Nerd Watch Wednesday - Wrestling Society X

WSBF

Jun 17, 202021 min read

This week it was Matt Brummitt's turn to pick a show for the WSBF boys and here is why he chose it...

"I just thought as it is a bit of a mostly forgotten bit of wrestling history!!"

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 1

By Ross Casey

I remember Wrestling Society X being on MTV in my teens but I never really watched it because it didn't feel like wrestling to me - OK boomer. Let's see how 33 year-old me digests it.

We start the show with an explanation that there will be a match taking place with two contracts hanging from the ceiling and the two wrestlers who retrieve them will face-off for the WSX Championship next week. Sounds like a clusterfuck to me... bring it!

The opening contest is Matt Sydal against Jack Evans. Yikes, this should be fliptastic. Sydal enters the ring to pop music and has a preppy college girlfriend, so the underground fans and commentary team hate them for being arrogant. It's fun.

Jack Evans arrives doing parkour, wearing a headband and has a hip-hop theme. Underground approved and therefore cheered. Guitar Hero bonus character Zakk Wylde is shown taking a seat at the commentary table. Why not.

The match is short, but fucking amazing. Two high-flying young kids on MTV just trying to make it. Evans wins with the 630 despite interference from Sydal's sweetheart. Post-match, she is caring for her man, but shows wandering eyes towards the victor.

We get promos next from several of the WSX Rumble competitors. Only now is it explained that the ring is surrounded by explosives, cages and barriers. Absolutely mental.

WSX RUMBLE

1. JUSTIN CREDIBLE - Reaches for the contract but falls off the ladder.

2. TEDDY HART - Eliminated by Justin Credible via back body drop through a table.

3. KAOS - Eliminated by Alkatraz via Suplex into explosives.

4. VAMPIRO - Reaches for the contract and will wrestle for the WSX Championship.

5. PUMA - Eliminated by Vampiro via chokeslam through a table.

6. ALKATRAZ - Eliminated by Vampiro via superkick through a table.

7. 6 PAC - Reaches for the contract and will wrestle for the WSX Championship.

8. CHRIS HAMRICK - Eliminated by New Jack via being hit through a table.

9. NEW JACK - Eliminated himself by going out and hurting Hamrick some more.

10. YOUTH SUICIDE - Eliminated by Justin Credible via being pushed off a ladder and into explosives.

SUMMARY: Completely bonkers, trash TV and I loved it. All the moves, all the spots and random musician appearances. I am in. Teenage me was an idiot, this is a breeze to watch, both stupid and fun.

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 2

By Brum

I picked Wrestling Society X as my Nerd Watch this week as (a) it’s something a bit different; (b) I don’t remember much about it; & (c) what I do remember about it is it was completely bonkers.

The show kicks off with the commentators hyping up the main event, the first ever WSX title match: 6-Pac (X-Pac) vs Vampiro (Vampiro). The ring announcer and the commentators sound like they are coked up off their balls.

For the opening match, Luke Hawx is out first. They show an infographic stating his finisher is the Romper Stomper. Isn’t that an Aussie neo-Nazi film?! He is facing Human Tornado! I used to love Human Tornado! What happened to him?!

The match itself was fun, fast-paced action with Human Tornado getting the win but it seemed like it was heavily edited for time constraints so only lasted about 90 seconds of onscreen time!

Immediately after the match, Aaron Aguilera (Jesus from WWE) & his mate Kaos start scrapping with Hawx & his mate Alkatrazz. I have no fucking idea what’s going on. Someone just went through a table. We’re not even 6 minutes into the episode.

Teddy Hart & Matt Cross (what a pairing!) are in a pre-taped vignette calling any team out next week. Now for match 2 of the night which is Joey Ryan & Disco Machine vs Yoshino & Yoriguchi! What the fuck!! Didn’t know the Dragon Gate boys were in this. This should be fun.

And it was, I guess. Though due to more editing madness, it was barely over 2 minutes. WSX makes Goldberg Lesnar look like Omega Okada IV. There were some Joey Ryan shenanigans & a reminder of how obscenely fast Yoshino is. I just wish I got to see more of it!!

