Hardcore Holly takes on Kevin Thorn. Tommy Dreamer & Ace Romero takes on Crimson and Jax Dane. Moose goes to battle against Kongo Kong. In the main event, Eddie Edwards goes to war against Sami Callihan in a street fight.
House of Hardcore #41
Date: 4/28/2018
From: Fort Wayne, IN
The commentary team obviously did their commentary via voiceover in a room somewhere because there is a noticeable echo.
Opening Contest: Kevin Thorn vs. Hardcore Holly: Early on, Thorn backs Holly into the corner but slowly backs away cleanly. Holly does the same thing to Thorn moments later. They lockup again in the middle of the ring but neither man gets an advantage and they have a standoff. Thorn wants to shake hands but decides against it and Holly delivers a few right hands. Thorn shoulder blocks Holly and delivers several stomps on the mat. Thorn chokes Holly in the corner. Holly fights back with several chops and Thorn staggers around the ring. Thorn stops Holly with overhand strikes to the back to regain control of the match. Thorn scoop slams Holly a few times. Holly gets an inside cradle and almost wins the match. Holly tries for the Alabama Slam but Thorn is able to break free and drops Holly to the mat with a strike. Thorn attempts a Razors Edge but Holly wiggles free and hits the Alabama Slam for the win. (*1/4. They didn’t do anything spectacular and kept it a rather basic throughout. Holly is still in really great shape and moved around well in the ring. For an opener, it lacked excitement and didn’t make me pumped up for the remainder of the show.)
Prior to the next match, Rebel gets the microphone and says that she was supposed to wrestle Angelina Love. She also makes it clear that she is with Paredyse so nobody touch them. Paredyse, who is a flamboyant man, will be competing against Love now. Paredyse thinks Love should find a better name, like Slut People instead of Beautiful People. He’s here to wrestle and not fight.
Second Contest: Paredyse vs. Angelina Love: Love slaps Paredyse on the ass as he was mocking her entrance over the middle rope. She does it again in the corner. Love kicks Paredyse to avoid a backdrop and slaps his butt again. She rides him like a bull and kicks him to the floor. Paredyse gets control by attacking from behind when Rebel got on the apron to cause a distraction. Rebel chokes Love over the bottom rope to help her man. Paredyse sends Love hard into the corner and plays to the crowd. Rebel continues to choke Love over the ropes. Paredyse heads to the top rope but misses an elbow drop. Love delivers a few leaping clotheslines. Love comes off the ropes to hit a running bulldog. Love plants Paredyse with a jumping Flatliner for a two count. Paredyse sends Love into the corner and misses a bronco buster. Love slams Paredyse down to the mat by his hair for a two count. Rebel gets on the apron to distract the referee. Rebel bites Love’s hand and Paredyse tries to attack but gets dropkicked into Rebel. Love connects with a pump kick for the win. (*. The comedy early on wasn’t funny and this was just a standard match between a male and female. I wasn’t entertained with it since it was a rather predictable encounter.)
Third Contest: WFW Children’s Champion Nick Cutler vs. Matt Cross: Early on, they take each other down to the mat and that leads to a standoff. Cross plays to the crowd after doing a standing backflip and dropkicks Cutler to the floor. Cross continues to work over Cutler on the outside delivering chops. Cuter catches Cross in the corner on a handspring elbow attempt. Cross breaks free and manages to hit a head scissors followed by a forearm strike. Cross chops Cutler against the ropes to maintain control. Cutler delivers a knee strike and an STO for a two count. Cutler keeps Cross on the mat with several elbow strikes for a two count. Cross sends Cutler into the corner back first leading to a near fall. Cutler shoulder rams Cross several times leading to a backbreaker. Cutler comes off the ropes with another clothesline for a near fall. Cutler keeps Cross on the mat with a choke hold. Cross clotheslines Cutler a few times to get some momentum and hits a handspring elbow. Cross nearly wins following a springboard crossbody. Cutler dumps Cross to the apron but is met with a forearm strike. Cross comes off the top to double stomp Cutler’s back but isn’t able to get a three count. Cross is met with an atomic drop and a Flatliner. Cutler locks in a Crossface in the middle of the ring. Cross rolls over and almost wins the match with a rollup. Cutler forearms Cross to stop his momentum. Cross boots Cutler and connects with a cutter off the ropes but Cutler powers out at two. Cross goes to the top rope but Cutler avoids a shooting star press. Cross delivers a knee, but Cutler counters a suplex with an inside cradle for the win. (**. I’m trying to find words to properly describe how I felt about the match, but in reality the match wasn’t much of anything that I’m having a hard time even describing it. Cutler didn’t come across like someone who was on the same level as Cross and needed a fluke cradle to win the match. It felt like another predictable match.)
