Mr. X

Album of the year.

This is actually the first CD I've listened to by Mastodon, and it has blown me away unlike almost any band I've heard before. Unless some unknown band really brings something amazing to the table I think Blood Mountain will reign supreme as far as the top Metal CD of the year.

All I have to say is Sleeping Giant...wow.

[MPW] "Make Or Break", 3/01/06

Geoff-Partice Warehouse

61 Fans

The show opened up the four corner elimination which the winner would face Vito Thomaselli later on in the show in a Non-title match. All four men put in an honorable effort but the match suffered from focusing on too many guys and the fans just generally not caring for anyone besides Zero. Justin Kage was the first to go when Eric Priest powerbombed Trik Davis ontop of him. Priest tried to do the same to Zero but Zero moved and hit a dropkick to the head that sent Priest into the ropes, and bounced back into an Absolute Zero for the three count. Not too longer after pinning Priest, Zero locked Trik in a camel clutch which ended the match.

Overall: F (44) Crowd: F- (25) Match: D (63)

The in-ring debut of Keiji Sakoda was postponed for a short few minutes. After Ashley Howard entered the ring Randy Ortiz and Sean Nelson came from the back and both got in the ring. Nelson stood behind Ortiz, who grabbed a mic.

Ortiz: Ashley, when are you going to do something in MPW? We've been here for 10 months and you haven't picked up a win, haven't improved, and you haven't even shown the determination to go beyond a PURE lion. I'm, not... we're tired of just waiting for you to take off. You were the one who was touted as being the most accomplished out of the three of us, where is that talent? Does it belong back in the amatuer scene or is there even really talent in you anymore?

So here's the deal. You're on your own. Sean and I will continue the PRO Lion tag team while you try to find out why you're here. No longer will you keep Sean down and now every loss you recieve will be because of you, and you alone.

Ortiz and Nelson left the ring as Keiji Sakoda finally made his way from the back. Howard and Sakoda kept the match simple as Keiji focused on striking while Ashley showed his amatuer background with various takedowns and suplexs. Ashley went for a German suplex but Keiji blocked the move and hit some hard back elbows which he followed up with a short arm lariat which stunned Ashley and followed it up with a Rolling Elbow, but Ashley would not stay down which shocked Sakoda to his core. Ashley got up and the two got into a forearm battle which with Ashley already recieving a hard blow with the rolling elbow wasn't much of a battle as Keiji easily put him back down with another rolling elbow, this time though Ashley was put down for good.

Overall: F ( 44) Crowd: F (22) Match: D (66)

Josh Daniels and Halo continued their streak of having one of the top matches on each individual card when they faced off against Danny Daniels and Delirious. Both teams showed alot of respect for each other and kept the match as clean as could be. Halo and Danny started the match with Danny showing his dominance over Halo who still had slashes of brilliance until Danny tagged out to Delirious which started an epic battle of two of the best Midwest junior heavyweights around. Daniels and Halo traded armdrags and dropkicks until both were worn out and then tagged in their partners. The match broke down when Halo hit a missile dropkick from behind on Danny Daniels while Delirious knocked Josh down with a springboard forearm. As Delirious and Halo got ready for another showdown the match was halted when Jimmy Jacobs and DARKNESS Egotistico jumped into the ring and attacked. Egotistico beat down Halo while Jacobs continued his feud with Delirious, and eventually hit another Contra Code.

Overall: D (63) Crowd: F (42) Match: B (85)

[DVD Extra]

The camera's quickly cut to a conference room where Josh Costilli is standing behind a podium with a huge MPW backdrop behind him. Costilli shuffles around some papers.

Costilli: I know many MPW fans have been asking about Brad Bradley, who after being brutally attacked by J.F. & Associates has been at home due to doctors orders, and we have finally recieved word that Brad will be returning to MPW shortly. We expect Brad to be back in about September or October and you can expect him to face off against either of the Thomaselli's or Ryan Boz.

But, the main reasoning for this conference is to announce that MPW are in the beginning stages which will build up to the first ever singles heavyweight tournament using Midwest talent. This tournament will be a round robin tournament consisting of 12-16 guys split between two blocks, nearly identical to New Japan's G-1.

After going through three other men, Zero finally got his chance at facing the MPW champion in a non-title match. Zero looked very good against the MPW champion and both men put on a match that surprised many fans and even seemed to help the popularity of Zero. Vito struggled early on against Zero, who outsmarted Vito in a strength test and quickly applied a crossface hold which had the fans cheering on Vito to tap out. Both men eventually got back to their feet and Vito started working on Zero's legs with kicks followed by a single leg Boston crab. Eventually, Zero would go for springboard dropkick but missed due to his leg buckling and Vito saw the opportunity to finish the match with a STF.

