AWE The Night Of Legends Recap: October 15, 2011

AWE The Night Of Legends Recap
October 15, 2011
Doug Maynard

It's Saturday night and it's Awesome Wrestling Entertainment's "The Night Of Legends", live on pay per view. It's either going to be good, fun nostalgia or it's going to be a total trainwreck, but either way, it's here, tonight and it's LIVE from Fisherville, Virginia. No, I don't know where that is either, but let's hope that they have good satellite transmissions from this place. I'm Doug and I'm your humble recapper. I'm also the man who consistently puts the bite in Pizza Bites. Love them things. Mmm Mmm Good! (Cambell Soup is probably going to sue me now... lol)

Chris Cruise, "Dirty" Dutch Mantell and "The Living Legend" Larry Zbyszko are the guys calling the action. Bill Apter (of "Apter Mags" fame) and Chris Graham are handling the backstage interviews. The crowd is jakked. I'm jakked. And I'm sure that you are too. Let's do this!

Everything started with a pre-game show that lasted thirty minutes. We got promos, old-school style, from Fit Finlay, Hacksaw Jim Duggan and The Rock & Roll Express. And then we had a promo from "Big Sexy" Kevin Nash, talking about the Rock & Roll Express and what they did to his friend, "Marvin". "Marvin" is promoter Marvin Ward, who was originally scheduled to be Nash's tag team partner, but was injured in a Rock & Roll ambush attack by Ricky and Robert. Okay promo by Big Daddy Cool, but it left more questions than provided any answers about anything. The pre-game show played each of these promos... three times and then we cut to live action and the PPV event.

Chris Cruise, who looks far older than he used to, is with Dutch Mantell and Larry Zbyszko and they welcome us to the show before heading straight to the ring for the first match. Zbyszko gets in that old patented cliche he used so regularly at the old WCW pay per view, Slamboree, with a slight alteration to fit the first match. "Time only fears the pyramids and Terry Funk."

No Disqualification
Tommy Dreamer versus Terry Funk

This match is supposedly 12 years in the making and Dreamer & Funk couldn't wait for it to start. That's why it's on first. Damn, it is brutal just to watch Funk walk to the ring. Those knees may have been replaced, but it still looks so damn painful. Ouch!!

Funk gets the mic as the bell rings. He talks about how the doctor said he was too old to wrestle, but he still wanted to be here for Dreamer and the fans in Virginia. Terry mentions how he's been friends with Dreamer since Tommy had greasy hair and pimples. Funk added that he might be 105 years old, but the older you get, the meaner you get. Then Terry nailed Dreamer with the mic and it's on.

Funk starts out by throwing Dreamer to the floor and following him with a bunch of punches and a hard whip to the ringside barrier. While Terry jaws with a fan, Dreamer grabs a drink from a fan and nails Funk with it. Punches by Dreamer and he throws Funk into a ringside table. Tommy decides to toss Terry into the table again, but Funk reverses and Dreamer flips over the table to the floor. Terry is grabbing and throwing chairs and drops Tommy across the ringside barrier with a crotch-drop and some chops before grabbing Dreamer and throwing him back into the ring.
Once back in the ring, Terry morphs into the Junkyard Dog and does several headbutts as the Dog used to. I think Terry is knocking himself senseless here.

Dreamer rolls to the floor to escape and Funk follows, slamming Tommy into the barriers one more time. Terry argues with fans while Dreamer takes a big swallow from a fan's drink and does a "Shades of Great Muta" impression by spraying the drink into Funk's face. Several chairs were tossed into the ring and Dreamer and Funk follow the furniture, climbing back into the ring. Funk nailed Dreamer with a drop-toe-hold and planted him into a chair which refused to stand up. Spinning toe hold by Funk. Dutch Mantell can't even remember the name of the move. Sad! Dreamer escapes by nailing Terry in the head with a chair. Dreamer nails Terry again and goes for a small package. The referee counts three and Tommy gets the pin. Looks like the ref screwed up the call. Oops!

Winner: Tommy Dreamer

Funk goes after the referee and throws him hard across the ring. Funk is pissed off! Terry throws a chair at Dreamer and then walks towards the back.

That match was really bad, especially when you consider the two men involved. The timing was off and Terry really looked bad. For something we waited close to twelve years for, it really was a big letdown. And the ref blew the call at the end too. Geez!

