The Independent Mid-Card 02.26.08: Tornado vs. Kingston

Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of The Independent Mid-Card. With big happenings on the Independent scene both this past weekend and this coming weekend, I had to do some lateral thinking to pick this week’s featured matchup. As such, we’re going to spend this week looking at a contest between two companies’ World Champions, one newly crowned and one preparing for his first defense. We’re bridging the gap this week in the IMC.

Human Tornado vs. Eddie Kingston
Tournament – First Round Match
IWA Mid-South – 2007 Ted Petty Invitational, Night 1 – Midlothian, IL – September 28, 2007

The Wrestlers:
Human Tornado – With his name a reference to Rudy Ray Moore’s Dolemite character from the 1970’s, the Human Tornado’s pseudo-pimp character has made him one of the most popular competitors in his home promotion, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. A noted high flyer with a knack for getting impressive hang time on dives to ringside, Tornado is probably most famous for his appearance in the Jack Black film Nacho Libre where he played lucha libre star El Snowflake. Participating in the 2007 Ted Petty Invitational Tournament would mark Tornado’s first appearance for IWA Mid-South.

Eddie Kingston – A noted brawler, “The King of Diamonds” Eddie Kingston is widely regarded as one of the top students ever to graduate from the Chikara Wrestle Factory. Though Kingston had first appeared for IWA Mid-South as a part of the Wildcards tag team with “Black” Jack Marciano, since the latter’s retirement Kingston had more recently become a part of the BLKOUT (pronounced “blackout”) faction that spans the Independent wrestling scene. Joining with such talents as Ruckus, Joker, and Sabian, Kingston had appeared for companies like IWA Mid-South and Combat Zone Wrestling, while still regularly taking part in events for his home promotion of CHIKARA. Though he had previously appeared during TPI weekend, 2007 would be Kingston’s first year as a part of the Ted Petty Invitational field.

The Match:
“The Last of a Dying Breed” Eddie Kingston busts through the curtain to the familiar tones of his BLKOUT theme. His longtime nemesis Chris Hero is on commentary, so this should be interesting from that perspective. Kingston is all business and heads pretty quickly into the ring. He soaks in a sizeable “Eddie!” chant as he waits for Human Tornado to make his entrance. Right on cue, Tornado makes his way to the ring to Kanye West’s Stronger. He’s a ball of energy until he rolls into the ring and sees Kingston. After a moment’s pause, Tornado hops up to the turnbuckle to pose. It should be noted that Chris Hero is discussing his ongoing feud with Tornado in Pro Wrestling Guerrilla on commentary, which is interesting because the face-heel dynamic between the pair in PWG is the opposite of what it is in IWA Mid-South (Hero is a face in PWG, but a heel in IWAMS, for those keeping track). As the ring announcer begins the introductions, Kingston is actually at ringside, yelling at Hero over at the commentary table. Bryce Remsburg is refereeing this one-fall contest, which has a 30-minute time limit. “The Last of a Dying Breed” Eddie Kingston is fighting out of Yonkers, New York, while the Human Tornado makes his way to this bout by way of Hollywood, Alabama. Remsburg checks both men, eventually prompting Tornado to ditch the afro pick he has firmly tucked in his hair. Tornado tentatively lets Kingston examine the pick, with Kingston testing it out on his own, more closely shaven, head. The pick is then removed from the ring and the bell is rung to start things off.

The crowd claps for both men, as they circle and shake hands. Kingston goes for a leg, but Tornado avoids it and grabs a front facelock. Kingston counters into a wristlock and then segues into a hammerlock before taking Tornado over with a snapmare. Kingston applies a chinlock and rolls Tornado over into camel clutch position, but Tornado reverses out of that to grab a headlock. Kingston works back to his feet and tries for a Backdrop Driver early, but Tornado shifts his weight and keeps the headlock on. Kingston tries to suplex out of the hold again, and this time Tornado shifts his weight enough to take Kingston over with a headlock takedown. Kingston is able to power his way into a headscissors, but Tornado is in the ropes and Remsburg calls for the break.

The two men back off, with Tornado working back to his feet in the corner. The crowd claps again and the two men circle leading to Kingston being hesitant to grab a knucklelock. Ben Jordan smells shenanigans on commentary, and he’s dead-on in this case, with Tornado trying to do a little dance move with Kingston when he finally grabs the knucklelock. Kingston is needless to say not impressed. Tornado dances around a bit to celebrate, so Kingston shoves him in the chest in response. Tornado then counters with the Pimp Slap (backhand slap), which only serves to piss Eddie off further. Kingston then tries to respond with a right to the face, but Tornado drops down into the splits to avoid it before returning to his feet and hitting Kingston with another Pimp Slap. Tornado counters another right hand into an armdrag and they go into a leapfrog sequence that sees Tornado eventually take Kingston down with a leg lariat. Tornado hits a forearm in the corner before whipping Kingston cross-corner and following him in with a jumping back splash. Tornado follows up with a stiff running Yakuza kick to the face and with Kingston now down in the corner, goes right into the House Party (dancing kicks in the corner followed by a split-legged low blow). Kingston is able to duck out of the ring to avoid the low blow, but the best part of that sequence was watching Remsburg essentially dance along to the move. Trust me that it’s one of those moments that’s better viewed than described.

