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WOW TAPING
(why the f not)
Great Western Forum
Inglewood, CA
CRZ,
It's as if all my bad little prayers have been answered. Not only did women's pro wrestling finally
make a return, but 'tis right here in my backyard in L.A. $25 for a ringside seat, so I turned out
last night with some buddies to support the ladies.
First off, I have to say we had a great time. When I went to see WWF earlier in the year I was up
in seats where I could see little specks throwing each other around... maybe. This time around I
was close enough that one good leap would have gotten me a nice tussle with security, if the lady in
question didn't headlock me first (hmm, come to think of it... no no Clint, bad thoughts...
/bad/...)
Now unfortunately I was on the same side as the main cameras, and we had a two sided sign that we
made so we could flip over. So if we showed up at all. depending on the angle I may just be the
idiot with the upside down sign reading 'Riot' or 'FINISH HER!'. There was a fairly good turnout
for a fed that's just getting started, though of course there was a fair share of comps, including
one where they had a group of 'Latino Families'(?!). Also a lot of sign hand-outs beforehand (but
seemingly an equal amount for each wrestler, so that was nice)... the guy who was going to hand us
one seemed surprised that we already had one made up. Later on as the arena filled a healthy dose
of home-mades arrived, which was good to see... probably from all of us that actually paid ;-)
Before the show two anonymous young 'hip' gentlemen came out to pump up the crowd and hand out some
t-shirts. Alas, for all their efforts they couldn't get the zombies in section A to come to life,
which was unfortunate since that's the side the cameras were pointed at. My section and the middle
section were making all the noise, but on the tape you'll probably mostly see asses in seats with
blank looks. Bah.
Wrestlers with the most (legit) fan displays: E.Z. Rider had a huge sections of freaks in the
middle... a group of crazy guys wearing headbands with her cutout attached, and some hot girls in
homemade t-shirts. Between them the guy with the 'I WANNA RIDE E.Z.' poster. POISON 3:16 spotted
in the upper seats. Big separate letter sign for Paradise (you know... one says 'P', then 'A',
then... yeah). Hammerin' Heather Steele also had a hot little cheering section that would run down
to ringside when she wrestled (one with a big cutout hammer on a stick) and scream their heads off.
Likely at least some of these were relatives and friends of the wrestlers, but they were really into
their girl and that's what counts.
Chants: Legit chants broke out at various points for Riot (mmm... Riot), Poison, Terri Gold,
Caliente, and Beckie (HUGE chant for Beckie after she once again did her plancha move onto Thug's
gang... ironic that the most extreme wrestler of the promotion so far is the Farmer's Daughter,
neh?)
The wrestling was again a mixed bag, but still not too bad considering most of the ladies have been
at it for only six months. They toned down the amount of pull-ups after the two count... still a
big stompfest whenever they're working on most of the arm or toeholds though, and still waaaaaaaay
too many slingshots.
Poison has started doing a Reverse DDT (which I believe is her chosen finisher called the "Poison
Paralyzer"). She's also still doing her Camel Clutch move, which looks really good from the way she
locks it in and leans into it.
Slam Dunk started doing a chokeslam, although so far she's not quite getting enough height to it.
She also needs to work on getting the slam after her airplane spin off quicker. Great hangtime on
her splash finisher, though.
Riot wrapped on a Crippler Crossface at one point, adding a bit of technique to the power moves.
I think her powerbomb is one of the best in the biz the way she actually puts her weight behind it,
unlike some *cough*Nash*cough*Sid*. Of course I may just be speaking as a mindless Riot mark, but
after she delivers that move *I* believe in the three count!
Caliente finished off Jacklyn Hide with an inverted surfboard move! It may be her intended
finisher, I don't know... took her a bit of time to lock it in but it looked perfect once it was up,
and the crowd loved it. Or maybe they just loved that once again (as I'm sure you'll be pleased to
know) Caliente's "co-stars" were at full alert. What, does she spend her pre-match warm-up in a
freezer?
