he didn't get as much of a stage to shine as well as he did in this match, or maybe he did some overtime in FCW, learning from guys like William Regal and Big Dust. Either way, wow, what a match. Slater brought it on offense, which is good, because it's the first time I've been impressed with him when he was bringing the heat, and the first time I've been impressed with him overall since WrestleMania:

That will never get old. Ever. I think where I started to feel this match most was when Baretta ran to the corner and anticipated Slater coming in behind him. He did a leapfrog, but Slater just sidestepped him and kicked him in the gut. Really clever spot. I like his spinebuster too. Baretta was a great opponent for him too, because the former Dudebuster bumps well and has such reckless abandon. He's a great nouveau-style jobber. Solid finish with a good sequence in the corner going to Baretta whiffing on a corkscrew and Slater dropping him with an inverted DDT. Really good stuff.

Chris Masters and Santino Marella vs. Michael McGillicutty and David Otunga, non-title, on Superstars - No, it's not a typo. Otunga has made the honor roll. I think that's a credit to WWE that they've found a role where they can hide his deficiencies well and put him with a guy who can carry the load, even if McGillicutty is a little green himself. Of course, playing off two of the best workers in the company will do a lot to help that along as well. Masters didn't spend a lot of time in the match, but that's okay, because how about Santino? The more I see him, the more impressed I get with him as a total package guy in the ring. He just plays the crowd so well, and his expressions and bantering in the ring is second to none. He even has some cool moves, like that spinning fireman's carry takeover he did earlier in the match. I thought it was good tag fare.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - Okay show this week. The undercard stuff was underwhelming but alright, excepting the blindfold match. I really don't think it's possible to do a good blindfold match, to be honest. The main event stuff was well done, and this Erik Watts guy has a real good look. Very imposing. The injury angle with Cabana getting spike piledriven was okay, and I'm guessing they'll push him and Pearce as two guys with neck injuries going forward.

Superstars - Another really good show this week... baaaaaht, chu already knew that. It looked like they went with all extended length matches, which is good, because it lends itself to some good action. I thought that the first two matches were really good, and the main event between Jack Swagger and Alex Riley was just okay though. Riley is still really green, although he has some promise. When he learns how to work some basic psych into his matches, he'll be a lot better, but I pray to God that he ditches that awful "grenade" spot. Let's just forget for a second that Chuck Taylor's introduction of imaginary grenades into wrestling matches is so sublime that it renders anything else, imitation or not, just the very definition of moot. The gesticulations involved with Riley's grenade are just too drawn out and bad. And this is coming from someone who grins and bears it every time Cena goes into a Five Knuckle Shuffle. That grenade makes the FKS look like the People's Elbow and the People's Elbow look like a tombstone piledriver.

Impact - The show was mostly based on "Joker" Sting, Immortal and Kurt Angle as characters, centered around obtaining "stroke" and using the Network to engage in a power struggle. So therefore, I didn't much care for this week's Impact. About the only thing that was really enjoyable to me was the promo segment with Alex Shelley, Brian Kendrick and Austin Aries, but you probably already knew that.

Smackdown - Decent show with underwhelming wrestling. Triple H's segment to start was okay, not as good as Monday's. I liked seeing more Zack Ryder, but I hope this doesn't mean he's not wrestling anymore. The out-of-ring segments were stronger than the matches on the whole, especially the ones involving Daniel Bryan and Wade Barrett and the confrontation between Mark Henry and Sheamus. I like that Sheamus is going face too. People have been sporadically cheering him for a year or so, and I really look forward to a series of slugfests between those two big hosses.

This Week in DVR: Superstars, the Recap Show (ugh)

Love seeing Sheamus beat the crap outta small guys, fella
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live on my DVR or the Internet this week. Here's what stood out:

Matches

Ray Rosas vs. Ryan Taylor on NWA Hollywood - As Todd Kenely said, it was a game of counters, and the last one won. I really liked all the counter wrestling in this match, as both guys brought it. My favorite sequence was probably when Rosas went for the roll-up, but Taylor countered it not into another pin, but into a single-leg crab. The finish was nice too. It was a great play on the ref bump without the ref actually getting bumped, and it was a great sell on the low blow. The rolling clutch is one of my favorite pin attempts as well, so I was glad to see it get the duke for Taylor.

Santino Marella vs. Zack Ryder on Superstars - I felt this match was a bit too short, but it was still pretty entertaining. Then again, Ryder and Santino have really good chemistry together, and there'd have to be some heavy duty aggravating circumstances that would make a match between the two be not good. I liked Santino's schtick going to the top rope, but being unsure about it and then going to the second. I also liked that it led into the finish, with Ryder moving and going right into his Rough Ryder.

Samoa Joe vs. Bobby Roode vs. D'Angelo Dinero, Bound for Glory Series, on Impact - A well-done match with a good story. This was more a traditional three-way, with two guys going it at it with one guy being incapacitated at any given time, but they played it up well. I'm not sure if we've seen this finish done before to completion, or if it has been done that it's not been done in a while.

Cody Rhodes vs. Daniel Bryan on Smackdown - Solid Money in the Bank build-up match between the two. Then again, it's not surprising this match is here. Very well done, a lot of good spots on the ropes and in the corners. I liked the finish a lot, with the Beautiful Disaster kick with Bryan straddling the top rope was putting the cherry on the sundae.

Sheamus vs. Sin Cara on Smackdown - Honestly, anyone who says Sin Cara doesn't sell doesn't really watch his matches. He doesn't do long term selling, but then again, neither does Rey Mysterio. He spent a lot of this match bumping and selling for Sheamus, who had most of the offensive advantage in the match. I just love seeing the Celtic Warrior roughing up small guys. The upset finish worked to put some doubt into the Smackdown MITB match Sunday.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - I was a bit nonplussed when the show cut off before the finish of the main event happened. I assume Disco Machine tapped out, but it's still bad when you're left with an unintentional cliffhanger there. Oh well. Still a decent show. The wrestling was a bit sloppier than usual outside Rosas/Taylor and the main event, but it was still watchable. Adam Pearce's promo had volume issues, but it was still really fuckin' good. Looking forward to see what he can do on his farewell tour.

Superstars - Again, I hate it when the main event of the show is a replay of a promo segment from RAW. I don't care that it was a replay of an excellent segment. I want to see wrestling. Then again, I did get that with four matches compressed into about 30 minutes of run-time, but that's better than nothing. Even though only one match made my honor roll, it all wasn't bad. I mean, the Barretta/Barrett squash was fun for what it was. Whether you're a fan of the Tag Champs losing a non-title match or the fact the Champs are who they are, you can't deny that at least Otunga and McGillicutty are trying to be a cohesive tag team rather than just two guys slapped together out of convenience. Same for the Usos, although I feel that they're far improved as workers since they entered WWE. The Maryse/Phoenix match had some good antics in it too. Solid show that felt too short because of what was tacked onto the end.

