DIW 2024: Waging War Weekly

[Satyr24]

DIW Title: Seth Wish v Dexter Mattell (c)

Think his time is almost up, but I don't think Seth doing it.

Tag Titles: The Dream Team (Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards) v The Benchmark (Donovan Boon and Rusty Mills) (c)

If they can't who can

Australian Title: Con McReady v Kobra The Conqueror (c)

Too early to lose the title he just won

Hack The Hunter v Bryant Hall

Someone will eventually beat Bryant but it won't be a Hack

The Barracudas (Chopper Rourke and Vaughan) v The Barbarians (Lloyd Banks and Psych Ward)

They are both past their prime and should start helping to establish other teams

Two Badass Bulldogs (Hendrix Hughes and Wrecker) v D.O.A. and ?

Seems weird they already have a tag name but they are winning and I guess your setting up an angry partner return

[619]

Credit: @John Lions

Part 91: Hardcore Hallelujah 2024

The Comedian and I set the stage by pointing out that The Pros had held all of DIW’s gold for six months. Could their former members Seth Wish and Con McReady wrestle the DIW Title and Australian Title away? Could two of DIW’s biggest stars and greatest rivals Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards coexist to take the Tag Titles off The Benchmark? Before we could speculate further, Crazy Blue’s music hit for the sellout DIW House crowd’s first loud reaction of the night.

Tag Titles: The Dream Team (Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards) v The Benchmark (Donovan Boon and Rusty Mills) (c)
Just as Edwards predicted, he and Hittlespitz put on the best match in DIW history for the second year in a row at Hardcore Hallelujah, only this time as partners and at the start rather than the end of the show. This 12-minute masterpiece was split into three parts. A commanding opening for The Benchmark invited me to discuss how they’d been dominating Hittlespitz and Edwards in tag and singles action. A strong Crazy Blue comeback had The Comedian recalling his DIW Title-winning performance against Gyula Lakatos at Hardcore Hallelujah 2022, inevitably adding a dig at the Hungarian’s career collapsing since then. Then the wearing out of Edwards set up a big callback to Massacre as he tried to tag out, only for Mills to goad Hittlespitz off the apron, run him into a ringside railing and then help Boon hit the Double Down on a stranded Human Weapon. I called out Crazy Blue’s poor preparation for costing his team by not even studying what happened to Wrecker and Edwards, not accounting for the possibility of him making it to the ring just in time to break up the count. He got Mills over the top rope, dived onto him and then launched him into the steps as Edwards rallied to catch Boon with a Roundhouse Kick before tagging Hittlespitz in for a Flying Knee Drop to crown new champions.

There was one further callback during Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards’ celebrations. Crazy Blue, upon retrieving his custom chair from ringside, feigned swinging it in his partner’s direction on the entranceway as he had after their previous major show win together at Devil May Care 2022, only to laugh, pat The Human Weapon on the shoulder and say not tonight.

Two Badass Bulldogs (Hendrix Hughes and Wrecker) v D.O.A. and Dingo Devine
The reveal of Devine as Lorenzo Oliverio’s stand-in gave me a chance to talk up his credentials as an APW Grand Slam Champion (the second of four, with Spiffy Stan Standish, Christopher Gerard and Harry Simonson the others, if you were wondering). Hughes was more dismissive, saying everyone knew D.O.A. needed divine intervention to survive Two Badass Bulldogs, but this wasn’t what anyone had in mind. The 43-year-old looked as legitimate as ever, causing me to question why David Peterson had let him go, though it became clearer once the bell rang that he had lost a step. He also felt out of place in a DIW ring, the same way Dexter Mattell did early in his run. That was covered up a fair bit by a great Wrecker performance. The match ended with a Double Bulldog spot, with Wrecker planting D.O.A. with a Mighty Bulldog at the same time Hughes dropped fellow legal man Devine with a Triple H to win it for the long-term allies.

We handed over to Markus Rush, who replayed footage he had of a furious Donovan Boon and Rusty Mills grabbing their bags and leaving DIW House during the last match. Rush pointed out that it would mean Dexter Mattell and Kobra The Conqueror not being able to call on them.

Australian Title: Con McReady v Kobra The Conqueror (c)
Seth Wish and Dexter Mattell were at ringside an hour before their DIW Title fight, as was the case last month when Kobra beat McReady for the title. Mattell commanded a lot of attention, with it striking that the DIW Champion had been in Kobra’s corner for all three of his Australian Title matches since joining The Pros, whereas he didn’t seem to take such an active interest in the other Pros’ fights. He made the difference, cracking Wish in the back of the head with the DIW Title as McReady teased an Iron Fist, taking Wish’s cane and swinging it at his partner, who tried to stay on his feet but, lacking balance, staggered straight into Kobra’s Ripcord Knee and was pinned. The Australian Champion looked to continue the assault with his snakeskin belt after his defence, but Mattell ushered him out of the ring as Wish recovered to assist his partner.

They probably weren’t going out celebrating together, but Markus Rush was able to show us that the new Tag Team Champions Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards were in the same room at least having got cleaned up after their match. Rick Horn offered his congratulations, stating that he’d told other blokes in the back that the two of them would take down The Benchmark.

The Barracudas (Chopper Rourke and Vaughan) v The Barbarians (Lloyd Banks and Psych Ward)
This was by far the bloodiest and most violent match of the night with a pretty eventful finish. Death Ref smashed a light tube over Vaughan’s head when it looked he would put Ward to sleep, then helped Banks place a wooden barbed wire board outside the ring. Banks set Rourke up for a Spike Piledriver off the apron with Ward climbing the turnbuckle for the spike, when a woman appeared from nowhere to hit Ward in the head with a lead pipe. This cost Banks too as Rourke fought out of the Piledriver position and was joined by Vaughan in sending the Barbed Wire Messiah over the ropes with a sickening thud into the barbed wire board outside courtesy of a Double Powerbomb. Rourke then scooped Ward up for a Spinebuster that got his team the win.

Death Ref was tending to Banks and Ward when fellow Ares Death Cult members Bryant Hall and Lori entered the ring for The Final Boss’ match. Lori told her husband she had everything in hand, so he could go and take care of The Barbarians.