And now we head backstage where Chris Graham is standing by with Jamin Olivencia who will be facing Sonjay Dutt in the next match. Olivencia was on fire with the promo and talked about how he's already defeated Sonjay when they first wrestled, but Dutt whined and complained and cried about it. Olivencia says that he was a loser and complainer once too, but then he woke up and realized who he was and after that day, he was a winner. Olivencia promised to give the whole world notice and that he was going to change the atmosphere at any given moment. This guy is a really good talker and had some great facial expressions during his interview.

Bill Apter is standing by with Sonjay Dutt He rags on Olivencia for a bit and says that he (Dutt) is fine being himself and that Olivencia had better have his "A" game on tonight on the biggest stage of them all. Dutt calls himself the best high flyer wrestler in the world and is "the original playa from the Himmalaya's".

Sonjay Dutt versus Jamin Olivencia

Olivencia doesn't like the way he's introduced and demands that the ring announcer does it again. The bell rings and they start off with a lot of good back and forth action with Dutt ending up with the advantage and a headlock. Dutt with a slap and a dropkick. One more by Sonjay and Jamin goes to the floor. Dutt looks like he's ready for a dive, but Jamin moves. Dutt is distracted and Jamin nails Sonjay with a flying punch. It's Jamin with the advantage in the corner. Dutt tries to fight back, but Jamin keeps the advantage and covers for a two.

Suplex and splash by Jamin for another two count. Several more two counts by Jamin, but Dutt keeps kicking out. Jamin is getting frustrated. A "Shades of Randy Orton" chinlock by Jamin on to the head of Dutt. Dutt manages to score with a hurcurrana and escapes, sending Jamin to the floor. Dutt flies with a moonsault and nails Jamin on the floor. Dutt rolls Jamin into the ring and scores a two-count. Jamin tries to fight back and hits a splash in the corner. A Yakuza kick by Dutt, who then follows up with a splash for two. Jamin charges into the corner and gets nailed by a "Shades of Christian" kick in the corner. Back and forth action and we see Dutt slip out of a suplex attempt by Jamin, almost landing on his head in the process. Both men are down and the referee is counting.

Both men make it up and start throwing forearm shots. Dutt goes for a sunset flip, but Jamin grabs the ropes. The referee breaks it up by kicking the arms and Dutt gets a two count. A collision with the ref by Jamin and the ref is out of position. Jamin Olivencia with a low blow kick and his finisher, the "O-Drop" for the pin.

Winner: Jamin Olivencia

A pretty decent match between these two guys. Jamin Olivencia really has a lot of potential and charisma. Dutt needs to grow some hair back on to his head, but he's still damn good in the ring. After the match, Olivencia went down to ringside to jaw with Chris Cruise and both Zbyszko and Dutch Mantell tried to get Cruise in trouble by claiming to Olivencia that Cruise was talking junk about him. Funny.

We see some replays of the match and then a guy, who they called "Hank" at first and then "Rick Garrison" afterwards, came down and joined the announcers, totally burying Perry Saturn in the process. I think this dude is supposed to be the AWE President. But is he "Hank" or "Rick"? Inquiring minds want to know. We head backstage for promos.

C.W. Anderson is backstage with Chris Graham and says that everytime he's on a PPV, he has the match of the night and he's going to do that same thing tonight. Anderson talks about Saturn and says that when the match is done, Saturn can head back to living under the bridge where he's been for all these past years.

Bill Apter was with Perry Saturn, who was clowning around, acting like a goof and pretending he didn't know who Anderson was. Then he got serious and asked where Moppy was. No, I'm lying. He said that Anderson could kick his ass, "but he's going to have to!"

C.W. Anderson versus Perry Saturn

Saturn looks kind of rough here. The face is normal, but I've never seen him this heavy. I guess nine years of living under a bridge and being a drug addict will do that to you. Saturn starts off strong with shoulder-blocks and punches, followed up by a "Shades of Taz" suplex. Sloppy headscissors by Saturn and a punch that sent Anderson to the floor. Saturn goes for a dive, but gets plastered by Anderson and a chair. Saturn is bleeding. Anderson brings him back to the ring and starts employing the "Anderson-method" of wrestling, going after the arm.

Anderson continued to work on the arm while Saturn tried to fight back with punches. Anderson with a hard left and back to the arm with a vintage "Hammerlock slam". Saturn finally started with the comeback, no-selling a superkick by Anderson, and landing several clotheslines of his own. Two-count for Saturn. Anderson hit a "Shades of Double-A" spinebuster for another two-count and then went for a backdrop. Saturn with the sunset flip and a sloppy looking pin to get the win.

