Heart Punch

AGAINST: This tag match again? FOR: Cena: "Hell, I live here." FOR: The look on JBL's face during Cena's gift presentation. AGAINST: Why is Finlay climbing the stairs? FOR: Cena/Finlay! AGAINST: No Amy? FOR: Regal's heel shenanigans. FOR: Taylor's fallaway slam of Kendrick from the turnbuckle. FOR: Yang getting the hot tag. AGAINST: Regal and Taylor walking out? WTF? FOR: Mercury's return. FOR: Holy shit - footage from the "HHH Runs The Gauntlet" SmackDown Inferno match from ... '99? FOR: The contrast between Kennedy and MVP panicking and trying to keep themselves from wetting their pants and UT and Kane just standing there and snarling at the camera and Taker doing his eye thing. AGAINST: How much did World of Warcraft pay for that Office Space footage? FOR: MVP being so freaked out by the hearse that his own pyro startles him. AGAINST: MVP talking to Chimel and Korderas like they can help. FOR: Kane looking at the hearse ...

Yeah, with no ECW to recap today, I'm bored. I'm planning to work on another recap later, but I wanted to put up a quick VV for two reasons...both the Misawa/Marufuji GHC title switch and Angle/Joe II from this past weekend have officially hit the net and that's notable enough to warrant an immediate post, methinks. Found some other stuff of interest as well. I'll try not to post every match ever wrestled this time around! Mitsuharu Misawa v. Naomichi Marufuji - GHC Title Match (NOAH - 12.10.06) This is loading as I type this, so it'll be a while before I get to sit down and watch it. Meh. The reviews I've read have said it's good, though. Not great...but good. One has to wonder why Misawa is taking the title back, though I'm so out of the loop on the puro that perhaps he's just bridging the gap between Marufuji and their next big choice as champion. Beating Misawa theoretically means more than beating Marufuji at this point, so that makes some sense...

He has 'til *5*, referee! My week off starts today! Fan-friggin'-tastic! If not going to work doesn't put you in a good mood, nothing will. Except for maybe the fine selection of wrestling goodness that I present in this very special SUPER-SIZED post that celebrates my vacation! Be there. "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson v. KENTA (Pro Wrestling NOAH - 12.2.06) Haven't watched this myself as of yet. Since I got my newer PC repaired, these video sites actually work, though. They take longer than hell to load, but they do work. I'm hoping to check this match out later. At any rate, this is supposed to be really good, but not to the level of their match in ROH. The crowd is supposed to hurt it a bunch, as they're apparently dead throughout. "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson v. KENTA (ROH - Glory By Honor V, Night Two - 9.16.06) And...this would be the companion ROH match. ****3/4 sez Meltzer and worth every snowflake in this man's opinion. D...

FOR: Kennedy surveying the hearse. FOR: Wait, did the car just start? AGAINST: Cole and JBL not noticing the car starting until the lights go out. FOR: The crowd shots. AGAINST: Cole botching his 'Playboy research' joke. FOR: This match. FOR: Cena's promo. AGAINST: Why not do Batista's promo in the ring or something? AGAINST: What are those, toy shilleaghs? FOR: JBL: "Torpid. It means 'dull and unenergetic'." Cole: "It was so much easier when Tazz was out here." FOR: I'd normally prefer a faster-paced match, but it's better for these two guys. AGAINST: Cena's not here, right? FOR: I also expect Booker and Finlay to show up on Raw on Monday. FOR: Yang/Noble! FOR: Helms's suit. FOR: Helms's retort to Cole's "What's that on your head?" question. FOR: Cole: "Well, at least I don't wax my eyebrows." AGAINST: How is that softening Kane up? FOR: JBL on Sylvan: "He just surr...

-Clips from December to Dismember. Well, honestly, it was clips of the Elimination Chamber. If this package went a minute, the other matches got a combined 2½ seconds at the most. At any rate, that Bobby Lashley is your new ECW champion. I might have preferred Show. -Paul Heyman promo, from after D2D. He's in tears because Show lost the title. But only because the odds were so stacked against him. Err…you're the guy who made the match. Kinda hard to bitch about it now. The rematch clause is in effect on this week's show. In other words, in 45 minutes or so. Huzzah… -Montage. Rob Van Dam & CM Punk v. Test & Hardcore Holly - What an interesting dichotomy of talent/lifestyle on that first team. And, uhh…Test. Van Dam dedicates the match to Sabu, who was injured (?) at D2D. Guess it was an angle. Don't care enough to look into it. Styles mentions that Vince McMahon had sent Paul Heyman home earlier in the day . In the ring, RVD takes Holly over with a 'rana, th...

