Plankton

Heath Ledger has been cast as the Joker for the sequel to Batman Begins? Okaaaay, Christopher Nolan must be on crack. I don't think Heath Ledger has the acting chops to pull off the Joker character, unless he's played as a straight psycho and the over the top, humorous aspects are left out. (ie, the character is played as he was originally created)

Creed's in the 70s and the Ramones aren't even on the list? You guys are so weird.

They Live!- ***1/4

Reminds me of A History of Violence in that it's well written, well directed, and well acted, but very low key at the same time. More than anything, this movie is smart in a sci-fi Orwellian manner and isn't afraid to be cheesy in an appropriate way. And of course, the best fight scene in cinematic history and certainly Piper's most epic match ever.

I'm really happy to see Sinatra, although 89 is a bit disappointing. Everything else is in the "eh" catergory for me personally though.

Unless someone else already mentioned it, The Shining is essential King reading. Although I think I like The Stand and IT best, The Shining is quite possibly King at his best.

I was playing some 64 games a few months ago and it felt awkward to me. I think I got so used to the Game Cube and PS2 controllers that the 64 felt a bit too big. It always had an overall good feel to it though, so I probably would have gotten used to it jus tlike I did the X-Box controller.

IMO, the best controller out right now is either the Game Cube's or the 360's. But that's pretty subjective.

Here's the back:

Just to elaborate on what Matzat said, you'll hear/read the C buttons referred to as C-Up, C-Down, C-Left, and C-Right.

EDIT: Also, they have arrows on the buttons and there's a C on the gray area in the middle of the buttons. It's a bit hard to see on the picture, so I don't know if you caught it. I'm not even sure if it was necessary to be that precise, but there you go.

To the initial question of is a book worth that much, my college says yes.

The Stand is probably the best thing King ever wrote, so that's a safe bet.

Memento (second viewing)- ***

Definitely not as good the second time around, but that's to be expected. It seems like the type of movie that is awesome when you don't know what's going on. Still, wonderfully directed and paced.

No Ramones? I didn't vote for them, but I'm really surprised they aren't on the list.

They've never been on the list. It's criminal.

No Ramones? I didn't vote for them, but I'm really surprised they aren't on the list.

I wouldn't say House is over-rated, or poor, but it is VERY samey. They never change the actual format of the show at all. Person gets Ill. House bitches about working in the clinic. Patient comes in. House shows an interest. They get an original diagnois wrong. They get round a board and throw out long sounding names of diseases and mock each other for being wrong. They try a treatment that fails. House 'GETS IT' and acts all smug and arrogant because he's so right. Its wrong, and the patient almost dies (this in particular - EVERY show). The patient almost dying however does finally tell them what the actual disease is, they treat him/her and live happily ever after. Throw in one or two scenes of very minor importance about one of the other characters, and a scene or two where House argues with the lass that runs the hospital, and that it. Every damn week.

But I still wouldn't call it bad, because despite sticking to the same template, the actual new episode is VERY well written and Hugh Laurie is very good also. Its the kinda show I can watch now and again and enjoy a lot, but watching it every week gets very repetative.

Corpse Bride- ***1/4

-This was totally solid, but missing something at the same time. It seems like there was 2-3 really fun, memorable scenes that Tim Burton must have accidently took out right before it went to theatres. The characters were good (both major and minor) and the visuals were great, so it's a little frustrating that the film didn't do more. But maybe in the longrun this was the better choice.

Unbreakable- ***

-A little slow at times, but I like the pacing okay. I like M. Night but he is waaaay too overrated in some circles. Sometimes I think he tries to do too much, but in this case he kept it simple and it worked.

FWE TV: Tournament Night (extended hours)

Wed. September 7, 2006

Local TV Station

Miami, Florida

Joey Styles welcomed everyone to the show. He said that tonight was FWE’s Tournament Night and all of the matches would be first round matches in the tournament to crown the first ever FWE Heavyweight Champion. He said that they had extended hours tonight, so they could go on as long as needed. He ran down the tournament brackets.

Jushin Liger

Harry Smith

Colt Cabana

Chris Jericho

Ric Flair

TBA

Brock Lesnar

Matt Stryker

Marty Jannetty

Bryan Danielson

BJ Whitmer

Michael Modest

CM Punk

Doug Williams

Ace Steel

Vader

I thought the topic said "24 games for 9.99".

