Sunday, May 09, 2004
THE INEVITABLE RETURN OF THE GREAT WHITE HOPE!!
First of all, I'd like to apologise for the lack of WMF review, promised well over a month ago. You can now see my writing over at www.shootingstarpress.com, where I've got my own little column archive and get snappy little introductions to my work, which is pretty great.
Secondly, I feel the need to write about The Greatest Gig Ever, which happened last Wednesday in Wolverhampton. The Haunted were pretty dull, and didn't entice me to listen to any more of their interminable Swedish thrash metal. Million Dead were decent, but they were so generic, thet may as well have been renamed Funeral At The Drive-In For A Friend, so obvious were their influences. However, these two were the basic filling in a sandwich of TOTAL GOODNESS. Headliners Funeral For A Friend were amazing, with a dazzling professionalism that is incredible for a band touring their first album. They were tight, in tune (more than I can say for the Haunted) and their banter didn't seem forced at all. "Bullet Theory" sounded kingsize, even more so than on record, the crowd went batshit for "Juneau" and the encore was tremendous, with "The Art Of American Football" and "The Years Most Open Hearbreak" being both so awesome and, best of all, a cover of the Far song "The System" performed with former-Far frontman Jonah Matranga. Speaking of whom, Jonah was by far and away the highlight of the night, as his OneLineDrawing were the greatest thing I've ever seen. How one man (plus his mate at the side of the stage playing small parts of guitar) can dominate an entire stage and get a crowd of teenagers waiting for Rock Action to hang on his every word I'll never know, but the man is an icon. "Smile", "Bitte Ein Kuss" and "Yr Letter" were all jaw-droppingly, mind-blowingly powerful, his cover of the Deftones' "Be Quiet and Drive" was excellent and jonah proved himself as the Undisputed King Of Emo. Now i'm looking forward to Killswitch Engage, Chimaira, Shadows Fall and God Forbid the day before my birthday. Awesome stuff
Promising to update sooner,
Dave
(now playing- "The Volunteers" by OneLineDrawing)
First of all, I'd like to apologise for the lack of WMF review, promised well over a month ago. You can now see my writing over at www.shootingstarpress.com, where I've got my own little column archive and get snappy little introductions to my work, which is pretty great.
Secondly, I feel the need to write about The Greatest Gig Ever, which happened last Wednesday in Wolverhampton. The Haunted were pretty dull, and didn't entice me to listen to any more of their interminable Swedish thrash metal. Million Dead were decent, but they were so generic, thet may as well have been renamed Funeral At The Drive-In For A Friend, so obvious were their influences. However, these two were the basic filling in a sandwich of TOTAL GOODNESS. Headliners Funeral For A Friend were amazing, with a dazzling professionalism that is incredible for a band touring their first album. They were tight, in tune (more than I can say for the Haunted) and their banter didn't seem forced at all. "Bullet Theory" sounded kingsize, even more so than on record, the crowd went batshit for "Juneau" and the encore was tremendous, with "The Art Of American Football" and "The Years Most Open Hearbreak" being both so awesome and, best of all, a cover of the Far song "The System" performed with former-Far frontman Jonah Matranga. Speaking of whom, Jonah was by far and away the highlight of the night, as his OneLineDrawing were the greatest thing I've ever seen. How one man (plus his mate at the side of the stage playing small parts of guitar) can dominate an entire stage and get a crowd of teenagers waiting for Rock Action to hang on his every word I'll never know, but the man is an icon. "Smile", "Bitte Ein Kuss" and "Yr Letter" were all jaw-droppingly, mind-blowingly powerful, his cover of the Deftones' "Be Quiet and Drive" was excellent and jonah proved himself as the Undisputed King Of Emo. Now i'm looking forward to Killswitch Engage, Chimaira, Shadows Fall and God Forbid the day before my birthday. Awesome stuff
Promising to update sooner,
Dave
(now playing- "The Volunteers" by OneLineDrawing)
Friday, April 02, 2004
Quick updates-
Got the new Crackout album, "Oh No", and it's a veritable beauty. Highlight of the album is the phenominal "Robots Have Feelings", which is four minutes of sheer emo-core goodness about robots being in love. Quality work
Dawn Of The Dead- maybe the greatest film you'll see this year. Has everything I need from a film- humour, some KILLER deaths (my personal favourite being the fat lady who turns into a zombie), a decent cast (Ving Rhames BRINGIN' THE ATTITUDE!!) and a great soundtrack, which doesn't resort to the usual nu-metal cliches (Johnny Cash and Richard Cheese being the supreme artists). The best horror film I've seen in ages, narrowly beating off....
Mountain Of The Cannibal God- this puppy is SICK! Bit put off by the uncalled for animal deaths- I'm not cool with the slaughter of innocent snakes, iguanas or crabs. But WHAT a cast- Ursula Andress, only 10 years after Dr No, proving her cool by appearing in a primo piece of gore-drenched sleaze, clearly unafraid to bare all for the sake of art. But even better is the legendary STACY KEACH better known as the #1 playboy detective Mike Hammer, who is happy to star in this classic production. Watch out for the head-crushing death of the dwarf cannibal and be sickened by the stomach-churning castration scene that had me cringing as I've never cringed before.
Finally, having taken soooo long getting round to doing the CZW review, I'm getting back in the spirit of things more quickly, this time trying my hand at reviewing some Puro for the first time, where I review the WMF Debut Show. WMF is the promotion started by my favourite Japanese wrestler, the legendary Hayabusa, after his career ending injury. It's mostly clipped, meaning I can get it done quickly, but the Great Sasuke/Dragon Kid/Tiger Mask IV vs DARKNESS Dragon/Onyro/Goemon match is a high quality affair which deserves a quick review
Davey C
(now playing "Stone Sour" by Stone Sour)
NEWSFLASH- searching the internet, I found this little treasure from a man now better known as the Vern....
"tjb@xxxxxxxxxxx.co.uk (Thomas Jones-Berney)
Licenced to ill i admit is a sound album, but how can you give it 9/10 when Ill Communication is by far the best thing they have ever done?!!???!!!?!!?!?!!????!??!
and it only gets 7?!?!!!???!!!?!!? I t is similar to Check Your Head but with a far superior edge. Classics such as 'Sure Shot' , 'Alright Hear This' and 'Get it Together' were only inferior to one Beasties' track 'Intergalactic'. And 'Transitions' is pure genius In A Can inside a safe with billions of pounds in it inside the Playboy offices in LA. Understand???????? Well that's my view anyway. "
Bless him. My favourite part is the genius in a can rant. Well done that man :-D
Got the new Crackout album, "Oh No", and it's a veritable beauty. Highlight of the album is the phenominal "Robots Have Feelings", which is four minutes of sheer emo-core goodness about robots being in love. Quality work
Dawn Of The Dead- maybe the greatest film you'll see this year. Has everything I need from a film- humour, some KILLER deaths (my personal favourite being the fat lady who turns into a zombie), a decent cast (Ving Rhames BRINGIN' THE ATTITUDE!!) and a great soundtrack, which doesn't resort to the usual nu-metal cliches (Johnny Cash and Richard Cheese being the supreme artists). The best horror film I've seen in ages, narrowly beating off....
Mountain Of The Cannibal God- this puppy is SICK! Bit put off by the uncalled for animal deaths- I'm not cool with the slaughter of innocent snakes, iguanas or crabs. But WHAT a cast- Ursula Andress, only 10 years after Dr No, proving her cool by appearing in a primo piece of gore-drenched sleaze, clearly unafraid to bare all for the sake of art. But even better is the legendary STACY KEACH better known as the #1 playboy detective Mike Hammer, who is happy to star in this classic production. Watch out for the head-crushing death of the dwarf cannibal and be sickened by the stomach-churning castration scene that had me cringing as I've never cringed before.
Finally, having taken soooo long getting round to doing the CZW review, I'm getting back in the spirit of things more quickly, this time trying my hand at reviewing some Puro for the first time, where I review the WMF Debut Show. WMF is the promotion started by my favourite Japanese wrestler, the legendary Hayabusa, after his career ending injury. It's mostly clipped, meaning I can get it done quickly, but the Great Sasuke/Dragon Kid/Tiger Mask IV vs DARKNESS Dragon/Onyro/Goemon match is a high quality affair which deserves a quick review
Davey C
(now playing "Stone Sour" by Stone Sour)
NEWSFLASH- searching the internet, I found this little treasure from a man now better known as the Vern....
