----I will go on record in saying this was the best show I have attended since starting this site in May, 2006. The TLCW building is very small, but it packed 260+ fans – and they were loud and rowdy fans. This group has been promoting for the big show to end all the angles and in my opinion the payoff was last night. As usual though, there was some kind of backstage controversy as everyone with the company seem to be unhappy with the main event from those that thought it was just not bloody enough to others thinking that both guys looked off their game. Others were fussing about the actual finish, while others were just saying it did not live up to the hype. I personally enjoyed the match and my comments are below. All in all though, it will be hard to see any promotion in this area beat this kind of show from top to bottom.
----“The Golden Boy” Greg Anthony beat Simon Reed. Good opening match. Both guys looked ready and moves were smooth. ‘Lil Chris came out to cheer Reed on in the match. The crowd was so hot for “The Posse”. The match finished with Anthony hitting Reed with the skateboard and putting the “Goldi-Lock” on him for the submission. Reed was out, so ref Bill Rush called for the bell. [**1/2]
----Tatt2 beat Derrick King and Rockin’Randy in a Triple Threat to win the TLCW JR Title. Tatt2 was so over. Crowd was so hot when he came out. DK got a good reaction also, but I think Tatt2 was more over. This was a very good match. I am not fond of triple threats, because most turn into a clusterfuck. This one did not due to the fact that DK kept usually only two people at a time working. A very smart match. A lot of crazy spots. Randy has turned into a good worker. DK hit a superkick when Tatt2 springboarded from the top rope – looked awesome!! Tatt2 pinned DK to win and the crowd popped big. Randy attacked him after the bout and with them gone, Jethro came out and powerbombed DK leaving him laying. [***1/2]
----Brian Steele came out with Rick the Stick to do an angle with Buckwheat. Steele was singing and Buckwheat came out to tell him he sucked. Steele challenged him to a dancing contest that ended up with Steele hitting Buck with his guitar. Steele and Stick are both so smooth in their delivers. They got legit heat. Stick is just a big and obnoxious heel manager that the marks would love to see slapped and that is a good thing. Buckwheat is so small and looks like just someone out of the crowd.
----Matt Foley came out to do an interview and this was the worst part of the show for me. Foley seems to be over with the fans as a heel [not at the level you would expect though from as much as he as done here], but when it comes to actually brawling or punching, Foley is really “see-thru”. Tim Grind came out and got a good pop. Grind is over. They ended up brawling in and out of the ring. They were near the announcer’s desk, but near the crowd when I heard Grind call spots for Foley. Foley and Grind was sword fighting with chairs at one point that looked good. Overall the worst segment of the show though.
----Lil Chris beat Tim Alfonzo, Jawbreaker Jones, Crime, Motley Cruz, Dell Tucker, Seth Knight and Alex Krisis in an Elimination Hardcore bout to win the TLCW Hardcore Title. There really is no way to describe this bout. Too much going on. Tables, trashcans, thumb tacks, chairs, and a bunch of other stuff. Cruz was on putting everyone into the tacks with suplexs and drivers of all kinds. That was the highlight for me and the Canadian Destroyer that Crime took onto the tacks from Seth Knight to get eliminated. The finish seen Tasha Simone give Cruz some lighter fluid and just as it was going to light the table, “Black Out Squad” [Oz/Bishop] came running out slamming Cruz on the table. They then put more light fluid on the table and were going to light Cruz up, when out of the back 187 ran out to make the save. Chris pinned Krisis in the end with an elbow smash from the top rope with chairs on top of Krisis. Krisis beat up the ref and Chris after the bout and Reed made the save. [***1/2]
----“Picture Perfect” [Jon Michael/Christian Jacobs] retain the TLCW Tag Team Titles beat “Black Out Squad” [Oz/Bishop] in a Stretcher match. This was also a hard match to describe as the action was everywhere with all four guys wrestling at the same time. Rashard brought out some ether [which was fingernail polish and you could smell it] and used a towel on CJ to put him out. Michael then used it on Bishop putting him out. [First time I can remember the babys turning the tables on the heels with the ether] Two guys were out and the finish was set up. Oz set chairs up and put Michael on the top turnbuckle, but it ended up with Michael powerbombing him from the top rope onto the chairs. CJ woke up and him/Michael carried Oz outside the arena and won the match. Lots of stiff shots in this bout with chairs and CJ took a hard shot with a Playstation. CJ and Oz both did dives over the top rope to stop from their partners being carried out on a stretcher. Wild and crazy bout with the crowd heat up during the whole bout. After the match, PP got a super reaction milking the crowd for them to dance. [****]