Hack The Hunter v Bryant Hall
Hack won the various tests of strength at the start of the contest to sell the idea that Hall might have finally met his match. He showed the impact of the ankle damage he suffered on To The Extreme on a couple of occasions, but surprisingly it didn’t factor into the finish. Hack fought back when Hall began to take charge to land his Hack Attack, but he got his shoulder up on two and it very much seemed like the heavyweight had no Plan B for that happening. His opponent seized on that hesitation and was relentless once in control, very much having a plan which was to hit an initial S.T.O. launching the back of Hack’s head into the top turnbuckle, following up with a more conventional one to the mat to score the three count. I sold this decisive victory over an unbeaten heavyweight as a very big deal on commentary: claiming it was no wonder he was called The Final Boss.

Markus Rush brought us some comments from Dexter Mattell and Kobra The Conqueror before the main event. Referencing Kobra’s win over Con McReady, Mattell sarcastically said what a surprise it was that the Wild Things’ latest big plan had fallen through. Both leave Massacre as champions? Nope. Win the Tag Titles in Canberra? Nope. Both win tonight to qualify for the annual champion versus champion ladder match? Nope. Mattell told Kobra that was one Wild Thing down, now it was time to take care of the other. Then it would come down to DIW’s only two Pro singles wrestlers to light up the showcase match next month. Kobra seemed to approve.

DIW Title: Seth Wish v Dexter Mattell (c)
The Comedian noted that Wish finally had a level playing field: healed fingers, no Benchmark, just Con McReady and Kobra The Conqueror at ringside. I pointed out that McReady lost in the same circumstances earlier, predicting that the challenger would be waving off his chances of ever winning the DIW Title or wrestling in Canberra again. After a fast start from Wish, Mattell used his technical proficiency to get the upper hand and threaten to suck the life out of the crowd. However, Wish brought them back by countering the STF after surviving 45 seconds in the hold, and soon after kicking out on two when Mattell again hit him with his own Dust In The Wind. The finish saw Kobra The Conqueror slide the DIW Title in for Mattell to use, only for the champion to momentarily lose focus when McReady struck the Australian Champion with his cane. Wish grabbed his cane while this was happening, going for a crowd-pleasing shot between the champion’s legs. Mattell’s grip on the DIW Title loosened as he crumpled to his knees, being picked up by Wish for Dust In The Wind. The challenger attempted to follow up with the Suicide Senton, which I pointed out had proven costly in the past, but he connected on this occasion, achieving a three count to become the 14th DIW Champion and, at 27, the fourth youngest ever.

Con McReady picked the DIW Title off the mat and handed it to Seth Wish as he was having his arm raised by referee Tatum Richards. The pair embraced as The Comedian celebrated The Pros being brought down by their own former members, and their apparent downfall in losing two titles they had held for most of the year in one night.

-----

I'm so grateful and entertained by all your comments and analysis. I can't lie: some of your suggestions might have been better than the chosen path, for instance keeping all the titles on The Pros until a supergroup fully emerged to take them down or the dynamic of Dexter Mattell being either first or last to fall, so I hope you're not too disappointed and this direction still proves interesting. There were also some shrewd predictions on what might happen next.

Prediction-wise, I had 5 for @KyTeran, @DinoKea and @John Lions, 4 for @Tiberious, @Scottie, @AboardTheArk and @Satyr24 and 3 for @HiPlus, so good scores all round but no perfect scores. Thanks everyone for your predictions and following along.

Edited October 28, 2023 by 619

[619]

Part 92: New champions

Whether you judged success on storylines or star ratings, Hardcore Hallelujah 2024 had proven a pretty impactful show with the end of two six-month title reigns and the best match in DIW’s near-15-year history.

The closest thing to a controversy was the debate raging over whether that Dream Team v Benchmark match had been wasted in the opening slot. Lori knew it had the potential to be DIW’s best ever match because she’d allowed Rob Edwards to float the possibility on the last episode of To The Extreme, so should it have closed the show?

As mentioned previously, I’m more of a traditionalist so I supported Seth Wish v Dexter Mattell main eventing, especially as the DIW Title changed hands, feeling it would’ve undermined Wish’s elevation into that position if it happened at the start or middle of the show.

I guess the follow-up question that could raise is should Wish have been the one celebrating at all, or should Edwards, Milton Hittlespitz, Donovan Boon and Rusty Mills have been leading the DIW Title scene if they were the company’s top performers at this time?

Anyway, whatever your thoughts on the booking, there was less to debate in terms of business. The company had again sold out their new 1,000-seater DIW House, this time with Lori claiming that they could’ve filled another few hundred seats if they were available. The WrestleWorld Australia viewership jump was even greater than the 15,838 to 16,620 increase from Havoc to Massacre, as they sprung all the way up to 18,529 viewers, an 11.5% rise.

Lori never gave me too much insight into company finances, but did let on after Hardcore Hallelujah that, while DIW hadn’t yet resumed profitability (I’m told the company was making money prior to September 2023’s initial WrestleWorld Australia deal), August 2024 had been the best month of the year so far financially.

So to summarise, Hardcore Hallelujah 2024 had been DIW’s most successful show so far, featuring their best ever match, viewership and tying their record crowd, and things were starting to come together finance-wise. In other words, DIW’s future looked brighter than it ever had before, provided they didn’t do anything unnecessarily reckless…

[HiPlus]

Hardcore Hallelujah 2024

Well that was a hell of a show. I think I over thought things, and considering the DIW Champ and Australian Champ will face off with one another it made sense that one of Dexter/Kobra would lose the title. Wish winning the title is the perfect culmination of him becoming "the" guy in the company and a credit to him. I didn't think Lori saw him that highly but it makes so much sense and with the gradual rise of Ares Death Cult again, it does freshen the scene up quite a bit. Either as an established long term champion or as a transitional one he fills that role perfectly. 

Benchmark losing in the opening match as well begins a lot of interest and gives you a lot of ways to advance the story. Because as good as The Benchmark are, the team of Edwards and Hittlespitz is a lot harder to imagine anyone other than The Benchmark beating. 

The most curious thing I have about the future is Rick Horn interacting so much with Edwards/Hittlespitz despite not being in a tag-team. Whether it is just a small segment to get the guy pushing his pop up or eventuates into something else I am eager about his prospects in the future. 

[John Lions]

Excited to see where things go with the Pros. They were a a group of individuals held together by their success together, but now that they aren't successful, can they continue to coexist? I think singles-stars-as-tag-team is a great storyline when used in moderation, and I think this is the perfect time while the rest of your tag teams build credibility and you figure out who can sink or swim among them. It's always difficult when you have one worker who is at the top of the card and a better, more electric worker than the rest, but he's done everything he can in the main title scene for the time being. Always a challenge to book, and I think you've done well in keeping Edwards relevant and important to the main story of DIW (the Pros) and now after Hardcore Hallelujah, his program with Milton is the biggest storyline still running.

Bryant Hall's schedule makes him feel like he's in a bit of a bubble - if it's still too much to bring him in more frequently, maybe you could shoot some vignettes for the episodes he's not there? (in-game you can just mark him in the angle but off screen I believe? not 100%) Not sure if that's in DIW's tech budget though.

[619]

@HiPlus Yeah, in terms of Lori's view of him, Seth Wish isn't an undeniable top guy – better wrestlers, better talkers, inconsistent – so he needs good dance partners, but one of the goals of switching to weekly shows was to try to elevate some of the homegrown stars, and his story put him in the best position to get that opportunity. There should indeed be a bit more to come with Rick Horn and his high-profile supporters.

@John Lions I agree about singles stars as tag champions: I'm not always a fan in real life. I've justified it to myself based on their (admittedly limited) unbeaten history as a team even predating the start of the save and sitting on their great chemistry for over two years until it felt like there was a force worthy of uniting them against. But arguably an established team would've benefitted from the rub more. You're right about the Bryant Hall bubble too. I've written the next eight episodes and it remains an obstacle, so we may have to take the financial hit to fly him in more.

Part 93: DIWO

Do you remember how The Comedian told me something at a promotional event in Canberra in July, but I thought it might just be the alcohol talking? Well, September started with the news that it was very much real.

“DIW are excited to announce the launch of DIWO: Deep Impact Wrestling Online. By paying either $20 every two months, or $100 for a year, you can watch To The Extreme every week, our bimonthly major events and access every DIW show aired since September 2023, plus many earlier shows, matches and highlights.”

DIW’s latest deal with WrestleWorld Australia expired later in September, a year on from debuting on the platform with Extreme Life 2023, which was headlined by a Wrecker v Rob Edwards DIW Title ladder match.

However, The Comedian was furious that they had added APW to their programming in July, not wanting a company he hated to profit from a service he felt DIW had helped establish. With no other network willing to take them on – not even Girls, Cars and Violence!, which had just taken Luxe’s shows off air – he saw creating his own service as his only option.

It was typical Comedian stubbornness, but also potentially a destructive miscalculation. Did DIW have a large and loyal enough fanbase to switch to a subscription that only gave them access to one company’s content?

Was the danger not huge that now APW had a bigger lead star (George Wolfe) and were putting on better shows, and WrestleWorld Australia could air other historic shows, people would just stick with what they knew and DIW would hand APW the audience they’d spent a year building?

Even if a decent number of fans did convert, did the company really have enough money in reserve to soak up the setup costs and likely loss-making they’d suffer in the immediate future?

The Comedian and Lori had taken risks this year that had paid off, like opening their own venue and switching to weekly shows, but I feared the hubris that had created might be about to bring DIW to its knees.

[619]

Part 94: Announcement overload

The announcement on Monday 2nd September 2024 that DIW was launching its own DIWO online streaming service was followed by more the next day.

The first was that October’s second To The Extreme taping would be treated as a celebration of the company’s 15-year anniversary. Nothing specific was revealed about what that involved, which wasn’t too surprising given there were six more episodes to sort out before then. It would be held at DIW’s original 300-seater home Marv’s Sports Central, with ticket prices increased slightly to balance out the reduced capacity.

DIW revealed that the Damage Control show in late October wouldn’t take place at DIW House either, with the company instead making their Sydney debut at Roundhouse. The accompanying poster teased a prison theme for the event’s branding.

A date was also confirmed for DIW’s final show of 2024 (and every year) War Machine. It would occur on Friday 27th December at DIW House, with this perhaps announced in advance to calm any dissent about taking a non-Carnage In Canberra show outside of their base for the first time. This scheduling meant War Machine’s To The Extreme go-home episode would air on Christmas Day.

Brief conversations with The Comedian and Lori at September’s first To The Extreme episodes filled me in about these initiatives, which were packaged together a day earlier to try to build momentum for DIWO by highlighting the depth of the offering for that initial two-month price.

I wasn’t too shocked by the Sydney announcement. However, I was surprised to hear Lori indicate that the main motivation wasn’t hitting a new market while business was good. It was more a way to try to fill more seats because DIW House was at capacity and couldn’t be expanded quickly enough, especially not with so much capital being plunged into DIWO.

Strangely, while DIW were offering the impression of thinking more long-term than ever before by announcing a new streaming service, an anniversary show, a Sydney debut and December plans all within around 24 hours, very little was disclosed about To The Extreme episode 33.

The company’s website and social pages just promised fans would hear from new DIW Champion Seth Wish and new Tag Team Champions Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards, with the promotional effort instead centred on it being the first show ever to air on DIWO.

[619]

Part 95: To The Extreme #33

New Tag Team Champions Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards came to the ring to start the show: Edwards first, with Hittlespitz’s music hitting to join him while he was still on the ramp. The Human Weapon said it was true they saw themselves as singles wrestlers, and they’d came together to take down The Benchmark and The Pros but, now they had these titles they’d never held before, they weren’t giving them up without a fight. Hittlespitz promised they’d be fighting champions and would start proving that as early as next week, offering Hendrix Hughes and Wrecker a chance to see if they could continue their impressive Hardcore Hallelujah form.

Crazy Blue was interrupted by new DIW Champion Seth Wish. He congratulated the new champs but, about next week…five days ago he beat Dexter Mattell for the DIW Title (something the other two failed to do, I observed to stir things), advancing to a ladder match with his long-time Australian Title rival Kobra The Conqueror in three weeks. But he didn’t feel like champion yet. He needed to conquer another long-time rival first, a man who fighting against had helped take him to the next level, yet he hadn’t beaten one-on-one, and that ate him up inside. Wish said if it was up to him, he’d make this offer for tonight, but he knew WrestleWorld Australia insisted that both of their first title defences had advance promotion – pushing the heat onto the outgoing broadcaster – so how about next week, Seth Wish v Milton Hittlespitz for the DIW Title, and they can have their first Tag Title defence the week after instead? Crazy Blue signalled his acceptance, while Edwards looked on curiously from the side.

Saracens (Cueball and Tank) v The Barbarians (Lloyd Banks and Psych Ward)
I speculated on commentary that Death Ref ordered The Barbarians back into the ring so soon after their bloody defeat to The Barracudas at Hardcore Hallelujah to try to redeem themselves. They certainly did that in a chaotic scrap that often felt like more of a tornado match than a traditional tag, and ended with Banks pinning Cueball after a Spike Piledriver through a table.

Death Ref spoke briefly to promise that Ares Death Cult would find and punish the woman who interfered in The Barbarians’ match at Hardcore Hallelujah, saying that she chose her path so couldn’t turn back now.

We got a glimpse of Kobra The Conqueror and The Benchmark huddled in a corridor. Kobra said that Dexter Mattell was taking some time to recover, passive aggressively noting that The Benchmark could probably relate having done the same thing the other night after their loss. Donovan Boon sidestepped the remark, instead calling it a joke that Seth Wish, Rob Edwards and Milton Hittlespitz were no longer in the building due to WrestleWorld Australia’s ridiculous ruling. Rusty Mills said he’d take the main event spotlight tonight instead, because he’d figured out the perfect way to send a message to the new champions in their absence, before saying he’d tell the others somewhere a bit more private, having apparently noticed the lurking camera.

Con McReady v Demarcus Lee
Lee brought a snooker cue to the ring to equalise McReady’s cane in a callback to their previous meeting back in January, only to throw the cue out of the ring before the bell. He capitalised on The Wild One’s confusion by reaching for a bag apparently containing snooker balls and striking him over the head with it, following up by launching the bag between his grounded opponent’s legs. This was probably the longest sustained spell of offence in Lee’s DIW career, but it was all done to add more heroism to McReady’s comeback, which was completed with the usual cane shot and Iron Fist combo. He later emptied the bag of balls on Lee’s torso. I’m fairly sure they switched the bag between those initial spots and the post-match one. You probably appreciated me ruining the magic about as much as The Comedian welcomed my juvenile call that McReady had emptied his ball bag over his opponent.

Markus Rush asked The Barracudas about the ending of their Hardcore Hallelujah match against The Barbarians, when a woman interfered on their behalf. Vaughan cut him off, saying that woman had nothing to do with them. Rush pointed out she used a lead pipe, The Barracudas’ signature weapon – incensing Chopper Rourke – but Vaughan scoffed that they probably weren’t the only people in DIW House who knew how to get hold of a pipe. He said they weren’t here to look back, they were looking forward because they’d just been told that because Seth Wish was defending his DIW Title before the ladder match with the Australian Champion at the end of the month, the Australian Title would be defended next week too. Rourke was facing Kobra The Conqueror with a chance to complete DIW’s first ever grand slam.

Markus Rush handed back for the main event, only for us to return to him seconds later because he’d caught sight of Wrecker enthusiastically telling Hendrix Hughes they’d been granted a Tag Title match in two weeks, but the other Badass Bulldog didn’t match his excitement. Hughes said that any time Wrecker needed a partner, he had his back. But Seb Shaw was going through hell trying to get himself cleared to one day wrestle again and Two Badass MFers regaining their Tag Titles was what kept him going so, while he would back him and Wrecker to beat the so-called Dream Team, he couldn’t do that to Shaw. Wrecker looked unimpressed, before reluctantly accepting Hughes’ decision.

Rick Horn v Rusty Mills
Horn’s DIW singles career to date was an interesting case. He held a 5-4 record, and yet it was arguably the losses that benefitted him more, being allowed to hang for 12 minutes with then-DIW Champion Dexter Mattell and 11 minutes with Rob Edwards. He was given 14 minutes here against one of DIW’s best wrestlers and someone so protected that he’d never been pinned or submitted in 19 matches, recently beating Edwards. Horn scored a trio of two counts during the bout and, more tellingly, had three failed attempts to connect with the John Deere Destroyer. The third was decisive as Mills countered by launching him into the ropes, snapping back off them hard into a Northern Lights Suplex to earn the former Tag Team Champion a three count.

Rusty Mills teased paying respect to Rick Horn for pushing him to the limit, as other recent opponents like Rob Edwards and Hack The Hunter had, but it was a ruse. Mills kneed Horn between the legs, hit another Northern Lights Suplex and was then joined by Donovan Boon and Kobra The Conqueror as we reiterated on commentary that The Dream Team and The Wild Things weren’t in the building. The Benchmark hit a Double Down. Kobra worked him over with his snakeskin belt, lifted him up only to drop him again with a Ripcord Knee, then dragged him outside. When Horn got back to his feet, he clenched his fists to show no fear, but he took another shot to the back from Kobra’s belt then was struck by a Double Down from The Benchmark onto the side of the ring, seeming to knock him out. Kobra and The Benchmark stood tall, with Boon shouting for The Dream Team to enjoy their celebrations.

[John Lions]

I have a feeling that Seth Wish and the Dream Team are going to be very closely connected story-wise over the next few months. It felt a bit telling that after triumphant victories over the Pros, the first guys on screen were the Tag champs, and not the newest DIW Champion. Interested to see what direction that goes. Wrecker has felt a bit directionless as a good guy, despite winning, ever since losing his Australian title and hopefully things start to pick up for him going forward - I have a feeling his tenure in the tag division is coming to an end soon.

Interesting to see the shift in direction lately - the first show after Hardcore Hallelujah feels like a 1 match card (and that 1 match being a primarily tag guy taking on a relative DIW newbie). Personally, I like the plethora of shorter angles fleshing out the dynamics between all of your top guys, especially since DIW doesn't run a face/heel divide so those relationships can be a lot more complicated.

Some offense to Chopper but it would be a letdown if he was the first Grand Slam champion in DIW history. Who are the others that are one title away? This is what I can think off of the top of my head:

Need Tag titles - Seth Wish
Need Australian title - Vaughan, Rob Edwards, Milton Hittlespitz

[AboardTheArk]

think it would kind of have to be Hittlespitz imo 

[willr0ck]

Hardcore Hallelujah was great! I know very little about the Aussie scene but I'm a sucker for a hardcore fed in the CV. There's so many lovable psycho's to root for! Hate I missed picks though, despite not knowing much about the roster.

[HiPlus]

 On The Grand Slam topic, I agree Milton feels like a guy to do it next.

 

Although I want to make a cause for Vaughan not completing it would feel like a let down considering he was a big part of DIW history even before Lori's take over. A stalwart of the tag-team division, and leading one of the longest running stables in the company. It definitely is close to a now or never for Vaughan as his career seems to be winding down and more focused on putting over other guys. 

 

Aside from that, the news of their own streaming platform could be huge if they manage to keep the viewership run they have. 

 

Horn being an ally to the Dream Team and getting beat down is actually great for him long term. He could definitely end up turning as he give them support but never gets it.

 

 

[John Lions]

One storyline I've thought about doing in the past was the "who gets the to be the first Triple Crown/Grand Slam champion" - just made me think that if Vaughan mentioned Chopper having a chance at it, wouldn't it prompt some of the more hyper competitive guys to want to chase it too? Especially for someone like Edwards, who has done pretty much everything there is to in DIW.

[619]

Thanks for the comments @John Lions @AboardTheArk @willr0ck @HiPlus

On the Grand Slam topic, @John Lions had it right that Chopper Rourke, Milton Hittlespitz, Rob Edwards (all missing Australian) and Seth Wish (missing Tag) are the current roster members one away. Plus four outsiders in Blitz Simpson and Gyula Lakatos (missing Australian), Mayhem Mulhoney (missing Tag) and Blood Brother (the only of the eight missing the DIW Title).

@John Lions You're definitely right to question this card. I find booking matches for weekly shows my biggest booking blind spot, and it's most exposed on post-major-show episodes. None of the three matches on this card were very consequential, which feels like a failure of planning.

@HiPlus The streaming platform is the kind of thing I'd never do on a non-dynasty save as I'm too risk-averse and financially illiterate, but it felt like how The Comedian would react to WrestleWorld Australia inviting APW onto "his" platform, so I decided to run with it for that reason. It's probably a stupid thing to do with under 20,000 fans, but luckily DIW still have over a million in the bank from that 2022 donation (not that this is ever referenced in the dynasty any more as SQ is unaware). On the financial illiteracy point, I also realised I'd completely neglected merchandise upgrades until seeing a @John Lions post on your dynasty, so I owe you both for that prompt.

Part 96: Main event misfire

I thought the final outcome of To The Extreme episode 33 was fairly effective – The Pros taking out Rick Horn to send a message to Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards – but I found the journey there too clunky.

I understand that it’s trickier to announce a main event for the episode after a big show in advance, not wanting to sacrifice too much of the mystique over what’s coming next. Still, you need to establish it early in the show at least to give viewers something to look forward to, as Lori did with Con McReady v Kobra The Conqueror in the post-Massacre episode.

Here, you had Seth Wish, Hittlespitz and Edwards parading their new titles at the top of the hour for a strong initial hook, but making it clear that was their only contribution to the show. All viewers were told shortly afterwards was that Rusty Mills was fighting in the main event and, while that’s a near guarantee of a watchable match, Horn wasn’t enough of a surprise to warrant keeping it concealed until the final 20 minutes.

She had a reason for that, believing it would be too big a plot hole to have Hittlespitz and Edwards leave early if they knew Horn was being set up, but she almost certainly sacrificed audience retention at the altar of continuity in an entirely self-inflicted situation.

What made this misstep harder to ignore was the fact that Horn didn’t really grab the opportunity handed to him here. He was given a 14-minute main event with one of the best wrestlers in the company, but was heavily carried and didn’t do a great sell job in the post-match beatdown either.

Lori told me that, while the Horn attack would’ve happened regardless, her initial idea for this episode was to have The Benchmark overhear Hendrix Hughes and Wrecker’s conversation and demand a fight out of disgust at them turning down a Tag Title shot. She changed course as she decided putting Hughes in a tag match with The Benchmark before Seb Shaw was cleared would take some shine off the Two Badass MFers v Benchmark match she hoped to eventually deliver.

That main event ambiguity was unlikely to be repeated across the remainder of September. Episode 34’s main event had already been confirmed as Seth Wish v Milton Hittlespitz for the DIW Title, with the winner defending against the Australian Champion in a ladder match on episode 36, while Hittlespitz and Edwards’ first Tag Title defence was teased for episode 35.

Apparently, the issues I had with the show’s structure didn’t impact viewership, with this the second-most watched DIW show ever behind Hardcore Hallelujah five days earlier as 17,403 people tuned in.

Most hearteningly for The Comedian and Lori, 96.8% of those viewers used the new DIWO platform, with no major technical issues reported. The initial indications were that the WrestleWorld Australia transition might not be as challenging as I imagined.

Edited November 3, 2023 by 619

[619]

Part 97: Credible contenders

I’d ran the numbers and To The Extreme episode 34 would be the first one in six months in which both the DIW Title and Australian Title were being defended.

And whereas a lot of title defences on the weekly show had been against less decorated challengers, Seth Wish and Kobra The Conqueror had top contenders to get through to confirm their places in the DIW Title ladder match scheduled for episode 36.

Wish v Milton Hittlespitz was significant for two reasons. Firstly, though they had feuded for over half a year recently, this was only their second one-on-one match. Secondly, it was the first time a former DIW Champion had fought for the title on To The Extreme. The previous weekly show defences were by Rob Edwards against Lloyd Banks and Dexter Mattell against Wrecker and Kobra.

Chopper Rourke v Kobra The Conqueror was a similarly historic clash: the first time this decade a former DIW Champion had competed for the Australian Title, handing Rourke the opportunity to become DIW’s first ever Grand Slam Champion. These stakes added a depth to compensate for the pair’s limited shared history, making it a reasonably intriguing first-time match. Their most noteworthy prior interaction was Kobra eliminating Rourke from a battle royale in March.