"tjb@xxxxxxxxxxx.co.uk (Thomas Jones-Berney)
Licenced to ill i admit is a sound album, but how can you give it 9/10 when Ill Communication is by far the best thing they have ever done?!!???!!!?!!?!?!!????!??!
and it only gets 7?!?!!!???!!!?!!? I t is similar to Check Your Head but with a far superior edge. Classics such as 'Sure Shot' , 'Alright Hear This' and 'Get it Together' were only inferior to one Beasties' track 'Intergalactic'. And 'Transitions' is pure genius In A Can inside a safe with billions of pounds in it inside the Playboy offices in LA. Understand???????? Well that's my view anyway. "
Bless him. My favourite part is the genius in a can rant. Well done that man :-D
Thursday, March 25, 2004
I'd like to send a big fuck you to another.com, who seem to have fucked me over big time. They've rearranged their e-mail setup, meaning that I'm now unable to send or receive any e-mails at that account, thus fucking up my eBay, Amazon, SmartMark, etc accounts. Even here, I've had to rearrange my shit. The link at the side now sends you to my REAL e-mail address, daveyclare@hotmail.com
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
Added a new link at the side- which Friday the 13th character are you? I got Tina, the psychic chick from part 7, who used her powers to resurrect her father as a zombie from the bottom of Camp Crystal Lake to kill Jason. I'm happy with that (hopes Jack gets Shelly, the irritating joker from part 3)
Monday, March 22, 2004
CZW DIVIDE AND CONQUER
Sorry it's taken a while to do this. Better late than never...
The show starts with the entire CZW roster in the ring, celebrating their return to Viking Hall, after the XPW lease on the place ended when their cheques started to bounce.
Your hosts are Eric Garguio and John House
JUSTICE vs STEVE MADISON vs JERRELLE CLARK
This is an elimination match, with the winner wrestling later in the night for a place in Best Of The Best. Madison is accompanied by Ron Niemi, who runs down CZW, as is the usual for gaining heel heat. A flashy series of kicks ends with Madison diving onto Clark outside the ring and Justice hits both men with an asai moonsault Back inside, Madison picks up Clark for a powerbomb, but Justice hits Clark with a spinkick from the top rope, allowing Clark to hit Madison with a rana. Double STO on Madison. Clark and Justice knock each other out with kicks, but move just in time as Madison tries a top rope legdrop. It has to be said, these guys are working very nicely together. Justice tries an octopus stretch on Clark, but gets caught by a Madison legdrop, which looks awesome. Clark goes up top- 630 SENTON!!! Damn, that was impressive. Madison pulls Clark off Justice before the three count and starts cockily squaring up to him. Clark downs Madison and goes up top, but Madison crotches him on the top rope. TOP ROPE BRAINBUSTER by Madison gets a three on Clark. Jerrelle Clark may well be legally dead, that looked painful. Justice returns to action with a springboard dropkick, but Madison moves, then hits a series of elbows for 2. Justice tries to fire back with a tornado DDT, but misses a moonsault, giving Madison the advantage. Madison thinks about hitting a standard brainbuster, but instead puts Justice on the top rope, but gets knocked down by a recovering Justice. Justice hits a 450 splash on Madison and that’s good enough for the victory.
VERDICT- Damn good choice for the opener, all three men were very impressive, especially Madison, and a lack of resting makes me a happy man. The three men worked well together, Madison playing the relative heavyweight who uses his strength to dominate the smaller two opponents, but gets caught at the final hurdle by the underdog Justice **3/4
CORY KASTLE AND JON DAHMER vs JUDE AND NILES YOUNG
Ah, the staple of every CZW card- the students match. Happily, with the exception of Jude, I like all the guys in this match, and Jude still has a decent moveset for a big man. For some reason, GQ is managing Young and Jude. CK and Young start off with a nice series of reversals, before Jude gets in and hits a tilt-a-whirl slam on CK. CK tries to reverse a Jude powerbomb into a rana, but Jude holds on and reverses into a leglock. Bizarrely, they repeat the spot for no apparent reason, which confuses the hell out of the crowd and myself. Young and Jude both hit quebradas on CK for a two count. CK tags in Dahmer after a missed charge and Dahmer is the proverbial house of fire as he lariats Young for 2. Dahmer hits a SPRINGBOARD dropkick on Young and I’m shocked. Didn’t think the big guy had it in him. Kastle and Dahmer hit a Death Sentence on Young for two, following a Jude save. CK hits a Flatliner for two, then a pumphandle slam onto the knee for another two. Young comes back with a reverse fame-asser, which he calls the Goosey Driver (Garguilo even apologises for the stupid name in his commentary). Jude hits CK with an emerald frosion, which Dahmer breaks up on two. That looked BRUTAL by Jude, and I mean that in a good way. CK makes the hot tag (again) to Dahmer who cleans house. German Suplex by Dahmer has Young landing on Jude. CK carries Young to the corner, which allows Dahmer to hit a top rope powerbomb, which gets two when Jude saves. Dahmer hits the MOVE OF 1000 MANIACS~! (my favourite name for a move) on Young for the victory. GQ tries to make Jude turn on Young after the match, but instead beats the crap out of both of them.
VERDICT- Much better than most of the student matches, as they wrestled a formula tag match, which is pretty hard to get wrong. Dahmer played his role as the hot tag guy very well, and all three students (Jude, CK and Young), while green, have a decent moveset. Kastle and Young seem to have picked up the art of showing charisma in their matches very quickly, and should make a great team (they have since formed a team called CKNY). Fun match **
DUNN AND MARCOS vs LOCO vs MENACE
This is another elimination match for the BOTB spot. Dunn and Marcos are wrestling as a team- if one of them survives, they both get through to the final. They promise to rock someone LIKE A HURRICANE!! The fans are LOVING Dunn and Marcos. Menace is dressed up as Hayabusa, which annoys me. Dunn and Marcos attack to start, but both get caught by DDT’s, sending them to the outside . Nice display of matwork by Loco and Menace ends with Loco getting La Majistral on Menace for two. Nice piledriver by Loco, which looked damn good. Dunn and Marcos come back with a rana on Loco, sending him headfirst into the corner. Unskinny Bop (like Sliced Bread #2, only with Marcos using Dunn as a springboard instead of the turnbuckle) on Menace gets two when Loco saves. That’s a nice bit of psychology there- even though it’s elimination, Loco saves Menace so it doesn’t end up two-on-one against Dunn and Marcos. Loco is sent outside the ring and he’s followed out via a Marcos plancha. Dunn follows with a plancha suicida Menace continues the series with an top rope moonsault to the floor. This is Loco’s cue to go back into the ring and hit everyone with a springboard plancha of his own. Back inside, Marcos reverses a Menace tilt-a-whirl into a reverse DDT. Dunn and Marcos miscommunication leads to Loco hitting a top rope german suplex on Dunn, while Menace hits a top rope Michinoku Driver on Marcos. Both men are covered for three, to the crowds disapproval. Bad move there, the crowd just seems deflated after that and don’t care enough about Loco or Menace to keep themselves interested in the rest of the match. Loco and Menace battle for pins, each man getting a series of two counts. German suplex gets two for Loco, as does a Hurricanrana. After a series of roll ups, Menace gets a crucifix for three.
VERDICT- Not as good as the first elimination match, as it was too spotty in places and the elimination of Dunn and Marcos deflated the crowd. On the positive side, all the spots were hit crisply and the match had good heat while D&M were still in it. Loco was pretty impressive and Menace, in spite of his gangly physique, was pretty good too. Decent enough **
REBEL’S ARMY (ROCKIN’ REBEL, GREG MATTHEWS AND Z-BARR) vs DEREK FRAZIER, HURRICANE KID AND JASON MAXX vs ROBBIE RACE, TANK AND ICEBERG
Seeing as the only two wrestlers I like here, out of nine, wrestle for the same team (Barr and Matthews), I’m expecting this to suck. The opening video claims Adam Flash is part of this match, but he’s replaced by Maxx, which is a shame, because Flash is damn good. Race, Tank and Iceberg are all representing NWA Wildside, Iceberg as world champion. Sadly, they’re all very fat, especially Iceberg, who must weigh 500-600lbs. Matthews overpowers Frazier to start, but they blow a tilt-a-whirl slam sequence, not sure whose fault that was. Tank comes in and squashes Matthews in the corner with a clothesline. Rebel and Iceberg are in next, and Iceberg squashes Rebel with a legdrop when Rebel drops down on an irish whip. Maxx and Matthews come in next. Rebel distracts Maxx allowing a low blow by Matthews, who tags Race in. Hmm, seems like they’re using quick tags so no-one can stink up the ring for too long. Good idea. Race downs Maxx with a big spinebuster. FINALLY, Z-Barr is in. He hits Maxx with a big overhead belly to belly suplex, then follows it up with a blockbuster. Barr hits a crisp moonsault, then Matthews and Rebel double team Maxx. Maxx makes a comeback, hitting Matthews with a variation of the Kryptonite Krunch. Barr and the Hurricane Kid get tagged in and predictably Barr dominates the Kid and hits Adam Flash’s signature move, a top rope facebuster. This draws out Flash, who LEVELS Barr with a chair, before piledriving Barr onto the chair. This is Flash’s only appearance in this match- guess they didn’t want to waste him on this mess. In the ring, Frazier turns on the Kid and reveals he’s wearing a Rebel’s Army t-shirt. Sadly for Frazier, this turn would have more effect if Garguilo and House weren’t still talking about Adam Flash. The NWA Wildsiders come in, using THE POWER OF FAT to take control of the match, although Iceberg throws Race out of the ring for no explained reason. Iceberg empties a bag of thumbtacks in the ring, but this turns out to be a very stupid move, as Frazier distracts Iceberg, allowing Rebel to hit a reverse DDT onto the tacks for three. Rebel’s Army beat up Tank after the match, until Zandig makes the save. He challenges Rebel to a thumbtack strap match at Best of the Best 3, but thankfully, this never happened.
