Dark Pegasus Video Review: Full Impact Pro — Emergence Posted by J.D. Dunn on 04.16.2007
Ring of Honor's sister promotion crowns their first champion.
Full Impact Pro — Emergence, Night One by J.D. Dunn
This would be the canonical restart for the tiny Florida promotion that Ring of Honor booker Gabe Sapolsky took over in mid-2004. The roster is based on some of the stars from Ring of Honor (CM Punk, Homicide, Austin Aries) and local talent (Kahagas, Vordell Walker, Antonio Banks).
Of course, what works in the Northeast will not necessarily work in Florida, so things are changed up a bit and, just like the old territorial system, most of Ring of Honor canon is ignored. The faces may look the same, but the characters are quite different, much more based on "good guys and bad guys." Let's see how it works.
Ominous sign: the first weekend takes place in the middle of a raging hurricane, so there are only about 50 fans (liberal estimate) in attendance. I think it's safe to say that if the boys wanted to wrestle in the locker room, they'd have a larger audience.
September 24, 2004
From the Tampa, Fla.
Your hosts are Matt Pike (Gabe Sapolsky, playing Jimmy Bower's evil twin) and Mark Nulty.Lenny Leonard handles the interviews and introductions.
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: "The Black Nature Boy" Scoot Andrews vs. Kahagas.
Scoot is "the Black Nature Boy," even going so far as to use Also sprach Zarathustra as his entrance music. Kahagas is a sort of low-rent Hakushi. He unloads a series of kicks on Scoot, but Scoot dominates with power moves. He goes for the Force of Nature, but Kahagas counters to a reverse suplex into the Stunner at 4:30. Mild upset for Kahagas. *
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: Joshua Masters vs. Lex Lovett.
Masters, who does a Kevin Sullivan devil gimmick, promises something so profound it will change the course of Full Impact Pro. All ten minutes of it? Lovett is kind of a Vordell Walkerish shoot-style junior who has been on TNA a few times. If that doesn't help you, just picture your average fully-shaven indy wrestler who wrestles like Low Ki. Back and forth stuff with Lex using a lot of kicks. Masters goes low and rolls Lovett up for another mild upset. (3:45). 3/4*
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: "Mr. 630" Jerrelle Clark vs. Slim J.
Slim J is from NWA Wildside and was briefly a member of Special K in Ring of Honor. He does a white hip-hop gimmick. He's no Jack Evans, though. Jerrelle Clark has a pretty good reputation as a spot guy. They do a lot of armdrags and flippy stuff until Slim J gets cocky and slaps Clark in the face. Slimmy hits a flying kick and grabs his own nuts, prompting Nulty to call for a disqualification. A brainbuster gets two for Slim J, and they go into a series of reversals. Slim J points out some hookers in the crowd, distracting the ref long enough to get in a low blow. Clark catches him with a sitout powerbomb that drops Slim J right on his head. Slim J pops right up and cuts Clark off. INDY! Clark misses a moonsault, but Slim J misses a corkscrew splash. That allows Clark to roll Slim J up and get a quick count at 6:26. Total indy spotfest. *3/4
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: CM Punk vs. "The Shooter" Vordell Walker.
Finally, some professionals. Sorry, but it's true. Before the match, Punk chastises the Florida crowd for polluting his hallways in high school and says tonight is the beginning of a New Dawn. Hmm. Vordell is basically a stockier Lex Lovett, meaning that they either have to form a team or one of them has to go. Punk is in full cowardly heel mode here. He takes a chop and bails to call time out. Vordell chases him, which proves to be a mistake because Punk nails him on the way back in. Joshua Masters returns to observe from ringside. Punk works Vordell over and argues with referee Todd Sinclair, even working in the Flair shoving match spot. Sleeper, but Vordell counters to a jawbreaker. Vordell gets two off the Northern Lights and hits a swinging uranage. Sinclair is tied up with Josh Masters, though, and doesn't see the cover. Vordell tries to suplex Punk, but Masters trips him up, putting Punk on top for the win at 13:01. Punk gets on the mic and announces that Joshua Masters is the first member of the New Dawn. Apparently, Punk has a big problem with wannabe professional athletes like Walker. **1/2
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: "The Role Model" Jason Cross vs. "The Soul Assassin" Rainman.
