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Can you hear it? Can you hear that? Bring it real close, cameraman, so the world can hear the things that are going through my head.
Marc Anthony was clinging to a chain link fence inside the Nashville Fairgrounds Arena. He looked like stark raving lunatic, sitting barefoot on the floor wearing his army helmet and cammies. He waxed poetic.
Hammerjack tonight, tonight is the night, where you step out of your fear and back into the light. I hope you have them laced real, real tight. Cuz there’s nothing I want more than a fight. When this is all done my friend, you might just have to walk into the light (Anthony let it rip with the barking...fade to black)
Michael Graham and Reno Riggins came to us from the Nashville Fairgrounds, where Kid Kash would celebrate his one year anniversary holding the SAW International Title defending it against Vordell Walker. In addition, Hammerjack returns from an ever so brief retirement to defend his family’s honor against Anthony.
It’s Showtime and SAW STARTS NOW~! Roll the montage.
Hammerjack’s retirement interview from episode 115 was replayed with clips of the dragon park vignette (Anthony spying on Hammer and his daughter) and footage from “SAW: The Next Level†with Hammer’s daughter coming out carrying Anthony’s helmet.
That was followed by Anthony’s rainy day playground vignette from episode 117 and an unseen Anthony taking photos of Hammer’s daughter through the sliding glass door from 118. Creepy stuff indeed.
Dan Masters did a prematch locker room interview with Hammerjack. Four week ago, he swore he was done with pro wrestling, but Anthony dragged him back into it by coming to his home and invading his privacy.
Tonight, it’s personal, brother. I’m coming for you. I swear to God, I’m going to beat your eyes out, set them in the first row so you can see me standing over your lifeless body.
1 - “Maniac†MARC ANTHONY vs. HAMMERJACK
Anthony marched into the ring helmet in hand and waited for Hammer’s arrival. He was looking toward the ceiling and talking to somebody that wasn’t there. Reno said it was the wrestling gods. More likely he was addressing his departed mentor, Ronnie P. Hammerjack surprised Anthony with an attack from the rear flank. A big boot spilled Anthony through the ropes. Anthony retreated to the back. Hammerjack hauled Anthony back to ringside and pounded away on him. Anthony was bleeding over the left eye and looking completely out of his mind. Crazy like a fox, as used Hammer’s shirt to toss him through the ropes. Anthony hit a psychotic suicide dive ala Hotstuff Hernandez. Major wreckage at ringside as the went to commercial. Anthony fired Hammer into the rail. Kids were shrieking. Anthony talked to Ronnie P. Anthony pulled the pads up, but he ended up on the wrong end of a backdrop onto the concrete. Both men in utter agony. Easily a double count out. Reno said ref Joe Williams was letting them fight. Back inside the ring, Hammerjack was beating the hell out of Anthony. Anthony was out of it. Williams tried to intervene. Hammer slugged Williams. Senior Official Mark Herron hit the ring to wave off the match. Hammer shoved him to the mat and continued to drill Anthony’s forehead with punch after punch.
WINNER: Anthony via DQ in 8:09. Great stuff. Nothing like playing to the strengths of the talent. Take two crazy brawlers put them in a crazy brawl. It had that wild, out of control feeling like back in the day. Key was their willingness to sell the devastation. Best match either one of them have had in SAW.
Two wrestlers hit the ring to pull Hammerjack off. He decked them. Anthony staggered to the back. It took six guys to get Hammer under control. Just as things were settling down, Anthony ran out and dove on top of Hammer. It turned into a total melee with about a dozen SAW wrestlers and officials trying to break it up. Crowd was going nuts for this. Graham said it looked like a rugby scrum with the two of them clawing at each other on the floor.
Back from commercial, the announce team talked about the chaos they had just witnessed. Reno said he was afraid they might not have enough personnel to separate them. They cut to Anthony, who was back out beating up security. Hammer ran back out and potatoed Anthony. Another huge pull apart ensued with fans chanting “let them fightâ€.
