Post by PdW2kX on Feb 24, 2008 16:02:55 GMT -5
The Note...: Not much to say here, going through the last dredges of my indy stuff. Up next is a JAPW show from '04, and then it'll be lots and lots of Puro goodness. When THAT is done...I'll have to buy more wrestling. But, knowing my lazy ass, we're talking months and months from now. But, eh, I digress. Enjoy, please leave feedback, and (b'-')b.
3PW "Insane and Ready for Pain"
Assorted Dates and Events
Damien Adams vs. Mike Kruel vs. Ruckus
Adams is double-teamed, and then the muscled Mike Kruel takes on both of his smaller opponents. Ruckus is able to get in a spinning kick, and then Kruel goes back to dominating both of his opponents. Kruel hits an Avalanche Elbow Drop on Adams and goes for the pin, but Ruckus nails Kruel with a Corkscrew Senton off the top rope, rolls Kruel off Adams, and then pins Adams to get the win.
Analysis: Not a bad way to start a show, but not much of an original way either. Kruel got in the most offense of the match, which is peculiar when you consider that it was Adams and Ruckus that had the mini-feud going. Most of the match was very cookie-cutter, but some aerial antics helped flesh things out. Best summarized, you and I have probably seen this same opening-match indy triple threat hundreds of times before. Nothing is particularly bad about it, but it is clear that going beyond the standard fare never crossed anyone's mind. **½
Rockin' Rebel and Jack Victory vs. The Blue Meanie and Roadkill
Rebel and Victory use frequent tags in order to isolate Blue Meanie. Meanie does his best to make the inevitable "hot tag" look good, and when it happens, Roadkill is admittedly quite the beast as he plows through both his opponents. Roadkill inexplicably turns on Meanie, laying him out with the Barnburner, which allows Rebel and Victory to pick up the win.
Analysis: I have to question the point of this match. While I know that the "partner turns on partner and leaves him/her high and dry" bit is always a good way to get some heel heat, this match was over in a flash. Why not make it a full-length match and really get the crowd into the turn? I am not saying this would have been a classic, but I think Meanie coming close to winning, only to turn around and be hit by a Barnburner, would have been a lot better than Roadkill killing the match dead right when things were hitting their stride. I really cannot find a way to justify this: I didn't hate it, but it's a colossal waste of time. I pretty much completely recommend skipping this one, as it can be summed up as "Roadkill turns on Meanie". *
Jerry Lynn vs. Sabu
Sabu and Lynn get some (gasp!) chain-wrestling in before they begin pummeling each other. Things get brawly on the outside, and then Sabu hits a great Double Jump Body Splash into the crowd and through Lynn. Lots of chair throwing follows. Sabu gets a 2½ off a Springboard Avalanche Huracanrana. Lynn answers back with a Tornado DDT and a TKO, one of which gets a rope break while the other gets 2½. Both men constantly tease a table spot, and after a few more nearfalls Sabu ends up putting himself through a table while Lynn rolls out of harm's way. Lynn takes advantage of Sabu's mishap and hits the Cradle Piledriver for the win.
Analysis: If you like pure brawls mixed with some athleticism here and there, you'll like this one. This match felt a lot like old-school ECW, actually. Then again, consider the people involved, and consider the promotion. Neither man was as hardcore in their brawling or as quick in their wrestling as they could have been, but they didn't phone it in either. The teasing of someone going through a table certainly worked, even though the payoff wasn't that great. Both hit a good mix of using weapons, using their wits, and using their fists, and the nearfalls also helped flesh this out. It's not an all-out war, but it did live up to and even marginally exceed my original expectations. ***¼
3PW Heavyweight Championship Match: Joey Matthews vs. Raven ©
Raven completely outclasses Joey in just about every way imaginable, and takes ample time to rub the contender's face in this fact. Poor Joey gets out-wrestled, takes two Russian Legsweeps into the guardrail, and even gets Elbow Dropped through a table. Mathews finds a small opportunity and does his best to capitalize, mostly by working over Raven's knee so ruthlessly that you have to wonder who's the bad guy here. Raven mounts a comeback, drawing some surprisingly large cheers, culminating with a bulldog through a table that gets 2½. Mathew uses powder on Raven, which backfires as Raven accidentally takes out the referee, costing Joey the match when he quickly hits his finisher. After surviving two last-ditch moves by Raven, both of which get nearfalls, Joey hits his finisher again and gets the win and the championship.