Cross' big claim to fame is that he does a Shooting Star Legdrop (the Crossfire). Rainman looks like what would happen if Jonathan Coachman joined the Miami Heat. Cross does a lot of posing and trying to get heat, pissing off Rainman good and proper. Rainman misses a charge, though, allowing Cross to hit a neckbreaker. He rolls Rainman into a modified Mr. Salty. Cross gets a leg lariat for two. Poor choice of words: Nulty refers to Cross' domination of Rainman as a "whitewash." Cross hits a standing SSP for two and sunset flip into a powerbomb. He calls for a brainbuster, but Rainman counters to a German Suplex. He drops Cross with a dropkick, but Cross reverses to that brainbuster he was looking for. He goes up but gets crotched by Rainman. Cross hits a Tornado Neckbreaker anyway. Rainman reverses a whip and hits the Side-Splitter (Pump-handle Powerbomb) at 11:13. Way too spotty and with too little flow. **1/4
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: "The Wrestling Machine" Austin Aries vs. "Master of the Backbreaker" Roderick Strong.
ROH doesn't exist in this universe, so neither does Generation Next, and that's why it appears that these two are just meeting for the first time. Aries chastises the small turnout for not realizing how great he is. Of course, Roderick has to suck up to the Florida crowd. They trade cheapshots and work off a wristlock. Great moments in commentary history: Nulty tries to prod Pike into explaining the rules of the first round, so Pike says, "usual professional wrestling rules." Strong puts Aries in a headscissors, but YOU CAN'T HEADSCISSOR AUSTIN ARIES! Strong comes right back with a backdrop. Strong drops an elbow for two. Aries fires off a series of kidney punches and fires across the ring with a knee to the back. He reminds me *so* much of Randy Savage when he does that. Mr. Salty makes his second appearance of the evening. Strong powers into a Boston Crab. Aries makes the ropes, but Strong hits a lightning legline to stay on top. Aries hits a neckbreaker and a diving headbutt before hitting a Cobra Clutch Backbreaker, taking a page out of Strong's book. Strong rolls through the armbar and belly-to-bellies Aries. Aries charges right into a series of backbreakers, and Strong tosses him right into the corner. A pump-handle backdrop gets two for Strong, but Aries catches him on top and hits a rope-assisted neckbreaker. ONE, TWO, THR-Strong gets his foot on the ropes. A Fisherman's Neckbreaker gets two, but Strong counters the Brainbuster to a backbreaker for two. They go through a series of lightning-fast reversals ending when Aries grabs an armbar (with an illegal fishhook) for the win at 16:59. This is more like it. Far better than anything on the card so far. ***1/4
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: Justin Credible vs. "Roughhouse" Ralph Mosca.
Credible tries to amp up the fans, but it sounds pretty sad. Mosca attacks from behind, and they brawl up the empty stands and all the way back to the ring. Mosca hits a sitout Falcon Arrow for two and argues with the ref about the count. Mosca jumps off the top…right into a superkick. Justin moves on at 3:36. 1/2*
FIP Title Tournament, Round #1: "The Notorious 187" Homicide vs. "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles.
This is interesting because AJ was still prevented from wrestling for ROH at this point. He seems to be playing slight heel here, but they open with mat wrestling anyway, so it's not like it matters. AJ bends Homicide's arm back, but Homicide comes back with a headscissors. Homicide sets AJ on the top, but AJ fights him off and hits a flying bodypress for two. AJ snaps off his dropkick for two, but Homicide gets a cheapshot in the corner to take over. He drops a double ax-handle, but AJ comes back with his enzuigiri. Homicide avoids a baseball slide and drops AJ's throat on the barrier. Back in, Homicide goes low and chokes AJ down. Homicide goes up but stops to jaw with a fan, so AJ is able to avoid his diving headbutt. AJ roars back with a clothesline, and they trade power moves. AJ hits the Quebrada DDT for two, but Homicide gets his foot on the ropes. Homicide blocks the Styles Clash to a piledriver. ONE, TWO, THR-NO! They slug it out, and the ref gets bumped. AJ hits a leg lariat, but CM Punk comes down and hits both guys with a chair. AJ snatches the chair away from him, and, of course, Todd Sinclair recovers and sees him with it for the DQ at 18:04. Punk and his new protégé Joshua Masters mug for the crowd, but Homicide dives out on them. Punk runs away and sacrifices Masters, who takes a Styles Clash. Solid match before the finish. At least the angle was interesting, though, establishing Punk as the evil heel and stacking him up against these two as the lead babyfaces. **3/4
Full Impact Pro — Emergence, Night Two
September 25, 2004
From the Tampa, Fla.
