Modern Indie Wrestling

[gordi]

Man, GCW just keeps delivering for their fans. And I love their crowds.

The Mox vs Gage main event hasn't even happened yet, and I've marked out a dozen times here.

Violence, brawling, comedy, story-telling, David v Goliath...

I enjoy this as much as AEW, which ir REALLY saying something.

[concrete1992]

GCW announcing Hammerstein feels very much like an obvious but still inconceivable event. It will probably sell out. I don’t think GCW is a good promotion but I can’t say it is a bad thing to have an indie that’s grown to this level.

For non GCW stuff, love IWTV strapping up Shelley. They haven’t really had an elder statesman run with it and after years without real direction, I think IWTV found something with the Lee reign forward. GCW has the big moments but IWTV has created an infrastructure for promotions of various sizes. These tent pole type events coming back have been a great choice.

[NotJayTabb]

Yeah, Shelley feels like a great choice of touring champion, he's someone who I'm interested in seeing against almost all of the guys who regularly wrestle in the IWTV promotions. He feels like he's similar to the early champions like Gresham or Tracy Williams, rather than less rounded wrestlers like Cassidy and Warhorse. Giving Warhorse 500+ days with the title was too long.

[El-P]

The one thing I was wondering about during the entirety of Mox vs Gage was if Renee was tweeting during this ?

It's pretty unthinkable that having a big money contract from a mainstream promotion, the guy would actually want to do this kind of stuff. Which is what makes Mox so unique. Having Foley announce was the perfect fit ("Fuck Matt Cardona" was classic Foley), as in another time, he actually worked FMW shows, including doing a brutal deathmatch against Kanemura, while under contract with WWF. Something that is unimaginable today.

So, ok, I do get the cult of Gage, I get the whole "Dusty Rhodes of light bulbs" persona and indeed he's from the direct line of the Sandman's and the New Jacks, but still, his stuff looks rotten more often than not whenever he has to do something physical that isn't just cutting someone. I guess him taking the most horrific bumps is part of the "charm". But I wonder what Minoru Suzuki will be able to do with him though... 

Speaking of which, Suzuki vs Janela was yet another proof of how much Suzuki gets pro-wrestling as a whole (meaning, he knew exactly how to play to this particular crowd at points when they just don't react like your typical NJPW audience). That "one slap too many" spot was awesome. Also "I don't speak English, sorry. FUCK YOU YOUNG BOY !" to Chris Dickinson was funny AF.

[Jimmy Redman]

[SirEdger]

I saw that PCO is booked to appear on several GCW events for 2022 (seems to be his destination post-ROH) and it's safe to say that GCW is becoming the true top indy promotion right now in the United States. Kudos to them to keep that momentum going with the Hammerstein Ballroom show early next year.

[sek69]

I've seen people making the argument on Twitter that GCW is the #3 promotion right now behind WWE/AEW.  My first instinct was to call BS on that, but honestly I can't think of any other group right now having consistently enjoyable shows and giving the fans what they want to see. 

[Migs]

1 minute ago, sek69 said:

I've seen people making the argument on Twitter that GCW is the #3 promotion right now behind WWE/AEW.  My first instinct was to call BS on that, but honestly I can't think of any other group right now having consistently enjoyable shows and giving the fans what they want to see. 

I'm also not sure any group sells tickets the way they do at this point (obviously, ROH/MLW/Impact have TV, but they'd all love to be able to run the Hammerstein).

[gordi]

1 hour ago, sek69 said:

I've seen people making the argument on Twitter that GCW is the #3 promotion right now behind WWE/AEW.  My first instinct was to call BS on that, but honestly I can't think of any other group right now having consistently enjoyable shows and giving the fans what they want to see. 

 

1 hour ago, Migs said:

I'm also not sure any group sells tickets the way they do at this point (obviously, ROH/MLW/Impact have TV, but they'd all love to be able to run the Hammerstein).

Damn. That is legit interesting to think about. TNA/Impact has the biggest name, ROH has that legacy of great matches. MLW has, uh, Jacob Fatu's cool finisher....

But I'd guess GCW puts more butts in seats than any of them.

In my heart right now they are #2 in America and #3 in the world in terms of what I am.most excited to see/happy to spend my time on. Which, frankly, surprises me.

[sek69]

Speaking of GCW, I was wondering who books there? Joey? Brett? Even if it was a "let everyone do their own shit" deal someone has to have final say, I just realized that it never occurred to me who that might be.

[joeg]

Saw the MLW Fightland. Jacob Fatu and Alexander Hammerstone are so fucking good its rediculous that they are in such a low rent, shithole. Fatu should be a top guy in WWE or AEW and Hammerstone should be an upper mid card guy in WWE or AEW. Instead they are fighting each other on the worst produced, most busch league wrestling show out there. Its such a waste of talent. 

[sek69]

I'm surprised Fatu isn't already in WWE, they usually try to give everyone in the family a shot. 

[El-P]

5 hours ago, joeg said:

Saw the MLW Fightland. Jacob Fatu and Alexander Hammerstone are so fucking good its rediculous that they are in such a low rent, shithole. Fatu should be a top guy in WWE or AEW and Hammerstone should be an upper mid card guy in WWE or AEW. Instead they are fighting each other on the worst produced, most busch league wrestling show out there. Its such a waste of talent. 

Agreed. They do this big comeback show after like 3 months of non-programming and they spend an entire segment doing... a news show ??? Taking about AEW and WWE ??? WTF Court Bauer ? 