Next is a vignette for a team called “The Trailer Park Boys”. I probably don’t have to explain what this is like. Main event time. I really can’t handle this ring announcer. 6-Pac out first. Vampiro out next and does the HHH spit but with blood.

The match starts with 6-Pac spitting water into the eyes of Vampiro and hitting him with a spinning wheel kick, knocking Vamps down. Vamps is straight back up and hits a headbutt and a scissor kick, which gets a 2 count. He then tries a hurricanrana on 6-Pac but gets sit out powerbombed and another 2 count. This match has been going 40 seconds.

Bronco buster from 6-Pac! He tries a second but Vamps blocks it and hits him with a big boot. Chokeslam from Vampiro. He then tries a corkscrew and misses. Dropkick from 6-Pac to knock Vamps out of the ring followed up with a tope con hilo! Only 2 minutes in.

Now on the outside, 6-Pac is launched balls first into the ring post. In the time it took me to write that, 6-Pac is now fine and Vampiro is laying out on a table. Is this happening or is this a fever dream? Vampiro gets back up but 6-Pac tornado DDTs him through the table! It gets a 2 count (appaz in WSX you can pin people anywhere).

Back in the ring, 6-Pac hits an X-Factor! Only a 2 count though. 6-Pac takes him out to the apron but Vamps low blows him. VAMPIRO THEN TOMBSTONES 6-PAC THROUGH A COFFIN & IT JUST FUCKING EXPLODED. WHAT IS HAPPENING. SOMEBODY CALL MY MOMMA. Like proper exploded. There is smoke everywhere. Vampiro wins. What was that.

That main event took 5 mins of TV time and included a tombstone through an exploding coffin. The whole show was 19 minutes long and on top of that mental main event inaugural world title match, contained another 2 matches, a post-match brawl, and 2 vignettes. This is either the best or worst wrestling show ever.

WINNER – VAMPIRO WITH A TOMBSTONE FROM THE RING APRON INTO AN EXPLODING COFFIN

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 3

By Nineties Mike

In what has become a recurring theme here on NWW and WSBF in general, I have absolutely no knowledge of Wrestling Society X, so I am coming in blind! Also, I have to admit I only chose this episode because of the title of its main event: “Tables, Ladders and Cervezas”! Here goes nothing…

We begin with video highlights of the previous week’s title match between 6-Pac and Vampiro, where a bruised and bloodied Ian the Vampire claimed the WSX Championship after a Tombstone Piledriver into an exploding coffin. Yeah. We then get a promo from the brooding champ, claiming the WSX Championship is his life, and he will sacrifice his blood, his life and his soul to keep it.

We’re then taken to the FOUR-man commentary team, and they all seem pretty nondescript guys, but they might all be legendary, I have no idea. Nope, two of them are in a band called Sparta? Me neither.

A lunatic with a mic is now running around and announcing the first match, which has a ten-minute time limit. We have “Spider” Nate Webb, Josh “Jug” Raymond, the Trailer Park Boyz, and they’re accompanied by their manager “White Trash” Johnny Webb. Their opponents will be “MDog” Matt Cross (WWE, CZW and RoH alum) and Teddy Hart (fun fact, James and I bumped into Teddy at Mania last year, and he was quite emotional), they are The Filth & The Fury.

Some great, lightning quick, flippy stuff from all 4 guys as commentary discusses the legacy of the Hart Family. Split-Legged Moonsault from Cross gets a 2-count, and just as it looks like things might slow down, a Trailer Park Boy tries a Hurricanrana but Cross has it covered and reverses it into a Facebuster. There appear to be no tagging rules, and Teddy is in and hits the other Trailer Park Boy with a beautiful Cradle DDT.

He then hits a Springboard Moonsault onto all 3 of the Trailer Park Boys crew. MDogg however says anything you can do I can do better, and hits a Springboard Corkscrew Moonsault! Bloody hell.

