Smart Marks 11.23.13: Thanksgiving Feast

Welcome back one and all to another edition of Smart Marks, your weekly home to hang out in a musky room with a bunch of dorks and talk some wrestling! I mean that as lovingly as possible, I promise.

So uh, any lucha fans in the house?

I recently got around to setting the DVR to record any and all lucha programs it could find. I used to watch AAA semi-religiously on Saturday afternoons, but it’s been a few years, and I’m a little out of the loop. Sadly, I found no AAA show on my DirecTV listings. However, I did receive two separate CMLL programs, which was pretty neat because outside of PWI, I’ve never actively followed CMLL.

The first program was broadcast on a local Spanish station with horrible audio and video, but featured Comandante Pierroth, who I remembered from his brief 1997 WWF stint, as well as Tamatonga, adopted son of Haku. There was also Super Porky, who I also recall from that horrible Smackdown stint.

However, after a quick visit to Wiki, I realized this program must have been from the late 90’s. What a disappointment.

What was worse, was that the second CMLL program was from the same era! What gives?? Any CMLL fans that can fill me in on the repeats?

For what it’s worth- it was nice to get to see some lucha again. I will make fun of lucha until the cows come home- too many armdrags, headscissors, backslap Irish whips, and WAY too many “I’m gonna stand here so you can land on me” sequences- but that doesn’t mean I don’t love everything about it. I saw a match with an unmasked Averno against Titan, who I had never seen. I was instantly impressed with Titan, and now hope to search out some more of his stuff.

On top of that, the chain wrestling and submissions that luchadors will use are unique and incredible. The trios matches that I fondly recall from WCW Nitro are always instant action and even if it’s two hours of six man tags, I am still entertained.

I was definitely bummed to not find any AAA- any help? Any suggestions on where to find more current lucha programming?

As a sidenote- the third program I found was for Lucha Revolución Uprising, a local indy ran out of the San Jose, California area. Joey Ryan was on the card, as was my favorite indy wrestler, the Human Tornado. If you live in the area, definitely give it a look- good American Lucha action, if that’s your thing.

Any help on the lucha front? Hit me up in the comments!

My first big Survivor Series memory was actually Bad News Brown walking out on his team. I had never seen a bad guy sell out his fellow bad guys like that! I’m pretty sure he first did it at the 1988 edition, only to repeat the act the following year if I’m not mistaken! Sure, the initial edition was of course amazing with all these super teams, but Bad News Brown ditching his partners was amazing.

The Undertaker’s debut has to be mentioned in this area as well. I remember immediately thinking “That’s Mean Mark!” and being shocked at his new persona. His manhandling of WWE Hall of Famer Koko B. Ware let us know that this guy meant serious business. 1990. Man, I can’t believe the dude still wrestles sporadically. Undertaker rules.

The 1992 edition saw a departure from the usual formula, as well as a fun Bret Hart/Shawn Michaels WWF Title match. Who knew those two could deliver a good match?!

I remember feeling total heartbreak in 1994 when Owen Hart convinced his Mom Helen to throw in the towel and cost Bret the title against Bob Backlund. It was such a fantastic match, only to be ruined by the devilish scamp!

The 1996 edition is a personal favorite as Bret returned and tore the house down with Steve Austin, The Rock made his blue chip debut, and Sid won his first world title by ending the reign of HBK. A phenomenal show, for my tastes. The only surprising thing is that Bret and Steve went and topped this masterpiece at Mania 13.

1997 is of course infamous.

I loved the WCW vs WWF blowoff for the 2001 edition, the Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels title match in 2007, and this year, I’m looking forward to… well, I guess CM Punk and Daniel Bryan against the Wyatt’s could be fun. And yes, I do think the Rhodes/Usos/Rey (if he’s okay) vs. Shield/Americans will be pretty fun, too. Not so thrilled about Del Rio / Cena or Orton / Big Show, but I understand that we’re just in a holding pattern until Bryan can win the Rumble.

What’re YOU guys looking forward to at Survivor Series? Hit me up in the comments!

I’m closing it out with some thoughts on the Turning Point episode of Impact, so if you haven’t watched, you can skip down to the video at the end.

First things first, they finally took the old dog out back and put a bullet in its head. Aces and Eights continued the wonderful wrestling tradition of the super heel group going out not in a hot battle, but instead with a whimper. No different than the Corporation or the nWo, the group had been whittled down to three members, and Bully Ray had no belt. The once dominant faction that terrorized TNA had seen better days, and when Brooke threw the bottle 58 feet instead of the necessary 3 to get it to Bully, you knew it was over. Mr. Anderson is being given quite the push here as the man to get it done, and I look forward to his next 3 week title reign that can be abruptly ended on Impact by Sting. I kid, I kid.

Anderson’s new gear? Yowsa. And yes, I pick on horrible attire in WWE, too. I see he went to AJ Styles’ tailor.

The Joe and Magnus match was decent enough, and I was actually happy to see a slyly dirty win for Magnus as he ascends to become Dixie’s handpicked champion. I thought the finish was going to be Dixie yelling at Joe, who then got rolled up. Appreciate the charge into the chair being Joe’s ultimate undoing.

Did NOT dig the throwing in the towel finish for Storm and Roode. Storm has just got next to no revenge on Bobby Roode for 2 years now, and the idea that he’d ever reach through the ropes to pull Roode into the ring after what happened in that title match drives me crazy. I dug the match, make no mistake. A great, violent brawl was definitely supplied by them. But, man, what a dogshit finish. Suddenly GUNNER of all people has a heart?

I’m also 100% on board with EC3, in case you were wondering. “Classic EC3” indeed. And a fun outing with Shark Boy (who is ALWAYS a treat to see) made for another fun match.

Gail Kim murdering that California Indy chick was fun, too. But boy did she suck. 3 running steps and a mini hop for EVERY sequence. Let’s keep her off of TV.

Finally, the Bad Influence / Joe Park / Abyss segment was so bad, that it became good again. Were we really supposed to believe that Kaz and Daniels were just rolling with a bucket of blood? I just assumed that since it wasn’t real blood, the Abyss transformation didn’t happen. Still, Pouty Faced Joe is just about as cool as Crying Big Show. BRING BACK ABYSS!!!

Overall, I enjoyed the Turning Point: Impact show. Angles were advanced, the matches were decent, and even the Worst Fans in the World, the Orlando Impact Zone fans, weren’t so unbearable. Maybe the new studio makes them more tolerable. Who knows? Well done, TNA.

That’ll do it for this week. Enjoy your weekend, have a great Thanksgiving if you’re taking part, and as always… Enjoy your WWE, your TNA, your Lucha, your Puro, and your Indies.