Overall: F (57) Crowd: F (37) Match: C (77)

The main event ended up being a wild one which saw dangerous moves followed by a turn of epic proportions. Brandon and Josh relied on hitting risky spots to wear and tear Sal and Kevin, while the former kept on the ground relying on technical wrestling mixed with a few top rope dives. Josh dominated Sal with his quickness while Brandon seemed to have an easy time with Kevin, who recently has recieved alot of slack for his lack of in-ring presence. Brandon had Kevin beat when all of the sudden he turned on Josh and hit a Sicillian Plex, which Sal quickly covered Josh for the win. Salvatore was stunned but quickly recovered and helped take Josh to the outside and layed him ontop of a ringside table. Brandon stood on the apron and with ease jumped into the air and nailed a double stomp that broke the table and sent Josh into the ground with tremendous force. Afterwards, Sal, Kevin, and Brandon stood around Josh as the camera's cut to the credits.

Overall: F (54) Crowd: F (39) Match: C- (70)

[Quick Results]

1. Four Corner Elimination Zero d. Trik Davis/Eric Priest/Justin Kage.

2. Keiji Sakoda d. Ashley Howard with a rolling elbow.

3. MPW Tag Team Title: Josh Daniels and Halo drew Danny Daniels and Delirious via No Contest.

4. Non-title: Vito Thomaselli d. Zero with a STF.

5. Salvatore Thomaselli and Kevin Krueger d. Josh Abercrombie and Brandon Thomaselli via pinfall.

I woke up early in the morning, not to my alarm clock or the chirping of the birbs. No, I woke up to my cellphone ringing at full volume, the caller happened to be the boss. It ended up being a call for an emergency meeting today about the future of Midwest Pro Wrestling.

A quick ride downtown took me to the office, snugged above and between a coffee shop and a locally owned bookstore. As soon as I entered the offices I saw Bill and Jean sitting around what always was the coffee table, and now seemed to be the meeting table. No one else was in sight, not any wrestlers or any of the college kids who worked the phones or any other seemingly monotonous task.

-=-

Bill: I know this is something we've never done. But today it's time we get very serious about what is going on in MPW. This isn't some bullshit meeting where we're going to keep kayfabe and put it on a DVD, no. This is to figure out where we are and where we are going to go.

To start off, we're going to be introducing a couple new teams here to the mix which will be a little more sports entertainment but they aren't going to be wild turkeys, Canadian Scottishmen, or even a Samoan warrior with a Cuban manager. The first team will be called The Scene, a tag team who are "emo music" fans that I really think the crowd will hate. Now, with an emo tag team they need nemesis. The icon of the typical MPW fan, they need two metal heads. Fat, angry, and ass kicking guys who are tired of the bullshit and speak for a wider demographic of indy fans.

Jean: So we're going the sports entertainment route?

Bill: No. These guys will have characters, but our biggest selling point will be the in-ring product. And actually, this brings me to the final topic I have. We have quite a few guys on the roster who just aren't getting the job done in the ring. I'm speaking of guys like Kevin Kreuger, guys who have pretty much done nothing to add to our product and just seem to be taking up a roster spot while other local guys are just waiting for a chance to stay in.

I think we really need to start enforcing some sort of a code that tells guys that if they aren't producing good matches that they will be cut. And we also need to set up a ranking system for title contenders. With that, all I need to know how Make Or Break is coming along and if you've learned of the DVDs being produced.

Jean: I talked to them last week and they said the first press of the first three shows were being packaged and would be shipped to us within a week, which means they should be here by today. Austin and I also have the complete card worked out and it should be a fun show tonight, including our few suprised here and there.

-=-

If you haven't figured it out, Austin is me. Some might call my role a silent writer. I help out writing some of the storylines and I've even helped scout guys. Do I make a ton of money? I don't make anything. I'm just a college student who is working for a promotion in an attempt to get a foot into a business I've loved for over 10 years. And to know, I've almost been doing it for a whole year already.