Commentary reminds us that A) there are no mats, just concrete floors, and B) you can get pinned anywhere in the “arena”. Teddy goes for a Moonsault from the top, but a Trailer Park Boy keeps his feet up and nails Hart. Trailer Park Boyz hit two good-looking double team moves I have no idea what to call because commentary are too busy talking about the Von Erichs. Reversal from Hart and a Flipping Tiger Driver, but he’s caught with a Double Underhook Shoulder Back Breaker, whatever that is.

It’s Cross’ turn for reversals, and he gets in a Double Foot Stomp. This only gets a 2-count, so we turn to the action outside. Teddy Hart has unplugged something and we get “electricity noises”. Oh my god, he’s “electrocuted” one of the Trailer Park Boyz. In a genuinely hilarious twist on what we expect with liquids and tables in wrestling, he soaks the Trailer Park Boy in water and electrocutes him again, and we get some serious pyro!

Some members of the crowd actually look fearful for the life of the Trailer Park Boy. The action is everywhere, and the camera cuts are so quick, it’s hard to keep track. Teddy climbs some stairs and hits the electrocuted, and potentially dead, Trailer Park Boy with Open Hart Surgery! Back in the ring (immediately) and Cross hits the other Trailer Park Boy with a Shooting Star Leg Drop for the 3-count and The Filth & The Fury win!

We get a recap of why the main event is happening, with Kaos claiming Jesus is too worried about the mamacitas and cervezas to help him when he’s in trouble. And where did it get him? Electrocuted (I sense a theme here)!! When Jesus does try to help him, it just leads to Kaos getting kicked in the teeth through a table. Ouch. Jesus offers Kaos a cerveza as a peace offering but he just bats it away. Jesus has an idea! A TLC match, Tables, Ladders and… Cervezas! Genius!

The batshit announcer is back (yay) and he introduces our combatants. First out is El Hombre Blanco Enmascarado (aka Rick), one half of the PWG Tag Team champions. His opponent is apparently back by popular demand, and he is Jack Evans, who has wrestled absolutely everywhere, and now of course tagging with Angelico in AEW. This could get flippy!

Evans starts a bit of a breakdance in the middle of the ring and El Hombre unceremoniously kicks him in the gut. Nice. We get a Springboard Clothesline from Hombre, followed by a dive to the outside. Quick counters from both men before a Fisherman Buster Suplex from Hombre gets our first cover and 2-count, and it’s a close one.

Flips (and camera cuts) everywhere, it’s hard to keep track, but a Somersault Back Elbow gets a 2-count for Evans. Spinning Heel Kick and Flying Knee from Evans get another close 2-count. What will it take to keep the masked man down? He drags Hombre to the corner and hits a stunning 630 Splash. A cover and that’s 1, 2, 3! Quick, routine victory for crowd favourite Jack Evans.

The announcer is back, and we are getting our main event! First out are Alkatrazz & Luke Hawx, billed as from New Orleans, LA and the California Penal System. Their opponents, we met them earlier, are Joey “Kaos” Munoz and Aaron “Jesus” Aguilera, collectively known as Los Pochos Guapos. LPG try to attack, but Alkatrazz & Hawx absolutely decimate them on the outside with a ladder! We have kicked off!

Alkatrazz & Hawx seem to have gained the upper hand with stereo Chops but reversed Irish Whips to the apron see Jesus take control of things. A big Chop is followed by maybe the spot of the night as Hawx is dumped onto the ladder, which catapults and smashes Alkatrazz in the face. Double bubble for Jesus. Kaos hits The Chaos Driver on Luke Hawx before going up top. But Jesus stops him from climbing all the way and tells him to go to the top of the ladder instead!

Jesus is flirting with the women in the crowd. Meanwhile, Hawx sees Kaos coming and moves out of the way as Kaos eats canvas. Alkatrazz hangs Jesus up on the top rope and the momentum has swung again.

Hawx with 2 Chops to Kaos, while Alkatrazz Slingshots Jesus face-first into the ladder. Alkatrazz pulls Jesus up, gets a Wristlock on him and climbs to the top. He walks the ropes to halfway through the ring, but Jesus counters and launches Alkatrazz into the ladder in the corner. Hawk hits Alkatrazz with a Springboard Dropkick, but fails to notice Kaos standing behind him, lying in wait. He turns around, eats a boot to the gut and Bonzo Bomb. Could that be it?

