Battleground Comments

[Toxxic 0]

Yay me for holding Mak down, and GO LUCHADORRRRRR for a great match! More comments later, but congrats to the winners and biscuits to the losers.

 

AND JANUS!

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

Yay for things, such as winning! Anti-yay for invisible Spike/??? match.

 

Detailed comments sometime later (Though probably not by me)

[JHawk 0]

Be on the lookout tonight for "Battleground from JHawk's Beak" once I can sit down and read the entire show.

[King Cucaracha 0]

^ Mark-out!

 

I also marked out for the return of Janus. Or should that be Gay-nus?

 

My match turned out pretty okay, Wildchild's Ladder Match was typically awesome, HUGE kudos to IL who proves than when he wants to write well he can write VERY well...Toxx wins again. I guess I don't need to say much about that, except that he wrote his usual stellar match. And...yeah, kudos to everyone that won and stuff.

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

Quick comment: When did Arch turn into Doc Holliday/Val Kilmer? Does that mean he's going to die from tuberculosis or something in a month? And why didn't he hold up his hands and say drunkenly, "I have two fists, one for each of ya" to Koran?

[janusd 0]

to Toxxic and Landon.

 

for me having fun with the suggestions of others.

[The Ill One 0]

Quick comment: When did Arch turn into Doc Holliday/Val Kilmer? Does that mean he's going to die from tuberculosis or something in a month? And why didn't he hold up his hands and say drunkenly, "I have two fists, one for each of ya" to Koran?

He's no daisy.

[Ace309 0]

Just quick thoughts on the matches I marked:

 

~ Griffon's match was a fun little romp. Quite cinematic, and blew off the Koran challenge nicely. I look forward to Arch moving on to other things.

~ Please read Ejiro's match. HE NAMES HIS SPONSOR! ... and also creates an interesting character dynamic.

~ Toxxic's match was probably not his best, because he was out of his element trying to write mat wrestling. I wasn't a fan of the fragile Toxxic character kicking out of a Million Dollar plex midway through the match and then immediately rope-breaking the Bittersweet cattle mutilation, and then doing the rope break again later - I know Toxxic's made strides, but I think that might have been a bit much. The backmounted 3/4 nelson as a finish also made me scratch my head a bit - I would have been more inclined to use a sidemounted 3/4 with the near leg straddled, yanked down into a cradle pin (which is a fairly tight amateur style move) if you wanted to run with that finish. It held together well psychologically, though, aside from those points, and was as always very well-written.

Edited April 25, 2005 by Ace309

[Toxxic 0]

I would have been more inclined to use a sidemounted 3/4 with the near leg straddled, yanked down into a cradle pin (which is a fairly tight amateur style move) if you wanted to run with that finish.

Yeah. Trouble is, I have no idea what you just said.

[JHawk 0]

OK, I lied a little bit. I've still got three matches to go, so the full review will have to wait until tomorrow.

 

However, one comment real quick: Holy shit was that ladder match awesome. Possibly the best match I've read since I joined the SWF a couple of months ago.

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

I'm not much for analysis, so I'll just comment on some of the stuff that stood out to me:

 

 

And we kick things off in a Bar!

 

- We open to find Griffon enjoying an adult beverage at "The Brawling Titty," and I chuckle at the name a little. Koran and Nazeer come into the bar wearing matching jumpsuits; yeah, that's hardcore... Griffon channels Doc Holiday, and Drea already stole my joke, so I'll move along... Fast forward to Griffon throwing Koran up against the fireplace, and I know it's been a while since I went bar-hopping, but I can't recall seeing a fireplace in any of them. Griffon wins the blowoff with the Arch Nemesis, and Koran, who appears to have quit, at least in part due to a failure to adjust to our style, becomes the next HOLT jobber.

 

 

 

 

Hawke/Manson

 

Hawke wakes a sleeping giant by spitting in Manson's face; why would you spit on someone who's called the "Raging Bull?" Hawke gets virtually no offense in, until countering a spinning toehold, which is about how I would imagine the match happening, minus the toehold, because that move is just ghey. Hawke hits the Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll, and then goes retro with the arm/shoulder work, and I *loooove* the old school. Hawke and Manson brawl outside the ring, which reminds me:

 

[Tangent]

 

Has it ever been officially" established where the announce table is? I don't normally mention it in my matches, but on the rare occasion that I do an extended brawl outside the ring, I don't have them at ringside, as I usually find them to be in the way out there...