Analysis: A good match, though highly awkward. The raw talent was certainly there, the pacing was also good, and the clash of styles provided an interesting backdrop. But the story was all over the place. Raven plays the perfect dickhead heel in the beginning, wrestling circles around Joey while constantly taunting him. Joey makes the big face comeback, but works over Raven in such a heelish way that Raven gets cheered when he makes a comeback of his own. Joey uses powder, which is just as heelish as you can get, but seems surprised and honored when he actually wins the championship. I'm all for "shades of gray" in a wrestling match, but I honestly didn't know who to cheer or boo for. If you can overlook the confusing story, you're in for a treat. If you can't overlook the confusing story, it's really the only flaw holding back an otherwise perfectly watchable match. **¾
Rob Eckos vs. Matt Striker
Striker rips off certain WWF/E stars in order to put a hilarious beating on Eckos. Eckos hits a superkick for 2, but Striker goes back to parodying past greats, all the while inflicting all-to-real damage on Eckos. The highlight comes when Striker imitates Kane and does the Chokeslam, then does the Kane arm-gesture and seems confused when the four corners of the ring don't erupt with flaming pyro. The match ends prematurely when Jasmine St. Claire and others hit the ring and promo all over Striker. A catfight breaks out, Striker gets hit with a chair, and Slyk Wagner Brown and April Hunter come out to lay down a further beating on Striker.
Analysis: Well, that certainly smacked of unnecessary. Nothing like having a fun little comedy match and crapping all over it with pointless chickfights and constant sexual overtones. I've gotta question that call. As a comedy match, it had me rocking with laughter. Striker displayed off-the-charts charisma in his parodies, charisma I never really knew he had. Eckos was a great foil, constantly pleading with Striker to stop acting insane even though Striker's insanity was winning him the match. The only real thing holding this match back is that someone decided it would be a good idea to abandon the match and do a weird, convoluted storyline segment. I can see the appeal of the heels crapping all over the match and making you angry, but art imitates life a bit too much in this instance, as I'm legitimately pissed that someone somewhere thinks that comedy matches are nothing more than second-fodder compared to T&A. It's like the thought of interjecting some comedy into a good match to make it multi-dimensional and fun never even crossed 3PW's mind. CHIKARA would be so pissed. In the end, this otherwise good match is held back by bad choices, which is getting to be a sadly familiar feeling. **¼
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match: CJ O'Doyle vs. "The Pitbull" Gary Wolfe
O'Doyle comes out firing, catching Wolfe with a neckbreaker and an Avalanche Legdrop. O'Doyle tries hard to keep the pain on Wolfe, but Wolfe manages to serve up an Overhead Belly to Belly Suplex through a table. O'Doyle is soon busted open as Wolfe just keeps nailing him over and over with chairs and ladders. O'Doyle gets a rare opportunity to make a comeback, but misses a Moonsault off a ladder. Despite all the punishment he's taken, including a powerbomb through a row of chairs on the outside, CJ ends up winning the match with an Avalanche Legdrop through a table.
Analysis: It's a surprisingly nice match from two wrestlers I'm admittedly not all that familiar with. O'Doyle displayed tons of heart, while Wolfe had a vicious meanstreak. O'Doyle's refusal to give up gave a sympathetic twinge to an otherwise hardcore match. The tables and chairs were used a lot more abundantly than the ladder, though, but the ladder could be described as flimsy and shaky at best. O'Doyle nearly spread-eagled himself when attempting to moonsault off the ladder, for example. On the whole, what we get is good brawling mixed in with good weapon usage and a surprisingly good story, giving us a match well worth watching. ***
No Time Limit Match: "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles vs. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels
Both men throw out some big stiffness in the middle of some lightning-quick chain-wrestling. On the outside, both men relentlessly blast each other only to realize that the referee is at 9 on the 10 count, so both quickly slide back inside. AJ works Daniels's arm for a bit and then goes back to stiffing him hard. Styles hits the Kip-Up Huracanrana, but gets dumped to the outside when he attempts the Stylin' DDT. Daniels begins working over AJ's back just as ruthlessly as AJ worked over his arms, and even though Daniels's lead becomes harder and harder to hold on to, he keeps finding ways to ground AJ. AJ finally finds an opening and hits a huge Avalanche Sunset Flip Powerbomb. AJ is on fire, hitting the Discus Clothesline, the Stylin' DDT, and the Suicide Somersault Senton to the outside. Both men get into a highly dramatic series of near-falls, and even exchange signature moves: Daniels hits the Stylin' DDT on AJ while AJ hits the Angel's Wings! Daniels busts out the Last Rites for 2¾, and then AJ hits another Discus Clothesline. Daniels is able to sneak in a pin shortly after the 35:00 mark and gets the win.
