-Taped from Merrionette Park, Illinois
-Your hosts are Phil Colvin, Derek St. Holmes, and Shane Douglas
-We jump to Kevin Harvey asking the fans if they want wrestling. This leads to Billy Corgan coming out for an extended promo. Let’s just say as a promo cutter, he makes a fantastic musician. The B.W.O makes their way to the ring after a couple minutes of Corgan’s promo. The point of the back and forth is that tonight is not about hardcore wrestling or the older guys. Instead it’s going to be about the new school. AAW hacked this promo up in editing… for the better. This sucker easily went about 25 minutes live, and they cut it in half. Shane Douglas comes out and buries the usual suspects in short order. All this talk about ECW on an AAW show. Lovely. Douglas trying to connect ECW to AAW… might not be the best idea since the former company has been dead for ten years. Corgan is in charge of the show and starts booking matches. Stevie Richards has a match with Silas Young in the main event. “Bad Romance” hits and that means it’s time for the opener…
The Blue Meanie and Hollywood Nova vs. Awesome Threesome (Knight Wagner and Jordan McEntyre w/ Eryn)
Match in Five Words or Less: BW BLOWs
Match Summary/Analysis: McEntyre and Wagner have been winning a number of matches recently and are looking for a championship match against Zero Gravity. Feeling out process leads to a thumb war. The thumb war is the highlight of the match. Meanie and Nova… God bless the guys for all their hard work… but they did not like good at all. They looked blown up not half way into the match and didn’t show a lot. The Awesome Threesome just seems to draw the short end of the stick on these Bourbomn Street shows when it comes to match quality. Finish comes when McEntyre nails Nova with Eryn’s high heel shoe to get the victory.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Awesome Threesome/8:58/1/2*
-B.W.O withstand the beatdown and clear the ring of the Awesome Threesome. Let’s just say this was not a strong way for AAW to open their first iPPV, a long promo and a not so strong opener.
-Silas Young complains about once again having to face an ex-ECW superstar at a Bourbon Street show. He talks about what great athletes he and Mason Beck are. Beck says someone’s going to die.
-AAW Heritage Championship: Mason Beck (champion) vs. Darrin Corbin
Match in Five Words or Less: Squashville
Match Summary/Analysis: Back to Beck killing dudes. Least he’s got a title now. Not sure who Corbin beat to earn this title match. Maybe he won a number one contender’s tournament in Rio Di Janeiro. Big boot and Beck Mountain ends Corbin’s night quickly.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL AAW Heritage Champion- Mason Beck/5:19/*
-One thing I’ll give the announcers credit for is talking about each wrestler: their history, skills, and injury history. I also liked the background on the titles as well. Even Shane Douglas is fitting in quite well by putting over the talent in the ring and not trying to get himself over.
-Dave Prazak asks Arik Cannon why he attacked Jimmy Jacobs. Cannon says he does whatever he wants when he wants. They make fun of Jacobs’ height, and Cannon vows to punch Jacobs in the face.
-Christian Faith vs. Johnny Wave vs. Shiima Xion vs. Shane Hollister
Match in Five Words or Less: Free Style
Match Summary/Analysis: Shane Douglas says four ways haven’t been done since ECW. Somewhere indy bookers everywhere are crying. This is very much like a DG USA freestyle with lots of action and wackiness. Based on the way these guys moved around the ring, I’m disappointed this wasn’t the opener. These four would have gotten the crowd right back into things. Faith brings the goods big time with some incredible offense throughout. What these guys do needs to be seen to be believed. How Xion hasn’t gotten a regular spot in bigger indies or one of the big companies somewhere is beyond me. Shane Hollister is his usual crisp self and the guy who needed a victory to be set up for a future Heritage title rematch. And Johnny Wave? He showed up and didn’t screw up too badly. Kick to the head of Wave. A kick to the head and brainbuster gets Hollister a rebound win after losing the title last month.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Shane Hollister/6:56/***
-Jimmy Jacobs is bitter at Cannon for costing him his last chance to win the AAW title. He vows to get through Cannon and get back to the top at his opponent’s expense.
Arik Cannon (w/Dave Prazak) vs. Jimmy Jacobs
Match in Five Words or Less: All Over
Match Summary/Analysis: Cannon attacked Jacobs two months prior to cost him a shot at the AAW Heavyweight title. Cannon gets into it with the crowd and stalls as the bell rings. This starts out as a wrestling match but very quickly devolves into a brawl that goes all over the place. They seemingly hit every nook and cranny of the building. If you want to see what the bar looks like, this is a great match to watch. Pretty entertaining brawl that can actually be seen for the most part. Thankfully, there are multiple cameras and lights everywhere. They finally end up in a crow’s nest across from the announcers where Cannon sends Jacobs flying about 12-15 feet. Yeesh. Cannon sends Jacobs back in the ring and covers. 1-2-NO! Cannon can’t finish Jacobs off however. Senton nearly gets Jacobs the victory. End Time quickly countered. Series of counters until Cannon punches him right in the face. Brainbuster. 1-2-NO! Springboard moonsault misses. Jacobs hits a springboard acecrusher for two. Prazak holds Jacobs’ foot on a suplex attempt but only gets two. Cannon sits down on a sunset flip. Prazak holds his arms on a three count and gets the three count at last. Very good match between two indy professionals. They definitely left enough room for a rematch down the road.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Arik Cannon/15:10/***1/4
-CJ Esparza and Bret Gakiya are angry about the belts being stolen from them and the lack of respect being paid to them.