----Bill Rush beat Rashard Devon in a ref vs manager bout. Not a big fan of this type of stuff, but neither guy made a fool of himself. Rush was always a good worker and only one spot looked bad and that is when Rashard sent Rush into the corner and Rush took forever to get there. Stip of the match was that the loser had to wear a dress, so Rashard was going to leave, but they made him come back to put on a red dress and a wig. This was really over with the crowd. [**]
----Stan Lee beat Flash Flanagan to win the TLCW Title. Match was slow building and not as good as I expected. Lee was off on a couple of spots including two Tajiri springboards from the ropes and also a german suplex spot. Flash just worked slow paced match with quick spots in it. Flash started heat when Lee missed a split leg moonsault. A lot of Flash fans in the crowd. Finish had Flash go into the crowd for a chair after a ref bump. As he was going to hit Lee, Dustin Starr ran out and had the book/tablet thing that Rashard carries out and wants to hit Lee with it. Lee moves and Starr hits Flash. Lee pins him for the win and title. Crowd popped big for the win. [***]
----Barbwire Loser Leave Town Match: Dustin Starr beats Chris O’Neal. The ring was wrapped in barbwire – outside the ropes. The security had to hold the barbwire up as the guys got in. Starr brought barbwire in the ring with him to use as a weapon. They did all the stall spots of going into the barbwire or using the barbwire. Finally O’Neal got color and see him blade like 3 times, but still not that much color. Flash Flanagan walked out with a kendo stick wrapped in barbwire. Starr thought he was going to give it him, but Flash handed it to O’Neal. Starr got color then. It looked real good at one point, but then the blood sweated off. Rashard came out to try to help Starr win. Finish had Starr pinning O’Neal with O’Neal foot on the rope with Rashard pushing the foot off with the ref not seeing it. Although both guys did not seem to click as much as I thought they would, I liked the bout. [***]
----Final figures look like 200 in paid attendance 18 giveaway tickets, 36 people in the building as helpers, security or family of workers. Also lots of kids. The building had at least 260 people in it. I was told that the concession stand sold out twice. There is no telling what the “gate” of the concessions was. I was told a $1,300 gate, but if there were only 200 paid then that is closer to a $1,200 gate and probably at least $300 in concession. Great turnout for TLCW…There was a couple that reads this web site that drove 5 hours to see the show – please e-mail me!!!...Jethro is a big man. He showed more charisma in doing that powerbomb on DK than he has shown during his whole time on Memphis Wrestling…I don’t know if it is the size or what, but Rick reminds me of Ronnie P Gossett. The only thing is that Gossett was a bit more feminine than Stick….Even though I blasted the Grind/Foley segment – it was no where bad like you see on other shows. I think it was just because everything else was so good….It felt like too many people in the hardcore match, but it was exciting. Lil Chris winning was more an upset than I thought – the ref counted wrong because Krisis was suppose to win the belt. Krisis apparently had words with the ref after the bout. I seen Alfonzo after this bout and it looked like he got hit by a truck. Tasha did something so subtle- it was just perfect last night. Cruz/Tasha are always pushed as the baddest hardcore people in this area. Even the announcers were putting that over. When Krisis came out carrying a table and running around the ring Tasha ran like she was terrified. What did that do?? It just got Krisis over that much more. Those things you can just not teach…My only bitch about the stretcher match would be no blood. But, they were told to save the blood for the main event…This show ended close to midnight. Almost 4 hours of stuff. That would be my only compliant for the show in general. I seen a lot of people getting up and I think it was because the show ran way too long. They had a giveaway before the main event that lasted way too long in the ring. Got to the Main and then do the giveaway. Lots of kids probably had curfews and had to go home…Bill Rush took a nasty bump into the barbwire that Starr brought into the ring. After the bout, it looked like a cat had jumped on his stomach…I was told by one of the workers that the main event was being laughed at by some in the back because I think most of them felt like it was not brutal enough, since they had been building so long for the match. I also was told that people were getting up and did not like the bout, but I am not sure of that. I am not making excuses, it is just the show was running so long, I think the fans had tired out…Finally, let me say that TLCW has the best damn announcing crew I have heard in a long time – not only in this area, but wrestling in general. Michael Ward and Dustin Hickenbottom do such a good job getting over the product and the moves. If I had a wrestling TV show, I would hire these guys to a long term contract.
