Welcome back to Review The Kraken. This article will review the second TV taping for Kraken Pro Wrestling, which covers Episodes 9-11 of their show on Youtube.
Still about five months behind the current Kraken product and trying to catch up … Kraken places an emphasis on building long-term stories and these three episodes are more about building that narrative than any major developments. I think the episodes also suffered somewhat from some of my favorite Kraken talents being absent: Trever Aeon, Michael Walker, Lamar Diggs, and Trey Shaw all are nowhere to be seen.
Here are some general observations on these three episodes…
Probably the biggest development for the overall story in Kraken is the reveal of a new general manager, Robert Vien. On-screen authority figures are pretty played out but Vien plays things right down the middle (so far), which is as close as you can come to a fresh take on this trope in the 2020s.
These episodes also include the third edition of the Cash In, Cash Out Scramble. This is a fun concept where wrestlers put money into the pot and the winner takes all. One unique addition is revealed here; the match goes to the time limit, the pot rolls over to the next scramble. This scramble involves Will Huckaby, Jak Myles, and two newcomers to Kraken: Edward Draven and CJ Shine. The previous scrambles had six wrestlers, not four, and the match was much more cohesive with the lesser number. They also timed the finish perfectly with the three count right after time expired.
Kevin Kantrell stood out during the Kraken Classic set of episodes. He returns here to face Charlie Kills, who was called Charlie Anarchy during the initial set of tapings. Kantrell is a top-tier talent on the Kraken roster for me and scores an impressive win, making Charlie — who seems an unstoppable monster at times — tap out in the middle of the ring, clean as a sheet.
With some of the aforementioned names absent from this taping, several new faces make their debuts in Kraken. Two of the newcomers jumped out: the H-Town Hittas, a power tag team consisting of two twin brothers. They win an absolutely one-sided squash match and their opponents, Tyreke Robinson and Luke Stone, deserve credit for making the Hittas look so dominant.
The big highlight from these three episodes is the main event of Episode 11, with Jay 2 Strong facing Brother Azriel for the Kraken Title. Justin Kayse, Jay’s attorney and manager in the The Business stable, technically holds the title and Jay is defending it on his behalf. Azriel steps in after Aeon, the originally scheduled challenger, is mysteriously absent with The Business highly implied as the culprits behind his vanishing act.
Jay has stood out as, arguably, the best wrestler on the Kraken roster at this early stage of the promotion. His Kraken Classic final with Michael Walker remains the best match yet on Kraken TV, but this one comes close to overtaking it. Azriel has a unique look and a fine power game, also displaying much more agility than you would expect from just looking at him. Jay makes Azriel look especially strong in defeat and the home stretch is very good with a bait-and-switch finish that hearkens back to the heyday of territorial wrestling. If the goal is to inspire the fan base to want to see Kayse dethroned as champion, mission accomplished.
Of that portion of the WWE archive available on Peacock, the earliest episodes of teleivision are not from Raw or even Superstars, but from All Star Wrestling, one of two regular weekly programs for the promotion — then known as the WWWF — alongside Championship Wrestling. Both shows began in 1972 and ended in 1986, when they were replaced by Superstars and Wrestling Challenge.
It will be a couple more years before Championship Wrestling episodes start appearing on Peacock, but the oldest All Star installment is from five decades ago — September 13, 1975, to be precise. Televised wrestling certainly has changed by leaps and bounds since then, as has the entire revenue model. Back then, you used the TV wrestling to entice people to buy tickets to the live events. Today, the TV itself is the cash cow, as evidenced by the massive media rights deals signed by both WWE and All Elite Wrestling.
It also should come as no surprise that these episodes of TV wrestling are structured and produced very differently. To that point, we take a look at three All Star episodes in this entry and, when judged by modern standards, they are a pretty rough watch. Now for the good news; this guide has filtered out all the drudgery and filler leaving you with a selection of what has value.
Not quite all killer, no filler, but a good start.
The eventual world champ makes one of his first TV appearances for the promotion here. He wrestles in the opener, a forgettable squash, but comes back later in the episode for this ringside interview that is not to be missed. After his manager, The Grand Wizard, speaks, Superstar Graham gets a turn and what follows encapsulates his character while also showing how to establish yourself in a new place in a relatively short amount of time. Graham really jumps off the page, both through his charismatic words and his look — bleached blond, tanned, well-muscled, and unlike anything else in the promotion at that time.
