The game had not been a good one. The Brewers had faced their fierce division rivals the Cubs. The Brewer pitcher had never kept the team in the game. We had people in our assigned seats and we ended up just wandering around the ball park, watching the game from different angles around the field. Certainly we COULD have made those people move or just sat in available seats but our pre-game entertainment hadn't put us in that kind of mood. By the time the game was over and we headed back to the car, it was drizzling on and off. Things were wet but not soaked. We got Saxophone guy to play a different song, tipped him, and laughed back to the car.
Since it was not actually raining, it had been decided it was not yet time to depart. The trunk was opened and then my buddy went to start up the radio. I intended to start extracting the chairs from the trunk but I was suddenly approached by a stranger. "Do you have an extra beer or two?" She'd appeared as if from nowhere. While I'm not good with determining age, she did look to be of the legal drinking age and was rather attractive with her dark hair and blue eyes. I popped open the cooler enough so that I could see inside and do some math. "Wait, you are a Brewers fan, right?" She checked my shirt and saw that I was here to cheer for the home team before making her request again with sad but hopeful eyes.
Whatever. I still had a few beverages remaining and handed over two. "Wow, PBR!" I'm not sure if she was being sarcastic or not. I'm going with not. She gave me a warm hug, thanked me a few times, and they wandered off. I shrugged my shoulders and returned to getting the chairs set-up.
Later, after we were comfortable, some of our pre-game entertainers returned. A large group of college aged girls had parked near us and we semi-watched the Worst Game of Beer Pong Ever. I don't know that there was a successful completion in the game as the ping pong ball seemed to always be bouncing on the ground, headed our way. Now, I know what you might be thinking, maybe this was their clumsy way of being able to come say hi to us? I'm going with no. They would have stayed and chatted rather than apologize and run back to their game.
We did interact with two of them more than the others. One was a gal of rather slender frame that my buddy recognized from a former workplace and made the mistake of telling her so. This made her visit us more frequently. Due to her limited stature, she had gone from zero to drunk in the words of her friend that apologized for her. This friend was not drunk, friendly, and an attractive blond from Minnesota that nearly attacked me with violence when I stated that the Twins should-a put-a roof on their new stadium.
They returned to depart and had some packing up to accomplish before they could do so. They greeted us as they went past and then there was some fumbling. A lot of fumbling. Finally we got up to see what was going on.
The vehicle belonged to the drunk thin girl. She had no plans to drive it as that task had already been handed off to Minnesota. However, they needed to get the trunk open to store the grill. There was some trick to the trunk handle that the drunk girl could articulate but not accomplish. After they fumbled with it again, I stepped it. She unlocked the trunk, I rolled the hidden part of the latch forward and then popped open the trunk. Success on the first try! We received thanks but no hugs this time. They packed up, we sat down. They drove past, we waved to each other.
That's how I played the Hero to Drunk Girls last night.
24 April 2010
23 April 2010
A Few Thoughts on Comics from The Past Couple Weeks
Walt Disney Comics #705 explains the premise of the 'World to Come' storyline now that we're in the third part. Much of the mystery is peeled aside. The story is so gloriously Disney sci-fi that it's beautiful. Well meaning scientists. Giant computers. Fixing the world. Too much power for any one person. This is great!
Hack/Slash #31 continues the super-hero godbox storyline. It's great and dreary at the same time. I'm not sure why I'm not enjoying this more. The characters are well defined. It's a traditional slasher set-up. There's a twist in the end of the episode. It's just not clicking for me for some reason.
Hercules - Fall of an Avenger #2 does a number of things. It features a team selection sequence straight from the schoolyard. It takes a big time villain and dismisses him in seconds. It sets up the next stage of these characters and hints that Hercules is still alive. Should have been better, could have been worse.
The Tick #3 explains that the Tick is not good at plumbing. He also fights feral mimes in a sewer. That's how bad at plumbing he is; he ends up in a sewer. Funny!