FF VII

I only completed it once I re-bought it for my PS2, possibly about 5 years after I first started it.

The Jerk- *****

One of my all time favorites. And one of the most quotable movies ever. "He hates these cans! Stay away from the cans!"

Storm of the Century- **3/4

They honestly didn't need to take that long to accomplish what they did. So much of the movie could have been taken out. I didn't really become interested until the courthouse stuff, which was great. The ending was too much of a downer. This is King's problem with pretty much everything he does. Great set-up, great progression, shitty ending. I don't mind endings like this one, but it was so anti-climatic for me. If I'm going to sit down and watch a 4 hour movie, the ending better be something a lot better than that. It seems like he had a great idea and he really knew how to play up on that particular fear, but he totally didn't know how to end it in a satisfying way. Maybe it would be okay if it was an hour and a half, but come on, that's four fucking hours, Steve. Give me something I can feel good about!

Eh, I'm just pissed I spent four hours for an ending that left me hanging. It was decent stuff, even if the casting of Andre Linoge was awful. Pretty okay though, aside from a few major gripes.

That case is worth it alone, but I'm afraid I won't be buying it as I already own a copy and I'd rather spend my extra cash on movies I don't own. Still, that's a hell of a deal for only 20 bucks.

I do agree the point system is unbalanced. I'd prefer it based on a .5 instead of 1 whole point scale.

10 for 1, 9.5 for 2, and so on.

But wouldn't that be exactly the same as the system i was using already, only using 0.5 instead of 1, so it is still going up at the same proportion? In effect it is used to seperate two or more entries that are relatively close to each other, so the ranking scheme works easier. Although i'll take them ideas into considreation next time (Y)

I was doing some work for the FWE one afternoon at Eddie’s diner. We were getting ready to crown a champion and I wanted to make sure everything was in order. We had hung some posters up and had some commercials air that were a bit vague, so now we needed to get things rolling with it.

Eddie and Ted came walking up to me.

Listen, Eddie,” Ted said. “Don’t worry about this stuff. I’ll let the kid know.”

“No. I have been too busy with other business. I want to let him know myself. I do not like being so distant from any parts of my business.”

At this point it was a little awkward since I was right in front of them.

“You can come to me about anything, Classic,” I said.

Eddie smiled and then looked at Ted. “You see? He calls me Classic. Not Old School. That’s called respect.”

“Hey, I respect you, Eddie,” Ted said. “It’s just that everyone calls you Old School.”

Eddie shrugged him off. “John, we are bringing in a lot of new talent, okay?”

“Okay, that’s fine,” I said. “Are they all personal picks?”

“I owe some favors here, I owe some favors there. Other guys I like, others I think you would like. But none of that matters.”

“It should all be fine either way. Who all did you sign?”

Ted Jumped in. “We’ve got Apolo, Brian Jennings, Caprice Coleman, Chris Copeland, Cibernetico, Davey Andrews, Derek Wylde, Don Juan, Dan Maff, EZ Money, Glen Gilberti, Frankie Kazarian, Ikaitia Loa, Jon Moxley, Kevin Northcutt, Lex Lovett, Mike Desire, Onyx, Ryan Sakoda, Tack, and the Human Tornado.”

I was pretty overwhelmed. The list was way bigger than I imagined.

“Don’t worry about fitting everyone in at once,” Eddie said. “We’ll keep them busy in the meantime.”

“I should figure something out for all of them,” I said, but that was mostly wishful thinking.

Eddie smiled, expressed his gratitude and excused himself. Ted stuck around to discuss posters.

“What we’ll need,” I said. “Is to advertise a 16-man tournament with these names already included: Jushin Liger, Ric Flair, Chris Jericho, Bryan Danielson, Michael Modest, CM Punk, Harry Smith, Brock Lesnar, Doug Williams, and Vader. Advertise an 8-man match for Wednesday with Colt Cabana, Ace Steel, Marty Jannetty, and BJ Whitmer vs. Kevin Sullivan, Lex Luger, Barry Windham, and Mike Rotundo. The winning team will be included in the tournament. Also advertise Matt Stryker vs. Masada vs. John Walters vs. Milano Collectino AT with the winner being entered. As far as non-tournament activity this Wednesday goes, advertise Ric Flair vs. Chris Jericho, Sabu vs. Abdullah the Butcher, Doug Williams vs. Michael Modest, and the main event: CM Punk vs. Bryan Danielson.”