 

[/Tangent]

 

Anyway, back to the match, and JHawk pokes fun at the WWE with their bullshit referee counts, which is okay with me. Hawke gets bored of waiting on Manson and goes back outside, but Manson gets a second wind, and they brawl outside some more. Hawke regains control by going back to the shoulder, and that's just smart wrestling. Hawke decides that Manson's weakened enough to start working on the neck, leading off with a Blockbuster, and then hitting the SR&R again; I can't be the only person old enough to remember when moves like that used to actually *beat* people... The fight goes back outside the ring, and Manson gets Hawke back for that spit earlier. Hawke gets the match back into the ring and has a mad on, but underestimates Mafia's tenacity and eats an STO... Fast forward to the ref bump, and Manson hits Consequences, but there's nobody to count! Hawke pulls a Guererro with a lead pipe, and hooks on the Wing Span when the ref wakes up. Manson refuses to quit, but eventually passes out from the pain to give Hawke the win. Solid match with pretty good psychology, that puts Hawke over without making Manson look bad.

 

 

 

 

Cortez/Fasaki

 

Ejiro's sponsor turns out to be his sister, which is aces with me, but I would have though that you had to be a recovering heel yourself in order to sponsor another recovering heel... Anyway, Ejiro surprises everyone by giving Cortez a clean handshake... and then wipes Todd's cooties off his hands... Solid wrestling sequence to start with, but Cortez no-sells the applause for the "indie standoff." Another counterwrestling sequence ends when Cortez reverses a tilt-a-whirl into a headscissors, following up with a shooting star legdrop to the outside. Cortez gets back into the ring and applies a Camel Clutch. Cortez misses a senton splash, and Ejiro goes for the choke, but he decides to let his conscious (read: Melissa) be his guide. Ejiro slaps on an armbar, because that's what Ejiro does. Ejiro tries to cheat, but gets told on... BY HIS SISTER! Ejiro argues with Melissa, and the fans take her side; they argue until Cortez rolls him up! Ejiro snaps and channels Danny Williams, pounding Cortez with, like, a bajillion elbows... Ejiro sets Cortez up for something off the ropes, but eats a Hollow Point! Fast forward to the Fujiwara, and I love the smart commentary by King, breaking down the flaws of the hold; comments like this are an example of why I mark for old-school wrestling waaay more than the new stuff: the play-by-play and color commentary were simply superior to anything you hear nowadays... Todd takes over with a super-frankensteiner and then takes advantage of Ejiro being distracted by his sister to get a couple of covers... Melissa has a pet name for her big brother; isn't that sweet? Cortez looks too hard for the Dragon Whip, and eats an enzugiri to the shoulder... Ejiro puts it away with the Cobra Crossface for the clean (clean?) victory... and King soils himself...

 

 

 

 

IL/JJJ

 

The Battle of the Initials gets started a little early, as Triple J surprises Rickmen in his locker room, and that's something we don't get around here very often... Johnson dominates early until IL wrests the steel chair from his opponent and hits a kind of reverse curb stomp with the chair... OUCH! IL channels La Parka and goes nuts with the chair... Cute running gag with naked Allison... Solid match, but nothing really stands out like "Whoa!" to me, so... Fast forward to the parking lot... Poor King; he should take the costs for that body work out of their paychecks... IL with the Brink of Insanity to become the new Hardcore Champion in a good PPV hardcore match.

 

 

 

 

Piss Break... err, I mean, Janus promo

 

Janus comes out looking like a giant pink fairy and makes a few mild homosexual innuendos; I'm sure that somebody who wasn't the BUTT of his jokes probably found them funny...

 

 

 

 

Buck/David

 

A plug for Danny Williams Strong Style Ribs, and that must mean that it's time for Li'l Buck! The smallest wrestler on the active roster taking on the second-biggest! Buck comes down in a throwback, because he's HOOD~! Kris Kristofferson is the special guest referee, because Drea loves actors as referees, especially ones that used to be folk singers. Trademark Drea commentary, earmarked by the sort of "insider" comments that make the old-timers like Muzz smile, but are probably likely to make newcomers like David go "Huh?" Buck is the defacto heel, and David takes a beating, but since I've never seen his stats, I don't know what he's supposed to be capable of... Fast forward to Buck stealing my finisher, and David gets out, but Buck finally gets the submission win with a full nelson, which is OLD SCHOOL~!

 

 

 

 

WC/Pretzler

 

Aaaaand I still don't comment on my own stuff...

 

 

 

 

Toxxic Promo

 

And Toxxic's still full of himself... And he still wants revenge on Spike... And not much more than that; but, at least now we know where Jet is...

