.png)
From Lawrence Goodman:
Going into the show, it was known that there would be a mystery entrant in the Gold Rush Ladder Match and a mysterious masked man would likely play a role in Caged Warfare.
Both mysteries had the same solution. In the swerviest of swerves, Ayden Andrews returned to ProSouth as Amy Haven's choice for the Gold Rush match, only to go into to business for himself and get forcibly removed from the building. The masked man who helped the Process win Caged Warfare was none other than Andrews, Amy's new recruit for the Process.
Andrews, a triple crown champion at ProSouth, had been gone from the company for six months and could not have returned at a better time to a roster in need for shoring up.
As nonplussed as this writer was about the build, Caged Warfare was a masterpiece of match construction. Investing in the story was paid off with dividends.
The unsurprising winner of the Gold Rush match was Brother Azriel. Az secured the briefcase that gives him the inside track to regaining the title that is his stated objective.
The Steven Calozzi/KJ Valentine story is moving at warp speed with two title changes in the space of eight days.
ProSouth did not overplay their hand. Spring Spectacular was a compact show -- four matches with a 95 minute run time, no extraneous BS. The result was one of their best television episodes of the year.
Wicked Nemesis and Mathias Darkthorne in the commentation station, Darkthorne ring announcing his heart out, Joseph Void and the debuting Young Boy Lou officiated.
Commissioner Amy introduced Andrews her hand-picked Plan A for the Gold Rush match. Amy told Andrews she brought him in to make sure the right man won. Andrews had a different idea.. He was going to win the match and cash in on ProSouth Champion Joe Black tonight.
(1) Gold Rush Ladder Match: Brother Azriel defeated Julius Pryor & Christian Garrett and Amy Haven's mystery entrant Ayden Andrews in 10:57. Three ladders were available -- one eight foot and a pair of six footers.
Early on, we got a foreshadowing of the showdown at the finish. Az put one of the 6 footers to use as a weapon. Pyror did martial arts posing routine like he was on the set of Mortal Kombat using the ladder like a set of nunchucks. Garrett took a chair to his opponents. Az gave Garrett and Pryor corner-to-corner Stinger splashes squashing them behind propped up ladders. They made a ladder sandwich out of Az.
Pryor was headed up the tall ladder for the briefcase with nothing standing in his way when he stopped to take a phone call from his agent. "I got the part!" Pryor was ecstatic and got dumped off the ladder by Az.
Az and Andrews climbed opposites sides of the tall ladder. Andrews got a hand on the briefcase. Az choke slammed Andrews off the ladder. Az had a devil of a time with briefcase. He struggled with the damn thing for 45 seconds. Pryor finally climbed the other side of the ladder and got hauled down by Andrews as Az finally secured the briefcase.
The body of the match was kind of mid. I have to admire Pryor's is committment to the gimmick. The finish was something. Andrews took a hell of bump on that choke slam. Az's struggle with the briefcase was agonizing. Time stood still. The beauty of it was the way Az got across how much had been taken out of him after it was over.
Amy Haven was furious with Andrews and had him escorted out of the building by security, telling him to never come back.
(2) True Grit (Christian Pierce & Julian Balderas) defeated PopRock Connection ("East Atlanta Pop Star" Von LaFlare & "Mr. Rockstar" Donovan Thomas) to retain the ProSouth Tag Team Championship in 12:51 .Leaning into the perversity, PopRock Connection had tearaway pants. Solid teamwork by PopRock to maintain upper hand in the early going. Balderas debuted an amazing spinning power slam. True Grit's black hole slam/cannonball combo on Thomas was not enough as LaFlare broke up the pin. PopRock got heat on Pierce, who used a Styles Clash as a hope spot. WTF? Balderas penalized PopRock severely for excessive celebration. A sequence of tandem offense by True Grit ensued until PopRock foiled a double team. LaFlare gave Balderas a belt shot and PopRock leveled him with a high low. Pierce bowled Pop Rock over to make the save. All four slugged it out on their knees.
Pierce got pulled out of the ring by LaFlare. Thomas hit an implant DDT on Balderas and went for another high low. Pierce stepped in to take the bullet. Balderas broke up the pin. True Grit hit an double stomp back suplex combo oon LaFlare for the three count.
This match overdelivered. In True Grit, ProSouth has formidable tag team champions. Ballsy to go 13 minutes with PopRock Connection, who had their best ProSouth match for sure, sloppy in spots, but showing more intensity and cohesiveness as a unit. True Grit has already elevated a devalued title to a level not seen since Joe Black and Kenway held the belts. It is unfathomable that their title reign ended less than a year ago.