Transformers - Last Stand of the Wreckers #4 features explanations, trouble, and things getting very, very deep. Still engrossing.
Simpsons Comics #165 gets points for having an ad for the new series of Doctor Who inside its front cover. The story is standard Homer and Marge have a tiff. Not bad but nothing special.
The Muppet Show Comic Book #4 features a character that goes nameless. She referred to as a lot of things but, apparently due to some licensing issues, never gets named. She's Scooter's twin sister and is clearly meant to be an older version of Skeeter from Muppet Babies! Wow! The art is by the lady that drew the Muppet Peter Pan series that was so awesome. Great issue!
Hack/Slash #31 continues the super-hero godbox storyline. It's great and dreary at the same time. I'm not sure why I'm not enjoying this more. The characters are well defined. It's a traditional slasher set-up. There's a twist in the end of the episode. It's just not clicking for me for some reason.
Hercules - Fall of an Avenger #2 does a number of things. It features a team selection sequence straight from the schoolyard. It takes a big time villain and dismisses him in seconds. It sets up the next stage of these characters and hints that Hercules is still alive. Should have been better, could have been worse.
The Tick #3 explains that the Tick is not good at plumbing. He also fights feral mimes in a sewer. That's how bad at plumbing he is; he ends up in a sewer. Funny!
Transformers - Last Stand of the Wreckers #4 features explanations, trouble, and things getting very, very deep. Still engrossing.
Simpsons Comics #165 gets points for having an ad for the new series of Doctor Who inside its front cover. The story is standard Homer and Marge have a tiff. Not bad but nothing special.
The Muppet Show Comic Book #4 features a character that goes nameless. She referred to as a lot of things but, apparently due to some licensing issues, never gets named. She's Scooter's twin sister and is clearly meant to be an older version of Skeeter from Muppet Babies! Wow! The art is by the lady that drew the Muppet Peter Pan series that was so awesome. Great issue!
21 April 2010
Doctor Who - 'Victory of the Daleks' review
Synopsis:
World War II! Churchill needs all the help he can get and seems to have gotten it in the secret weapon they call 'Ironsides'. The Doctor knows them by another name: Daleks...
Thoughts:
One story on contemporary Earth, the next on a spaceship related to a damaged Earth, and the third set in Earth's past with an historical figure. The first two stories are written by the showrunner and the third by Mark Gatiss. Is it 2005 or 2010? It's not that these new stories really resemble the first three stories of the revived series but it is interesting how this 'pattern' repeated itself.
Much like 'The Beast Below', the basic story doesn't feel all that complicated. The Daleks are doing something weird as part of a devious plot to protect their future. It's 'Power of the Daleks' only half as long and without Patrick Troughton. While the story can be boiled down to a few words, the story never feels simple. Churchill is grand. The Doctor has to walk a line between encouraging him and avoiding telling him that things will work out in the end.
Traditionally, the Daleks have been short, squat little things, about five foot tall, not unlike Tom Cruise. In 2005 they were 'upsized' a bit in order to go eye to eyestalk with Billie Piper. Karen Gillian doesn't look all that tall until she leans over a Dalek and suddenly she's a giant. What happens? They redesign the Daleks to make them taller again. The Daleks will not be denied!
It's a rattling adventure that flies by at top speed. The Doctor makes a tough decision and believes that, in victory, he has still lost.
We have one trend for the series now: the cracks. The one in the first episode was part of the story but both episodes since have shown a crack in existence after the TARDIS departs. This has to be leading to something. It's probably tied to Amy's inability to remember the Daleks. The Earth was stolen! She remembers none of it. What happened? Is it just her or has something happened? Or will something have happened? I'm blaming the Daleks. They are so mean.
More good stuff. Three episodes in and things are going well.
World War II! Churchill needs all the help he can get and seems to have gotten it in the secret weapon they call 'Ironsides'. The Doctor knows them by another name: Daleks...