 

 

 

 

Johnny/Landon

 

Johnny and Maddix have a "contest" to determine who's more popular, and Landon CHEATS 2 WIN~! Landon with the "insider" remark on commentary, and you'd think I'd find it funnier when I'm not the BUTT of the joke, but I really don't... Quick counterwrestling sequence to start; Landon whiffs on a plancha and blows out his knee... Johnny works the knee over, because psychology is OLD SCHOOL~! ... Landon turns the tables with THE MYSTERIOUS WHITE POWDER~! Funny, he doesn't *look* Japanese... the STO must be the Officially-Licensed™ Move of the Week... Johnny sells the powder long enough for Maddix to hit a Landon Eye for two, and selling is always a good thing... Landon feigns the superkick, and gets Johnny to walk into a DDT; nice smart little spot... Landon telegraphs a suicide headbutt and pays for it, which is how it *should* be... Johnny gets the MI Slam, but Maddix has his foot on the ropes... Maddix gets the Land of Nod, but Johnny won't tap... Then Landon shifts to the Wet Cement, and Johnny finally taps.

 

Cortez comes down for some post-match celebrating, and Johnny kicks his stinking teeth in! I have mixed feelings about this, mostly since I haven't spoken to Johnny since before the PPV, but when we last spoke, he'd indicated that his plans for his possible heel turn were a little different, so I just hope Landon cleared his post-match activity with Johnny first.

 

 

 

 

Da' Main Event!

 

Time for our feature presentation, starring Michael Stephens as Triple H... err, I mean, Toxxic... Toxxic can't wrestle with Mak, so he makes it a fight, which makes for a good story... Mak hooks some kind of abdominal stretch variation, because restholds are OLD SCHOOL~! ... Mak hits a wheelbarrow suplex, follows with a german, and then hits the Million-Dollar Plex for good measure... which Toxxic promptly no-sells... Mak misses a running bootscrape, and Toxxic gets a rollup for two; Toxxic completes the no-sell by beating Mak to his feet after a rollup and hits Shake Rattle 'n' Roll... Toxxic figures, "hey, if I break Mak's arm, he can't suplex me anymore," and goes to work. Toxxic sets Mak up for a super reverse rana, and gets two... Toxxic channels late-80s Rockers with a little fistdrop action, and then Intoxxicates Francis, but still only gets two... Francis powers his way out of the TSS, hits That's Franchisable, and CHEATS 2... *ALMOST* WIN~! ... Mak goes for the Tiger suplex, but *somebody* has to remember to sell... Mak counters the Discus lariat into a Fujiwara, and transitions into a cattle mutilation... Toxxic escapes the Filthy German, and I guess that every cruiser really does have a double stomp... well, almost every cruiser... Mak is still the designated seller, and can't get Toxxic up for the Franchise Tag... Mak goes for Brotherly Love, and eats knees, enabling Toxxic to slap on the Regal Stretch, which finally gets a win after about two minutes... Perfectly acceptable wrestling, aside from the occasionally spotty selling, and a very good "sports entertainment" match... And then Johnny comes down to the ring? MI Slam to Toxxic, and is Johnny a face or a heel? Stuff like this is why the upper card/main eventers need to communicate with each other a little better.

 

 

Overall, a superb show to read; top-to-bottom, probably the best thing we've done since G4.

 

Well, I work nights, and it's almost 11am where I am; HOLT Report to follow after I get some sleep...

-Dub Cee

[A Happy Medium 0]

and I know it's been a while since I went bar-hopping, but I can't recall seeing a fireplace in any of them.

In all honesty, I was in a fake bar.

 

Also, I can't make the whole match a Val Kilmer impression...anymore would cause Griffon to suffer from that terrible illness.

[Toxxic 0]

Johnny asked me to have him interfere in my match to have him show his DESIRE~ for the World Title. Unfortunately I xcouldn't work that into the match, so he jumps me afterwards instead. As for him being a face or heel - that can all be sorted on Storm, if necessary. Personally if we go back to vanilla face Johnny now after all the work you two have put in, I'd consider it a MAJOR disappointment... but it's not my character, so hey.

[Secret Agent 0]

Cortez comes down for some post-match celebrating, and Johnny kicks his stinking teeth in! I have mixed feelings about this, mostly since I haven't spoken to Johnny since before the PPV, but when we last spoke, he'd indicated that his plans for his possible heel turn were a little different, so I just hope Landon cleared his post-match activity with Johnny first.

Yeah. Seeing as how Johnny hasn't really had much of any type of interaction with Cortez lately, plus the fact that Cortez wasn't even in the match, it made little to absolutely no sense. Top that off with Landon heroically chasing the chicken shit Johnny out of the ring and we're so far out in space now it's unbelievable.

 

I can see here that people are basically missing the point with Johnny. He's not a heel, and I don't know if he ever will be as I'm not about to ruin that by telling if I were going to make him heel, anyway. The best way I can describe his attitude is that of like Stone Cold. You just never know when he'll go off, but right now the fans actually like this more INTENSE~ version... for now as he hasn't really gone too far with it yet.

 

If you guys want to do something with him please shoot me a line and let me know first before you do it. Not only did my match contain nothing even remotely close to that heel turnish type of senario, but you didn't even ask me, Landon. If I wanted this to be a match where I turned him then I would have let you know well in advance. I really don't care about other things, but right now just walk him on a fine, questionable line. Please.

