FWF Week 25 (Review and Analysis)

We are well into the Final days of FWF Season 1, and what a time it is to be alive. Live Streams, Extra Shows and Content, and just the community coming together in a way we haven’t seen yet. One of those ways is the “FWF End of Year Awards” which you can vote at (if you haven’t already) at the following link:

I will say that the higher ups wanted the awards to be apart of one of their shows, and to me personally that might effect the end result. Who knows what is going to happen at Major Fest that could very well be an award winner in itself. That being said, The Zanman is going to be doing his own personal awards. I respect the fans, and the results I’m seeing so far are interesting, as well as shocking in some areas…but since the entirety of these articles so far has been my own personal opinions…I feel i need to continue that trend. So, a day or two after Major fest, I’ll not only be posting results to the PPV event (exclusively on patreon) but I’ll be posting “ZANMAN’s END OF YEAR AWARDS” in which each award won, will add an additional point to the season’s final score. Anything can happen, and even though Brian is a little behind, he could potentially come back thanks to the awards. 

We don’t want to just count the immediate reactions to the shows, we want to count the long lasting impression that these superstars and moments have left on us….long after they have ended, and that’s where these awards come in. Not just in the here and now, but the longevity will play a factor. 

But that’s for the future, let’s focus on the Present….and get into some FWF GOODNESS!!!

Segment 1

Turmoil: The Show opens up with the entire turmoil roster surrounding the ring. After  “Welcome to the Jungle” concludes, Shane McMahon’s music hits and he makes his way out to the ring. His first order of business is to share the current set up for the Major Fest Card! His Second order of business is to explain what tonight’s events will consist of. THE MAJOR BOWL LETHAL LOTTERY. In which random tag teams will be formed and then paired against each other through the night for an opportunity at chance to get into the final match of the evening, The Major Bowl Battle Royal. The single winner of that, will get a Title Shot of his or her choosing (Chyna is in it ;). The First match is chosen as RVD and Masked Wrestler take on Mark Henry and Kevin Nash. 

Thrillzone: The Show opens up with the theme song of the Macho Man playing as his “Tune Up” match against Shane Douglas takes place. The Crowd is going absolutely crazy as these two have never faced before. It’s a nice back and forth match up as these top tier superstars exchange move after move. The commercial break is forced though when Shane Douglas back body drops Randy Savage into the crowd. 

Thoughts: Broski improvised in possibly the best way possible. At the risk of having people forget a bit about his storylines, he instead incorporated a unique event for an entire night of Turmoil. In this regard i think it works, especially since he inserted a bunch of small storyline purposes throughout the night. In terms of this opening segment though, you have an interesting concept against a truly Main-Event caliber Match. In this case, I am interested just a bit more by Randy Savage vs Shane Douglas. Both matches have predictable results, but I think I would be interested in the match story of this Thrillzone match just a bit more. 

Thrillzone starts us off 1-0

Segment 2

Turmoil: Rob Van Dam battles, but as you would expect gets overwhelmed by the size of both Kevin Nash and Mark Henry. Early on in the match, RVD Shoves his partner off the ropes, insinuating that he doesn’t need his help. So when RVD finally gets overwhelmed and goes for the tag, Masked Wrestler hops down and allows Mark Henry and Kevin Nash to pick him apart for the Victory. Both Mark Henry and Nash move onto the Battle Royal. 

Thrillzone: After taking advantage of his back body drop into the crowd, Shane Douglas is in control of the majority of the match. Finally we get to the portion where Macho Man starts mounting his high caliber comeback, but is stopped abruptly by Shane Douglas who not only reverses…but hits him with the Pittsburgh Plunge. If not for the ropes that just happened to be right there to catch Macho Man’s foot for the Pin Break, the match may have been over. Thanks to this ring awareness, it sets up the potential to for Macho Man to use his vulnerable position to sucker Shane in and eventuall hit the Macho Man elbow to secure the pinfall over a very game Shane Douglas. 

Thoughts: Much like my thoughts on the first segment; Turmoil’s concept is probably a lot more interesting…but the name value and intrigue behind a PPV caliber match up like that (especially with the back and forth with False finishes nature of it)…is just too much for a funny little “RVD Shot himself in the foot” segment in my opinion. The match value alone wins Thrillzone its second straight segment and that’s really all there is to it. 

Thrillzone expands on its lead 2-0

Segment 3

Turmoil: Christian and Rey Mysterio get chosen to take on The Undertaker and The Sultan. In spite of an admirable battle from the smaller man. The Tag duo of Christian and Mysterio can’t overcome the sheer size and strength from Undertaker and Sultan. Undertaker doesn’t have long to celebrate though as he is attacked form behind after the match…with the Sultan insuring he gets every possible advantage going into the Major Bowl Battle Royal.