Nope. Kaos sets up a table, and Jesus grabs the cervezas. Las Pochos Guapos argue over whether it’s time to drink, and their opponents take advantage of this. Alkatrazz whips Jesus into Kaos, and he smashes face first into the six pack of beer bottles! Alktatrazz Powerbombs Kaos through the table, and we get our main event winners, Alkatrazz and Luke Hawx.

SUMMARY: Wow, I don’t really know what to make of this mental million-mile-an-hour show, but I was entertained, the wrestling had some great spots, and it absolutely flew by. I’ll definitely be checking out the rest of the series, even if it’s going to give me a migraine!

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 4

By Brum

As I picked the show, I’m pulling double duty today. I watched episode 2 last night but I did eat some weird cheese with dinner so it could explain what I thought I saw. Either that or what I watched was real & I’m about to see more of it. I’m not sure which I’d prefer.

The annoying ring announcer is still here. He says there is a 10 minute time limit. No way are they getting anywhere near that (at least in terms of TV time). It’s Matt Sydal (Evan Bourne) vs Scorpio Sky!

The match was 4 minutes of fast-paced fun. I’m starting to get into the crazily edited sprint undercard matches. If it’s not going to be an epic, who needs rest holds?! Or breathing for that matter. Sydal won with a nice Spanish Fly belly to belly thing. His girlfriend then wrote “H8R” in lipstick on Sky’s torso.

Backstage we have Ruckus! And his partner who I think is called “Babi Slymm”. I don’t recognise him. Slymm gives Ruckus a diamante ladder as a present. For some reason, they have added on sparkle graphics in post-production. They then come out to the ring. Their team name is appaz “Keepin It Gansgta”.

Their opponents are “That 70s Team”, Joey Ryan & Disco Machine. I’ve not watched a Ruckus match in ages but he’s as fun as I remembered. This is similar to the That 70s Team match I reviewed in episode 2 – Fast paced flippy stuff with Joey Ryan shenanigans.

I don’t think I’ve seen Babi Slymm before but he’s alright. Saying that, that could be all through the edit. They wrap Ryan up in a tree of woe before smashing a disco ball in his balls. They then place a tiny stepladder on his head before Ruckus climbs the bling ladder and does a flipping Coast To Coast onto Ryan. That was bananas. Slymm then pins him for the win.

Arik Cannon has a backstage segment where he beats up his mate. There is just over 3 minutes left on my video and the main event hasn’t even started!! El Hombre Blanco Enmascarado is introduced first and it’s Quicksilver from PWG! This main event could be a “Where Are they Now?” match.

Before Tornado comes out, it cuts to the back & Human Tornado is laid out. 6-Pac runs in & hits EHBE with a roundhouse kick. He then calls out Vampiro who obliges. Some weird music hits & Ricky Banderas (Judas Mesias/ Mil Muertes) sneaks up behind Vampiro & twats him.

On the outside Banderas fireballs Vampiro! The post-production on this is utterly bizarre. They do a massive explosion & Vampiro is blurred out for a while as he rolls around. Banderas has some burnt face make up on and before the credits roll they light his eyes up (also in post-prod).

I’ve reviewed 2 WSX episodes. One finished with a tombstone into an exploding coffin, one finished with a fireball. Wrestling.

WINNER – NO CONTEST DUE TO MONSTER HEEL DEBUTING & FIREBALLING VAMPIRO

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 5

By Ross Casey

We start off by seeing a terrifying looking wrestler attacking Vampiro last week - I don't know who he is and neither do the commentary team. His promo states that they have battled in the past and he is here for revenge. Job done with the fireball, I would say.

The opening tag team match is Horiguchi & Yoshino vs. Teddy Hart & Mdogg Matt Cross. Matt Cross is almost unrecognisable from his PROGRESS showings. Look at that clean face!