God I can't stand McLane. He's a bad actor even for wrestling, and that's sayin' somethin'...
A new wrestler (or maybe a repackaged old one) named Mystery made her debut. She wears a mask and
hood and delivered a couple of nice powerslams in the course of the night, amongst other moves.
Won't spoil the story behind her appearance for you (unless you wish it)-- granted, it's not
Shakespearean, but it's certainly more than I've seen the WWF do with its women as far as getting a
feud together.
Ice Cold continues to try WAAAAAAAY TOOOOOO HARD to play bad girl. Plus I can't really figure
this gimmick out... she's icy, yet feisty? Cold, but loses her cool? I do dig the look though, and
I give her props for doing one thing none of the others has picked up on yet, which is selling the
delivery of post Irish-whip impacts. Her elbowsmashes actually look like they connected hard enough
to knock someone down. On the whole I'd say W.O.W. needs the most polishing in this area, only a
few really get a believable velocity going off the ropes.
Danger once again teased putting McLane through a table, then got Jane Blond instead. Blond was
helped up the ramp by three refs, and sold the injury so well I wondered for a bit if she really got
hurt.
Patti Pep... nah, something else I won't spoil. You may see it coming a mile off, but it
surprised me...
Terri Gold's match got a bit repetitive when not once, not twice, but three times she did her
"jump up on the turnbuckle and surprise you with my flying body press" move, in the same corner of
the ring and catching her opponent every time. On the plus side, the crowd was into the first parts
of the match, and we stood up at the end because this time she NAILED that springboard moonsault
dead on target. It looked awesome, which is a good thing since I believe she's going to be using it
as her finisher, the Perfect Ten(?). They had children pile into the ring to celebrate with her and
it was so thick with kids she was pinned in the corner... I held up my 'FINISH HER!' sign clearly
for the moment, but not before giving them some time to cut before it shows ;-)
Selina Majors returned to deliver many a stunner on Thug and her gang. E.Z. Rider for her part
broke out with a Bronco Buster, to the delight of her fan section. Thug delivers a hell of a
chokeslam.
Did I mention McLane has abominable delivery? He seems to be doing a good job as a promoter, but
PLEASE get him off the mic.
Lana Star at least is /supposed/ to annoy us...
Speaking of Lana, a lot of people hate that she gets mic time, but I think she's doing a great job
as the evil big-breasted (and oh my God wait until you see her come down to ringside without a bra
on... the Earth is quakin') prima donna. I don't think it's a coincidence that she sounds and looks
like Pamela Anderson, either.
Jade's high-flying moves went a lot better last night. Her headscissors was particularly
impressive.
Farah the Persian Princess and Paradise made an appearance as part of a tournament to crown the
W.O.W. tag team champions. They had a neat little move in the center of the ring, hard to
describe-- you'll see it when it airs.
CAGED F'N HEAT! Loca and DLP were in action last night and they ROCKED... stole the show in my
own damned opinion. Not only were they working the crowd like madwomen, they were pulling off all
sorts of moves, including a very well done Doomsday Device. They also went for a 3-D which didn't
work quite as well, but just needed a little tweak on the timing. Loca was hilarious doing her
"cholla" routine, and DLP did a sweet somersault senton off the top rope (although it was an
arranged miss). Awesome stuff, especially for only six-odd months of training.
All in all, we had a great time and are already talking about going back for another taping. At $25
for a ringside seat it's a good bargain and it was a good live crowd for the most part (though
again, the TV might not reflect that). One thing that hurts the set-up a bit is that it's a long
show due to all the episodes, so by the time the last one rolled around a lot of people had gone
home to put their kids to bed, and the remainder were pretty worn out. Center section was still
packed, but visibly empty on the side where the cameras look. Ah well, they were zombies to begin
with anyhow...
Clint
P.S. Have you heard from Chris Jones lately? Bastard didn't answer my email... of course, I never
answered the one he sent me awhile back, but that's no excuse! ;-)
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