Thrillzone: Brian Clark (Kronik) vs Disco Inferno vs Hawk vs D’Von continues the trend of having all of the members of the tag teams that will face at major fest, take place in a singles fatal four way match (if that makes sense).  Brian Adams of Kronik won last week, and so we will see if someone else can snag that “Baton” of momentum heading into the major fest match. Brian describes this match as a “Brawl For All” ahead of the commercial break, and with the names inserted, I can Believe it. 

Thoughts: My initial thoughts of Turmoil’s match is, “Man, some of these matches are set up to be very predictable”. But that’s the thing, with Rivals being paired together (especially in a match in which it seems like those two should win fairly easily) that in itself is the equalizer. So that’s why Turmoil’s match is a bit more engaging than one might expect. We saw a fatal four way on Thrillzone’s behalf last week, and even though…for me personally…the participants within make it a bit more compelling, the first half in itself just wasn’t enough to secure it a win here. For a split second, I thought Christian and Rey could pull it off if Sultan and Undertaker refused to work together, and that makes it just a bit more compelling. 

Turmoil is on the board 1-2

Segment 4

Turmoil: The Randomly generated tag teams see Gangrel and Billy Kidman taking on Scott Steiner and Ric Flair. With the two abrasive personalities attempting to work together, they somehow work together and with a Steiner Screwdriver, they prevail over the second attempt for these tag teams to be represented in the Major Bowl. Steiner and Flair Move on!

Thrillzone: It’s back and forth all the way around, but once more…we see Brian Clark alone in the ring with the opponent…strong man, right place, right time…he hits the Melt down to secure another victory for Kronik, snagging up all of the momentum for his team. 

Thoughts: I went into this match for Thrillzone fully expecting Clark to win. Kronik is the newest Tag team and so he wants to give them as much Momentum as possible heading into Major Fest. It was predictable, I’m sure it was a good match…but when your description of the match is like 10 seconds, Idk…it just makes it harder to invest in it. On the other side, you have a very predictable match of who is going to win…but what I’m picturing in my head is the “House Show quality Banter” that would be taking place between Flair and Steiner in the middle of this match. Those two personalities alone make the match just a bit more compelling than a Fatal 4 Way, that we’ve kinda already seen with a predictable result. 

Turmoil Ties it up 2-2

Segment 5

Turmoil: D-Lo Brown and Stevie Ray are the next randomly generated tag team, and their opponents are revealed to be The Road Dogg and Henry O Godwinn. After a nice back and forth match, D-Lo Brown hits a Sky High out of nowhere to ensure that Stevie Ray and Him advance to the next round. 

Thrillzone: Bam Bam Bigelow and Chris Candido look to keep momentum flaring as they will be taking each other on. Two former partners battling to get the edge ahead of the Triple Threat’s Triple Threat at Major Fest! What, at first, is an exchange of holds amongst two competitors…turns into a personal affair as both men slap each other. It’s breaking down, but as Candido goes for the Blonde Bombshell powerbomb off the turnbuckle…it proves to be his undoing as he is back body dropped a long way down. This keeps him down long enough for Bam Bam to hit a Big Man Moonsault to pick up the victory ahead of their affair. 

Thoughts: Thrillzone’s match furthers my suspicion that Candido is going to have his moment after being the “Fall guy” for the Triple Threat all year long. Bam Bam had big moments with Yokozuna, Shane Douglas has been a champion and faced off in big matches, but other than the Sorbo Slobber-knock punch, Candido really hasn’t had a moment. And so I think all of the momentum will be taken from him, resulting in a huge upset victory at Major Fest. Still, As much as I liked the Turmoil match up, Thrillzone had the personal feel with an intriguing finish. Once again, the story of the match was enough to snag the victory here. 

Thrillzone takes the lead again 3-2

Segment 6

Turmoil: Taz and Jeff Jarrett somehow draw the short end of the stick, as these two rivals partner up against Ken Shamrock and Sting!  Possibly the most star studded match yet, plenty of Taz-missions and big moves thrown throughout…but while the ref is distracted with the Hardcore Title, Sting uses the bat to his advantage to ensure that he and the Hardcore champion move onto the next round. Jeff Jarrett and Ken Shamrock attack Taz after the Match, until Scott Steiner comes down to the ring for the save. 

Thrillzone: Vampiro and Dennis Rodman find themselves in an odd pairing as they look to take on Kane and Goldust in a tag team match. Both personal matches (Kane and Vampiro/ Goldust and Rodman) make for a compelling tag team matches as none of these men can wait to get their hands on each other, except for maybe Dennis rodman who doesn’t want to stay in the ring anytime Goldust gets tagged in. Goldust looks strong going into the commercial break as he breathes a breath of satisfaction heading forward. 