Impact - Another decent show this week if you take out the Immortal stuff. I don't know, I just can't get into the "insane icon" or Sting fighting for Dixie Carter to come back. I rag on them for rebooting every couple of months, but I'm not sure I'd complain if next week, they did a hard reboot to the main angle (leaving the other stuff alone like the Shelley/Aries feud, the BFG series, Eric Young's TV title crusade etc.) and just stopped with the power struggle between Bischoff/Hogan and Dixie and her followers. That being said, the wrestling was cool this week. Sting winning the title doesn't faze me, nor does Anderson having yet another short reign.

Smackdown - A fine if unspectacular go-home show for Money in the Bank. The wrestling was good, which is all you can ask for. The main angle with Christian committing various felonies on camera was weak though. I mean, he blatantly stole $1000 off Orton on camera and the pit bosses let him gamble with it? C'mon, son. C'mon.

The National Wrestling Alliance Is Officially a Joke

None of this would have happened if I were Champ...
Photo Credit: Random Chikara Fan

So, the NWA just stripped The Sheik of their World Championship because he backed out of a scheduled title defense against "Scrap Iron" Adam Pearce. As if the governing body hadn't taken enough flak during the year the way their top title has been handled, this comes as a big black eye in my opinion. I'm not surprised that there are shenanigans though. The rumor, and again, this is a rumor and this isn't the reason why anything happened, is that Pearce dropped the title in the first place to Colt Cabana because he didn't want to drop it directly to Sheik. Of course, that isn't the biggest reason why the title took so much of a hit, because if I were to base things on rumors, hearsay and conjecture, well, I'd be fucking Rajah now, wouldn't I?

I made a giant stink when Cabana lost the title to Sheik for my own, "fan" reasons, but if the title had to change hands, well, the title had to change hands I guess. However, I don't mean to crow over being vindicated here, but I think this situation proves that maybe I was right and that they should have called an audible on Cabana keeping the strap. Now, instead of being able to build an unbroken lineage (not historically, but recently at least as many people have relinquished/been stripped of the title before), they have the same political BS that plagues the big feds in a time when the indies are building a DIY-spirited recreation of the old school.

The problem is that they were so adamant on programming two guys together who clearly have problems with each other. I don't know what those problems are, and I won't pretend to be an expert on shit I don't know, but at the same time, where there's smoke, there's fire. Pearce didn't drop the strap directly to Sheik. Sheik pulled out of a match against Pearce. For a governing body that doesn't have complete control over the talents they book, programming people that have political enmity is a bad idea. I mean, if Vince McMahon wants John Cena to drop the WWE Championship to Triple H, he can force Cena to do it because it's his company. But the NWA? Well, they can't because Pearce is part of the braintrust of NWA Hollywood. Sheik runs NWA Fusion in Jacksonville. The NWA still operates like it did in 1970, not realizing that it doesn't have the same reverence it had in those days. Therefore, with the rise of indie feds that have made it on their own as entities, the being a part of the NWA has less and less appeal, to the point where a guy based mostly out of California can't really be programmed against a guy who runs out of Florida.

It's for this reason why the governing body of the NWA, not the individual feds, but the governing body, is a joke. They're pretty much running off the glory days and the fact that Ric Flair and Harley Race once held their titles, but with each passing day where shit like this happens, it's becoming clearer that they don't have a clue as to how something stays relevant in this day and age. The problem is, like I've said before, the answer is right in front of them.

If they really wanted to do something bold and something that'd work, they'd consolidate into one promotion, one that is actually on television and has a national reach, even if it's only through the Internet. They should retreat to Hollywood and build up a name and a brand there. If you want to compete for NWA gold? You head out West. Let's see how much the name is really worth. Let's see how many people are dedicated to continuing the legacy and not just trying to leech off the name and the name only.

Having the influence spread out over several feds is a bad idea, especially in this day and age. The time for a decentralized governing body in a worked sport full of egos has long since passed. The NWA is doing its satellite feds, ESPECIALLY the execellent NWA Hollywood, a severe disservice with this political BS.

That way, you don't have situations where one guy gets stripped of his title because he pulled out of a defense, and you won't have other Champions relinquishing titles out of protest.

Weekend Wrap-Up: Destination Success

I wonder if A Double demanded So Cal Val as part of his terms before signing his contract
Photo Credit: ImpactWrestling.com

- For once, Impact Wrestling was the buzz of the grappling world for a GOOD reason. Destination X was a critical success, a harkening back to the days when TNA was fun and before it was ruined by Vince Russo's vision for what sports entertainment should be. For the first time, an Impact PPV was talked about for the action rather than how bad it was or how fucked up one of its main eventers was coming out for a match. Brian Kendrick ended our long national nightmare of Abyss as X-Division Champion by upending him last night. Austin Aries won the Impact contract, and hopefully, third time's the charm for A Double. He really deserves a chance to make serious coin and be a national star. Shark Boy appeared and apparently won a match, which is a cool throwback. Alex Shelley won the Ultimate X match. In the main event, AJ Styles defeated Christopher Daniels. Lots of positive feedback for this one. Here's hoping that everyone who watched bought it and that a lot of people bought so as to send a message to Dixie and her cronies.

- NWA Hollywood tapings were yesterday, and as with other tapings, well, it's hard to find results online. However, two notes. One, Tom Ford attended and will most likely have a recap later on today or tomorrow. Two, the Tribe upended Natural Selection for the NWA Heritage Tag Team Championships.

- ROH toured the Mid-Atlantic Friday and Saturday. The Richmond show had somewhat of a skeleton crew working for it, as several talents (the Bravados, Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly, Mike Bennett) working two matches. Apparently, Chris Hero got stranded via weather, but it still seems like a light show for the country's top indie. On the Richmond card, Cole and O'Reilly defeated the Bravados (who scored a surprise, TWGTT-assisted win over the Briscoes earlier in the night) for a shot at Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas at a later date. Speaking of the Champs, they retained their titles against El Generico and Colt Cabana. In the main event, the American Wolves defeated Michael Elgin and Roderick Strong. They're really pushing the House of Truth as a major faction. Saturday in Charlotte saw the weather cooperate with Hero enough for him to be able to make the trip. He took out Cabana in his match. There were two non-title matches to headline the card, as Haas and Benjamin defeated the Bravados, and in the main event, Generico bested Strong in a steel cage.

