EWA

EWA
Portland, ME
6/14/02
By Chris Tompkinson at datgi@iamit.com

Opening Promo: Commissioner Alexander Worthington III came out and ran down
the card
and generally insult the crowd. Two things of note: The "What?" chants were
considerably
down from previous shows. Soon it will be "Austin Who?" Also, Worthington
did a good job
of mentioning that the Damned would not be there for their Loser Leaves
Town Match
against the Egomaniacs without totally buring them. It's not easy to be
heelish without
crossing that line, but he did a commendable job.

Adam Booker came out to confront Worthington about his situation with Rick
Fuller. When
told he may or may not get his chance at revenge, Booker ran to the back to
find Fuller
himself.

Match One: Steve Ramsey (c) v. Adam Hastey 2/3 falls for the New England
Championship

Yeah! Three falls o'Ramsey! First fall was lots of Hastey throwing
everything at Ramsey,
but Ramsey's second, Dominic, interfering to cut him off. Ramsey won with
his
Picture-perfect spinebuster. Second and third falls were lots of heat on
Hastey, and him
able to counter Ramsey's spinebuster with a nice DDT and a cradle to tie it
up. Dominic
interfered with the belt shot for the Ramsey victory. Hastey seemed a
little off due to the
length of the match, but Ramsey was there to work with him. Dominic was
stellar at
ringside, acting disgusted after touching Hastey, and telling a nearly
unconscious Ramsey
"You can do it!" as he staggered to the back. I like 2 out of 3 falls
matches because you
can set the psychology in the first fall, and build off of that for the
final 2. They did exactly
that here.

Match Two: Johnny Curtis v. Brian Black

This was a rematch from the last show, and continued Curtis' slow-burn Face
Turn. Good
little match while it lasted. Black hit a beautiful Clothesline From Hell
that almost took
Curtis' head off. The night wasn't gonna improve for Curtis. Rick Fuller
runs in and destroys
both with Powerbombs and The Fuller Effect. A none too happy Black
challenges Fuller to
a match later, then throws Fuller the mic so he can respond. Fuller "Nice
throw, jabroni." It
really was a good throw. Jerk. Fuller is an ENORMOUS human being.
Everything about
him is just large. Um…

Afterwards, Curtis and Black shake hands in a show of mutual respect. I
can't tell you how
much I love Mutual Respect Angles. I really do like 'em.

Hopefully they'll bring back Curtis & Black to work again next time. I
recognize the need to
establish Fuller as a monster, but I was getting into this one. As long as
they promise not
to do this again for awhile, I'm okay with it.

Match Three: Miss Kristy v. Gina Marie in a Bra & Panties match

Well, usually the EWA is pretty Family Friendly. I guess in honor of
Fathers' Day, we had
this. Commissioner Worthington appointed himself Special Ref, and did a
good job of being
entertaining during the match. Said he "In the spirit of this match, I'm
wearing a thong
tonight." Well, okay…

Both the women tried really hard, and weren't dogging it, but what can you
really do with a
bra & panties match? Hell, even Pat Patterson and Jerry Brisco, two of the
greatest
workers ever, couldn't pull it off. Kristy's all spunky, and Gina Marie has
a cool intensity
and determination. Miss Kristy won when she stripped Gina Marie. Points go
to Gina for
wearing camoflauge unmentionables, which match her men's (Elements of
Suicide) camo
pants. Fine for what it was.

Match Four: Rick Fuller v. Brian Black

A great idea for a matchup to establish Fuller. Black's the biggest guy in
the promotion,
and having Fuller go over him gave Fuller the extra "oomph" coming into his
program with
Booker. Good big man's match--stiff, hardhitting, and a good reminder of
why I don't climb
between the ropes. Fuller just laid into Black with chops, and his Fuller
Effect and
powerbomb were none too pleasant looking.

After the bell, Adam Booker runs out to get a piece of Fuller. In a cool
visual, security
came from all over the gym to restrain Booker. The speed with which they
responded really
made it seem possible that they could keep the two apart. Fuller walks off
all cocky, and
Booker KO's a couple of the security guys. Man, Fuller's gonna pay.

Match Five: Larry Huntley v. Chi Chi Cruz

Pretty short little match, which is disappointing since I love Cruz. Cruz
bumped well for
Huntley's power stuff, outquicked him, then took the win with his Shooting
Star Press.
Cruz' "Bad Chi" T-Shirt with the chihuaua on the front is super cool. Nice
to see the "small
guy" beat the "big guy." I was surprised how clean this was, actually.

