WWE, TNA, RoH, MEXICO, JAPAN even some MMA...

Monday, December 2, 2013

They didnt fool me...sort of



We all saw my homage to hood wearers worldwide and can surmise by said blog that i'm a mask mark to the enth degree...MOST OF THE TIME....

Some guys who wore masks were just wearing said hoods as part of an angle like loser leaves town but snuck back in under a hood....OR when creative had absolutely nothing for them to do so they hooded them up to give them something to do...and here are a few of my favourites



STAGGER LEE
Geez Bill Watts could come up with some stuff couldnt he...I think it was him, might of been Bill Dundee, JYD and Mr Olympia  had lost a Loser leave town match to Ted Dibiase and Matt Bourne after a run in by Hacksaw Duggan...a weekm or two later Stagger Lee, a friend of the Dog, made his Mid South debut...the Rat Pack got thoroughly annoyed with this ....one tv moment springs to mind, Tony Atlas was benching a few hundred pounds on Mid South tv


and both JYD and Stagger were there on screen with perplexed ted dibiase something chronic...


eventually after a good run, Stagger won the strap of DiBiase and a few weeks later JYD was re-instated



BOB & BRAD ARMSTRONG 



On of my absolute favoirite workers...who shoulda made it much bigger than he did...anyway, on occasion when they had nothing for Brad to do...WCW creative stuck him under a gimmick or two...first one, and one of my personal faves was the Freebirds hooded ally  Badstreet ..who went on to win the 6 man tags with P.S and Jimmy Jam...and then there was Arachnaman which almost got WCW sued stupid due to his visual similarity to Marvel comics Spiderman....



Funnily enough, dressing up in a mask ran in the Armstrong family..whenever Bob Armstrong lost a loser leave town match his best friend "The Bullet" would show up to defend Bobs honor....mind you the Bullet persona sort of didnt hide Bobs appearance much...which is par for the course.




DUSTY RHODES & THE MIDNITE RIDER


Quite possibly the most famous friend of a super over  face EVER
Dusty Rhodes had lost a loser leave town to The Horseman....then suddenly The Midnite Rider appeared, now to be fair..it didnt hide the Dusty persona much...unlike Brad Armstrongs which did......



BUT he gave Flair and his cronies a deadset gut ache..even winning the nwa belt BUT he got stripped of it cause he wouldnt reveal his identity to Bob Geigel.....and on occasion The Rider has hung out with our next candidate..The Yellow Dog.



THE YELLOW DOG (s) 

The first and most famous Yellow Dog was actually Barry Windham during an angle with Ron Bass....The match between Windham and Bass saw Windham wager his Florida Heavyweight Title against a treasured horse saddle given to Bass by Rhodes' mother. Although Windham won the match, Bass and the enormous One Man Gang attacked him. They put the saddle on his back and "rode" him around the ring. Windham was utterly devastated. Dealing with this shame might have been too much for him, but a masked wrestler called The Dirty Yellow Dog soon arrived in Florida and brutalized Bass in a series of chain matches. No one ever saw the Yellow Dog without the mask, but he was a slender young man, about six-foot-six, and had long blond hair. Hmmmmmm....

The other Yellow Dog was Flyin Brian Pillman...He held the NWA United States Tag Team Championship with "The Z-Man" Tom Zenk between February 1990 and May 1990. Pillman later feuded with Barry Windham, who he harassed while dressed as the masked Yellow Dog after losing a Loser of the fall-leaves-WCW match ....In 1991 Brian Pillman troubled with health problems and with his career in limbo courtesy of Dusty Rhodes, was booked to a "loser leaves WCW" match with Barry Wyndham at Clash of Champions XV.


Pillman disappeared but his match schedule was resumed by 'The Yellow Dog', a masked wrestler with a  ring style similar to the popular high-flyer.  The Dog also entered the ring to Pillman's ring music.....Pillman denied any association, while WCW Magazine warned - "If it is conclusively proved that Dog and Pillman are one and the same, Pillman will be banned from WCW for life!"....Sometimes, The Yellow Dog risked identification by pulling up his mask but "never in front of an official". On occasions, Tom Zenk teamed with the Dog.  And a number of times a masked wrestler, uncannily like Tom Zenk, took to the ring as The Yellow Dog, while Pillman stood by at ringside.....Finally, The Yellow Dog put his mask on the line, in a series of bounty matches. But a write-in campaign by fans resulted in Pillman's official "re-instatement" to WCW as an active wrestler, and the sudden demise of the still umasked Yellow Dog. 