 

I'll comment on the rest of the show when I've actually read all of it. Most likely Tomorrow evening. For now, congrats to all the winners.

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

Nifty commentifications by WC, and it's probably due to my old school-ness, but what comments seemed old school? And David is statistically slower than Toxxic, just FYI.

 

Also: Arch should call everyone 'madcap'. Another also: Will he channel other Kilmer characters in other matches? Will he quote Chris Knight from 'Real Genius'?

[Toxxic 0]

Oh, and for the record? I thought Janus promo was fuckin' FANTASTIC.

[King Cucaracha 0]

Cortez comes down for some post-match celebrating, and Johnny kicks his stinking teeth in! I have mixed feelings about this, mostly since I haven't spoken to Johnny since before the PPV, but when we last spoke, he'd indicated that his plans for his possible heel turn were a little different, so I just hope Landon cleared his post-match activity with Johnny first.

Yeah. Seeing as how Johnny hasn't really had much of any type of interaction with Cortez lately, plus the fact that Cortez wasn't even in the match, it made little to absolutely no sense. Top that off with Landon heroically chasing the chicken shit Johnny out of the ring and we're so far out in space now it's unbelievable.

 

I can see here that people are basically missing the point with Johnny. He's not a heel, and I don't know if he ever will be as I'm not about to ruin that by telling if I were going to make him heel, anyway. The best way I can describe his attitude is that of like Stone Cold. You just never know when he'll go off, but right now the fans actually like this more INTENSE~ version... for now as he hasn't really gone too far with it yet.

 

If you guys want to do something with him please shoot me a line and let me know first before you do it. Not only did my match contain nothing even remotely close to that heel turnish type of senario, but you didn't even ask me, Landon. If I wanted this to be a match where I turned him then I would have let you know well in advance. I really don't care about other things, but right now just walk him on a fine, questionable line. Please.

 

I'll comment on the rest of the show when I've actually read all of it. Most likely Tomorrow evening. For now, congrats to all the winners.

Last time I checked, Wild and Dangerous hated Cortez because he was Van Siclen's tag partner and they took the belts off them. I dunno, I may have got mixed up with storyline and posts on here or whatever. But it's fair to say they don't like each other.

 

To be honest, I really didn't have the time to run it by you Johnny. I sent a PM to you at some point on Sunday. After that, I finished up my match and thought that I could do with a more interesting ending. By that time, I had to send in the match and get off the computer pretty quick. So if it wasn't fitting in with your character, I apologise. It was meant to come off more as 'Maddix leaves his partner in trouble' and 'Johnny doesn't know whever to trust Cortez' more than 'Johnny is a sneaky, Memphis heel', so if it's come off the opposite, it's because I rushed it.

 

 

But, maybe we're all missing the point on Johnny because it's very vague. I wouldn't blame anyone who was confused about the Cortez/Megan relationship, because it's vague on my part. Johnny's allignment is pretty vague too. You say here the fans like the new, intense Johnny...in your stats though (which is what I went by), it says the fans are beginning to like him less. Forgive me for being more than a little confused.

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

Nifty commentifications by WC, and it's probably due to my old school-ness, but what comments seemed old school?

Well, the Rane joke and the Riley joke were the two that stood out the most; someone who joined the fed last week (and wasn't obsessed with learning the fed's history like Toxxic) probably wouldn't know who those guys were, or why those jokes are supposed to be funny.

[Chuck Woolery 0]

Piss Break... err, I mean, Janus promo

 

Janus comes out looking like a giant pink fairy and makes a few mild homosexual innuendos; I'm sure that somebody who wasn't the BUTT of his jokes probably found them funny...

I was this close to cutting it out of the show entirely, actually. I wish I could remember why I didn't.

 

Kris Kristofferson is the special guest referee, because Drea loves actors as referees, especially ones that used to be folk singers.

 

Funny story on this actually, Kris Kristofferson is filming a movie in our town right now. In fact, he held a benefit concert for a local charity the night that Battleground (in kayfabe) happened.

 

...actually that's the whole story.

[Ace309 0]

Piss Break... err, I mean, Janus promo

 

Janus comes out looking like a giant pink fairy and makes a few mild homosexual innuendos; I'm sure that somebody who wasn't the BUTT of his jokes probably found them funny...

I was this close to cutting it out of the show entirely, actually. I wish I could remember why I didn't.

Homophobe.

 

EDIT - although it's in no one's interest to ask or tell about WC.