FWE TV

Wed. August 31, 2006

Local TV Station

Miami, Florida

Joey opened the show by hyping tonight’s matches and the tournament to crown a champion.

Ric Flair vs. Chris Jericho

Styles: Both Ric Flair and Chris Jericho have been entered into the tournament. But make no mistake about it; there may not seem like a lot at stake here, but the winner of this match is going to be headed into the tournament with a lot of momentum and the loser isn’t.

The big story of this match was the subtle transformation of Jericho going from a respectful competitor, to his old, arrogant self, and then back to being respectful. The arrogance wasn’t blatant, as it was mostly in a few of his actions here and there. He didn’t throw out any of his cocky covers, but once in a while he would grab the ropes while having Flair in abdominal stretch or telling the ref that Flair was pulling his hair. This type of behavior only really happened in the middle of the match. As the bout became more intense, Jericho concentrated more on the moves that he was doing. This proved to be the better strategy, as he was able to pin Flair after a sunset flip.

Winner: Chris Jericho

Styles: Chris Jericho gets a huge victory going into the tournament, but Ric Flair has only managed to begin a losing streak.

Flair looked pretty upset—more angry than sad. Jericho offered a handshake and he reluctantly obliged.

[Quinn says: The subtleties in Jericho’s performance made this match. Without them, this would probably be a little below three stars, as it was really the bulk of the story. I would go a bit further with the rating, but the ending was abrupt and I felt that, at points, Jericho wanted to wrestle a bit of a different match than Flair did. The last few sequences were good, but it just seemed like Jericho wanted to go a bit faster than Flair. But like I said, Jericho’s performance was great and it was nice to see him drift back into his old heel role for a few minutes.]

Rating: ***1/4

Colt Cabana Speaks for his Troops

Colt Cabana was backstage with Ace Steel, Marty Jannetty, and BJ Whitmer.

Cabana: Hi, everybody. I’m Colt Cabana. You may remember me from matches where I wrestled Lex Luger. And the week after that where I wrestled Barry Windham… and Lex Luger. And the week after that when I wrestled Mike Rotundo… and Lex Luger. And who can forget last Saturday where I was involved in an eight-man tag that had—you guessed it—Lex Luger on the other team. BJ Whitmer here has had a similar problem monotony like myself, Crazy Eyes Ace Steel, and Marty Jannetty have had. But it’s all going to end tonight because we’re parting ways with Luger’s alliance. Because the winning team is going to be included in the upcoming tournament to crown the first ever FWE Heavyweight Champion. So when we beat you guys we will be officially moving on to bigger and better things. You can bet on that.

Rating: 77

Colt Cabana, Ace Steel, Marty Jannetty, and BJ Whitmer vs. Lex Luger, Barry Windham, Kevin Sullivan, and Mike Rotundo

This match was fairly similar to the six-man match from the night before in regards to what Cabana, Jannetty, Steel, Luger, Sullivan, and Rotundo did. Whitmer and Windham both served as powerhouses in their teams and brought a lot of intensity to the match, making it quite a bit less comedic. Luger and Windham also did a lot of teamwork.

Whitmer was the real standout of the match. Cabana and Jannetty repeated a lot of Rockers spots, but Whitmer brought a lot of the momentum to the table for his team, at some point manhandling all four members of Luger’s team.

The ending to the match came after Cabana and Jannetty cleared the ring of Luger and Sullivan. Steel then took Rotundo out with a suicide dive, leaving Windham alone to Whitmer. Whitmer really took it to Windham for a little bit and then ended the match after a Wrist Clutch Exploder.

Winners: Colt Cabana, Ace Steel, Marty Jannetty, and BJ Whitmer

Styles: Colt Cabana, Ace Steel, Marty Jannetty, and BJ Whitmer are all going to be competing for the right to be the first ever FWE Heavyweight Champion!