Your hosts are Matt Pike and Mark Nulty.
FIP Title Tournament, Round #2: "The Notorious 187" Homicide vs. Joshua Masters (w/CM Punk).
Before the match, Punk instructs Masters to ensure that Homicide doesn't make it to round two and then distracts Homicide long enough for Masters to jump him from behind. Homicide shrugs off Masters' offense and hits a flying Ace Crusher. The lariat knocks Masters silly at 1:27. Punk tries to attack after the bell but gets beaten back. Well, Masters certainly didn't get the job done there. 1/4*
FIP Title Tournament, Round #2: Kahagas vs. "The Soul Assassin" Rainman.
Rainman sucks up to the crowd and tells Kahagas it ain't personal. This is kind of a bland technical match for the most part. Kahagas fires off his kicks but takes a Rydien Bomb. Rainman finishes with the Side-Splitter (pump-handle powerbomb) at 4:18. Nothing to see here. Move along. *
FIP Title Tournament, Round #2: "The Wrestling Machine" Austin Aries vs. "Mr. 630" Jerrelle Clark.
Aries has his finger taped due to a week-old hangnail. Jerrelle flusters Aries with his high-flying skillz. He backdrops Aries to the apron, but Aries slings back in and elbows him in the jaw. Aries goes after the back, hitting the powerdrive elbow to the back. He goes for the armlock that got the submission last night, but Clark rolls through and hits a Stunner. He adds a Reverse DDT for two. A backdrop suplex sets up the 630, but Aries avoids and hits a brainbuster to set up the armbar w/fishhook at 7:56. Aries continues to impress. **1/4
FIP Title Tournament, Round #2: CM Punk vs. Justin Credible.
Punk is still in cowardly heel mode, so he bails out and stalls. I like how Pike and Nulty try to put Credible over as this salty veteran who's seen it all and done it all. He was part of a group that was led by X-Pac! Oddly enough, they do a very old-school match, prompting someone in the crowd to call Punk a Ric Flair-wannabe. Hey, nothing wrong with that. Punk works in the old "I landed wrong" spot and buys time. Then, when Justin turns his back (I thought he was a veteran), Punk clips his knee. He works over Credible's leg and gets the figure-four. Justin resists the pain and makes the ropes. Justin comes back with a powerslam and a swinging DDT. He hits the superkick, but his leg is hurt. He tries That's Incredible anyway, but Punk rolls him up and grabs the ropes to move on at 10:52. Felt just like a Flair TV match from the mid-1980s, and Justin was more than happy to play the part of a Mulkey brother. **1/2
FIP Title Tournament, Semi-Finals: "The Notorious 187" Homicide vs. "The Wrestling Machine" Austin Aries.
Nulty completely steps all over Pike's point about ECW having drawing problems in its infancy. Lots of back and forth early as Homicide cheats with glee, despite being the babyface. He cuts off Aries' suicida with a big boot. Aries tries that spring to the apron and slingshot back in with an elbow, but Homicide catches him and drops him on the apron. Aries baits him in and then snaps Homicide's arm on the top rope. There's his in. Aries goes right to work on the arm, slamming it against the post and hitting a single-arm DDT back inside the ring. A bridging hammerlock puts even more pressure on the arm. See, that's why Aries is a great wrestler. He has at least ten different ways to work the arm without settling into one long hold and boring the crowd. Homicide jabs his way back, and they slug it out from their knees. Homicide works in a Bridging T-Bone Suplex. Can't remember the last time I saw that. Aries hits another hammerlock DDT. Aries hits a superplex, but Homicide does the Dynamite Kid/small package counter for two. Aries reverses the Cop Killa to the Brainbuster, but Homicide knees out of it, hits one lariat, and finishes with another one that bloodies Aries' nose. Homicide moves on at 15:29. Really good match from two of the top three wrestlers in the tournament. ***1/4
FIP Title Tournament, Semi-Finals: CM Punk vs. "The Soul Assassin" Rainman.
