The Great Kabuki returns to Dallas’ world-famous Sportatorium tonight, when he faces the up-and-coming Iceman King Parsons in our main event. Plus, another chapter in the Von Erich and Freebird story will be written as David Von Erich takes on Buddy Roberts in singles competition.
WCCW TV
Date: 04/02/1983
From: Dallas, Texas
MATCHES
1. Billy The Kid vs. Little Coco
2. Carl Krupp vs. Mike Reed
3. David Von Erich vs. Buddy Roberts
4. Iceman King Parsons vs. The Great Kabuki
BREAKDOWN & REVIEW
- Bill Mercer welcomed us to the world-famous Sportatorium tonight and ran down some main features of the card.
- Billy The Kid vs. Little Coco: This opening contest was a special attraction, set for one fall, with a twenty minute time limit. Something out of the ordinary here… there must be a bigger card in the area and they had a stop-off spot for Dallas. Coco took over first but Kid quickly pulled at his hair to get an advantage. A snapmare and face scrub added insult to injury. Coco rallied and applied an arm wrench while planting a few kicks onto Kid’s backside. Bill Mercer said that Ric Flair would be around for television next week, facing Kevin Von Erich in singles competition! Meanwhile, Kid was airplane spinned but both men ended up dizzy, stumbling around the ring. Kid took back over with a back bodydrop, but Coco fired up and caught him with a hooking backslide pin for a three count! Billy The Kid threw a tantrum after the bell before storming out.
- Funny addition to this random week of television for World Class, as ‘midget matches’ are often kept aside for the supercard events. Nonetheless, these guys worked well together and for the comedy spots that they sprinkled in, they got the laughs they were looking for. Nothing too crazy and we moved on pretty quickly. No harm done… except for the way this one was billed maybe? A single star.
- Carl Krupp vs. Mike Reed: The next match almost started immediately, one fall to a finish with a twenty minute time limit. Krupp was basically a old school German / original Fritz knock off, Bill Mercer called him “Killer” Carl Krupp. Things started off hot and heavy was Krupp jumped Reed. Reed wasn’t going to be put away lightly, though. He dropped a series of standing elbows on the bigger man for a near fall. Krupp bailed to the floor to take a breather and to regroup. Back in the ring, Krupp didn’t seem to want to sell much for Reed and it kind of seemed as though he was laying some live rounds in. Reed was next to go out to the floor as Krupp goose-stepped around the ring. Back in the ring, Krupp leaned on heel tactics to work Reed down more. A running stomp to the head kept Mike Reed down for a three count. After the bout, Krupp did some more stomping around and gave a clear Nazi salute on his way out.
- This shit probably needed to stay in the 1940’s… I’m not sure it was even the best idea for Fritz in the 1960’s! It may only be 1983, but time has definitely passed such gimmicks by. Krupp looked old and slow and Mike Reed was nothing special. Between his no-selling and cheap-heat gimmick, despite this being Carl Krupp’s debut for World Class, I hope this is the last we see of him. A dud of a match, on top of it.
- Back from commercial, Bill Mercer was standing by in the commentary booth with The Fabulous Freebirds, Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, and Buddy Roberts. For this pre-taped promo, The Freebirds seemed to have a complaint about the fans. Michael Hayes said he was sick of bringing in record crowds without getting the proper respect. He is sick of the “Go home, Freebirds!” and Hayes said that is something they’d love that… if someone could send them home! Gordy was holding a yellow rose and popped the head off it saying they were taking all of Texas down just like that. They got all the gold and they’re going to have all the glory. Buddy closed out the interview by saying that the reason the people in Texas want them to go home so bad, is that they make the Von Erichs look real, real bad.
- This felt sort of rushed, but the point still came across: The Freebirds are the team to beat right now in World Class! I did like how Gordy was planning on pulling the rose apart slowly at first, but he pulled too hard and the whole rose exploded at once! He recovered quickly and made something out of it, though. As always, Buddy played the background character and Michael Hayes was the strongest talker of the three. Each bring something unique to the team, which is why I think they’ve stood the test of time.