The match is as wild as you would expect, with Matt Cross in particular being incredibly innovative and ahead of his time. Teddy Hart's cradle DDT is equally amazing and disgusting at once. The finish comes with a double pin after Hart and Cross both hit crazy high flying moves I can't call the names of. Brilliant.

Next up we have 6-Pac vs The Human Tornado after the former X-Pac attacked Tornado backstage last week. Pac ain't seemingly taking this too seriously as he is wearing leather trousers and a baggy pink nightclub shirt. Wild!

The match itself is wrestled with the physicality of a blood feud which is cool, Pac at one point hits one of his spinning kicks that looked like a fatality. The finish comes when 6-Pac hits a low blow and a top rope X-Factor. He shags Tornado in the face as he pins him, because he's a prick.

A quick vignette is shown of Team DragonGate getting bungled into a van to get re-programmed. Seems that riple H and the NXT boys watched this show!

The main event is Arik Cannon vs Delikado. The match is a short elementary affair until three dudes come in and jump Cannon. The match is ruled a no contest, but Cannon suffers a double stomp through a table followed by his head being dunked in wet cement and finally having a dead fish placed on his stomach. Now there's a sentence I never thought I'd write in my NWW.

SUMMARY: Another WSX episode, another mix of physicality, flips, movez and complete madness. What is not to love. The closing segment was proper silly. How very wrestling in 2020.

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 6

So this weeks Nerd Watch is viewed after about 10 pints of Henry Weston. Forgive me therefore if my review is stripped back. Also I am still trying to recover from the "Is Hulk Hogan a Meat puppet?" discussion from this afternoon. Anyway: - The opening reminds me I am due some Good Charlotte (Joel and Benji even offer comms).

We meet two lads who appear to be American pie extra's and they bloody love Vampiro. There is a Woman called Lacey whose idea of looking for Vampiro involves acting as if she is in silent movies from 1910(She never returns). The ring announcer is basically on too much coke and he has one hand I think? (No, he just hid one in his sleeve for 15 seconds because he's super kooky).

The visual effects are the highlight. No issue with the OTT thunderbolts and firestorms. - My first match is Scorpio Sky who is the bad guy because he has an education. He faces Jack Evans who is the good guy because he break dances. No, me neither. My favourite line on commentary is Benji from Good Charlotte saying that wrestling is all about backbreakers. - Jack Evans wins with a 450 splash.

Joel and Benji could not give less of a shit if they tried. It's sponsored by Quiznos and they call one move a 'slamwich'. I'm completely behind this crossover pun. We then cut to some Mexican lads who chirp some Women by vocalising their tag team division storyline.

Your main event features a team called that 70's team which features Joey Ryan and Disco Machine. I naively thought Machine was an alias for Disco Inferno. It's the only time I have been sad not to see Inferno.

They are facing Jimmy Jacobs and (Tyler Black) Seth Rollins and I can feel people getting wet for this Emo Dream Team. Their hometown is The Darkside of Love and I have just been sick typing it. I think the Emo's are the bad guys. Good Charlotte plug their unsuccessful "Nice Guys Finish Last" single.

Joey Ryan gets pantsed when Seth doesn't bust his knee on a buckle bomb and this leads to Disco getting the win with a top rope powerslam. Comms apologise for seeing Joey Ryan's thong but I thought it was a highlight in this mess.

Some Japanese fellas are being held captive by a potentially Japanese man who is feeding them his backwashed juice. Rollins and Jacobs have a strange argument that has no conclusion. Visually we get Rollins walking away with a bass guitar but I'm not sure why. Also the colour scheme changes halfway through. Oh, and he uses a rough screamo voice at random intervals.

In the actual main event Not-Mil Muentes has a brawl with Vampiro. This involves Not -Sean Waltman. Suicide also gets involved. At the end of the episode there is an explosion and Not-Muentes is bleeding from the mouth.

SUMMARY: I assume Matt didn't like this episode.

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 7

By Shafi

What can I say about WSX? I think WSX is a visualisation of how Jim Cornette sees modern wrestling. It was quick, flashy and lacking substance.