Main Event

Brandon Thomaselli/Josh Abercrombie vs. J.F. & Associates

Non-title

Vito Thomaselli vs. Winner of Four Corner Elimination

MPW Tag Team Title

Josh Daniels and Halo © vs. Danny Daniels/Delirious

Keiji Sakoda vs. Ashley Howard

Four Corner Elimination

Eric Priest vs. Zero vs. Trik Davis vs. Justin Kage

[MPW] "Facing The Oddss", 2/28/06

Geoff-Partice Warehouse

65 Fans

- XXX-Plicit Content faced PRO Lions in a rematch from Respect The Saints. The last match so what has been the best match of the short PRO Lions career and while this match was just a hair less workrate both teams still put on an entertaining match. Ashley Howard and Sean Nelson both put as much fighting spirit into the match as they ever have but still couldn't find a win. The last minute of the match saw Howard hit a german suplex on Danny Scott while Bailey Mannix snuck behind Sean Nelson for a roll-up. Howard posed for the crowd while Mannix was able to get the three count for a XXX-Plicit Content win.

Overall: F (52) Crowd: F (32) Match: C (72)

- Chandler McClure picked up his second singles victory, making the 27-year old 2-0 without Eric Priest, over one of the hottest guys in MPW at the moment, Zero. Zero continued to look impressive with fluid takedowns and even exicuted a perfect legdrop for a two count. Zero looked to have a win in the bag after a nasty brainbuster but McClure fought back, blocked a drop kick, and hit the Red Card for the win.

Overall: F- (50) Crowd: F (27) Match: C (74)

- The number one contendership for the MPW tag team titles was fought in a match which saw two inexperienced teams face off in a grueling test of athleticism. Delirious and Jacobs continued their feud with tons of exchanges while Daniels and Egotistico did most of the in ring action to balance out the action in and out of the ring. Daniels dominated Egotistico most of the time in the ring and Jacobs acted like the clean up man who returned the favor to Daniels. Delirious was tagged in and held his own against Jacobs while Daniels and Egotistico waited to be tagged back in. Once both men were tagged back in Delirious and Jacobs took their hatred for each other to the outside and eventually into the crowd while Egotistico seemed be finally proving himself in the ring until Daniels caught him off guard and hit a Rubix Cube for the win. After the match, Jacobs jumped into the ring to attack Daniels but was caught with a kick to the groin and Delirious finally was able to get a bit of retribution for what happened at Testing The Midwest with a Shadows Over Hell to end the segment.

Overall:D (62) Crowd:F (41) Match:B (83)

- Jim Fannin came to the ring followed by Vito, Sal, and Kevin Krueger. Over half of the fans were screaming their heads off at J.F. & Associates while the rest sat still, looking as if they weren't sure what really is going on. Fannin grabbed the mic from Jean and cut a promo claiming that this weekend was not only big for MPW, but that something big was going to happen real soon and when it does, MPW will never be the same. Vito got on the mic and said that he really didn't want to face off against 'Mr. Flippy', but he is the longest reigning MPW champion and would defend the belt as need be. Krueger and Sal sat in the background and didn't speak a word. After taunting the crowd for a little, the ring cleared and the fans were treated to an intermission.

- Salvatore found Josh Abercrombie to be a bigger challenge than he had seemed to be and had a tough time keeping up with the former IWA-Mid South Light Heavyweight champion. Sal continued the cockiness of JF & Associates while Abercrombie really started to get attention from the MPW crowd, which helped out the two immensely. Abercrombie started things off with a dropkick to the knee and followed it up by a drop kick to the head which sent Salvatore to the outside. Abercrombie faked a top rope dive and instead hit a baseball slide that sent Salvatore into the fans. Sal and Abercrombie got back into the ring and the two kept a even battle. Salvatore would finally get the advantage after Abercrombie missed a missile dropkick and would resort to a low blow followed by a roll up, using the ropes as leverage, to gain the win.

Overall:F (55) Crowd:F (31) Match:C+ (79)

- Brandon continued his quest for revenge against J.F. & Associates as he took on the "The Lady Thriller" Kevin Krueger. Brandon clearly was the better wrestler and had an easy day in the ring as Krueger could barely pull off any offense and just took a beating. Unlike the previous match, the two just never really clicked and the match seemed rushed only minutes in as Brandon ducked a clothesline and hit a Sicilian Plex for a quick three count.

Overall:F (48) Crowd:F (28) Match:D+ (68)

- As the fans settled down out walked a man dressed in black dress pants and a black leather jacket, with white tennis shoes. He quickly grabbed the mic and announced himself as Josh Costilli, the new director of authority in MPW and the man who would finally bring some order to the company. Costilli quickly went on to introduce Keiji Sakoda to the crowd, which got a mild reaction. Costilli announced that Sakoda was the first step in the reconstruction of MPW as the MPW officials are wanting to set up a true heavyweight and junior heavyweight division, which means the company will be bringing in more heavyweights in the very near future. Sakoda was briefly on the mic which consisted of him applauding MPW for being a federation that was willing to take risks and only wanted the best wrestlers in the world and nothing else. Both men quickly left the ring.

