Goody Bag XVI: Hidden Gems 2

GWF Light Heavyweight Title Two-out-of-Three Falls Match: Lightning Kid v Jerry Lynn: From GWF TV on January 6 1992 (taped December 27). As a special stipulation, each guy can only score falls with their finisher. Feeling out process to start, with both guys very evenly matched as they trade holds and counters. Test-of-strength goes Lynn's way long enough for him to send Kid to the floor with a monkeyflip, but the champ is undeterred - climbing back in and dropping for into referee's position, challenging Lynn to an amateur style showdown. Jerry obliges, but Kid holds his own - only to punt Lynn in the ribs when Jerry drops down onto all fours to give Kid the same opportunity! What a little dick! Kid sends him to the outside with a headscissors to setup a corkscrew flying senton, then back in with a trapping suplex to setup a kneedrop. That sets up a flying legdrop, but Jerry rolls out of the way, and grabs his Sleeper for the first fall at 6:39. Lynn goes right in with another Sleeper, but Kid gets the ropes. He's still dazed, so Jerry is able to hook a crucifix, but there's no count since that's not his finisher. Kid capitalizes on the mistake by dropping him throat-first across the top rope, and he fires off some kicks - only to get backdropped over the top on a charge! Jerry is right on him with a baseball slide, and he adds a springboard flying bodypress before rolling Kid back in. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker sets up a tilt-a-whirl slam, but Kid counters with the Lightning Strike (a tombstone piledriver) for the second fall at 9:55. I don't think he ever used that one once he got to the WWF, for obvious reasons. Well, the obvious reason, plus the fact that everyone he worked with in the WWF was too big for him to use it on anyway. I mean, can you picture him tombstoning Razor Ramon or Bam Bam Bigelow? Kid keeps after him, but misses a cross corner dropkick, and Jerry capitalizes with a jumping backelbow. Sleeper looks to finish, but Kid escapes with a side superplex - only for Lynn to counter into a bodypress on the way down! Ten-punch count rattles Kid, but a criss cross ends in a double-knockout with the referee down, and in runs Scott Anthony! He tries hitting Lynn, but it backfires, and Jerry cleans house! Sleeper on Kid, and we've got a new champion at 13:10! While it's since been overshadowed many times by later cruiserweight matches, this one still holds up in its own right, and was certainly something special when it first came out. *** ½

Bad Company v Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr: From the Stu Hart 50^th Anniversary Show on December 15 1995 up in Calgary. Brian Pillman starts with Dory, and gets the better of him with a few bodyslams until Funk bails to the outside. Back in, Dory levels the whippersnapper with some uppercuts before passing to Terry, and he dumps Brian to the outside for Makhan Singh to abuse. Back in, Terry drops Pillman with a neckbreaker for two, but Brian fights back with a series of chops to send him over the top - Bruce Hart ready and waiting with a beating out there. In, Bruce keeps after Terry with a series of rights to setup a kneedrop for two, and Brian tries a side suplex, but Terry mulekicks him to get away. To the outside, Terry whips him into a table, then vertical suplexes his ass onto it for good measure. Does he think he's back in Japan with Foley again? Back in, Dory gets two out of it all, and a butterfly suplex gets two as well. The Funks cut the ring in half on Pillman (with Bruce Hart acting like a complete fucking asshole the entire time), and it spills to the outside, where Brian takes a nasty backdrop bump on the exposed concrete. Terry also makes friends with some poor unsuspecting photographer out there, stealing his gear and abusing Pillman with it. Terry was never a friend to photographers, was he? Good thing he wasn't booked for WrestleMania XI. Imagine the carnage! In, Dory backelbows him for two, then hits a bodyslam for two. The Funks continue to cut the ring in half, but Brian manages to duck a punch from Terry, and he falls into the tag! Bruce knocks Terry right to the outside for a brawl into the crowd, but Dory steps in, and Pillman is too battered to help. Bruce manages to hold his own against both brothers, and Terry blades after a chairshot. Inside, Pillman tags back in to beat on Terry with a ten-punch, and a piledriver gets two. DDT is worth two, but Terry manages a side suplex before Brian can follow-up again, and we've got a brawl - Roseanne Barr the door! Bruce hits Dory with a side suplex to setup a flying splash for two, and a vertical suplex gets two. In comes Terry with a chair, however, and that's a DQ at 18:19! Damn, shitty ending to an otherwise awesome match! Pillman was the standout for that heat segment, and both Funks did a tremendous job on their end, though Bruce annoyed me from start to finish here. *** ¾