Fourth Contest: Moose vs. Kongo Kong: Moose avoids a right hand in the corner before delivering several strikes of his own. Kong shoulder blocks Moose, but Moose kips up and dropkicks Kong. Kong dumps Moose over the top to the floor. Moose blocks a right hand and works over Kong with a strike. Moose uppercuts Kong and delivers a chop. Moose delivers a pump kick on the floor to stagger Kong. Kong sends Moose back first into the guard railing. Kong stands on Moose’s back. Kong drives Moose back first into the apron to keep control of the match. Kong stomps away on Moose’s lower back and stands on him again. Kong drives Moose down to the mat with forearm strikes to the back. Moose keeps control with a bear hug. Moose elbows free from the hold and comes off the ropes only to be met with another bear hug. Kong tries to keep the hold on, but Moose fights out of the hold. Moose attempts a scoop slam but his back is in too much pain. Kong sends Moose shoulder first into the ring post. Kong misses a cannonball splash as Moose rolls out of the way. Moose splashes Kong in the corner a couple of times. Moose comes off the ropes to stagger Kong with a shoulder block. Moose drops Kong with a leaping shoulder block and hits a running senton splash.
Jimmy Jacobs gets in the ring with a steel chair and whacks Moose over the back. That causes a disqualification. Kong saves Jacobs by hammering away on Moose. Moose clotheslines Kong over the top to the floor to end the segment. (*1/4. Really? That’s all this was? It was as if they weren’t really trying to provide an entertaining match. Kong is better served in hardcore style matches and it’s very good at carrying a match in a regular capacity. This was just really dull and uninteresting.)
Prior to the next match, Rod Street and his swat members put up caution tape around the ring. If you couldn’t guess, Street has a policeman character. Snow tears the tape down much to the delight of the fans.
Fifth Contest: Rod Street vs. Al Snow: Snow is really milking the crowd responding to Head. Street stalls for several moments before anything happens. Again, they are really milking Street being afraid of Head. Snow takes Street down to the mat to control early on in the contest. Snow gets Head again and Street rolls away. They run the ropes and Snow acts like he’s blown up before slapping Street. Snow taunts Street and his buddies with cones on his chest. Snow grabs Head and again scares Street to the ropes. Street gets control raking Snow’s eyes for the cheap advantage. Street sends Snow head into the corner back first. Snow gets tripped by one of the SWAT guys and a girl splashes Snow in the corner. Street keeps basic control of the match. Snow comes back with a swinging neckbreaker. Snow drives Street down with a scoop slam. Street and his SWAT guys fail at attacking Snow and they all get decked. Street freaks out on his woman officer for accidentally stomping him. Street has a standoff with the woman but then they hug only for Snow to ram them into each other. Snow sends Street into the referee and hits the Snow Plow. However, there isn’t a referee. Snow gets attacked by the SWAT guys. Street has the cover but Snow kicks out at two. The second referee gets decked to the outside. Snow blocks a clothesline and delivers several headbutts to the chest. Snow gets attacked by the SWAT guys but again fights them off. Snow finally gets Head but the woman grabs him. Street misses an attack and gets hit with Head leading to the three count. (DUD. That may have been the worst match I’ve watched this entire year. It went on forever and didn’t need to have two referee bumps and all this nonsense. Snow is still in good shape, but in-ring wise it doesn’t appear that he should be competing anymore. I don’t think I could properly describe how poor of a match this was.)
Sixth Contest: Tommy Dreamer & Ace Romero vs. Crimson & Jax Dane: Dreamer and Crimson kick off the tag match with Crimson shoving Dreamer into the ropes. Crimson shoulder blocks Dreamer and then taunts the fans. Dreamer comes off the ropes with a crossbody but Crimson delivers a right hand. Dane tags into the match and wants to confront Dreamer. Dreamer decides to tag in Romero instead. Romero comes off the ropes and shoulder blocks Dane but isn’t able to budge him. They both attempt clotheslines and neither man budges again. Dane gets control with several strikes in the corner. Romero controls the left arm of Dane and Dreamer comes off the ropes with a double axe handle. Dreamer jabs Dane several times but Dane delivers a boot to the midsection to stop him. Romero tags back in and they drop Dane with a double clothesline. Crimson enters and is worked over with strikes and a double elbow drop. Romero tries for a cannonball on Dane in the corner but misses. Dane stomps away on Romero to keep control of the match. Crimson tags in and continues to pummel Romero.
Dane tags back in and splashes Romero in the corner followed by a forearm smash by Crimson. Jax knocks Dreamer off the apron and tags in Crimson to nail Romero with a double clothesline. Dane delivers an elbow drop on Romero. Crimson chokes Romero but Ace fights back with strikes. Crimson chokes Romero in the corner and Dane gets a cheap shot while the referee is distracted. Romero continues to be worked over by Crimson and Dane with splashes in the corner. Dane clotheslines Romero leading to a two count. Romero ducks a clothesline and collides with Dane on an attempted crossbody. Crimson and Dreamer get tagged in with Dreamer cleaning house. Dreamer pummels Crimson with right hands in the corner. Dreamer comes out of the corner with a cutter on Crimson for a two count. All four men are in the ring brawling before Dreamer heads to the floor and brawls with Crimson. Romero takes forever to try for a suicide dive and is met with a forearm shot from Crimson. Everyone begins to brawl on the floor for several moments.