- Matt Sydal and Vito Thomaselli put everything on the line in a match that proved both men are beyond capable of having a very good match that doesn't need insane spots. Vito started the match by stalling every Sydal attempt for a test of strength and after finally agreeing, stomped on Sydal's right foot and took him down with a side headlock. Vito quickly went from a headlock to an ankle lock and Sydal countered the move by putting his left leg over his right and using it to pull Vito right into a side headlock and in a perfect return, took Vito down with a side headlock.The crowd went into a frenzy as Sydal went on a spree of counters into quick rollups for nearfalls, until Vito put a stop to it by blocking and coming back with a double stomp to Sydal's back. The match turned into Sydal using all of his might just to keep in the match while Vito toyed around with Sydal by slapping him and doing foot on the chest pins. Sydal made the heroic comeback and caught Vito with a headscissors takedown and ascended the top rope. Sydal motioned for the 450 Splash but Vito was able to move out of the way and Sydal landed on his back. Vito picked Sydal up and hit a backbreaker but was only able to get a two count which Vito kept ontop of Sydal and hit a Sicillian Driver which finally put Sydal down for good.

Overall:D (66) Crowd:F (44) Match:B+ (89)

[Quick Results]

1. XXX-Plicit d. PRO Lions when Bailey Mannix used a rollup on Sean Nelson.

2. Chandler McClure d. Zero with the Red Card.

3. MPW Tag Team Title #1 Contendership: Danny Daniels and Delirious d. Jimmy Jacobs/DARKNESS Egotistico when Danny Daniels used the Rubix Cube on Egotistico.

4. Salvatore Thomaselli d. Josh Abercrombie with a rollup.

5. Brandon Thomaselli d. Kevin Krueger with a Sicillian Plex.

6. MPW Title: Vito Thomaselli © d. Matt Sydal with a Sicillian Driver. (Fourth Defense)

Eagles RB Bruce Perry was carried off on a stretcher with 1:14 remaining, his head immobilized. He was tackled by rookie Timi Wusu on a running play. Players from both sides stood silently or kneeled in prayer before Perry was removed. Perry gave a thumbs-up as he was wheeled to an ambulance and taken to a hospital.

Eagles coach Andy Reid said Perry had a concussion and a team spokesman added X-rays of Perry's neck were negative. A CT scan also was normal and the team expected Perry to accompany it back to Pennsylvania.

"He had some loss of feeling in his arms and legs initially and the feeling started to come back," Reid said. "I don't know how far along he is now."

Source: Yahoo! Sports

That's good news right now as for awhile it looked to be a whole lot worse.

I'm with the machine, your roster is way too TNA/ROH influenced for MLW. Add some former MLW talent to the roster otherwise this comes across as a glorified indy under the name of MLW. Pick up PJ Friedman, Richard Criado, and/or Chaysn Rance just to add some former MLW and Florida talent to your roster.

Does anyone know of any sites that has up to date rosters which are written up and not for download?

Just buy Aenima, it's one of the best CDs ever and has so many Tool greats that it's worth buying for a first time listener.

I'm in the thinking that if you ride a goddamn motorcycle without a helmet why should I have any sympathy for you if you get in a wreck and get injured? Anyone with half a brain would realize motorcycles have zero protection in crashes and one of the most important things to keep protected would be your head. Let's also not forget this guy makes money off his limbs and all it would take is for a leg to be obliterated and he could not only fuck himself but the sports team that depend on him to bring money in.

That said, I can't wait for this season as I'll love it when the Steelers get put out early in the playoffs.

This match could have alot of impact on the US in Group E. A draw will mean a better chance but an Italian win would more than likely already seal the fate of the US team, and with how they played today I honestly think we don't deserve to get out of our Group unless we show a lot more heart and ability versus Ghana and Italy.

As shitty as it is to say, we just got a big break for our inside defense.

I can't kill of the US chances yet, there's still an entire second half to play. Arena better bitchslap some enthusiasm into his players during the team talk.

Or give them an IV of adrenaline because these douchebags are being incredibly slow and just seem hesitant at advancing the ball in any sort of a way.

We're done. Admit it Dukes, Czech pretty much have just killed off any chance of us coming back unless SOMEHOW our offense gets into some sort of a rythmn and our defense is able to stop more than once.

