Pay-Per-View Weekend of October 25 & 26, 2020

The Weekend of October 24th & 25th saw both Impact Wrestling and the WWE present the pay per views Bound for Glory and Hell in A Cell respectively.  This was definitely a weekend of two completely different shows.  

Bound for Glory is hyped as Impact Wrestling's biggest PPV of the year it debuted in 2005 and held annually in October, except 2017 when it was held in November.  The PPV cost $40 and I won a code from a contest on Twitter for Fite TV and that is how I watched the event.

I haven't watched an episode of Impact all year because I don't get AXT tv channel, but I do read the results and keep up on the storylines, and watch clips on YouTube and Twitter and ect.  I was excited to watch the PPV because I was a fan of the product once upon a time and I was glad to be able to watch it.  My hope was to really enjoy to show and have it entice me to want to watch the show weekly.  It didn't, in fact I overpaid for the PPV.

The best match of the night was for the Knockouts Championship and even that was not the advertised match.  It was supposed to be champion Deonna Purrazo defending against Kylie Rae but Kylie wasn't there so Deonna issued an open challenge that Su Yung answered.

  It's evident that Kylie would not be wrestling that night and Impact still advertised the match and even played a long video package build before the match,  Deonna came out first and then they played Kylie's music for half a minute before Deonna issued her open challenge.  This could have been handled much better.  

Regardless this was the best match of the night, going a bout 15 minutes of solid back and forth action with Su Yung capturing the title.   The only other match of the night I enjoyed was the tag title match that saw the North become two time Impact Wrestling Champions. 

The main event saw Eric Young love the World Championship to Rich Swan.  Yes Rich Swan, I don't understand it either.  The last time someone so undeserving headlined a PPV was when The Butcher challenged Hulk Hogan at Starrcade 1994 for the WCW World Championship.

There was other production issues that had me wondering if this show was live or pre-taped.  At no time did they have the world Live on the screen which we as wrestling fans have been conditioned to see if we are watching a live wrestling show.  

Hell in a Cell is an annual WWE PPV event that debuted as an event in 2009 and has been held annually in October.  The first Hell in a Cell match debuted in October 1997 featuring Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker,  at last one Hell in a Cell match has happened every year since it's inception, except in 2001.  I don't know how much the PPV cost on cable, however I pay $9.99 a month for WWE Network.

The show opened with a really good video package hyping the event.  The Roman Reigns vs. Jay Uso match had a tremendous hype video as well.

I absolutely loved, much to my surprise, the Reigns vs. Uso match.  This is the heel Reigns that we have wanted for years.  They have even made Jay Uso a credible challenge two months in a row for the Universal Championship.  That was something I always liked about what Jim Crockett Promotions did was having a tag team wrestler challenge for the World Championship and not break up the team.   I really loved seeing the Wild Samoans come out to place the lei on Reigns. 

I can't say the rest of the card was amazing, because it wasn't, but I am glad that they took the Money in the Bank Contract off of Otis.

Sasha Banks defeated Bayley for the Smackdown Women's championship.  It was a solid match, not a fan of the finish but they worked their asses off.  The main event saw Randy Orton win his 14th WWE Championship pinning Drew McIntyre.  They had a great match, but it really bothers me that McIntyre's championship reign was through the no fan covid era because at the Royal Rumble the fans were so ready for him to be champion.

All in all the WWE dominated Impact on this weekend, it wasn't even a fair contest honestly.  

Thanks for reading, please leave a comment, read my other posts, and like my blogs Facebook page, check out my weekly podcast The Wrestling Insomniac on the Nerdy Legion Podcast Network and while your at it pick up my book over at Amazon in Kindle or Paperback.

Until next time!!

Same Tag Team Different Gimmick II

Welcome to the second edition of Same Tag Team Different Gimmick, in the first post we looked at Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom in this edition it's all about....

Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka 

In December of 1986 Diamond and Tanaka first teamed together in the Memphis based Continental Wrestling Association as Badd Company where they captured the tag team championships four times.  In February 1988 they made their debut in the AWA defeating the Midnight Rockers in Las Vegas.

A month later in their fourth AWA match they would win the AWA World Tag Team Championships from the Midnight Rockers.  They would go on to hold the championships for 371 days defending them outside the AWA in the CWA, Kansas based WWA, and Florida Championship Wrestling.   In the AWA they were managed by Diamond Dallas Page and Madusa.

In May of 1989 they would wrestle their last AWA match as a team.  Diamond would stay in the AWA while Tanaka would travel to New Japan.  Tanaka would sign with the WWE in February teaming with Akio Sato as The Orient Express managed by Mr. Fuji.  Diamond would first appear as a singles in the WWE in March 1990.  

November 22, 1990 Akio Sato wrestled his last match in the WWE at the Survivor Series.  Two days later on the 24th a masked Paul Diamond now known as Kato teamed with Tanaka as The Orient Express. 

