Mike Summers
24/09/01
Opener: Recap of Havoc and The Royal Family � 4.0
After a blockbuster Pay-Per-View in Havoc, this week�s Venom looked to be a messy car wreck. Originally it seems Cazzo had a lot more planned for this week, but after a string of injuries, departures and bruised egos, the post-Havoc Venom looked to be a hodge-podge of mismatched wrestlers and last-minute booking. And lets face it� we�ve seen better cards go to the dogs after some poor scripting. Having said all that, this week�s Venom turned out to be a surprisingly good show. Okay, so it wasn�t the post-Havoc show it should have been� for instance, why wasn�t more said about the Kritical Kondition/Rage match? The two top guys wrestling today go head to head and all we get is a one-liner from O�Connor and a quick sell by Pilchard? Johnson and Prohibition had a blinder, and no one even brought it up� again, excepting Pilchard. More should have been made of such a brilliant show. Still, for what this was� and if you haven�t guessed what I�m getting at, I�ll spell it out for you� a show booked with little preparation, little storyline basing, and without some of the biggest stars, Venom was still worth watching.
Alright, on to business. The recap was delivered with the usual EWCL care and skill, and really showed what a great show it had been (shame that was almost the last we heard of it). The program then proceeded to further the breakdown of the Royal Family. The segment was great, and really made a lot of sense. Considering the EWCL roster is so small right now, and the stable consists of many of the best wrestlers in the League, it�s quite appropriate that Cazzo split these boys up. Plus, if played right, it should be one of the best storylines of the year. Now the question is, will Joe and Sean go their separate ways? I hope so� Joe vs. Sean vs. Exile spells money-match to me�. Now if only Shane would return! Oh yeah, and we say goodbye to the what� two match wonder� Jason Drake.
Bill Carty and the Missing Roster � 3.8
Nice to see the EWCL feels continuity is still important. Okay, so it didn�t rate through the roof� why would it� but I think we all appreciated hearing what had happened to what was at one time the most talented roster in the industry. Nice going EWCL� shame it had to come from Carty and not Sprinkler though. Rrowrrrr!
Ex-Terminator vs. Super Trouper � 4.0
An average match but loaded with piqued interest. How would Super Trouper do in his return bout? Why had he attacked a former ally? Would he capture the Hardcore Title� and if so, why? Well, I�m still not sure on the answer to the last two of those questions. Why did Super Trouper attack Ex-Terminator? And why on earth would the EWCL give him the Hardcore Title on his return? I wasn�t aware the self-proclaimed murderer was a hardcore wrestler. It seems to me the EWCL simply wanted to edge him closer to the Grand Slam. But why? Is Super Trouper really the guy you want to be a Grand Slammer? The match itself was not up to the standard of hardcore matches we�ve come to expect from the EWCL, but for the most part was passable.
Society�s Rejection vs. The Mauler/Tony Canon � 4.1
Finally, Sean Corvik gets his Internet Title back! Now lets see him defend it. As the second most prestigious belt in the League, it�s been relegated to unimportance by Corvik�s quest to become Universal Champion. Now that that�s over (I may just write an article about the �feud that never was� some day), competition for this title should really step up� I hope. Corvik is the perfect superstar to lend credibility to that belt the way Prohibition did for the Prime Time Title, and Rage is doing for the Universal Title. As a Main Eventer, Corvik can really lift the importance of the Internet Title if he deems to show it worthy of his attention. The match was really little more than a vehicle to display the ongoing disintegration of the Royal Family, and to that end was eminently watchable.
However, Punisher�s interference was a little bit of a surprise, especially because it doesn�t seem that the Royal Family needs to be involved in a feud right now� they kind of have their hands full with each other. Nonetheless, Punisher�s interference merely fuelled the breakdown of the super stable, as Exile quit the Family.
Cazzo�s Prime Time Title Announcement � 3.9
It�s gone! Another good decision by the EWCL Brain Trust. Too many titles spoil the broth as they say (don�t they?). The EWCL already has double titleholders and lacks a deep enough talent pool to find competition for each of the existing titles. The Prime Time Title may return� but lets hope it�s not just to beef up an ego or help someone attain Grand Slam status.
Dan Prohibition/Lydia vs. Punisher/Swamp Fox � 4.1
When �American Bad Ass� hit, I knew we were in for a guest role at the announcer�s table for the Universal Big Shot, Rick O�Connor. Battered and bruised from the unmentioned Havoc match with Double K, O�Connor was unable to compete in the promised match with Prohibition, so I guess it was decided to plunk him down at the desk to call a little colour� which unless I missed it he failed to do. Punisher and Prohibition made a real go of a match without any real heat, and Lydia and Swamp Fox (man I hate to say that name) held their own and played the comic relief. Not a bad match from these two, and looked to go Prohibition�s way when he decided to see to a fallen Lydia (couldn�t he have waited three seconds, I ask you?). O�Connor found the entire scene disturbingly amusing, and Dan popped him one for it. Bruised ribs and all, O�Connor bounded to his feet and buried Prohibition with the Revelation. Predictable, yet a nice set up for next week�s Tag Titles division match. This whole debacle cost Punisher the match however, and the US� new spokesman didn�t take too kindly to the interference. Tears led to shoving, which in turn led to another Revelation, this time for Punisher. Great ending for a surprisingly good show.
Average � 4.0
Could have been better, could have been worse. Overall, not a bad show at all, lessened only somewhat due to following a great Pay-Per-View. The talent really stepped up to make the best of mismatched booking, and should be congratulated for it.
Now finally, I have to ask� which way does Punisher go? As Pilchard and Down reminded us, O�Connor took Punisher�s Tag Team gold, he took his spot in the Survivor tournament, may well have been the man to attack Punisher with the lead pipe (sound like a night of Cluedo anyone?), and now he�s cost him a match with Prohibition. This all screams feud, and yet it seems Punisher has taken it upon himself to kick the Royal Family when it�s down. So, which will it be? What may be on offer here is a Main Event run against the Champ� and yet, does Punisher really want to be fed to O�Connor? He may end up just another notch on O�Connor�s �belt�. And yet, O�Connor�s run as Champion has been substantial� is it coming to a close? Punisher may want to be the man in the right place at the right time. Or will he feel more comfortable pursuing the Royal Family and perhaps the Internet Title? I guess we�ll see�.