I saw a bit of WSX when it was first released (although I would have guessed that it was earlier than 2007). My only memories of it are it being a very short show with crazy matches and exploding shit. If I remember correctly it got cancelled in the UK before the season ended.

The fact that WSX was released in 2007 perhaps explains some of its lack of success. It missed the car crash TV of the Monday Night Wars by 6 years and the shock and awe of MTV 'classics' such as Jackass by a few. ECW was dead and WWE was firmly in the Super Cena era. It was also too early for the YouTube generation where perhaps it would have found an audience if it was released ten years later.

I watched episode 7 a couple of hours ago and I can't remember most of the wrestlers in my 20 minute episode. WSX was the McDonald's of wrestling in the sense that it was quick and easy but ultimately left me unsatisfied and desiring something more substantial. I wasn't a huge fan when it aired and I was the target demographic, I like it even less now my model good looks have faded and I'm in the midst of a midlife crisis.

The show starts with the 'roadie' of the performing band being powerbombed off the stage through a table by Ricky Banderas for no apparent reason.

We get a tag match with some people I can't remember. One of them is Vic Grimes who has overcome the complications arising from his battles with New Jack and has also beaten anorexia in a squash match. Grimes has accumulated so much mass that at one point his opponents try to roll him into the ring and he won't fit through the ropes. He is then mercifully finished off with a Knee Plus.

Matt Sydal and Human Tornado have a great high flying match in the middle of the episode. The latter is a pimp and his fans are called 'TornadHOES'. OK then.

The real issue with WSX is that it looks like it's been edited by Kevin Dunn after someone's hidden his ADHD medicine. There's so many camera shakes and quick cuts. Sydal and Tornado could have had a classic 12 minute match but it's been cut to about 6 minutes by editing out all of the selling. At one point Tornado is setting up for a corner drop kick and it cuts out all of his run up so that he travels like 12 metres in half a second.

Tornado gets the win and I realise why WSX feels so inauthentic. The way that it is filmed and presented is like when a kids TV show has it's characters go to a wrestling show. It's a caricature of wrestling. Nothing is given time to breathe or land with the audience and thus nothing really matters.

The main event has a tag match with MDogg 20 and Teddy Hart teaming against a couple of other dudes. They do some crazy stuff but I don't care.

SUMMARY: WSX is not for me. Now excuse me whilst I go and shout at a cloud.

WRESTLING SOCIETY X EPISODE 8

By JCH

This is absolute generic nu-metal crap as a theme tune. Pit Bull is on commentary. If someone good down and he’s doesn’t yell Timber, I’m going to be absolutely furious. The crowd is loving life however the noise does not seem to match up with the reactions I’m seeing.

The match appears to be Aguilera and Chaos vs The Cartel? The Cartel hit a nice slingshot neck breaker, back down to the knees of the slingshot. This crowd noise is 100% pumped in. The match is pretty quick and full of nice moves. The Cartel win after one of their mates on the outside pushes one of Aguilera or Chaos of the top rope in full view of the ref. Who doesn’t seem to care. Then there is a pretty good Jay Driller type thing for the win. The Cartel celebrate by leaving a fish on whomever they pinned.

Backstage there is a fight between two teams. At least one if which was meant to have had a match but Aguilera and Chaos stole the spot. I don’t know. This is so quick. There is a Jack Evans promo backstage as he’s interviewed by Lacey. Jack Evans starts breakdancing but the Human Tornado interrupts to challenge him to a Dance off. I can’t wait…

Oh we have a title match. Vampiro vs Ricky Banderas. This show is so fast, nothing has time to breathe. It’s like the opposite of when I last watched Raw. There is a package to show the history between the two. This seems to have involved at least two exploding caskets. They do say one is never enough.

Kris Krost points out the multiple caskets at ringside. Suggesting one at least is rigged with explosives. Three’s a charm they say. The crowd is ridiculous. It sounds like a bloody video game. I wonder where they got this stock noise from. Maybe a skate park event from X games.

The match has just stopped midway through to advertise another match, This is a title match in a pre-recorded show that is 19 minutes in length, We then get a during the break segment. The highlight of the advert for anther match was that the same crowd noise was playing in the background.