Edited April 26, 2005 by Ace309

[JHawk 0]

A few notes before you read this:

 

I understand you've all read the show, so I didn't want to do full PBP like I normally would. But I also wanted to make sure this felt like an actual recap From JHawk's Beak. So I tried to just get the storylines across and point out key things I liked (or didn't like). Also, outside of the main event, the comments about "That looked like a pin" on false finishes are just in character comments and not necessarily criticisms of the matches.

 

Without any further ado...

 

 

 

SWF Battleground from JHawk’s Beak

By Jared “JHawk” Hawkins

 

We are L-I-V-E LIVE from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas! Your hosts are Longdogger Pete and Suicide King!

 

Barroom Brawl: Arch Griffon vs. Mohammed Koran (w/Haram Nazeer)

 

Clearly pretaped, as the commentary gives the impression that this was to air later in the card. This is taking place from the “Brawling Titty” in San Antonio. Named such so patrons can tell their buddies they went to the titty bar. Koran gives a redneck the Arabian Pride before the match starts. That would have gotten him banned for life from any bar I ever went to, but I don’t have three teeth and call my sister “honey” either. Griffon flicks a cigarette into Koran’s face, and we’re underway. Nazeer gets thrown through a window early to make things 1-on-1. Cute spot where a coonskin cap falls off the wall, and Griffon pretends to be Davy Crockett. Griffon dominates early, even sliding Koran completely down the bar, but Koran regains the advantage by tossing Griffon into a mirror. Griffon’s busted wide open, but still manages to counter the Arabian Pride with the Gridlock. He’s too exhausted to hold onto the move. Nice touch. Sensing time’s running out, Griffon hits a cradle piledriver (dubbed the “Arch Nemesis”) for the pin at 6:28. Short, but some good stuff while it lasted. ** Griffon’s got enough left in him to super kick Nazeer before walking out of the bar.

 

Video package for JJ Johnson vs. Insane Luchador.

 

One fall with a 30-minute time limit for the #1 Contendership to the SWF International Championship: “The Dean of Professional Wrestling” Jay Hawke vs. Manson

 

Logically, Hawke should go over here since he’s been chasing Johnny Dangerous for this championship anyway. Manson has control for the opening couple of minutes, but the match is almost completely Jay Hawke’s after Manson misses a charge and hits the ringpost. Manson makes the big comeback, but clotheslines the referee. There’s the Consequences and the cover, but there’s no referee, so Hawke hits Manson in the shoulder with a lead pipe before locking in the Wing Span. Manson passes out after over two minutes in the hold, giving Jay the victory in 18:27. Very slow start and too much brawling outside the ring, but the finish should put Manson way over while still establishing Hawke as being willing to do anything to win. **¾

 

Todd Cortez vs. Ejiro Fasaki (w/Melissa)

 

Melissa is apparently Ejiro’s sister, apparently the one he’s been on the phone with, and she’s actually quite the looker. I think she’s adopted. Some good wrestling early on, with Cortez controlling the opening minutes. Ejiro goes for a chokehold, but Melissa chants “No” to get him to release the hold. Ejiro works the arm, and at one point uses the ropes for leverage before Melissa squeals on him. I’d say he’s whipped, but as far as I know he’s not from West Virginia. Ejiro argues with his sister until a roll up gets 2. Ejiro finally decides to listen to his sister and follow the rules, and the end result is a near fall off a top-rope rana that has Ejiro begging to cheat. Cortez gets a couple of near falls as Melissa encourages Ejiro with “You can do it on your own!” Then why are you here? The comeback falls short, as Ejiro counters a flying lariat with an arm drag and gets a submission to the Cobra Crossface at 12:38. He did it all on his own without cheating…unless you count the stuff Melissa bitched him out about. **½ Postmatch, Cortez offers a handshake, which is reluctantly accepted. I’m digging this gimmick of Ejiro’s, but how long can it last without getting repetitive?

 

Ben Hardy tries to interview Insane Luchador, but JJ Johnson and Toxxic interrupt before he can. After some choice words, Johnson invades the locker room, leading to…

 

SWF Hardcore Gamer’s Championship: Insane Luchador vs. JJ Johnson©

 

They brawl backstage in the corridors for most of the match, using a pretty decent combination of wrestling and innovative use of wooden crates. Yes, wooden crates. The tornado DDT IL used was absolutely pretty. IL also does a sweet counter, using the walls of the corridors to break out of a rear naked choke. The brawl moves into Tom Flesher’s office, and I’ll be damned if Allison Onita wasn’t ready to drop that towel. Flesher sends them out with a rolled up newspaper. Seriously. They eventually brawl through a swinging door…and into the women’s restroom as once again Allison Onita runs by. This time she’s not ready to drop the towel. The challenger shatters a fluorescent light bulb over the champion’s chest before smacking him against the wall with a monkey flip. The battle spills into the parking lot. JJ power bombs IL through a windshield, and I think he got the pin but referee Matthew Kivell only calls it a count of 2. If IL kicked out, that’s as close as you can get without winning the match. They brawl to the second floor of the lot, and IL takes JJ (and himself) off the VIP section down to the main level with the Brink of Insanity. HOLY SHIT! I haven’t seen a fall like that since Nighthawk threw Loki off the second concourse of Jacobs Field in the old HIWF. That gets the pin, and Insane Luchador regains the title at 20:09. Insane brawl. The only way they could have topped that finish was to cave the roof of the Alamodome in. ***½