Winner: Perry Saturn

This match stunk to the moon and it all falls on Perry Saturn. He was out of shape and really sloppy in the ring. Anderson carried him through the entire match and deserves a pat on the back, but Perry's timing was so bad, even Anderson couldn't save it.

Chris Graham is in the back with some generic Arab Sheik character. First we got a promo on tape from the guy saying that he was made rich by America's addiction to oil. And then back to the live promo by Graham and the character, Mohammad Akbar. Akbar talks trash about America and then says that his name means Mohammad the Great and he's the champion of his people's cause. He's going to take out Hacksaw Duggan and make sure we all know that Akbar means great.

Bill Apter is with Hacksaw Jim Duggan and if you've ever heard a Jim Duggan promo before, you're not missing anything here. He talks about fighting tough guys all around the world and he wants to hear the fans chant "USA". Same old stuff as always, but he's got energy and says it like he means it.

Mohammad Akbar vs. Hacksaw Jim Duggan

Akbar starts talking almost as soon as he gets into the ring. Duggan pops up on the Legendtron Screen and cuts him off, starting a chant in the crowd of "USA". And here comes Duggan to the ring.

Akbar nails Duggan almost as soon as he hits the ring, but Duggan punches back and scores with a backdrop and chased Akbar from the ring. Big "USA" chant from the crowd. Akbar is back in the ring, but quickly falls prey to punches and hiptosses by Duggan. Akbar flees to the ring apron once more. Once they finally lock up, Akbar gets the advantage with a choke and a chinlock. Duggan starts fighting and making the big comeback, scoring a series of clotheslines before hitting one big final clothesline and scoring the pin.

Winner: Hacksaw Jim Duggan

While Duggan celebrates in the ring, Akbar heads to the back and we see him on the big screen, claiming that there was shady officiating in the match and that's why he lost. He says that Duggan hasn't seen the last of him. Duggan, still in the ring, got a mic and responded, "Blah blah blah blah blah!". And then he led another chant of "USA" for the crowd.

We go backstage now where Chris Graham is with Alex Silva. Silva has a great look, but his promo skills are... interesting at best. What's the deal with the over-exaggerated facial expressions and tongue play? Silva says that he's not so much about talking the talk, but is more about walking the walk. What? He's going to show Finlay what he has in store for him in the ring.

Bill Apter is with Finlay who says that he's heard alot about Silva (who wrestles regularly in Ohio Valley Wrestling) and he's talented, but if Silva thinks that he's going to be able to brag about putting Finlay out, he's got another thing coming. Finlay calls himself a wrestling ambassador and that Silva will have to deal with the best wrestler he'll ever step into the ring with and tell his children one day that Finlay tore him apart.

Dave "Fit" Finlay versus Alex Silva (with Tammy Sytch)

It was sad that Tammy, aka "Sunny" didn't get nearly any reaction from the crowd when she came to the ring with Silva. Both Silva and Tammy cut promos to the crowd, with Silva introducing Tammy and Tammy reminding everyone that she's not only the original "Diva", but was also a 2011 Hall of Famer who was there to be with the future of the business. Tammy looks HOT! Her and Silva (who's only 20 years old and also very HOT!) look like they could be a good team.

As far as the match, lots and lots of back and forth action to start. Silva would attempt a move and then flee to the outside when Finlay would counter. It was basically just a Fit Finlay wrestling clinic with a class of one. The back and forth continued and then finally, Fit locked in a chinlock and maintained control. Neckbreaker by Finlay, but as he went to the corner, he went up and came down hurt, the leg injured. The referee backed off Silva and Tammy got in a slap from the outside.

Finlay rolled to the outside and the ref was there, checking on the injury, ready to walk Finlay to the back. Silva got on the mic and called Finlay a coward and was trash talking. Silva wants to fight. Finlay heads back to the ring and Silva immediately takes out the leg. Another slap at Finlay by Tammy and then Silva locks in an anklelock. Lots of work on the leg and knee by Silva.

Finally, Finlay caught Silva in the ring apron, a move he used quite frequently in the WWE, but Cruise claims he's never seen before. Lots of back and forth blows and then Silva scored with a chop-block. Well, he attempted to, but Finlay moved and scored with several punches, one of which busted open Silva's nose and made his face a crimson mask. Finlay attempted a roll, but Tammy with a low blow from the outside and Silva used a roll-up (and a hand full of tights, it seems) to get the pin.