VERDICT- Hmmm, very weak action, wrestlers neither the fans, nor myself give a shit about, a Derek Frazier turn no-one cares about and an announcement for a match that never happens. Yep, this match really sucked. Only Z-Barr’s offence and the Rebel/Matthews double teams stop this from being a DUD. Instead, we get ½*
EL DIABOLICO vs MIKE MAYHEM vs JIMMY RAVE
This is the final elimination match- the winner will face Justice and Menace later in the card. Rave is very over here, with the fans chanting his name almost non-stop. Diabolico looks like Ron Jeremy’s scrawnier brother. Some frantic action starts us off, ending with Diabolico hittng a rana from the ring apron onto Mayhem. El D then goes up against Rave in the ring, but gets caught in a wheelbarrow suplex/DDT combo by Rave and the returning Mayhem. Rave and Mayhem try to double team El D, but the Diabolico reversal leaves Rave crotched on the top rope. El D and Mayhem continue to battle, allowing Rave the chance to recover and hit a crossbody on El D for 2. Mayhem hits a second-rope heel kick on Rave for two. El D ranas Mayhem for 2. A Mayhem clothesline sends Rave out of the ring, leaving Mayhem alone with El D. Mayhem quickly dispatches Diabolico with a Mayhem Bomb (spinning Last Ride), followed by a corkscrew moonsault which clinches the 3 count. Rave attacks the celebrating Mayhem, flooring him, then locking in a fujiwara armbar. Rave releases and Mayhem comes back with a blue thunder bomb for 2. Mayhem misses a springboard moonsault, allowing Rave to hit his spinning headscissors into a crossface for three!
VERDICT- Somewhere in the middle of the two previous Trifecta matches. I’d love to see a singles match between Rave and Mayhem, who impressed in spite of his none-more-generic name. Diabolico was all-rana-no-substance, but served his purpose as the guy who would take the first pinfall. All the spots were solid, but the first match had slightly more solid action and more of a cohesive story. **1/4
TONY MAMALUKE vs NICK BERK
This is a qualifying match for Best of the Best and it is a submission match.I like both guys, so this should be pretty good, especially as both utilise a submission style. They begin by exchanging a series of holds on the mat, ending with Mamaluke getting the advantage. Berk uses his knees to escape a Dragon Sleeper attempt. Both men trade submission holds Berk is sent shoulder first to the ring post, before both men fight over a sleeper. Strangely, Mamaluke doesn’t bother to focus on this injury. Berk hits a springboard drop kick on Mamaluke in the corner. Mamaluke takes control by dragon leg screwing Berk into the corner. Mamaluke starts working over the knee with a vengeance, including a Bret Hart-esque figure four leglock around the ring post. The Sicillian Stretch (better known as the Brock Lock) is applied to Berk, but he reaches the ropes. The crowd, somewhat unfairly, start a “boring” chant. Berk comes back with some submission moves of his own, culminating in an oriental scorpion, which he can’t maintain due to his injured leg. Berk continues the assault with a facebuster and a double armed chicken wing. Berk suplexes Mamaluke to the floor from the ring apron, busting himself open in the process. Berk is clearly dazed from this point on and there is a large red circle on the crown of his blond hair. Mamaluke gets into a fight with referee Rob Hartog to buy Berk more time. It obviously works, because Berk leaps off the top rope with a leg lariat. Mamaluke rolls outside, only for Berk to follow him with a senton atomico from the top rope. Berk lands on the back of his head AGAIN doing that. Berk goes up top again, but gets crotched when Mamaluke pushes Hartog into the ropes. Mamaluke DDT’s Berk from the top rope. Dragon Panzer (Dragon Sleeper from a Camel Clutch position) by Tony Mamaluke causes Berk to pass out for the Mamaluke victory. Mamaluke raises Berk’s hand after the match.
VERDICT- Started off slowly, but they continued to put on a good match, even after Berk’s injury. Berk deserves a lot of credit for his performance in the match, as does Mamaluke for holding it together. Would have been nice to see a submission finish using the leg, especially after Mamaluke spent so much time working on it, but the finish still worked, as Mamaluke took advantage of Berk’s clearly dazed state by using the Dragon Panzer to cut off the supply to Berk’s brain, causing him to pass out. Both men worked well and I’d love to see a rematch ***
CHRIS STYLZ vs IAN KNOXX
When former tag partners collide. Stylz comes to the ring with a steel chair, Knoxx has a keg with him. Knoxx is all over Stylz before the bell rings. Gorilla press by Knoxx, followed by a fallaway slam, but he misses a charge into the corner. House and Garguilo argue over House’s taste in music, specifically his appreciation of Bon Jovi- this is sadly more entertaining than the match. Stylz hits a Northern Lights suplex on Knoxx, but Knoxx rebounds with a spinebuster. HUGE clothesline by Knoxx turns Stylz inside out for two. Knoxx goes up, but gets crotched, allowing Stylz to hit a top rope Northern Lights suplex for two. A second attempt is turned into a top rope chokeslam by Knoxx. The two men uses their weapons for a duel. Knoxx misses a keg shot, but then throws the keg at Stylz, who is holding a chair, causing the chair to whack Stylz in the face. This gets three for Knoxx.
VERDICT- The match was essentially a squash to get Knoxx over. Match is pretty dull save for a few highspots. For a heated feud between two ex-friends, I expected more of a story, but instead got a “I hit a move, then you hit a move” brawl. Stylz was gone from CZW within a couple of months ½*
Eric Garguilo interviews Johnny Kashmere, who gets pelted with coins when he claims that he’ll never return to the arena if any more change is thrown in the ring. The look on Acid’s face as he gathers all the change is classic.. Kashmere confirms that he is putting his spot in Best of the Best on the line in the next match against Ric Blade
RIC BLADE vs JOHNNY KASHMERE
One of these guys I like a lot, the other I don’t. Blade is a super-sloppy worker, whereas Kashmere is a very underrated talent. This is a baseball bat match, so both men come equipped with bats. They duel to start off with, using their bats, until Blade ends up with Kashmere’s bat. Kashmere throws a baseball into Blade’s stomach before he can takes advantage- ha! Series of reversals end with Blade hooking a Fujiwara armbar on Kashmere. Kashmere rolls outside, only to get caught with a rubbish rana attempt by Blade. Kashmere dumps him to the floor, giving a look to the camera as if to say “hey, it wasn’t my fault”. Trent Acid attacks Blade outside of the ring. Johnny brings Blade in the hard way- with a baseball bat wrapped around his throat. Kashmere follows up a forwards neckbreaker by choking Blade with the bat. Blade fires back with a weak atomic drop and an impressive cradle DDT. Blade whips Kashmere to the corner, but Kashmere fires back with an MONSTROUS spear that sends Blade flying. Blade springboards off the ropes to hit a Dragon Sleeper variant. Series of kicks by Blade downs Kashmere. Blade tries a swanton, but lands headfirst on a baseball bat being held by Kashmere. Blade gets up almost straight away. Goddamn it Blade, you just smacked your head on a baseball bat, don’t just kip up straight away. A series of pinfall exchanges ends with the Dew distracting referee Brian Logan, allowing Acid to hit the bridging Blade with a baseball bat to the stomach. This is again no-sold as Blade drops Kashmere neckfirst on his knee, onto a baseball bat. A somersault plancha takes care of the Dew and Acid and back inside Blade hits the Blade Driver on Kashmere for three.
