Note, this won't be a traditional "McReview", as this will be a rundown of the event and some news, as I'm pressed for time.

BIG Pro Wrestling 11/9
From Brooklyn, NY
Ring Announcer: Mr. Big
Ref: John Q
Attendance: 120+, although that number seemed to wane a bit at the end of the night

Before the show began, there was a vibe in the air that some of the wrestlers weren't going to walk out with cash that night. I'll have more on that at the end of this report. The ring didn't get there till around 7PM or so and it just felt like one of those nights. The show eventually started a little before 9PM, almost an hour late. Mr. Big, manager, promoter and ring announcer extraordinaire, was the master of ceremonies cutting promos thoughout the entire show and hyping up his wrestlers. There is one thing you can say about BIG Pro Wrestling, and that is that it was named accordingly.

Dameon Slugga d. Mike Tobin
Slugga used his power to beat Tobin. Slugga was face while Tobin was heel. The crowd was probably more into this match than if it occurred later on in the show, as it was the first match and the crowd was restless for some action.

For some reason, after Slugga beat Tobin, Kevin Matthews ran out and attacked Slugga. This led to...

Kevin Matthews d. Slugga via countout
The guys wrestled in the ring for a bit then went outside, where the big Slugga was counted out. I didn't get the point of all this booking, but there was more, as Mike Tobin ran out, setting up...

Kevin Matthews d. Mike Tobin
Kevin worked a knee injury and Tobin was sympathetic. Kevin at the most prime moment of the match, small packaged Tobin out of no where for the win.

So we basically had three matches to start the show. Not conventional booking at all. None of this made any of the guys look particularly smart or strong, because you Tobin do two clean jobs which made no sense since he was the heel in the first match than a babyface in the second match. Slugga getting counted out made no sense when guys in other matches were in the crowd a bit. Kevin came out the best in all of this but if it's being presented that you're beating nobody what does that say for Kevin? Just odd booking and a weird way to start off a new promotion. I can see if these guys were feuding for a bit and we had all the lead-in segments/matches, but it just came off weird, as you don't see many promotions kicking off their shows like this.

Nathan Vein (The Niggataker without the mask, as BIG PW asked Niggataker not to wear a mask, which makes no sense since the mask is over and little kids can identify with a masked wrestler cause of Rey Misterio on TV) was the sole survivor of an 8-man cluster fuck. Result saw:

Nathan Vein/PJ/Nightmare/Abe Anderson d. Brandon Resto/Alex Armani/Kano/Lady Lee
There was alot of stuff going on in this match, but the way it was presented was "ticket seller". However, I do know Mr. Big believes in alot of these guys and wants to give them a chance. This match would've been better served in the popcorn slot of the show, rather than the second match. I believe Vein lastly eliminated Resto for the win.

Danny Demanto d. Cameron Shaft
Danny wins this match with a hogsplash. In true Danny Demanto & Big PW fashion, this set up a second match for Demanto, as working twice seemed to be the theme for alot of the guys on the show, as we had...

Bison Bravado w/Tony Lo d. Danny Demanto
After a spirited opening, Bison, with lots of help from Mr. Lo, gave Danny the "Roll of the Bise" (Overdrive) for the pinfall win.

Ken Sweeney & Bad News Gordon d. Thunderbolt & Ryan Blackheart
Sweeney wins the match for his team after a chairshot to Thunderbolt. This felt like a 2001 USA Pro Match.

Mack Daddy Flexxx/Joe So Delicious/Jay Santana d. Brolly & The Repeat Offenders (Crazy Ivan/Pete Nixon aka JAPW's "Oi Boy")
The heels had their nefarious tactics turn against them, as Pete Nixon got handcuffs from Ivan, only for Joe So Delicious to take the handcuffs and use them against Brolly for the win.

Xavier d. Zombie & Little Greatness in a Triple Threat Match
Xavier wins after a spinning heel kick to the Zombie. I missed some of the beginning of this match, but for what I saw for the last 4 or so minutes, it was decent. I do question the booking here. Why use Zombie as feeder for Xavier? Zombie could've been over doing something else. Putting Greatness vs Xavier is a good elevation type match for Greatness.

INTERMISSION
Some wrestlers tried doing gimmick sales but when the crowd is largely made up of project kids, it's hard to generate any real money.

For the Big PW aka ECW Replica Title Championship
The Sandman d. The Grim Reefer to become first ever champion
Beer vs Pot in this match, as Sandman takes the win after a hurranacarana. Afterwards, Homicide attacked Sandman, which brought out Raven, setting up an impromptu main event between...

Raven & Sandman d. Homicide & Grim Reefer
This was a solid main event to close the show for these fans, although Raven hardly did anything. During most of the match, Raven did running commentary over the guys in the ring. I wish I could make money the way Raven does.

This match pitted two ECW legends, who have their own history against the Student/Teacher combo of Homicide/Reefer. Originally we were suppose to have Homicide vs Raven for some type of crown, but I think BIG PW forgot to get a crown which is why this tag happened instead. Raven said on the mic he was upset he wasn't getting his crown because of Homicide, which just seemed odd.