Match Six: El Tornado v. Johnny Heartbreaker

This was Heartbreaker's debut as Worthington's "Personal Trainer." He, like
Worthington,
has a beautiful physique. Heartbreaker had some nice offense and projected
the requisite
cockiness in this one. Tornado's a great bumper, and is the best flyer in
the promotion.
Good match, with Heartbreaker going over with a faceplant thingy kinda
move. I'm sure
there's a name for it, but I can't even describe the move. It looked
credible…are you
satisfied with that?

Postmatch, Tornado gets on the stick. We wondered if he'd speak Spanish,
but he reveals
that he doesn't know "a damn word of Mexican" and unmasks. El Tornado
is….Kid Krazy!
Whoa. He's not happy with the way Worthington has been treating
him--forcing him to wear
a mask, putting him in impossible situations, generally not giving him a
chance.

Tornado/Krazy did a good job on the mic considering he's probably not had
much of an
opportunity to cut promos. Nothing cringe-worthy at all; very smooth and he
got his points
across really well without seeming rehearsed. His inability to "speak
Mexican" is so Kid
Krazy crazy. Let the guy talk more!!

Match Seven: The Egomaniacs v. The Elements of Suicide v. Garf Garrison &
"Flash" Nick
McKenna (c) for the EWA Tag Titles

This wasn't supposed to be a three-way, but with the Damned not being
there, the
Egomaniacs were thrown into this one. They cut a promo about how "The
Internet" says
that they're the best team in New England. The Internet is for nerds who
don't know what
they're talking about. IIIII love the Egomaniacs--they're one of the best
teams in New
England. Good work, good look, fun, good charisma. Good gawd!

EOS are a good team, looking better each time I see them. Nick McKenna
holds his own
in a promotion of good workers. Considering he's only coming up on six
months in the ring,
that's spectacular. Plus, he seems to love his mom. This was my first
chance to see Garf
Garrison live and in color. This match was fine. 3-ways are hard. 3-way
tags are harder. I'll
give them credit for coming up with a decent match basically at the last
minute. It was
good that they turned EOS because it gave me a chance to cheer them. The
McKenna/Garrison Vegomatic finish was great. Garrison got like a mile up on
the legdrop.
The rest of the workers, brawling on the outside, sprinted in to break up
the pin right after
the ref's hand counted 3. Any of these teams could have won, and I wouldn't
have
complained.

Match Eight: Dr. Heresy v. Frankie Armadillo v. Adam Booker (c) for the EWA
Heavyweight
title

3 of the best workers in New England sqaring off in a 3-way. You expect it
to be anything
but great? Do you listen at all? This was, of course, really good. Heresy
cut a promo before
the match that re-focused the program on himself and Armadillo as legit
threats to Booker,
and to forget about Rick Fuller. He did a good job of reminding the crowd
that Booker had
to get through him before he could focus on Fuller.

Armadillo and Heresy brawled with each other until Booker came out. They
focused on him
until ego got the better of them, and they argued about how to put Booker
away. You know,
the usual 3-way story. But they again managed to keep things flowing
without being
confusing. Heresy putting Armadillo on the top rope, whipping Booker into
Armadillo's
groin, then Armadillo falling into Booker's groin. Everyone was just ON in
this one--good
execution, offense, pacing, selling, you name it. Finish was Armadillo
taking ALL of a
Booker spear and Heresy eating a Bookdaddy Flapjack (powerbomb into Styles
Clash).
Postmatch, Fuller came out and gave Booker a Fuller Effect and a powerbomb
to build heat
for the next show. That Jerk Commissioner Wortington came out and announced
Fuller/Booker for the next show while Booker lay dead in the ring.

This match did a good job of blowing off the Booker/Heresy program and
putting Booker
into a program with Fuller.

Another good show from the EWA. Anyone in New England: I urge you to go
check them
out. Everyone gives 100%, the booking is great, and it's a fun night of
fun. Plus, you could
meet ME. Despite being basically a buildup show for Fuller/Booker, they
still put on good
matches and angles unrelated to that. Coming out of the show, we have
Fuller/Booker, the
debut of Kid Krazy, the Black/Curtis slow-burn turn for next time. The
bookers do a great
job of giving good shows, while always leaving something on the table for
next time. Kudos.

Credit: Chris Tompkinson