Sorry to say, I accidentally taped over the 11.21 episode of ECW, so I'll pretend to have recapped it and you pretend that you've read it. See? Everyone is happy. -Heyman and his bodyguards are out. He officially announces the weapons that will be in the Elimination Chamber. Chair, Crowbar (not Devon Storm, though that'd be pretty nifty), a table and a barbed wire bat. Apparently, all of the people who start in the pods will have a weapon. Otherwise, it's just a regular EC match. Wow…that's underwhelming. -Opening montage. -Tonight, we get a special Elimination Chamber triple-header. CM Punk v. Test, Sabu v. RVD and Bobby Lashley v. Big Show. Rob Van Dam v. Sabu - They run through a quick side headlock takedown into headscissors kip up sequence. Then do so again, for no real reason. Let the indy standoff die, dudes. It's time is WAAAAY past. They trade punches and Sabu takes RVD down with a dropkick to the ankle. He whips Van Dam into the corner, but charges in...

AGAINST: They're bringing back the Inferno Match? FOR: JBL: "I did what I had to do!" Cole: "So did Batista!" JBL: "He cheated." AGAINST: It doesn't sound as good when Sharmell's pissed off. AGAINST: What, Mr. McMahon changes the stips immediately pre-match all the time. AGAINST: Finlay? FOR: He's got a point. FOR: Yay MNM! FOR: Yay Melina! AGAINST: Why is Cole talking about ECW like he was there? And why is a Raw guy teaming with a Smackdown guy to hype a match on an ECW pay-per-view? WORLDS ARE COLLIDING FOR: Cole and JBL referencing the history between these two teams. FOR: Chemistry's still there. FOR: JBL on Ron Simmons: "He makes a living now saying one word." FOR: Kendrick's escape flip and tag. AGAINST: What happened? Can we get a replay? FOR: Thanks, guys. FOR: Kennedy to MVP: "You're stupid. Yeah, you're an idiot." AGAINST: They're not actually gonna do this tonight, a...

AGAINST: Why is JBL in the opening montage? I just noticed that. FOR: The replay of the phone booth spot from last week's street fight. FOR: Kane's got the "I'm having steak tonight" look on his face. FOR: MVP winning. FOR: Who among us isn't a sucker for a girl in Daisy Dukes? FOR: Yang's moonsault to the floor. AGAINST: Yang losing. Have Matt run in and cost Helms the match or something. AGAINST: Vickie's acting. FOR: Benoit stopping her in mid-slap. AGAINST: Ashley's hair. FOR: This match. AGAINST: Is Regal's eye bleeding? AGAINST: Is the running knee Regal's new finisher? Geez. KENNEDY. FOR: OK, the blood shower was weird. I thought Kennedy was supposed to be breaking out for a second. FOR: Finlay/Benoit! FOR: JBL: "His mother doesn't love that face." FOR: JBL on his wife (No, not like THAT. Pervs.): "I carried her like I carry you." AGAINST: That gash on Benoit's midsection from the sta...

AGAINST: Lashley in ECW (unless he wins the title, which is entirely possible) AGAINST: Boogeyman coming out first. FOR: Oh, he didn't. Never mind. FOR: JBL: "How does the Boogeyman get through customs?" AGAINST: Wait, did the match end? FOR: Chavo going off on Benoit. FOR: The Kennedy-UT recap from last week. FOR: Kennedy's promo. These dark room sit-downs he's done have all been good. FOR: Cole on Regal's hometown reception: "The problem is, out of the 15,000 fans, about half of them are booing the man." AGAINST: What's Cole insinuating? FOR: Ashley selling that shot she took. AGAINST: A running knee ends it? FOR: Nice of Lashley to drop by and thank Teddy. AGAINST: MVP smiling on his way to his imminent death. FOR: The phone booth being put to expert use. KENNEDY? AGAINST: Kane clearly ducked before the steps "hit". Bad camera angle there. FOR: Kennedy's fakeout. FOR: Helms starting this match with a dropkick...

Got a fun mix of stuff this time out. Including another MOTYC that I've yet to see. Lemme know if I should bother tracking it down. I'm real, real close to actually getting that high speed internet stuff the kids love so much, so maybe I can actually watch some of these matches I've not seen. Hate watching stuff on my PC, but I'm willing to make the occasional exception. Naomichi Marufuji v. KENTA (GHC Title match - 10.29.06) Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four This would be the MOTYC I speak of. Supposed to be a really fun, fast paced match with a few nutty spots. And rather historic, as well, as it's the first time that Misawa stuck out two juniors out there to headline a major show. Ric Flair v. Brian Pillman (WCW Saturday Night - 4.13.91) If this is the match I'm thinking of, it'll rock your world. Even if it's not, every Flair/Pillman match I've ever seen has been great. Flair was something of a mentor to Pillman in his early years and always...