Thoughts: I think the Star Power alone makes Turmoil’s segment a bit more compelling. Especially with the names listed, makes you not know truly who is going to win. Sure Sting is taking part in the advertised “Dream match of the century” but Ken Shamrock could easily have taken the fall on the teams behalf. Even though they ended up winning, there was a though of “What if Taz and Jarrett somehow pull this off”. Plus Thrillzone’s segment feels more like set up than an actual full length entertaining segment. 

Turmoil ties it up again 3-3

Segment 7

Turmoil: BSK finds themselves at an advantage as Savio Vega and The Godfather draw the lucky straw to team up against Stone Cold and Chyna. Never count Austin though as he makes this contest every bit as even, utilzing his brawler style and the skills of the Ninth wonder of the world…Chyna. Through much back and forth, Stone Cold hits the stunner to secure not only his…but Chyna’s spot into the Major Bowl Battle Royal. 

Thrillzone: After getting a ton of Heat, Kane and Goldust finally battle back. They throw the Heels around in peak Baby Face fashion and all seems to be wrapped up as Goldust sets up “Him” in the corner, but Terri Runnels jumps up for the distraction, leading to a brawl between her and Luna Vachon. Vampiro utilizes a low blow during this distraction to hit the Nail in the Coffin finisher to secure a victory over the good guys. Backstage, Roddy Piper returns to his office to find it completely torn apart and defaced by Raven, with the words “What About Me? What about RAVEN?” spray painted on the wall. 

Thoughts: As compelling of a storyline as Stone Cold consistently getting the hardest possible matchups ahead of his opportunities is, it is a storyline that has been told time and time again. So when you pair that up against a heated matchup like this, especially with a sadistic maniacle heel like Vampiro at the forefront of it, it just makes sense. The finish, the match itself, and even the aftermath with Luna Vachon and Terri Runnels just makes it one of the more compelling matches of the entire night. Not to mention that they even had the Raven and Roddy Piper segment backstage for good measure. 

Thrillzone slingshots ahead once more 4-3

Segment 8

Turmoil: DDP and X-Pac take on Goldberg and Hollywood Hogan as X-pac (Wolfpac member) doesn’t stand a single chance being surrounded by all members of NWO. Through much Hi-Jinx, not just from the other side, but from his own partner…X-Pac is defeated by the NWO and Hogan and Goldberg move onto the Bowl. When the NWO attack X-Pac after the match, Kevin Nash is forced to come down for the save with a Steel Cage. 

Thrillzone: Justin Hawk Bradshaw, our FWF Hardcore Champion, makes his way down to the ring…simply stating that he is looking for a fight because he loves to fight. Being fired up about the Hardcore invitation, he wants to fight right now. Brian Pillman, Tommy Dreamer (with a shopping cart of weapons), New Jack (with a Trashcan of weapons), and Mankind all run in resulting in a huge hardcore brawl for a segment long fight…giving us a preview of Major Fest’s Invitational, with officials eventually trying to restore order. 

Thoughts: The NWO angle makes sense and I get it, it needs to happen…because that’s the gimmick. But much like it eventually proved in WCW, it’s not always going to be received well..and it takes away from the intrigue of what I want to see. A huge hardcore brawl with a ton of Hardcore contenders and ECW Originals is more interesting to me than NWO Collusion (at least in this regard) and that’s really all it comes down to. 

Thrillzone pushes ahead even more 5-3

Segment 9

Turmoil: Billy Gunn and Triple H take on Edge and Booker T as both tag teams have members that will face each other at Major Fest. Now forced to work together, a miscommunication causes Edge to spear Booker T on accident, this causes Triple H to hit the Pedigree for the win. Everything breaks down as Triple H and Billy Gunn beat each other down after the match, causing both Road Dogg and Flair to come down to support their “men”. lol

Thrillzone: Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels come to the ring to participate in a Promo. Bret Hart apologizes to Shawn Michaels for their miscommunication and kinda sets a “May the best man win” vibe. Shawn Michaels is the opposite, he isn’t willing to put Bret Hart over and he makes it clear that Friendship isn’t his motive…he wants to become the FWF Champion. Naturally, Owen Hart comes to the ring and taunts the two men for their little relationship quarrel. He claims that all of the stars are aligning and theres no one that can take the FWF championship from him. 