Thoughts:
One story on contemporary Earth, the next on a spaceship related to a damaged Earth, and the third set in Earth's past with an historical figure. The first two stories are written by the showrunner and the third by Mark Gatiss. Is it 2005 or 2010? It's not that these new stories really resemble the first three stories of the revived series but it is interesting how this 'pattern' repeated itself.
Much like 'The Beast Below', the basic story doesn't feel all that complicated. The Daleks are doing something weird as part of a devious plot to protect their future. It's 'Power of the Daleks' only half as long and without Patrick Troughton. While the story can be boiled down to a few words, the story never feels simple. Churchill is grand. The Doctor has to walk a line between encouraging him and avoiding telling him that things will work out in the end.
Traditionally, the Daleks have been short, squat little things, about five foot tall, not unlike Tom Cruise. In 2005 they were 'upsized' a bit in order to go eye to eyestalk with Billie Piper. Karen Gillian doesn't look all that tall until she leans over a Dalek and suddenly she's a giant. What happens? They redesign the Daleks to make them taller again. The Daleks will not be denied!
It's a rattling adventure that flies by at top speed. The Doctor makes a tough decision and believes that, in victory, he has still lost.
We have one trend for the series now: the cracks. The one in the first episode was part of the story but both episodes since have shown a crack in existence after the TARDIS departs. This has to be leading to something. It's probably tied to Amy's inability to remember the Daleks. The Earth was stolen! She remembers none of it. What happened? Is it just her or has something happened? Or will something have happened? I'm blaming the Daleks. They are so mean.
More good stuff. Three episodes in and things are going well.
20 April 2010
Doctor Who - 'The Beast Below' review
Synopsis:
Starship UK. The remnants of the mighty empire fly through space while the Earth burns. Yet there is something no one talks about, no one mentions the Beast Below.
Thoughts:
From the first moment that we see Starship UK, I was reminded of Mega City One and 2000AD comics in general. It just screamed of that type of sci-fi to me. For the most part, I was right. It's exciting Doctor Who, moving quickly and slowly at the same time, full of high concepts and crazy crazy events that mean Very Serious Things for the people involved.
It also may take place around the same time as the Fourth Doctor adventures 'The Ark in Space' and 'The Sontaran Experiment'. It's a continuity reference that you don't need to understand for the episode but adds detail for the long time fan, which is how this should work.
I must have slipped a spoiler into my head at some point recently because I figured out too much of the story too quickly. I'm pretty sure this was me and not the story being too basic. Normally I can read spoilers so long as they are months in advance as I will forget them. For this episode, I felt I knew too much. That said, there was a thing or two I figured out quickly but that was mostly because we were given information before it reached the Doctor and Amy.
How about that Amy? This is her first 'proper' adventure and she goes at it like she's been practicing since she was young. Perhaps she has been. The Doctor gives her some advice early in the episode and it proves key to resolving the situation. That twist I hadn't expected and rather enjoyed.
Matt Smith continues to shine as the Doctor. He feels like the Doctor to me. He has moments where he seems to look like Peter Davison. Not like twins or anything like that, but like they could be related, as if he 'took after' that incarnation of himself.
I'm not so sure about the Smilers. The name comes out of nowhere. I may have missed something but it seems like the Doctor just starts calling them that. I don't recall a scene where that name is established. Again, could just be me but it jarred. I also have no real understanding how they work. They just are there and do stuff. Not that I want a list of rules but it's not clear what their parameters are or what they are or anything.
Big crazy concept that works. The small stories are cute. The Doctor only interferes when children are crying? Sure, whatever.
Pleasantly enjoyable.
Starship UK. The remnants of the mighty empire fly through space while the Earth burns. Yet there is something no one talks about, no one mentions the Beast Below.
Thoughts:
From the first moment that we see Starship UK, I was reminded of Mega City One and 2000AD comics in general. It just screamed of that type of sci-fi to me. For the most part, I was right. It's exciting Doctor Who, moving quickly and slowly at the same time, full of high concepts and crazy crazy events that mean Very Serious Things for the people involved.