 

Janus returns! Wearing a pink tuxedo and coming to the ring to the tune of “Pretty in Pink”, Janus cuts a promo to say Wildchild and Johnny Dangerous should start dating, as well as Toxxic and Scott Pretzler. Nice to see Janus, but gay jokes are soooooooooooooooooooooo 2004. I doubt Janus is back full-time, but had they announced his appearance they might have picked up a few more buys.

 

Lord David vs. Lil’ Buck

 

David begins trying to use his speed to keep the much larger Buck off guard early. To answer a question Suicide King asked, I haven’t seen Jay Hawke use a double stomp yet and he’s a cruiserweight, so there you go. Buck soon gains control and uses his superior weight and power to damn near knock LD out. Seriously, keep David against the Wildchilds and Scott Pretzlers of the world so he’s only out weighed by 100 pounds. David does the smart thing and shoots for Buck’s legs, but he can’t hurt Buck enough to keep him down for any length of time. All the submission attempts to the legs finally begin to slow the larger man down. David finally hits his frog splash, and unlike in the hardcore title match, there’s no doubt that three count hit before the shoulder came up, but the match continues anyway. David goes for it again, but Buck catches him in mid-air and spins him around in a belly-to-belly suplex. That somehow only gets 2. A pump handle power bomb, and that gets 3...or 2. Whatever. That was less obvious of a fuckup than the one on the frog splash. David avoids the Buck Wild Ride with a sweet looking neck breaker. Buck’s power is eventually too much for David, as he taps to Champion’s Requiem at 18:41. A little long for the message they were bringing across, but this might have turned Lord David into a bonafide superstar. ***

 

Ladder Match for the SWF Cruiserweight Championship: “The Critic” Scott Pretzler vs. Wildchild©

 

I’ve been waiting for this one all week. Both men show how well they know each other early, as they each have their finishers countered. WC sends Scott OVER THE TOP ROPE with a hiptoss, then dives onto his with a tope con hilo. It took all of three minutes to bring out a holy shit chant. Pretzler makes his play for the ladder, and for once we don’t get the usual baseball slide spot, as Scott avoids it and levels Wildchild with a European uppercut. WC makes the first real attempt to climb, but has to take Scott down with a sweet dragonrana since it’s still early in the match. Pretzler gets tossed to the floor, and Dub Cee nails him with a corkscrew moonsault off the top of the ladder. Ho-lee shit! Pretzler mounts a nice comeback, but gets taken down with a leg lariat. Wildchild makes his move, but Pretzler tips the ladder over, trapping WC’s knee between the rungs. That’s about the only thing that can take away Wildchild’s speed. And Pretzler smells blood, focusing his entire attack on that knee. Wildchild kicks away at a figure-four attempt, sending Scott into the ladder, and Pretzler’s spitting up blood. Dear God, this is brutal! The injury doesn’t faze the challenger, as he spends at least the five minutes doing nothing but working the knee. Pretzler goes for the belt, but WC hits a desperate flying ax handle to keep his title reign alive. Pretzler makes another attempt at it, and WC puts him on his shoulders…and the knee buckles, causing an accidental electric chair suplex that sends the challenger over the top rope. Un-fucking-believable spot. Give Pretzler credit for even taking that move. That’s not enough for the win, as WC improvises a tornado DDT from the ring to the floor. The champion goes for the Wild Ride halfway down the aisle, but it’s countered into the Tildebang Driver! That’s gotta do it! Pretzler makes his way up the ladder…and how the hell did WC run up that ladder for that flying neck wrecker off the top of the ladder? WC limps up the ladder and grabs the belt just before Pretzler can take the ladder from underneath him at 22:07. After the match, Pretzler asks for a handshake, which is accepted…but he attacks WC with a vicious lariat! Pretzler continues the beat down until EMTs break it up. Simply awesome. You could nitpick about the running flying neck wrecker, but I’m going to chalk it up to adrenaline and give this one the full monty. *****

 

Ben Hardy interviews Toxxic regarding his title defense against Mak Francis. The usual good interview from the champ.