There were quite a few historic threads for Lori to play with in deciding the winners who would advance to the champion v champion showdown later in the month.

A Hittlespitz v Kobra ladder match would be a rerun of the original 2022 DIW Champion v Australian Champion head-to-head. Wish v Kobra would be a collision between the men who came up with the concept a few months prior to that. Wish and Rourke had traded wins earlier this year. Hittlespitz and Rourke battled alongside and against one another through much of DIW’s near-15-year existence.

After my complaints about how episode 33 was structured with the lack of main event clarity, Lori was definitely incentivising viewers to stay watching until the end of episode 34.

[619]

Part 98: To The Extreme #34

The show started with a video recap of Seth Wish and Milton Hittlespitz’s rivalry. It began by showing Wish costing Crazy Blue his DIW Title match with Rob Edwards at Hardcore Hallelujah 2023 and his follow-up remarks that when he beat Hittlespitz, nobody would call him Crazy Blue II any more, as they’d know he already surpassed him. Then came footage of Hittlespitz beating Wish at War Machine 2023, followed by his promo in March outlining Wish’s hollow victories over him in a triple threat match, a handicap match and by pinning his partner, with clips of Wish’s arm being raised to accompany each mention, and Crazy Blue saying to tell him when he was ready to try to finally beat him one-on-one. That transitioned into Wish entering with the DIW Title last week and saying he needed to conquer a man who fighting against had helped take him to the next level, yet he hadn’t beaten one-on-one, and that ate him up inside. The package closed on a graphic promising Wish v Hittlespitz II for the DIW Title tonight.

Hack The Hunter v Carl Paris
Paris got the better of his larger opponent at the start of this opener, which I put down to Hack The Hunter having his confidence knocked by his first defeat to Bryant Hall at Hardcore Hallelujah. If the 26-year-old was suffering any self-doubt, he shook it off in the second half of the match, stringing together a series of power moves before finishing Paris with the Epic Side Suplex that had become known as the Hack Attack.

Hack The Hunter addressed the fans after the match, noting that it kind of sucked to have Bryant Hall where he wanted him at Hardcore Hallelujah and not get the win. He admitted that because the Hack Attack had beaten everyone else, he didn’t expect Hall to kick out and didn’t have a Plan B ready, but he’d learn from it and wouldn’t let another opponent off the hook like that.

In the back, Markus Rush asked The Street Stallions why they’d requested an interview. Lorenzo Oliverio said that Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards offered Hendrix Hughes and Wrecker a Tag Title match last week, but they turned down the opportunity like the losers they are. He said his shoulder was feeling a lot better and The Street Stallions hadn’t lost since June, so they were ready to take up Hittlespitz and Edwards’ invitation next week instead. Rush tried to shut them down by asking didn’t they just lose to Hughes and Wrecker at Hardcore Hallelujah, and Oliverio started to lose his temper, emphasising that Dingo Devine lost that night, not the Stallions.

Australian Title: Chopper Rourke v Kobra The Conqueror (c)
This match ran for under six minutes, but whoever produced it tried to pack plenty into the time. Neither man could take charge, with each sequence alternating between Rourke’s power and Kobra’s athleticism prevailing. As was often the case, numbers made a difference. Donovan Boon fed Kobra his snakeskin belt at the same time Vaughan tried to slip a lead pipe to Rourke. However, Rusty Mills intercepted the pipe and, though Vaughan locked him in the Choke Slipper, Boon took him down and then they scored a Double Down on the heavyweight outside the ring. In it, Kobra used the belt to trap and trip Rourke’s ankle and then wrapped it around the challenger’s neck to squeeze the life out of him. Kobra wanted to lift Rourke for a Ripcord Knee but, given his size and lifeless body, he could only get him onto his knees. He adjusted to hit a knee to the face from a different angle, retain his title and head into the DIW Title ladder match later this month fresh from the biggest win of his career, as I framed it on commentary.

In an episode featuring two big title matches, the highlight was Rob Edwards’ interview with Markus Rush. They started by discussing The Pros’ recent attack on Rick Horn. Edwards said that if they wanted to send a message to him, they knew where to find him, so taking their anger out on Horn seemed like amateur behaviour. Rush asked about The Street Stallions wanting to face him and Hittlespitz next week, and The Human Weapon said to bring it on. He said him and Hittlespitz were here for a good time, not a long time, and were up for any challenge to see just how long this unbeaten record could last. Rush saved the toughest question for last, pointing out that when Hittlespitz and Edwards united in the past, the DIW Title came between them, so he had to be uncomfortable about Crazy Blue challenging Seth Wish tonight. The four-time DIW Champion denied this, saying that just as Wish wanted to prove himself against Hittlespitz after winning the title, Crazy Blue would want to show he could beat The Human Weapon if he won the title after losing two in a row to him, so a win for his partner would be a win for him too.

Wrecker v Banky Bremner
This was Wrecker’s return to a solo spotlight after his recent partnerships with Rob Edwards and Hendrix Hughes. Much like with Dingo Devine at Hardcore Hallelujah, he did a great job covering up for the fact his guest opponent wasn’t contributing much. Bremner thought he’d found a lifeline when he used his gymnastic background to forward flip out of a Mighty Bulldog, but his effort was wasted as he turned into Wrecker’s Bulldozer Elbow and was defeated.

My in-ring interview with the woman who helped The Barracudas beat The Barbarians at Hardcore Hallelujah started with trying to confirm who she was – she told me her name was Bonnie – and why she’d put herself at the centre of such a bloody battle. Bonnie wore a bandana and fierce expression and spoke in a gratingly loud voice, not appearing at all daunted by the situation. She said that when someone comes after your family, you can’t stand by and watch. I took this as meaning she was Chopper Rourke’s sister and mansplained that the barbed wire board and Spike Piledriver were all legal in the match The Barracudas agreed to. Before she could respond, Pat Rigsby limped out to the ring, still showing the damage from his mauling by Ares Death Cult a fortnight ago, asking Bonnie what the hell she was doing there. The DIW ring was no place for a lady, especially not his lady. This raised dozens more questions for me to ask, but he dragged her to the back before I could continue the conversation.