AND one of my personal favourites ...RED RIVER JACK
yep Bruiser Brody did the masked buddy angle as well...unusual for a guy who didnt like "gimmicks" so much...Fritz musta chucked a bag mof money at him....still and all, he pulled the gig off with ease and didnt lose a step as his original persona....Returning to WCCW from All Japan, to take over booking duties from George Scott in 1986, Brody continued his long-running feud with Abdullah the Butcher after attacking Abby's manager Gary Hart. The two madmen shed blood all across Texas during the summer and fall of 1986, culminating with a steel cage at the Cotton Bowl extravaganza in October, with Fritz Von Erich as the special referee. In December of 1986, World Class put together a "loser-leaves-town" match between the two, which was won by Abby with help from Hart.  But like many heroes before him who lost this type of match, Brody would return under a mask, as Red River Jack, before getting the suspension overturned in 1987.

WWF 
hooded hijinks


THE BLUE BLAZER 

The late great Owen Hart wasnt doing the Blazer during a loser angle, he was doing it cause Vince wanted a little kid friendly superstar ...the first time anyway, the second time and the fatal one was a angle involving the intercontinental belt and the Blazer wanting to win it for his friend Owen..and we all know what happened then...RIP fella

MR AMERICA


Hulk Hogan got banned during the angle with Vince and WM 19...suddenly out of nowhere, saying his prayers and eating his vitamins came the Hulksters close personal friend Mr America...this gimmick hid his Hulk persona even worse than Dustys Midnite Rider...Hulk didnt change one goddamn thing ..same promo, same moveset..didnt even hide his moustache with the mask...BUT...it was fun none the less.

THE MACHINES

Originally part of an angle during the Andre v Heenan Family fued, Andre lost a Loser leave town match and a couple of weeks later Capt Lou announced he was brining in a japanese team to go for the WWF tag belts..The Machines, Super and Giant....trouble is one machine sounded like he was from Florida and the other "japanese" machine had a french accent...they brought in a third machine, Big Machine, who was actually Blackjack Mulligan.
The angle got a bit crazy with extra machines added ad infinitum..Hulk Machine, Piper Machine, Animal Machine and on a house show in Minneapolis they stuck Reggie "Crusher" Liskowski under a spare hood....the angle dried up and a few weeks later Heenan and Andre worked the famous Andre heel turn....while Super Machine became Demolition Axe.


THE CONQUSITADORS
Originally a tag team that consisted of Jose Estrada and Jose Rivera...the team was re-invented for the attitude era by Edge & Christian and The Hardy Boys during their fued for the WWF tag belts...both teams dressed as The Conquistadors it was fairly obvious who was who due to either a dodgy walk to the ring or some seriously awful spanish promos...STILL... a great angle none the less


SO...there you...a few guys who didnt have us fooled in the slightest but did a damn fine job trying to...seeya next time



















Thursday, October 17, 2013

PWG...wrestle speak for AWESOME






PRO WRESTLING GUERILLA

PWG SHOWS I SWEAR BY

10TH Anniversary
DDT 4 
MYSTERY VORTEX
IS YOUR BODY READY
KURTRUSSELL REUNIONS
THREEMENDOUS
FEAR
(return of Super Dragon)
TITANICA 
THE PERILS OF ROCK"n'ROLL DECADENCE


Firstly before I get this homage to PWG started, I gots to give a humongous shout out to a wrestling buddy of mine, Chris Mondo, for it was he that got me onto PWG and for that I shall forever be hugely greatful



Pro Wrestling Guerrilla is a promotion that was initially run by the wrestlers themselves as it was created by Southern California wrestlers Disco Machine, Excalibur, Joey Ryan, Scott Lost, Super Dragon, and Top Gun Talwar  Since then, Disco, Talwar and Lost have retired and left the company....



The promotion debuted their product on July 26, 2003 and is known for its brilliant mix of humor and professional wrestling as well as their over the top press releases and show titles, such as "Kee_ The _ee Out Of Our _ool!", "Taste the Radness" and "Free Admission (Just Kidding)."



In May 2003, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla announced its first show that would take place on July 26. The promotion released an online press release announcing the show's main event that would feature what would have been the first match to take place between A.J. Styles and Samoa Joe.