 

One fall for the SWF International Championship: Landon Maddix vs. Johnny Dangerous©

 

The winner will defend against Jay Hawke at some point, and this is the fifth match of their unofficial best of 5 series. We have dueling crowd support stuff before we lock up, and the challenger gets the better of a technical wrestling exchange early on. Dangerous works a headlock for at least two minutes, and this one could take a while. Maddix gains control as the pace picks up, but he takes a hard fall to the floor attempting a plancha. Maddix tweaks the knee, and that’s the focus of Dangerous’ attack. Maddix makes a brief comeback, but Dangerous goes right back to work on the knee. The psychology throughout this show is absolutely amazing. Megan distracts the champion and gets flipped off, but not before she hands some powder to Landon, and the powder is promptly in Johnny’s eyes. The first blatantly illegal move of the night comes from Landon Maddix. That’s the advantage the cockroach needs, as he gets the Landon Eye for 2. Maddix teases a super kick but hits a DDT instead. That’s the most brilliant move of the night so far. Maddix appears to have the title won, but decides to miss a swan dive head BUTT instead. Idiot. The MI Slam gets the pin, but Landon’s got a foot over the bottom rope. Dangerous’ ensuing argument leads to a roll up for 2, and Johnny’s PISSED! He damn near obliterates the knee. Johnny attempts WC’s Wild Ride, but Landon gets a roll up for 2. There’s the Land of Nod! Johnny refuses to give in, so Landon counters it into Tom Flesher’s old Wet Cement. That gets the submission (and the title) at 22:45. Todd Cortez comes to the ring for a celebration and offers Dangerous a handshake, but Johnny apparently cements his heel turn, super kicking Cortez out of his shoes. Great psychology with the knee work, and a great finish to get around the knee. But why is Tom Flesher getting a bigger push in retirement than he ever did when he was active? **** I don’t get Landon going over here since the feud was Dangerous-Hawke, but with the heel turn it makes sense.

 

One fall for the SWF World Heavyweight Championship: Mak Francis vs. Toxxic

 

Toxxic was clearly expecting Spike Jenkins to be in this spot here, as the mat wrestling of Francis keeps him off-guard. Toxxic uses his speed to regain the advantage and tries to turn it into a faster-paced match. To his credit, Toxxic tries to use mat wrestling, but it gives Francis a chance to get back into the mat. The Million Dollar Plex gets 2, and only the ropes save Toxxic from being the victim of the Bittersweet. Toxxic finally regains the advantage and goes to the arm. Francis finally makes the comeback, but the arm injury’s got him so panicked that he begins cheating to try to pick up the win. Francis finally locks in the Bittersweet, and Toxxic gets to the ropes to save the title. I thought for sure we had a title change right there. That begins another comeback for the champion, but he misses the Shooting Star Legdrop. This might be Mak’s last chance. And talk about borderline bad calls: Francis gets such a close near fall after an enzuigiri that the crowd explodes, thinking they’ve seen the big title change. Sensing he needs one major move, Mak goes for the frog splash for the first time in forever, but he meets Toxxic’s knees. Toxxic locks the Regal Stretch, but Francis doesn’t quit, so Toxxic maneuvers his body onto Mak’s back. That’s enough for Toxxic to finally win via submission at 25:09. Excellent as usual from Toxxic, and Francis impressed me here. ****½ Toxxic celebrates down the ramp, but Johnny Dangerous apparently un-cements his heel turn by taking Toxxic down on the ramp with an MI Slam. Now Landon going over doesn’t make sense. Dangerous holds the World Title belt up as we fade out.

 

I lost the PPV feed for about 15 minutes and apparently missed Spike vs. the mystery partner because of it, so if anyone has that result let me know.

 

Overall, what an awesome freaking PPV. The last three matches are instant classics with the ladder match being a front-runner for match of the year, and even the stuff that wasn’t spectacular was passable. I’ve never seen a promotion be on the roll that the SWF is always on, and this show was no exception.

[The Ill One 0]

That was awesome Hawke. Eventually I'll get to my comments hopefully soon.

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

Last time I checked, Wild and Dangerous hated Cortez because he was Van Siclen's tag partner and they took the belts off them...

Who did what? I'm pretty sure that our first reign was ended by Janus and Aecas (and if you're not sure, just ask Janus; he'll be happy to tell you), and our second title reign ended at the hands of Janus and Aecas again (in a match Toxxic wrote, mind you) in a clusterfuck of a four-way at Battleground '04. In fact, neither Johnny or I were even pinned to end our second reign. When did Hollywood Boulevard take anything off Wild and Dangerous?

 

Actually, we were responsible for ending their first reign, so by that argument, Cortez would have more reason to hate Johnny than the other way around...

 

 

... I dunno, I may have got mixed up with storyline and posts on here or whatever. But it's fair to say they don't like each other.

As far as the heat between Wild & Dangerous and Todd Cortez, you're half-right: Wildchild hates Cortez because every time WC looks at Cortez, he sees Mike Van Siclen... whom he really hates. Johnny, on the other hand, is generally indifferent to Cortez; W&D and HB only had a very bried feud last year (due to my military obligations), which W&D dominated, so Johnny doesn't personally have any reason to hate Cortez any more than he does anyone else.

