Last week a bearded man won two matches in one night to overcome the odds and become new World Heavyweight champion. Daniel who? I'm talking about Eric Young!
Whether of not TNA are blatantly saying "fuck this, lets just copy our favorite TV Show" (which isn't GoT), giving the title to someone who has been working hard for the company since his first appearance in 2004 is always a good strategy to keep your company alive. Granted, they hot potatoing the title off to Chris Sabin last summer (another deserving TNA veteran), I doubt that the good folks behind TNA will make the mistake of making Young a transitional Champion. Especially not one that will lose it to the leader of the next "rogue team looking to take over Impact Wrestling".
Then again, We will just have to wait and see how Daniel Bryan fairs with the Authority. Until then, here's to TNA doing something right!
Mordecai vs. Scotty 2 Hotty - Judgement Day (2004)
With a cross between Gangrel and The Undertaker, Mordecai looked like the second coming. But not even the "higher powers" that this mysterious man in white followed could help him get his foot in the WWE door in 2004.
Turns out the man who believed in cleansing yourself of all sins had a little trouble doing so for himself and ended up getting into a real-life fight outside of the ring - which led the WWE to pull the plug on the Mordecai character by sending him back to OVW. Mordecai was only seen about two times. This match against Scotty 2 Hotty was his first and only official PPV or televised event.
At least he had a pure streak.
The man behind Mordecai would eventually resurface in the WWE as Kevin Thorn, a vampire who wrestled for the ECW Brand. Thorn found better luck with this gimmick, but the vampire warrior never really got over as well as previous vampires like Gangrel (who he was rumored to start a new Brood with). Thorn was eventually released from WWE again in 2007.
Matt Striker as Strikebu vs. Damian Adams - 3PW (2004)
Before Matt Striker was everyone's favorite former-teacher-turned-wrestler-turned announcer/commentator, Striker had a case of missing identity in Blue Meanies short-lived promotion, Pro-Pain Pro Wrestling or 3PW (since the latter doesn't sound like some kind of Hank Hill wet dream promotion). Each match Striker would come out to the ring as a different wrestler - and thus, the shenanigans ensued.
On this particular night in South Philadelphia, Striker dressed up as an all-to-familiar suicidal, homicidal, genocidal maniac to the former ECW arena, Sabu. Striker, err, Strikebu, had it all: the baggy pants, the lights-out entrance, the triple jump moonsault botch. Strikebu even had his whistle blowing manager, Bob Al-Eckos (played by Rob Eckos AKA Robbie E)!
The impersonations don't stop there... Striker would also imitate Rick Rude, Goldberg (as Strikeberg), and even Hakushi, through the course of the match. Unfortunately for Striker, his imitations did not pay off as well as he had hoped and ended up losing the match to Damian Adams after Strikebu's attempted "from parts-unknown" face-buster onto a slanted table went awry.
I always wished that Striker would bring this missing identity gimmick with him to the WWE. Instead he played the teacher gimmick as he really was a high school teacher in New York before making it into the business full-time. Of course, he was fired for taking too many days off to go wrestle because he didn't know the difference between a sick day and a personal day.
Cruiserweight Open featuring: Ultimo Dragon, Jamie Noble, Shannon Moore, Rey Mysterio, Funaki, Nunzio, Chavo Guerrero, Billy Kidman, Tajiri, and Akio* - Cruiserweight title match - Wrestlemania XX (2004)
Before introducing the WrestleMania match mentioned above, I would first like to introduce Ultimo Dragon to anyone who may not now of him.
This is Ultimo Dragon:
Yep, that's him, and yes, that's ten titles. Do I need to say more?
So, when WWE picked up Ultimo Dragon in 2003, it seemed like a no-brainer that Dragon would make a huge impact on the Smackdown! brand and have great success in their cruiserweight division, a division that Ultimo Dragon revolutionized in the 90's (those ten titles above are all middleweight/lightweight/cruiserweight championships). It also makes sense that Ultimo Dragon would get his chance to shine at pro-wrestling's version of the Super Bowl, WrestleMania!
So, WWE booked Ultimo Dragon in a match for the Cruiserweight title at Wrestlemania XX, right? Ehh, sort of. Rather than just having Ultimo Dragon take on the Cruiserweight champion of that time - which wasn't Rey Mysterio for some reason - we were given a ten man elimination-type match featuring the who's-who of the undercard.
Unfortunately for Ultimo Dragon, it just gets worse from there.
Take a look:
Yep, that's the same guy from above holding ten titles, eight from winning the prodigious J-Crown tournament, the NWA Middlewight title and the WCW World Cruiserwight title, Sin Cara-botching his WrestleMania debut.
Ultimo Dragon trips on his way out to the ring and then slips on the ropes as he poses to the crowd at Madison Square Garden, all before the match starts.
The Match:
As it seems that Ultimo Dragon's (who has to start the open) luck is turned around after defeating Shannon Moore with the Asai DDT, Ultimo Dragon takes on Jamie Noble (a former dragon himself) only to get choked out and sent to the back, ending Dragon's chances at becoming champion at 'Mania, just like that.
Other "highlights": Rey Mysterio dressed as Flash, Funaki gets pinned in record time if this was a real match, Nunzio gets counted out, Billy Kidman's cringe-worthy springboard shooting star press, *Akio gets Tajiri mist sprayed in his face so he never actually wrestled in this match, Chavo Classic catches Rey Rey before splatting on the floor via senton over the top rope, and, after eleven minutes of plugging all the cruiserweights Smackdown! had for this match, Chavo Guerrero retains his title.
All in all, if it wasn't for Ultimo Dragon's failed WrestleMania debut, this match would be forgotten forever. Thank you based dragon!
It's the first day of Spring and I got out of three classes this morning due to the snow storm last night...
*Insert witty Maine joke here*
PS: I still regret not grabbing this album by the former Washington, DC no-wave avantcore outfit, Black Eyes when I saw it in a local record store tucked away in the hip-hop section.