VERDICT-Blade is a very sloppy wrestler and Kashmere wasn’t able to carry him. Blade is horribly spotty and he seems to no-sell any damage caused seconds after it occurs, even if he’s just been whacked WITH A FUCKING BASEBALL BAT!! Shame he won too, because he went on to face Acid and Tony Mamaluke at BOTB, which would have been wonderful as Acid/Kashmere/Mamaluke. A disappointing match *1/4
MENACE vs JIMMY RAVE vs JUSTICE
Trent Acid does commentary for this match, but adds nothing of note, except that he’ll win Best of the Best 3. Menace and Justice both attack Rave, culminating in a wheelbarrow suplex by Menace. Rave and Justice now team up on Menace, locking in a double Fujiwara armbar. Rave levels Justice with a powerbomb. Menace tries a top rove move, but gets crotched and suplexed by Rave. Menace recovers to hit the Menace Driver (variation of the Michinoku Driver) on Justice. Menace is wrestling pretty much as the heel of the match- the crowd really turn on the guy. Rave attacks Menace and tries to unmask him. Justice stops this by kicking a chair into Rave’s face. Justice misses a charge on Menace and gets put into a tree of woe. Menace hits him with a Van Daminator, then a Van Terminator. Justice is officially dead at this point. Rave takes advantage of Menace’s distraction by locking in the crossface for the Menace tap, following which, Rave takes off Menace’s ill-begotten mask. Rave poses, but gets caught with a missile dropkick by Justice. La Majistral gets 2 for Justice. Rave stops the momentum and kicks Justice to the floor. Another crossface is good enough to get the submission, sending Rave to Best of the Best 3.
VERDICT- Nice story told in this match, as Rave let Menace destroy Justice, before taking him out with a quick submission, leaving Rave with a wounded Justice. Justice, the smallest man in the match, tried to take advantage of Rave posing after beating Menace, but was too badly beaten to have an advantage for long. Match was criminally short, but was still fun for the less-than-ten minutes it lasted **1/4
RUCKUS © vs CHRIS CASH (CZW Junior Heavyweight title)
Sonjay Dutt dances his way to the ring to be the special guest referee for the match. Cash goes to a surfboard on Ruckus straight away, before both men exchange a series of kicks and misses. Cash avoids two attempts at the Razzle Dazzle, but gets caught with a third. Ruckus floors Cash and hits him with a standing Shooting Star Press, which gets two. Cash rolls to the outside, which lures Sonjay out to argue with him. Ruckus downs them both with a springboard moonsault. Cash droptoeholds Ruckus into the ringpost, then uses the post to rana Ruckus to the floor. Back in the ring, Cash tries a superkick, but hits Sonjay instead. Ruckus tries a kick of his own, but also levels Sonjay. Both men miss dropkicks, hitting Sonjay instead. Sonjay calls for the bell- Double DQ. Fans aren’t happy with that decision. Zandig gets on the PA system to announce that all three men will battle in the first match at Best of the Best 3. Fans like that decision.
VERDICT- Another decent, if short match. Cash and Ruckus blended well together, but the cop-out finish was disappointing. Cash showed me a definite improvement in his moveset and if he could just bulk up a little, he could become a bigger star for sure. A longer match would have been great, but as an angle to further the Cash-Ruckus-Dutt rivalry, it served it’s purpose. *3/4
“SICK” NICK MONDO © vs TRENT ACID (CZW Iron Man title)
Trent stalls a LOT to start, even posing on a ringside table, which sadly prompts Mondo to throw a chair in his face. Spin kick sends Acid outside, where Mondo follows with a tope con hilo. Mondo reverses a Yakuza kick into a bow and arrow and a second attempt is blocked with a kick by Mondo. Acid comes back with a Blue Thunder bomb. Acid hits a missile dropkick and a twisting splash for two. Acid sets up a table outside the ring, and attempts to throw Mondo through it. He fails. Both men try to throw the other through the table, with neither succeeding. A Mondo chairshot stops any further attempts. In the ring, Mondo tries an Assault Driver onto a chair, but Acid escapes and hits a rope assisted Implant DDT on the chair for 2. Trent sets up Mondo for an Acid Bomb onto the chair, but Mondo lands on his feet, only to get droptoeholded onto the chair instead. Acid tries for a moonsault, but Mondo throws him down onto the chair instead. Mondo continues the advantage by finding a dustbin under the ring and throwing it onto Acid. Acid misses a Roaring Elbow and Mondo hits him with an AWESOME move called the Lightcutter (sit out Cutthroat Suplex) onto the bin, which only gets two. Mondo wastes time setting up a table in the corner, which gives Acid the time to recover and hit the Yakuza Kick for two. Falcon Arrow gets two. The HI-V come to the ring to set up a series of chairs in front of the table and I can't complain about the interference, as it makes more sense than Acid spending ages setting up dozens of chairs. The H8 Club and Ric Blade come in to clear the ring and the distraction allows Mondo to hit an Assault Driver on Acid which only gets two. Damn, they’re making Acid look invincible here. Johnny Kashmere distracts Mondo, allowing Trent to hit the Yakuza Kick again, but Ric Blade evens up the odds by DDTing Acid. Surprised he didn’t somehow botch it. Mondo pulls out a bag of tacks, as Blade and Kashmere fight down the aisle, and pours them over the chairs. Mondo puts Acid on the table and hits the ASSAULT DRIVER OFF THE TABLE ONTO THE THUMBTACK COVERED CHAIRS!!!! This is enough for the win.
VERDICT- Awesome match, where everything looked crisp, not a single blown spot and even the run-ins made sense. Acid took a shit-load of punishment here, for which he deserves major credit and both men looked like they could have won. The finish also made sense, as Mondo had hit several big moves to try and put Acid away and he needed something truly sick (as his name would suggest) to get the job done. Only a lack of major selling during the match prevents me putting this over four stars, but it’s not far off ***3/4
THE H8 CLUB vs THE MESSIAH (CZW World champion) AND B-BOY
Hatred, Gage and B-Boy in the same match? This should be stiff as Hell! Gage and B-Boy start, with B-Boy taking advantage with a neckbreaker. Messiah comes in with an Exploder on Gage, followed by B-Boy coming in the hit the Facewash in the corner on Gage. Quebrada by the Messiah and thus far, Gage has gotten NO offence. The HI-V members hit a Hart Attack clothesline on Gage, then rip off fellow HI-V members the Backseat Boys by performing a Dream Sequence. Gage FINALLY gets some offence after B-Boy misses the Shining Wizard, hitting a back suplex. Hatred gets tagged in and DESTROYS the HI-V, hitting a chokeslam on the Messiah and a face-first slam on B-Boy. Hatred hits two VICIOUS looking chairshots on B-Boy outside the ring, then holds the Messiah and B-Boy to allow Gage to hit a rolling senton on both men. Gage and the Messiah brawl into the crowd, and Gage sets up a table near the balcony and puts the Messiah onto the table. Messiah gets off and NAILS Gage with a chair shot, as Gage is attempting to climb up. Gage gets put on the table and the Messiah NAILS him with an elbow from the balcony. Meanwhile, in the ring, Hatred hits B-Boy with a vicious powerbomb, which gets two. HI-V manager The Dew tries a chairshot on Hatred, which is no sold, but the Messiah makes the save before any damage can be done. Gage returns and hits the Messiah with the chokebreaker. B-Boy hits a Shining Wizard on Gage, who slumps into the corner. The HI-V encourage the Dew to hit the Facewash on Gage, but Gage moves as Hatred NAILS both members of the HI-V with a double Decapititor lariat. Gage gets the Messiah in the corner and hits him with two violent looking Facewashes. Hatred hits a Fire Thunder Bomb THROUGH A TABLE OUTSIDE THE RING on B-Boy, putting him out of the match. Back inside, Messiah and Gage both try hitting their respective finishers (the Godsmack and the Hardcore Drop), with Gage eventually prevailing, hitting the Hardcore Drop for three.
VERDICT- The right booking there, as Gage had a world title match against the Messiah at Best of the Best, so pinning the Messiah made him look like a real contender. The start was interesting, with HI-V dominating Gage for the first five minutes, but after that, it settled into a damn-good tag encounter, with enough wacky spots and vicious moves to keep it flowing. A good way to end the show ***1/4
Overall, I’d call this a pretty good show, especially as it was a build up to Best of the Best. Only the Rebel’s Army match, the Stylz/Knoxx match and the Ric Blade match really sucked, everything else was, at the least, enjoyable, with the submission match and the final two matches being definitely worth watching. The elimination matches, though short, was fun and even the student match was pretty good. Recommended show
Highest rating: ***3/4 (Mondo vs Acid)
Lowest Rating: ½* (Stylz vs Knoxx and Rebels Army vs NWA Wildside vs Maxx, Frazier and Kid)
Average rating: 2.10 stars (25.25/12)
The Davey C video review league table
CZW DIVIDE AND CONQUER- 2.10 stars
XPW FALLOUT- 2.08 stars
WCW STARRCADE 90- 1.73 stars
Please e-mail me any feedback- address at the side
Davey C
(now playing- “TruANT” by Alien Ant Farm
Sorry it's taken a while to do this. Better late than never...
