Can be watched at wrestlingnetwork.net watch episode 6 Watch it now.
WHAT WORKED:
Jimmy Valiant sends in a tape. Disappointed it wasn't a reel-to reel. But I'll accept a Sony tape.
Ok I've really enjoyed this promotion thus far with the one criticism being that on some level for a southern promotion Rocky top didn't have enough angles. The interviews were so good that you didn't realize the lack of any real angles building heat for the big show. There's so much depth to a Dennis Condrey, Ricky Morton or Jimmy Golden promo that you didn't notice the lack of angles building heat...but essentially first four episodes were building toward a tag tourney. Episode six was all about building heat for the big show and really really ruled. Episode six was all about the angles and the angles just KICKED ASS:
---Tom Pritchard does an angle with his own video camera on a street and man alive is Tom Pritchard scum. You watch that angle and are just blown away by what a contemptible fuck Tom Pritchard is. I mean fuck them Texans. Thats how you work heel.
----They're doing an X-division tourney in this old school fed....and this seems like a bad idea at first. but they turn it into a battle of protege's with Tom Pritchards protege vs. Ricky Morton's protege....and hey yeah that's a smart way to give an X-division tourney actual heat. Borash and D'amore never figured this shit out, while Rocky Top figured it out by their second X-division match.
---James Gibson burned Tracy Smothers. and Dennis Condrey does an amazing heel promo from the swimming pool at the local Y. by the end of sixth episode Joe Wheeler's suit jacket was off and this was a hot show.
--The angry face promos on seventh show nicely answered the despicable actions of the heels on the sixth and nicely built to the big show on the 23rd. I live 7 hours from Knoxville and am hoping that they sell a DVD of the show as I want to see these scores settled.
-Video packages also really great. I LOVED the Six Million Dollar Man sound effects for the Brad Thomas crossbody.
Liked a bunch of the matches too. Tim Horner really looks like a young Carol OConnor at this point and I guess there is a joke about Carol OConnor's son and white lightning...but I don't know how to tell it. I dug both of his matches although both were a little too even .The first Tim Horner match was a little too even but I dug alot. And Tim Horner vs. Pritchard was also worked surprisingly even (compared to the Pritchard v Eddie Golden match). I'm supposed to believe that Thorn and Pritchard provide the same level of challenge. I really liked the Horner seperates Pritchards fingers in the headlock spot and it was neat that in the same week that I got to see a rematch from the best match from the Pillman Memorial show that also got to see rematch from second best match. Thankfully they didn't do the same finish as I really don't want to see current Missy flash anyone...
On the other hand, I never bought that wrestlers who went from rat to rat would really be so distracted by skin that they would lose their focus. I would buy getting flashed by current Missy would make you lose focus. Finish to this match was a bit abrupt and match didn't live up to the Pillman one.
_Smothers vs. Jihad was really well worked. Cool opening stuff nice transitions , hot angle at the end. People will dig.
-Shane Williams was a lot of fun in his match with Nobel, nice big bumps to loose momentum. Nobel had some nice strikes and did a sweet job recovering from early blown spot. Fine face/heel structure going to this match. Nobel had some AAAW-full missed clotheslines including one where he couldn't decide if he was leapfrogging or clotheslining his opponent. But this was fun little match and made me want to see more Shane Williams and made me wonder how Brad Thomas will do against the nerdowell Nobel.
WHAT DIDN'T WORK:
The Brad Thomas vs. Shultz match X -division match was mediocre face vs. face match that didn't do much for me. Thomas takes a shoulderblock really really well. But I don't know. For a throwback fed...I'm not really interested in throwback to Julio Dinero vs. Inferno Kid from 95.
Am I getting an edited version of this show? They mention parts of the Pritchard video package that I didn't see. They mention this David Eaton mic work that I missed.
I (perhaps incorrectly) was using employment tax as shorthand to refer to all the employment-related taxes and expenses a business has to pay when it has employees rather than independent contractors: