TAKE PWTORCH
WITH YOU! Get our iPhone App (FREE!): Click Here Or enter "PWTorch.com" on your Blackberry or other Smart Phone browser for mobile-version of PWTorch.
RADICAN'S TAKE
DEJ's Kevin: Covering Pro Wrestling Ohio - The Ladder Match for the Heirloom Swords Part I Jul 21, 2008 - 2:29:35 PM
In my haste to post the part about the Ladder Match itself, I forgot to put the first part of the show in. Maybe it will help to bring some more context to the article posted this weekend.
I'm breaking this review up into two parts because I wanted to describe the action in the biggest gimmick match the PWO has had on television. Normally, I gloss over the in-ring product to convey the storylines and break down a building block to making a good wrestling product. The regular rundown of everything on the show but the ladder match is included below along with the weekly analysis.
"Deelicious" Jimmy DeMarco was the first wrestler called to the ring. Hobo Joe was named his opponent. Joe collected money from patrons at ringside in an empty tin can. Jamie Scott, the color commentator, wondered why people would spend their money on a hobo and then tried to be controversial by suggesting that Hobo Joe be sent to Iraq. Joe Domborwski, the play-by-play announcer, mentioned that Marion Fontaine was taken to the hospital after the last show because the purse that Jimmy DeMarco hit him with was loaded. As the match got underway, "The Clash", Earnie Ballz & Brian Bender, stood on the entrance ramp because they also blamed Hobo Joe for ruining their talk show, "The Rock Show". Joe was forced on them as a guest by PWO management. After a distraction from Brian Bender, Jimmy DeMarco rolled up Hobo Joe from behind for the three count. "The Clash" then attacked Joe. The referee didn't even try to care about the beat down. He just walked away from the ring. The least he could have done was tell them to stop or get someone to ring the bell. Bender then grabbed a microphone and said they will ruin Bobby Beverly just like they did Hobo Joe because they got the "The Rock Show" cancelled.
After the commercial break, Josh Prohibition cut a promo about being a great wrestler. He then talked up his credentials for the newly announced Heavyweight Title that Pro Wrestling Ohio is creating. Michael Hutter interrupted him and reminded Prohibition that he had pinned him on the last show. They talked more trash to each other and then started shoving each other. The shoving led to a brawl which was broken up by security.
Pedro the Ring Announcer then introduced Cronus and his agent Aaron Maguire. Chris Larusso is introduced as his opponent and Joe Dombrowski hyped him as an up and coming talent from the area. Jamie Scott asked PWO management to come up with better opponents for Cronus. Dombrowski countered by noting that Jason Bane is ready and willing. Cronus won in a squash match. Maguire then got on the mic and told PWO management to pony up the dough for the match up with Bane because Cronus will destroy him. Jason Bane then hit the ring and cornered Maguire after Aaron reminded him of his order of protection. Maguire then slapped Bane which turned him around enough for Cronus to hit him in the head with a weak looking chair shot. Bane no sold the chair shot as the heels high tailed it to the back.
Joe Dombrowski then conducted a sit-down interview with Johnny Gargano, who arrived in a wheelchair to drive home his point of mocking "The Cripple" Gregory Iron. Dombrowski asked Gargano if he had any remorse and Gargano said "No" quickly. Joe continued to ask Gargano about having remorse and answered "No" again. Gargano kept on fidgeting and making dumb faces during the interview. Dombrowski tried to get an apology out of him but he just courted the ladies and told them to find him on his MySpace page.
Analysis: Because they left ample time for the ladder match, more segments were jammed into this fast-paced show than normal. The opening match kept two separate storylines, Jimmy DeMarco & Marion Fontaine and "The Clash" against Bobby Beverly & Hobo Joe. Josh Prohibition and Michael Hutter both cut solid promos which helped to hype the soon to exist PWO Heavyweight Title. The biggest storyline, Jason Bane versus Cronus, was kept moving along and got it's own segment which it deserved. The sit-down interview sounded like it was on a continuous loop. Neither side did a good job. Dombrowski could have done a better job of beating around the bush and asking about more of the backstory of the feud. Gargano's constant twitching might have been OK if Gregory Iron suffered from Tourette's Syndrome.
Kevin DiFrango is the hardest working member of the DEJ Experience. Keep an eye out for Dusty, Eric or Jeremy's articles and our Ask the Experience blog. If you feel like you have some ideas to stir into our pot, email us at theaudioexperience@gmail.com
INCREDIBLE BENEFITS! Over 50 full-length audio updates per month (iPod compatible)... New weekly award-winning Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter (text and printable pdf versions) with latest exclusive insider news, new Torch Talks, great columns, Keller's cover story, much more... Hundreds of full-length back issues of PWTorch Newsletter from late-'80s to today... Ad-free access to PWTorch.com's Main Listing... VIP Forum with interaction with other subscribers and Torch staff... Torch Talk Library with text and audio of hundreds of interview installments from last 20 years... Great layout... Deepest archives on pro wrestling history anywhere... Keller's PWTorch Today PDF Bulletins with email alerts... VIP Email reports on major PPVs and TV shows... Staff Roundtable Reviews (text and audio) followiing major events... The best staff of writers and world class reporting since 1987... We'd love for you to join us and experience the most entertaining, authoritative, experienced staff of professional reporters and commentators in the business...
Compare the value of four or five months of PWTorch VIP content to the price of just one PPV. Can you cut 25 cents a day from your budget to make room for PWTorch VIP?
AND NEW FOR 2009! Monthly "Vintage Audio Torch Talks." We are releasing for the first time ever audio versions of our text Torch Talk updates, the historical first series of insider interviews ever. Wade Keller's newsmaking in-depth interviews with wrestling's biggest names are now being made available exclusively to VIP members. But you must be a member each month, as these are not archived, so they are replaced with a new one each month! This debuted in January 2009 with a 68 minute interview with the late "British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith. Who's next? Hulk Hogan? Eric Bischoff? The Rock? Goldberg? Jeff Hardy?