The show starts with the entire CZW roster in the ring, celebrating their return to Viking Hall, after the XPW lease on the place ended when their cheques started to bounce.
Your hosts are Eric Garguio and John House
JUSTICE vs STEVE MADISON vs JERRELLE CLARK
This is an elimination match, with the winner wrestling later in the night for a place in Best Of The Best. Madison is accompanied by Ron Niemi, who runs down CZW, as is the usual for gaining heel heat. A flashy series of kicks ends with Madison diving onto Clark outside the ring and Justice hits both men with an asai moonsault Back inside, Madison picks up Clark for a powerbomb, but Justice hits Clark with a spinkick from the top rope, allowing Clark to hit Madison with a rana. Double STO on Madison. Clark and Justice knock each other out with kicks, but move just in time as Madison tries a top rope legdrop. It has to be said, these guys are working very nicely together. Justice tries an octopus stretch on Clark, but gets caught by a Madison legdrop, which looks awesome. Clark goes up top- 630 SENTON!!! Damn, that was impressive. Madison pulls Clark off Justice before the three count and starts cockily squaring up to him. Clark downs Madison and goes up top, but Madison crotches him on the top rope. TOP ROPE BRAINBUSTER by Madison gets a three on Clark. Jerrelle Clark may well be legally dead, that looked painful. Justice returns to action with a springboard dropkick, but Madison moves, then hits a series of elbows for 2. Justice tries to fire back with a tornado DDT, but misses a moonsault, giving Madison the advantage. Madison thinks about hitting a standard brainbuster, but instead puts Justice on the top rope, but gets knocked down by a recovering Justice. Justice hits a 450 splash on Madison and that’s good enough for the victory.
VERDICT- Damn good choice for the opener, all three men were very impressive, especially Madison, and a lack of resting makes me a happy man. The three men worked well together, Madison playing the relative heavyweight who uses his strength to dominate the smaller two opponents, but gets caught at the final hurdle by the underdog Justice **3/4
CORY KASTLE AND JON DAHMER vs JUDE AND NILES YOUNG
Ah, the staple of every CZW card- the students match. Happily, with the exception of Jude, I like all the guys in this match, and Jude still has a decent moveset for a big man. For some reason, GQ is managing Young and Jude. CK and Young start off with a nice series of reversals, before Jude gets in and hits a tilt-a-whirl slam on CK. CK tries to reverse a Jude powerbomb into a rana, but Jude holds on and reverses into a leglock. Bizarrely, they repeat the spot for no apparent reason, which confuses the hell out of the crowd and myself. Young and Jude both hit quebradas on CK for a two count. CK tags in Dahmer after a missed charge and Dahmer is the proverbial house of fire as he lariats Young for 2. Dahmer hits a SPRINGBOARD dropkick on Young and I’m shocked. Didn’t think the big guy had it in him. Kastle and Dahmer hit a Death Sentence on Young for two, following a Jude save. CK hits a Flatliner for two, then a pumphandle slam onto the knee for another two. Young comes back with a reverse fame-asser, which he calls the Goosey Driver (Garguilo even apologises for the stupid name in his commentary). Jude hits CK with an emerald frosion, which Dahmer breaks up on two. That looked BRUTAL by Jude, and I mean that in a good way. CK makes the hot tag (again) to Dahmer who cleans house. German Suplex by Dahmer has Young landing on Jude. CK carries Young to the corner, which allows Dahmer to hit a top rope powerbomb, which gets two when Jude saves. Dahmer hits the MOVE OF 1000 MANIACS~! (my favourite name for a move) on Young for the victory. GQ tries to make Jude turn on Young after the match, but instead beats the crap out of both of them.
VERDICT- Much better than most of the student matches, as they wrestled a formula tag match, which is pretty hard to get wrong. Dahmer played his role as the hot tag guy very well, and all three students (Jude, CK and Young), while green, have a decent moveset. Kastle and Young seem to have picked up the art of showing charisma in their matches very quickly, and should make a great team (they have since formed a team called CKNY). Fun match **
DUNN AND MARCOS vs LOCO vs MENACE
This is another elimination match for the BOTB spot. Dunn and Marcos are wrestling as a team- if one of them survives, they both get through to the final. They promise to rock someone LIKE A HURRICANE!! The fans are LOVING Dunn and Marcos. Menace is dressed up as Hayabusa, which annoys me. Dunn and Marcos attack to start, but both get caught by DDT’s, sending them to the outside . Nice display of matwork by Loco and Menace ends with Loco getting La Majistral on Menace for two. Nice piledriver by Loco, which looked damn good. Dunn and Marcos come back with a rana on Loco, sending him headfirst into the corner. Unskinny Bop (like Sliced Bread #2, only with Marcos using Dunn as a springboard instead of the turnbuckle) on Menace gets two when Loco saves. That’s a nice bit of psychology there- even though it’s elimination, Loco saves Menace so it doesn’t end up two-on-one against Dunn and Marcos. Loco is sent outside the ring and he’s followed out via a Marcos plancha. Dunn follows with a plancha suicida Menace continues the series with an top rope moonsault to the floor. This is Loco’s cue to go back into the ring and hit everyone with a springboard plancha of his own. Back inside, Marcos reverses a Menace tilt-a-whirl into a reverse DDT. Dunn and Marcos miscommunication leads to Loco hitting a top rope german suplex on Dunn, while Menace hits a top rope Michinoku Driver on Marcos. Both men are covered for three, to the crowds disapproval. Bad move there, the crowd just seems deflated after that and don’t care enough about Loco or Menace to keep themselves interested in the rest of the match. Loco and Menace battle for pins, each man getting a series of two counts. German suplex gets two for Loco, as does a Hurricanrana. After a series of roll ups, Menace gets a crucifix for three.
VERDICT- Not as good as the first elimination match, as it was too spotty in places and the elimination of Dunn and Marcos deflated the crowd. On the positive side, all the spots were hit crisply and the match had good heat while D&M were still in it. Loco was pretty impressive and Menace, in spite of his gangly physique, was pretty good too. Decent enough **
REBEL’S ARMY (ROCKIN’ REBEL, GREG MATTHEWS AND Z-BARR) vs DEREK FRAZIER, HURRICANE KID AND JASON MAXX vs ROBBIE RACE, TANK AND ICEBERG
Seeing as the only two wrestlers I like here, out of nine, wrestle for the same team (Barr and Matthews), I’m expecting this to suck. The opening video claims Adam Flash is part of this match, but he’s replaced by Maxx, which is a shame, because Flash is damn good. Race, Tank and Iceberg are all representing NWA Wildside, Iceberg as world champion. Sadly, they’re all very fat, especially Iceberg, who must weigh 500-600lbs. Matthews overpowers Frazier to start, but they blow a tilt-a-whirl slam sequence, not sure whose fault that was. Tank comes in and squashes Matthews in the corner with a clothesline. Rebel and Iceberg are in next, and Iceberg squashes Rebel with a legdrop when Rebel drops down on an irish whip. Maxx and Matthews come in next. Rebel distracts Maxx allowing a low blow by Matthews, who tags Race in. Hmm, seems like they’re using quick tags so no-one can stink up the ring for too long. Good idea. Race downs Maxx with a big spinebuster. FINALLY, Z-Barr is in. He hits Maxx with a big overhead belly to belly suplex, then follows it up with a blockbuster. Barr hits a crisp moonsault, then Matthews and Rebel double team Maxx. Maxx makes a comeback, hitting Matthews with a variation of the Kryptonite Krunch. Barr and the Hurricane Kid get tagged in and predictably Barr dominates the Kid and hits Adam Flash’s signature move, a top rope facebuster. This draws out Flash, who LEVELS Barr with a chair, before piledriving Barr onto the chair. This is Flash’s only appearance in this match- guess they didn’t want to waste him on this mess. In the ring, Frazier turns on the Kid and reveals he’s wearing a Rebel’s Army t-shirt. Sadly for Frazier, this turn would have more effect if Garguilo and House weren’t still talking about Adam Flash. The NWA Wildsiders come in, using THE POWER OF FAT to take control of the match, although Iceberg throws Race out of the ring for no explained reason. Iceberg empties a bag of thumbtacks in the ring, but this turns out to be a very stupid move, as Frazier distracts Iceberg, allowing Rebel to hit a reverse DDT onto the tacks for three. Rebel’s Army beat up Tank after the match, until Zandig makes the save. He challenges Rebel to a thumbtack strap match at Best of the Best 3, but thankfully, this never happened.