-Last week, Hardcore Holly shockingly turned on Rob Van Dam. I feel like I wrote about this mere moments ago. Oh wait...I did. -Montage. -Elijah Burke is your color commentator tonight, as Tazz apparently had knee surgery this past week. Hearty get well wishes to him, brutha. Terkay is lurking in the background as well. Terkay versus Tazz would have been pretty nifty back in the day. Actually, right now, I want to see the absolute trainwreck that Terkay v. Khali would be. Ignoring Khali's complete lack of talent, it would be an interesting match to book. I just suggested a Terkay/Khali match. Whoa. -There's a table set up in the ring, all official looking. This is ECW, so that probably means that no one will go through it, since they're supposed to be the polar opposites of the rest of the business and all. Paul Heyman is out, with Big Show in tow. He has the open Elimination Chamber in hand, just waiting for Hardcore Holly's signature. The cameras cut to the back, as H...

-Redundant clips from a show I've already seen. -Opening montage that fails to open the show. Crazy talk! -Later tonight, more Elimination Chamber qualifiers. To be more specific, Test v. Tommy Dreamer and CM Punk v. Mike Knox. Speaking of that... CM Punk v. Mike Knox (w/ Kelly Kelly ) - Elim. Chamber Qualifier - Knox sends K² to the back before the match can even start. He gets all up in Punk's grill. Punk quickly rolls him up for a nearfall. Oh, you sly devil. Knox backs him into the corner and punches away at him. Punk comes right back with forearms. He sends Knox into the ropes and ducks his head. Knox kicks him, but winds up walking into a dropkick. Punk takes him over with a snapmare, then dropkicks him in the spine. That's just mean. Another series of forearms in the corner. The ref pulls Punk away, allowing Knox to yank him down by the hair. He sends Punk into the corner. Punk floats over, locking Knox in his hanging Octopus. He follows with a springboard clothesli...

-Clips of the ladder match from last week. Helpfully recapped by moi directly below this very recap. Go...read it now. I can wait. -Paul Heyman congratulates RVD for earning his title match, but points out that, while he might have the match, Heyman is still calling the shots on what type of match it'll be. In other words, Extreme Elimination Chamber, bitch! Show and RVD are in. Four others will follow... -Montage. -Later, RVD and Hardcore Holly will square off with the formidable duo of Big Show & Test. Two great tastes that taste great together. Or make you want to vomit. YMMV, as always. Kevin Thorn (w/Ariel) v. Sabu - Elim. Chamber Qualifier - Thorn stuffs Sabu's obligatory single leg attempt, nailing him with a series of forearms. He bounces off the ropes and levels Sabu with a shoulderblock. Falling headbutt misses, though. Sabu dropkicks him in the knee, then follows with a legdrop. Sabu drops an elbow and Thorn rolls onto the apron. Another low dropkick by Sabu and ...

I'm back from my sickbed. Huzzah. -Last week, shit happened. Odds are, more shit's to come this week. -Opening montagery. -RVD is out. To talk. Whoa...DUDE! He's wondering when Big Show will give him a title shot. Paul Heyman is out with an answer. If Van Dam wants a title match, he'll have to earn the contract. In a ladder match. With Show. Tonight. He turns his goon squad loose and they jump Van Dam. RVD quickly fights them off and clears the ring. Seriously, that has to be the least effective riot squad ever. -Commercials. The movie that you probably missed was Pumpkinhead: Ashes to Ashes . Could never get into the original. But on the other hand, Lance Henriksen starred (and appears in this one as well). Also, the dude who plays Pinhead is in this one. It's all very complicated. CM Punk v. Matt Striker - What an interesting choice of tights by Striker. Tazz surmises that he walked into the Divas locker room by mistake. Big double leg takedown by Punk to start t...

FOR: Has it really been five years? AGAINST: Why's Vickie bringing a chair out here? FOR: JBL: "I didn't get a night when I retired." Cole: "Nobody liked you." AGAINST: Chavo's spelling. AGAINST: Rey not calling him on it. (and JBL doing it? WTF?) AGAINST: You're a little late, Benoit. FOR: Michelle looking back at the commentary table for a second as JBL drools on her. AGAINST: That tag almost looked accidental. FOR: The slingshot into the punch by Stevens and James. FOR: Was that an SSP off of Kendrick's back? FOR: Kendrick's smitten. Can't blame him. FOR: Long tabbing Batista as Booker's bodyguard. AGAINST: This is a Jimmy Johnson-Jerry Jones clash of egos here. FOR: JBL: "All hell's not gonna break loose... they ARE 'all hell.'" FOR: MVP: "Lead by example!" FOR: Long restarting the match. FOR: Kennedy stopping short and letting MVP rush the ring by himself. FOR: That makes sense....