In the end, after Sandman was the workhorse for his team, Raven came in and slingshot Reefer into a chair for the 1-2-3, sending home everyone happy at around 11:15 or so.

This area was a hard draw for Mr. Big as it was in the middle of the projects. Making two beer runs during the show, you had to go through a crack infested neighborhood. On my second run I saw people smoking crack and smiling, showing off their crack stained brown teeth. I don't think wrestling is a priority for the locals in the neighborhood. We've had the Rock & Wrestle era in wrestling, perhaps Big can get the Crack & Wrestle thing here.

Mr. Big was all over his own show, but didn't come off like the way Firehawk used to. Big was a poor man's Joe Panzarino and I mean that as a compliment, as Big put over his wrestlers & their abilities during their entrances.

While this show had many UXW elements & similiarities, I am happy to say the show was only 2 1/2 hours, with help from a 11PM building curfew.

As far as the show itself, everyone advertised appeared, which I guess is different from a UXW show too. Big advertised a few big names, and running his first show, he needed to deliver those names and he did. That was a good thing.

The gossip/rumor was that Frank Goodman was secretly running this show. I can 100% confirm that he had nothing to do with it, because after all Goodman doesn't lose money on his shows. I think alot of people associated with Goodman because of Big's relationship with Goodman and the fact that the whole show were UXW guys and had the same type of matches such as the ticket sellers, former ECW names and quality indy talent. Also during UXW's last 2 years in NY, Mr. Big did alot of the promotional stuff, rounding up ticket sellers, etc, so when he was doing all these jobs for himself, everyone thought it was for Frank.

However unlike UXW during its prime in NY, there wasn't anything explosive, like at past UXW shows. However, the card did fit the crowd and the crowd enjoyed the show immensely, but I don't know if smarts will go out of their way to really see this DVD.

The big news at the end of this show was the subject of paydays. I'm not going to go into what guys got or get paid, but the only two wrestlers to be paid in full in cash were Sandman & Homicide. If Homicide didn't have TNA, I don't even think he would've been paid in cash either.

I do know that Raven's pay was mostly cash and some check. All the indy guys either didn't get paid or were handed a check that they were told would clear on Wednesday. I don't really want to blow up this issue, but too many wrestlers complained to me about this that I couldn't ignore it. If you are running a show, you should have all the money up front before you even hand out your first flyer. It is not the wrestlers fault if you don't draw enough at the gate. As I wrote in a previous piece on DOI, 99% of these indy wrestlers are killing themselves for peas & carrots. Not having even a payday to cover gas when promised ahead of time is inexcusable. I do know that Big plans to make right and that the checks will supposedly clear on Wednesday but if these checks bounce, will anyone be shocked? I will find out from some of the wrestlers on the show if the checks cleared on Wednesday.

The state of NY wrestling seems to be in a complete dissarray. NYWC is successful for what they do, but their shows aren't really any good, unless you haven't seen anything else. NYWC has their market and has a good business for what they do, but on the NY landscape, no one is travelling or caring about their shows. VPW is a student promotion with a few indy names sprinkled in, but those shows are nothing to write home about either. WUW is another student promotion, that exists purely for the students to get better, just like VPW. You have Bobby Reidels Jesus Christ Superstar shows and they flat out suck more dick than a priest at a Boy Scout meeting. You have Jac Sabboth getting fans and wrestlers hopes up and down for years, so you know when he announces he's coming back with UCWICWUnleashedChecksBounceProWrestling sometime next year, you know that will be a flop too.

So yea people wanted to see Big do good, but if the paydays aren't there, it won't last for long. Plus, Big was talking about running again, but after taking a loss at the door, can he keep these shows going? For fans who don't know, you're looking at spending $3000 to run a show in NY before you even start booking the matches, with the NYSAC fees, doctors, insurance, bonds, ring, guard rails, music, building rent, etc. That is why NY wrestling is in the fucking shitter right now because it's not profitable at all. You have to run dark shows to make a dime, but even someone like the FTW group out in Long Island is going to have trouble once the commission comes knocking. And it's not FTW's fault, but with all these other promotions losing money doing things the right way, do you think they want to see someone get off by not doing things right?

In another newsbit, former UXW manager Johnny Diamond, a guy known for selling tickets and having relationships with ticket sellers, pulled off several ticket sellers off of Big's show, which means some of the guys didn't get paid because Big was expecting ticket seller money from some of Diamond's guys, only for Diamond to tell them not to work for Big. The craziness just goes on and on and on.

Sandman was the locker room leader of the show. If he wasn't there, I don't think the show would've been as smooth as it was. Sandman really showed that he could have another career in the wrestling business as a non-wrestler, as he helped out Big alot with getting the show ready, helping with finishes and just helping the younger guys explaining how things work. He was a huge asset to the locker room and a fine choice as champion for Big.

Overall
Not a conventional type of indy show, but nothing overly horrible either. The best way to sum it up is a learning experience for Mr. Big.

No future date was announced, although it was talked about by Mr. Big. We'll have full news and DVD info available soon.

Sean "The MiC" McCaffrey
BULLSMC@aol.com

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