During the countdown, there were various reactions to the series leading into the new episode.
“Into the Fire” opens up the show and has quickly become wrestling’s “earworm”.
Joe Galli and Jim Cornette were immediately interrupted by Eddie Kingston. He and Homicide want to face The Dawsons for getting involved in their NWA tag title match last week. They are taking out The Dawsons and then are coming back for Royce Isaacs and Thomas Latimer. Kingston said he and Homicide have nothing to live for and pro wrestling is all they have and therefore, nothing to lose.
MARTI BELLE VS CRYSTAL ROSE
Belle missed in the corner and ate a pair of knees when Rose came down off the turnbuckle. Belle came back with forearm strikes and a hip attack in the corner. Belle hit a pedigree for the victory.
WINNER: Marti Belle at 2:24
David Marquez brought The Dawsons to the podium and a chant of “Dawson’s Creek” began. They riled up the crowd and it’s time for The Dawsons to throw their weight around. They will fight any single guy EXCEPT for Homicide and Eddie Kingston.
There was a promo spot for Thunder Rosa.
Galli introduced Tim Storm, but Aron Stevens came out, instead. His attire suggested he was just cast as a supporting player in the local high school play in Atlanta. Stevens addressed what he was wearing, stating he isn’t Captain Morgan and led to a chant beginning. He is promoting his film “Tropical Pirates” but those are mocking his acting career.
They cut to the trailer of his film and it was a collection of stock footage and one scene of Stevens speaking to a woman. This was ridiculous. He said when it comes to acting, he has more chops than Ric Flair.
CALEB KONLEY VS DAN PARKER
Konley attacked with chops and showcased a variety of strikes. Parker yanked him off the turnbuckle and attacked with knees from the Thai clinch and applied an abdominal stretch. Konley hip tossed out of it, hit a slam and springboard twisting moonsault to win the match.
WINNER: Caleb Konley at 3:21
Konley looked very smooth and polished for the short match they had. Galli and Cornette focused on Konley starting his career as someone on the bottom and made improvements.
Galli welcomed Tim Storm out. He thanked Nick Aldis for giving him the last title match and he beat him. He said Mama Storm still loves him and he has other decisions to make about his future.
Eli Drake comes out, he says that Storm sounds like he’s about to quit. He said his Mom wouldn’t want him to give up and is on the same list as Ricky Steamboat, Ric Flair, and Harley Race as former NWA champions. Drake suggests there is other gold he can go after as a team. Drake says they have a match against The Dawsons tonight and Storm will “think about it”.
We had the wackiest ad to date with a bald woman promoting “The Spiritual Advisor’s Invisible Hair Cream”, a hair product for those annoyed with their hair getting in the way and can turn your hair INVISIBLE. “It’s not bald…it’s invisible”.
Jocephus came out as the recapped his brawl in the studio with James Storm two weeks ago. He whispers to Marquez and requests Storm to come out to shake his hand. Instead, Colt Cabana came out and role-played as Storm. They shook hands and then Jocephus threw powder into Cabana’s face.
Storm came into the ring and hit the Last Call superkick on Jocephus. He was about to hit Cabana until Mr. Anderson pulled Cabana out of the ring.
Nick Aldis and Kamille were out next, he listed several contenders for the next opportunity at his title. He put over Ricky Starks as a future star, but no one has stepped to the front of the line. Aldis said if no one steps up he might have to look at someone in another promotion. Galli asked again why he won’t let Kamille speak for herself and Aldis said it was a “non-issue” and he doesn’t deal in clickbait and tabloid BS.
Aldis allowed Galli to speak with her and she wouldn’t respond to his question.
A vignette for a mysterious figure aired with the question “Who is the Mark?” and @QuestiontheNWA.
ELI DRAKE & TIM STORM VS THE DAWSONS
Storm came out and everyone cheered that he showed up.
Drake and Storm got the advantage of Zane Dawson with the aggressors making frequent tags. Cornette compared Storm’s elbow strikes to those of Johnny Valentine.
Dave Dawson was tagged in and applied a bearhug on Storm. Zane tagged in and resumed the hold until Storm broke free and tagged Drake.
Storm shot Drake into the corner, missed the target and went shoulder-first into the post.
The Dawsons double-teamed Storm with Zane holding Storm and sandwiching Storm with an Avalanche before Zane pinned him.
WINNERS: The Dawsons at 6:42
The Dawsons continued to beat down Storm until Eddie Kingston and Homicide chased them away.
Nick Aldis came out to check on Storm and the show went off the air with Drake looking over the downed Storm.
FINAL THOUGHTS
They are starting to build some stories with Aldis seeking out his next title challenger, the relationship between Eli Drake and Tim Storm after Storm inadvertently caused Drake to be injured and removed from the match, and building to a showdown between The Dawson with Homicide & Eddie Kingston.
The show continues to hang its hat on the fast-pace as the show breezes by with no character, match, or promo overstaying its welcome.
Eddie Kingston is quickly separating himself from the pack and screams future babyface star as the complete contrast to the well-mannered Nick Aldis. That could be a feud you get to way down the line and I wouldn’t rush it. Kingston has the appeal of the outlaw babyface that the crowd loves and his interviews are must-see each week.
I like the idea of multiple contenders being built and it’s a race to see who can separate themselves and get the next title shot. It makes the NWA title the focal point of the show and creating multiple contenders, going with one and having other stories break off from the central story of everyone’s chase for the title.
Drake and Storm is a fine direction to go with, Drake is one of those performers that just screams heel and this format is best suited for him in that role. The set up for the tag match on this show was a nice touch because it presented the NWA tag titles as something just as sought after as the NWA title and wasn’t viewed as trivial for Storm but instead, the tag titles are something of worth and that those vying for the singles title can also have aspirations for the tag belts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9d8vGx0fYmY