GOOD
Louis Cerdan & Tony Parisi (w/ Andre the Giant) vs. Bugsy McGraw & Waldo Von Erich (w/ Lou Albano & Freddie Blassie)
An interesting mix of heels here. Bugsy is massive compared to his size when he wrestles for World Class in the 1980s. Waldo and Fritz Von Erich were billed as brothers but any relation did not extend beyond the gimmick. Cerdan and Parisi dislike their odds with two managers in the opposing corner so they head to the locker room and bring out Andre to watch their backs. This does not dissuade either manager from interfering, and each time the interloper(s) get stalked and chased around by Andre. Eventually, things break down into a massive brawl in the ring involving all parties, as Andre finally gets his massive mitts on the two managers, to the delight of the live crowd. Albano and Blassie deserve as much credit as the wrestlers for their contributions to the highly entertaining chaos.
FRESH SQUASH
Non Title: The Blackjacks (WWWF Tag Champs) (w/ Lou Albano) vs. Buddy Porter & Buzz Sawyer
A new category to shout out those matches that excel at making one side look good at the total expense of the opposition. The Blackjacks, Mulligan and Lanza, just won the tag titles but they are a highlight for WWWF throughout the latter half of 1975 — you just cannot see much of it via the Peacock archive. There are some great little moments in this; at one point Albano is choking jobber Buddy Porter on the outside and a quick camera close-up shows Porter almost frothing at the mouth. By the way, this Sawyer is a different wrestler from Mad Dog Buzz Sawyer.
Kevin Sullivan & Francisco Flores vs. Crusher Blackwell & Bugsy McGraw (w/ Freddie Blassie & The Grand Wizard)
This episode is pretty dull but the main event is a unique collection of wrestlers. We also see a very young Kevin Sullivan as, given his eventual legacy in wrestling, the most unlikely of bland lower-card babyfaces. Blackwell and Bugsy give Sullivan a significant portion of offense before momentum shifts. Overall, the action is decent although the finish is wonky.
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT
Ernie Ladd promo and handicap match
This part of 1976 seems to be all about building up new strong challengers for Bruno Sammartino. Graham is one and The Big Cat is another. The former NFL star was known for his bombastic heel interviews. This one loses some of its steam and runs a bit long, but if you are not familiar with Ladd’s work, you might want to check it out. The Big Cat then wrestles a handicap match that is totally forgettable unless you want to see some of the most awkward ring exits I have ever seen from jobber Tito Torres.
The featured bout on this episode is also the only thing that salvages it from being victim to getting skipped altogether. Ladd puts on a textbook example of being a heel. It starts from his entrance where he bullies the poor guy gathering his hat and vest. Ladd almost oversells for Sanchez early, but the live crowd loves it. And, as a proper heel should, Ladd uses his dreaded taped thumb to cheat and gain the advantage, before using more underhanded tactics to eventually win by countout.
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT
Vince McMahon interviews Louis Cerdan & Tony Parisi
Cerdan and Parisi are the tag champs at this time and this segment is incredibly awkward. Today, you would never see a wrestler on the microphone left to stumble and bumble through an interview like this. Are we better off, or worse off, now? You watch and decide.
LINEUP & SUMMARY
All Star Wrestling, 9/13/75
Superstar Billy Graham (w/ The Grand Wizard) vs. Tom Stanton Non Title: The Blackjacks (WWWF Tag Champs) (w/ Lou Albano) vs. Buddy Porter & Buzz Sawyer [Jobber] – FRESH SQUASH Vince McMahon interviews The Grand Wizard & Superstar Billy Graham – VERY GOOD Baron Mikel Scicluna vs. Manuel Miranda Francisco Flores vs. Frank Monte Louis Cerdan & Tony Parisi vs. Bugsy McGraw & Waldo Von Erich (w/ Lou Albano & Freddie Blassie) – GOOD
All Star Wrestling, 1/10/76
Non Title: Bobo Brazil (WWWF U.S. Champ) vs. Davey O’Hannon Louis Cyr (w/ Freddie Blassie) vs. Pete McKay Vince McMahon interviews Ernie Ladd ringside – TAKE OR LEAVE Handicap: Ernie Ladd vs. Tito Torres & Sylvano Sousa Non Title: Louis Cerdan & Tony Parisi (WWWF Champs) vs. Baron Mikel Scicluna & Vincente Pometti Kevin Sullivan & Francisco Flores vs. Crusher Blackwell & Bugsy McGraw (w/ Freddie Blassie & The Grand Wizard) – WORTH WATCHING
All Star Wrestling, 1/17/76
Superstar Billy Graham (w/ The Grand Wizard) vs. Sylvano Sousa Ivan Putski vs. Bugsy McGraw (w/ Lou Albano, The Grand Wizard & Ivan Koloff) Vince McMahon interviews Louis Cerdan & Tony Parisi – TAKE OR LEAVE Johnny Rivera vs. Louis Cyr (w/ Freddie Blassie) Ivan Koloff (w/ Lou Albano) vs. Pete McKay Pete Sanchez vs. Ernie Ladd – WORTH WATCHING
UP NEXT
We continue our journey through 1976 with another Madison Square Garden event and more All Star Wrestling.
