This past Saturday saw the Best of The Best return to CZW. Those of you who missed it missed one hell of a show. This was a two day tournament. I don't think it was intended that way but due to a late start after Ring of Honor, the show ran till almost 2AM sunday morning. It was a tribute to how good the show was that very few of the crowd left even with the lateness of the hour. I won't run down for you match by match the results. Other sites have that info. I'll comment on what I thought were the highlights of the night.

The night had a host of returns to CZW. The excitement I felt upon seeing the Briscoes back once again in CZW could only be surpassed by the joy I felt seeing the return of one of the best mic-men in CZW. Yes, cue up Lionel Richie's "Feelings" and bring on the Mexican hats. Broadway Danny Rose is back and the Rachies are reunited. Danny's hand was heavily taped and I'm sure he is still having some problems with it but I take his return as a good sign that he is on the road to recovery. His sense of humor and showmanship in the ring have been sorely missed. Welcome back Danny.

And the return of the Briscoes. Two of the hottest local young talents around. There is a reason that their match at Best of the Best one was chosen as the Match of the Night. Jay & Mark have continued to improve with their experience in the ring and could be a tag team force to contend with as well as being strong singles competitors. On top of which these two gentlemen are probably two of the most respectful young men it has been my pleasure to know in the business. Of course, having met their parents, it's not hard to understand where it comes from. An all around great family and a good example of what strong family support can mean.

Another thing we never thought we'd see in CZW happened that night as well. The door was opened to Ring of Honor with the appearance of Homicide in a CZW ring. Granted it was a run-in but how many of you out there thought you'd never see it happen. Quite a few I'm sure. Now I can't say that I am privy to all of John Zandig's booking decisions but it is my hope that this along with the Backseat's appearance on the Ring of Honor card could lead to more exchanges of talent. Just imagine: Samoa Joe against Nick Gage. Christopher Daniels against Trent Acid. Homicide against Nick Mondo. Dream matches that we have only thought about becoming a reality. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Only time will tell.

Congratulations also to the CZW production crew on the return of the CZW-tron. I thought this an excellent idea when I saw it on Passyunk Avenue and I think it has even more possibiliies here. My hope is, and I am sure it is in the works, that they'll be able to cut back and forth betwen the camera up on the stage area and the hand held camera on the floor. This would make a good thing even better. And with Zandig's announcement that the lease on the building is sewn up for a full year, they have nothing but time on their hands to grow & improve. Having watched the opening teaser videos go from simply OK to a quality polished production, I have no doubt that the production values of the CZW product will only get better.

Well, that's about it for this week folks. Here's wishing everyone a great holiday season and The Bloodhound will see you all next week with more comments on the weird & wild world of wrestling in the Tri-State area. Til then, be good or if you can't be good be careful. See ya at the matches.

Haven't been on in a bit. Dealing with life & its issues but I'm back now.

So, this past Saturday, I went to The Electric Factory to see three legends of Professional Wrestling. No, I don't mean Bob Magee, The Hat Guy & Whacks -though I'm sure they all could qualify. I mean of course Dusty Rhodes, Terry Funk & Abdullah the Butcher. Yes, I went to 3PW with high hopes for a decent show. Did I get it? Well, let's begin.

I pulled into the parking lot at The Electric Factory in the pouring rain to be told it would cost me $8 to park my vehicle. Ok, I figured, I'm downtown in Philly. Gotta expect this I guess. I handed the man my money and pulled thru the gate. Suddenly a little gremlin of a man dressed in an orange vest and a Glad garbage bag rain poncho popped up in front of my car & wildly started gesturing for me to follow his directions. After guiding me in so tightly to the car next to me that there wasn't room for two fleas to fuck, let alone open the passenger door, he appeared at my window asking me if I had a tip for the "genemens who heped me park". Eight bucks to park and now this dude wanted a tip. Had I known what the night had in store, I'd have given him a tip - stay outside and save your money. Now I've been to 3PW shows before at Viking Hall and enjoyed them so I don't know what happened. Maybe it was that move on up to the East Side to that deluxe arena in the sky but I was very disappointed.

