From Larry Goodman:
It's been a tough week for Ace and Amy Haven, which means it's been a tough week for ProSouth Wrestling. Last Sunday, Ace had a seizure. He has a history lifelong history of syncope (loss of consciousness due to a sudden drop in blood pressure). Ace fainted and the impact of the fall into a wall resulted in a concussion and the seizure. His EEG looked fine but medical follow up is needed and he has not been medically cleared to wrestle.
But the show must go on.
You Don't Know JACS...Yet was the go home show for Unleashed. As is often the case, ProSouth did a bang up job of making a major show more enticing with a brilliantly booked go home episode.
The final two combatants in the Unchained match are set. In what could be his retirement match, JACS will be one of them. Brandon Whatley will be the other thanks to Jay Lucas, who badly wants a piece of Whatley. Before the night was over, already there was a price to be paid by Lucas.
In Ace's absence, Shane Noles stepped up to lead the trio that will face Violent Gentleman at Unleashed with blockbuster stipulations added.
The segment with Tony Midas, James Hardy and the Super Chicken? Form your own opinion. Me? I'm a mark for perverse entertainment.
Number one contender Terry Yaki pinned All-Out Champion Aaron Dallas' shoulders to the mat for the second week in a row.
Noah Howell and Shane Noles were on commentary. Justin Patterson and "Slim" Dave Thomas were the referees. James Hardy was the ring announcer and so much more.
(1) Roma Miller defeated Shoota Gabe on a referee stoppage at 5:30. They wrestled. Advantage Gabe. Roma got in a lot of strikes and some of them actually looked pretty decent. Gabe did his springboard tornillo splash for a near fall and ran right into a superkick from Miller. Gabe did a nestea plunge bump and Roma got on Gabe's already lifeless body with the stepdaddy stomps. After a few of those, Referee Slim stopped the match.
Miller looked pissed about the stoppage. Gabe rolled out of the ring looking concussed and Slim had to scrape him off the floor.
One of stranger finishes you're going to see. Looked like Gabe was knocked out by the superkick or the bump. I hope a KO by the stomps wasn't the planned finish because they were nothing. Match wasn't bad but they didn't light the world on fire either.
(2) Jose Manuel (with Gabe) defeated Tyrese Murphy (with Roma) by DQ in 4:16. Murphy hit a tornado cutter. Manuel sent Murphy out of the ring with an enzuirgi, then bowled over both members of Supreme Metal with a tope. Back inside, Manuel was in the midst of his three move combo when Roma jumped in the ring and superkicked him. Referee Patterson called for the bell.
These guys went at it. I want to see them matched up again. There's a spark there. What was up with Hardy announcing the outcome as a no contest?
Nawfside and Metal started brawling. Murphy was unloading on poor Gabe with wicked looking shots. Wrestlers came from the locker room to help the refs break up the fight.
This was a good pull apart, one that had intensity. Murphy is a fierce brawler. The effectiveness was heightened because ProSouth doesn't do them often.
Tony Midas Confronts James Hardy. This segment was prompted by Tony's loss to Super Chicken last week and the fantastic promo Midas cut on ProSouth Plus, which depicted Midas as man who was mentally unraveling.
Midas was furious. He didn't come from Phoenix to wrestle men in chicken costumes. Unlike the fans, he had a college education and had figured out who was in the chicken suit. There were only two possibilities, and since Chris Farley was dead, it had to be Hardy.
Hardy was the picture of innocence. Yes, Midas had challenged him to match and he had his gear on under his suit, but he didn't wrestle any more. Hardy said he would get Super Chicken. Midas told Hardy to stop playing dumb and take his beating like a man. Hardy said the people didn't want to see him wrestle; they wanted to see Super Chicken wrestle. The people agreed. Midas pretended to admit he was wrong...then clubbed Hardy with the mic when he was back was turned.
Midas was tremendous on the mic and Hardy was the perfect foil.
(3) James Hardy defeated Tony Midas in 3:54. Noles invoked the name of Jake Roberts after Midas used a short arm clothesline. Hardy had the fans behind him. He did a flying European uppercut that looked shockingly great. Midas was pounding on Hardy when the retro Batman theme music hit and a very large Super Chicken came to ringside. An enraged Midas left the ring and gave the Chicken a shot to the tenderloins and fired him into the barricade. As Midas reentered the ring, Hardy hit the Eviscerator for the win.
Post-match -- Midas sat in the corner in a stupor. Noles said we had proof -- the rumors that Hardy and Super Chicken were one and the same person were untrue. Hardy and the Chicken looked at each other, got into the ring and did a bit of the chicken dance in front of Midas. Midas was laughing dementedly as he left the ring. Hardy and the Chicken did the chicken dance to the Batman theme music.
Perverse entertainment ProSouth style. Folie à deux multiplied. Hardy, Chicken #2, the commentators, the crowd, everyone was in on the madness except Midas. Cameraman Bobcat's tracking shot of the aftermath was visual artistry. But the time it was over, I was wondering if my brain was soft. I enjoyed this way too much.