VERDICT- Hmmm, very weak action, wrestlers neither the fans, nor myself give a shit about, a Derek Frazier turn no-one cares about and an announcement for a match that never happens. Yep, this match really sucked. Only Z-Barr’s offence and the Rebel/Matthews double teams stop this from being a DUD. Instead, we get ½*
EL DIABOLICO vs MIKE MAYHEM vs JIMMY RAVE
This is the final elimination match- the winner will face Justice and Menace later in the card. Rave is very over here, with the fans chanting his name almost non-stop. Diabolico looks like Ron Jeremy’s scrawnier brother. Some frantic action starts us off, ending with Diabolico hittng a rana from the ring apron onto Mayhem. El D then goes up against Rave in the ring, but gets caught in a wheelbarrow suplex/DDT combo by Rave and the returning Mayhem. Rave and Mayhem try to double team El D, but the Diabolico reversal leaves Rave crotched on the top rope. El D and Mayhem continue to battle, allowing Rave the chance to recover and hit a crossbody on El D for 2. Mayhem hits a second-rope heel kick on Rave for two. El D ranas Mayhem for 2. A Mayhem clothesline sends Rave out of the ring, leaving Mayhem alone with El D. Mayhem quickly dispatches Diabolico with a Mayhem Bomb (spinning Last Ride), followed by a corkscrew moonsault which clinches the 3 count. Rave attacks the celebrating Mayhem, flooring him, then locking in a fujiwara armbar. Rave releases and Mayhem comes back with a blue thunder bomb for 2. Mayhem misses a springboard moonsault, allowing Rave to hit his spinning headscissors into a crossface for three!
VERDICT- Somewhere in the middle of the two previous Trifecta matches. I’d love to see a singles match between Rave and Mayhem, who impressed in spite of his none-more-generic name. Diabolico was all-rana-no-substance, but served his purpose as the guy who would take the first pinfall. All the spots were solid, but the first match had slightly more solid action and more of a cohesive story. **1/4
TONY MAMALUKE vs NICK BERK
This is a qualifying match for Best of the Best and it is a submission match.I like both guys, so this should be pretty good, especially as both utilise a submission style. They begin by exchanging a series of holds on the mat, ending with Mamaluke getting the advantage. Berk uses his knees to escape a Dragon Sleeper attempt. Both men trade submission holds Berk is sent shoulder first to the ring post, before both men fight over a sleeper. Strangely, Mamaluke doesn’t bother to focus on this injury. Berk hits a springboard drop kick on Mamaluke in the corner. Mamaluke takes control by dragon leg screwing Berk into the corner. Mamaluke starts working over the knee with a vengeance, including a Bret Hart-esque figure four leglock around the ring post. The Sicillian Stretch (better known as the Brock Lock) is applied to Berk, but he reaches the ropes. The crowd, somewhat unfairly, start a “boring” chant. Berk comes back with some submission moves of his own, culminating in an oriental scorpion, which he can’t maintain due to his injured leg. Berk continues the assault with a facebuster and a double armed chicken wing. Berk suplexes Mamaluke to the floor from the ring apron, busting himself open in the process. Berk is clearly dazed from this point on and there is a large red circle on the crown of his blond hair. Mamaluke gets into a fight with referee Rob Hartog to buy Berk more time. It obviously works, because Berk leaps off the top rope with a leg lariat. Mamaluke rolls outside, only for Berk to follow him with a senton atomico from the top rope. Berk lands on the back of his head AGAIN doing that. Berk goes up top again, but gets crotched when Mamaluke pushes Hartog into the ropes. Mamaluke DDT’s Berk from the top rope. Dragon Panzer (Dragon Sleeper from a Camel Clutch position) by Tony Mamaluke causes Berk to pass out for the Mamaluke victory. Mamaluke raises Berk’s hand after the match.
VERDICT- Started off slowly, but they continued to put on a good match, even after Berk’s injury. Berk deserves a lot of credit for his performance in the match, as does Mamaluke for holding it together. Would have been nice to see a submission finish using the leg, especially after Mamaluke spent so much time working on it, but the finish still worked, as Mamaluke took advantage of Berk’s clearly dazed state by using the Dragon Panzer to cut off the supply to Berk’s brain, causing him to pass out. Both men worked well and I’d love to see a rematch ***
CHRIS STYLZ vs IAN KNOXX
When former tag partners collide. Stylz comes to the ring with a steel chair, Knoxx has a keg with him. Knoxx is all over Stylz before the bell rings. Gorilla press by Knoxx, followed by a fallaway slam, but he misses a charge into the corner. House and Garguilo argue over House’s taste in music, specifically his appreciation of Bon Jovi- this is sadly more entertaining than the match. Stylz hits a Northern Lights suplex on Knoxx, but Knoxx rebounds with a spinebuster. HUGE clothesline by Knoxx turns Stylz inside out for two. Knoxx goes up, but gets crotched, allowing Stylz to hit a top rope Northern Lights suplex for two. A second attempt is turned into a top rope chokeslam by Knoxx. The two men uses their weapons for a duel. Knoxx misses a keg shot, but then throws the keg at Stylz, who is holding a chair, causing the chair to whack Stylz in the face. This gets three for Knoxx.
VERDICT- The match was essentially a squash to get Knoxx over. Match is pretty dull save for a few highspots. For a heated feud between two ex-friends, I expected more of a story, but instead got a “I hit a move, then you hit a move” brawl. Stylz was gone from CZW within a couple of months ½*
Eric Garguilo interviews Johnny Kashmere, who gets pelted with coins when he claims that he’ll never return to the arena if any more change is thrown in the ring. The look on Acid’s face as he gathers all the change is classic.. Kashmere confirms that he is putting his spot in Best of the Best on the line in the next match against Ric Blade
RIC BLADE vs JOHNNY KASHMERE
One of these guys I like a lot, the other I don’t. Blade is a super-sloppy worker, whereas Kashmere is a very underrated talent. This is a baseball bat match, so both men come equipped with bats. They duel to start off with, using their bats, until Blade ends up with Kashmere’s bat. Kashmere throws a baseball into Blade’s stomach before he can takes advantage- ha! Series of reversals end with Blade hooking a Fujiwara armbar on Kashmere. Kashmere rolls outside, only to get caught with a rubbish rana attempt by Blade. Kashmere dumps him to the floor, giving a look to the camera as if to say “hey, it wasn’t my fault”. Trent Acid attacks Blade outside of the ring. Johnny brings Blade in the hard way- with a baseball bat wrapped around his throat. Kashmere follows up a forwards neckbreaker by choking Blade with the bat. Blade fires back with a weak atomic drop and an impressive cradle DDT. Blade whips Kashmere to the corner, but Kashmere fires back with an MONSTROUS spear that sends Blade flying. Blade springboards off the ropes to hit a Dragon Sleeper variant. Series of kicks by Blade downs Kashmere. Blade tries a swanton, but lands headfirst on a baseball bat being held by Kashmere. Blade gets up almost straight away. Goddamn it Blade, you just smacked your head on a baseball bat, don’t just kip up straight away. A series of pinfall exchanges ends with the Dew distracting referee Brian Logan, allowing Acid to hit the bridging Blade with a baseball bat to the stomach. This is again no-sold as Blade drops Kashmere neckfirst on his knee, onto a baseball bat. A somersault plancha takes care of the Dew and Acid and back inside Blade hits the Blade Driver on Kashmere for three.
VERDICT-Blade is a very sloppy wrestler and Kashmere wasn’t able to carry him. Blade is horribly spotty and he seems to no-sell any damage caused seconds after it occurs, even if he’s just been whacked WITH A FUCKING BASEBALL BAT!! Shame he won too, because he went on to face Acid and Tony Mamaluke at BOTB, which would have been wonderful as Acid/Kashmere/Mamaluke. A disappointing match *1/4
MENACE vs JIMMY RAVE vs JUSTICE
Trent Acid does commentary for this match, but adds nothing of note, except that he’ll win Best of the Best 3. Menace and Justice both attack Rave, culminating in a wheelbarrow suplex by Menace. Rave and Justice now team up on Menace, locking in a double Fujiwara armbar. Rave levels Justice with a powerbomb. Menace tries a top rove move, but gets crotched and suplexed by Rave. Menace recovers to hit the Menace Driver (variation of the Michinoku Driver) on Justice. Menace is wrestling pretty much as the heel of the match- the crowd really turn on the guy. Rave attacks Menace and tries to unmask him. Justice stops this by kicking a chair into Rave’s face. Justice misses a charge on Menace and gets put into a tree of woe. Menace hits him with a Van Daminator, then a Van Terminator. Justice is officially dead at this point. Rave takes advantage of Menace’s distraction by locking in the crossface for the Menace tap, following which, Rave takes off Menace’s ill-begotten mask. Rave poses, but gets caught with a missile dropkick by Justice. La Majistral gets 2 for Justice. Rave stops the momentum and kicks Justice to the floor. Another crossface is good enough to get the submission, sending Rave to Best of the Best 3.
