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SHOWTIME ALL-STAR WRESTLING TV REPORT

Showtime All-Star Wrestling – Episode 103
Airing on August 22, 2009 in syndication and on WKRP in Lebanon, Tn
Taped at the SAW Mill in Millersville, Tn

LAST WEEK AT THE SAWMILL…Jesse Emerson got DQed after braining Jon Michael Worthington with a chair…In postmatch comments (new footage) from the locker room, Emerson said Worthington started it and he was going to end it…Clip of Emerson being pulled off a defenseless Worthington…Cut to Graham in the locker room with a slack-jawed, concussed Worthington. “Michael St. John, are you aware that last Tuesday, I ate at Ruby Wednesday? I had grilled shrimp.”…A determined Drew Haskins said he and LT Falk would defend the titles, and Derrick King Enterprises would have to break their spirits to get them.

Michael Graham and Reno Riggins previewed today’s show featuring the tag title match and the return of two former SAW Champions (pre-International era when it was the TV title) TJ Harley and Nore Havoc.

1 – SAW Tag Team Title Match: Champions LT FALK & DREW HASKINS vs. DERRICK KING & JT STAHR (with Big Dolla)

Riggins said he was surprised Falk and Haskins had held the belts as long as they had. Graham said no way where they at 100%. Crowd was hot for this one. Haskins got off to a fast start scoring a series of two counts on Stahr. Tag to Falk and an atomic drop/neckbreaker combo for two, then a corkscrew neckbreaker by Falk for a near fall. Stahr tagged out, and Falk took over on King. Reno wondered if the champions had enough gas in the tank working such a fast pace. Haskins back in, and he was on fire with big moves for near falls. The momentum changer came at 4:30 in the huge form of Big Dolla. With Stahr distracting the ref, Dolla pulled Haskins out and slammed him on the concrete floor. Haskins was writhing in agony. (commercial break) Haskins was taking a ferocious beating with DKE focusing on his battered back. Dolla gave Haskins another body slam on the concrete floor, except this time, he tossed him. Brutal as hell. Reno used his “sounded like a piece of liver hitting the kitchen floor” line. DKE stepped up the brutality. Stahr hit a jukin and jiving pendulum elbow. King sent Haskins into the turnbuckles sternum first. Stahr gave Haskins double stomps to the back and stomach. DKE hit a double team backbreaker for a long two count. (commercial break) King took a flying crotch bump onto the middle turnbuckle and Haskins made the tag. Advantage Falk but not for long. Stahr gave him a hotshot with an assist from King. King hit a neckbreaker and saw Haskin crawling along the apron. King kicked him to the floor. Stahr curbstomped Falk. Enzuirgi from Falk and both men down. Falk was looking for the tag, but Haskins slid off the apron and stumbled away leaving LT high and dry. King leveled Falk with a great superkick, but Falk kicked out. Cut to Haskins going through the curtain. Falk fought off a double team and got a last gasp small package on JT. DKE put Falk out his misery with Exit 1-A (neckbreak/powerbomb combo).

WINNERS: King & Stahr to win the SAW Tag Team Championship in 12:45. Really well worked match here, and a lively full house for a change. The champions shine was on the money. Haskins did an awesome job selling (?) the beating. Those were some sick looking body slams. The finish told a clear and compelling story.

DKE celebrated. The announce team questioned what was up with Haskins. Reno wondered if he was just dazed and confused.

Graham and Riggins recapped the title match with clips of those ungodly body slams.

Brandy Malone conducted a sitdown interview with Harley, who explained that he had been out of action with a blood clot in his leg. Harley said he felt fine, but couldn’t train or wrestle because the clot could have caused a pulmonary embolism. Harley said he had been wrestling 10 years and had nothing but injuries during his 2 years in SAW, so he understood the fans’ skepticism about his comeback. Harley admitted he may not have had enough time in the gym, but he was bringing everything he had, and being in the ring with top talent like Andy Douglas was exactly what he wanted.

This week’s top 10 list - SAW International Champion–Kid Kash 1-Stevens 2-Hammerjack 3-Worthington 4-Douglas 5-Santel 6-Emerson 7-Dolla 8-Sean Casey 9-Flash Flanagan 10-Arrick Andrews.