I can count my highlights on the fingers of one hand. 1. Hot Stuff Matt Stryker. A great gimmick for anyone with a sense of wrestling history as he used the finishing moves of all the wrestling legends of the past from the Garvin Stomp to Chief Jay Strongbow's war dance & tomahawk chops and everything in between. 2. The Hit Squad - Still one of the stiffest tag teams out there ( Just a thought for John Zandig: Nate Hatred & Nick Gage against these guys. Battle of the stiffest. Think about it). 3. The best match of the night: Xavier vs Homicide. Homicide. Is this the same guy I ripped a few years back for being a New Jack wannabe? Not anymore. The incredible improvement that I have seen since that night in Bayonne makes me wonder if this is the same guy. A talented young man who impresses me more & more with his mat work every time I see him, he has remade himself into a new image and can never again be accused of being a wannabe anything. He has grown to an incredible wrestler in his own right. Homicide, I salute you. 4. The three legends: What can I say? They're all past their prime but if you grew up with these guys like I did, they can do no wrong. All three still know how to work a crowd and that is a talent that a few of the other wrestlers that worked that night will never have. That's the highlights. Now let's talk about what went wrong.

How about an absolute bloodbath of a match featuring Balls Mahoney & Nosawa? I've seen Nosawa work twice before that night and was impressed with his agility & speed. He had a good look to him. He knew how to work a crowd. He knew how to work a submission hold.So, do we book him in a match where he can use any of that speed, skill & agility? Hell no. Let'[s book him in a slice & dice with Balls Mahoney. A man who doesn't know a submission hold from a submarine sandwich. Now I'll admit that I can enjoy a so called garbage wrestling match but damn get creative. Twenty minutes of "I got the pizza cutter, now you got the pizza cutter" gets a bit repetitive and boring. Pure & simple, Nosawa was wasted.

Let's talk about a catfight that wasn't even a catfight. Missy Hyatt against Jasmine. Ok, everyone knew we weren't going to really see any real tits. After all, this wasn't a Dangerous Women of Wrestling (GLOOW) show. The pasties the ladies were wearing were more the size of the Jamaican fried pie of the same name then any pastie ever worn by a self respecting stripper at the old Trocadero. But if you aren't going to give the guys a quick peak then at least give then a good catfight. Pull some hair, slap & scratch. Make it look good. But that just didn't happen. I saw better catfights in the 70's on a Saturday night at the local disco.

Not that the entire fault lies with the booking on this show. The fans deserve a shot too. During the best match of the night (Homicide/Xavier) most of them set on their hands and a few even started chanting boring. Damn, doesn't anyone appreciate real wrestling anymore? I saw several spots during that match that should have brought the crowd to its feet and not a damn movement from them. Perhaps i'm being too hard on them. Maybe they were still in shock from paying $5 for a plastic cup of watered down beer.

Meanie & Jasmine, I know you got it in you to put on a good show. I've seen it at Viking Hall. I hope you find your way back to that mix that you had there again. The pieces of the puzzle are there. Just rearrange them and I think you'll be OK.

Next week, a look at the upcoming CZW Best of the Best. Coming soon: The Bloodhound returns to Jersey All Pro. And just what the hell is kaiju anyway and what does it have to do with wrestling? All this and more in the weeks to come. Until next week, this is The Bloodhound saying see you at the indys.

Ok Boys & Girls. Saturday night is almost here. CZW's return to Swanson Street. A packed card & a big announcement from Zandig. If you are at all interested in the Wrestling Scene in Philadelphia, your ass should be there. Let's take a look see at the card. I'll attack this in no particular order.

Let's start with Corey Kastle's first big match. This kid has been showing promise in the battle royals and brief run-ins that I have seen him do. He was trained by Jon Dahmer, a big point in his favor. He'll also be teaming with him in this match. Jon may not be the master showman when it comes to mic work, but the one thing that Dahmer does know, and do incredibly well, is wrestle. Jon is one of the workhorses of the company.No flashy showmanship for Jon, but some major league power moves and one of the toughest damn chops in the company. If Kastle has picked up half of what Jon has taught him (and it appears that he has), this could be the start of another great tag team run for Dahmer and a great debut for Kastle.

