[2000-06-24-TWA-Total Impact TV] American Dragon vs Spanky (Loser Leaves Town Texas Death Cage)

[soup23]

An all action cage match that only goes nine minutes. This was fun while it lasted and I continue to appreciate HBK on commentary putting both of them over. Spanky brought some of his reckless highspots but the striking of Dragon helped ground everything and keep the feud vibe going. The finish was an interesting way to write them both out of TWA as they are knocked out and neither guy can answer the 10 count. We are closing the first chapter on the career of these men but that is only the beginning. *** (6.1)

[Migs]

Terrible camera work here as they focus on both of the blade jobs.

 

This felt really sloppy and just didn't work for me as a blood cage match. Dragon didn't establish himself well as the heel (why is Spanky the one cockily asking for the count early if he's the babyface)? Felt like they knew conceptually what they wanted out of this match but couldn't get it across completely. The big spots looked good, though.

 

I did think the finish was really smart and unique - can't believe I haven't seen that used before.

[AstroBoy]

This was a pretty gutsy finish I will say that. Dragon hits a nice blade job and I love the intensity that both guys bring to this stip match. Both guys pulling out all the stops and it's just clear they are both headed for bigger things. The crowd does not like the finish but I think it's brilliant bullshit. This was really solid.

 

***

[Tim Evans]

I thought this was a good blowoff feud in the territory. Both guys take insane bumps into the cage including Dragon falling right on his neck after a top rope german suplex. The finish was good in they wanted both guys to lose but shitty for the local crowd that wanted to see a winner. It reminds me when they do it in Mexico for hair matches and both guys lose their hair. It's rare to see though.

[Robert S]

Strange booking to get rid of two of the best wrestlers of the promotion in one match. The commentary even gave the finish away by saying that both had signed WWF development contracts. The way they did it mostly put heat on the ref. The match was really intense and much better than a cage match between two guys with less than 1 year experiance (even containing some complicated stuff) has any right to be. That inverse slingshot suplex of Spanky looked really dangerous though, thankfully he cut this move from his arsenal as it really looked to be begging for some serious neck injury.

[GSR]

Action is joined with both men in the cage and the match about to get underway. The two of them trade chops, but Spanky’s haven’t quite got the same snap as Danielson’s. Spanky with a drop toe hold, before running over Dragon’s back and dropkicking him in the forehead. As he gets to his feet, Spanky nails him with a missile dropkick and the ref starts a ten count. Although they’ve not been explained, looks like there are slightly different rules to this Texas Death match as opposed to a more traditional one. A leaping ‘Spankensteiner’, but Dragon then reverses the Irish whip and hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. He launches him from one side of the cage to the other, busting Spanky open in the process. Danielson heads upstairs, but Spanky shoves him backwards into the cage sending him crumpling to the canvas and the cameraman proceeds to zoom in on Dragon as he’s trying to conceal the fact that he’s blading! Great inverted slingshot suplex. Dragon counters the regulation suplex and catapults Spanky into the cage door (which opens due to the ‘force’) and he tumbles to the outside. Shawn Michaels gets in his customary dig about WWF cage matches, saying how they don’t do World Wrestling Federation finishes in the TWA, that it’s not the first man out of the cage and that they can fight on the outside all day long if they want. Face first suplex on the concrete by Spanky before taking a chair to Danielson’s shoulder. Whip to the guardrail, but as he charges, Spanky runs into a Dragon big boot. He collects a table from under the ring and slides that into the cage. Northern Lights suplex followed by a float over into a ‘Dragon Driver’ (Homicide’s ‘Cop Killa’) and Spanky just about beats the ten count. Danielson goes to the top again, but Spanky gives him a shove like last time and he crotches himself. Release German off the top that Dragon takes on his neck and Spanky with a frog splash. A second attempted German is blocked with some back elbows and Danielson sets up that table which he’d bought into the ring earlier. Belly to back suplex off the top turnbuckle and both men crash through it. Neither is able to answer the ten count and the official’s decision is that they are both gone from the TWA.

 

Some cool stuff here like that inverted slingshot suplex and the ‘Dragon Driver’, but I was expecting something special in their goodbye to the TWA and in that respect I don’t think this reached those expectations that I’d set. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a better than average match, just no more. I wasn’t keen on the use of blood here either, there didn’t seem enough heat or hatred between the combatants to warrant it and it felt like they were just ticking a box because they were fighting in a cage. Pretty gutsy finish in writing them both out the way they did. Shawn Michaels’ post match wrap up is unintentionally funny, wishing them all the best for the future and in their careers, only to then quickly forget about them and start talking about what’s on next weeks’ show!