DIW Title: Seth Wish (c) v Milton Hittlespitz
The first few minutes weren’t good for Wish’s protestations that he was no spiritual successor to Hittlespitz as on multiple occasions they both went for the same move or knew a counter for the one being tried on them, resulting in a stalemate. Crazy Blue was the one to break it, using his experience to trick Wish into trying for a Suicide Senton far too early and taking over. After a pair of two counts for Hittlespitz and one for Wish, both retreated for their favoured weapons, and Hittlespitz’s chair got the better of Wish’s cane, resulting in both making contact with the champion’s skull in a single motion. Wish just about got his shoulder up but couldn’t get himself up, so the challenger went up top for the Flying Knee Drop, only for Wish to lift the dropped chair up on impact to catch Crazy Blue in the side of the head. Perhaps this time the youngster had caught the veteran out, and he followed up quickly with Dust In The Wind to score the pinfall that previously eluded him.

Milton Hittlespitz wasn’t ready to embrace an opponent who had been a prick to him in the past, but gave a grudging nod of respect to Seth Wish before sliding out of the ring. The DIW Champion looked uncertain what reaction to expect from the crowd as he left the ring, yet the fans were with him, so he gave out plenty of high fives and then turned back before reaching the curtain to salute them and raise his title. Big mistake. Kobra The Conqueror came charging at him with a ladder, landing a heavy blow to the back of the head. He then threw the ladder on top of the man he’ll challenge for the DIW Title in two weeks, loosening the Australian Title from around his own waist and picking up the DIW Title to hold both in the air standing over Wish.

Edited November 5, 2023 by 619

[619]

I meant to include Bonnie's profile for anyone not familiar with this creation from @willr0ck's CVerse Women's Revolution Mod, which features in the Alternative CornellVerse 2022 Mod:

Edited November 6, 2023 by 619

[willr0ck]

1 hour ago, 619 said:

I meant to include Bonnie's profile for anyone not familiar with the Alternative CornellVerse 2022 Mod:

Actually that's an original creation from my CV Women's Revoution Mod, not to steal any Thunder from the Alt CV mod or anything.

[HiPlus]

The opening segment did wonderful work showing that Milton is a hill that Wish hasn't truly conquered and by putting the title on the line, it would actually solidify the fact Wish is a champion. 

I love the continued hinting at dissention between Edwards and Milton from everyone else even though they both look happy at the moment just winning the titles. 

I popped hard for the Banky match and Lifeline mention. 

RIGSBY & BONNIE. Not exactly a Bonnie and Clyde ring to it, but still. Let's go Rigsby! I also see how Bonnie could be seen as Chopper Rourke's sister. 

This final segment got me hyped for the Ladder match, of course there will be shenanigans but hopefully not an insane amount. 

 

[619]

Apologies @willr0ck, I should've clarified whose creation she was before posting, so I've updated that post now to include a link to the mod.

Thanks @HiPlus. As soon as I realised the crossover, I was eager to include a nod to your dynasty. Haha, Bonnie Bogan's probably a more convincing Chopper Rourke sister than a Pat Rigsby wife, but hopefully they can find some chemistry as an odd couple.

[John Lions]

Bonnie Bogan is awesome, and a hilarious fit for Pat Rigsby's dame. If you ever do any intergender matches, I'd wager she can have a hardcore brawl better than half of your roster. Excited to see where things go with her in DIW.

[Scottie]

I can just imagine how annoying Bonnie would be! She’s sort of giving Vickie Guerrero type energy - but if Vickie had grown up in Launceston.

Great main event too, and it’s building to a big match soon!

[619]

Part 99: Wish granted

So just over a year after first inserting himself in Milton Hittlespitz’s business, Seth Wish had the one-on-one victory over Crazy Blue that he felt he needed to escape the two-time DIW Champion’s shadow and prove that he belonged at the top of the card.

One curious thing I noticed when reviewing previous diary entries before writing this one was that Lori had actually had Wish come out on top on six of the eight occasions they’d been in the ring together: a handicap match, a triple threat, two tag matches and a five-on-five before this.

She’d probably be pretty pleased with how the story had played out, with Wish always established as a worthy adversary but made to wait until the crowd were with him for the one-on-one triumph which had been established as so important to him.

It had also been a significant night for Kobra The Conqueror, who earlier in the hour achieved the biggest win of his DIW career in defending the Australian Title against Chopper Rourke, the first time he’d ever beaten a former DIW Champion.

The result was that long-term rivals Wish and Kobra would be contesting the DIW Title ladder match on To The Extreme episode 36. I’ve got a few thoughts about that, but let’s wait until after episode 35 has aired to get into those. I was going to get even more airtime than usual there as I was conducting sit-down interviews with both Wish and Kobra before their collision.

The main event was Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards’ first Tag Title defence against The Street Stallions. Whether they’d earned a main event title match was debatable, but I quite liked how it played out, exploiting Hendrix Hughes’ refusal to take the opportunity offered to him and Wrecker and blaming Dingo Devine for him and D.O.A.’s Hardcore Hallelujah loss in Lorenzo Oliverio’s absence.

The injury that stopped him partnering D.O.A. that night was legitimate, but in not fighting then and returning soon after when a title match was on offer, he looked shady and opportunistic, so it had arguably worked out better for The Street Stallions than if he’d never hurt his shoulder.

Also announced for episode 35 was The Benchmark’s first match since losing the Tag Titles against Carl Paris and Demarcus Lee, Hendrix Hughes taking on Psych Ward and former AE wrestler Underworld seeing if he can earn a spot on the DIW roster against Wrecker.

[John Lions]

I have to say I find the Barracudas a really curious case. Over the past year, as your whole roster has been gutted time and time again, both Vaughan and Chopper have been steady, but they feel like they've been relegated to side characters through the whole Pros saga. I know Chopper is really limited in the ring, but it feels like for some of your top guys they've been feuding with D.O.A. + 1 for a quarter of a year now. Have they started slipping in-ring? Or did Blitz's exit put question marks on his former stomping buddies, especially seeing how Cesar's short-lived single run went?

