NWA Showcase (3/5) RecapL Bucks Stop Here!
Our resident philosopher, Jay Shannon, brings us the recap of the newest national wrestling program, NWA Showcase Challenge.
David Marquez kicked off the show with an interview with Sean Denny. Denny was set to face Brian Danielson, later in the night. Denny sounded confident as he assured us that he wouldn’t take Danielson lightly, nor would he lose to him.
After a quick break, David Marquez and “Iron Man” Rob Conway talked about the show. The Young Bucks faced Cobra II and Black Tiger IV in our opening contest.
Black Tiger IV and Cobra II d The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson)
This match was filmed in Hidalgo, Texas. The masked men attacked before the bell. They sent the Jackson brothers aka The Young Bucks to the ropes with dual Irish Whips. Both Bucks did the RVD Roll-over and then hit stereo Dropkicks on the masked ones. Both Bucks ducked Clotheslines and then jumped over the ropes onto the apron. Tiger and Cobra charged and ended up flying over the ropes and to the floor. Matt and Nick Jackson then hit Crossbodies over the ropes onto Black Tiger IV and Cobra II.
Matt started for his team once the competitors got back in the ring. Cobra II offered a Test of Strength, but kicked the ribs of Matt, instead. Cobra II went to the eyes. Cobra II grabbed a Headlock, but Matt sent him to the ropes. Matt tried for a Tilt-a-Whirl move on Cobra II, but Cobra II landed solidly on his feet. Matt took Cobra II to the mat with a Flying Crossbody. Cobra II kicked out at two. Matt dropped Cobra II with a Flying Back Elbow. Cobra II reversed an Irish Whip, but he sent Matt into his own corner, which allowed Nick Jackson to blind tag himself in.
Nick and Matt Irish Whipped Cobra II to the ropes and then caught him with a Double Hip Toss. The Jacksons did Double Backflips and then nailed Dual Dropkicks to the masked face of Cobra II. Nick went for a Suplex, but Cobra II flipped out and landed on his feet. Cobra II then Dropkicked the lower back of Nick Jackson. Cobra II tagged in Black Tiger IV.
Black Tiger IV rushed Nick, only to be sent flying with a Back Body Drop. Tiger caught Nick with a martial arts thrust and a Kneelift before sending him flying with an Irish Whip. Nick slid under a chop by Tiger IV and answered with one of his own. Nick grabbed the arm of Black Tiger IV, walked the ropes and then hit a Corkscrew Arm Drag that send Tiger IV flying. Cobra II entered the ring to help his partner. Nick Leap-frogged the charging Tiger IV and then kicked the legs of Tiger as he came off the ropes. This caused Tiger IV to accidently dropkick his own partner. Nick kicked Tiger IV in the ribs and tagged in his brother, Matt.
Nick and Matt sent Black Tiger IV to the ropes with a Double Irish Whip. They caught Tiger IV with double boots to the ribs. Tiger IV came back with a Clothesline on Matt. Cobra IIreached under the ropes and tripped Nick. Cobra II then pulled Nick to the floor. Black Tiger IV taunted the crowd as we took a quick commercial break.
Cobra II grinded his boot into the face of Matt Jackson as we returned. Cobra II hit a European Uppercut. Cobra II worked over the neck of Matt and then sent him to the ropes. Matt rebounded with a Crucifix Backslide to take Cobra II to the mat. Cobra II kicked out at two and then Dropkicked Matt. Cobra II quickly tagged out to Black Tiger IV. Cobra II dropped Matt with a Drop Toe Hold as the announcers reminded us that the late Eddie Guerrero once wrestled in Japan as one of the Black Tigers. Cobra II locked Matt in a Camel Clutch as Black Tiger IV hit a low Dropkick into the exposed face of Matt Jackson. Cobra II and Black Tiger sat down in the center of the ring and went into some kind of meditation stance. The crowd booed loudly.