-AAW Tag Team Championship: Zero Gravity (Bret Gakiya and CJ Esparza)(champions) vs. Irish Airborne (Jake and Dave Crist)
Match in Five Words or Less: Lights Out
Match Summary/Analysis: The stipulation surrounding this match is that no matter what happens, these two teams cannot wrestle for a year. Man, this stipulation needs to happen more often. We’ve seen so many of these ladder matches over the years that unless these four men literally die in the ring (which I’m not advocating by the way) this match is going to be a tough sell. These four work really hard to make this ladder match as epic (pun intended) as they can. Lots of brawling but a minimal use of ladder bumps save for a couple. Gakiya tries climbing the ladder on the wrong side, which is weird cause I thought a short guy like that would need to use a ladder often. Airborne go for the spike piledriver on a ladder, but Esparza saves his partner. Jake Crist hits a table at a bad angle. Sucker doesn’t break. Ouch. Gakiya nails Dave Crist with a light from above while on top of the ladder. Esparza hits a shooting star press. Gakiya grabs the belts as they retain in an intense battle. Really good work from these four guys.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL AAW Tag Team Champions- Zero Gravity/19:33/***1/2
-Truth Martini talks about the unfortunate circumstances surrounding an apparent injury to Joey Eastman. Martini is bothered by morons. Speaking of, it’s Darrin Corbin. Martini calls him a loser and moron to his face.
-AAW Heavyweight Championship: Dan Lawrence (champion) vs. Jesse Emerson
Match in Five Words or Less: Emerson Impresses
Match Summary/Analysis: Emerson won a four way match the previous month and feels like he deserves a title match. Well, he only beat three other geeks but whatever. Lawrence is a fighting champion… and not a mouse. Even though Emerson is a newcomer to the company, I thought he looked perfectly competent with both his promo and in ring work. They go into the crowd for whatever reason. Emerson tosses Lawrence over his head back in the ring. Lawrence kicks him back out and hits a splash. Back in the ring and Emerson hits a nice butterfly suplex. Slingshot suplex over the middle rope. Uranagi into the powerbomb. 1-2-NO! They screw up a reverse splash mountain so Lawrence rolls him up and gets three. This match was going along quite well until the finish.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: STILL AAW Heavyweight Champion-Dan Lawrence/6:34/**
-We go to the crow’s nest as the announcers talk about what’s to come on the card. Very professional touch to see the announcers in the building talking.
-The Clash (Tommy Treznik and Cameron Skyy w/Mena Libra) and Keith Walker (w/Truth Martini) vs. Chris Hall, Louis Lyndon, and Marion Fontaine (w/Scarlet)
Match in Five Words or Less: They Killed Scarlet
Match Summary/Analysis: The House of Truth and Clash go together quite well if you ask me. Something I’ve noticed while watching Fontaine live… he’s constantly talking the entire match in character. That’s definitely something I admire because it shows he’s got his character down. Back anfd forth early on in the contest. Babyfaces work over Treznik to start. Chris Hall has lost some weight recently and has become a million times less awkward because of it. Double dives by Lyndon and Fontaine. Walker asserts his dominance and tosses Fontaine into the corner. Heat segment on Fontaine obviously. Hall tags in and takes out both members of Clash with ease. Straps come down and he knocks Walker off the apron. Mena Libra delivers a low blow. Here comes Scarlet. She hits a rana. Not a very good one. Walker in. Scarlet… dead. One of the ugliest chokeslams you’ll ever see. Fontaine low bridges Walker out of the ring. Lyndon with a dive through the ropes. This match is out of control. Fontaine and Libra face off. Fontaine drops her. Clash hits their double death valley driver for two. I have no idea who’s legal at this point. Walker puts an end to that argument by hitting a LARIAT on Lyndon and getting the win for his team. Good little match. Better than what I remembered watching live.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: The Clash and Keith Walker/10:49/***
-Truth Martini says everyone can trust him and says Lyndon doesn’t know the truth. Martini tells Walker to continue the massacre. Darrin Corbin of all people makes the save with a chair. Low blow. He and Chris Hall send Walker packing. Martini takes punishment of his own.
-Path of Redemption commercial focusing on Dustin Diamond and the cage match with Raven and Silas Young.