Blade & Kasmere. What can I say. Old feuds never die. There's bad blood here and some of it might get spilled on the canvas. Blade has made a major return here to CZW and each match appears to get more into the swing of things back here at his home base. And how about Kashmere? After an early run as part of one of the funniest tag-teams in wrestling, he revamped his style and came on strong as part of The Backseats. Kashmere always used to say to me that he had to pump it up and earn the respect of the fans. Well Johnny, I think you done got there. There is no disgrace in anything I've seen in that ring lately and I think Blade just might well be in for the fight of his life - especially with baseball bats being legal.

How about the other half of The Backseats? Trent Acid versus Mondo. A high fliers dream. We've also seen Mondo do the hardcore extreme sick shit like thumbtacks & lighttubes but don't forget that this boy can fly. And unless Trent somehow gets lured into changing his style, that's exactly what Mondo is going to have to do. This match should be fast paced & I'm expecting it to be one of the hilights of the evening.

Then there's our friends over at Three's Company. Ruckus, Cash & Sonjay. This time it's Ruckus against Cash with Sonjay doing the referee honors. The battle amongst these three has become its own mini Best of the Best as each man tries to prove that he deserves to be that bright star in the CZW world of Junior Heavyweights. All three have the skills. No denying that. But will Cash's cockiness & ego get the best of him? One thing is for sure, Sonjay and Ruckus aren't about to forget the screwing that Cash gave them when he was the man in charge of the three count. this could get very interesting.

H8 Club vs Hi-V. The powerhouse of Nate & Nicky against the skills of B-Boy & Messiah. there is no doubt that Nicky & Nate are two of the stiffest competitors in CZW. If you value your head, stay away from Nate's clothesline or Nicky's boot. We all know Messiah can take a beating and get down & dirty with the best of them, but how about B-Boy? Is he ready for the raw brute force they call the H8 Club. Saturday night we'll find out.

And of course the other matches on the card look strong as well. And we top it off with the 9 man Elimination for a spot in Best of the Best. The previous tow Best of the Bests have been viewed by the wrestling world as one of the top tournaments around in the Independents. One can only imagine the sense of pride one must have to be chosen to be in it. And these nine men get the opportunity to move into one of those spots. The pressure has to be tremendous. And their performances will have to be top notch.And when the dust settles, there will be one more proud man in the bunch. For he will know that he earned his spot at The Best of The Best.

Will Zandig's announcement top all of this? It's a difficult task but I never count John Zandig out. Just when you think he can't top everything that came before, he'll pull a major announcement out of his hat. Do I know what that announcemeent will be? Hell no but you can bet your ass i'll be right there to hear it. And if you are any kind of wrestling fan, you will be to. I'll see you Saturday Night at 7:00 on Swanson Street.

I'm back!! Well the snow is melting but there is still enough of that wonderful dirty grey frozen shit outside to fall and bust your ass. Which I did this morning. Yes, you guys from CZW who read this & know me, The Bloodhound took an ass bump although not in the ring. It gives me a new appreciation of what you go thru not to mention a black and blue spot the size of Philadelphia on my right ass cheek. But, anyway, on to wrestling.

So CZW returns to Swanson Street this Saturday. Seems from what I heard, XPW was getting just a bit too ambitious with their plans for renovations. Rumor is there were plans to set up storage facilities for some of Extreme Associates video product. Perhaps "Sleazy Sluts of the Squared Circle", " Touch My Tight & Tiny Turnbuckle" or some similar ilk. Who knows, who cares. As drunk and rowdy as a Mummer's New Year Brigade can get, they still have a sense of family values and I doubt very much that the Viking New Year Brigade wanted to be associated with a warehouse full of Porn tapes. Plus it seems XPW didn't read in their lease terms about not having concerts at the building and decided to have them before their last few shows. So the lease was revoked. And the stage was set for CZW's return Saturday night. Is this a good thing. Well, The Bloodhound has mixed feelings. There were certain things I liked about Passyunk Avenue. I liked the CZW cam set up. When the match spilled out to the floor, I didn't have to guess from the sound what was happening. I merely had to look at the screen on the wall. Can't see this happening at Swanson Street without some major renovations but I guess I'll keep my fingers crossed. The second thing is harder to explain. You had to be there at the begining with CZW in Mantua to understand it. Passyunk Avenue had the same feel as Mantua. It was a good feeling. It felt like coming home. Hard to explain but I know some of the other guys who were there at the begining felt it too. Will that feeling ever come at Swanson Street? Maybe but I think it's still going to be haunted by the ghosts of ECW for a long time. But on the other hand, the return to Swanson Street means that money that would have been used for renovations can be used to help bring in more talent and add to a list of great talent thats already here. A larger building & more known location also means the ability to bring in more fans. And of course more fans means more money once again allowing for expansion. So I have to say that I understand the decision but I'm still divided on how I like it.