JACS addresses his future. JACS said his return to ProSouth in November was supposed to be a one off to see if his body could handle it. Commissioner Amy offered him a full-time spot and he accepted. He expected to be worse after being away from the ring for three years but he was able to pick up where he left off. His tag title run with Najasism didn't work out. He got a spot in the Gold Rush match but came up short. He had to be smart about his body because the injuries he sustained were not going away. It had been an honor to be part of the ProSouth community and it was only right that his retirement happens here. The fans chanted "thank you, JACS"
Commissioner Amy came to the ring. She asked JACS if he really wanted to go out without holding "big blue". What if she offered him one of the spots in the Unchained match? "You got me again", JACS said.
Lights out. Jay Lucas' intro music hits. Lucas brought up how Whatley came to his training school and attacked him. Lucas wanted a stipulation added to tonight's fatal four way main event -- If he won, Whatley got the final spot in the Unchained match, if he lost, then he (Lucas) was out of the match. Amy said Lucas had done nothing but good business for her, so it was on.
The emotional tone of JACS speech and Amy's response rang true. As with the video package last week, an better editing of the speech would have made it more impactful. The segue directly into Lucas was an outstanding idea. The dude has a cool charisma about him.
(4) Marcus Eriks & Terry Yaki & Eric Walker defeated All-Out Champion Aaron Dallas & Bubba Cagle & Youtube Champion Dorian when Yaki pinned Dallas at the 10 minute mark. Six way action at the opening bell pared down to Dallas and Yaki. After a nicely executed series of escapes and near misses, Yaki tagged out. Walker took punishment from Dorian. Ditto Eriks at the hands of Cagle. The heels isolated Cagle. Great sell by Yaki on Cagle's belly to belly. Cagle had a chance to tag but was a moth to the flame of Eriks' taunting. Finally, the tag to Dallas. He cleaned house and hit the AAD on Eriks but played to the crowd instead of covering. Cagle gave Eriks his TKO finisher. Eriks rolled out to the floor. Dallas got Yaki up for the AAD. Yaki wriggled out of it and reversed with a crucifix to pin Dallas.
Dallas was shocked. Yaki was thrilled with himself. The heels starting putting the boots to Dallas. Cagle made the save and spilled to the floor brawling with Eriks. Dallas decked Yaki with an ax handle. Walker tried to escape with the Youtube Championship again and got speared by Dorian, who took his title back.
Crowd was into this. An efficient use of time to advance three feuds in one match. I'm liking the chemistry between Yaki and Dallas. Yaki is improving by leaps and bounds as a heel. He's getting a lot more animated with facial expressions.
Ringside Chats with Shane Mako hosted by Noles. Mako was representing Violent Gentleman who could not see their way clear to be in Piedmont. Mako had excuses for all of them (Charles Zanders was busy doing his Positive Podcast with Wicked Nemesis and so forth). Mako said VG had beaten Ace three times, then Ace directed all this negative energy at them, and now Ace couldn't wrestle because he had a seizure (brought on by all his negativity) so there could be no match at Unleashed. What was in it for them to be there?
Noles said it was below the belt to make light of Ace's seizure. He had known Ace for over a decade and was concerned about Ace's condition. Mako was there. There must be something VG wanted. Noles called out Commissioner Amy.
Amy said Ace had told her to do whatever it takes to make this match happen. What did VG want? Mako said VG wanted full control of Ace. He would have to do whatever VG wanted him to do.
Amy said against her better judgment, she was agreeing to a six man tag but if VG lost, Zanders et al. would be taking their positiivity elsewhere. Noles said with Amy's permission, he was stepping in and would get two partners to kick VG's asses at Unleashed.
This was a loosey goosey segment in need of more direction. They took a long and winding road to get there but in the end, they got the match made. I shudder to think about Ace under the control of Zanders and his crew but it would make for interesting viewing.
(5) Jay Lucas defeated ProSouth Champion Dameon Ceretone and Cameron Keast (with Harley Haven) and Brother Azriel in a fatal four-way match in 8:21. JACS joined Shane Noles on commentary. The heels jump-started the match. The match was off to a hot start in the ring but the crowd was not responding in kind. They did a four-way tower of doom with Keast taking the big superplex bump. Ceretone gave Keast a trio of german suplexes and a running knee. Keast was toast. Lucas and Ceretone were teaming up on Azriel when Lucas suddenly clotheslined Ceretone over the top rope, then hit a jumping neckbreaker on Azriel. He rolled out of the ring. Keast hit the Lightswitch on Lucas for a close near fall. Keast pounded the mat in frustration and went for Bloody Tears (headlock driver). Lucas had it scouted and rolled Keast up for the win. The crowd did pop big for the finish.
Ceretone and Lucas shook hands. JACS came to the ring and signaled that he wanted the title. Lucas took a swing at Ceretone but he was ready and laid Lucas out with the Punchline. JACS hit his version of the GTS to lay Ceretone out and stood over the champion with the title to close the show.
ProSouth's booking of Jay Lucas is how stars are made and the kid has delivered. The match was fine but the crowd didn't sound fired up at all. It's as if something didn't quite click in the build for the Unchained match and it wasn't the ringwork.
BREAKING NEWS: Fan cam footage showed Brandon Whatley mercilessly wailing on Lucas with the nunchucks in the parking lot after the show. Whatley thanked Lucas for getting him into the title match.
