ProSouth Inferno -- August 22

From Larry Goodman:  I will be the one to drink your blood after one final embrace.  The card for Uprising is as set as anything every is at...

From Larry Goodman: 

I will be the one to drink your blood after one final embrace. 

The card for Uprising is as set as anything every is at ProSouth. It's been an epic build and this was a mind bending finale. 

The deal was sealed with a fever dream of closing segment bathed in red. The entire Haven family fell under the spell of Ravana Xin's blood feast. 

Photos by Gina Jones

Cameron Keast and Ravana Xin will have their Last Tango in Piedmont and it will be a straight jacket match. Get your goat ball ready. 

Brother Azriel summoned up his killer instinct and will get his match with Joe Black at Uprising. 

DRP and Justin McKenzie tore the house down again and will meet in a lumberjack match at Uprising.

The second half of the episode featured some great wrestling.  AJ Black and Eric Silva had a compelling All-Out title match. Ace and Ayden Andrews likewise packed a wallop as a preview to the Three Stage of Hell dual title match that will headline Uprising.

Wicked Nemesis and Brandon Whatley manned the commentation station. Salem Alexander was the ring announcer. Joseph Void, T-Bird and Caeden Ooten were the officials. Jessie was the on the rover camera.

Cameron Keast "The Evil Version" opened the show  Wearing  a black straight jacket with a mask covering his disfigured eye, Keast said the physical damage was nothing compared to the emotional damage he suffered or the emotional damage he had done to Ravana Xin. Keast admitted it had been a little weird and nonsensical (you don't say). Keast explained: Eight years ago, he saw the persona that would become Xin and her sister (Aja Perrera) attacked by Zombie Dragon. What the ProSouth fans saw (January 2024) was not his first encounter with Zombie Dragon. He kept that info concealed because that day in 2017 broke him. But the chink were in the armor long before. Back in 2012, a hopelessly romantic Cameron Keast fell in love with Ravana. But like everything else that had every been important to him, their relationship burned to the ground and he spent years looking at the monsters they were turning into. He walked away and Zombie Dragon did what he didn't have the guts to do. He was aware of the monster he'd become, the terrible things he'd done. He and Ravana needed to have one last get together at Uprising and he was dressed for the occasion -- a straight jacket match -- and he would drink Ravana's blood after one final embrace.

True confessions from the Tragic One. His mind has sickened. Art imitates life and this story  has taken the concept to the depths of madness. 

(1) Trey Jordan defeated Joe Wood via DQ in 5:20. They bludgeoned each other. Wood hit the World's Whitest Slam that left both of their backs killing them.  Jordan broke out an enzuigiri but missed a stomp off the ropes. Wood connected with a running headbutt and a falling timber headbutt for a near fall. Karmageddon (represented by Ayden Andrews and DRP) hit the ring. DRP slapped Jordan across the face and referee Void DQed Wood due to outside interference.

Karmegeddon put the boots to Wood after the match.

Karmegeddon screwing with Wood ahead of their title defense against Blood Born next week. Match was fine. The hoss fight element was something different. 

(2) Steven Calozzi defeated Christian Pierce via DQ in 9:13 with Caeden Ootne as the guest referee. Pierce didn't wait for the bell to start kicking Calozzi's ass. But Calozzi held his own, giving as good as he was getting. After getting thrashed by Pierce's cannonball, Calozzi put his brass knuckles on with an assist from Ooten. Pierce got the knucks away from Calozzi and was tempted to slug Ooten but held back so as not to get banished. Calozzi knocked Pierce into Ooten and Caeden immediately DQed Pierce.

Postmatch, Ooten shoved Pierce and hightailed it to the back.

Things at ProSouth tend to come in threes. Calozzi is now 3-0 against Pierce and got a lot more offense that I expected. Ooten is getting away with murder. His protected status as referee is like Trump's presidential immunity. 

Brother Azriel said he saw Joe Black's ProSouth Plus interview. Joe wanted to see Az's killer instinct so why wait for Uprising?  Of course Joe wasn't there. Az issued an open challenge

(3) Brother Azriel defeated Damon Thomas in 2:40. Thomas attacked. It was like fighting a brick wall. Az killed Thomas dead with the Woodgrain. 

Az gave Thomas a second Woodgrain. Az dissociated from reality. He grabbed ring announcer Salem by the neck and was about to give her the Woodgrain. Security guy Jamie jumped in the ring to help the refs. Jamie could be there for only one reason. Az laid Jamie out with the Woodgrain. 

Just what the doctor ordered for Az. He has gone to a dark place. Long-time viewers knew Jamie was doomed as a soon as he got in the ring. 

(4) DRP (with Ayden Andrews & Scott Adams) vs. Justin McKenzie was ruled a double count out at 6:01.  McKenzie had DRP dead to rights with a Heatseeker but Andrews pulled him out of the ring.  McKenzie dropped Andrews with a superkick and collared Adams. DRP clubbed McKenzie from behind. DRP's eyes got busted open the hardway by McKenzie's fist. As they brawled onto the stage, Void counted them out.