As all four men celebrated, Sullivan and the rest attacked them from behind. Cabana, Steel, Whitmer, Luger, Sullivan, and Rotundo all took the fight outside of the ring, but Windham, who had a chair with him, cracked Jannetty in the head with a wild swing in the middle of the ring. He then followed up with a piledriver on the chair. All of the referees and road agents ran into the ring and separated the men. They had to help Jannetty to the back. He didn’t look good at all.

Styles: What a disgusting display of sportsmanship by Barry Windham! I think Jannetty’s status in the tournament is questionable at best.

[Quinn says: If you take Whitmer out of the equation, this is almost a complete rehash of the tag match last Saturday. On the plus side, Cabana and Jannetty were still entertaining and to see Whitmer unleash on Windham and the rest was nice to see. I hope this feud is about to finish though, as it looks like it’s gone on for about as long as it should.]

Rating: **1/2

Falls Count Anywhere: Sabu vs. Abdullah the Butcher

Styles: Sabu brought the Necro Butcher to the limit last Saturday, now he has the opportunity to do the same with another butcher—Abdullah the Butcher.

Sabu was pretty crazy in this match, going to the air and hitting Abdullah pretty accurately every time. Abdullah primarily just bumped for Sabu for the most part, but after a little while, he came back strong and Sabu did most of the bumping. Abdullah eventually took out the fork and just mauled Sabu’s forehead with it.

At around the nine minute mark Necro ran into the ring through the crowd.

Styles: It’s the Necro Butcher. And he has a bat wrapped with barbed wire!

Necro nailed Abdullah in the back with the bat to get him off of Sabu. He then started beating the hell out of Sabu with it. After beating on Sabu for a while, Necro got out a table and set it up inside the ring. He threw Sabu on top of the table, wrapped himself up wit the barbed wire from the bat and did a senton splash on top of Sabu from the top rope onto the table.

Styles: The Necro Butcher is crazy!

The ref finally threw the match out even though there were no DQs.

Winner: Draw

Styles: Referee Hiroyuki Unno has finally thrown this one out. The Necro Butcher has completely hijacked this night from Sabu and Abdullah.

Necro continued to beat down on Sabu but then Abdullah came from behind and started hitting Necro over the head with his fork. Necro tried to fight back, but Abdullah just retaliated with a few headbutts and then continued with the fork. Sabu then joined in on the fight, but Abdullah attacked him with the fork too.

Styles: It looks like Abdullah hasn’t forgotten about his match with Sabu. He still wants to keep it going.

The whole situation completely fell apart with all three men just beating the hell out of each other. Referees and road agents had to come down once again to calm the situation down and get all three men out of there.

[Quinn says: Okay, sue me, but I loved it. This was complete carnage. Sabu was actually looking fluid for once and the match was set up so that all Abdullah had to do to carry his weight was bring out that damn fork of his. Necro Butcher really brought the fun though. He might be blatantly ripping off the Sandman here, but whatever, it works. Some people might think 3 stars is a bit much, but I couldn’t help but enjoy myself for this one.]

Rating: ***

Matt Stryker vs. Milano Collection AT vs. John Walters vs. Masada

Styles: The winner here gets a spot in the tournament.

This one started with traditional tag rules, but broke down real quick. Each man’s strategy differed a bit from the others. Walter’s stood back from the most part and ran into to hit someone with a move occasionally. Joey noted that he looked to be biding his time and make the pin behind everyone’s back.

Masada, on the other hand, would concentrate on a single man and pretty much ignore the rest. The hope on Masada’s part was that if he didn’t occupy himself by worrying about the others, he could hit a few crucial moves and secure the win easier. Walters really neutralized him though because made sure to keep an eye on everyone and anytime that Masada seemed to be making any progress, Walters would make sure to knock him out of the ring or clothesline him and run out of the ring real quick.

Milano Collection also didn’t seem to pay attention to anymore than one person at a time, but his strategy was unique because, unlike Masada, he didn’t work solely on one person for too long. He would hit one person with a few things and then go for someone else. The thinking here was that he would slowly be wearing everyone down and his lack of idleness would make him a much harder target. Again, Walters fouled up those plans because he kept a much closer eye on everyone than either Milano or Masada were expecting.

