[2000-09-30-OVW-TV] Damaja & Nick Dinsmore vs Jason Lee & Derrick King

[soup23]

I like King mugging for the camera and as a heel more than his generic Mr. Personality persona in MPPW. This is the semifinal of the tag tournament. Like I just mentioned, King is ahead of Onyx and Lee is probably ahead of Terry Knight but this match doesn’t get enough time and Cornette can’t take one fucking breath on commentary so overall it feels more frantic and annoying instead of exciting. Dinsmore doing the executioner slam was a good move to turn the momentum their way. They take a break with Damaja being worked over. Back from break, and Cornette starts yelling a mile a minute the microsecond the show comes back on air. I think we hear Leviathan’s name for the first time being mentioned. Hot tag made to Dinsmore and he is a good hot tag with well executed punches, back body drops and knocking the cronies for the Blondes off ringside. Rip Rogers is up on the apron and the referee gets pushed into Rogers. Here come the run ins. Again, at least the arrest was a little different instead of the usual nonstop run ins. After a Conway loaded glove shot, Lee hits a springboard elbow and they advance to the finals. SHUT THE FUCK UP JIM CORNETTE. *1/2

[GSR]

Referee Phil Fair is with the ‘Suicide Blondes’ complete with peroxide dye job so that he looks the part. The Blondes jump their heavily fancied opponents before the bell and seem rather pleased with themselves for doing so. They look to whip them into one another, however Dinsmore crouches down and Damaja leaps over him with a Thesz press to King while ‘Mr Wrestling’ spears Lee. High double press slam on DK dropping him chest first to the mat. Attempted slingshot belly to back, but King flips himself over and lands on his feet. He then ends up on Dinsmore’s shoulders in the electric chair position, Damaja with the big right hand and DK takes a crazy looking backward bump. Russian leg sweep on Lee. The Blondes are coming and going as they please here, no tags and no referee trying to enforce the rules. Damaja reverses the King Irish whip and Lee backdrops his own partner into him. This was supposed to look ‘accidental’, as if Lee didn’t know what he was doing and that the Blondes almost lucked into it, but it didn’t. Superkick by DK for a two count. More double teaming by the Blondes until they telegraph a double backdrop, and Damaja with an upward kick to Lee. He avoids the King clothesline and then launches him at his fellow Blonde. Tag to ‘Mr Wrestling’ who comes in as the proverbial house on fire, taking it to anyone who moves (including Phil Fair who unwisely climbed up on the apron at one point). German suplex on DK, but Lee with the save before the ref has even started to count the pin. All four men are in the ring and now Rip Rogers is on the apron and distracting the official. King leap frogs over Dinsmore however then runs into the ref knocking him down. Here comes yet more interference in the shape of Rob Conway and Mr Black. Damaja hits the ‘Brain Damage’ on Black and it looks like he and Dinsmore are more than holding their own against everyone. A double clothesline sends Black over the top rope and to the outside, but at the same time Conway is loading his glove. ‘Iron fist’ to Dinsmore, Lee with a springboard elbow drop and the Blondes steal a victory.

 

I found the opening part of this fairly scrappy and rushed. The heat section on Damaja was fine and then it ended how most OVW matches end; ref bump (which was very clumsy looking) followed by interference. DK bumped like he always does, taking a couple of great ones and I liked the springboard elbow for the finish.

[AstroBoy]

The opening of this suffered from some awkwardness and King seemingly messes up a spot but they recover well enough. The Blondes take over after Lee catapults King rather weakly onto Damaja. The commentary really is annoying here, there is no getting around that. The end stretch is exciting as Dinsmore does seem a cut above the others here and the run-in stuff was at least done sharply enough that it wasn't super annoying. I also like the Blondes advancing to the finals.

 

*1/2

[Tim Evans]

Once you get past the commentary and the bad ref finish, this wasn't too bad. The blondes were bumping like crazy for Dinsmore's backdrops. However, I can't get past the commentary. Cornette would not stop talking. And now the Blondes have a heel ref as manager. How very ECW of Cornette.