PWI & HCW brought us the first installment of Global Conflict this past Monday night, and if ever there was a perfect show for the 3R’s of wRestling, it’d have been this one. That said, I’m mopping things up this week, so I guess we’ll have to get over it! WWE was off this week, and I’m sure we’ll here more about that later.
We kick off the show with a really cool opening video package, which has always been a strong suit for the company. The music got me pumped, and the video did it’s job of reminding us of what’s at stake tonight. Good shit, no notes.
We transition into the opening contest, a Premier Athlete Tournament Roulette for the women’s division. In a major upset, Michelle McCool got a taste of relevance with a victory over Liv Morgan, thanks to Ruby Riott. Though McCool hasn’t done much for me throughout her career, I’m good with the upset because tournaments are designed for this sort of thing. Plus, Liv took the loss without taking any real damage, because it’s clear she’s still going to be a focal point for the women’s division moving forward.
After the match, we get Slammer and Alexa Bliss atop the rafters, with Nikki Cross on her knees begging for it… and by it, I of course mean Slammer’s massive fist… er… wait, that doesn’t much better. Slammer’s fist sends Nikki flying off the rafters in a sacrifice that’s enough to bring Bray Wyatt back to life. The lighting kept our view of Wyatt obstructed, and I’ve gotta say, Bray’s done this gimmick better than anyone since the OG introduction of FRED. Not a big fan of the music, though. It’s what I imagine Hell sounds like.
Backstage, Aiden English is getting ready for his match against the mystery opponent. He approaches Aggressor, and asks if he’s the opponent. Then he does the same to Ciampa, even though Aggressor made it clear it was a NEW signing. He asks Brandon Lee to lay down in the middle of the ring for him, and he swears it’ll be quick and easy. I have a feeling he’s given that speech before. Cena makes a quick cameo, and walks off in the middle of Aiden’s sentence. English started off rocky in PWI-HCW after he was drafted this past summer, but I think they’re FINALLY starting to find their niche with him.
LA Knight is backstage with Lawrence Mason, who calls Knight out for losing some steam. (It’s like he reads my work!) Knight says he’s keeping his eye out on the English/Mystery Man match, because the winner will challenge him next week for the Extreme Championship.
We get a really cool video package to hype of the Mystery Star, with references to Johnny Lawrence and the Mask. Just when I’m convinced it’s going to be one of those two men, we get the Crock as HCW’s latest signing! This was the peak of the show for me, because this is something HCW has desperately needed and it makes sense given the Crock’s strained relationship with Mickey throughout the years. I wasn’t quiet about my distaste for the Crock being retired a while back, but maybe I was wrong because him going away truly made me grow even fonder of him (which I didn’t realize was possible.) Truly one of the all time great wrestling characters, and the show feels bigger with him on it.
Next, we get Pac giving a pep talk to his Mexican friends. They’re interrupted by Slammu, who says he’s still the Badass Almighty King that he was in 1996.
We then cut to AJ Lee and Charlotte Flair, and Lee threatens Flair. She tells her to stay away from her best friend Becky Lynch, or else there will be consequences. I’m still mad that we let AJ go, but I’ve been pretty pleased with what we’ve seen from her in PWI.
In the battle of the Green Goblins, FRED defeats the Hulk. I respect the attempts to legitimize Hulk as something more than a FRED clone, but I truly hope we can move on from him now that he got a career-defining performance with his arch rival. FRED is now the number one contender for Drago— er, I mean, “whoever” wins tonight’s triple threat main event.
Backstage, Becky Lynch gets cornered by Penelope Ford and Friends, who outnumber the champion. Maryse say Becky is overrated, and Becky points out they’re not even in the same promotion. They argue over what door Becky should exit, and then the segment ends LOL.
Hey, it’s Edge & Krazy Kid! THEY STILL WORK HERE! They call out Mr. and Mr. for being idiots, and claim they want to beat up on women. They call them out for their lies and call for Edge Court. Mr. and Mr. promise them a title shot for the belts they’ve yet to win, but it’s enough to interrupt court. Kennedy and Perfect then argue about how they’re spilling the beans about their plan (in front of a camera that the IIconics can see) Gotta wonder who the real idiots are here…
In our next match, Phobe flashes his dick at the hard cam (HARD… get it? PENIS!) only for Terminator to turn on him and assist Brian Cage. I’m a fan of Brian Cage, and I guess this storyline with Phobe and Terminator intrigues me, but I felt the placement of this match was off, which is a shame after how much work PWI did to fix their pacing issues last week. That said, it’s always gonna be hard to top FRED and the Crock, so maybe I’m being too picky?
Backstage, the Attraction argue with Petey Williams about who will win this tournament. Teo says Attitude is three times the superstar that Williams is, and I ask myself WHERE ARE THE LIES. Cardona steps up, and calls them all has-beens and says he’s going all the way. Mystico pops in to say he’s gotta go through him first. I’ve shit on this tournament since its inception, but I will say, in the final stretch they really are doing a good job at reminding of us of who the players are and why it matters.
Backstage in what looks like someone’s house, the Brothers Metal brawl before Shane McMahon interrupts and says they’re going to settle this next week in a career match. Happy retirement, Heavy Metal!
In the main event, Ted Brown gives an assist to Dragonfly to give HCW the edge for the night, as Dragonfly is still “technically” an HCW star since unifying the two world titles. Listen, we all knew that Dragonfly was getting to the 500 day milestone as champ, and I’m okay with the screwy ending IF and only if I get a proper explanation. Just a few weeks back Mickey was willing to do whatever he had to do to keep Orton away from Dragonfly’s belt, and now it’s Ted Brown who screws Orton out of the belt? Like I said, I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here, but I’d be lying if the twist didn’t momentarily leave me scratching my head to make sense of it all.
Overall, another solid effort from the PWI, and they did good work to hype up next week when AEW is off for our post-PPV reset.
World Of Wrestling: Murrey Universe 