Although Walters’ strategy helped in neutralizing Masada and Milano, it was Stryker’s approach that was best. His tactics were similar to Walters, but he was much more intense about what he did. Instead of staying idle he would really go after someone hard. After each move though, he made sure to look around and take notes on what everyone else was doing. If someone seemed to be making any progress, he would concentrate on them (in a way, this was similar to Milano’s strategy, just less random). This helped neutralize Walters, but Stryker actually left Walters alone most of the time and let him do a lot of the work for him. Because of this, he was able to stay on a single competitor for longer than he normally would have been able to. And because Masada and Milano’s strategy had little to do with watching the others, they left themselves more vulnerable to Walters’ attacks, leaving Stryker free to gain more momentum.

The ending eventually came when Masada and Milano were in the ring together. Walters was crouching on the outside, waiting to strike at the right moment and Stryker was also hanging on the outside, playing possum after being hit quite a while ago with a clothesline to the outside from Masada.

Masada caught Milano on the ropes and powerbombed him from the top. Walters then ran in and nailed a Lung Blower. At just the right moment, Stryker then ran in and hit a dragon suplex for the win.

Winner: Matt Stryker

Styles: Matt Stryker’s going to get a chance to be the first ever FWE Heavyweight Champion!

[Quinn says: Damn, these guys packed in a ton of action in the five minutes they had. Walters played his role well and Stryker came out looking really smart. I think it would be a mistake to go for 3 stars here as the match really was pretty short, but it comes pretty close.]

Rating: **3/4

Doug Williams vs. Michael Modest

Styles: It was just a few weeks ago that Modest said he was going to prove that he was better than Doug Williams and now he finally gets a chance to back those words up.

The match started off with Modest being very aggressive and Williams trying to slow the pace down with reversals and submissions, relying heavily on his European style. Because of this the pace was sporadic at first with both men trying to gain the advantage.

Styles: Both Modest and Williams want the match to be wrestled there way, it’s just a matter of time before one of them gains some momentum.

It was Modest who finally got things going his way after a tornado DDT. But instead of keeping the pace fast, he slowed it down and began to apply a variety of submissions.

Styles: Michael Modest is deciding to control the match by outwrestling Williams in the kind of match that he prefers.

Modest was able to gain a lot of momentum this way because as long as he was beating Williams in his own kind of match, a lot of Williams’ strategies couldn’t be used as he was used. However, as time went on, he waited for the right opportunities and did some reversals at some key moments. This started to make Modest panic a bit and he went for some risky moves. Williams was waiting for this though (and was actually trying to force Modest into making some risks) and was able to take advantage of the situation. Modest went for a double axe handle but Williams rolled behind Modest and hit a german suplex. Williams stood up, still holding onto Modest.

Styles: Williams is going for the second half of the Chaos Theory!

But Modest grabbed onto the nearby ropes at the last second and hit a stunner on Williams. He went for the cover.

Styles: One, two, and—No! Williams kicks out!

Modest didn’t hesitate though. He stood back, waited for Williams to stand up and Modest went for a strong lariat. Williams rolled out of the way again, but Modest was expecting him to and quickly turned around and nailed the lariat. Williams flew back on the top of his head and flipped onto his stomach.

Styles: What a clothesline!

Modest made the cover and one the match.

Winner: Michael Modest

Styles: Michael Modest had Williams’ strategy well scouted out, but this match definitely could have gone the other way as Williams showed great ring presence. Hopefully we will be in store for a rematch soon.

[Quinn says: The beginning was a bit awkward I though, but the ending sequence was quick and fluid. The psychology was also top notch. Timing is a bit of an issue once again though, but I think if a rematch was given just another five minutes or so they could have a match that got really close to reaching the 5-star region.]

Rating: ****

Tony Kozina vs. ?????

Tony Kozina came to the ring with a mic.

Styles: That’s Tony Kozina. We’ve been hearing about this guy internally in the FWE for a few weeks now.

Kozina: This is the fifth FWE show now and “The Tank” Tony Kozina hasn’t been booked for a match yet.

Styles: “The Tank”?

Kozina: Well, I’m sick of waiting around. “The Tank” is the kind of guy that makes things happen. I don’t wait for someone to make an impact, I make it on my own! So I’m going to throw out an open challenge right now! Anyone who wants a piece of Tony Kozina can come up to the ring right now and be my first victim!

With just a little wait, Vader’s music played and he storm to the ring.

Styles: It’s Vader!

Tony Kozina was wide-eyed and he dropped his mic.

