Over The Border VI: Something Something Something Anarchy

It's around this time of year that WrestleZone begins the countdown to their biggest event of the year. The last two years has seen over a thousand wrestling fans of all ages descend towards the Beach Ballroom and I have been one of them. After the dust settles from the Regal Rumble the Road to Anarchy begins…

Aberdeen Anarchy is WrestleZone's WrestleMania with special guests, star attractions and presenting an overall experience as opposed to just a wrestling show. For the last two years it has been an event that is a highlight of my wrestling calender and this year will be no different. 

Back on June 1st 2013, I attended Aberdeen Anarchy, the fifth event but the first to take place in the Beach Ballroom. This was a venue that had seen wrestling in the past but not for 30 plus years. WrestleZone were pulling out all the stops by bringing in an 80's Legend and an American Icon in "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan. If that wasn't enough nostalgia, they also announced that Billy Gunn would also be at the event which sprung a generation that grew up on the Attitude Era into life. Two guests that peaks the interest of two generations. I went because it was Billy Gunn attending, I mean, this guy was one of "my boys" and the chance to meet him? Oh hell yeah!

But it wasn't the guests that kept me coming back, the first match I saw on the main Aberdeen Anarchy show was Stevie Xavier vs Bingo Ballance. If there is ever a match to draw you into an event this was it. The high-flying, the crispness in movement, it was a masterpiece. Quite possibly the best opening match that I've ever seen. From that point onwards I was in for a ride of nostalgia and cementing why I love the crazy world of professional wrestling. The venue was beautiful, the wrestling was incredible and I was only a short train ride from my own bed. Was this heaven?

That night I was among the 1,103 in attendance for a record breaking night in Aberdeen. A night that lives in my memory for evermore. What could top that?

May 10th 2014. Aberdeen Anarchy.

Oh man. I have never been so excited for an event like I was for Aberdeen Anarchy 2014. Scotty 2 Hotty was coming to Aberdeen and this guy was my hero growing up. It was like Jeff Hardy, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Scotty 2 Hotty. I would try and do the worm but could never manage it. WrestleZone had outdone themselves again, I attended their Regal Rumble event to witness Jack Jester win the main event battle royal and saw the intense brawl between him and the Champion, Crusher Craib. I had seen Grado book his place at Aberdeen Anarchy by defeating Jay Lethal and Zach Dynamite to go onto face Scotty 2 Hotty at the big show. Yes, Scotty 2 Hotty vs Grado. The Worm vs The Slug. This was the must see event of the year, Aberdeen Anarchy 2015. WrestleZone returned to the Beach Ballroom and opened up space in the balcony so that more people to come in, 1,271 rabid fans flocked to Aberdeen to see WrestleZone put on their finest show ever.

This event showcased what WrestleZone offers in terms of family entertainment from a wrestling match between Andy Wild and Bingo Ballance, a heated contest between Aspen Faith and Len Ironside. It featured comedy from Alan Sterling and the amazing Grado vs Scotty 2 Hotty match. It had a brutal ladder match between Thunder Buddies and The Hotshots. Plus X-Pac in action in a six man tag team match and an expertly built main event between Crusher Craib and Jack Jester.

1,271 people didn't just see a wrestling show, they saw the best wrestling show in the North East of Scotland that I have ever seen. 

This leads us to 2015 back at the Beach Ballroom. Aberdeen Anarchy is beginning to take shape with fan favourite Scotty Swift winning a shot at the current WrestleZone Undisputed Champion Joe Coffey in lue if winning the Regal Rumble. The special guests, again, are big names with Chris Masters, D-Von Dudley and Hardcore Holly all coming to the Granite City
.

It'll be a night of shock, awe and action. The landscape of WrestleZone will never be the same. You won’t want to miss this!

The VIP Meet and Greet tickets have sold out but there will still be a chance to meet the special guests.

http://www.aberdeenperformingarts.com/events/wrestlezone-aberdeen-anarchy-supershow-293232  

WWE Brothers of Destruction DVD Review

WWE's Brothers of Destruction is out now on DVD (There's a Blu Ray version too), available from www.wwedvd.co.uk. The single disc set features a number of matches featuring The Undertaker and Kane as a tag team, during their 2001 and 2006/08 runs, featuring matches against the likes of Edge & Christian, John Morrison & The Miz, The Dudley Boyz, Mr. Kennedy and MVP.