Back to Graham and Riggins again with things finally under control. Reno said the cops had to be called in before it was over. They cut to Hammer cooling his heels in the locker room. Graham said Anthony may have already left the building.
Cut to an interview with Walker conduced by Masters. Walker talked about going the Savannah Civic Center on Friday nights to see WCW, and telling his mother pro wrestling was what he wanted to do with his life. Walker said his time in SAW hadn’t been without tremendous adversity. He referenced being put out of action by Big Dolla and Derrick King Enterprises (cut to footage of Dolla destroying him at the SAW Mill). Walker said he had earned his shot at one of the most prestigious titles on the world, and tonight, history would be made.
Grumpy’s Bail Bonds Bail Jumpers segment with “Bond Girl†Leah. Tonight’s featured bail jumper was the one and only Billie Jo Parker/Billie Jo Weaks for the third week running. Leah said Billie Jo had been living with an elderly man named granddaddy, who died of mysterious causes after Billie Jo robbed him blind. Billie Jo would get granddaddy’s pills, and now that he had gone to his just reward, she was out there trying to score her Oxycodone.
Big reward, folks. BIG REWARD. I’m tired of thinking of about Billie Jo Parker and Billie Jo Weaks, so this week make it happen. I want to pay somebody some money.
2 -- SAW International Title Match: KID KASH (with Melody) vs. VORDELL WALKER
Kash had an unidentified blonde bimbo as his valet. They went nose to nose. Crowd broke out the “Kash sucks†chant. Lots of Kash’s usual stalling tactics. In the only MMAish sequence of the match, Kash shot for a single leg. Walker fought it and tried for a submission. Kash reversed and pounded Walker from the mount. When Walker took over, Kash bumped bigger than he has for any of his previous SAW opponents. Kash bailed. Walker followed and took a flip bump into the rail for his troubles. Back inside, Kash used a standing suplex and a series of kneedrops for a near fall. Walker hit a back suplex and it was both men down. Walker tried to climb. Kash kicked the ropes to crotch him, but Walker recovered to hit a superplex. Walker blitzed Kash with high impact offense. An STO got messed up, but the crowd reacted because it looked painful for Kash. Kash busted out the double jump moonsault for the first time in SAW, but Walker kicked out of it. Kash tried to pull something out of Melody’s purse. She wasn’t down with it. Walker got suckered into the mess, and Kash rolled him up using the tights, while fully exposing the crack of his ass (same thing he did to Al Snow in his previous title defense).
WINNER: Kash retains the title in 14:37. Good match. It had realistic intensity and they worked surprisingly well together. Finish was only so-so. I expected more MMA stuff, because Kash wasn’t going to find a better opponent on the SAW roster for that style.
CLOSING THOUGHTS: If this promotion does nothing else of note, SAW can take pride in achieving the unthinkable in 2009 - they produced three compelling, visually pleasing hours of television in front of packed house at the Nashville Fairgrounds, and did so on a shoestring budget. This was the last of those episodes, and it was arguably the best of the three due to all the Anthony/Hammerjack stuff. The recap reminded me just how great this angle started with the Anthony vignettes right through their first physical contact at “SAW: The Next Levelâ€. They should have left well enough alone. The Hammerjack retirement never made sense to me, and it just watered things down. Hammer’s prematch promo worked for me, as did Anthony’s opening vignette. The TV version of the pull apart did a great job of a capturing it visually. The audio didn’t do justice to the way the crowd heat build to an absolute frenzy live. Kash and Walker had about as good a match as could be expected, given that there was no build for it at all, since the original plan didn’t include Walker as Kash’s opponent. Next week’s episode taped at Buffalo Billiards should prove interesting. SAW faces the challenge of maintaining storyline continuity after an 8 week break between tapings, as they start the build to the next Fairgrounds event on February 13.