Saturday's show looks to be dynamite with an outstanding array of matches featuring CZW talent plus a mini Best of the Rest contest as a lead-in to the Best of the Best that looks incredible. Any two of the people on this tournament coming in would be an outstanding coup for Zandig but to have all them coming in for just this one card puts CZW right at the top. I know many people were disappointed in the last show. And to a certain extent, rightfully so though some of what I read was absolutely ridiculous - talk to some of the people like Bob Magee, his brother Sarge & myself and we can tell you about some really horrendous shows. (Does anyone remember Ed the Razor or The Mummy in a failing shopping mart in Clementon? How about the Soumali Warrior? But I digress.) My point is I've never known Zandig to present two bad shows in a row. I know he met with his locker room after the last show to discuss what went wrong and what they needed to do for this show. I have confidence that this will be a good strong show. I know I'll be there and I hope you will too.

I attempted to watch the WWE again. I just can't do it. Vince's material is getting so insulting and in such bad taste that it even makes some of Dennis Corraluzo's worst bad taste routines (Ric Rachet having Tommy Fierro's bowling pin stuck up his ass crack comes to mind as one of them) look minor league. Family entertainment? Maybe for the most dysfunctional family in America. And am I the only one who wonders why in God's name we have to see Hulk Hogan yet again? Maybe Vince knows something we don't. I sure as hell can't figure it out.

Oh well that's enough for now. I'll be back later this week with a more in-depth look at saturday's CZW card & some more random ramblings from The Kennel. Until then, this is The Bloodhound howlin' & prowlin'.

As I look out at the snow outside and realize that I am starting to suffer Cabin Fever, I decided it was time for some random ramblings from the deep dark bottomless pit I call my mind. So let us begin. XPW. Does it stand for Xtreme Poverty Wrestling? If the rumors one hears are true, then I suppose so. When you need to sell off items to meet your payroll at your Friday night show and then cancel your Saturday night show, people have to wonder. Oh that's right the Saturday show was canceled due to the extreme weather conditions. You know that must be true. I was out that night and damned if I didn't almost sink up to my sole tops in an inch high snow drift. Well it's good to know that XPW was concerned about their fans unlike those rascals over at 3PW who evidently cared so little about their fans that they gave the over 500 fans (who must have put on their mucklucks & snowshoes to get there) what sounds like one of their best shows in recent memory. Damn how inconsiderate of them. Let me slap Tod Gordon, Meanie & Jasmine's wrists. Well with Jasmine perhaps, if she is game, I'd slap more than her wrists. Just kidding. Maybe.

And speaking of inconsiderate, let's talk about one of the most inconsiderate cheers in Professional Wrestling: The "You F**ked Up" chant. Now when any wrestler (and I mean ANY wrestler in ANY organization) is out the busting his ass for you and attempting to give you the best damn show he can, what gives you the right to sit on your warm comfortable ass and chant shit like that. The average worker in an Independent card gets about 2 hours to come up with a match that will get your ass excited, a match full of moves to make you say Holy Shit. 2 Hours. Suppose you were given 2 hours to prepare for possibly the most grueling and extreme activity in your life. Are you 100% ready? Maybe not but you gotta give it your all. So do you take that chance and do your best or lay back and say "ahhh, I'll take the easy way"? And what about all those people who paid their hard earned money to see you do your best? Do you let them down? Not if you really give a shit. So you take that chance and you try that move. And if it comes off right, the fans jump to their feet and cheer. But if you miss it, do the fans acknowledge that you tried your damndest? They should. If you need to belittle someone for trying to make you happy, then something is wrong. My two sons (ages 5 & 12) both learned that early on. When they hear that chant from the crowd, they aren't embarassed for the guy in the ring, They are embarassed for the guy chanting. They are embarassed that men two to three times their age have not learned a thing as simple as respect. They have learned it and it makes me proud of them. Perhaps we need to all take a little example from them.

