XXII: “OVER THE TOP”
Live from De Kuip in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Thursday 24th November, 2022.
It's been several weeks since we last saw Konchu Hao, with the Mad Wizard not having completed in an FWA ring since before Lights Out. It is unclear why Konchu embarked on this short hiatus, but he will be well-rested and fresh when he takes on Reagan Cole, a man who has been booked every week since Back in Business. Cole's recent 6-0 winning streak turned on its head at Lights Out, with the Apprentice now losing his last two matches. What's more, he'll have to have eyes in the back of his head for the interloping Jeffry Mason and TYLER, who have been a thorn in his side as of late.
Michelle von Horrowitz laid down the challenge at the end of Meltdown XXI for the second ever Tag Team Mile High Massacre match, and two of the teams that she mentioned by name will go head to head here at De Kuip. Jon Russnow has not yet confirmed exactly which teams will line up in the starter's blocks on Fallout 025 in that huge cage match, but one would imagine a victory here for either team - both of which were successful in their matches over the last cycle in London and Copenhagen - would surely be enough to argue their case and qualify for that historic contest.
Der Basterd returns to Meltdown for singles action for the second consecutive week, despite the fact that Summers very publicly announced his misgivings about appearing on the - as he put it - 'secondary show' prior to his victory over Preston Sterling on XXI. This week, another newcomer waits across the ring from him, with MDC looking to bounce back from tag team defeat in his debut on Fallout 021. With Summers' threats involving legal action, the FWA Television Championship, and various Athletic Commissions, MDC may find himself up against a distracted Der Basterd here in Rotterdam.
Speaking of Rotterdam… Michelle von Horrowitz returns to her hometown for this, her twenty second consecutive Meltdown with a booking. She will team up with Gerald Grayson in this non-title match against the Lumberjacks, who were successful last week in their tag team debut against Kung Fu Karl and Jimmy Boom Boom. Backstage news suggest that this match was requested by MvH herself, which couldn't have gone down too well with Grayson. Both Dreamer and the Daredevil are still competing in the F1 Climaxxx tournament, with the latter seemingly nonplussed by Michelle's insistence on fighting wars on multiple fronts.
MOD NOTE: The above match will be contested under 'gauntlet rules', with a 1k word limit for promos. This limit includes all words in headers, quotes, images, and everything else posted in the promo.
Last week on Meltdown XXI, we heard that Danny Toner would have to take a hiatus from active competition owing to an injury. This meant both his withdrawal from the ongoing F1 Climaxxx tournament, as well as his relinquishing of the FWA World Championship. Jean-Luc Watkins was quick to announce that this match will take place next week to crown a brand new champion, bringing to an end Vacant's reign of terror. The events of Meltdown XX suggest that Chris Peacock, current holder of the Golden Opportunity briefcase, will throw his name into the hat in this over-the-top-rope affair, but other than that the field will be almost completely open going into Rotterdam. Jon Russnow confirmed on Instagram this week (having left Twitter following the recent takeover, but that's another story) that he's in discussion with several names not currently on the active roster, making this battle royale impossible to predict and, for the competitors, difficult to prepare for.
MOD NOTE: As is the case in-kayfabe, this battle royale is open to anyone from inside or outside of the fed, regardless of if you're on the active roster. Only thing we'll say is a limit on the amount of characters you enter: you can put two or three in if you want but we may change elimination order in this case so nobody's tertiary promo is finishing ahead of a primary. You can enter by posting in the thread or by PM to the graders.
If you have another match this week, you may submit one promo for both of the matches. Please instruct a mod whether or not you wish the promo to count for both your normal match and the BR. Also note that you will receive two different grades for the same promo: on for the battle royale, one for the other match. The promo will be looked at through different lenses in terms of match focus and related categories by the same mods, and may also be graded by a different mod to those listed below for the other match.
The graders will be Jimmy, Dubb, and SS. Please PM any private promos to them. Good luck!
022: “ADVENT”
Live from the Cologne Christmas Markets in Koln, Germany.
Saturday 26th November, 2022.
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It was Vampyra who inadvertently benefited from Danny Toner’s withdrawal from the tournament, as she secured the nod to replace him in the F1 but lost her first match in Pool A to an in-form Tommy Bedlam. Vampyra will have had more time to prepare for this second match-up, though, and now will look to measure herself up against the current FWA X Champion. Alyster Black returned to winning ways in the main event of Fallout 021 when he triumphed over Mike Parr, putting him in a solid position in the early stages of the pool. Also important to remember is that Vampyra has a shot at the FWA Television Championship lined up against Phillip A. Jackson, who competes later in the night in Pool B action, whilst Black will next defend his title against Nate Savage of the Undisputed Alliance. Savage also has a match and will be at 022, meaning both Savage and PAJ will be keeping a close eye on this opening contest.