It also may take place around the same time as the Fourth Doctor adventures 'The Ark in Space' and 'The Sontaran Experiment'. It's a continuity reference that you don't need to understand for the episode but adds detail for the long time fan, which is how this should work.
I must have slipped a spoiler into my head at some point recently because I figured out too much of the story too quickly. I'm pretty sure this was me and not the story being too basic. Normally I can read spoilers so long as they are months in advance as I will forget them. For this episode, I felt I knew too much. That said, there was a thing or two I figured out quickly but that was mostly because we were given information before it reached the Doctor and Amy.
How about that Amy? This is her first 'proper' adventure and she goes at it like she's been practicing since she was young. Perhaps she has been. The Doctor gives her some advice early in the episode and it proves key to resolving the situation. That twist I hadn't expected and rather enjoyed.
Matt Smith continues to shine as the Doctor. He feels like the Doctor to me. He has moments where he seems to look like Peter Davison. Not like twins or anything like that, but like they could be related, as if he 'took after' that incarnation of himself.
I'm not so sure about the Smilers. The name comes out of nowhere. I may have missed something but it seems like the Doctor just starts calling them that. I don't recall a scene where that name is established. Again, could just be me but it jarred. I also have no real understanding how they work. They just are there and do stuff. Not that I want a list of rules but it's not clear what their parameters are or what they are or anything.
Big crazy concept that works. The small stories are cute. The Doctor only interferes when children are crying? Sure, whatever.
Pleasantly enjoyable.
19 April 2010
Music Monday - The Ramones
The first concert I ever went to was on October 30th, 1992. Overwhelming Colorfast was the opening band (feel free to ask 'Who?'). Then came Social Distortion, great band. The main event was the sonic attack of the RAMONES!
I'd found them a couple years before while in high school. They were funny looking. They had played for ages. The music was simple at first listen. The lead singer's style was unique, to say the least. The lyrics were either very direct or confusing. There was a sense of humor to the band, as if they knew exactly what they were and wanted to let you know it would be okay for you to join them. It sounded like 50's rock played twice as fast. I quickly fell in love with them.
How can you not love a song that expresses the need for sedation?
You see, in high school, my geekdom was not considered to be as awesome as it might be now. I didn't care to be seen as cool and the majority of the people around be were willing to go along with that assessment of the situation. The Ramones were also outcasts, freaks, geeks. 'Gabba Gabba, we accept you, one of us' is the line they cribbed from the movie 'Freaks'. It was one of their credos: all are welcome here. They were geeks too. Who else would write a theme song for a Steven King movie?
During its existence, the band never really got the recognition (or money) it truly deserved. Bands during the 1990s identified the Ramones as their inspiration but it was too late for the group. They had toured hard and worked hard. The albums still weren't selling. In 1996 they called it quits.
Since then, the band was voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Founding members Joey, Johnny, and Dee Dee Ramone have all died. The band is gone, but wherever someone starts a song with the cadence of '1 2 3 4', they will always be remembered.
I'd found them a couple years before while in high school. They were funny looking. They had played for ages. The music was simple at first listen. The lead singer's style was unique, to say the least. The lyrics were either very direct or confusing. There was a sense of humor to the band, as if they knew exactly what they were and wanted to let you know it would be okay for you to join them. It sounded like 50's rock played twice as fast. I quickly fell in love with them.
How can you not love a song that expresses the need for sedation?
You see, in high school, my geekdom was not considered to be as awesome as it might be now. I didn't care to be seen as cool and the majority of the people around be were willing to go along with that assessment of the situation. The Ramones were also outcasts, freaks, geeks. 'Gabba Gabba, we accept you, one of us' is the line they cribbed from the movie 'Freaks'. It was one of their credos: all are welcome here. They were geeks too. Who else would write a theme song for a Steven King movie?