- Site announcement! This week will be Punk Week on the blog. Why? Because this might be the last week CM Punk is in professional wrestling for a good long time. We must celebrate him! Expect some blogs to be dropped with him as the subject and for Punk to be the subject of a few of the features this week. All will culminate in a review of Money in the Bank, the show which may very well be known mostly for the Straight Edge Savior. Enjoy!

Know Your Indie Wrestlers: Claudio Castagnoli

Very European

Who: Claudio Castagnoli
Also Known As: Very European, the Swiss Stalwart
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 222 lbs.
Hometown: The United Banks of Switzerland

Promotions: ROH, PWG, Chikara, NWA Hollywood (alumnus), EVOLVE (alumnus), CZW (alumnus), Pro Wrestling NOAH, IWA-MS (alumnus), JCW

Affiliations: His most famous and classic affiliation is with Chris Hero. As the Kings of Wrestling, they've made the indie tag team scene their bitches on two separate occasions. They're often seconded by Sara del Rey, and in ROH, regrettably by Shane Hagadorn. In Chikara, Claudio is one of the most prominent figures in the BDK.

Twitter: @ccastagnoli
Youtube: Claudio's Cafe Found Here

Signature Moves:
Ricola Bomb


Giant Swing


Swiss Death


Bicycle Kick


Les Artess Driver


KRS-ONE (with Chris Hero)


Ragnarok (with Ares and Tursas)


Accolades:
PWG World Heavyweight Championship (current)
Chikara Campeonatos de Parejas (2x, Chris Hero 1x and Ares 1x)
2010 Chikara King of Trios Champions (with Ares and Tursas)
Chikara Tag World Gran Prix Champions (2x, 2005 with Arik Cannon, 2006 with Chris Hero)
2007 Chikara Torneo Cibernetico winner
ROH World Tag Team Championships (2x, with Chris Hero)
CZW World Tag Team Championships (2x, with Chris Hero)
JCW World Tag Team Championships (with Chris Hero)
2010 Wrestling Observer Tag Team of the Year (with Chris Hero)

Promos:

CZW Promo


Promo on Chuck Taylor
rt

Responding to Chris Hero's challenge


Clutch of Doom promo on The Colony


Dead Men Don't Laugh promo on Team Frightning


All About Claudio Castagnoli:

His Matches - In the indies, Claudio is a giant among men. Yes, there are other guys, including Hero, who have the height, but Claudio actually looks like he shouldn't be there. This isn't a bad thing, as it totally creates some unique style contrasts the smaller guys around the independent scene. Wrestling Claudio is almost like a litmus test. See, many of the smaller guys in the indies do good flips or have an impressive workrate or they look good against each other. But when they wrestle Claudio, if they can't bump huge for his offense, then they're not worthy of your praise.

But Claudio is not to be a man defined by other people. No, the reason why he's more than just a canvas for guys to bump off is because he looks so natural in the ring. He can do the big power stuff and look really aggressive, but he has a sense of fun, almost whimsical nature to his offense at times. I love his "no hands" approach to his UFO, and the giant spin, especially done on guys like Grizzly Redwood, is an amazing, crowd-involving move. He makes everything look easy and fun.

His Character - It's funny, he's such a mild-mannered-seeming guy from his Tweets or when he's a face, but he can turn the menace on and it works. He's extremely versatile, and honestly, despite his size, you don't expect that from him because he's so charismatic and personable that it can be hard to picture him terrorizing small children and being evil. That's why he needs to be seen to be believed.

And for a guy whose third language might be English, let alone first or second, his promos are surprisingly smooth. He's definitely the immigrant wrestler success story, and over the last decade, he's become one of the most well-rounded character wrestlers in the indies right now.

Why You Should Know Him - It's not a secret. Claudio is one of my favorite wrestlers on any level right now. A lot of people agree with me here. HE always gets a reaction, no matter what side of the alignment chart he's on. He's also made people in higher places notice. Once before, he had a WWE contract. If you believe the scuttlebutt, he and Hero have one on the table now. Again, it's a rumor. Believe me, the only people who know whether there is one there or not are the Kings and the HR people in WWE. I'm fine with that. But, if those rumors are true, I can say that there aren't two guys in the indies right now who aren't signed to a major company (especially since Austin Aries just won an Impact contract as we speak) who deserve to get paid more.

But if they don't have a contract offer or if they choose ROH over WWE? Well, it might be selfish of us, but at the same time, we'll get to see more of Claudio in the indies. That's a good thing for us indie devotees. No matter where he's at though, he's definitely a guy to seek out. He's very much one of the most well-rounded, best wrestlers going today.

Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein - Please visit his site to view the plentiful amounts of pictures he's taken for DGUSA, ROH and other indie feds: Get Lost Photography

This Week in DVR: Scrap Iron, Conquering Hero

Ireland getting revenge on England for years of dickery?
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live on my DVR or on the Internet. Here's what stood out:

Matches

Scorpio Sky vs. "Pretty" Peter Avalon, First Round Match in the "Be the Star" Television Championship Tournament on NWA Hollywood - A lot of really good counters here, both by Avalon and Sky. That was the story for this match, which may have run a bit too long but was more than serviceable. I liked Avalon's stall tactics to begin the match, and Sky's high-energy face offense is very crisp. I love his finish. Sky executes the TKO with such flair and exuberance. Good stuff.

Drew McIntyre vs. Zack Ryder on Superstars - These guys are two of my favorites to watch lately for different reasons. Ryder is so emotive, so spry and game, McIntyre so methodical, deliberate, vicious. It made for a really hot opener to Superstars. A lot of high spots here, first with Ryder going to the outside on a plancha. Then was the sequence of the match for me. McIntyre retreated to the outside with the ref restraining Ryder, and then Ryder went to the apron, only to get tripped up. McIntyre then wrangled the Woo Woo Woo Kid and nailed him with a sideslam onto the apron. HOLY SHIT. A huge bump can make a good match great, and that was about as big a bump as you could get without any extra trappings. The rest of the match flowed well from there. I really liked how Ryder looked like he was making a comeback and then McIntyre just put two boots to his face like it was no big deal. The finish worked for me too. Love countering moves into flash pins. Hopefully we get an extended series out of this.