A rather curious addition to the WWE Home Video library, this single disc look at Kane and The Undertaker's on-off tag team, whilst skirting around their numerous feuds in between. The set kicks off with a No Disqualification match against Edge & Christian from an April 2001 episode of Smackdown. This is a decent start to the set, showcasing Kane's selling ability as he works the Demon in Peril role nicely whilst Edge & Christian take turns picking apart Kane's injured arm. It's a shame that this is a TV bout, as it leads to a lot of over booking to build towards BOD's match with The Two Man Power Trip at Backlash 2001, as there is a lot of chemistry between the two teams that goes to waste in closing stages. 

Three months later on Raw and it's a Tables Match against The Dudley Boyz. Whilst the crowd is red hot throughout the bout, this match doesn't offer much, with the tables stipulation really adding nothing to the match. After showing promise early on with some nice brawling between the four, the bout is too short to really present anything of merit. Highlights include Jim Ross calling a table "a chair", some hilarious selling of a big boot by Bubba Ray Dudley and a horrendously timed finish. 

On the following week's episode of Smackdown, it's Sean O'Haire and Chuck Palumbo who are next in line to feel the Brother's wrath, this time with the WCW World Tag Titles on the line. This match pretty much sums up everything that was wrong with the Invasion angle, as whilst no one would attempt to argue that O'Haire and Palumbo were anywhere near Kane and Undertaker in terms of star power, they are made to look like complete chumps for the majority of the match. This, of course, makes this a rather dull affair, with nothing particularly standing out. 

The first and only PPV bout on the disc rounds of the look at the pair's 2001 run as they face Diamond Dallas Page and Kanyon in a Steel Cage bout at SummerSlam to unify the WCW and WWF Tag Team Titles. This match really should have been simply Undertaker vs. Diamond Dallas Page, as that is essentially what the bout spends it's time trying to set up in a rather convuluted way. Whilst there is a handful of nice spots like Kane's Powerbomb to Kanyon into the corner of the cage and a top rope Chokeslam from Taker, this is once again a rather onsided bout with no real drama, and a crowd that sits on it's hands for most of the action. 

After a short video package, it's onto the duo's 2006 run as they battle Mr. Kennedy and MVP on a December episode of Smackdown. Another dominant performance from the Brothers as the two build towards a pair of Gimmick matches against their opponents at the Armageddon PPV. The match itself is dull as dishwater, with a shoddy TV finish, the only highlight is a sick looking DDT from Kennedy to Kane on the outside after the match, before it all goes a bit nuts with a hearse. 

A February 2008 episode of Smackdown saw the pair take on the duo of Mark Henry and Big Daddy V. If that match sounds appealing to you, you should probably stop reading this blog. If I were to tell you that the bout goes over ten minutes and you still think it sounds like a good idea, you should probably stop watching wrestling. The bout takes what feels like an age to settle into anything resembling a flow and despite a nice spot involving a Henry bearhug to Kane, the bout falls apart when BOD are tasked with a "Double Chokeslam" to Big Daddy V, which essentially involves the big man taking a back bump. 

Luckily, the set manages to end on a high note with an April 2008 jaunt to ECW to face John Morrison and The Miz. This is a decent slice of tag team action, with some of the best psychology of the set as Miz and Morrison pick apart Kane's injured leg, with almost every piece of offence focused on the injured body part, not to mention Kane once again proving a fantastic seller. Throw in all of BOD's signature moves and you have a decent little match, that whilst never threatening to become a classic if a great relief after sitting through the Mark Henry & Big Daddy V bout. Also Mike Adamle is on commentary, Mike Fucking Adamle!

Finally...

This DVD was a frustrating watch, as whilst it does a good job of showcasing Kane and Undertaker as a dominant tag team that doesn't make the matches particularly interesting to watch on their own merit. The first and last matches are probably the only ones that I would say I enjoyed from this stand point and even then I wouldn't tell anyone to go out of their way to see them. It also feels like a missed opportunity to only have the pairs match against The Rock and Steve Austin and their six man tag alongside Daniel Bryan against The Shield from Raw in 1998 and 2013 respectively as Blu-Ray exclusives, as these are surely the pairs best matches as a tag team. If you catch it in the bargain section, maybe give it a look, but honestly you won't be missing out on anything if you don't.