Thoughts: The promo was definitely good. It paints Bret Hart as the goodie two shoes Face, It paints Shawn Michaels as the In between, “tweener” and Owen Hart as the “No good, rotten heel”. It’s a little bit of necessary build ahead of their match, and gives Owen Hart some much needed face time going into Major Fest (this extra time may have been a blessing in disguise). I like that Turmoil’s match once again features opponents ahead of Major fest having to work together. That being said, events that happen between Triple H and Billy Gunn later in the night make this segment feel kind of “Un-needed” and even though I get it, I feel Thrillzone’s segment was a bit more beneficial to the future PPV and I appreciated it just a bit more. 

Thrillzone 6-3

Segment 10

Turmoil: The First Half of the Major Bowl is action packed as the Following People are Eliminated from this Highly Competitive Match: Sting (Immediately as soon as he touched from the Rafters), Kevin Nash (By all members of NWO), Stevie Ray (By the Tag Team Champions), Mark Henry (eliminated by a reversal from Chyna), Chyna (Was being saved by Billy, but Triple H hit billy). We go to commercial Break with Chyna pissed about Triple H’s actions…cutting to commercial. 

Thrillzone: The Rock makes his way down to the ring to take on Interstate Champion, Ahmed Johnson. We started off the night with the “tune up” match for Randy Savage, and now we end the night with the same for The Rock. But it will be anything but easy since the Interstate Champion has been in Peak form since coming back to the Thrillzone Brand. It’s a nice back and forth as these two titans clash…but when Rock goes for a splash in the corner, he crashes and burns when Ahmed moves out of the way…allowing the big man to take advantage. 

Thoughts: The intrigue of the Major Bowl and all of the star power that was peppered into it throughout the night manages to edge out Rock and Ahmed Johnson by a small margin. I think this is where the uniqueness of the night really hits its stride, and simply put….if these two aired at the same time…I’d be watching Turmoil. 

Turmoil 4-6

Segment 11

Turmoil: Once more, the first ever Major Bowl rages on and we have historic names doing battle in a way in which we haven’t seen. The following people are eliminated from once again, a highly competitive match:  Steiner (Thanks to a guitar shot from Jarrett), Ken Shamrock (by Austin), DDP (By Austin), Hogan (By Sultan), Austin (by Sultan also), Goldberg (by Sultan inadvertently), The Sultan (by Undertaker), Undertaker (by Sultan), Triple H (by Billy Gunn). Billy Gunn celebrates as he believes he won after eliminating Triple H. But Ric Flair was playing possum outside the ring the entire time, and he tosses Billy Gunn over the top rope from behind…in which Ric Flair selects to face Hollywood Hogan Next week.

Thrillzone: In spite of the Advantage now for Ahmed Johnson, The Rock manages to finally put an end to the onslaught as he battles back. While he’s performing his comeback, we see Randy Savage slowly making his way down to the ring. The match plays out, but it becomes clear that Randy isn’t out there to just watch as he handcuffs the Rock to the ropes. He slides in a Chair for Ahmed Johnson…and after a thorough beating, the match is ruled a DQ ….claiming The Rock as the Winner…but at what cost? 

Thoughts: I think Brian could have easily rode the hype of name value and allowed The Rock and Randy Savage to be the main draw of the match. But by making it personal for some unexplained reason, I think it’s a risk that very well could pay off. Especially with one extra week of build thrown in there. However, once again the Name Value…and intrigue of just who is going to win would pull me. A very stereotypical way to end it, but The Fact that Ric Flair feels like a main event player for the first time in Turmoil is never a bad thing. The uniqueness of the night and how it all pointed towards the Major Bowl, is what inches it ahead of Thrillzone’s main event for me. 

Thrillzone wins this week 6-5

Final Thoughts and Score 

Going into this week, I think it was clear that the “extra week” in the build effected both parties in two different ways. The planning process was very clearly interrupted, and I think that’s something I’ll be interested to know about heading into the Q&A that’s coming up. However, It seemed there was a different approach from Both members and at the end of the day, Broski’s show felt like it was just kind of a “Look at this, we’re taking a night off to have a cool tournament”….and against pretty much any other Thrillzone show during this Build, this may have won…but this is probably Thrillzone’s best show of the build. It added much needed personality to matches ahead of major fest and overall just felt like it flowed from one show to another. Whereas Turmoil, as good of a show as it was, felt like it kinda halted progress in some areas for the night to have a cool event. The matches, the promos, and the addition to Major Fest for Thrillzone was just better across the board…and this close ahead of Major fest..that could be a huge factor. 

I definitely don’t want to discourage people from trying something different though. My biggest pop of the night was the reveal of this tournament, and if it hadn’t gone against my scoring quota…I may have given Broski an extra point for that detail alone.

Still the Score is as followed. 

Turmoil 18 to Thrillzone 12