The Name on the Marquee: Smoky Mountain Wrestling (11.12.1994 and 11.19.1994)

-We’re doing a two-fer this week. The November 12th show is largely a hard-sell for Thanksgiving Thunder, which is weird because they still have another TV show to go before that event. November 12 is 75% recaps and old clips, but there’s one match, so we’ll recap that, and then move onto November 19.

-Originally aired November 12, 1994.

BEAT THE CHAMP TV TITLE: BRYANT ANDERSON (Champion, with Ole Anderson) vs. TRACY SMOTHERS
-Smothers has pledged to shake Bryant’s hand if Bryant wins this one.

-Smothers gets Anderson onto the mat and tries some assorted nelsons for a two-count. They trade hammerlocks. Bryant tries a side headlock, but Tracy slips out of it easily and makes it a top wristlock. Bryant gets aggressive, going to the eyes and applying a hammerlock with Smothers’ arm around a rope. Bryant stays on the arm. Smothers fights out but Bryant jerks the hair to bring him down to the mat.

-Bryant slams Smothers down to the mat but misses an elbow. Smothers clotheslines him down and begins lighting into him with fists. Smothers surprises him with an inside cradle, but Anderson rolls over to reverse it…and pins Smothers clean as a sheet. Smothers looks shocked, but he’s a man of his word and offers Bryant a handshake. Bryant responds with a sucker kick and attacks Smothers. Smothers fights back and just beats the hell out of Anderson, drilling his head into the mat with a DDT.

-Onward!

-Originally aired November 19, 1994.

-Your hosts are Jim Ross & Les Thatcher.

CHRIS CANDIDO & BOO BRADLEY (with Tammy Fytch & Boots the Cat) vs. JAMES ATKINS & ANTHONY MICHAELS
-Holy SHIT Smoky Mountain has a packed house this week. Good for them.

-Armdrags and dropkicks by Anthony Michaels send Candido to the corner for a retreat. Bradley, wearing a Halloween costume, tags in and gets his arm wrung, but breaks the hold by pulling his mask off and using it as a weapon. Drop toehold/legdrop combo by Candido and Bradley. Powerslam by Bradley, and he flaps his wings before heading to the top rope for a splash. That looks to be the end of it, but Candido demands that he get the three-count after Bradley has done all the work, so Candido comes in and does an arrogant cover to boot, and that finishes things.

-Chris Candido is glad to be back in SMW, and he’s glad he has a partner who’s stupid enough to do everything he says. Tammy warns Boo that if he wants his kitty to survive, he’ll do whatever they say at Thanksgiving Thunder.

WRESTLER’S EYE VIEW
-The Thatchmeister welcomes us to a new segment, soon to be a regular feature of the SMW hotline! Brian Lee’s new look: clean-shaven again, but retaining the Undertaker hair. Cactus Jack tells us that this is a NEW Brian Lee, one who isn’t afraid to beat people up AND remembers to hook the leg on pinfall attempts. Yes, Cactus said that and it sounded funnier the way he said it. That was a thoroughly entertaining segment and in no way similar to Personality Profile.

-JR is here with Tracy Smothers. We recap the shenanigans following his shocking clean loss to Bryant Anderson.

BEAT THE CHAMP TV TITLE: BRYANT ANDERSON (Champion, with Ole Anderson) vs GEORGE SOUTH
-Tracy sits in on commentary and gives Bryant his props, saying point blank that Bryant is the better wrestler, but he STILL wants a piece just because the shitty sportsmanship really annoys him.

-Bryant works the arm for a bit while Smothers talks about the Anderson family’s background, with Bryant training to become a wrestler alongside the Steiner Brothers. Bryant stays on the arm with a shoulderbreaker, and the armbar finishes.

-Post-match, Bryant calls out Tracy Smothers, and it ends in a pull-apart.

CONFRONTATION WITH JIM ROSS
-This week’s guests are Bob Armstrong & Jim Cornette. Bob Armstrong has promised to unveil the new SMW commissioner this week, but Jim Cornette would rather rattle off all the horrific, violent things that Abdullah the Butcher will do to Armstrong at Thanksgiving Thunder.

-Armstrong is out there alone, which has Cornette again suspecting “the new commissioner” was a ruse the whole time and it’s really just Bob Armstrong running things in secret. Bob Armstrong laughs it off, and then introduces the new commissioner of SMW…Scott Armstrong, the former Dixie Dy-no-mite.

-We go all the way back to The Bullet being forced to kiss Jim Cornette’s feet earlier in the year. Armstrong promises that Cornette’s gonna return the favor at Thanksgiving Thunder.

-We get dueling pre-recorded promos from the Rock & Roll Express and Da Gangstas. Ricky Morton pronounces the word “ghetto” like he just heard it the first time in his life two minutes earlier.

-Dirty White Boy drops into mention he has a strap match coming up next, but for some reason, Mr. Ron Wright’s not in the building.

-Jim Cornette promises that Ron Wright will get his brains scrambled like Muhammad Ali at Thanksgiving Thunder.

STRAP MATCH, SMW HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE: DIRTY WHITE BOY (Champion) vs. BRUISER BEDLAM (with Jim Cornette)
-Tug of war with the strap to start off. DWB hiptosses Bedlam and runs a circle around the ring to try to touch the turnbuckles as fast as he can, but Bedlam springs back up and chokes him out. Clothesline and a diving headbutt by the Bruiser, but DWB stops him from touching all the turnbuckles. JR surprises me by saying that these two aren’t having “a Rey Mysterio Jr.-type match.”

-Bedlam chokes and chokes and chokes DWB. Shoulderbreaker looks like it could wrap things up. DWB stops him after three turnbuckles and then White Boys up. Punches and boots by DWB while JR drops another bombshell on commentary, sneaking in his Jim Barnett impression and calling Cornette “my boy.” DWB slams Bedlam and begins touching the turnbuckles, but Cornette whacks DWB with the tennis racket, ending the match with a DQ. And Ron Wright suddenly shows up to beat the holy hell out of Jim Cornette, who gets outta Dodge as DWB officially gets his arm raised.
-DWB shows off Mr. Wright’s old loaded boots and promises that Mr. Wright’s gonna be wearing those to Thanksgiving Thunder.

6.2

The final score: review Average

The 411

Good momentum going into Thunder; The Cornette/Armstrong thing really is played out and killing it once and for all is probably a smart move at this point. The Smothers/Bryant feud is actually pretty good at this point, but the whole cat thing is pretty stupid and I'm looking ahead to January just to be done with it.