(3) KJ Valentine defeated All-Out Champion Steven Calozzi via DQ to regain the All-Out Championship in 7:52. Earlier in the evening, Darkthorne had informed the viewers that Calozzi beat Valentine for the title in a members only exclusive after last week's show.
Calozzi came onstage blowing kisses to The Faithful, and double-legged Valentine as soon as he came through the ropes. Young Boy Oscar called for the bell. Valentine powdered out. Calozzi beat KJ's ass some more on the outside. Then we got proper introductions and the explanation of the rules -- one rope break, 20 count on the outside, title can changes hands on a count out or DQ.
Crowd chanted "All Out Clozzi". Valentine attacked the champ from behind and hit a cannonball while Calozzi's head draped over the middle rope. Nice. Calozzi cut Valentine off and delivered a running cutter out of the corner. Also nice. They did Nestea plunges in stereo after a Calozzi headbutt. Calozzi applied an STF sleeper, forcing Valentine to use up his rope break.
.png)
The match was the raw, vulgar fight this twisted story called for. The finish was kind of a mess. Calozzi is trying to turn over a new leaf but he's hardly a humble good guy. Valentine has demonstrated no reedeeming qualities whatsoever.
(4) Caged Warfare: The Process (ProSouth Champion Joe Black & Brandon Whatley & Tragick & Joe Wood with Amy Haven) defeated Team Haven (Ace Haven & Justin McKenzie & Oliver Green & Caeden Ooten with Harley Haven) in 26 minutes.
War Game format with elimination rules. Whatley and McKenzie started. They fought outside the cage for most of the opening two minutes. McKenzie was wearing his facepint and the announce team was puttitng it over that he had regained his confidence.
Wood entered next for The Process. McKenzie sent Whatley into the cage, knocking Wood of the apron in a chain reaction. McKenzie dominated Whatley while Wood was nursing an injury suffered in the fall. Whatley catapulted McKenzie into the cage as Green entered the cage for Team Haven.
Green and McKenzie got their asses kicked. Joe Black was next for the Process. He sat in the corner Raven style to watch his partners dish out a beating.
Ooten was next for Team Haven. He was a whirlwind against all three members of the Process.
With the glow of his collar illuminating the darkness, Tragick was the final competitor to enter for the Process. He subdued Ooten with a Keast Infection and choked Green out for the first elimination. Wood was manhandling McKenzie, Off camera, McKenzie was rendered unconscious by Tragick with the Captain's Hook during Ace Haven's entrance.
Ace (accompanied by Scott Adams) entered his first official match since February in Ace Haven fashion -- with a dive off the top of the cage. Ace traded with Black and put him down witha superkick. Whatley attacked from behind. Ace pinned Whatley with the Windwaker. Ooren speared Black and pinned the ProSouth Champion with Loaded Gun Complex.
Suddenly, it was all evened up -- Ace & Ooten vs. Tragick & Wood. Ace and Ooten hit Statue of Liberty (choke slam/spear combo) on Wood and Ace pinned him.
Ooten was about to destroy Tragick with an LGC off the ropes. Tragick's collar started to flicker. Darkthorne said he heard Tragick begging Ace for help. The collar went green again. Tragick snapped Ace's fingers and miraculously brought Ooten off the ropes with a bulldog to eliminate Sleazy C.
Shit got wild. Down to Tragick and Ace. Tragick's collar was flashing. Ace hesitated. The collar went green and it was on. Referee Joseph Void got bumped not once, not twice but five times in the corner. Ace choke slammed Tragick without a ref to make the count. Tragick clocked Ace with a running knee. Harley entered the cage to confront Tragick. He withered and his collar went haywire. Amy got in the cage and choked out her own daughter. Adams climbed into the cage to deal with Amy. A second ref entered the cage and hit an enzuigiri on Adams. Ace choke slammed the unknown ref. Amy escaped the cage.
Ace and Tragick did a crash and burn number off the top rope. The scene was utter carnage. The masked man blew through security to enter the ring. He hit a cutter on Ace, pulled Tragick on top of him and dragged Void out of the corner to make the three count.
The masked man stomped Ace and pulled off the mask to reveal Andrews. Amy and Andrews struck a pose as the screen went to black.
An epic trip to fantasy land, so many stories within the story. It is storyteling with this kind of depth that have kept me coming back to ProSouth for more. I loved how the match was laid out to break the typical War Games mold where the team with the man advantage always dominates. I've never seen multiple ref bumps the likes of which Joseph Void took in this match. Ooten pinned the champion so there's that. The match came down to the former best friends. The tease of Cameron Keast being released from bondage did not come to fruition. The deck is more stacked than ever against Ace.
.png)