With Kingston walking around ringside trying to regain his composure, Tornado takes the opportunity to hit him with a slingshot cross-body block. Tornado stomps away at Kingston and then punches him while applying a headlock. Kingston stumbles away, but Tornado stays on him with a right hand. Kingston tries to get an advantage by grabbing a headlock, but Tornado sends him shoulder-first into the ringpost. Tornado gets in another headlock punch, but Kingston is finally able to respond with a stiff chop to the chest. Another chop follows and Tornado rolls back into the ring.

Back inside, Tornado gets control back with a series of strikes. He goes for a suplex, but
Eddie counters and hits a series of open and slaps to Tornado’s back. Kingston adds a stomp for good measure as the crowd applauds. Kingston hits another palm strike to the back and mocks Tornado with a House Party of his own in the corner. Kingston hits a few more strikes in the corner, sending Tornado scurrying across the ring trying to recover. Kingston then bites at Tornado’s forehead, but he’s in the ropes and Remsburg calls for the break.

Kingston hits Tornado with another stiff slap to the chest and then goes for a short-arm lariat, but Tornado is able to spin through the lariat and land on his feet before taking Kingston over into a backslide for a one count. Both men get back to their feet quickly, but Kingston immediately plants Tornado with a Yakuza kick, sending him rolling back into the corner. Kingston pulls Tornado back to his feet and hits him with a stiff chop in the corner before whipping him cross-corner. Kingston sets up for his running Yakuza kick, but Tornado ducks out of the way and comes running off the ropes with a Yakuza kick of his own to the side of the head. Eddie ends up draped over the second rope, so Tornado slingshots himself over the top rope and hits Kingston with a double stomp to the back of the head on his way down to the floor.

Tornado hops back up to the apron and comes in with a springboard front dropkick that gets a two count. Tornado hits a couple of kicks in the corner before putting Eddie down with a spinning back kick to the jaw. He does an X-Pac style taunt and seems to set up for the Broncobuster, but stops short and hits his split-legged low blow instead. Kingston’s sell of the move is a thing of beauty, but Tornado’s cover only gets two.

Tornado pulls Kingston back to his feet, but Eddie reverses an Irish whip and counters right into a Sambo Suplex (swinging uranage) for two. Kingston absolutely turns Tornado inside-out with a short-arm lariat, but that also only gets a two count. Kingston pulls Tornado back to his feet before flooring him with a stiff slap to the face. Kingston tries to bring Tornado to his feet again, but this time when Kingston goes for his spinning back fist, Tornado ducks and then kicks Kingston in the chest. Tornado then feeds his leg to Kingston and Kingston spins him around, only to get caught with an enziguiri. Tornado then hooks Kingston up and this him with Dat N**** Dead (flipping release leg capture belly-to-back suplex) for the academic pinfall at 9:13. Hero is full of joy on commentary at seeing Kingston lose. The crowd applauds Kingston (Hero: “Great, everyone applauds the loser!”), and then Kingston and Tornado take turns putting each other over.

As Tornado heads towards the back, Hero grabs the house mic and continues to berate Kingston. He starts a mocking “Eddie!” chant and then goes into a rant as Remsburg struggles to hold Kingston back. A number of wrestlers and security personnel hold Kingston back as Hero continues to bait him around the building. Finally, Hero walks to the back, and Kingston grabs the mic himself. Kingston walks over to IWA Mid-South owner Ian Rotten and declares that he wants a match with Hero the next night if and when Hero loses his match to Too Cold Scorpio later on in the evening. Rotten makes sure to remind Kingston not to interfere in that contest, as interfering in a TPI contest earns an automatic suspension from IWA for one year.

The Analysis:
This match was the very definition of a showcase. Absent his breathtaking tope con hilo, Tornado was able to hit most of his big moves here, and with Kingston destined for a non-tournament match the next night, this contest was all about familiarizing the crowd with what Tornado brought to the table. Kingston’s offense was limited primarily to strikes, though that’s not necessarily uncommon for him. He did hit the uranage suplex late in the match, but was unable to really string together any notable offensive flurries throughout the bout. In a perfect world, Tornado might have done a little more damage to Kingston’s head in advance of the finish, but the D.N.D. is a move that looks devastating enough to justify a pinfall even without a lot of build.

All that said, please don’t think that the match was particularly bad. Though there wasn’t a ton of psychology or a particularly intricate story being told, both Kingston and Tornado are charismatic enough competitors to get a match over on their personalities alone. The crowd was into this one the whole way despite its simplicity, which is a credit to how well Tornado and especially Kingston connects with the audience. I have said before elsewhere, and truly do believe, that Eddie Kingston’s intensity and presence elevates the contests and angles he is involved in and gives almost every one of his matches a ‘big event’ feel. Even though it was in the opening round of the tournament, this match felt like a bigger deal than it probably should have.