Oh hang on Banderas just power bombed Vampiro through a light tube table. Then they both fall through the stage. It’s completely no-sold by both of them. Pitbull says ‘it’s like Tom and Jerry’ veery astute observation. Vampiro’s back is a crimson mask.

Banderas chokeslams Vampiro through a exploding casket covered in barbed wire. 1-2-3 We have a new champion. Well…that was interesting. They show a replay of Vampiro going through the casket. They really shouldn’t have. It looked good from the first angle. That looked pathetic in slow motion. We get more terrible generic nu-metal and a ridiculously paced credits to see us home.

SUMMARY: Edit Fast, Die young, Not my way. Edit fast, sure. Edit too bloody fast sometimes, but don't die young. Die old.

WRESTLING SOCIETY X - EPISODE 9

By Dom Van Dam

G’day lads and welcome to Wrestling Society X Episode 9. This episode was originally screened on MTV on the 14th of March, 2007 and I chose it because of the main event between 2 of my favourite indie darlings.

I was right into WSX when it originally aired, mostly because it was a chance for me to see several of my favourite indy wrestlers on TV (not just on torrent videos on my computer). But there were a couple of other things that really stood out for me. It was a half hour show where the action moved insanely quickly.

Now don’t get me wrong, I loved the 74 minute American Dragon vs Austin Aries match as much as the next man, but this was completely different. Was it really wrestling? Maybe not in a traditional sense, but it was artistic and a new spin on something that I had loved for as long as I could remember.

The other thing that really caught my attention about WSX when I started watching were the presentations of characters. They seemed realistic, believable, edgy. As a 19 year old, university student who spent all his non-wrestling hours listening to Radiohead and The Horrors, I was crying out for realistic, relatable gimmicks.

The one that stands out in my mind, looking back now, was DiFH; made up of the Emo Kid tandem of, the future, Seth Rollins and Jimmy Jacobs. Let’s see if any of these positive memories actually hold up 13 years later.

We start with the Ring Announcer who I always thought was a little bit embarrassing and over the top, but it fits the genre. Here he looks a bit like if Ross Kemp was cosplaying as Panic at the Disco.

Luke Hawks and Alcatrazz vs Vic Grimes and Arik Cannon

Vic Grimes, who had a run in ECW, feuding with New Jack, certainly hasn’t been skipping any meals since ECW finished. He must be at least 500 pounds here but he still moves well. The high spot is Grimes going through some exploding light tubes which leaves the bad guys to double team The Anarchist for the 1-2-3.

We have a backstage promo with Jesus Aguilera, hyping a Piranha Death Match for Episode 10. Sick! This is so much fun, mate.

Syxx Pac vs. Scorpio Sky

It’s pretty amazing to just see some of these combinations of matches. Here we have one of the future stars of AEW and one of the innovators of the light-heavyweight style in North America. The Kid runs through Sky with a low blow and an X-Factor in about 30 seconds.

There’s a story developing backstage with a love-triangle involving Lizzy Valentine and Matt Sydal but before I can really get a grasp on what’s going on we are back in the ring for our Main Event.

Jack Evans vs Human Tornado

I’ve already mentioned my fandom for both of these guys. This match was built on the back of a Dance Off on a previous episode and this one begins with Human Tornado’s dancing, chain wrestling, spot previously seen at Cage of Death against Ruckus. Check that out here:

Jack Evans hits a reverse Rana but misses a Springboard Phoenix Splash. This allows Tornado to lock on the Dragon Sleeper but the bell rings for a 10 minute, time-limit draw. I reckon with the ad break we got about 3 minutes of footage from that 10 minutes.

This episode finishes with one more promo, hyping an Exploding, Time-Bomb Cage match that looks like it might include Teddy Hart and Muhammad Yone, but I couldn’t quite recognise anyone else.

SUMMARY: And that’s all we have time for. That was lots of fun, you don’t have to think much, and it’s just frenetic. Go and check these episodes out but until then, drink lots of water; look after your mates.

That's all folks!