AGAINST: Why's Batista coming out in his gear? AGAINST: That's not Finlay. AGAINST: Is Heyman trying to recruit Batista? FOR: ECW thumbs up? Oh, no. ECW THUMBS DOWN. FOR: Good way to finish the Tatanka heel turn there. AGAINST: MVP begging out of his match with Kane. FOR: Teddy replacing him with Kennedy. AGAINST: That Hardy/Helms video recap could've been longer. FOR: This match. AGAINST: JBL taking credit for the ratings. FOR: Matt's reversal out of the Nightmare on Helms Street. FOR: The finish. AGAINST: Who the hell are those guys? FOR: Oh, it's London and Kendrick. FOR: London: "You stole my costume!" FOR: Kendrick rendered speechless. AGAINST: That inevitable yet awkward Benoit-Vickie conversation. FOR: It's rare that Kane's one-day title reign even gets acknowledged. FOR: JBL: "Nice tie, by the way." FOR: MVP pressing down on Kennedy so Kane can't kick out. AGAINST: JBL's wrong about that - Kennedy ha...

FOR: JBL breaking out 'temerity'. AGAINST : MVP calling for time. AGAINST : A French maid outfit? FOR : JBL: "It's the Flying Nun." That even cracked Cole up. FOR : Cole: "You're in a good mood tonight." FOR: Terkay kicking Vito in the head and acting like nothing happened. AGAINST: Cole not being more specific and saying that The Marine had a Top 10 opening last week. (#7, I believe.) FOR : Matt and Helms's back and forth. FOR : Teddy's super hearing. FOR : Matt's enjoying this news way too much. AGAINST : Where'd they dig up Dave Taylor from? FOR : JBL on Scotty & Funaki: "IF they were a stock I'd short 'em." FOR : Regal and Taylor aren't exciting to watch or anything, but they're fiercely methodical and effective. FOR : Regal letting Scotty tag in before kneeing him in the head. FOR : A floatover double underhook suplex? Neat. AGAINST : Giving away an I Quit match. FOR: The pop for Rey. FOR: Ch...

I just discovered that CZW does an online show, so I figured that I might as well post them here (because the world needs more Kings of Wrestling), even if CZW in 2006 largely sucks. Haven't watched any of these so I have no idea how badly matches are clipped apart, though judging by the times of the files it looks pretty severe. Of course, as always, it's wrestling. For free. Can't beat that. Check out the other assorted stuff I dug up as well. My boredom is your entertainment... CZW Fake You! TV Online - Episode 1 (8:58) Features: Eddie Kingston v. Claudio Castagnoli Team AnDrew (Andy Sumner & Drew Gulak) v. New Jersey All-Stars (Lucky & JC Ryder) CZW Fake You! TV - Episode 2 (20:57) Features: Larry Sweeney v. LuFisto H8 Club v. Christopher Bishop & Lionel Knight CZW Fake You! TV - Episode 3 (19:47) Features: Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) v. Tough Crazy Bastards (Necro Butcher & Toby Klein) B-Boy v. Austin Aries v. Jigsaw Necr...

K-Fed taking an FU on Raw? Quality entertainment. Steve-O forgetting to sell for friggin' Umaga (have I mentioned that Umaga is AWESOME and should be your favorite wrestler on Raw? Because it's true...) and getting the shit kicked out him because of it? Even higher quality entertainment. Raw was bringing the awesome this week. Unfortunately, Mr. Spears and Steve-O won't be on next week's show and things will go back to normal. Sadness. Actually, I'm digging the Orton/Edge team and, uh...Cryme Tyme teaches me how to relate to the black folks (and also how to spell!), so Raw does have a purpose, I guess. -Opening montage. To open the show. How fitting. -We have a super duper special double main event tonight. Big Show squares off with Rob Van Dam. Also, Sandman and Matt Striker meet in a Singapore Cane on a pole match. With Russo in TNA, I'm hoping the "on a pole" match once again becomes a staple of his booking. Because really...what else could Judy B...

FOR: Any card rearranging that gets us a Benoit match. FOR: Kennedy claiming victory, regardless of the dubious methods. AGAINST: I don't think he realizes that Long's not going to let him take the title with him if he leaves. FOR: Now who is this? FOR: Benoit! (I'm sort of ashamed of myself for not figuring it out.) FOR: JBL: "Welcome to hell." AGAINST: JBL: "Bicuspids that shine!" AGAINST: JBL's hyperbole. Did he just compare Kennedy to Jesus? FOR: This match. FOR: The match and the music still going WHILE UNDERTAKER WALKS OUT. FOR: Benoit wins! That's how you bring somebody back. FOR: Regal's robe. AGAINST: Vito adding a shrug to the ensemble. AGAINST: Shrugs in general. FOR: Cole: "You know what I mean!" JBL: "No I don't, you freak!" FOR: JBL calling for PETA. FOR: Cole: "And he hangs out in bars like that." JBL: "With YOU!" FOR: Regal's half-Nelson uranage thingy. FOR: ...