A few moments here to remember Mr. Perfect. I was not always a big fan of the WWF and now as the WWE, I have even less respect for their booking angles. But Mr. Perfect was the perfect combination. No matter how terrible the booking, no matter how terrible the storyline, he never let us down. He was the perfect combination of skill and talent. His ring work was impeccable and when he took the mic in hand, one could honestly believe they were looking on perfection. When many left the WWF, their gimmick ended when they left. Not Mr. Perfect. he took the gimmick that was handed to him and made it his own. He no longer acted the part of Mr. Perfect. In the ring, he WAS Mr. Perfect. But the Wrestling life is a long & grueling road and in the end even perfection can't keep the Reaper away. So I can only say thank you for the memories and perhaps things are now just a little more Perfect where you are.

Well it's time for me to move along. I'll be back next week with some thoughts about the coming CZW card, a few words about some of the other promotions in Philly and perhaps even some more ramblings from the mind of the rabid hound. Until then, This is The Bloodhound saying See You at the Independents.

Well, what a night February 8th (NOT MARCH 8th - Just a reminder to John Zandig) turned out to be. New Yawkers, the return of a CZW legend, and an Indian for Christ's sake. And for you people out there who don't know any better, by Indian, I don't freaking mean Sonjay Dutt. I mean a real old fashioned, featherd headdress and war whooping American Indian. We saw some new faces. Some good, some bad but definitely not the new faces we expected to see. Due to a booking error (which Zandig was man enough to admit he caused at the begining of the show), we didn't get Rave or Mamaluke. ( We will see them on March 8th so look at it this way guys, you already know some of the people booked for next month a full month in advance). Kevin Sullivan never appeared. Perhaps he had to plant a new Tree of Woe in his garden or maybe he was cleaning the rust from his Golden Spike. Who the hell knows? So to combat these booking problems, Zandig did what he could. He threw together a decent threeway between three guys from New York, including the Grim Reefer who some of you may remember had done some work for CZW before. So that's where the New Yawkers come in. He used some of John Dahmer's students from the school. This was a decent match with young student Corey Castle showing some promise for the future. Now how about that CZW legend you may ask. The remains of Lobo's army (Greg Matthews, Z-Barr, and our good friend the Rebel) decided to get in the ring and mouth off about how Zandig is running the company. Of course since Rebel has been around wrestling rings longer than Hulk Hogan ( Holy Shit - and with about as many moves) he always feels he can do a better job than any promotor. Well of course Zandig had enough of his shit and came out to confront him. As usual in a situation such as this, Zandig wound up downed by a chairshot and getting stomped. Well who to our wondering eyes should appear but a miniature sleigh and 8 tiny reindeer? Hell no, our old friend the Wifebeater with Heartbreaker and ---are you ready for that Indian?? --- Tatanka in tow. The three cleared house and John set up a match for later with Rebel & Matthews against Tatanka & Heartbreaker. And to make sure everything was going to be on the up and up, Zandig & Wifebeater would be at ringside. Well this match was a real entertainer to me as surprisingly Tatanka had a good look to him during the match and not the look of a WWF has-been that I expected and even better Matthews & Rebel got the living shit kicked out of them every time they left the ring by Wifebeater & Zandig. In perhaps the low point of the evening, we were forced to endure GQ against some asshole from Kalamazoo, Michigan in yellow Smiley face tights. No psychology, no chemistry, no talent and no sense to this match. A true who gives a shit match. Sorry John but this match just didn't cut it. Some of the high points of the evening included Ruckus & Sonjay in another incredible battle. The use of Chris Cash as guest Referee was a stroke of pure genius as Cash showed untapped comedic skill in his comments and countouts. One can only imagine the battles to come between these three at Best of the Best The war between the team of Messiah, The Backseats, Dewey and now B-Boy (collectively known as the High Five or HIV depending on who you talk to) and the team of Mondo, The Hate Club & Ric Blade continued to heat up leading to a massive brawl that saw Air Blade launch himself in a Kamikaze flight from the catwalk in the new arena down into the rest of the group. It also saw Mondo take the Ironman title away from Messiah in a thumbtack covered battleground and the Backseats walk away with the Tag Team titles. The undercard saw an assortment of matches from the regular cast of characters. Overall I thought the card had a strong start with the HIV brawl and Blade's dive, went downhill a little during the first half of the show but came back with a strong second half. Not one of CZW's best but under the booking catastrophe that it started with, a decent entertaining show. Good to see the Beater back ( if even just as a troubleshooter role for now), and John attempting to bring in some new talent and build up the ranks. So far on paper, March 8th is looking dynamite. I'll be there and hopefully so will most of you. Till next time, This is The Bloodhound Howlin' & Prowlin'. See you at the Independents.