Kato & Tanaka

Sato & Tanaka

The duo would team together in the WWE regularly until August 1991 and then a final match at Royal Rumble 1992 when Tanaka would leave the promotion.  They had an excellent match at the 1991 Royal Rumble against The Rockers.  On July 29, 1991 at the Summerslam Spectacular TV Special in Worcester, MA Tanaka & Kato would team up with Sato in a losing effort to British Bulldog, Ricky Steamboat, and Kerry Von Erich.  This would be the only time all three members of the Orient Express would team together.

Tanaka would stay in the WWE wrestling as Kato in enhancement matches until September 1992 when he would become Max Moon. 

In October 1993 Badd Company would reunite in ECW feuding with Bad Breed and The Public Enemy.   In March 1994 they would have a couple matches in WCW as Haito & Tanaka-San losing to Arn Anderson & Ricky Steamboat on WCW Saturday Night.

They wouldn't team again until 2006 at an indie show in Michigan.  From 2006 - 2008 they would team up five times as the Orient Express: Kato & Tanaka.

Team Names

Badd Company: Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka
Orient Express: Kato & Tanaka
Haito & Tanaka-San

Title
CWA International Tag Team Champions four times
AWA Southern Tag Team Champions
AWA World Tag Team Champions

First Match: December 15, 1986 Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee CWA event
Stretcher Match: Badd Company: Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka defeated CWA International Tag Team Champions: Akio Sato & Tarzan Goto to win the championships

Last Match: April 18, 2008 Port Richey, Florida ASWF Can't Touch Us
The Orient Express: Kato & Tanaka defeated Joshua Masters & Kennedy Kendrick

Thanks for rading, please leave a comment, read my other posts, and like my blogs Facebook page, check out my weeekly podcast The Wrestling Insomniac on the Nerdy Legion Podcast Network and while your at it pick up my book over at Amazon in Kindle or Paperback.

Until next time!!

Same Tag Team Different Gimmick

Over the years many wrestling tag teams have changed their names from one promotion to another but very little else changes about them.  For instance Hawk & Animal were The Road Warriors around the world but were called the Legion of Doom in the WWE and The Dudley Boys were forced to change their name to Team 3D when they left the WWE.

There are other tag teams though that completely reinvent themselves when they move from one promotion to another if they chose to do so or not.  In this post we are going to take a look at one of those tag teams.

Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom

The duo began teaming together in 1989 in the AWA as the Destruction Crew wearing hard hats and carrying sledgehammers to the ring.  They would defeated Greg Gagne & Paul Diamond to capture the AWA World Tag Team Championships holding them for 314 days.  This would be the only championships the duo would hold.  Although they did win the 1989 PWI Rookie of the Year award, the only tag team to accomplish this. 

In 1990 while still the AWA Tag Team Champions they would travel to the WCW under masks as The Minnesota Wrecking Crew II with manager Ole Anderson.  Here they would challenge for both the NWA World Tag Team and United States Championships unable to capture either titles.  They returned to the AWA dropping the tag titles to The Trooper & DJ Peterson. 

 August 1990 to April 1991 they would tour New Japan Pro Wrestling as The Destruction Crew and wrestled what was the final AWA show on 1991 on May 3rd.  Three weeks later the debuted in the WWE as the bleached blonde tag team The Beverly Brothers Beau & Blake.

They would spend two years in the WWE where they challenged for the Tag Team Championships several times unsuccessfully.  After receiving an initial push in the promotion they were reduced to enhancement talent.

In 1994 & 1995 they would make a few appearances together on the Indies as The Destruction Crew.  In October 1997 in Minneapolis they wrestled on a dark match on WCW Nitro losing to Barry Darsow and John Nord.  

January of 1998 they made there WCW television debut on Saturday Night as Mike Enos and Wayne Bloom wrestling a half dozen matches over the next couple months until their final match as a team in April.  In total the teamed on and off together for nine years winning one tag team championship.

Tag Team Names
The Destruction Crew
Minnesota Wrecking Crew II
The Beverly Brothers: Beau & Blake
Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom

Titles
AWA World Tag Team Champions
1989 PWI Rookies of the Year

First Match: February 7, 1989 St. Paul, Minnesota AWA House Show
The Destruction Crew: Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom defeated Top Gun: Derrick Dukes & Ricky Rice

Last Match: April 3, 1998 Orlando, Florida WCW Worldwide
The Public Enemy: Rocco Rock & Johnny Grunge defeated Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom

Thanks for reading, please leave a comment, read my other posts, and like my blogs Facebook page, check out my weekly podcast The Wrestling Insomniac on the Nerdy Legion Podcast Network and while your at it pick up my book over at Amazon in Kindle or Paperback.

Until next time!!