During its existence, the band never really got the recognition (or money) it truly deserved. Bands during the 1990s identified the Ramones as their inspiration but it was too late for the group. They had toured hard and worked hard. The albums still weren't selling. In 1996 they called it quits.
Since then, the band was voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Founding members Joey, Johnny, and Dee Dee Ramone have all died. The band is gone, but wherever someone starts a song with the cadence of '1 2 3 4', they will always be remembered.
18 April 2010
GLCW - 'Hell Froze Over' Review
Last night was the next event in our local federation's calendar. Actually, they snuck in a card on Friday night as well, in Racine rather than Waukesha. The back-to-back shows seemed to impact the attendance at our show. There were people but the place wasn't as packed as we were used to seeing it.
Our pre-show promo involved local radio personality (apparently, I had never heard of him and I suspect that was the situation for most of the crowd) Mike Richter (spelling?) and 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper. The Scot had been on Mike's show and Mike had threatened to beat him up. Roddy got a little excitable and all was made well. Roddy told a story or two to the crowd's delight and the crowd sang Happy Birthday to him.
As was well until Dakota Darsow came out to confront Piper. Dakota was essentially explaining why he attacked his Dad at Blizzard Brawl 5: he was always on the road as a wrestler, out there more for the fans than his own son. Now it was Dakota's time. A young man came out to defend Roddy (I think it was Colt Toombs, Roddy's son, but that was never made clear and we didn't see him again that night) and got beat up a bit on his behalf. Roddy talks about refereeing the main event.
To drag things out a bit, Roddy was brought back to the ring for a formal singing of 'Happy Birthday' and a cake. This was poorly timed after Roddy leaving the ring and considering the crowd already sang to him. The gal who sang the National Anthem also sang to Roddy now, in a Marilyn Monroe to JFK style. It was creepy. This would have fit better right before the Intermission as Roddy spent that in the ring taking pictures. The crowd was getting a bit hot for the wrestling to start at this point.
Match One: Bobby V/El Vato (faces) vs Justin James/Dysfunction (heels)
Hot tag match to open. Local guys getting the crowd worked up. Exciting match, a few double teams, a couple of crazy bumps. Eventually a heel double-team backfired, Bobby V hit a splash from the top, and the faces got a double pin for the win. Good match.
Match Two: Electric Eric Freedom (face) vs Ryan Rogue (heel)
Really? The dirty Froot Loop throwing hippie is a face now? How? We had no issue cheering for the heel on this one. Rogue is a better wrestler all around and gave the hippie a good beating. Eric Freedom busted out a couple of armbreaker and I mockingly expressed my shock as I thought that Freedom knew no moves. A top rope reversal followed by a flying elbow drop from the top rope gave Ryan Rogue a clean win. Which was odd for a heel. Unless I missed something. Good finish but unexpected.
Match Three: Tony Scarpoini (heel wearing Cubs jacket) vs The Skullcrusher (face with taped ribs that were 'broken' last night)
Oddly slow match. Both are big men that I know can move. The 'taped ribs' gave the heel the advantage but some of Tony's punches to the ribs looked so light it made me wonder if Skullcrusher was injured to some degree. Another top rope reversal led to Skullcrusher hitting a massive frog splash from the top rope for the win.
Intermission:
Ring announcer has spent the entire show telling us that Road Warrior Animal and Piper will be in the ring together for pictures during Intermission. Animal gets nowhere near the ring. Did no one tell him? Fail.
We've seen Demolition 3 or 4 times now. Every time Brad gets at least one signed picture from them as they are his favorite. Before the show he bought three. At Intermission, he asked them if he could get a picture taken with them using my camera. 'Sure. You buy enough stuff from us, just come behind the table.' Awesome.