- David Von Erich vs. Buddy Roberts: Our next contest was set for one fall, ten minute time limit. Big “Go home, Freebirds!” chants began immediately. A feeling out process began this one, with a test of strength being attempted between the two, to which David was able to best Buddy, flipping him by his fingers down to the mat. Dave took control of Roberts’ arm for a bit early on. On commentary, Bill Mercer confirmed that Kevin and Flair’s match next week would be for the NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship! David was on a roll at this point, beating on Roberts from pillar to post. He dropped a standing knee onto him for a near fall. A big kitchen sink killed Dave’s momentum, as Buddy followed up with some kicks and an illegal choke across the bottom rope. Dave struggled in a seated neck crank as the crowd rallied behind him. Shortly after, an abdominal Iron Claw was applied but quickly broken. Buddy landed a nice running bulldog for another near fall. We caught some spot-calling at this point, with the ringside mic slid in far too close to the wrestlers. Wild strikes were thrown back-and-forth, until Roberts caught Dave with a kick and an elbow to the back off the second rope. Another pin attempt was traded as we come to the final moments of the match. Right before the time limit, David was able to stick his running high knee on Buddy Roberts and picked up the pin! After the match, Roberts complained of his tights being used in the pin, swore so that a censor was used, and then slipped off the ring steps on the way out!
- I wasn’t sure I’d get much out of this match at first, because I feel as though Buddy is the weakest member of The Freebirds. I can said that I ate my thoughts, though, because this was a very decent match between these guys. I definitely feel like Buddy was calling this one and he made David look like a million bucks. It was a hard-fought victory and one the Von Erichs needed at this current point in the fued. I liked that it was Dave pinning Buddy, because he originally took Buddy’s place for him when he couldn’t make it for Christmas Star Wars! I thought that was a nice call-back, whether it was intentional, or not. A well-earned two and a half stars from me!
- After the match, Bill Mercer caught David Von Erich at ringside for a post-match interview. Big night for a big win against The Freebirds. He said he and his brothers can’t wait to get their hands on all three Freebirds at once! He also mentioned that when it came to singles competition, he wants Jim Garvin in that ring, because he wants his title back… and he’s going to get it!
- A quick little fired up promo here from David, I’m glad they’re staying with a focus on his singles fued with Jimmy Garvin, as I feel there’s a lot of money to be made there, too. I look forward to what else that story has in store for us, because they’re aren’t letting us forget about it by any means.
- Back from commercial, Bill Mercer threw it to three separate, pre-taped interviews asking different sets of wrestlers how they felt about “Iceman” King Parsons:
- First up, was Kevin, David, and Kerry Von Erich. Kevin said that the Iceman is a happening kind of guy. He’s an athlete, light on his feet, and he looks forward to tagging with him real soon. Kerry agree and said he has been teaching him some dance moves, to which he then demonstrated, and said Iceman has everything going for him. Kerry had David cracking up here, so he kept it short. He said Iceman was coming up quick in the business and a heck of a friend to the Von Erichs.
- Next to talk about Iceman was Arman Hussein and The Great Yatsu. Arman Hussein said that he was a fine professional wrestler, but he has yet to face his Great Yatsu. He better train hard and train good if he is ever to go up against him!
- The Fabulous Freebirds were up next, Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, and Buddy Roberts. Hayes said that the Iceman reminded him of an old dog they had back in Georgia… good dog, no brains! Iceman may have a good streak going for himself right now, but streaks are made to be broken. Buddy Roberts said he may be one of the sports fastest rising black stars, but when you tangle with The Freebirds, you skate on thin ice! Michael closed it out with saying he was like a dog chasing a parked car.