VERDICT- Nice story told in this match, as Rave let Menace destroy Justice, before taking him out with a quick submission, leaving Rave with a wounded Justice. Justice, the smallest man in the match, tried to take advantage of Rave posing after beating Menace, but was too badly beaten to have an advantage for long. Match was criminally short, but was still fun for the less-than-ten minutes it lasted **1/4
RUCKUS © vs CHRIS CASH (CZW Junior Heavyweight title)
Sonjay Dutt dances his way to the ring to be the special guest referee for the match. Cash goes to a surfboard on Ruckus straight away, before both men exchange a series of kicks and misses. Cash avoids two attempts at the Razzle Dazzle, but gets caught with a third. Ruckus floors Cash and hits him with a standing Shooting Star Press, which gets two. Cash rolls to the outside, which lures Sonjay out to argue with him. Ruckus downs them both with a springboard moonsault. Cash droptoeholds Ruckus into the ringpost, then uses the post to rana Ruckus to the floor. Back in the ring, Cash tries a superkick, but hits Sonjay instead. Ruckus tries a kick of his own, but also levels Sonjay. Both men miss dropkicks, hitting Sonjay instead. Sonjay calls for the bell- Double DQ. Fans aren’t happy with that decision. Zandig gets on the PA system to announce that all three men will battle in the first match at Best of the Best 3. Fans like that decision.
VERDICT- Another decent, if short match. Cash and Ruckus blended well together, but the cop-out finish was disappointing. Cash showed me a definite improvement in his moveset and if he could just bulk up a little, he could become a bigger star for sure. A longer match would have been great, but as an angle to further the Cash-Ruckus-Dutt rivalry, it served it’s purpose. *3/4
“SICK” NICK MONDO © vs TRENT ACID (CZW Iron Man title)
Trent stalls a LOT to start, even posing on a ringside table, which sadly prompts Mondo to throw a chair in his face. Spin kick sends Acid outside, where Mondo follows with a tope con hilo. Mondo reverses a Yakuza kick into a bow and arrow and a second attempt is blocked with a kick by Mondo. Acid comes back with a Blue Thunder bomb. Acid hits a missile dropkick and a twisting splash for two. Acid sets up a table outside the ring, and attempts to throw Mondo through it. He fails. Both men try to throw the other through the table, with neither succeeding. A Mondo chairshot stops any further attempts. In the ring, Mondo tries an Assault Driver onto a chair, but Acid escapes and hits a rope assisted Implant DDT on the chair for 2. Trent sets up Mondo for an Acid Bomb onto the chair, but Mondo lands on his feet, only to get droptoeholded onto the chair instead. Acid tries for a moonsault, but Mondo throws him down onto the chair instead. Mondo continues the advantage by finding a dustbin under the ring and throwing it onto Acid. Acid misses a Roaring Elbow and Mondo hits him with an AWESOME move called the Lightcutter (sit out Cutthroat Suplex) onto the bin, which only gets two. Mondo wastes time setting up a table in the corner, which gives Acid the time to recover and hit the Yakuza Kick for two. Falcon Arrow gets two. The HI-V come to the ring to set up a series of chairs in front of the table and I can't complain about the interference, as it makes more sense than Acid spending ages setting up dozens of chairs. The H8 Club and Ric Blade come in to clear the ring and the distraction allows Mondo to hit an Assault Driver on Acid which only gets two. Damn, they’re making Acid look invincible here. Johnny Kashmere distracts Mondo, allowing Trent to hit the Yakuza Kick again, but Ric Blade evens up the odds by DDTing Acid. Surprised he didn’t somehow botch it. Mondo pulls out a bag of tacks, as Blade and Kashmere fight down the aisle, and pours them over the chairs. Mondo puts Acid on the table and hits the ASSAULT DRIVER OFF THE TABLE ONTO THE THUMBTACK COVERED CHAIRS!!!! This is enough for the win.
VERDICT- Awesome match, where everything looked crisp, not a single blown spot and even the run-ins made sense. Acid took a shit-load of punishment here, for which he deserves major credit and both men looked like they could have won. The finish also made sense, as Mondo had hit several big moves to try and put Acid away and he needed something truly sick (as his name would suggest) to get the job done. Only a lack of major selling during the match prevents me putting this over four stars, but it’s not far off ***3/4
THE H8 CLUB vs THE MESSIAH (CZW World champion) AND B-BOY
Hatred, Gage and B-Boy in the same match? This should be stiff as Hell! Gage and B-Boy start, with B-Boy taking advantage with a neckbreaker. Messiah comes in with an Exploder on Gage, followed by B-Boy coming in the hit the Facewash in the corner on Gage. Quebrada by the Messiah and thus far, Gage has gotten NO offence. The HI-V members hit a Hart Attack clothesline on Gage, then rip off fellow HI-V members the Backseat Boys by performing a Dream Sequence. Gage FINALLY gets some offence after B-Boy misses the Shining Wizard, hitting a back suplex. Hatred gets tagged in and DESTROYS the HI-V, hitting a chokeslam on the Messiah and a face-first slam on B-Boy. Hatred hits two VICIOUS looking chairshots on B-Boy outside the ring, then holds the Messiah and B-Boy to allow Gage to hit a rolling senton on both men. Gage and the Messiah brawl into the crowd, and Gage sets up a table near the balcony and puts the Messiah onto the table. Messiah gets off and NAILS Gage with a chair shot, as Gage is attempting to climb up. Gage gets put on the table and the Messiah NAILS him with an elbow from the balcony. Meanwhile, in the ring, Hatred hits B-Boy with a vicious powerbomb, which gets two. HI-V manager The Dew tries a chairshot on Hatred, which is no sold, but the Messiah makes the save before any damage can be done. Gage returns and hits the Messiah with the chokebreaker. B-Boy hits a Shining Wizard on Gage, who slumps into the corner. The HI-V encourage the Dew to hit the Facewash on Gage, but Gage moves as Hatred NAILS both members of the HI-V with a double Decapititor lariat. Gage gets the Messiah in the corner and hits him with two violent looking Facewashes. Hatred hits a Fire Thunder Bomb THROUGH A TABLE OUTSIDE THE RING on B-Boy, putting him out of the match. Back inside, Messiah and Gage both try hitting their respective finishers (the Godsmack and the Hardcore Drop), with Gage eventually prevailing, hitting the Hardcore Drop for three.
VERDICT- The right booking there, as Gage had a world title match against the Messiah at Best of the Best, so pinning the Messiah made him look like a real contender. The start was interesting, with HI-V dominating Gage for the first five minutes, but after that, it settled into a damn-good tag encounter, with enough wacky spots and vicious moves to keep it flowing. A good way to end the show ***1/4
Overall, I’d call this a pretty good show, especially as it was a build up to Best of the Best. Only the Rebel’s Army match, the Stylz/Knoxx match and the Ric Blade match really sucked, everything else was, at the least, enjoyable, with the submission match and the final two matches being definitely worth watching. The elimination matches, though short, was fun and even the student match was pretty good. Recommended show
Highest rating: ***3/4 (Mondo vs Acid)
Lowest Rating: ½* (Stylz vs Knoxx and Rebels Army vs NWA Wildside vs Maxx, Frazier and Kid)
Average rating: 2.10 stars (25.25/12)
The Davey C video review league table
CZW DIVIDE AND CONQUER- 2.10 stars
XPW FALLOUT- 2.08 stars
WCW STARRCADE 90- 1.73 stars
Please e-mail me any feedback- address at the side
Davey C
(now playing- “TruANT” by Alien Ant Farm
Sunday, March 21, 2004
Just thought I'd apologise for the fact that I've not yet posted the CZW Divide and Conquer review yet. It's very nearly done. Just got to write up the Acid/Mondo and H8 Club/B-Boy and Messiah matches. There are 2 reasons for this delay.
1) Decided half-way through to change my writing format. I tried a new style, but it didn't work for me, so I've had to edit huge chunks
2) Got a package this week of tapes from www.goldenboytapes.com and have been slowly working my way through those including the debut WMF show (where Hayabusa walks in public for the first time since getting paralysed in the middle of the ring) and all seven hours of the Zero-One Fire Festival 2003 (Satoshi Kojima vs Shinjiro Ohtani = goodness).