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

Good stuff, Hawke; glad you liked the ladder match.

 

EDIT - By the way, about the running ladder spot: due to a magnanimous gesture by Vince McMahon, we got to watch WM 21 out here on AFRTS (granted, it was a week after the fact, but it was free, so who's complaining?). I was watching the "Money in the Bank" match and utterly and completely marked when I saw Shelton Benjamin run up the ladder to clothesline Chris Jericho. I then promised myself that, the very next time I was booked to write a ladder match, I was going to recreate that spot, or something close to it. Then Pretzler asked me if we could set up to do a ladder match at Battleground, and it was a foregone conclusion.

Edited April 27, 2005 by Mr. S£im Citrus

[A Happy Medium 0]

Nice going, Jay. That put the icing on the cake that was the PPV.

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

Any chance I could get some feedback from CC about that announce table thing?

[the.weej 0]

The announcer's table is usually regarded as being at ringside. As always, it's one of those things that CC has never thought about delegating, like set designs, regular show themes, etc. Continuity with that kind of thing doesn't strike me as an especially big deal.

 

-Z

[Mr. S£im Citrus 0]

Okay; just asking. I mean, I've never actually writen an announce table spot, but if it's actually supposed to be at ringside, I may do one eventually.

[Ace309 0]

The announce table is, in canon, at ringside, because people occasionally write spots using it there.

 

This is persuasive based on the philosophy of the Suicide King, who said, "The ladders are exactly as tall/the cage is exactly as high/the ring is exactly as wide as it needs to be for your spot to work."

 

Sounds good to me.

[Guest Goodear]

Jay Hawke vs. Manson because IT DEMANDS THE COMMENTZ

 

We start off with the folks talking about how much jay wants to get back on the title hunt and get him some Johnny Dangerous which is nice although Johnny seems to be feuding with everyone all the time now In hindsight, I might want to have Jay be focused more on the title than the guy holding it so when the belt moves, you still have ready feud still in the can. And with a character like Deano, that works pretty easily.

 

The opening spit-slap-punch-punch works well for me since we're talking about Manson who isn't going to be trading holds with anyone (the way I picture him) and wouldn't have the same feeling out portion of the match that say Jay-Ejiro would. By the same token I think the headbutt spot where Jay uses it and it hurt in the process would work better if it came later when Jay's getting desperate to find something to stop the attack.

 

As an aside... I never liked the continuous counting that happens when guys go outside of the ring. Thats not a comdemnation of Jay by any stretch cause everyone does it. I just think while reading that a whole bunch of counting is really dull unless its to three. But thats me.

 

The hammerlock escape that sends Hawke to the floor is always a classic and I love all who go to it, but I think it would have been improved with a little SPLAT action or perhaps have a lead in where Manson tries all the traditional counters before going to that one. I just like building things up that way myself, but I'm silly and it doesn't always work for everyone.

 

And we go to the outside and Jay gets some yummy cheating in there but it feels kind of... how should a I put it? Like the tide turns too quickly back and forth. It would be more effective for Jay just to beat Manson down than to have Manson get in a clothesline that goes relatively no where. False momentum turns are good, don't get me wrong but it should be a fight for Mandingo to get himself back together. As written it feels like Manson could turn the tide whenever he wants just by punching back in a WWE style transition.

 

The spit from Manson was a good idea in trying to get Jay into a brawl so Manson can gt back in control and book ends the start of the match... but then Jay wins the brawl and it kind of makes me sad but its still not a bad idea since we're trying to get Jay over as meaner than ever.

 

I sooooo dig the ref bump and the diamond cutter since it totally feels OUT OF NOWHERE MY GOD IN HEAVEN!~!~!~! which is what you WANT. The whole match sets that up by having Jay control 75 % of the contest and still on the verge of losing on a lucky move by Manson... if only the referee wasn't down so the 'luck' doesn't really help Manson out here.

 

And then we go to the pipe and the chicken wing... for two minutes? ... dude TAP HIS ASS. Seriously, I understand trying to put someone over in defeat but no one should last 2 minutes in your submission if you've properly set it up. Even if you go for the pass out, you should go to that alost immediately cause you hit him with a heavy metal rod. Don't be afraid to make a match your showcase if thats what you want to do, no one will hold it against you.

 

Just FYI: I am a negative commentor for EVERYONE, so don't think I'm trying to pick on your match. I liked it! But whenever I read anything I want to mold and spindle it like clay (which is why I'm good at tag writing ... thumbs up cheap pop) so it sounds like THRASH THRASH THRASH when its more like 'hmmm I'd do it THIS way'