Winner: Alex Silva w/ Tammy Sytch

We see Silva in the back and he's all bloody, bragging about how he beat Finlay, mocking the Irish legend. Finlay heads to the back and we get a promo saying what goes around comes around and that Silva had better have left the building or else Finlay will drag him across the building and back to the ring.

We get the announcer up next for a "Special Attraction" match. They introduce Abo Shango first, but we get Short Sleeve Sampson, coming to the ring instead. It's time for some midget action. Sampson gets on the mic and gets the crowd fired up. When he says "Short Sleeve", you say "Sampson". He's probably the best in-ring promo guy so far tonight.

Short Sleeve Sampson versus Abo Shongo

Abo Shongo stands about 5'7 and looks like the love child of Kamala and The Boogeyman. So we're getting a freakizoid against a midget. Gotta love the world of professional wrestling. We don't get Lita, The Midnight Express or The Mulkeys, but we get this. Oh vey!

Shongo starts off with kicks and punches, but Sampson avoids a charge and plants his head into Shongo's gut. A snapmare by Sampson sends Shongo to the floor. Sampson teased a suicide dive, but Shongo ducked down. Shongo tries to get into the ring, but gets crotched by Sampson and the middle rope. Kick by Sampson and he covers Shongo, but Shongo kicks out and tosses Sampson on to the ref, who tosses Sampson on to Shongo and so on and so on and so on.

Shongo with a clothesline and slam, followed by a kick and a Dragon Sleeper. Clothesline by Shongo for another two count. Shongo went back to the sleeper, but Sampson made an escape. Shongo with "The World's 525, 600th Strongest Slam", but he pulls Sampson up at the two-count before the referee can count three. Shongo tries to make a move, but falls victim to a face-plant by Sampson. Sampson with an airplane spin and bulldog, but when he went for a "Shades of Scotty 2 Hotty" Inch Worm, Shongo rolled to the floor. Sampson with a dive to the outside that nailed Shongo.

Shongo is frustrated and while the referee is tied up with Sampson, Shongo gets some powder from his stick he carried to the ring. Shongo attempts to throw the powder at Sampson, but gets it kicked back into his face by Sampson. Sampson with the "Shades of Sean Waltman" X-Factor and then an off the top-rope "Shades of Hornswoggle" Tadpole Splash. Cover and pin by Sampson for the win.

Winner: Short Sleeve Sampson

We hear Cruise comment that he hopes that Sampson has a future in the "AWA". Love it!

We then go to some video and get to see Kevin Nash laying out Ricky Morton with a chair. Guess what? They played the wrong clip. And then we get the right clip of The Rock & Roll Express attacking Promoter Marvin Ward. Then here comes The Midnight Express for the save. Or so we thought as The Midnighters attack Ward too. Ricky and Robert resume their attack and use the old "stomping on the chair" angle to "break" Ward's arm. And finally, we get Diamond Dallas Page, complete with his music playing, making the save.

We now go to Chris Graham who is standing by with the Rock & Roll Express. Ricky blows off the interviewer by asking, "What do you want me to say? I'm here!". Robert says that he always has Morton's back and that whoever the mystery partner is, they'd have to deal with him.

Bill Apter is with Kevin Nash who says that ten years ago, Ricky Morton had a tirade against him for some reason. Nash says that he doesn't have anything to talk about and then he starts talking anyhow. Kevin says that tonight is payback and that Morton will get what he wanted. Nash continued to bury Morton by saying that it was time for Morton to do what a man is supposed to do and man up. Kevin then continued by saying that he just hoped that it didn't end up with one of Morton's kids crying over his body begging him to get up. Nash says that this isn't bullshit and is no joke because Morton made it personal and now, Morton has to deal with it. Nash talks about how he can walk the streets of Detroit alone and that someone might kill him one day, but it won't be tonight. Nash concludes his long rant (especially long when you consider that Nash started off by saying that he didn't have anything to talk about) by saying that Morton needs to watch out.

The Rock & Roll Express versus Kevin Nash & A Mystery Partner

Nash's partner, as expected, was Diamond Dallas Page. DDP is all smiles as he comes to the ring. We get a bell and it's DDP starting off against Robert Gibson. They're just getting started when here comes Promoter and R&R Express nemesis Marvin Ward. He's changing the match and it's now going to be Kevin Nash versus Ricky Morton. Ward claims that it was Nash's idea and then he tells Robert Gibson and Dallas Page that they've already been paid, but they are to take the rest of the night off. So I guess this match would be...