Alicia Fox vs. Nattie Neidhart on Superstars - Yeah, you read that right, Alicia Fox made the honor roll this week. Seriously, Nattie did a lot of heavy lifting this week, but even with her training wheels on, Fox did some serious work. I'll admit, a big reason why I enjoyed this match was because of the banter between the two about Fox's weave. Great shit-talking during the match can enhance it so much. A big reason why I love Ryder, going back to the previous match, is because he'll pop up, look in either his opponent's eyes or right at the ref and go "You serious, bro?" It's that kind of thing that adds to the story. That isn't to say the actual nuts-and-bolts work was bad. Fox definitely was working the old "feeble woman" archetype from before SHIMMER and other serious forms of women's wrestling made headway in America, but the way she was working it, putting oomph behind her slaps and hairpulls, made it work. This was an actively good match. I'm as shocked as you.

Crimson vs. Bobby Roode, BFG Series Match, on Impact - Fun little match here. Crimson is still limited, but good thing for him, he's in there with one of the four best workers in Impact. I thought they sold the shoulder well during the match, both on attacking and on the pretense of injury. I also liked that Roode went for submissions during the match, playing up the increased point total for tap out victories.

Jesse Sorenson vs. Jack Evans vs. Tony Nese, Destination X Qualifier, on Impact - The last time I saw Jack Evans, it was on PWG Sells Out. He was in there against Christopher Daniels. His psychology sucked. His timing and pacing sucked. His character sucked. Everything about him sucked. Seeing him on Impact this time, and it was like he was a whole different character, a whole different worker. It was like his experience working abroad served to hone his high spots into something more than just acrobatics. Nese served as a great counterpoint with his stiffness and his bullying during the match (not surprisingly since his pedigree is from the NYWC). I liked in the beginning when he was trying to take both Evans and Sorenson on. I know that all the matches for the contract qualifying have been three ways, but I think this might have been way better if it were just Nese and Evans. Sorenson looked really green and I thought his finisher, the Cross-Rhodes type move, looked a bit on the wrong side of stiff into reckless. However, Evans and Nese were both the real deal. Love the 630 Senton. I'll readily admit I was wrong about Jack Evans, well, at least about him not being able to change.

Daniel Bryan and Ezekiel Jackson vs. Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes on Smackdown - Fun little tag match. Bryan and Zeke make a surprisingly good tag team, as we all know how good the former Legacy are together. Zeke on the apron, trying to get the hot tag? Holy shit, he got into that. He's a more natural babyface worker than I gave him credit for. I loved the spot in the corner too, where Rhodes countered the knee by Bryan into the Alabama Slam. Good stuff, but considering the four guys involved, it's not surprising.

Tamina vs. AJ on Smackdown - This was a nice little bit of Diva exposition. I'm still not a fan of the way WWE does feuds outside of the main event, but hey, if the matches are good, then I'm cool with it. AJ's athleticism sets her apart from the pack, and it was on display here. I'm kinda over the shining wizard being used by half the WWE roster, but AJ's looks good.

The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) vs. Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater on Smackdown - Speaking of feuds that the WWE advanced solely by having match overload each week, these two teams have developed a really good chemistry. This week was another fun match. I especially liked their new take on the double knockdown. Rather than clotheslining each other, Gabriel and one of the Usos (still can't tell them apart) did a double yakuza kick spot. It was really slick. I like the Usos finisher too, the superplex/Superfly Splash combo.

Sheamus vs. Randy Orton on Smackdown - Schmozz DQ finish aside, it was a pretty decent match. Orton's been working well as a babyface this year, but then again, look at his opponents - Punk, Christian and now Sheamus. Sheamus actually broke out some cool stuff in this match. The top rope shoulder block was okay, although you can tell he's not used to going that high, as there was some apprehension. These two have had some chemistry problems in the past, but I think they're developing more and more of a rapport. DQ finish worked in this situation.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - Decent show. The bizarro feud between the Tribe and Natural Selection is entertaining in a perverse way. It's almost like a competition as to which team can use tried and true heel tactics the best. I love it, even if I'm not enamored with the Tribe as actual workers. The main event, as noted above, was really good too. Still not buying Buggy as someone I really want to watch wrestle, but hey, nothing's perfect. However, the best part of the show was the middle segment, where Joey Ryan joined the Family Stone, only to be chased out of the ring by Adam Pearce, who to that point was doing a really bang-up job on commentary. Ryan/James Morgan vs. Pearce/Colt Cabana should be a really good top feud for the show.

Superstars - Ugh, I absolutely hate when they "main event" Superstars with warmed over repeats of the RAW final segment, especially when it's an interview one. I mean c'mon now, I can almost guarantee that if there was a Venn diagram showing viewership between RAW and Superstars, the circle for Superstars would be almost entirely engulfed by RAW's. Either way, the three matches before the end were all decent to good. The squash of the local talent by Wade Barrett was fun for what it was. Solid show.

Impact - The wrestling action, save the main event, was good enough. It was really awesome to start, but it started to peter out until your garden variety, let's screw the babyfaces main event. Yeah, no. I'm also really not feeling Joker Sting. It's almost like a bad caricature of a terrible Joker impersonation. It's like he realizes he's not really being serious about anything. It's bad. I will say that there were a few non-wrestling-match-related things that I enjoyed, which is rare for Impact anymore. One was Brian Kendrick cutting a promo that was in a character and not a pseudo-shoot. Two, was that finally, Kurt Angle's doing something other than feuding with Jeff Jarrett. Thank fucking Christ. But yeah, it was an alright episode for once.

Smackdown - Up until the end, this show was all about Sheamus. That's not a bad thing, fella. Him clearing out the ring to start was a great open to the show, although I was pretty enthralled by what Bryan, Rhodes and Wade Barrett all had to say. His promo backstage where he said "It's an Irish t'ing, you wouldn't understand" was so awesomely delivered. Him getting laid out at the end felt anti-climactic, but yeah, it's just another week, plus he is technically still a heel. I continue to enjoy how they're building up Mark Henry, although Teddy Long putting his stink all over him isn't promising.

The Economy of Time: Why NWA Hollywood Succeeds Where the Mainstream Fails

The Cutlers taking it to Johnny Goodtime outside the Showcase... a sampling of what you'll find each week
Screen Grab Credit: NWAHollywood.com (pardon the ad!)

One of the big reasons why I continue to go out of my way to watch NWA Hollywood online is because they have so many stories that keep my interest. If it were just wrestling like the ROH on HDNet show was, with very little serial storylines to keep me enthralled from week to week, I might skip it, might being the operative word here. However, not only do I find an outlet for good indie wrestling, they do their best to tell several stories each week.