[619]

@John Lions This is a very interesting question so I've written a part today fully covering this subject of The Barracudas' standing in late 2024. Apologies for not providing a fuller answer right now. It's because their trajectory changes quite a bit in the next few weeks, and I'm wary that by responding either too positively or too negatively now, it might be too revealing about their upcoming direction of travel.

Part 100: To The Extreme #35

Brains and Brawn (Carl Paris and Demarcus Lee) v The Benchmark (Donovan Boon and Rusty Mills)
The show opened with The Benchmark’s first match together since the end of their six-month Tag Title reign, against the team they made their first successful defence against back in March. There was no significant hangover to their Hardcore Hallelujah defeat: Paris had a few bright moments early on, but this only served to make Boon and Mills more aggressive. Lee was quickly overwhelmed once he was tagged in, and Boon scored the pin after a Double Down.

New Tag Team Champions Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards entered after the match, looking to avenge The Benchmark’s brutal recent attack on Rick Horn, but the former champs decided against hanging around for the confrontation.

Bonnie Bogan was almost as loud as everyone else in DIW combined, so it was no surprise Markus Rush was able to find her and Pat Rigsby in conversation down a corridor and listen in undetected. Rigsby was telling his wife that she needed to stop following him to work because it wasn’t safe for her, asking her to leave him alone and he would take care of Ares Death Cult.

Wrecker v Underworld
I was tempted to say that this match perhaps showed why Wrecker hadn’t quite made a main event breakthrough yet as, despite executing his moves with conviction and putting together a few impressive weapon spots, he wasn’t yet ring-smart enough to carry a fairly green opponent. Then again, the same critique could be given to Seth Wish and Kobra The Conqueror who’d had longer to master the art and they were fighting for the DIW Title on the next episode. The finish riffed off Wrecker’s previous match with Banky Bremner as he failed to hit his Mighty Bulldog, being launched into the ropes, but ducked a Big Boot and span Underworld into a Bulldozer Elbow. However, he picked up his heavyweight adversary to connect with the Mighty Bulldog, perhaps wanting to show that he could, to achieve a three count.

I introduced my recent sit-down interview with Kobra The Conqueror, which the Australian Champion led with a fact: the two times Seth Wish had been a champion in DIW, he ended the reign. He didn’t just repeatedly beat Wish, he broke him. Wish told everyone recently that Milton Hittlespitz forced him to up his game, but the DIW Champion knew deep down the best-of-three series defeat to Kobra in 2022 was the worst moment of his career. People would say Wish was better in 2024 than he was then but, when they met earlier this year, the outcome was the same as in 2022. I asked Kobra how Dexter Mattell would feel about him possibly becoming DIW Champion and he said he had the former champion’s full backing. It should’ve been Raw Sex he was fighting next week, and that was an extra incentive to not only defeat but destroy Wish. He was proud to take on more of a leading role in The Pros in Mattell’s absence but, when he was ready to come back, he could have the first shot at the new DIW Champion.

The Comedian said he had an update from Markus Rush, who had captured an interesting exchange while my Kobra The Conqueror interview was airing. We were shown Wrecker being greeted as he came through the curtain by Hack The Hunter, who remarked that it was impressive that he’d been able to take down a heavyweight like that.

Hendrix Hughes v Psych Ward
The story we were telling on commentary here was of Hendrix Hughes trying to reestablish himself as a singles threat after his recent return to the tag division, but that wasn’t the focus at the end of this six-minute match. Instead, it was about how Death Ref’s attempt to climb on the apron to assist Ward was disrupted by Bonnie Bogan striking him the back of the knee with a lead pipe. Ward lunged to go after her but was caught in the Triple H by Hughes and beaten.

I started my sit-down interview with Seth Wish by repeating a few of Kobra The Conqueror’s earlier comments and he said Kobra was right: he had ended his two Australian Title reigns and defeat to him two years ago was what caused him to reevaluate everything. He wanted it to be him and Con McReady in this year’s ladder match, but Kobra was the next best thing. He wanted to prove himself against the best wrestlers in DIW: that’s why he took on Milton Hittlespitz last week. Once he’d beaten Dexter Mattell, Hittlespitz and Kobra in under a month, nobody would question whether he was a worthy DIW Champion any more. But he wanted Kobra to think about something. To think about how much he’d grown since their last Australian Title fight two years ago to emerge as DIW Champion. What about Kobra? He was still Australian Champion, an accolade for sure, but he wasn’t his own man any more. Instead, he was copying his mistakes and being ordered around by The Pros, no matter how much he denied it. Kobra wanted everyone to think he must be having so much fun and everything’s amazing, but he knew from experience that deep down he was so subservient he makes himself sick. Wish managed to break free from that trap, and he hoped defeat next week would motivate Kobra to do the same.

Tag Titles: The Dream Team (Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards) (c) v The Street Stallions (D.O.A. and Lorenzo Oliverio)
The Street Stallions might not have necessarily earned this main event opportunity, as alluded to in my previous entry, but the in-ring results were encouraging. This was a noticeable upgrade on Hittlespitz and Edwards’ previous To The Extreme tag match against The Barbarians, and dare I say the best match yet on the weekly show. Perhaps that was partly because The Human Weapon was spotlighted more, having let Hittlespitz shine more in the previous matches as part of the story of trying to gain his trust. D.O.A. carried most of the in-ring load for the challengers with Oliverio finding his way back from injury, yet the newer roster member contributed some good character work. The ending saw Oliverio slip D.O.A. the brass knuckles with Edwards on top. D.O.A. wasn’t aware that The Human Weapon had noticed this until he caught him in the hand with a precision kick that cost him his grip on the weapon. He then used Hittlespitz as a, well, human weapon, having Crazy Blue run at him and then using that momentum to launch him into Oliverio on the apron, sending them both flying towards a ringside railing. D.O.A. scrambled to try to retrieve the brass knuckles but was brought to a stop by a Scissor Kick from Edwards, who followed up with a Roundhouse Kick to complete a first successful defence.

Milton Hittlespitz and Rob Edwards remained in a fighting stance after the bell with their eyes locked on the entrance, expecting to be interrupted by The Benchmark. However, there was no sign of anyone joining them so they eventually shrugged and raised their Tag Titles in the air.