I should also note that Chris Hero’s commentary here was fantastic, and in the big picture really helped to set up his eventual match with Kingston the next night. A great effort by Hero to (in his own way) put both Tornado and Kingston over from the commentary table.

The Aftermath:
Eddie Kingston would indeed go on to face Chris Hero on Night Two of the 2007 Ted Petty Invitational, as both men would be eliminated from the tournament in the first round. They would do battle in a violent and epic Last Man Standing match that saw Kingston earn a hard-fought victory. Elsewhere on the Independent scene, Kingston would round out 2007 by winning his feud with Hallowicked in CHIKARA before returning to IWA Mid-South to win the company’s World Heavyweight Title in early-December, outlasting Hero, Chuck Taylor and then-champion “Lightning” Mike Quackenbush in a Four Way Elimination match for the strap. IWA Mid-South would then go on an extended hiatus, but Kingston is currently slated to make his first defense of the belt this coming Saturday, as he will go toe-to-toe with Too Cold Scorpio at the company’s landmark 500th show.

Human Tornado would defeat Nate Webb the next night to advance to the TPI Semifinals, but would unfortunately run into then-IWA Mid-South World Heavyweight Champion Chuck Taylor, who was able to defeat the West Coast phenom to earn a berth in the finals. Back home in PWG, Tornado would continue his feud with Chris Hero over the former’s treatment of valet Candace LeRae. Interestingly, Tornado’s path would once again cross with Kingston when “The King of Diamonds” was brought to PWG by Tornado to help take down Hero. Currently, the Tornado-Hero issue is considered amongst the most heated in all of Independent wrestling. Most recently, Tornado made headlines by winning a one-night tournament to become only the second two-time PWG World Champion in the belt’s history (the first was Frankie Kazarian for those scoring at home). With the PWG World Title now in the mix, there is no telling to what heights the Tornado-Hero feud will be escalated.

The Final Word:
With Tornado having just won the PWG World Title and Kingston holding IWA Mid-South’s top belt, a lot of Independent companies seem to be pushing up-and-coming stars to the top early in 2008. The question for Independent wrestling fans now becomes whether Ring of Honor will follow suit and move their title to a less established name in the coming months. With Kevin Steen having just won a one-night tournament to earn a shot at the ROH World Title, does his match for the belt in April become the moment where Ring of Honor pulls the trigger and moves him to the next level. Though there is no sure answer yet, what’s certain is that it’s a very interesting time to be a fan of the U.S. Independent scene.

To see this week’s match, the 2007 Ted Petty Invitational is available from smartmarkvideo.com or directly from IWA Mid-South. A number of matches from the tournament have been featured in previous editions of the IMC, and as I said in those columns, this tournament gets my highest recommendation, with the Kingston-Hero Last Man Standing match being an absolute must-see contest. If you haven’t already, get this pair of shows at your earliest convenience.

While you’re here on 411, check out some of our other great columns and reviews. Ari’s Column of Honor (complete with Part 2), Bayani’s Truth B Told, and Short’s Navigation Log are all musts. Buy or Sell has Lansdell & Byers going at it on the happenings in ROH, while Michael Weyer has his own take on ROH in Shining a Spotlight. Want a look at some CHIKARA action? Then check out Lansdell’s The Way I C It. In terms of reviews, Magnus covers PWG All Star Weekend 5, Night 1 and CHIKARA Young Lion’s Cup V, Night 1. Oh, and Brad’s got a double dose of PWG with (Please Don’t Call It) The O.C. and Enchantment Under the Sea. And that brings us to 3, I believe.

Buy or Sell this week is yours truly and Magnus covering IWA’s 500th and CHIKARA’s King of Trios weekend. No ROH shows means no ROH Roundtable.

iTunes check-in as follows:

1. “Contagious” by Granian – from Live at The Point, 5.29.03
2. “Dancin’ Shoes” by Gavin DeGraw – from Gavin
3. “Rearviewmirror” by Pearl Jam – from Live 8.14.2000 in New Orleans, LA
4. “All I Want” by Toad the Wet Sprocket – from Live at the Brewhouse, 4.3.93
5. “Jesus of Suburbia” by Green Day – from American Idiot

If you’re not checking The Cool Kids’ Table regularly by now, I’m not sure what to tell you. Brad Garoon, Jacob Ziegler and I are making sure there are regular updates with our thoughts on the latest Independent goings-on, so you really should be making it a regular part of your Internet wrestling rotation. Again, that’s The Cool Kids’ Table. Be there or be square!

I do want to make sure to wish a belated happy birthday to my buddy Matt, who I forgot to mention over the last couple of weeks.

I’m too tired to do anything in the way of a reality update, but suffice that blah blah blah something something. Yeah, I’m that tired. Have a good one everybody. I’ll see you in Buy or Sell.

252 to 6. Get Started. The Cool Kids’ Table. Ole!

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