2 – ANDY DOUGLAS (with Paul Adams) vs. TJ HARLEY

Graham said Harley’s blood clot was a life threatening situation. Reno said Harley couldn’t be in ring shape, so he had to give the advantage to Douglas, despite the grueling match with Stevens two week ago. Douglas imposed his will with a back elbow and three straight rights in the corner. Harley rallied. He tried an up and over, and Douglas was waiting with a rabbit lariat. Adams choked Harley with his towel. Douglas cut off a comeback a high knee for a near fall. Reno said they extra security on hand to prevent Chase Stevens from disrupting the match. He compared Douglas/Stevens to Sawyer/Rich, Flair/Steamboat and Brody/Abdullah. Harley was mounting some offense with the crowd behind him, when Douglas crumpled him with a mule kick. Douglas softened up Harley’s neck and called for the Natural Selection. Harley countered with a swinging neckbreaker. Both men slow to rise. Harley used a short arm backdrop and a lariat to set up the big forearm, and Douglas barely kicked out in time. Harley tried for a suplex, and Douglas countered with the Natural Selection for the three.

WINNER: Douglas in 6:10 with the Natural Selection. Harley looked pretty decent making his return after a long layoff, and he wasn’t booked like a jabroni. Douglas dominated, but Harley made a solid comeback and got a big near fall near the end.

3 – CHASE STEVENS vs. NORE HAVOC

A bit of a dueling chant at the start. Reno put over Havoc’s hatchet finisher. Stevens opened with a knockdown shoulder tackle and controlled the arm into a hammerlock. Havoc stunned Stevens with a back elbow to the chops, and shoulder blocked for a quick two. Havoc was the first to use a closed fist. Havoc slingshot Stevens neck off the rope and put the boots to him. Havoc snapped off a sweet vertical suplex for a one count. Riggins said Havoc had come in 15 pounds heavier. Havoc used a modified sleeper. They had a mix up, and Havoc’s dropkick got only chest high. Reno brought up the time it felt like Ricky Morton caved in his chest with a dropkick like that. Havoc was brawling and disregarding the rules, but found nobody home for his leg drop off the ropes. Stevens capped off a big comeback with a corkscrew neckbreaker for a near fall. Stevens shrugged off the Hatchet, and tried for the fisherman suplex, but Havoc blocked it. Havoc again looked for the Hatchet, but Stevens countered with the fisherman suplex for the pin.

WINNER: Stevens in 6:53. This was OK. Havoc looked a might rusty. He did a nice job of turning the crowd against him. The announce team did their best to make it seem competitive, and Havoc did get plenty of offense, but it never felt like he had a real chance of winning.

They went to the replay, and Graham yelled to cut back to the live shot. Rick Santel had attacked Stevens. They were trading when Douglas hit the ring to make it two on one. Where’s that extra security when you need them? Adams and Santel slid a table in. Douglas put Stevens through the table with a super powerbomb. A-Team celebrated. Reno called it a sick picture. Adam placed his towel over Stevens’ body. Fade to black.

CLOSING THOUGHTS: In the context of the prime time Nashville TV debut coming up next, everything about this episode made sense. The time was right to bring the Cinderella story to an end, and get the belts off the kids and onto DKE. The title change was a forgone conclusion, but everybody involved did a beautiful job of telling the story. The replays of Dolla’s vicious body slams helped drive the point home. The mystery is Haskins. His actions were left open to interpretation. Was he dazed and confused as Reno suggested? Or is their something more heinous going on? Nothing like a wrestling show with subtlety for a change. There has been no obvious dissension, but there was always a reason why they never appeared together in the interview segments leading into either of the last two matches with DKE…The second half of the hour was logical, if overly predicatable advancement of the Douglas/Stevens feud. They really needed to explain what happened to that extra security Reno mentioned. Did they go out for hamburgers during the main event? Is it possible to get any good food in Millersville? But I digress…If you had any question about how much deeper SAW’s talent pool has gotten over the past two years, consider that they beat two former champions as a backdrop to the main angle…Great opening this week. That stuff with Worthington was gold. Worthington has a rather blank expression to begin with, and did that segment ever take advantage of it. Just like the interviews with Haskins capitalized on his inherent dopeyness to cast LT in a babyface light. It points to one of Paul Adams’ strengths as booker. When it comes to character development, he doesn’t force things. As Reno might say in one of his real sport comparisons, Adams takes what the defense gives him, and draws out the natural attributes of the talent.

There’s a lot going on for SAW over the coming weeks. Check out the Upcoming Events List and stayed tuned to sawonline.tv for further developments.