Black TIger IV slammed Matt and then worked over the legs with hard kicks. Tiger tagged Cobra II back into the match. They double teamed the quickly weakening Matt Jackson. Tiger IV hit a Belly to Back Suplex. Cobra II dropped a knee to the face of Matt. Cobra II then ran over and popped Nick in the face. Nick tried to come in, but the ref stopped him. The distraction allowed Cobra II to use the tape from his wrists to choke Matt. Cobra II threw away the tape and then kicked away on Matt. Cobra II locked Matt in the orpes and then backed up tot he far side of the ring. Cobra II ran back and Speared Matt, who was trapped in the corner. Cobra II bounced off the ropes and charged at Matt. Matt fell to the canvas, which caused Cobra II to sail out of the ring and hit the concrete floor with a thud.
Matt crawled to his corner and finally tagged in his brother, Nick. Cobra II tagged out to Black Mask IV. Nick sent both masked men flying with Clotheslines and Dropkicks. Nick ended up falling victim to the numbers games. The masked duo sent Nick to the ropes. Nick ducked a Double Clothesline and went to boot Cobra II. Cobra II grabbed the foot and swung it to Black Tiger IV. Nick then leaped up and caught Black Tiger IV with an Enziguri. He also nailed Cobra II with a Flying Heel Kick. Nick went back after Black Tiger IV. Tiger reversed an Irish Whip, but Nick leaped up and caught Tiger IV with a Hurancanrana. The two men switched back and forth with pin attempts. The match broke down when Matt and Cobra II ran in to help their partners.
Matt was tossed outside. Black Tiger IV and Cobra II worked together to nail Nick with the old Hart Foundation finisher, The Hart Attack. Nick somehow kicked out at two. Cobra II, who we learned is Canadian, did receive training from the Harts. Nick is set on the top rope by the masked team. They want a Double Superplex but Matt makes the save. The Young Bucks went for their finishing combo, the More Bang for the Buck, but Matt took too long playing up to the crowd. Black Tiger IV threw some kind of powder into the face of Matt. Matt fell off the ropes. Cobra II rolled up the blinded Matt Jackson for the win.
Grade: A-
We went to a Legends interview with The One Man Gang. Gang looked totally unrecognizable. David told Gang that there might be a spot for Gang in the new NWA. Gang had some fun trying to intimidate David. Gang issued an open challenge to the NWA champ.
David and Rob returned to talk about the next match. Brian Danielson faced Sean Denny.
Sean Denny d “American Dragon” Brian Danielson
This match was filmed in Charlotte, NC. The video for this match was really bad. Danielson took Denny to the match with a Sit-out from a Go Behind. The two men tested the strength of each other. They went back and forth. Denny bent Danielson into a Reverse Bridge and then hopped onto Danielson. Danielson grabbed a side headlock and spun on the mat to weaken and dis-orient his opponent. Denny grabbed a Headlock on Danielson. Danielson spun out of the hold and locked up the legs of Denny. We went to a break.
Danielson worked over the arm of Denny, as we returned. Denny reversed the Arm Wringer. The two men mirrored each other with moves. Danielson hit a Dropkick to send Denny to the mat. Danielson and Denny showed a lot of respect to each other during this match. Danielson locked up the arm until Denny rolled through. Denny hit a great Dropkick. Danielson opened up on Denny with a cheap shot and a European Uppercut. Danielson locked in a brutal Surfboard. He then switched over to a Dragon Sleeper. Denny made it to the ropes.
Danielson kicked the chest of Denny. Danielson took Denny to the mat and then hit a Running Knee to the chest. Denny fought back, but Danielson went to the eyes. The two men exchanged Reverse Knife Edge Chops. Danielson literally flew out of the corner with a brutal Reverse Leg Lariat to drop Denny to the mat. Danielson locked in a modified Crippler Crossface. Danielson moved Denny to the corner and slapped Denny, several times. Danielson looked like he could be the son of Bob Backlund. Danielson hit a Jumping Spin Kick to the chest of Denny. Denny finally fought back with kicks and chops. Denny caught Danielson with a Back Body Drop and several Clotheslines. Danielson countered a Suplex into a Snap Suplex of his own. Danielson took another page out of the Benoit playbook with the Diving Headbutt. Danielson locked in the Cattle Mutilation (I love that name) submission hold. Unfortunately for Danielson, he accidently pinned himself with the move.