Analysis: One huge anti-climatic finish is all that holds this match back. I simply would've loved a more concrete ending, even though the finish made plenty of sense in its own right: Daniels's brains over Styles' heart ended up winning him the match, despite everything being too close to call from the minute this thing got started. Both men beat the living hell out of each other, and tried to one-up each other in every way possible. The fast chain-wrestling at the beginning would lead perfectly into a more methodic layer of mat wrestling as both men tried to weaken each other for the flood of offense to come. Once both had chosen their body part to work over, they began hitting each other with moves only these two could produce. Whether it's high-impact or death-defying, AJ and Daniels knew exactly what was expected of them and delivered it with all the intensity that has made them famous. Any way you look at it, this is a phenomenal (pun intended) match between two of the best wrestlers going today. ***½
Also included on the disc is the following bonus match.
Bonus Match: Syxx-Pac vs. Kid Kash
Chants of "You ****ed Chyna" make me laugh. Pac and Kash do a bit of submission wrestling, but mostly it's just to play mind games with each other. After a lot of chops and a whole lot of kicks, Syxx-Pac puts a hurtin' on Kash but ends up missing the Bronco Buster. Pac manages to rebound from that miss, but Kash hits a surprise Avalanche Piledriver and gets the win.
Analysis: Decent enough, but nothing too bad or too good. It's pretty much exactly what you would expect. Sean Waltman's best days are behind him, but he's managed to retain some of the good qualities that made his matches watchable. He's not as athletic anymore, and sometimes those kicks of his miss by a mile, but he isn't at the point where I dislike watching him work…at least not yet. Kid Kash is, well…Kid Kash. He's fairly decent with some good charisma, but until he's carried or especially motivated, all he turns in are very average performances. It's a decent "Bonus" match, although it's nothing to get too excited about. **½
Final Thoughts: 3PW is equally famous and infamous in the grand scheme of ECW demon-spawn. The fact that one of the owners was a porn actress is embellished to the highest degree: ECW couldn't hold a candle to some of the T&A spots and segments that 3PW produced. The largely male audience certainly had enough scantily-clad women to appease their libidos, while varying talent filled their wishes for all things wrestling. 3PW seems like it was a great hybrid fed: hardcore wrestling, high-flying acrobatics, legends of yesterday combined with the stars of today, women, women…and more women. Yet, throughout the entire DVD, 3PW felt like a good promotion that made bad decisions.
All those hot girls? Sometimes they got in the way of good wrestling. If Matt Striker and Rob Eckos are getting hardcore ex-ECW mutants to laugh and cheer, then why break up the fun with some T&A? Why not wait until after the great comedy match is finished, instead of crapping all over something that was quite clearly working? And the abrupt heel turn with Roadkill? I'm all for a heel turn, but having it right at the start of the match made it feel like the priorities of this company were hugely misaligned: let's rush through this important and storyline-changing event, we've got boobies to get to!!! Thinking that good and entertaining wrestling is nothing more than filler when compared to surgically-enhanced females? Robby Black would be so proud.
When 3PW just let everyone wrestle, the results spoke for themselves. Sabu and Jerry Lynn gave us a great hardcore match. Raven and Mathews switched their roles so often I didn't know who was bad or who was good, but they still wrestled their asses off and gave us something worth watching. AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels personify the "shut up and wrestle" ideology that should always try to counter-balance the entertainment aspect of a promotion. There were no run-ins, no scantily clad females, no cursing, and no hardcore antics…just two talented individuals busting their ass for over half an hour. And you know what? Those two extremely talented men got the crowd hotter, more excited, and more eager to watch than anything else, and that's including all the beauties. You can flash all kinds of ass to get your viewer's attention, but nothing holds a wrestling fan's attention better than…get this…fantastic wrestling.
In the end, I'm generally glad that I bought this, but some parts did have me rolling my eyes while others had me pretty frustrated. The good does outshine the bad, but the very fact that there is bad leads to a bit hesitant of a recommendation from me. If you're a fan of ECW and like watching women debase themselves for your viewing pleasure, this one will satisfy all your needs. If you would rather have wrestling on this wrestling DVD, you'll love the main event, like a few of the matches, and prefer to skip over some of the more eccentric moments. 3PW was definitely in a world of its own, though whether this was a good or a bad thing varies on a match-by-match basis. Despite some moments of inept raunchiness, I'm glad to say that "Insane and Ready for Pain" earns itself a respectable score.