Back in the ring, Romero hits a cannonball splash on Dane. However, Crimson hits a sit out spinebuster. Crimson does the same to Dreamer after avoiding a DDT attempt. Crimson goes to the top rope, but Dreamer cuts him off. Dreamer hooks Crimson hitting a superplex for a two count as a female manager gets involved. Dreamer plants her with a Death Valley Driver. Crimson and Dane deliver clotheslines. Dane spears Dreamer. Dane misses a spear on Romero and hits Crimson. Dreamer plants Dane with a DDT and Romero hits a senton splash for the win. (*1/2. It wasn’t very enjoyable for me. Dreamer hitting the DVD on the woman felt like a true misconnection with the crowd. I’m not sure if that kind of spot has the same impact it would have in 1996 ECW. Romero was wasted in this match and would have been a better fit in a more worthwhile match.)
Main Event: Sami Callihan vs. Eddie Edwards in a street fight: Edwards sprints towards the ring and avoids a clothesline on the floor. Eddie slides into the ring and comes back out. I guess Eddie clotheslined Sami before entering the ring. Edwards works over Sami with blows on the floor. Eddie hits Callihan with a water bottle. Sami kicks Edwards from the apron and taunts the crowd on the apron. Sami pulls on Eddie’s mouth to get the advantage. Eddie comes off the ropes to hit a suicide dive to the floor. Edwards again hits Sami with a water bottle. Edwards chokes Sami with a flag on the floor in front of the announcers table. So, apparently the commentary wasn’t recorded afterward, but there is still a bad echo. Sami hits Edwards with a spike and tries to dig the spike into Eddie’s forehead. Eddie is able to avoid the spike. The brawl onto the aisle trading blows. They proceed to go backstage and shortly return with Edwards hitting Sami with a wet floor sign. Edwards whacks Sami with a trash can. Edwards attempts a piledriver but Sami is able to counter with a backdrop. Callihan uses the trash can on Eddie. Sami hooks Edwards attempting a suplex but Eddie is able to block it. Edwards tosses the trash can at Sami to knock him down. Eddie gets a running start and hits Sami with the wet floor sign.
Edwards rams the wet floor sign into Sami’s throat into the aisle way railing. Sami fights back using the wet floor sign. Sami has Eddie on his shoulders to hit a Death Valley Driver on the aisle. Sami grabs a chair and two sticks. Sami’s bleeding from his face at this point. They grab each other by their groin and headbutt each other. Edwards decks Sami with a right hand. Sami whacks Edwards over the back with the wet floor sign a few times. They are on the apron where Edwards decks Sami with a drink and a DDT on the apron. Edwards comes back into the ring with a pipe. Sami has a pipe as well and jabs Eddie in the midsection. Edwards whacks Sami with the pipe a few times to drop him to the mat. Edwards goes to the floor and brings a kendo stick into the match. Edwards whacks Sami on the legs with the kendo stick several times. Sami spits at Edwards and is happy with himself. Sami low blows Edwards and delivers a double under hook shoulder breaker for a two count. Sami sets a couple of chairs up in the middle of the ring. Eddie low blows Sami but Callihan is able to hit a Falcon Arrow onto the two chairs for a near fall. Sami knee strikes Edwards to the mat. Sami goes to the corner and grabs a baseball bat. Edwards delivers a running boot and wins the match. After the match, Edwards chokes Sami with the baseball bat. The official calls for the locker room to empty and help out. Edwards kicks the students out of the ring. Edwards appears to have lost his mind clearing the ring. Tommy Dreamer makes his way down to the ring to calm Edwards down. Eddie plays to the crowd holding up a kendo stick and baseball bat. (**1/4. The brawling aspect of the match wasn’t all that enjoyable. I understand why they were having a street fight, but it never felt like it really kicked into a gear of crazy violence. This was the kind of match and angle that seemed to fit the brutal hardcore wrestling. It was instead rather tame and felt like a cheap main event that didn’t deliver the goods. Plus, the finish was kind of flat and it didn’t seem like the right time to end the bout.)
Final Thoughts:
Well, that was easily the worst independent wrestling show I’ve reviewed thus far. I don’t think I’d go to this show if it were in my area. Judging by the poor attendance, a lot of people felt the same way. HOH suffers when it’s not at the 2300 Arena. Avoid this show. I only watched it because I said HOH would be a company I’d cover. Hopefully their next release is worthwhile.
Thanks for reading.