Styles: Tony Kozina looks scared out of his mind!

Kozina gathered up a bit of strength and went chest-to-chest with Vader (which was more like chest-to-stomach). Kozina threw some punches at Vader’s stomach, but they didn’t make the big man budge. Vader swung some punches and threw Kozina around a bit. There was a small sequence where Vader nailed some hop tosses just to show how easy it was.

Styles: The Tank’s not necessarily living up to his name right now.

At one point though Vader had Kozina lifted up for a guerilla press slam, but Kozina wiggled out of it and nailed a DDT on the way down.

Styles: Vader may have underestimated Kozina.

Kozina immediately made a mistake by trying to shoulder block Vader.

Styles: But I think Kozina has underestimated Vader even more!

Vader finally put the match away by powerbombing Kozina and finishing him off with a Vaderbomb.

Winner: Vader

Styles: Tony Kozina may not have gotten close to beating Vader, but he has a ton of guts!

Vader helped the groggy Kozina to his feet and leaned him up on one of the corners.

[Quinn says: I was happy to finally see Tony Kozina debut, but I wish it was under different circumstances. This match was far from even and, in the long run, I hope decisions like this don’t hurt the smaller guys. But Kozina looked pretty good here and that DDT was awesome. Vader’s recent WWE run certainly doesn’t speak for his overall ability right now. He’s not anything like he used to be, but he can still move. This was a fun match, but maybe more of a novelty.]

Rating: **1/2

Jushin Liger vs. Jack Evans

Joey went over Evans’ work in Dragon Gate and ROH.

Similar to his match with Hernandez, Evans bumped like a madman in this match. The match actually started out fairly even for a few minutes, with Evans pulling off some crazy moves and Liger coming back with more ground-based moves. But Liger eventually took control and pretty much obliterated Evans. At three different points Liger struck Evans with palm strikes, the third which sent Evans spinning in the air.

Styles: Liger’s going to knock Evans out!

Liger finally managed to end the match after a Liger Bomb.

Winner: Jushin Liger

[Quinn says: It’s fun to see Liger get to manhandle someone and Evans is probably he most over the top bumper in the states right now. This match was only just over seven minutes, but it was non-stop the entire time. Here’s to hoping Evans evolves from his current status as bump machine though.]

Rating: ***

CM Punk Promises to Win the Title

CM Punk was backstage.

Punk: In just over two weeks the first ever FWE Heavyweight Champion will be crowned and I don’t think there’s any doubt who will wear that belt for the first time. Because the second I came into this promotion, I took over. I kicked Ric Flair’s ass off of the top of the mountain in just a matter of weeks. And now I’m going to finish the job and make my dominance official. Bryan Danielson, it continues with you tonight. And whether I face Ric Flair, Chris Jericho, Doug Williams, Jushin Liger, or even my old friends Colt Cabana and Ace Steel, I’m going to prove that I am the best talent in the FWE and no one is even close to passing me by.

Rating: 91

Brock Lesnar vs. Jim Neidhart w/ Harry Smith

Joey reminded the fans that Lesnar knocked Neidhart out last week and made him miss the Saturday show.

Lesnar just destroyed Neidhart in this match. Neidhart was able to engage in a slugfest at the beginning but Lesnar controlled the match for the most part. He threw Neidhart around in the beginning of the match and then did some mat work for the second half. He finally put the match away by making Neidhart tap to a chickenwing.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Lesnar picked up the groggy Neidhart and then F5ed him twice. Harry Smith got up no the ring apron and Lesnar swatted him down. He then powerbombed Neidhart. Smith then slid in the ring and speared Lesnar to the ground. He and Lesnar traded rapid fire punches with Harry Smith surprisingly coming out on top. Smith then delivered a few snap suplexes and dropkicked Lesnar in the face, sending him spilling to the outside.

Styles: Harry Smith has taken tooth and nail to Brock Lesnar! Lesnar looks shocked! He didn’t think that Harry Smith could be that aggressive!

Lesnar backed away out of the ringside area, never keeping his eyes off of Smith.

[Quinn says: It’s a lot of fun to see Brock Lesnar throw people around who you aren’t used to seeing in that position, but that’s about as good as this one got.]