Final Rating for 3PW "Insane and Ready for Pain": ***
3PW "Insane and Ready for Pain"
Assorted Dates and Events
Damien Adams vs. Mike Kruel vs. Ruckus
Adams is double-teamed, and then the muscled Mike Kruel takes on both of his smaller opponents. Ruckus is able to get in a spinning kick, and then Kruel goes back to dominating both of his opponents. Kruel hits an Avalanche Elbow Drop on Adams and goes for the pin, but Ruckus nails Kruel with a Corkscrew Senton off the top rope, rolls Kruel off Adams, and then pins Adams to get the win.
Analysis: Not a bad way to start a show, but not much of an original way either. Kruel got in the most offense of the match, which is peculiar when you consider that it was Adams and Ruckus that had the mini-feud going. Most of the match was very cookie-cutter, but some aerial antics helped flesh things out. Best summarized, you and I have probably seen this same opening-match indy triple threat hundreds of times before. Nothing is particularly bad about it, but it is clear that going beyond the standard fare never crossed anyone's mind. **½
Rockin' Rebel and Jack Victory vs. The Blue Meanie and Roadkill
Rebel and Victory use frequent tags in order to isolate Blue Meanie. Meanie does his best to make the inevitable "hot tag" look good, and when it happens, Roadkill is admittedly quite the beast as he plows through both his opponents. Roadkill inexplicably turns on Meanie, laying him out with the Barnburner, which allows Rebel and Victory to pick up the win.
Analysis: I have to question the point of this match. While I know that the "partner turns on partner and leaves him/her high and dry" bit is always a good way to get some heel heat, this match was over in a flash. Why not make it a full-length match and really get the crowd into the turn? I am not saying this would have been a classic, but I think Meanie coming close to winning, only to turn around and be hit by a Barnburner, would have been a lot better than Roadkill killing the match dead right when things were hitting their stride. I really cannot find a way to justify this: I didn't hate it, but it's a colossal waste of time. I pretty much completely recommend skipping this one, as it can be summed up as "Roadkill turns on Meanie". *
Jerry Lynn vs. Sabu
Sabu and Lynn get some (gasp!) chain-wrestling in before they begin pummeling each other. Things get brawly on the outside, and then Sabu hits a great Double Jump Body Splash into the crowd and through Lynn. Lots of chair throwing follows. Sabu gets a 2½ off a Springboard Avalanche Huracanrana. Lynn answers back with a Tornado DDT and a TKO, one of which gets a rope break while the other gets 2½. Both men constantly tease a table spot, and after a few more nearfalls Sabu ends up putting himself through a table while Lynn rolls out of harm's way. Lynn takes advantage of Sabu's mishap and hits the Cradle Piledriver for the win.
Analysis: If you like pure brawls mixed with some athleticism here and there, you'll like this one. This match felt a lot like old-school ECW, actually. Then again, consider the people involved, and consider the promotion. Neither man was as hardcore in their brawling or as quick in their wrestling as they could have been, but they didn't phone it in either. The teasing of someone going through a table certainly worked, even though the payoff wasn't that great. Both hit a good mix of using weapons, using their wits, and using their fists, and the nearfalls also helped flesh this out. It's not an all-out war, but it did live up to and even marginally exceed my original expectations. ***¼
3PW Heavyweight Championship Match: Joey Matthews vs. Raven ©
Raven completely outclasses Joey in just about every way imaginable, and takes ample time to rub the contender's face in this fact. Poor Joey gets out-wrestled, takes two Russian Legsweeps into the guardrail, and even gets Elbow Dropped through a table. Mathews finds a small opportunity and does his best to capitalize, mostly by working over Raven's knee so ruthlessly that you have to wonder who's the bad guy here. Raven mounts a comeback, drawing some surprisingly large cheers, culminating with a bulldog through a table that gets 2½. Mathew uses powder on Raven, which backfires as Raven accidentally takes out the referee, costing Joey the match when he quickly hits his finisher. After surviving two last-ditch moves by Raven, both of which get nearfalls, Joey hits his finisher again and gets the win and the championship.