 PWG announced more matches in the weeks leading up to their debut event, featuring a mix of well known independent wrestlers and many local Southern California stars. Due to injuries and booking conflicts, the card ended up being changed several times. Samoa Joe was unable to compete in the promotion's debut show because of an injury he suffered in a match with Paul London at a Ring of Honor event a few weeks earlier. He ended up being replaced by Frankie Kazarian.


Over the next few months, PWG's popularity began to grow among the Southern California wrestling community and was considered the top independent promotion in California. Despite only running six shows in its first year, PWG was voted "Promotion Of The Year" in the 2003 SoCalUncensored.com Year End Awards



 PWG's DVD commentary, which features Excalibur, Disco Machine, and on occasion TARO, along with various comedy skits won over many fans along with storylines between Adam Pearce and Frankie Kazarian for the PWG World Championship, and the Super Dragon vs. Joey Ryan rivalry. Along with putting local wrestlers in many of their storylines, PWG also brought in many out of town talent that weren't booked on other local shows. During its first year, PWG brought in wrestlers such as A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, CM Punk,  Homicide,  Chris Hero, Brian Kendrick, Colt Cabana, and many others.



In April 2005, PWG ran its first All Star Weekend shows during the weekend of WrestleMania 21 and drew their biggest crowds at the time. PWG booked several stars such as A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, James Gibson, Chris Sabin, Jonny Storm, Kendo Kashin, Samoa Joe, and many other TNA and ROH stars to participate in the weekend's events. September 2005, PWG ran the first annual BOLA {Battle of Los Angeles} tournament, featuring A.J. Styles, Christopher Daniels, James Gibson, Super Dragon, Kevin Steen, El Generico, and several others. Chris Bosh would end up winning the tournament by defeating A.J. Styles in the finals.




In February 2006, PWG held two shows in Europe. The first event was held in Essen, Germany. The second show was held the night after the Essen event in Kent, England. Both shows featured the majority of PWG's regular roster, along with several European wrestlers.




 In July 2006, PWG announced that they would be leaving the JCC due to the gym being turned into a gymnastics training center for young children. The final match in the building saw Joey Ryan defend the PWG World Championship against B-Boy in a steel cage match. PWG would go on to run in Reseda, California for the next few months at the local American Legion post. In February 2007, PWG moved to the Van Nuys Armory, which is located a few minutes away from the Reseda venue.



2007 PWG released a statement via the PWG Message Board at PWG's official site announcing they would no longer be working with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling after TNA presented them with a contract that would prevent contracted TNA wrestlers from appearing on DVDs sold through any third parties, including PWG's long-time partner Highspots.com....




 PWG stated that after looking at several solutions, including ending their contract with Highspots, releasing their DVD solely through their website, and removing all matches featuring TNA wrestlers from their home releases, they made the decision to end their relationship with TNA and thus were no longer able to book TNA wrestlers. This resulted in the loss of Frankie Kazarian, the first holder of the PWG World Championship, The Motor City Machine Guns of Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin, who were already booked to compete in the tournament for the vacated PWG World Tag Team Championship, and Samoa Joe, A.J. Styles, Low Ki, and Christopher Daniels, all of whom had been booked to appear on upcoming shows....NICE ONE DIXIE ..YOU IDJIT !




PWG celebrated their fourth anniversary and was scheduled to have the Briscoe Brothers on the card, but the team did not appear at the event which caused the card to be changed. The show ended up seeing Bryan Danielson defeat Necro Butcher in a Street Fight, Kevin Steen and El Generico defeat Roderick Strong and PAC for the PWG World Tag Team Championship, and Bryan Danielson defeat El Generico to become the new PWG World Champion after issuing a challenge to him that ended up leading to an impromptu match to close the show. The show drew 500 fans, which tied the record for the largest live crowd to witness a PWG event. 




 The show also made Southern California wrestling history, as five matches from the event were ranked in the Top 5 of the SoCalUncensored.com's monthly rankings, an accomplishment no other promotion had been able to achieve.




On January 30, 2010, PWG held Kurt Russellmania, as part of WrestleReunion, in front of their biggest crowd ever and featured Jushin "Thunder" Liger, The Great Muta, Super Crazy and Rob Van Dam in his first U.S. independent wrestling appearance plus the reunited tag team of Paul London and Brian Kendrick all in action.



On February 27, 2010, at As the Worm Turns, Kenny Omega lost the PWG World Championship to Davey Richards. Also at the event, The Young Bucks made history by tying with Richards and former partner Super Dragon for most PWG World Tag Team Championship title defenses, with twelve.