Quick thought- why is the media so quick to hype Katie Melua as some great singer-songwriter talent who is a breath of fresh air in the charts, when all her songs are written by the guy who wrote THE FUCKING WOMBLES THEME?? Jesus, just because she sounds like Dido instead of Steps, it doesn't make her any less of a media whore pop-puppet.
Davey C
(now playing- "A Thousand Leaves" by Sonic Youth.
1) Decided half-way through to change my writing format. I tried a new style, but it didn't work for me, so I've had to edit huge chunks
2) Got a package this week of tapes from www.goldenboytapes.com and have been slowly working my way through those including the debut WMF show (where Hayabusa walks in public for the first time since getting paralysed in the middle of the ring) and all seven hours of the Zero-One Fire Festival 2003 (Satoshi Kojima vs Shinjiro Ohtani = goodness).
Quick thought- why is the media so quick to hype Katie Melua as some great singer-songwriter talent who is a breath of fresh air in the charts, when all her songs are written by the guy who wrote THE FUCKING WOMBLES THEME?? Jesus, just because she sounds like Dido instead of Steps, it doesn't make her any less of a media whore pop-puppet.
Davey C
(now playing- "A Thousand Leaves" by Sonic Youth.
Monday, March 15, 2004
WRESTLEMANIA THOUGHTS
-Very annoyed that John Cena got the win over the Big Show. Cena really sucks at the moment, with mediocre ring skills and a cheap pop-inducing promo style. Funny how he markets himself as a rapping wrestler, when all his promos are so...very...slow. Plus he doesn't look like a badass, just some scally kid. Disappointing match. Best part- this weird legdrop move Show did on a standing Cena
-RAW 4-way tag match did everything I expected it to...not much. I wanted either RVD/Booker or La Res to win, so the result pleased me, but....nothing really happened. Best part- Booker T wins at a Wrestlemania
-Proud that I guessed the twist in the Christian/Jericho match. Probably my second favourite match of the night and Evil Trish looks very hot. Best part- the fact that I can't wait to find out what happens next
-Evolution vs Rock and Sock was much better than it had any right to be. Only thing that hurt it was the fact that the result was so obvious for weeks before hand. Had to love Ric Flair getting the biggest pops of anyone in the match. Nice reaction for the "Nature Boy elbow" we nearly got. Nice RKO by Orton as well. Hell, Batista didn't nearly kill someone OR get injured, well done big man. Best part- Ric Flair using the line "I don't think so motherfucker"- classic
-Playboy match. Girls strip to underwear and "wrestle". This served it's purpose. Best part- the end
-Gutted that Ultimo Dragon slipped twice in the cruiserweight open intro, but he was awesome for his two minute spell. Nice SSP to the floor by Kidman, even though it nearly killed him and the BK Bomb from the top was pretty sweet. Rey's outfit was pretty badass, but Chavo Snr, the MAN WITH THE CHILD IN HIS EYES, was the MVP of the match, taking some nice bumps for a man of his age and remaining Smackdown's most charismatic superstar. Best part- Ultimo pinning Shannon Moore
-Brock vs Goldberg was really surreal, but was also one of the few times I've thought "wow, I'm watching something special here". The crowd was just VICIOUS on both men, not helped by the fact that the match was utter joss (second worst PPV match of the year, behind HHH-HBK at the Rumble). Best part- the man throwing Stone Cold the beer hits Austin right in the face
-Smackdown tag match was pretty blah, to be honest. Don't like Scotty and Rikishi, but I hate the APA, so it could have been worse. Best part- the heel team getting pinned was the Bashams. This means the WGTT must be the new #1 contenders, so they can win the titles in a match that actually MEANS somethings
-Women's title match was short and uneventful. Still think it would have been funnier had they left Molly with a skullet, but the bald look is still pretty funny. Best part- Victoria. Is. Smoking. Hot!
-Eddie vs Kurt was the third best match of the night, with a great ending. The work from the two men was sensational and I love the fact that Eddie is still champion. Best part- Eddie's new t-shirt which I'm SOOOOO buying
-Kane vs Taker was a waste of time. Why push Kane non-stop since June to job him to an old cripple in less than 10 minutes. Really disappoining. Best part- Paul f'n Bearer returning was a huge "fucking hell" moment
_3 way match was the best of the night. Benoit winning the world title, at the biggest show of the last ten years, cleanly, by submission, over HHH and HBK is a imndblowing thought, but the match was superb. The fans were MAJORLY into Benoit, to the point of booing HBK during the superkick warmup. The end, with Eddie and Benoit together in the ring was awesome. Best part- my reactions to the final minute of the match "Oh fuck, Michaels is back....YES HE'S GONE...oh no,not a fucking pedigr..YES YES YES. CROSSFACE. TAP, TAP, TAP, TAP YOU FUCKING TWAT, TAP, TAP, YESSSS!!!!"
OVERALL-painfully long, but ultimately rewarding show. The good stuff was so good, the bad stuff was bearable (I give Cena 2 months MAX with his ill-gotten title). Good stuff.
now playing- Nickelback- The Long Road
-Very annoyed that John Cena got the win over the Big Show. Cena really sucks at the moment, with mediocre ring skills and a cheap pop-inducing promo style. Funny how he markets himself as a rapping wrestler, when all his promos are so...very...slow. Plus he doesn't look like a badass, just some scally kid. Disappointing match. Best part- this weird legdrop move Show did on a standing Cena
-RAW 4-way tag match did everything I expected it to...not much. I wanted either RVD/Booker or La Res to win, so the result pleased me, but....nothing really happened. Best part- Booker T wins at a Wrestlemania
-Proud that I guessed the twist in the Christian/Jericho match. Probably my second favourite match of the night and Evil Trish looks very hot. Best part- the fact that I can't wait to find out what happens next
-Evolution vs Rock and Sock was much better than it had any right to be. Only thing that hurt it was the fact that the result was so obvious for weeks before hand. Had to love Ric Flair getting the biggest pops of anyone in the match. Nice reaction for the "Nature Boy elbow" we nearly got. Nice RKO by Orton as well. Hell, Batista didn't nearly kill someone OR get injured, well done big man. Best part- Ric Flair using the line "I don't think so motherfucker"- classic
-Playboy match. Girls strip to underwear and "wrestle". This served it's purpose. Best part- the end
-Gutted that Ultimo Dragon slipped twice in the cruiserweight open intro, but he was awesome for his two minute spell. Nice SSP to the floor by Kidman, even though it nearly killed him and the BK Bomb from the top was pretty sweet. Rey's outfit was pretty badass, but Chavo Snr, the MAN WITH THE CHILD IN HIS EYES, was the MVP of the match, taking some nice bumps for a man of his age and remaining Smackdown's most charismatic superstar. Best part- Ultimo pinning Shannon Moore
-Brock vs Goldberg was really surreal, but was also one of the few times I've thought "wow, I'm watching something special here". The crowd was just VICIOUS on both men, not helped by the fact that the match was utter joss (second worst PPV match of the year, behind HHH-HBK at the Rumble). Best part- the man throwing Stone Cold the beer hits Austin right in the face
-Smackdown tag match was pretty blah, to be honest. Don't like Scotty and Rikishi, but I hate the APA, so it could have been worse. Best part- the heel team getting pinned was the Bashams. This means the WGTT must be the new #1 contenders, so they can win the titles in a match that actually MEANS somethings
-Women's title match was short and uneventful. Still think it would have been funnier had they left Molly with a skullet, but the bald look is still pretty funny. Best part- Victoria. Is. Smoking. Hot!
-Eddie vs Kurt was the third best match of the night, with a great ending. The work from the two men was sensational and I love the fact that Eddie is still champion. Best part- Eddie's new t-shirt which I'm SOOOOO buying
-Kane vs Taker was a waste of time. Why push Kane non-stop since June to job him to an old cripple in less than 10 minutes. Really disappoining. Best part- Paul f'n Bearer returning was a huge "fucking hell" moment
_3 way match was the best of the night. Benoit winning the world title, at the biggest show of the last ten years, cleanly, by submission, over HHH and HBK is a imndblowing thought, but the match was superb. The fans were MAJORLY into Benoit, to the point of booing HBK during the superkick warmup. The end, with Eddie and Benoit together in the ring was awesome. Best part- my reactions to the final minute of the match "Oh fuck, Michaels is back....YES HE'S GONE...oh no,not a fucking pedigr..YES YES YES. CROSSFACE. TAP, TAP, TAP, TAP YOU FUCKING TWAT, TAP, TAP, YESSSS!!!!"
OVERALL-painfully long, but ultimately rewarding show. The good stuff was so good, the bad stuff was bearable (I give Cena 2 months MAX with his ill-gotten title). Good stuff.
now playing- Nickelback- The Long Road