Analysis: A good match, though highly awkward. The raw talent was certainly there, the pacing was also good, and the clash of styles provided an interesting backdrop. But the story was all over the place. Raven plays the perfect dickhead heel in the beginning, wrestling circles around Joey while constantly taunting him. Joey makes the big face comeback, but works over Raven in such a heelish way that Raven gets cheered when he makes a comeback of his own. Joey uses powder, which is just as heelish as you can get, but seems surprised and honored when he actually wins the championship. I'm all for "shades of gray" in a wrestling match, but I honestly didn't know who to cheer or boo for. If you can overlook the confusing story, you're in for a treat. If you can't overlook the confusing story, it's really the only flaw holding back an otherwise perfectly watchable match. **¾
Rob Eckos vs. Matt Striker
Striker rips off certain WWF/E stars in order to put a hilarious beating on Eckos. Eckos hits a superkick for 2, but Striker goes back to parodying past greats, all the while inflicting all-to-real damage on Eckos. The highlight comes when Striker imitates Kane and does the Chokeslam, then does the Kane arm-gesture and seems confused when the four corners of the ring don't erupt with flaming pyro. The match ends prematurely when Jasmine St. Claire and others hit the ring and promo all over Striker. A catfight breaks out, Striker gets hit with a chair, and Slyk Wagner Brown and April Hunter come out to lay down a further beating on Striker.
Analysis: Well, that certainly smacked of unnecessary. Nothing like having a fun little comedy match and crapping all over it with pointless chickfights and constant sexual overtones. I've gotta question that call. As a comedy match, it had me rocking with laughter. Striker displayed off-the-charts charisma in his parodies, charisma I never really knew he had. Eckos was a great foil, constantly pleading with Striker to stop acting insane even though Striker's insanity was winning him the match. The only real thing holding this match back is that someone decided it would be a good idea to abandon the match and do a weird, convoluted storyline segment. I can see the appeal of the heels crapping all over the match and making you angry, but art imitates life a bit too much in this instance, as I'm legitimately pissed that someone somewhere thinks that comedy matches are nothing more than second-fodder compared to T&A. It's like the thought of interjecting some comedy into a good match to make it multi-dimensional and fun never even crossed 3PW's mind. CHIKARA would be so pissed. In the end, this otherwise good match is held back by bad choices, which is getting to be a sadly familiar feeling. **¼
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match: CJ O'Doyle vs. "The Pitbull" Gary Wolfe
O'Doyle comes out firing, catching Wolfe with a neckbreaker and an Avalanche Legdrop. O'Doyle tries hard to keep the pain on Wolfe, but Wolfe manages to serve up an Overhead Belly to Belly Suplex through a table. O'Doyle is soon busted open as Wolfe just keeps nailing him over and over with chairs and ladders. O'Doyle gets a rare opportunity to make a comeback, but misses a Moonsault off a ladder. Despite all the punishment he's taken, including a powerbomb through a row of chairs on the outside, CJ ends up winning the match with an Avalanche Legdrop through a table.
Analysis: It's a surprisingly nice match from two wrestlers I'm admittedly not all that familiar with. O'Doyle displayed tons of heart, while Wolfe had a vicious meanstreak. O'Doyle's refusal to give up gave a sympathetic twinge to an otherwise hardcore match. The tables and chairs were used a lot more abundantly than the ladder, though, but the ladder could be described as flimsy and shaky at best. O'Doyle nearly spread-eagled himself when attempting to moonsault off the ladder, for example. On the whole, what we get is good brawling mixed in with good weapon usage and a surprisingly good story, giving us a match well worth watching. ***
No Time Limit Match: "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles vs. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels
Both men throw out some big stiffness in the middle of some lightning-quick chain-wrestling. On the outside, both men relentlessly blast each other only to realize that the referee is at 9 on the 10 count, so both quickly slide back inside. AJ works Daniels's arm for a bit and then goes back to stiffing him hard. Styles hits the Kip-Up Huracanrana, but gets dumped to the outside when he attempts the Stylin' DDT. Daniels begins working over AJ's back just as ruthlessly as AJ worked over his arms, and even though Daniels's lead becomes harder and harder to hold on to, he keeps finding ways to ground AJ. AJ finally finds an opening and hits a huge Avalanche Sunset Flip Powerbomb. AJ is on fire, hitting the Discus Clothesline, the Stylin' DDT, and the Suicide Somersault Senton to the outside. Both men get into a highly dramatic series of near-falls, and even exchange signature moves: Daniels hits the Stylin' DDT on AJ while AJ hits the Angel's Wings! Daniels busts out the Last Rites for 2¾, and then AJ hits another Discus Clothesline. Daniels is able to sneak in a pin shortly after the 35:00 mark and gets the win.
