More Smoky Mountain

Heavenly Bodies v The Fantastics (No DQ) (9/5/92)

You know, while Cornette basically wanted to recreate an 80s territory in a 90s world, this had more 90s-isms than I'd have expected, not least of which being guys making no bones about actually using the absence of rules to their advantage. Going through the Watts footage - and SMW felt like Cornette's version of Mid-South - it became clear that a tag match with a no DQ stip was going to be worked more or less the exact same as a regular tag. This was still worked within the boundaries of a regular tag, with one guy from each team being confined to the apron, but there were plenty of moments where someone would just go "fuck it" and set about someone with a weapon. Fulton picks up a title belt and actively waits until the referee is watching before he bonks it off Pritchard's head. He then grabs a pipe and in full view starts hitting folk with it. Later on Stan brings out a chain, wraps it around his fist and punches Jackie Fulton, blatantly chokes him with it, then waves it in front of the ref' because he knows he can't do anything about it. Cornette spraying a rag with something "medical smelling" is one of my favourite Cornette spots (first time I saw him do it was in Mid-South, shockingly enough), and it leads to an amazing post-match interview where he justifies himself by saying Bobby Fulton had a wound above his eye and Cornette was just trying to seal it so the match could continue, then Fulton keeled over and went to sleep because he must've been drunk. This was also for $20,000, and Cornette rolling around in the money like a total asshole was great.


Rock 'N' Roll Express v Heavenly Bodies (9/7/92)

Outrageously fun match. I had the biggest smile on my face during the first fifteen minutes. They get everyone fired up pre-match, first with Cornette's promo, then with Morton getting on the mic and saying, "We have come...to rock...your ass off!" Crowd goes wild and Lane's eardrum's about to burst. Cornette asks for quiet for the sake of poor Stan, so naturally the crowd shouts even louder. Heat is through the roof and the bell hasn't even rung. They run through a bunch of the tried and true spots from RnRs/MX matches of yesteryear, like the blind armwringer spot that the guys in M-Pro did all the time. Then they do one I've never seen before (I don't think), with Morton and Pritchard running a criss-cross, Morton slipping out while Pritchard continues to run, and Morton throwing Cornette in the ring where he ends up bumping into a still-running Pritchard. Cornette then comes up with his jacket over his head blindly swinging the tennis racket. Once the Bodies take over they just pull the ref' every which way with Morton getting his ass beat and Gibson trying to interject. I love how Cornette booked Stan Lane's ear around this time. It's a constant heat magnet, and it's been used a few times as a go-to for babyfaces. Morton slaps him in the ear as a lead-in to the hot tag and Lane does this incredible sell of it, like he just got hit with a snowball. When Pritchard wallops Gibson with the tennis racket there's this genuine sense of panic and fury from the crowd, then he kicks out and they hit the double dropkick and kids and adults alike go fucking apeshit. Between this set and the NWA Classics service I've watched some killer tag matches the last few days, but this is probably the best of the lot.


Tim Horner v Dirty White Boy (9/19/92)

This was about seven minutes long and totally ruled. It's probably the best I've ever seen Horner look, actually. All of his offence looked great, from his dropkick to his airtight inside cradle. He's not the kind of guy you want as your top babyface (even if he has most of the tools mechanically), but he's more than fine in something like this. White Boy was mostly about the selling here, taking one incredible bump off a Horner punch that was serious rewind material. Ron Wright falling out his wheelchair at the end was absolutely un-fucking-real and literally made me laugh out loud. God damn is the Ron Wright gimmick phenomenal.