Their show on KDOC-TV has one hour of runtime each week. Take commercials and other stuff out, and it distills down to between 40 and 45 minutes of "meat" each week, with the term meat referring to matches, promos and angles. In that three-quarters of an hour, NWA Hollywood manages to put over at least four if not more angles. Furthermore, nearly every other story in the company at least warrants a mention throughout the telecast. Contrast that with the other companies.

Impact Wrestling distills down to between 80-90 minutes of meat each week. Most of it is spent on three to four top angles for each show, some of which don't carry over into the next week. Angles are started and dropped with no resolution at times. Guys don't appear on the show for weeks at a time and garner no mention from Mike Tenay and Taz. The WWE is a little better. They have anywhere between 2.5 and 3 hours of meat each week on actual TV, with two web shows that run 40 minutes a piece on average. Those times can be cut into by fluff segments, recaps of stuff that happened barely a half-hour prior or blatant advertising for patently non-wrestling things. Furthermore, many times, their idea of a feud is the face beating the heel cleanly in consecutive weeks with no real rhyme or reason why the story is continuing after the first clean defeat.

With NWA Hollywood, you get the aforementioned 4 angles minimum each week. You also get a sense of purpose for each one, be it through promos, matches or post-match happenings. Often times, it's not anything complex, whether it's Ray Rosas, Rico Dynamite and Peter Avalon cheating to win a match or Candice LaRae walloping Buggy across the head with a chair. Hell, I think the most "complex" thing that happened recently has been the Cutlers and the RockNES Monsters brawling out onto LaBrea Boulevard, with Excalibur noting the next week that no criminal charges would be pursued from the melee. It's all simple pro wrestling stuff, but the rub is that it works. It makes everything make sense.

Now, is the storytelling perfect? No, it's not. Sometimes, circumstance dictates that they have to drop an angle, whether it's Austin Aries signing a one-month or longer deal with Impact that precludes him from coming back to tapings to continue his heat with Scorpio Sky, or Colt Cabana losing his NWA World Championship because the NWA is an antiquated model that doesn't know what's good for it, or because Adam Pearce got hurt and might have to retire. Sometimes, they tell stories that fall flat, but it's not for lack of effort.

It might be trite to talk about effort like this is some grade school exercise, but at the same time, the effort going into making NWA Hollywood what it is right now is certainly appreciated and it makes up for the lack of production values they may have compared to even Impact. Effort doesn't always equal quality, but when that effort is combined with a vision like the one that the folks who run the fed have, it can totally make for a great viewing experience.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

This Week in DVR: Woo Woo Woo, You Know It

WOO WOO WOO YOU KNOW IT
Screen Grab Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live on DVR and the Internet. Here's what stood out:

Matches

Los Luchas (Zokre and Phoenix Star) vs. Ricky Mandell and Hector Canales on NWA Hollywood - This was an extremely fun tag match, featuring some really choice heel antics by Mandell and Canales as well as some really unique lucha offense by the face team. Early on in the match, Zokre busted out this really unique submission hold, basically bending Canales' knees, spreading his legs apart and sitting on them. You kinda have to see it to really appreciate what I'm describing here. Canales was really on point mocking Los Luchas as well. My only real gripe with this match was that the crowd didn't react to Zokre's hot tag to Phoenix Star, but that's more disappointment with the crowd rather than anything to do with the match. Highly recommended to seek this one out.

Joey Ryan vs. Brandon Parker, Qualifying Match for the "Be the Star" Television Championship Tournament, on NWA Hollywood - This was a classic David/Goliath match up, although Ryan as Goliath might seem hilarious to most. Then again, have you seen how small Parker is? Ryan played the bully well, and they really told the story of them having a former student/teacher relationship throughout the match with the counters and such. Parker had great fire. About the only thing that was mildly disappointing to me was that they teased the Moustache Ride. I love that move. I wanted to see it, dammit!

Natural Selection (Brien Cage and Shawn Ricker) (c) vs. The Tribe (Hawaiian Lion and Navajo Warrior), NWA Heritage Tag Team Championship Match, on NWA Hollywood - A very rare heel vs. heel match here. I kinda dug it. It was funny to see a tag match without any of the babyface tag team tropes in play. My favorite spot here was when Rickers was working over Navajo's arm, and then he went for a hammerlock body slam. He hit it, obviously, but then he pulled up with his back lame, playing up the size disadvantage. I liked the DQ finish, with both teams trying to cheat, but the Tribe being the ones caught. Very good fish out of water affair.

Zack Ryder vs. Primo on Superstars - This was an almost pitch-perfect match. It had a hot crowd. It had a pre-match promo. It had Primo heeling it up during the match and Ryder hitting some big babyface spots. Hell, it even had a story behind it, well, as much of a story as a Superstars curtain-jerker could have. Ryder played a surprisingly good babyface during this match. Maybe that's where his future lies, especially since he has fan support? Anyway, really cool, WWE-main event style match (weird because again, it jerked the curtain of the C-show) with a really good finish, going from the Backstabber attempt into the Ruff Ryder for the pin. Man, Zack Ryder really is over, isn't he? Shame he's wasting away off RAW because McMahon reputedly hates the Internet...

Drew McIntyre vs. Vladimir Kozlov on Superstars - A fun brawl. McIntyre spent a good portion of the match working over Kozlov's arm and then another portion just bumping his ass off for Kozlov's cyborg-style offense. Drew Mac did his best to make Kozlov look really good here.

Austin Aries vs. Kid Kash vs. Jimmy Rave, Destination X Tournament, on Impact - All three guys were good here, but the biggest star of this match was Aries. His test of strength antics at the start put the match on a good tone. His execution on his moves was crisp. He took the biggest bump, the STO on the apron from Rave. Basically, if this was a tryout to show his worth for something more than peanuts from Impact or a real live contract from WWE, then I'd say he passed with flying colors. Him getting a further tryout at the PPV is the right call.

Samoa Joe vs. Rob Van Dam, Bound for Glory Series, on Impact - Samoa Joe is a miracle worker. Seriously, there's only one guy in the whole world who consistently gets good matches out of RVD, and that person is Joe. I don't know whether Joe has a calming influence over him, but he's not sloppy. And even his contrived spots, like his step-through kick, look better when Joe takes them. This was a very fitting opener for the BfG Series, which is a cool idea. It's a tone-setter, and hopefully, it's not a tone that they'll screw up.