The F1 has thrown up many interesting match-ups, and this particular week two contest has lots of history behind it. Who could forget that it was ‘the Prodigy’ Mike Parr who cost MvH her FWA X Championship all the way back in 2020, when he attacked her with a lead pipe and forced her to vacate her first title in the company? What followed was a lengthy rivalry that spanned well over half a year, culminating in von Horrowitz triumphing over Parr and then-champion Saint Sulley in the main event of Back in Business 2021. In terms of singles matches, though, this contest also serves as something of a rubber match between Parr and MvH. Michelle won their first one-on-one encounter way back at Desert Storm 2021 by disqualification, whilst Parr evened up the score with a 1-0 sixty minute Iron Man victory on Fight Night: NOLA. This match may have major implications for the F1’s Pool A, but it may also reignite an intensely personal rivalry between this pairing.
Fallout 022’s Pool A opening trio will conclude with Tommy Bedlam taking on Cornelius Aurelius Caesar in week two action of the F1 Climaxxx. Both men had momentum on their side going into the tournament, with Caesar managing to see off the challenge of Uncle J.J. JAY! and the returning Cowboy lighting up the FWA after his re-debut. This also saw Bedlam settle old scores with Jason Randall, the man that put him on the shelf to begin with. Bedlam continued his winning ways in his opening bout of the tournament against Vampyra, sealing the win and the two points following his Buckshot superkick. Caesar, meanwhile, slumped to a loss against Michelle von Horrowitz after more than a little Nephew interference at the conclusion of the match. The Roman will need to bounce back here against the 4-0 Cowboy if he wants to keep his hopes of qualification in Pool A in his own hands.
Frustration overcame Nate Savage following his singles loss to XYZ last week, and he also took this frustration out on the FWA official in charge of counting that three. It was his tag team partner Jackson Fenix who talked him down, and now Savage will have another chance to get one over on XYZ, with he and his Undisputed Alliance partner to go up against the enigmatic performer and his former Undisputed Amigos partner, Jeremy Best. Best may not have performed on Fallout 021 or Meltdown XXI, but we saw lots of the popular figure as he came to terms with major revelations concerning his tag team partner, Bryan Baxter. It’ll be interesting to see if he’s focussed on this contest, where he’ll be expected to forget about the Buddy System altogether and team up with another new partner to face familiar foes.
Both of the former world champions in Pool B were defeated last week on Meltdown XXI and Fallout 021, with Cyrus Truth coming up short against Chris Peacock in Christiana and Phillip A. Jackson defeated by Lizzie Rose in London, and both will be looking to bounce back this week against the other and put themselves back amongst the mix for Pool B qualification. Phillip A. Jackson also has his upcoming FWA Television Championship defence against Vampyra to consider, as well as the legal challenge of one Shawn Summers. Both will be factors that PAJ has to keep in the back of his mind as he prepares for this contest against the Exile. Truth, on the other hand, is still fresh from leading Team Meltdown to victory in the recent Brand Wars, but will need to return to winning ways here in Koln to remain in control of his destiny in terms of reaching the F1 semi-finals.
Chris Peacock was amongst the winners in week one of the F1 Climaxxx, where he overcame Cyrus Truth to move on to two points in Pool B. Gerald Grayson was not so fortunate, tasting defeat against Bryan Baxter in his opening match-up. He now faces a daunting task in attempting to put himself back on track against an in-form Peacock whose last two match-ups were the aforementioned victory against Truth and his success in the Golden Opportunity match. Grayson will no doubt hope that Peacock’s focus may be turned in the direction of the battle royale taking place only two days prior on Meltdown XXII, whilst also look to emerge from his own match - against the Lumberjacks - in Rotterdam. If Peacock had his way, of course, he’d be entering Koln with the currently vacant FWA World Championship, which would no doubt boost his confidence as he endeavours to maintain his one hundred per cent record in Pool B.
The two other competitors who emerged triumphantly in their Pool B match-ups in opening week were Lizzie Rose and Bryan Baxter, and now the two will go up against one another in a match for the FWA North American Championship, on top of deciding who remains undefeated in this early stage of F1 competition. This arrangement came about by mutual agreement, after Baxter earned his shot at Lizzie’s title in the recent Secular Spooktacular match at Lights Out whilst also qualifying for the Climaxxx. Rose has also been on a hot streak as of late, capturing the championship from ‘the Prodigy’ Mike Parr before defeating long-term rival Johnny Johnson in a two-out-of-three falls grudge match. Lizzie went on to beat former world champion Phillip A. Jackson in her F1 week one match-up, whilst Baxter was victorious against current tag team champion Gerald Grayson. These are two of the most in-form competitors in the F1 in general, and they clash in Koln’s main event for the FWA North American Championship!
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