Punk chastises society for glorifying thugs like Homicide. Kind of rambling by the Punkster, there. I don't think he meant to say what he actually said. He promises revenge as Homicide sent Joshua Masters to the hospital. Punk complains about tight-pulling and hair-pulling. I don't think they've even made contact yet. He also picks a fight with a little girl in the audience. This is a different dimension for Punk. Much more of a traditional heel than he plays in ROH. Punk turns to jaw with the crowd, so Rainman hits a sliding dropkick to knock him into the railing. Punk tries a Flair flip and lands on his head. Ouch. Rainman goes into poor man's Ricky Steamboat mode with a series of armdrags. Punk claims a kid is trying to hop the rail to distract the referee and then goes to the eye. Rainman mounts him in the corner but gets atomic dropped, which is so clichéd Nulty was calling it before Rainman even got his second foot up. Rainman blocks a DDT to a backslide but gets hit with a flying clothesline. Rainman misses a Facewash, and Punk steps on his neck with an arrogant pose, prompting a fan to call him "Y2Gay." Rainman comes back with the Rydien Bomb and a suplex, but Punk pulls the ref in the way and hits a lowblow. He covers Rainman and puts his feet on the ropes for the win at 13:34. Very 1980's, which is not a bad thing. **1/4
Punk wants Homicide RIGHT NOW! Homicide answers the call, but Joshua Masters attacks him from behind. Hey! He's not in the hospital! For some reason Pike and Nulty are absent from commentary here, so we don't get moral outrage. Rainman makes the save and chases the New Dawn to the back. He and Homicide make nice.
Four-way Fray: "The Shooter" Vordell Walker vs. Slim J vs. "The Role Model" Jason Cross vs. "The Master of the Backbreaker" Roderick Strong.
It's an elimination match with everyone in the match at the same time. The flippy guys attack the technical guys early but catch stereo belly-to-bellies. Strong and Walker team up against Slim J. Slim J unleashes the windmill punches, but Vordell no-sells. Cross and Slim J go at it, and Cross hits a Somersault Tomikaze to eliminate Slimmie at 1:57. Strong and Walker team up against Cross, but that alliance dissolves pretty quickly. They all exchange rollups, and Vordell assumes the babyface role in the match. He hits Strong with a weak suicida. They all work in a double suplex spot as Strong German Suplexes Vordell who hits a Northern Lights. Those spots are silly. Strong press gutbusters Vordell and boots him in the face, allowing Cross to roll him up for the elimination at 6:23. Strong and Cross exchange rollups, and Cross sets up for the Somersault Tomikaze, but Strong reverses to a powerbomb backbreaker for the win at 7:34. **1/4
FIP Title Tournament, Finals: "The Notorious 187" Homicide vs. CM Punk. Joshua Masters attacks from behind again, but a heel doubleteam backfires, and Punk takes out Masters. Homicide hits his somersault suicida on both guys and smashes a bucket of popcorn on Punk's head. Funny moment as Punk was jawing with a fan who tried to take his picture during the intros, and now that Punk is staggering around wincing in pain, the fan quickly snaps another photo. The brawl spills all the way out to the concession stand and then to the lawn outside the arena. It's windy out there, so they brawl back into the lobby where Punk crotches Homicide on a chair. They brawl into the men's room where Homicide sticks Punk's face in the urinal. Finally, they make their way back to ringside where Punk crotches 'Cide on the ringpost. Homicide fights back and sends Punk back to the ring where the match finally officially starts. Punk hits a Shining Wizard for two and a guillotine legdrop for two more. Homicide counters Welcome to Chicago to a piledriver for two. Punk hits it moments later and gets two. Homicide catches him on the top and hits the Flying Ace Crusher. LARIAT! ONE, TWO, TH-Masters pulls the ref to the floor. Homicide tries to suplex Punk, but Masters sweeps his leg the same way he did with Vordell Walker. Punk only gets two, this time, and Homicide hits another lariat to pick up the win and become the first FIP Champion at 3:08. The pre-match brawl was about ten minutes, and makes this a much more interesting match. Homicide celebrates with all the babyfaces and fans and promises to defend against all comers. Neat moment as we see Homicide dropping the thug character and signing autographs for the front row. ***
The 411: Well, things have gotten considerably better for FIP, but at this point the company hadn't found an identity or an audience. The non-existent crowd stifled the atmosphere, and most of the guys didn't put forth a lot of effort. Plus, outside of the formation of the New Dawn, there aren't any angles to speak of. That would change over the coming months, but it doesn't make this show any better.