Christian vs. Sheamus, Spot in the Capitol Punishment Main Event on the Line, on Smackdown - Was it me, or did they just run a feeler for Sheamus as a babyface worker in this match? Well, up until the end, that is when they went into the finishing sequence. Anyway, this was a worthy main event, but you knew that was going to happen when it was announced. Two of the best workers alive right now going at it with a bunch of TV time to ply their trade. A well-worked size mismatch with a really cool finish. The sequence was great right from the start when Sheamus knocked Christian off his perch and then went to work with knee scrapes. That wasn't even the best part, with them jostling position into Christian giving Sheamus a modified stun gun by leaping from the top to the outside into the pin. Great improvised finish that really put a punctuation mark on the match.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - Very solid show this week. All four matches were enjoyable on their own level, and there was some good promo work. The sit-down with Adam Pearce was well done for the most part, although they should have maybe had more volume on Pearce's mic. The end of the show being similar to last week's (although not as crazy) was probably intentional. It seems like the start of an interesting story, where every tag team really hates each other and we start getting something like Tag Team Thunderdome going on. I can dig that. I also dug that Excalibur made mention at the start of the show that criminal charges would not be pressed against either the Cutlers or the RockNES Monsters. It's the little things like that that can turn a good show into a great one.

Superstars - Decent show with four okay-to-great matches on it. However, I did have a couple of issues with it. One, Ryder/Primo should have been the main event. I don't care if Kane was in one of the matches, Ryder's match had the hotter crowd and arguably the most over wrestler of the whole show on it. Two, I'm really over this whole manager-search angle for Tyson Kidd. I mean, what good is a manager when that manager is not going to get involved in any of his matches? It shows a fundamental lack of understanding as to what the role of a heel manager should be while the action's taking place in the ring. But then again, I guess that would require the failed TV writers to actually know something about wrestling, wouldn't it? Three, Matt Striker has become really bad lately. I know I've defended him on here, but there really is no defending him lately. Between his "dead air" problem seemingly getting worse and then this week, him saying "Revenge belongs to Kane" after he beat Kidd. Really, Matt? What revenge did Kane owe Kidd? Nothing. And if beating the top heel on the C-show is revenge for Alberto del Rio taking out Big Show, then man, I want to live in Striker's world, because I'd have so much easier times doling out retribution for my wrongs.

That being said, it still was an enjoyable show. Like I said at the top, the matches were mostly good. I liked that they gave promo time not only to Ryder but to McIntyre. This was his first WWE promo that I heard where he showed flashes of the charisma he had in that infamous ICW promo that I've linked on here a couple of times. I can dig him as "The Great American Nightmare". He finally has some character to catch up with his excellent ring work. The star of the show unquestionably was Zack Ryder though. Seriously, he owned the first part of the show, and he's showing everyone that it's not just a Youtube show and pedantic smark bitching that's part of his allure. He's actually an awesome performer.

Impact - Hit or miss show this week. A lot of people online have been raving about the Sting/Hogan segment, but again, it speaks to my problem of them bringing too much outside bullshit into it. Also, Sting was so fucking over the top, I couldn't tell if he was really pissed at Hogan or just trolling the shit out of him. I don't know. What I do know is that there were a few really good nuggets on this show, moreso than maybe the last month of Impacts combined. The two matches that were on the honor roll deserve to be there and then some. Then you had the Eric Young/Jason Hervey "match" segment. It was definitely funny, just how serious EY was treating it. To me though, Aries made the segment, just through his bewildered reactions to everything and his reluctant counting of the sham pinfall.

The Angle/Jarrett stuff though... I don't know how to feel about this. On one hand, ending on a pseudo-cliffhanger where Jarrett's intentions of leaving the country if he lost the brawl feels so fucking cheap to me. On the other, my guess is that he is gone, and I'm just happy to see Angle get closure to this feud finally and move on. This really hasn't been a feud that I felt should have continued for as long as it has, despite the fact that it's gone 8 months (8 months? That's insane, especially for Impact). I don't know, I'm ready for it to end and for Angle to get on with his title shot.

Speaking of which, I'm a huge fan of the Bound for Glory Series. While I really fucking hate that they play it up like nobody else thought of doing it when Chikara is doing a 12-man round robin tournament, I like the idea of them making this the lead-in to their biggest PPV's main event. It's part of building an identity. And if they can make this a vehicle to have good matches, like RVD/Joe or start stories like they're potentially doing with Scott Steiner and Bully Ray? Sign me up.

Smackdown - This was a really flat show. Nearly everything about it annoyed me, from Alberto del Rio pressing charges (my least favored of the storyline tropes) to making a big deal out of concussions (although in this case, them treating it more like a bad kayfabed injury rather than making it JUST LIKE the out-of-character debate over them made it more palatable to me) to Teddy Long being all over the show to the super-botched finish to the six-man tag match to bullshit parity booking with the Divas to Orton punting the shit out Sheamus (because I'm over the punt more than anything else).

I say nearly though because the main event match saved this show from being a total dud to me. Just a phenomenal match. Too bad there was really nothing else going for it. However, I will say this. The fact that that they pretty much destroyed Mark Henry and Sheamus during this show speaks volumes as to their faith in Christian to carry Smackdown as the top heel. That is encouraging to me.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

This Week in DVR: So Much Stroke *Gag*

Christian, Master of All He Surveys
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't watch live on my DVR and on the Internet this week. Here's what stood out:

Matches:

Cutler Bros. (Dustin and Brandon) vs. the RockNES Monsters (Johnny Goodtime and Johnny Yuma), best 2 out of 3 falls, on NWA Hollywood - I thought that the match ending in a no-contest was a bit weak. That being said, I still thought it was entertaining, especially the brawl post match that went out onto LaBrea Boulevard. Good tag work, and the second fall was a really good display of face in peril by Goodtime.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Tyson Kidd on Superstars - Really cool match. I like that Superstars has become the exposition area for Kidd, because he's a promising worker and gets better each week. This week, we had a clinic in working over the leg, and Tatsu again got the win with an out-of-nowhere kick. I like the flash finishes, although call me crazy, but they're running this Kidd-needs-a-manager angle and they don't even have the managers trying to interfere in the matches? Eh, either way, this was a really good match.

Daniel Bryan and Sin Cara vs. Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes on Smackdown - As groan-inducing as the genesis of this match was, the action itself was really good. Sin Cara's offensive maneuvering was kept to a minimum, with what he did do looking impressive. Bryan, obviously, carried the match for his team from an offensive standpoint. I continue to be impressed with how well Cara is picking up the selling side of the WWE game. Both heels were pretty good in their roles. The finish was really nice. I love how they're putting over the LeBell lock as a move that could be hit anywhere. I thought they were going to have Bryan get the win with the guillotine choke, but I liked the segue into the LeBell Lock anyway.