Grade: A (slight grade drop due to the lousy video)
Danielson attacked Sean Denny after the match. Danelson locked in the Cattle Mutilation hold again. He then released the hold and started dropping Elbow Bombs on the skull on Denny, until wrestlers ran from the back to help.
Rob and David returned to talk about Danielson’s attack after the match. Conway talked about things being unpredictible in the NWA. David tried to push “Sexy” Sonny Samson. Conway got miffed and demanded that they show one of his matches. David wasn’t even sure if there were any Rob Conway matches in the library. Of course, there were several matches. We then went to ringside.
“Iron Man” Rob Conway d. Don Juan
Conway jawed with the crowd. The announcers talked about Conway’s background. The crowd in Houston really gave Conway a hard time, as Don Juan looked on. The match started with a Collar and Elbow. Conway pushed Don Juan off and flexed. Don Juan got the crowd fired up. Conway moved Don into the ropes. Conway locked in a Headlock. Don shoved Conway off into the ropes and came back with a hard Shoulder Block. Conway really hammed it up for the crowd. This match was seriously boring to start.
Don Juan locked in a Headlock. Conway tried to shove Conway off, but Don held on. When Conway did finally push out of the Headlock, Don Juan came back off the ropes with a Shoulder Block that sent Conway sailing backwards and out of the ring. We went to a break as Conway gathered himself up on the outside.
Don Juan had Conway in a Headlock as we returned. Conway shoved Don Juan off into the ropes. Don Juan reversed a Hip Toss. Conway hit the floor again. Don Juan taunted Conway from the turnbuckle. We learned that Don Juan was trained by Rudy Boy Gonzales, who worked with Shawn Michaels at Michaels’ Texas training facility.
Conway took control of the arm of Don Juan out of the Headlock. Conway sent Don Juan to the ropes and Leapfrogged him. On the second attempt at a Leapfrog, Don Juan caught Conway and turned it into a Inverted Atomic Drop. Don Juan made fun of Rob’s groin injury and then bounced off the ropes. Conway recovered enough to take Don Juan down with a Clothesline. Conway choked Don Juan on the ropes and then dug his fingers into Don’s face. Conway slapped Don, who came back with a straight fist. Conway choked Don Juan with a knee across the throat.
Conway pounded on Don Juan and then Irish Whipped Don into the corner. Conway locked in a Reverse Chin Lock. Don Juan fought back to his feet. Don Juan hit a few punches, but Conway clamped in a Deep Sleeper. The ref checked the arm of Don Juan. It dropped limply twice, but on the third check, Don Juan came back to life. Don got back to his feet and locked a Sleeper of his own. Conway twisted around and nailed a Belly to Back Suplex on Don Juan to get free. Conway climbed the ropes to drop an elbow, but missed. Don Juan hit several hard Fore-arm Shots to the face of Conway. Don came off the ropes and ducked a Clothesline attempt by Conway. Don Juan caught Conway with a Flying Fore-arm and a couple of Clotheslines. Don Juan tried for a pin, but Conway kicked out.
Conway backed into the corner to try and get some rest. Don Juan climbed the ropes and pounded away. Don Juan tried for a Diamond Cutter, but Conway shoved him off and nailed a Spear. Conway used a Suplex to set Don Juan on the ropes. Conway then took the win with a Spinning Neckbreaker. It was similar to Kevin Thorn’s Original Sin finisher, only with a spin to it.
Grade: B
David and Rob returned to talk about our main event. “Scrap Iron” Adam Pierce defended his NWA Heritage Championship against Sean “6-Pac” Waltman.
Sean Waltman d “Scrap Iron” Adam Pierce
NWA Heritage Championship Match
New Champion crowned!
