----Here is another look at this past Saturday's Memphis Wrestling. Ratings and Random Thoughts tomorrow.
Jerry Lawler’s Memphis Wrestling – Episode 10
Airing August 14, 2010 in Memphis on PAXtv 50
Brandon Baxter and Lauren Jenkins were joined by Guy Coffey for the opening. Baxter said the rumor was that Tom Savini had something in store for Jerry Lawler today. Coffey announced a loser leaves Memphis TV match between Su Yung and Ga Ga Girl.
The first of several bumpers featuring fantasy characters from the San Diego Comic Con aired.
Kevin White and a highly agitated Tommy Mercer joined Baxter. White said Mercer was upset about last week. White, who was almost frothing at the mouth, said the ref should be banned because nobody in Memphis Wrestling could beat Mercer. White said he was going to unleash the beast. Mercer said everyone saw that he kicked out including Baxter. “Well, we saw what we saw, and we saw Stan Lee get a huge upset victory over Tommy Mercer. It’s a referee’s decision. Downtown Bruno counted the three,” Baxter said.
(1) Kevin White & Tommy Mercer beat Cody Melton & Stan Lee in 6:52. Jenkins dubbed the White/Mercer team as The Hotheads. She also implied that Mercer genetically gifted physique was not all natural. Baxter found that amusing. “I’ll let you be the one to tell him.” Mercer beat Lee up and tagged out. White didn’t fare so well. He ate a double dropkick and scrambled for a tag. Melton got some offense against Mercer including a first class monkey flip. Mercer used an eye rake to start heat on Melton. Ga Ga Girl came to ringside with some weird orange thing in her hair. Melton stunned Mercer with a dropkick and made the tag to Lee. They traded blow with Lee kinda getting the best of it. Ga Ga Girl tripped up Lee and Mercer planted him with a spinebuster slam. Finish was botched.
Next was classic footage from 1982: Steve Keirn & Stan Lane & Bill Dundee & Dutch Mantell over The Destroyers & Masked Marauder & The Invader in two straight falls. Dundee pinned Invader after a Fabs double clothesline at 2:50. Dundee turned Marauder’s mask sideways. Keirn pinned Marauder with a hotshot in 3 minutes.
White and Ga Ga came to ringside. White said Coffey had done a great thing because now he had a chance to get Yung gone for good. White said Yung was headed back to the nail shop. Baxter said White wasn’t the same guy he met 10 years ago.
Yung (with Lawler) came wearing another modest school girl outfit. Yung told Baxter she was going to do everyone a favor because she heard people turned their TVs off with this thing in the ring.
Baxter noted that Prentice showed up for the girls matches. “I’m not sure if this is a fascination with you or what.” Prentice said Ga Ga Girl was beyond awesome, but she wasn’t going to get a fair shake with Lawler out there.
(2) Su Yung (with Jerry Lawler) beat Ga Ga Girl (with Kevin White) in 4:08. Ga Ga Girl was thereby banished from Memphis Wrestling TV. Yung ripped Ga Ga hair thing off and caught her in fi five consecutive pinning combinations. Ga Ga duped Yung into thinking her boot was untied to get the upper hand. Ga Ga kicked Yung in the face for a two count, then gave her a hair Biel throw. Yung had Ga Ga pinned with a folding press but White had the ref distracted. Prentice said Yung’s outfit looked like his living room drapes. Prentice started choking Lawler with a chain. Meanwhile, White came off the top rope with a punch intended for Yung that connected with Ga Ga. Yung clotheslined White and pinned Ga Ga. Yung hugged Lawler and Coffey.
The Tax Solutions Superstar Hotline featured Ox Baker. This was shot in tight close up and facially, Baker looks remarkably similar to the way he did 25 years ago. Baker said he and Lawler were the only men to defeat Andre the Giant, and he was the only one to throw Andre over the top rope. Baker is obsessed with Lawler’s smirk apparently. Baker was proud that Lawler had never beaten him, but mad at himself that he never beat Lawler.
WWE footage was from the July 19 RAW - the closing minutes and postmatch of Sheamus vs. Evan Bourne where Miz laid Sheamus out and came oh so close to cashing in his MITB title shot.
Savini video. Savini said it wasn’t enough that Lawler killed Andy Kaufman, now he had burned his Jokester beyond recognition, so he was bringing out the heavy artillery and sending Jason to destroy him.
Jason was accompanied to the ring by “Hollywood” Jimmy Blaylock with the caption TOM SAVINI’S MONSTERVISION, which was nothing more than a scope effect in black and white. Baxter was uncomfortable with Jason’s machete. He said Savini basically had a hit out on Lawler.
Lawler said this was going too far. Blaylock yelled that Lawler was nothing but a murderer. Lawler invited Savini to come to Memphis and take care of the problem personally.
(3) Jerry Lawler beat Jason (with Hollywood Jimmy Blaylock) via DQ in 5:32. Boss Winters joined Baxter on commentary. Winters insisted that Lawler gave Kaufman brain cancer. Jason robotically lumbered towards Lawler like Frankenstein. Lawler hurt his hand punching Jason’s hockey mask. Jason displayed power but he was having a hell of a time keeping the mask in place. Jason no sold Lawler’s body shots and kept moving forward. Jason dumped Lawler out on the floor, and for the second time in the space of 30 minutes, Lawler was being choked with a chain (this time by Blaylock). Lawler grabbed the machete, but Bruno took it away. As Jason continued his assault on Lawler at ringside, Baxter said a kid in the front row had tears in his eyes. Back inside the ring, Jason was tattooing Lawler’s forehead. Lawler delivered a low blow that doubled Jason over. “It doesn’t look like Jason was wearing that mask down low – no cup action,” said Baxter. Lawler decked Jason with a punch in the jaw. Lawler “split the uprights” with a nut stomp. The mask was off and Lawler was pounding Jason’s face, when Blaylock attacked Lawler with his cane. Jason hit Lawler with a few punches. Blaylock wrapped the chain around Lawler’s neck. Lawler was laid out. No save. Jason and Blaylock just left the ring.
Lawler apologized for the less than kingly showing and asked for rematch. Baxter said he would work on making it happen.
Afterthoughts: Things took a turn for the worse with the return of the Savini /Kaufman murder angle. As God awful as the main event was, it was perversely entertaining. On the bright side, they wrapped up the Ga Ga Girl/Yung storyline and none to soon. Match was actually OK for what it was. It had the right poetic justice finish. And I liked the irony of Prentice choking Lawler after complaining about Ga Ga not being able to get a fair shake. This was their third meeting on JLMW. Ga Ga is still beyond horrible but Yung has gotten smarter about how to work with her. Either that or my expectations have dropped that much. Best thing about the show was the handling of the botched finish of Mercer’s match last week. It was worked seamlessly into the story by the opening interview and tag match. They may have found something in the team of White and Mercer. The tag match was good stuff except for that ugly finish. This was the third taping of JLMW, and the production still badly needs to be upgraded. Basic stuff like glaring light stands visible in the camera angles and mics that are too hot. The Monstervision was the extreme in campiness. They are yet to use any kind of a replay or recap. Baxter was a huge plus. He has this terrific ability to react seriously to ridiculous stuff without looking like an idiot.