Shows:

NWA Hollywood - The wrestling on the show was a bit disappointing outside of the main event. That being said, it was still a fun show, especially the antics of Disco Machine. I loved his spot where he went for the test of strength with Todd Chandler and ended up turning it into a disco-dancing spot. Where has he been all my life? Not a whole lot in the way of angle advancement here either, but that's okay, since next week we'll be starting the Be the Star Tournament.

Superstars - I thought it was funny that they turned the Mark Henry rib into an angle with Johnny Curtis refusing to come out. Might as well make lemonade out of lemons, especially since it was a dick move to fuck with Henry and that crowd with the original rib anyway. Other than that and the main event, I thought Superstars was off this week. Not even Chris Masters could make JTG look good, and really, any multi-Divas match that DOESN'T include Nattie, AJ or Beth Phoenix takes a miracle to be good.

Impact - Why does everything have to be so shooty? Why do there have to be legal storylines? Why is nearly every tag team broken up within minutes of forming? Why is the main heat mechanism for the Knockouts involve them calling each other bitches and sluts and whores? I don't know why I bother anymore. Seriously, when the World Champion is talking about keeping his belt, not to be the best in his company, but to keep his "stroke" against the two NPC authority figures, you know the "wrestling matters" tagline is a lie.

Smackdown - The show was a bit flat this week, which is especially surprising because it was wrestling heavy. Whenever any WWE show has a lot of long matches, it's usually good. I thought the only real standout match was the tag match. The main event was good but it went on too long and really didn't grab me until the very end when Christian got involved. Then there's this Jinder Mahal business... eh, he's okay, but right now, the character side of him is definitely stronger. I really am not feeling the Corre breakup either.

That being said, the main event angle with Christian and Randy Orton is really strong. This is the best feud in WWE right now, and the best main event feud they've had since before John Cena got "fired" after Survivor Series. It's so simple, but it works. Christian really does bring out the best in everyone, because even Orton was cutting some lively promos for the first time in awhile. The only thing I'm not feeling is that I don't want to boo Christian. I don't want to boo Orton either, well, I don't want to boo him for anything that I didn't already want to boo him for. The real heel here is Teddy Long. Christian is absolutely right. But hey, I'm not the guy they want to boo Captain Charisma, so as long as the story's good, and it has been so far, I'm alright.

Oh, and in case you're wondering where NXT went, I'm done with that shit. It's not worth watching at all to me. Follow folks on Twitter like @ThingsColeSays for your NXT fix, as they have WAY more patience with that show than I do. They do God's work here, people.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

If This Be the End for Adam Pearce

Pearce
Photo Credit: Lucha World

Via F4W Online via Adam Pearce's Facebook

If you've been wondering where "Scrap Iron" Adam Pearce has been on NWA Hollywood since dropping the NWA World Championship to Colt Cabana, well, it's because he's been hurt. So hurt that he might have to retire. That's a big deal. The guy is still on the right side of 35, but working a high-impact indie style may put him on the sidelines, which would suck, regardless of some of the less-than-savory rumors I've heard about him.

That being said, he still has that June 24th doctor's appointment, and he may still have some fight left in him. I hope he gets good news, and can go out on his own terms. The guy may be the most under-the-radar indie star on the scene right now. He's known more for his ROH booking than anything, although he's got a PWG World Championship and three NWA World Titles under his belt. I've only really seen one match of his, but it was a really good one, a steel cage match where he lost that PWG title to Frankie Kazarian.

Anyway, if it is the end for him, then it's the end. But I'm at least hoping he gets a little closure that he can get for himself.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

This Week in DVR: Cobra Legs? Cobra Legs.

CROSSFACE CHICKEN WING!
Photo Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I couldn't live on my DVR and on the Internet. Here's what stood out:

Matches

SoCal Crazy vs. Freddy Bravo, Be a Star Television Tournament Qualifier, on NWA Hollywood - Fast-paced opener with a lot of really crisp moves. I really liked Crazy's running roll-up towards the beginning of the match. Bravo throwing a temper tantrum only getting a 2 count off his signature swinging cutter. Nice finish with La Mistica by Crazy.

Lucky Cannon and Tyson Kidd vs. Byron Saxton and Yoshi Tatsu on NXT - I thought this was a great morality play-cum-unintentional handicap match. Tatsu played the face in peril so well, and I liked the limb work from both heels. The chaos at the end was good from a storyline perspective. Entertaining faire.

Santino Marella vs. Zack Ryder on Superstars - This is what professional wrestling is all about. Okay, it's part of what wrestling should be all about, but man, what a fucking awesome match. The oneupsmanship at the beginning was more than amusing. Both guys worked the crowd like pros. I also loved the whole Cobra-to-the-legs spot, which was MADE by Ryder selling it like he pulled up lame. I kinda wished they had gotten a few more minutes, as the Cobra to end the match seemed a bit abrupt, but yeah, fantastic stuff.

Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barretta on Superstars - Nice installment in their series of matches. I liked Armando Estrada's involvement too. Classic managerial interference. Anyway, a solid overall match, well-worth the Superstars main event slot.

Mickie James vs. Winter on Impact - A shining nugget in the sea of poop that was this week's Impact. I really don't like the whole Winter/Angelina zombie lesbian hypnosis angle, but hey, this match was good, a little stiff but well laid-out.

Cody Rhodes vs. Daniel Bryan on Smackdown - You knew this match was going to be here. Search your feelings, you know it to be true. Be that as it may, as unsurprising as it was that this was a standout match, it still should be expounded upon. This was a mostly strike-and-struggle based match, the kind of affair that Bryan excels at. I liked the surfboard attempt that Rhodes kept blocking. Rhodes landing his Beautiful Disaster kick right out of Bryan's Matrix-corner flip was really slick too. People might rag that Rhodes started tapping to the LeBell Lock way too soon, but I think it shows smart strategy by Rhodes. It allowed him to escape too much punishment so he could attack Bryan afterwards. Really good match.

Ezekiel Jackson vs. Heath Slater on Smackdown - A surprisingly solid match between two guys who are hit or miss for me. Slater bumped well, and what can I say, I like Zeke's bodyslam-palooza.

Sheamus vs. Mark Henry vs. Christian, Number One Contenders Match, on Smackdown - I thought this was a well-laid-out triple threat match by WWE standards. All three guys brought their working shoes, and the story developed nicely. I wonder if the finish of the match is going to play more into Christian's (unwanted) heel turn though, seeing as Orton RKOing Henry caused Lil' Naitch to hesitate just enough to allow Sheamus to kick out. Good stuff though.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - Solid week of television. Again, their recap of the Kaos/Willie Mack feud was top notch. Buggy wasn't even that offensive this week. Good stuff.