We started our journey with a Madison Square Garden card from 1973 and continue that journey, from the same venue, while jumping ahead to 1975.
So, what happened in the WWWF during the interim? The big news is that the world title has changed hands a couple of times. Pedro Morales. who held the title on that 1973 card, dropped it to Stan Stasiak, who quickly lost the belt to the returning Bruno Sammartino in December of that year.
And title defenses by Sammartino serve as the centerpiece, and the biggest highlight, of these two 1975 events from Madison Square Garden.
Bruno Sammartino defends the WWWF Heavyweight Title against Spiros Arion in a Texas Death Match
Four matches from this card made the cut for Peacock and three of them range in watch quality from skippable to watching paint dry, although the last match features a bearded, barrel-chested Ivan Putski that is quite the contrast from the chiseled bodybuilder look he sported for this same promotion in the 1980s. And he chugs a beer in the ring after his match, so there’s that.
Ivan Putski chugs a beer after beating The Wolfman at Madison Square Garden.
The highlight of this March 17 card is the battle between Sammartino and Arion for the title. These two met the prior month (sadly not available on Peacock) and most of the match played out as a sportsmanlike affair until Arion started bending the rules late when he could not fairly get the better of Sammartino. Eventually Bruno snaps, unloading on Arion in fury and eventually getting disqualified.
So, they ran it back for this Texas Death Match, often used as a blowoff match for Sammartino and his challenger du jour. No standing 10 count here… the WWWF Texas Death Match just means that anything goes. The crowd is fully invested and lives in dies with each punch and kick thrown by the champion. Sammartino scores the pin, but Arion gets a foot in the ropes and the referee does not see it. That sets the stage for another match between these two next month.
Bruno Sammartino defends the WWWF Heavyweight Title against Spiros Arion in a Greek Death Match
The aforementioned rematch… this time the only way to win is by submission. Where the match between these two in March was more even, this one sees Sammartino dominate. Modern wrestling fans have come to expect, even in the most heated grudge match, for the flow of the match to go back and forth. Sometimes, though, you just want to see the bad guy get clobbered and that is what the Garden crowd got here. Bruno gets 75-80% of the match before submitting Arion after he whiffs on a knee drop off the top rope. The atmosphere and the tremendous fire that Bruno shows are both top notch.
Good
Edouard Carpentier vs. Joe Nova
Carpentier is quite the story — fighting for the Resistance in France during World War II before embarking on a career in the squared circle. He is a spry 48 years old here and uses his gymnast background to use Nova as his own personal pommel horse. His style would fit right in modern wrestling, and serves as a reminder for the current curmudgeons who decry “flippy shit” as ruining their beloved business.
Victor Rivera vs. Bobby Duncum
You might remember Bobby’s son, the late Bobby Duncum, Jr., from the West Texas Rednecks in WCW. These two put on their working shoes for this one and turn in a high-energy battle, especially by the often-plodding standards of mid-1970s WWWF.
Worth Watching
El Olympico vs. Greg Valentine
This is the Madison Square Garden debut for Valentine, who is 23 years old and looks about the same that he does for the next 10 or 15 years.
LINEUP & SUMMARY
March 17, 1975 (Madison Square Garden)
Chief Jay Strongbow vs. Butcher Vachon WWWF World Title-Texas Death Match: Bruno Sammartino defends vs. Spiros Arion – VERY GOOD Victor Rivera vs. Killer Kowalski Ivan Putski vs. The Wolfman
April 14, 1975 (Madison Square Garden)
Mike Paidousis vs. Tony Altimore El Olympico vs. Greg Valentine – WORTH WATCHING Non Title, 2/3 Falls: Little Boy Louie & Sonny Boy Hayes vs. Little Tokyo & Lord Littlebrook WWWF World Title-Greek Death Match: Bruno Sammartino defends vs. Spiros Arion – BORDERLINE GREAT Edouard Carpentier vs. Joe Nova – GOOD Victor Rivera vs. Bobby Duncum – GOOD
UP NEXT
We wrap up 1975 and dive into 1976 with a few episodes of All Star Wrestling.
In Moore House Wrestling 