Piper was in the ring getting his picture taken with people and the line faded quickly. The batteries in my camera were running low but we should be okay for four pictures: one with each of us individually and a fourth with us altogether. We explained things, handed over the money, and got in the ring. Love being in the ring. Walked up, shook hands with Piper, got my picture taken, got out of the way for my buddies. I retired to the corner and leaned back on the turnbuckle, my arms stretched over the ropes. It felt so natural. Soon enough, it was time for the group picture and we got together.
Of course the batteries in the camera then went dead.
I had back up batteries and fumbled to load them into the camera. Of course they were dead too. Crap! Thankfully, the lady offered to take the picture with their camera, the one they were printing pictures from, at no additional charge. Nice lady! All ended well.
Match Four: Ladies Championship: Traci Brooks (face, Champ) vs Melanie Cruz (heel)
The radio announcer claimed to have set this match up and was suddenly playing the heel commissioner. Where did that come from? Cruz was playing the 'giant' which was odd as she wasn't all that tall or big. Muscular? Yes. Tall? Certainly. Attractive? Sort of. But no creepy giant gal. Traci stuck and ran to avoid the 'giant' offense. For a GLCW Ladies match, this was actually really good as opposed to the comedy match that they normally are played as. Traci hits a big DDT for the win. Big crowd reaction.
Radio Announcer 'guest host commissioner' guy claims to have been on the phone backstage with the real heel commissioner. He can set up any match he wants, declares himself number 1 contender to the Ladies Championship, and has them start the match now!
A surprise roll-up gets an easy three count on the confused Traci and this guy is now Ladies Champ. Crowd is PISSED. Seriously. I didn't like it because they had just gotten done with the 'skinny male radio guy is Ladies Champ' story and now they jump back into it. This was even weaker considering that the Ladies match had been solid. I'm going with Bad Decision on this booking, more for the repeat of the storyline than anything else.
Match Five: GLCW Heavyweight Championship: Al Snow (face Champ) vs Road Dogg vs Xpac
Crowd relaxes a bit as they can at least cheer for Al Snow. Crowd tries to encourage the beating of ring announcer. I agree. Ring announcer is in sweatpants and sweatshirt. Very tacky. We can tell Road Dogg is heeling it up as he won't go through his normal entrance chatter. Xpac gets a moment of reaction and then nothing. Which is normal. He's a heat vacuum.
Good three way match follows but the crowd is a bit quiet for most of it. The ending sequence I loved! Xpac gets a sleeper on Al Snow but Road Dogg walks up and slaps a sleeper on Xpac. Triple decker. The ref comes by to check on Al and the Snowman grabs the ref and buts him in a sleeper. After some applause and laughter, Al drops the groggy ref, Xpac drops the groggy Snow, and hits Road Dogg with a jawbreaker. All four men in the ring are out on the mat. More applause.
The wrestlers all come to at once, dive out of the ring to collect a chair, and return. (Road Dogg: 'We ALL had the same idea?') The ref starts to wake up. All three wrestlers slam their chairs into the mat and fall down as if hit. The ref wakes up and has NO idea what happened. He collects the chairs and starts pushing them out of the ring, making a mess of it. Road Dogg sneaks over to the timekeepers table, grabs the Championship belt and slugs Xpac with it. Meanwhile, Al Snow collects Head and waffles Road Dogg with the mannequin. Three count. Al Snow retains. Good stuff.
Match Six: Demolition (Ax and Smash)/Road Warrior Animal vs McCoy/Longtime/Blaze/Darsow (Dakota)
The story here is that Dakota is sore at his Dad (Demolition Smash aka Barry Darsow) for not being around enough when he was a kid. Reasonable idea. He spends the match playing the chicken heel, only entering the match when he has a clear advantage, cheating, and running his mouth while avoiding his Dad. Good solid match, Ax has face in peril, crowd was into it. In the end, Smash chases his son to the back (setting up a singles match in the future?) as the ring gets cleared. Ax and Animal hit the Hart Attack style clothesline on Chase McCoy for the victory.