I'm not as high as many on Fatu (then again MLW has been consistently the worst place to look great for some reasons), but he did impress me there, and Hammerstone is much more than his look indicates too (and he can cut promos).

MLW still running the stupid Contra angle and they have this awful Kane-like guy now that I guess they are gonna push. They brought back Dario Cueto but honestly it's such a waste as there's nothing even comparable to LU on the show (and I heard they brought back Catrina too, which is cool and all). IMPACT is the promotion where they could have used him SO WELL in term of working his character into the show (if they can have the Undead Realm, they can have some LU offshoot).

The fact Will Ospreay is working their next tapings is cool for them, but MLW has been a sinkhole in term of producing really good stuff, Bauer's ideas are usualy just *bad* and the show is very poorly produced and paced, so yeah, that's a disappointment when he could have showed up in AEW, IMPACT or, hell, GCW !

@Jimmy Redman thanks ! 

[MoS]

How do we even compare GCW and PWG in terms of who the bigger promotion is, given PWG runs fewer shows and never stream them?

[Migs]

11 hours ago, sek69 said:

Speaking of GCW, I was wondering who books there? Joey? Brett? Even if it was a "let everyone do their own shit" deal someone has to have final say, I just realized that it never occurred to me who that might be.

I assume it's Brett with final say, but he does not seem like someone who's dominating things in the back.

[Migs]

11 hours ago, joeg said:

Saw the MLW Fightland. Jacob Fatu and Alexander Hammerstone are so fucking good its rediculous that they are in such a low rent, shithole. Fatu should be a top guy in WWE or AEW and Hammerstone should be an upper mid card guy in WWE or AEW. Instead they are fighting each other on the worst produced, most busch league wrestling show out there. Its such a waste of talent. 

I like both guys but thought the match was weird. Like, the big guy athletic stuff was fun, but Contra was trying to murder Hammerstone and they just sort of had a match. (Of course, it sounds like they were going out there at the end of a 5 hour taping, so maybe they were going for big moves to get the crowd back.)

[rovert]

13 hours ago, sek69 said:

I'm surprised Fatu isn't already in WWE, they usually try to give everyone in the family a shot. 

He has criminal charges stemming from his youth. 

Has used the moniker of the "black sheep" in the past. Very recently shifted to saying he eats from the other end of the table.

[strobogo]

Snuka was a murderer, Fatu was in a gang, Jimmy Uso has like 5 DUIs in 2 years. Criminal charges from his youth lol. 

[sek69]

6 minutes ago, strobogo said:

Snuka was a murderer, Fatu was in a gang, Jimmy Uso has like 5 DUIs in 2 years. Criminal charges from his youth lol. 

All that (except the DUIs) were before the "PR is how the brands will win" era of WWE though. They are going to be way more risk adverse to hiring someone with a criminal past than they would have been prior. 

[El-P]

And don't forget to watch WWE Crown Jewel on the WWE Network on October 21. This announcement has been paid for by MBS, authoritarian leader, warmonger and murderer of journalist.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

15 hours ago, MoS said:

How do we even compare GCW and PWG in terms of who the bigger promotion is, given PWG runs fewer shows and never stream them?

I don’t think they are competition.  PWG is its own entity and since they don’t stream, they have access to some wrestlers that other companies don’t.  Plus they only run one building (aside from occasional one-offs) as opposed to GCW running all over the country.  PWG is essentially a hobbyist promotion while GCW is a true touring promotion.  I love them both, though.

[strobogo]

5 hours ago, El-P said:

And don't forget to watch WWE Crown Jewel on the WWE Network on October 21. This announcement has been paid for by MBS, authoritarian leader, warmonger and murderer of journalist.

Or the former CEO who worked in the cabinet of a twice impeached president and then was a major fundraiser for him AFTER a failed coup attempt. Or the former star who is now a mayor who is anti vax and anti mask in the midst of a global pandemic that has killed over 700,000 people in his country.  Or doing a woke safe space heel gimmick. Or whose response to George Floyd protests and BLM was creating a blatant ANTIFA based heel terrorist group and of course turned the Muslim guy heel to lead it. Or who let their head NXT ref go absolutely bat shit crazy for months and months on lunatic conspiracy theories while AT WORK. Or a company that had two black men born and raised in America wrestle in a NIGERIAN DRUM MATCH at WM in 2021. 

 

But yeah they did switch the Moolah battle royal to Mae Young and did ignore Hulk Hogan for a few years before bringing him back and putting him in segments with black talent as often as possible despite him admitting on television that he's a racist. 

[joeg]

The notion that Fatu hasn't been picked up by WWE because he had a juvenile record is insane to me. Speaking from experience, juvenile records (and even records from college years) don't show up on any background check. If getting into trouble as a kid doesn't prevent employment in financial services, banking, law enforcement, education, etc., how does it prevent somebody from employment in pro wrestling? 

[El-P]

And so there is Bloodsport 7 tonight, with MiSu vs Chris Dickinson. And then he goes against Nick Gage on Sunday. And then he goes to the next IMPACT tapings. The King travelling to the US scene has been one of the most fun happening of the year.

[El-P]

GCW at Hammerstein Ballroom this week-end has quite the line-up, with Mox vs Homicide, Janela vs Cardona (who really has turned himself around as a character since his first appearance in GCW), Gresham vs Blake Christian for the ROH title, the Briscoes vs a surprise team (could it be FTR ?), a multi-men ladder match which includes PCO and Lio Rush among others plus Jeff Jarrett vs EFFY (WTF moment of 2022 already).