Fuck, we nearly tied it. All we need is to break them down like that more and we could get back into this match.

US need to really control the ball better or I can easily see the Czechs getting quite a few goals.

Heat in 6, I'll stand behind that even though I haven't seen any of the Finals thus far... are the ratings doing well because I do not know anyone who is watching this.

Then how do you say 6 games thus stating the Heat will somehow get out of losing by 10+ in four consecutive games? I could atleast accept your idea more if you've actually seen one game but now you're just looking like a complete idiot. The fact is, for whatever reason the Heat have been shutdown by the Mavericks and cannot find a way to consistently stay with the D. One more loss will make the odds of a Heat championship this year incredibly low and I'm not sure Wade could get past the mental distress of being that far behind a very in-depth Mavericks squad.

I've liked the Mavs since the beginning of the Nash/Nowitzki era so I'm pulling for Dirk to finally get a ring as he's been one hell of a Forward.

As wrong as it is to blatantly copy someone else's instrumentals, I'm going to hold off until I hear what Tom Petty has to say about the situation.

How's that fucked up? If I call myself a fag it doesn't matter, you use it in a derogatory manner and I'll knock your teeth down your throat. That's the difference.

You would have been much better suited saying why can't I call them a nigger but they can call me a cracker. To which I would respond wait until you've been repressed and the colour of your skin has had a negative impact on your life then we'll talk. That's without even taking into account that their ancestors were slaves.

I don't understand why any respectable person; race, sexual preference, nationality etc... would deem at acceptable to use any derogatory term to classify themselves. And I certainly can't see how anyone can justify one derogatory term for another. Maybe it's because I would never disrespect someone and call them a nigger, wetback, queer, fag, or anything else if that word is used to describe them. And I wouldn't accept anyone calling me a Nazi just because of my German heritage for the same reasons.

While I think you meant well, your examples sort of outweighed the idea you were trying to supply.

Sounds like Nazi logic to me.

You fail at being the biggest douchebag on EWB. Please try again.

How's that fucked up? If I call myself a fag it doesn't matter, you use it in a derogatory manner and I'll knock your teeth down your throat. That's the difference.

You would have been much better suited saying why can't I call them a nigger but they can call me a cracker. To which I would respond wait until you've been repressed and the colour of your skin has had a negative impact on your life then we'll talk. That's without even taking into account that their ancestors were slaves.

I don't understand why any respectable person; race, sexual preference, nationality etc... would deem at acceptable to use any derogatory term to classify themselves. And I certainly can't see how anyone can justify one derogatory term for another. Maybe it's because I would never disrespect someone and call them a nigger, wetback, queer, fag, or anything else if that word is used to describe them. And I wouldn't accept anyone calling me a Nazi just because of my German heritage for the same reasons.

While I think you meant well, your examples sort of outweighed the idea you were trying to supply.

Picking between Alice In Chains and Soundgarden made the first poll tough for me. But, at the end of the day I've enjoyed Alice In Chains just a hair more than Soundgarden so Alice In Chains won Poll Numero Uno. Also, while I do like some Nirvana and Pearl Jam, neither so far have really captivated me as much as the other two.

In order: Alice In Chains>Soundgarden>Pearl Jam>Nirvana

The second poll was quite a bit easier. When I was in middle school I was a huge Staind fan. Dysfunction is one of my favorite albums but currently, the band has fallen off my charts as after that they've been very mediocre all around. Break The Cycle had some good tracks but also some that I could do without, 14 Shades was quite a disappoint to me, and while parts of Chapter V were close to Dysfunction level, the band still just seemed to not be as good as they once were.

Creed has a few tracks I can stand but for a majority of their stuff, I just can't find a reason to sit through multiple tracks let alone an entire CD.

This leaves Bush and Stone Temple Pilots. Two very good rock bands that did what they did well and could keep me entertained. Stone Temple Pilots are my favorite band out of the second poll while Bush is two steps behind. I enjoy both bands but STP had more variety than Bush and did a bet better instrumentally than Bush did, IMO.

In order: STP>Bush>Staind>Creed

So far I'm 2/4 in the Final Four with hopes that UConn makes it 3/4. If only Ohio State would've followed through but I guess I'm probably doing better than alot of others right now.

Saul Williams, Yakuza, and Meshuggah.

5) Foo Fighters

4) Red Hot Chili Peppers

3) Tool

2) Nine Inch Nails

1) Opeth

I really enjoyed 13 Ways To Bleed On Stage but the two follow up albums never really did much for me. Still, I wish nothing but the best to Scooter and co.