-Michael Elgin vs. Alex Shelley
Match in Five Words or Less: Elgin’s Big Win
Match Summary/Analysis: This is a match that was not aired on the pay-per-view but saved exclusively for the DVD. A wise move for companies moving forward so people have reason to consider buying both. No one can maintain the advantage early. Elgin uses his strength and ability to slow the match down. Shelley uses speed but is careful not to bump too much. Elgin works over Shelley’s back as Douglas mentions Shelley not being on his game tonight. That makes sense. Roll of the dice is the first bit of offense from Shelley in a good five minutes. Superkick misses and Elgin heads outside. Elgin teases sending Shelley into the crowd, but Shelley sends Elgin into the wood post standing in the middle of the bar. Superkick and sliced bread. 1-2-NO! Elgin slaps Shelley across the left cheek. Exchange of strikes. Pair of boots but Shelley sits down on a powerbomb attempt. Double stomp by Shelley. Sitting enziguri. Air Raid Crash. 1-2-NO! Elgin knocks the referee into the ropes. Shelley crotched off the ropes. Elgin hits a left arm lariat for two. Short clothesline. Powerbomb. 1-2-3! Elgin with a nice victory. This match was far better than I remembered live. Elgin looked really good here in the victory. I got the sense Shelley was holding a bit back, but he put forth a good effort and put Elgin over nicely.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Michael Elgin/14:51/***1/4
-Stevie Richards vs. Silas Young (w/Val Malone)
Match in Five Words or Less: Richards Doesn’t Suck
Match Summary/Analysis: Richards looks in the best shape of any of the former ECW guys who’ve appeared in AAW. Feeling out process between the two as they end up even. Young heads to the outside for a breather. Test of strength. Richards goes for the powerbomb, but Young again powders. Series of chops in the corner. At least Richards can wrestle. Young works over Richards’ back and of course breaks out his backbreaker/lariat combo. Series of clotheslines and a lungblower by Richards. Side slam for two. Kick and an attempt at the butterfly suplex. Val steps on the apron. Superkick by Stevie gets two as Val puts her man’s arm on the bottom rope. Stevie stalks the young lady on the outside. Spear by Young gets two. Nagasaki roll but the springboard moonsault misses. Young ducks a superkick again and the referee is out. Koji clutch appears to get Richards the victory, but Billy Corgan calls bullshit. He demands the ring announcer announce Young as the winner by disqualification. Well, that was a dumb ending to what was a decent match.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Silas Young/14:24/**3/4
-Stevie Richards combats Young and Douglas, who for whatever reason turns on the BWO. Lights go out at who should be in the ring but Sabu? He’s bald, small, and looks like he’s seen better days. Kevin Harvey says the main event is over, so he’s back in charge. Sabu and Mason Beck are going to wrestle in the true main event right now!
Sabu (w/random manager guy) vs. Mason Beck (AAW Heritage Champion)
Match in Five Words or Less: Sabu Is Done
Match Summary/Analysis: I talked about Raven being done as a wrestler during the last Bourbon Street show. Let’s just say Sabu is a million times more done than Raven was. The only thing he can do is throw chairs and punch people. Mason Beck doesn’t have the experience or wherewithal to carry Sabu to a watchable match. Sabu puts Beck through a table to finally put an end to the match. This eight minutes felt like ten hours.
Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Sabu/7:54/1/2*
-An enormous brawl in the grand tradition of ECW breaks out as the entire locker room brawls in and out of the ring. The show ends with everyone brawling. I’ve seen worse endings to shows before. No post-show promos even.
Line of the Night: Shane Douglas during the ladder match, “I’ve got to call my stock broker and tell him to buy stock in Advil.”
Finish of the Night: Gotta give it to the ladder match for incorporating an ending that wasn’t too dangerous. Using the light to get the win was creative and logical.
MVP: It’s very rare I give credit to someone on these shows other than the wrestlers. No offense to any of the competitors involved, but the announcers on this show were at the very top of their game. They added a lot of the proceedings and did a fantastic job putting over the talent and actually explaining the storylines. Phil Colvin, Derek St. Holmes, and Shane Douglas share the MVP award on this night.
The Verdict: if I was only evaluating the iPPV, I’d have to give the show a thumbs in the middle. There wasn’t enough for me to say it was a bad show but not enough to say it was a consistently good show either. I think Elgin and Shelley helps the DVD significantly. This was such a weird show because the first half hour and main event dragged this show badly. Yet there was the amazing four way, the great brawl with Cannon and Jacobs, and the ladder match. Not a strong recommendation but enough good to justify a thumbs up from me.
To see this show on your computer for only ten bucks (minus the Shelley/Elgin match) check out Go Fight Live.
For more information on AAW and their upcoming shows (including a return to the Berwyn Eagles club this weekend and information on their first iPPV coming in May), check out AAW’s Website. To buy this and many otherAAW DVDs, check out Smart Mark Video. To read past AAW reviews, check out my AAW blog. Below is a list of contact information for both the website and me.
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