They brought the intensity. The spot where DRP's eye got busted open looked wicked.

Andrews' attempt to jump McKenzie was a fail. DRP came back out with his right eye covered in blood. McKenzie challenged DRP to a lumberjack match at Uprising and wanted five minutes with Adams if he won.

A lumberjack match, really? They didn't need no stinking stipulation. These guys have chemistry and they can go. Just turn 'em loose. 

(5) AJ Black defeated Eric Silva (with Mathias Darkthorne) to retain the All-Out Championship in 15:03. Darkthorne dropped some knowledge on AJ before the bell.  LHP member Trever Aeon created the All-Out rules and Silva thrived under them to become a four-time champion. Aaron Dallas withstood the test of the LHP to become the longest reigning All-Out Champion in ProSouth history. AJ had two choices: go all-out or get dragged kicking and screaming down the you know where.

Silva established a psychological and physical edge in the early going. His boxing skills had AJ bewildered. AJ's dragon screw legwhip 100% changed the complexion of the match. Whatley smarted the viewers up about Silva's knee surgery. Silva  goaded AJ into trading blows. But AJ went back to the knee and stayed on it. Silva was having difficulty standing. At 11 minutes in, Silva hit the Hellplex. Silva dug deep and launched a comeback with one good leg. Silva was looking for Collateral Damage. Ooten hit the ring, speared Silva and took over as the official. Pierce came for Ooten but had to back off in a state of frustration. Silva kicked out of Less Than Zero. Calozzi strolled to ringside and clocked Darkthorne with his knucks. Ooten, of course, saw nothing. AJ hit Collateral Damage and pinned Silva with his own move. 

Ooten was now fair game and got chased the back by Pierce.

The match left me wanting to see where the story goes. AJ retained but didn't really beat Silva so this feud isn't over and Silva isn't done with Calozzi either. They walked a fine line. AJ took advantage of what was given to him and didn't look like a weak champion. Silva had the deck stacked massively  against him. 

(6) ProSouth Champion Ace Haven (with Amy Haven & Cameron Keast) defeated Ayden Andrews (with DRP & Scott Adams) in a non-title match (11:31). Keast stood on the stage rather than coming to ringside. Whatley was fretting about TV time and getting kicked off of YouTube. Ace gave Andrews five consecutive arm drags and a ropes walk huracanrana. Ace kicked out of an Andrews superplex at one. But Ace was worse for wear.  Andrews took control with his power game. His Ushigiroshi was good for two count. Ace ran rings around Andrews with evasion tactics. Ace countered Endgame with Soul Food. Ace's shining wizard forced Andrews to grab the ropes. Both men down after Andrews' clothesline. Ace broke out the Jimmy Rave STO and an Alabama Jam. Andrews' flying knee to the back sent Ace to the floor.

DRP and Adams threw a half dozen chairs into the ring. Andrews set up an iron coffin and tried to powerbomb into it. Ace reversed into a roll up for the three count.

Postmatch, Karmageddon attacked Ace. McKenzie and Wood made the save. 

Ace has been on fire in the ring of late. Andrews demonstrated why he's one of ProSouth's MVPs. He does so many little things to get the stories and other talents over. Whatley was outrageous. He claimed Ooten ran a 4.3 40 yard dash as a high school linebacker. That would make him a top-tier at the NFL combine.

Scott Spade video from an undisclosed location in Easom Hill Spade said he was honorable man and planned to keep his word at Uprising by bring the ProSouth Championship home.  Spade also guaranteed that one of the two of them was not going to walk out of the building. He was going to lay their 15 history to rest and get that monkey off his back. And he hoped Amy Haven didn't get involved because the last few times they'd been in the ring together, Amy ended up flat on her face. He advised Ace to stay home on August 29. "I'm your huckleberry little fella."

It had the ring of authenticity that is Spade's stock in trade. You know Amy will Interject her presence into the match some way, some how.

Keast was still standing like statue on the stage. Ace saw blood dripping from Cam's mouth onto his chest.  He knew Ravana was there somewhere. Keast collapsed and started hemorrhaging blood from his mouth. 

Harley Haven came onstage to revive Keast and began to cough up blood. The ring lights went dark and the building was illuminated by strobes and  red filtered stage lights. Ravana attacked Ace from her hiding place underneath the stage. They fought into ring. Ace seemed powerless. Amy pleaded with Ravana to stop. Whatley was raving about the Haven's being under siege. Amy started coughing up blood. Ravana knocked Ace off the top rope into the iron coffin of chairs. Ravana surveyed the carnage she had wrought as the screen went to black.

There's no in between about a segment as fringe as this. Either the viewer suspends disbelief or dismisses it as stupid nonsense. It was the epitome of the highwire performance art  at the core of ProSouth's sensibilities. As a shameless mark for this story, I was all in.