Roddy didn't ref the main, despite it being set up. There were a number of little things that may normally have not meant much but built up during the show to irritate. It was by no means a bad show but it didn't quite click like earlier shows have for us. We walked out a bit disappointed despite having a good time. Something was missing.
Next show is Blizzard Brawl 6 on Dec 4th. There is another show they were advertising in June that is scheduled to have Baron Von Raschke at it. That would be cool.
Our pre-show promo involved local radio personality (apparently, I had never heard of him and I suspect that was the situation for most of the crowd) Mike Richter (spelling?) and 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper. The Scot had been on Mike's show and Mike had threatened to beat him up. Roddy got a little excitable and all was made well. Roddy told a story or two to the crowd's delight and the crowd sang Happy Birthday to him.
As was well until Dakota Darsow came out to confront Piper. Dakota was essentially explaining why he attacked his Dad at Blizzard Brawl 5: he was always on the road as a wrestler, out there more for the fans than his own son. Now it was Dakota's time. A young man came out to defend Roddy (I think it was Colt Toombs, Roddy's son, but that was never made clear and we didn't see him again that night) and got beat up a bit on his behalf. Roddy talks about refereeing the main event.
To drag things out a bit, Roddy was brought back to the ring for a formal singing of 'Happy Birthday' and a cake. This was poorly timed after Roddy leaving the ring and considering the crowd already sang to him. The gal who sang the National Anthem also sang to Roddy now, in a Marilyn Monroe to JFK style. It was creepy. This would have fit better right before the Intermission as Roddy spent that in the ring taking pictures. The crowd was getting a bit hot for the wrestling to start at this point.
Match One: Bobby V/El Vato (faces) vs Justin James/Dysfunction (heels)
Hot tag match to open. Local guys getting the crowd worked up. Exciting match, a few double teams, a couple of crazy bumps. Eventually a heel double-team backfired, Bobby V hit a splash from the top, and the faces got a double pin for the win. Good match.
Match Two: Electric Eric Freedom (face) vs Ryan Rogue (heel)
Really? The dirty Froot Loop throwing hippie is a face now? How? We had no issue cheering for the heel on this one. Rogue is a better wrestler all around and gave the hippie a good beating. Eric Freedom busted out a couple of armbreaker and I mockingly expressed my shock as I thought that Freedom knew no moves. A top rope reversal followed by a flying elbow drop from the top rope gave Ryan Rogue a clean win. Which was odd for a heel. Unless I missed something. Good finish but unexpected.
Match Three: Tony Scarpoini (heel wearing Cubs jacket) vs The Skullcrusher (face with taped ribs that were 'broken' last night)
Oddly slow match. Both are big men that I know can move. The 'taped ribs' gave the heel the advantage but some of Tony's punches to the ribs looked so light it made me wonder if Skullcrusher was injured to some degree. Another top rope reversal led to Skullcrusher hitting a massive frog splash from the top rope for the win.
Intermission:
Ring announcer has spent the entire show telling us that Road Warrior Animal and Piper will be in the ring together for pictures during Intermission. Animal gets nowhere near the ring. Did no one tell him? Fail.
We've seen Demolition 3 or 4 times now. Every time Brad gets at least one signed picture from them as they are his favorite. Before the show he bought three. At Intermission, he asked them if he could get a picture taken with them using my camera. 'Sure. You buy enough stuff from us, just come behind the table.' Awesome.
Piper was in the ring getting his picture taken with people and the line faded quickly. The batteries in my camera were running low but we should be okay for four pictures: one with each of us individually and a fourth with us altogether. We explained things, handed over the money, and got in the ring. Love being in the ring. Walked up, shook hands with Piper, got my picture taken, got out of the way for my buddies. I retired to the corner and leaned back on the turnbuckle, my arms stretched over the ropes. It felt so natural. Soon enough, it was time for the group picture and we got together.
Of course the batteries in the camera then went dead.