Pierce was seconded by his manager, C. Edward Vanderpyle. The fans were solidly behind Waltman. Pierce caught Waltman off-guard as the ref checked the former DXer. Pierce beat on Waltman with straight punches. Pierce did the DX Crotch Chop to insult Waltman. Waltman reversed an Irish Whip and tried for a Hip Toss, but Pierce blocked it. Waltman brought the leg up, locked it behind Pierce’s neck and flipped over. Waltman dropped Pierce with a Spinning Heel Kick. Pierce reversed an Irish Whip. Waltman brought up the legs and locked the ankles around Pierce’s head and sent him through the ropes and to the floor.
Waltman flew over the ropes to hit the Crossbody on Pierce on the floor. Both men crashed into the steel barricade. Waltman Irish Whipped Pierce into the steel railing. Waltman threw Pierce into the railing a second time. Pierce then lifted Waltman up and slid Waltman’s crotch into the steel post. Pierce rolled back in the ring. Manager Vanderpyle choked Waltman while Pierce kept the ref distracted. The crowd pelted Vanderpyle with popcorn and cups. The ref counted until Waltman was able to get back into the ring.
Pierce choked Waltman in the corner. Pierce then sent Waltman into orbit with a Back Body Drop. Pierce laid Waltman across the ropes and then distracted the ref. This allowed Vanderpyle to choke Waltman. Pierce tried for a cheap win, but Waltman kicked out. Pierce chopped away at Waltman and then Irish Whipped Waltman into the corner. Waltman got the boot up to stun the champion. Waltman ran from the corner, into a bone-jarring Powerslam. Waltman kicked out at two. Pierce locked in a Rear Chin Lock to ground Waltman. When Waltman got back to his feet, he tried to use some martial arts kicks. Pierce grabbed the leg and sent Waltman flying with a Dragon Screw Leg Whip. Pierce Clipped the knee of Waltman. Pierce slid out of the ring and bounced the knee of Waltman off the apron. We took one last break.
Pierce locked in a Figure Four Leglock in the center of the ring. Pierce reached back and locked hands with his manager for added power. The ref was oblivious to all the under-handed antics. They pulled the same trick twice more. One third round of cheating, the ref caught them and forced the break. Pierce brought Waltman to his feet (shaky feet albeit). Waltman began to fight back with chops. Waltman got several hard kicks in that sent Pierce crashing down in the corner. Waltman nailed his Bronco Buseter. Pierce grabbed the ankles of Waltman and tripped him. Pierce went for a pin with his feet on the ropes, but the ref saw it and forced the break. Pierce and the ref got into a screaming match that led to a few shoves. Pierce turned around and got planted like spring flowers by the Six-Factor Face Plant. Vanderpyle got on the apron to distract the ref. Waltman got up from the pin attempt to confront Vanderpyle. Out of the corner of his eye, Waltman saw Pierce coming and side stepped him. Pierce collided with his manager, Vanderpyle. Waltman went for a School Boy Roll-up, but Pierce kicked out at two.
Waltman went to the top rope but Pierce hit Waltman. Waltman crotched himself on the top turnbuckle. Pierce went for a Superplex, but Waltman blocked it. Waltman used several hard fists to send Pierce tumbling back into the ring. Waltman flew off the ropes with a Crossbody, but Pierce rolled through. Pierce grabbed the ankle of Waltman and tried for another Figure Four Leglock. Waltman caught Pierce and rolled him into a Small Package. Waltman took both the win and the NWA Heritage Championship.
Grade: A
Over-all Grade: A-
Final Thoughts:
This was another re-broadcast of an earlier episode of NWA Showcase Challenge. SInce I’d seen this about six weeks ago, there were no surprises. That being said, the action was still fast-paced and exciting. The NWA really needs to get some new shows out to the audience. Repeats are fine, once in a while, but ratings will suffer if we just see the same six episodes over and over again.
–Jay Shannon
JayofPWD@SBCGlobal.net
(3/10/08)
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