NXT - I'm this close from giving up on NXT again. Just dreadful, outside of seeing how the Maryse/Yoshi/Lucky/Saxton angle plays out. The only other thing that was worth watching, the Novak/Regal feud, died when Novak got eliminated. Maybe Season 6 will be better, but this right now feels reheated boring. Also, why was Chavo worried about waiting until the ref turned his back in the main event before he hit Titus O'Neil? It was a no-DQ match! Ugh.

Superstars - Three strong matches, and apparently, Tyson Kidd's managerial search will be an angle on this show for a few weeks. I guess we could do worse. The only way that might have improved the show is if Ryder and Santino got the main event slot with main event time. That being said, it's a minor quibble.

Impact - Impact opened with a match, an albeit boring one but a match, but on the surface it was different. Yeah, the next three segments undermined that. Wrestling matters, guys! I mean, I can't hate on the Disco Inferno/Ken Anderson segment enough. Seriously, let's have a segment with a guy who wasn't involved with Sting at all other than place of employment, use business exposing terms and have fake tension, ending with Disco blading... yep. The EY/Gunner and then ODB and Sky "let's call each other promiscuous bitches" segments afterwards were just as bad. But no, wrestling matters. Just a dreadful show.

Smackdown - Another solid episode. The opening segment followed a tired formula, but the participants, especially Sheamus here, made it work on an alright level. Although, if I were Christian, I'd be pretty pissed off at Teddy Long. He does the crowd applause thing to outright give Orton a title shot at him, but when he gets the same crowd response in the same test for a shot at Orton? Oops, #1 contenders match instead of outright title shot. Seriously, if anyone boos Christian for attacking Teddy Long if it finally happens, they should be kicked in the shins. Regardless of that nitpicky detail, I thought it was a good show. The wrestling was on point, and they got me interested in a full angle surrounding The Great Khali. That should deserve a Nobel Prize in some field... what would it be, literature? Peace? I say go with physics, since I thought it'd be physically impossible for me to care about a tall cripple with chest herpes.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

Paul Bearer Signs Legends Deal with WWE

He's baaaaaack
Photo Credit: WWE.com

Via Twitter

Paul Bearer has signed a Legends deal with WWE, five years with an option for a sixth. Not a whole lot else is known, since they kinda killed his character off in December, but then again, he came back from the dead before in WWE. I also don't know if a Legends deal would preclude him from appearing for NWA Hollywood, but that's only because I have no idea what levels of exclusivity are involved in a Legends deal. Either way, he seems really happy, as he dropped this quote about the signing:

After 20+ years WWE is my second family.

Hopefully, this means the WWE is serious about doing more manager work, because Paul Bearer or even if he appeared as Percy Pringle III, would do wonders for many a vocally-deficient wrestler on the roster.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!

This Week in DVR, Part 2: The Internet!

Match of the week? Maybe match of the month!
Screen Grab Credit: WWE.com

I watched what I missed on vacation on the Internet. This is what stood out:

Matches

Rico Dynamite, Ray Rosas and Peter Avalon vs. Aaron Bolo, Famous B and Ryan Taylor on NWA Hollywood - Nice trios action to open up NWA Hollywood. The tecnicos did some good work giving Dynamite and then Avalon the what-for early on. I was a bit wary of Famous B's face-in-peril work and his selling though, and bad production cut out for commercial before the hot tag was made. That being said, it was still a really good opener match. I thought the finish, Dynamite getting the pin by dubious means, worked well because this didn't feel like a blowoff match to their feud.

Colt Cabana (c) vs. Joey Ryan, NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match, on NWA Hollywood - This match was the centerpiece for the show, and it delivered despite not having quite as long a build as the prior title match. This felt like a perfect "Backlash" title defense after the "WrestleMania" moment win against Adam Pearce for Cabana. For having been a NWA Hollywood heel for only a couple of weeks himself, he did a great job turning the crowd against him during the match. Cabana's pin and submission game is tight, and I liked Ryan working the rib. The finish with Cabana countering the superkick into the Billy Goat's Curse was pretty slick. It's clear this issue probably isn't over, but yeah, it was a fitting TV main event.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Tyson Kidd on Superstars - Screwy booking post-match and in the finish aside, this was what you'd expect from these two. Solid affair, hard kicks, good pacing, good counters. Nice little sprint.

Drew McIntyre vs. Evan Bourne on Superstars - Wow. What a match. I loved every moment of this one. It was a well-paced pace-clash that worked really well because of the two guys involved. The beginning was an expertly played game of cat and mouse that led into the spot on the apron where McIntyre just LEVELED Bourne with the clothesline. Between that and the big boot, Bourne's willingness to take the big bump shone through here. I also loved the whole delayed superplex spot as well. I mean, they took what was usually a mundane spot and turned into a nice struggle spot and a high spot worthy of a PPV. I thought that Bourne would eat another big bump, but with the running on the apron spot, McIntyre ate one. The finish was well done too, with McIntyre countering a rana into a corner bomb and then segueing into the Future Shock. This was definitely PPV quality.

Shows

NWA Hollywood - This was an episode that was billed around three grudge matches, although the only one that superficially resolved was the one with the seeming least build. I did like that the whole show was built around the NWA World Championship, and the match delivered, as did the trios match to kick off. However, that women's match was awful. Candice LaRae tried, God bless her soul, but Buggy is way too green to be on TV right now. They need to get Portia Perez up to speed to the Hollywood crowd so she can step in, or maybe they can get Christina von Eerie or import some other SHIMMERites to come West, because Buggy as the top female face ain't cutting it.

NXT - Worthless episode. Then again, I'm not sad to see Jacob Novak go.

Superstars - Honestly, it was a tale of two shows. The good show that took place involved the wrestling action in the ring. It was on point as usual, and the main event was worthy of being a PPV main event, y'know, excepting the fact that the heel won clean. The bad show was the symptomatically annoying trend of quick-set rushed angles. ON one hand, we have Michael Hayes abandoning Tyson Kidd after one week of faltering, after he didn't even try to bail him out in the finish? In character, Hayes is the laziest manager ever. On the other hand, Vladimir Kozlov and Santino Marella got their comeuppance over the Broski Bros. one week after the initial interference? Bad booking is the theme of the week for the WWE, and sadly, it affects the show that's usually good.

Remember you can contact TH and ask him questions about wrestling, life or anything else. Please refer to this post for contact information. He always takes questions!