Rating: **

CM Punk vs. Bryan Danielson

Styles: This has the potential to be a huge main event, fans! Bryan Danielson’s coming off the heels of a big win the International Four Corners Match and CM Punk just defeated arguably the biggest legend in this business last Saturday, Ric Flair!

Both men stared each other down and talked trash. Punk finally slapped Danielson and Danielson responded with a very hard forearm to the face that sent Punk to the ground. Punk immediately got up to retaliate but Danielson came back with a series of forearms. Punk retreated to a corner and kicked at Danielson’s legs. To stop Punk, Danielson gave a quick low dropkick to Punk’s right leg. He then left the ring and used the post to help work on Punk’s leg.

Styles: Danielson saw Punk’s choice of offense and immediately targeted the part of the body that is vital to that strategy. Bryan Danielson is a wrestling machine and if you aren’t on your guard when you wrestle him, he will break you apart.

Danielson continued to work on Punk’s leg. Joey noted that even if Danielson neutralized the use of Punk’s legs, he could still lock in the Anaconda Vice.

At one point Punk backed out into a corner and when Danielson rushed in for the kill, Punk sidestepped him and slammed his head into the turnbuckle. Joey noted that Punk was just waiting for Danielson to get too comfortable in his strategy.

At this point Punk pretty much lost the use of his leg. He could pull off power moves like a german suplex, but the impact was lessened because he didn’t have the full use of his legs to help increase the impact. Joey said that Danielson picked a great body part to work on because almost every move relied on the legs in some way. But Punk found a way around it. He nailed a lot of DDTs, ace crushers, and eventually took Danielson to the mat, working on the neck.

Styles: CM Punk is working towards putting Danielson out with the Anaconda Vice.

Danielson was able to take the match in a different direction though. As long as he kept Punk on his feet, he had the advantage. Danielson started to throw Punk around and kept him moving. After a while he went for the sharpshooter.

Styles: Danielson is going for one of the most painful submissions in the business!

Punk wiggled out of the sharpshooter attempt and, with his left leg, kicked Danielson away onto the mat. He got up and stood in the middle of the ring. Danielson charged at Punk, and Punk again sidestepped him and sent him crashing into the ref, who was behind him. The ref fell out of the ring and Danielson was still standing. Punk dropped to his knees and when Danielson turned around, he low-blowed him. He then hit an STO and locked in the Anaconda Vice. Danielson crawled to the ropes and grabbed them, but the ref was still out. Punk kept the Vice locked in and then eventually rolled into the middle of the ring again. The ref finally got his act together and reentered the ring. Danielson had now been in the Vice for an excruciatingly long time and finally had to tap out.

Winner: CM Punk

Styles: CM Punk has defeated Bryan Danielson, but it wasn’t without controversy. It will be interesting to see how this match will affect the psyche of each of these men. But for now, CM Punk is building up to the winning streak of a lifetime.

The show faded looking at CM Punk exiting the ring, with Bryan Danielson in the background lying down on the mat.

[Quinn says: This is definitely the FWE’s best match so far. Both guys started intense and kept that up the entire time. Punk snuck in some stuff from Flair’s book, which was some nice continuity. They worked on the right body parts, sold the right stuff, and everything flowed well. My only major complaint is that Punk ha to cheat to win, which took away from the match. I know they wanted to put over how Flair’s matches influenced who Punk is as a wrestler, but I wish it should have been done in a way that didn’t taint the ending. Still an awesome match though.]

Rating: ****1/2

Overall Rating: 74

The posters for our next big show Night of the Champion went out the next morning. They advertised the tournament, with the first round set to take place the next week. This is what it looked like:

Jushin Liger

Harry Smith

Colt Cabana

Chris Jericho

Ric Flair

TBA

Brock Lesnar

Matt Stryker

Marty Jannetty

Bryan Danielson

BJ Whitmer

Michael Modest

CM Punk

Doug Williams

Ace Steel

Vader

1. Misfits

2. Frank Sinatra

3. Johnny Cash

4. Danielson

5. Flogging Molly

6. The Psalters

7. Reverend Horton Heat

8. The Pogues

9. Rancid

10. Ballydowse

I wouldn't mind seeing a movie based on the Ramones. The PBS documentary that aired a little over a year ago was excellent and the story would translate onto the big screen. If the movie was put in the right hands and had a Sid and Nancy feel, it would be hard to screw up.