Eight-Man Tag Team Match: Konnan, Rey Mysterio, Hector Garza, and Silver King v Chris Jericho, Lenny Lane, Norman Smiley, and Johnny Swinger: From WCW's pilot for Festival de Lucha on January 27 1999 in Waco Texas. The set for this looks like it's right out of a videogame. But in a good way. It takes them a while to settle on who will start, before going with Rey and Lenny. Mysterio gets the better of him after dodging a cross corner dropkick, then delivering a bronco buster to send Lane to the floor. Onto Garza and Swinger, and Johnny wins a criss cross with a clothesline, but Hector superkicks him for two. In comes Smiley to backelbow Garza, then over to Jericho for a tandem-shoulderblock. Chris adds a vertical suplex for two, then brings in Lenny to bodyslam Garza. Swinger comes in for Lenny to bodyslam ONTO Garza for two, but Silver King gets the tag. He catches Smiley with a DDT, but gets stomped down in the corner, then sent into the guardrail on the outside. Two referees in the ring with all of these bodies is a logistical nightmare. King hits Lane with a spinheel kick and a dropkick to knock him to the outside for a springboard bodypress, and everyone starts brawling - Jericho hooking Garza with the Liontamer at 8:04. I've never been much of a fan of Lucha multi-man tags, and this is really no exception. It didn't suck or anything, and the action was pretty much non-stop, but the style is just not my cup of tea. Still, this is a neat addition from the Network because of the unique circumstances of the match/show. * ¾

Edge & Christian v Evolution: From Ultimate Pro Wrestling's 'It's On' event on April 25 2001 in Los Angeles. Lots of mind games and posturing to start, until they settle on Christian starts with Nova. They feel each other out, with Nova able to get the better of the cocky WWF superstar. Edge takes a cheap shot to help turn the tide, but he charges right into a drop-toehold, and Frankie Kazarian gets the tag. They pepper both guys with some quick tandem offense to clean house, and the dust settles back on Edge and Frankie. Edge pounds him down, but runs into a springboard backelbow for two during a criss cross - only for Frankie to miss a charge in the corner. Edge capitalizes with a single-arm DDT before passing back to Christian, and they work to cut the ring in half on Kazarian. Frankie manages to counter a superplex from Edge with a tornado DDT to nearly get the tag, but Christian distracts the referee, and he misses it! Unprettier, but Frankie counters THAT with an inverted DDT, and that's finally enough for the hot tag! Nova comes in hot (a supernova, perhaps?), and Roseanne Barr the door, we've got a kettle on! Evolution get a visual pinfall on Edge while the referee is bumped, but end up running into a double team, and pinned at 12:01. Evolution were working really hard to showcase their best stuff against the big star team, but E&C were more in TV match mode here. This would be more interesting if Evolution ever went on to become bigger stars in the future, but it's still neat to see E&C do their act on an indy stage. ** ½

Brock Lesnar v Leviathan: From Ohio Valley Wrestling on July 28 2001. Leviathan is a young Batista. Or, well, a youngER Batista, I guess. Dude came to the game late. Brock tries for a takedown early, but Leviathan keeps him at bay with a side suplex, so Brock responds with a bodyslam. Leviathan fires back with a spinebuster, and he's able to pound Lesnar down in the corner to take control of the contest. Brock blocks a cross corner whip with a 2^nd rope flying bodypress for two, but Leviathan quickly cuts him off, and bootchokes him down to keep control. Side-scrapbuster gets two, and Leviathan applies a chinlock, but Brock escapes, and delivers a release overhead suplex. Another one sets up a fireman's buster, but Synn blinds Lesnar with some pepper spray, and Leviathan gets the pin at 6:22. This is interesting because of who they'd become, but not really worth seeing strictly as a match. Both guys were green as hell here, and it's actually very impressive how quickly they'd improve. I mean, watching this, you'd never believe that Brock was a year away from winning the WWE Title. ¾*

#1 Contender's Triple Threat Match: Seth Rollins v Dean Ambrose v Leakee: From FCW TV on February 5 2012 (taped January 12). First fall wins. Leakee is Roman Reigns, making this all three members of the future Shield. Man, say what you will about the main roster, but they certainly nailed down the right visual presentation for all three of these guys. They all look like indy geeks here. Everyone trades off in the early going, until Seth and Dean gang up on Leakee. They work him over for an extended period, but only one can win, and Dean turns on him first. He tries to put Leakee away, but fails, and Seth comes back to dump Dean. He follows with a springboard dive at Leakee, but gets punched out of the sky, and Leakee gets into an awkward exchange with Ambrose that ends in Dean hooking an STF. Leakee gets the ropes to escape, but here comes Seth with a springboard flying forearm on Ambrose for two. Superkick, but Dean counters with a wheelbarrow facebuster for two, so Rollins throws an enzuigiri. Running dropkick sets up the curb stomp, but Dean dodges. Criss cross, but Seth bails out to nail Leakee with a tope, then comes at Dean with the Phoenix Splash, but Ambrose dodges that as well. That results in a slugfest that ends in Leakee Samoan dropping them both at the same time, and he adds a bulldog on Ambrose for the pin at 11:00. Some things never change. The match was fine on an indy level, but nothing special. ** ¼