On April 10, 2010, at Titannica, The Young Bucks defeated The Briscoe Brothers to officially set the record for most successful title defenses with thirteen. Their record setting reign ended on May 9, 2010, when ¡Peligro Abejas! (El Generico and Paul London) defeated them to become the new champions.



On July 30, 2010, at PWG's seventh anniversary show, one of the company's founders, Scott Lost, wrestled his retirement match against Scorpio Sky.

On September 13, 2010, Davey Richards vacated the title after deciding he wasn't going to be able to defend it due to commitments to Ring of Honor and Japan. Claudio Castagnoli won the vacant title on October 9, 2010, defeating Chris Hero, Joey Ryan and Brandon Gatson in a four way match.


On January 29, 2011, PWG held another show during the WrestleReunion 5 weekend, which included a special Legends Battle Royal and Jake Roberts facing Sinn Bodhi in what was billed as Roberts' retirement match. On July 23, PWG held their eighth anniversary show, during which Kevin Steen defeated Claudio Castagnoli in an impromptu match to win the PWG World Championship for the second time.On October 22, 2011, one of PWG's founders, Super Dragon, made his first appearance since May 2008, saving Kevin Steen from The Young Bucks, who had just cost him the PWG World Championship in a ladder match with El Generico.



On December 10, Steen and Dragon, wrestling his return match, defeated The Young Bucks for the PWG World Tag Team Championship, starting Dragon's record-breaking sixth reign with the title. Also at the event, Japanese veteran Dick Togo wrestled his final match in the United States, losing to El Generico. On December 1, 2012, Joey Ryan, having recently signed a contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, wrestled his PWG farewell match, where he was defeated by Scorpio Sky. Ryan, however, remained a part owner of PWG and eventually returned to the promotion in August 2013, following his release from TNA. On January 12, 2013, another longtime PWG wrestler, El Generico, made his final appearance for the promotion, having recently agreed to a deal with WWE


THE HEAD GUERILLA'S


Adam Cole is the current reigning PWG World Champion and quite frankly I like him 100% more now as a heel




The Young Bucks right alongside Cole as kick ass heels and they got the gold as well...cant imagine them as faces now ...it just wouldnt work




and then there is the " leader " of The Mt Rushmore of Wrestling , Kevin f'n Steen ...I'm a Steen mark and I got no prob saying it......and now to the rest of 


THE GUERILLA FAMILY




First up is Co owner, color commentator and MC EXCALIBUR...I like him as a wrestler and I think his commentary is just ridiculously good...especially when him and Steen work together



Cant say I'm a huge fan, but he dont suck, as a member of the Inner City Machine Guns he has found his spot




B-BOY a long time personal fave of mine, could watch him all day




Brian Cage - a guy that Vinny mac would love, yep his a muscle guy BUT...he gets his shit in





Drake Younger - a deadset lunatic, glad he gave up death match stuff, his normal matches are dangerous enough





Eddie Edwards - I like Eddie as a solo BUT as a member of the Dojo Bros with Roddy Strong his kicking some serious arse...oh and Roddy is a master of 11,000 backbreaking combinations.... watch out bucks





Joey Ryan - glad his back, TNA never suited him , he aint PG enough, he would never get away with the shit he does with Candice La Rea on a TNA ppv



Johnny Goodtime & Johnny Yuma ...THE ROCKNESS MONSTA's - a PWG staple , I like 'em, this will be as far as they get but there a damn good team





Candice LaRaea - Joey Ryan's anti PG working buddy...they must be married or something ?..right ?




Sami Callihan - For the longest time I thought not a whole lot of Sami...but his growing on me



Michael Elgin - Unbreakable..I dig Elgin, his team with Brian Cage was just awesome



Ricochet - my new FAVOURITE high flyer, right up there with PAC, maybe even partially better




Super Dragon - A co-founder of PWG and quite frankly one of my favourite masked dudes ...his sudden appearances at PWG shows always pop the horde





T.J. Perkins - WELL..wont see him much now that TNA stuck him  under that stupid Mayhem gimmick 




Willie Mack - I think Wille is that underrated, its just not funny...man needs a gig that will get him some recognition ROH or something...I think my fave match would be the one v Steen for the gold




Player Uno and Dos...Super Smash Brothers  - One of my favourite teams from Chikara and PWG...piss funny AND they can go