No Contest (Match Stopped By Promoter Marvin Ward)

After telling DDP and Gibson that they're off for the night, Ward says that the Nash - Morton match will be No DQ. Then Ward told the referee that he's off too and announced a special guest referee for the match, former NWA World Champion, "Hands of Stone" Ronnie Garvin. No reaction from the crowd at the appearance of Garvin. Sad! Sad! Sad!

No Disqualification - Special Referee: Ronnie Garvin
Kevin Nash versus Ricky Morton

At the bell, Morton charges into Nash with punches, but Nash pushes him back into the corner and plants a knee to the gut. Side-slam by Kevin for a two-count. Nash goes to the corner and removes a pad from the turnbuckles. Snake-eyes! Morton is busted open. Nash drops Ricky into the exposed steel ring once more and Morton rolls to the floor. Kevin follows and rams Ricky's head into the steel ringsteps. They move back into the ring and it's all Kevin Nash. Ricky throws some punches and starts to come back with kicks and blows to the knees. Kevin actually goes down... for a little while, but you know that it doesn't last long as Kevin plants Ricky with a huge chokeslam.

Nash gets the mic and says he wants to know what Morton's problem with him was anyhow. He needs to know before he finishes Morton off. Morton pulls himself up and gets on the mic and goes into an explanation how he loves the business, it's all because of the business, he's there for the business, etc. It's all because Nash is a prick and an asshole. All of this is because Ricky loves the business.

Nash says that if that's Morton's problem, then they don't have a problem. Ummmm? What about "breaking Ward's arm"? Nash goes on and on about how he loves the business too and it's not about the money for him. He loves the business. Blah, blah, blah! Kevin says that maybe he's a better businessman than Morton,but that's not something Nash can control. Nash says that they don't have a problem.

Nash offers his hand to Morton and like an idiot, Ricky accepts it. Nash kicks him in the gut and plants Morton through the mat with the powerbomb! Nash gets back on the mic and says that of course it's all about the money. Nash bashes the crowd and tells them to shut up and to keep buying his merchandise. Nash noted that the economy sucks, but not for him. Nash leaves the ring and walks to the back. Ronnie Garvin counts, Ricky Morton bleeds and Nash is counted out. Robert Gibson comes back out and checks on his partner as Garvin calls for the bell.

Winner by Count-Out: Ricky Morton

And then we get Chris Cruise, "Dirty" Dutch Mantell and "The Living Legend" Larry Zbyszko signing off.

So that's the big Awesome Wrestling Entertainment PPV and guess what? It was neither awesome or entertaining and there really wasn't much good wrestling on it. The Funk - Dreamer match was sad to see and the botched referee call at the end didn't help. A midget wrestling a Papa Shango mini-me didn't help either. And the match with Perry Saturn, so out of whack that even a talent like C.W. Anderson couldn't save their match. It was brutal to watch.

I will give kudos to Sonjay Dutt, Alex Silva and Jamin Olivencia for putting on good performances and adding some energy to the show. And Tammy Sytch is still hot (and belongs with the WWE). Short Sleeve Swanson is from Micro Championship Wrestling, I think? It was either that show or Pint Sized Brawlers. He worked hard and did well too, considering what he was matched against. But for a show billed as "The Night of Legends", the top performers shouldn't have to be three semi-unknowns and a midget. That's kind of crazy. Where was The Midnight Express or the Mulkeys or Tully Blancard and Baby Doll, all of who were advertised to appear. Where was Lita? Or Ivan Koloff? Or Buddy Landel? Or Rhino? Or Chris Hamrick?

There are so many things that I could say about having all of those big names advertised and then not having them on the show, but it's late and I'm tired so I'll just say it was a bad business decision. AWE just had their first ever live PPV and they burned a lot of fans with the bad matches, the bad finishes and the large number of people advertised, but not appearing. I seriously doubt that we'll ever see a second PPV broadcast by this company and if we do, I can promise one thing. I won't be watching or buying the show. I had such high hopes for this one and was looking forward to it. And well, between that show and this column recapping it, it's about six hours of my life I will never get back. I should have just thrown a movie on or watched HGTV or something like that instead. Oh well. Live and learn.

Anyhow, that's my recap of AWE's "The Night of Legends". I'm not even sure if they'll be offering a replay on PPV, but if they do, don't waste your money or time. It isn't worth it. I'm Doug and I'm going to bed. Have a great night and please, always be a fan. Take care friends.

Ubuntu!