Analysis: One huge anti-climatic finish is all that holds this match back. I simply would've loved a more concrete ending, even though the finish made plenty of sense in its own right: Daniels's brains over Styles' heart ended up winning him the match, despite everything being too close to call from the minute this thing got started. Both men beat the living hell out of each other, and tried to one-up each other in every way possible. The fast chain-wrestling at the beginning would lead perfectly into a more methodic layer of mat wrestling as both men tried to weaken each other for the flood of offense to come. Once both had chosen their body part to work over, they began hitting each other with moves only these two could produce. Whether it's high-impact or death-defying, AJ and Daniels knew exactly what was expected of them and delivered it with all the intensity that has made them famous. Any way you look at it, this is a phenomenal (pun intended) match between two of the best wrestlers going today. ***½
Also included on the disc is the following bonus match.
Bonus Match: Syxx-Pac vs. Kid Kash
Chants of "You ****ed Chyna" make me laugh. Pac and Kash do a bit of submission wrestling, but mostly it's just to play mind games with each other. After a lot of chops and a whole lot of kicks, Syxx-Pac puts a hurtin' on Kash but ends up missing the Bronco Buster. Pac manages to rebound from that miss, but Kash hits a surprise Avalanche Piledriver and gets the win.
Analysis: Decent enough, but nothing too bad or too good. It's pretty much exactly what you would expect. Sean Waltman's best days are behind him, but he's managed to retain some of the good qualities that made his matches watchable. He's not as athletic anymore, and sometimes those kicks of his miss by a mile, but he isn't at the point where I dislike watching him work…at least not yet. Kid Kash is, well…Kid Kash. He's fairly decent with some good charisma, but until he's carried or especially motivated, all he turns in are very average performances. It's a decent "Bonus" match, although it's nothing to get too excited about. **½
Final Thoughts: 3PW is equally famous and infamous in the grand scheme of ECW demon-spawn. The fact that one of the owners was a porn actress is embellished to the highest degree: ECW couldn't hold a candle to some of the T&A spots and segments that 3PW produced. The largely male audience certainly had enough scantily-clad women to appease their libidos, while varying talent filled their wishes for all things wrestling. 3PW seems like it was a great hybrid fed: hardcore wrestling, high-flying acrobatics, legends of yesterday combined with the stars of today, women, women…and more women. Yet, throughout the entire DVD, 3PW felt like a good promotion that made bad decisions.
All those hot girls? Sometimes they got in the way of good wrestling. If Matt Striker and Rob Eckos are getting hardcore ex-ECW mutants to laugh and cheer, then why break up the fun with some T&A? Why not wait until after the great comedy match is finished, instead of crapping all over something that was quite clearly working? And the abrupt heel turn with Roadkill? I'm all for a heel turn, but having it right at the start of the match made it feel like the priorities of this company were hugely misaligned: let's rush through this important and storyline-changing event, we've got boobies to get to!!! Thinking that good and entertaining wrestling is nothing more than filler when compared to surgically-enhanced females? Robby Black would be so proud.
When 3PW just let everyone wrestle, the results spoke for themselves. Sabu and Jerry Lynn gave us a great hardcore match. Raven and Mathews switched their roles so often I didn't know who was bad or who was good, but they still wrestled their asses off and gave us something worth watching. AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels personify the "shut up and wrestle" ideology that should always try to counter-balance the entertainment aspect of a promotion. There were no run-ins, no scantily clad females, no cursing, and no hardcore antics…just two talented individuals busting their ass for over half an hour. And you know what? Those two extremely talented men got the crowd hotter, more excited, and more eager to watch than anything else, and that's including all the beauties. You can flash all kinds of ass to get your viewer's attention, but nothing holds a wrestling fan's attention better than…get this…fantastic wrestling.
In the end, I'm generally glad that I bought this, but some parts did have me rolling my eyes while others had me pretty frustrated. The good does outshine the bad, but the very fact that there is bad leads to a bit hesitant of a recommendation from me. If you're a fan of ECW and like watching women debase themselves for your viewing pleasure, this one will satisfy all your needs. If you would rather have wrestling on this wrestling DVD, you'll love the main event, like a few of the matches, and prefer to skip over some of the more eccentric moments. 3PW was definitely in a world of its own, though whether this was a good or a bad thing varies on a match-by-match basis. Despite some moments of inept raunchiness, I'm glad to say that "Insane and Ready for Pain" earns itself a respectable score.
Final Rating for 3PW "Insane and Ready for Pain": ***