I had back up batteries and fumbled to load them into the camera. Of course they were dead too. Crap! Thankfully, the lady offered to take the picture with their camera, the one they were printing pictures from, at no additional charge. Nice lady! All ended well.
Match Four: Ladies Championship: Traci Brooks (face, Champ) vs Melanie Cruz (heel)
The radio announcer claimed to have set this match up and was suddenly playing the heel commissioner. Where did that come from? Cruz was playing the 'giant' which was odd as she wasn't all that tall or big. Muscular? Yes. Tall? Certainly. Attractive? Sort of. But no creepy giant gal. Traci stuck and ran to avoid the 'giant' offense. For a GLCW Ladies match, this was actually really good as opposed to the comedy match that they normally are played as. Traci hits a big DDT for the win. Big crowd reaction.
Radio Announcer 'guest host commissioner' guy claims to have been on the phone backstage with the real heel commissioner. He can set up any match he wants, declares himself number 1 contender to the Ladies Championship, and has them start the match now!
A surprise roll-up gets an easy three count on the confused Traci and this guy is now Ladies Champ. Crowd is PISSED. Seriously. I didn't like it because they had just gotten done with the 'skinny male radio guy is Ladies Champ' story and now they jump back into it. This was even weaker considering that the Ladies match had been solid. I'm going with Bad Decision on this booking, more for the repeat of the storyline than anything else.
Match Five: GLCW Heavyweight Championship: Al Snow (face Champ) vs Road Dogg vs Xpac
Crowd relaxes a bit as they can at least cheer for Al Snow. Crowd tries to encourage the beating of ring announcer. I agree. Ring announcer is in sweatpants and sweatshirt. Very tacky. We can tell Road Dogg is heeling it up as he won't go through his normal entrance chatter. Xpac gets a moment of reaction and then nothing. Which is normal. He's a heat vacuum.
Good three way match follows but the crowd is a bit quiet for most of it. The ending sequence I loved! Xpac gets a sleeper on Al Snow but Road Dogg walks up and slaps a sleeper on Xpac. Triple decker. The ref comes by to check on Al and the Snowman grabs the ref and buts him in a sleeper. After some applause and laughter, Al drops the groggy ref, Xpac drops the groggy Snow, and hits Road Dogg with a jawbreaker. All four men in the ring are out on the mat. More applause.
The wrestlers all come to at once, dive out of the ring to collect a chair, and return. (Road Dogg: 'We ALL had the same idea?') The ref starts to wake up. All three wrestlers slam their chairs into the mat and fall down as if hit. The ref wakes up and has NO idea what happened. He collects the chairs and starts pushing them out of the ring, making a mess of it. Road Dogg sneaks over to the timekeepers table, grabs the Championship belt and slugs Xpac with it. Meanwhile, Al Snow collects Head and waffles Road Dogg with the mannequin. Three count. Al Snow retains. Good stuff.
Match Six: Demolition (Ax and Smash)/Road Warrior Animal vs McCoy/Longtime/Blaze/Darsow (Dakota)
The story here is that Dakota is sore at his Dad (Demolition Smash aka Barry Darsow) for not being around enough when he was a kid. Reasonable idea. He spends the match playing the chicken heel, only entering the match when he has a clear advantage, cheating, and running his mouth while avoiding his Dad. Good solid match, Ax has face in peril, crowd was into it. In the end, Smash chases his son to the back (setting up a singles match in the future?) as the ring gets cleared. Ax and Animal hit the Hart Attack style clothesline on Chase McCoy for the victory.
Roddy didn't ref the main, despite it being set up. There were a number of little things that may normally have not meant much but built up during the show to irritate. It was by no means a bad show but it didn't quite click like earlier shows have for us. We walked out a bit disappointed despite having a good time. Something was missing.
Next show is Blizzard Brawl 6 on Dec 4th. There is another show they were advertising in June that is scheduled to have Baron Von Raschke at it. That would be cool.
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