- Firstly, what a treat it was to see the Von Erich boys all just genuinely enjoying each other’s company, having fun with what they were doing. It felt like one of those brief moments where the boys could just be the boys, instead of being the Von Erichs. Skipping Hussein, The Freebirds actually putting Iceman over as a threat that better stay away from them was cool, too. They may have basically called him dumb, but they made sure to mention how he was able to beat Buddy once already, even though they chalked it up to dumb luck.
- At ringside before our main event, King Kong Bundy was interviewed on behalf of his stablemate, The Great Kabuki. He said the boss was on his way to get Kamala! He also said that Iceman had bitten off more than he can chew with Kabuki. He closed out by saying that he can’t wait to see everybody’s face when Kamala gets here!
- Shit yeah! I’m ready for Kamala, as I am expecting him to kick some heavy-duty booty the way they have promoted him so much over the last few weeks! Bring on the Ugandan Giant!
- Iceman King Parsons vs. The Great Kabuki: Our main event was set for one fall to a finish, sixty minutes for a limit. Bundy paced the ring before stepping out to be ringside for Kabuki. This marked Kabuki’s first match back since being injured at the hands of The Great Yatsu. Kabuki kept wrist control briefly, but Iceman was able to kick him away, leading Kabuki to resort to some chops. A headbutt rocked Kabuki, showing Iceman wasn’t going to back down a bit. Chops and kicks to the midsection opened up Iceman for Kabuki’s infamous underarm nerve hold. A headbutt to Kabuki’s gut broke the hold and Iceman was given a back suplex for his trouble. Kabuki got on a roll, landing more kicks and grabbing hold of Iceman’s traps, applying more nerve pressure. A back bodydrop brought Iceman back into the fold, getting himself a near fall. He taunted Bundy at ringside, almost causing him to jump up to the apron. Iceman wore Kabuki down with a standing arm wrench late in the match, but Kabuki was able to get some distance between them and thrust kick his way out. Kabuki resorted to choking and biting Iceman on the mat. He then came off the top with a tomahawk chop, but this only fired Iceman up! He flipped out of a back bodydrop attempt, hit a dropkick, and then landed his running hip attack on a stunned Kabuki which dropped him for a shocking pin of three!
- What a crazy, shocking upset victory for Iceman King Parsons here. For him to beat a returning Great Kabuki is absolutely huge, as Kabuki was arguably the promotion’s top heel last year. This ended up being an awesome match and Iceman was made to look like a main event player, in my opinion. He’s over like rover, is a solid worker, and has the charisma that the upper card demands. Going over Kabuki here was a statement and this was a good match. Three stars from me, easily!
- Back from commercial, Bill Mercer was joined at the commentary booth by Iceman King Parsons for a post-match interview. Parsons said that he has had his doubters, but he has beaten everybody that has been put up against him. They may call him a flash in the pan, but tonight he went out there to win. He’s not bad, but bad people don’t mess with the Iceman! The Iceman can get down and boogie and he knows everybody out there can dig it!
- I liked that line from Iceman. I think he is going to be a major player this year. Again, great win for him tonight.
- Bill Mercer went into the close out for our show tonight, announcing that next week, we will be getting that long-awaited Kendo stick match between The Great Yatsu and The Great Kabuki. Plus, the NWA World’s Heavyweight Championship is on the line when Kevin Von Erich challenges the champion, “Nature Boy” Ric Flair.
FINAL THOUGHTS
First of all, what a card next week is going to be! That looks to be shaping up to be a big night of action. Speaking of big night of action, though, tonight ended up being much better than I anticipated after seeing it on paper. Iceman and Kabuki really delivered, plus David and Buddy gave us a much better match than I expected! The interviews and promos this week were all pretty solid, with The Freebirds probably getting the best cracks in of the night, followed by Iceman and the Von Erichs. On the whole, this year’s episodes have been so much more well-rounded and strong compared to those of last year and we’re only into April. Onto next week!
See you all then!