I'm back!! Well this Saturday February 8 is CZW's big card at their new Arena on Passyunk Avenue. And it looks like real Hell Raiser. Nick Gauge & Nate Hatred against The Backseat Boys. Two forces of destruction against the speed and agility of The Backseats. I'd have to give the edge here to The Backseats as long as they can keep out of Nick & Nate's reach. If Nick & Nate do catch them, there will be hell to pay and Kashmere may be down at the local hospital having his bat removed from a place where the sun don't shine. Of course, one of their many rats at ringside may just remove that bat for nothing but I have to tell you, I think Johnny might be safer in the ring with Nick and Nate then allowing one of the rats to get that close to his ass cheeks. And speaking of ass cheeks, I'm sure we'll see more in the continuing saga of Z-Barr and Rick Feinburg. We all know you can get a lapdance at the building next door to the Arena but I'm betting we'll see a new move called The SlapDance if Feinburg gets close enough to Z-Barr. I'm betting he'll slap him silly for being such a "big bitch" about their relationship. God help us all!! Sonjay Vs Ruckus. This could be one of the high points of the evening. The big man from the Hood with the amazing moves that should only be done by a man half his size. Sonjay: That high flying risk taking dancing fool. This match could very well be one of the best wrestling exhibitions you'll see alll nite and I won't even begin to guess who'll be the winner when the dust settles. Zandig has promised us some new faces. Boys from the South. The South: the place where hardcore originated. Hell, the "Crimson Mask" was a familiar sight to anyone who grew up watching wrestling from Georgia & Florida. Bullropes, chains, scaffolding, you name it. If it was crazy and bloody, they did it. Let's hope these new boys bring some of that heritage with them. And of course let's not forget that Main Event: Messiah vs Sick Nick Mondo. If you were in Delaware for the Deathmatchs, you know what these two sick bastards can do to one another. Yeah, I know it's Philly and there are different rules but I think we saw last month how sickly original the boys from CZW can be when forced to work under the no barbed wire- no light tube rules. There are still plenty of thumbtacks left in the City of Brotherly Love I'm sure. Will we see them again? My money is on it along with probably some sick shit we couldn't even imagine.The hell with pinfalls. I think the winner of this match just might be the guy who survives. And I'm sure that Zandig will pull some more surprises out of his hat as CZW continues to grow and build its legacy in this new building. I'll be there to see them do it. If you are smart, you will be too. Till next time, this is The Bloodhound Howlin' and Prowlin'. See You at the show.

OK, one & all. The Bloodhound is back on the scene. Those of you who have been around Combat Zone Wrestling for a while may know who I am. For those of you who don't, I'm a hell raising wrestling writer who likes to speak out about the crazy world of independent wrestling in the Philadelphia area. I'll speak my mind about what I think and it sometimes gets me in trouble but that's part of the fun of it all. So in the next few weeks the fun will begin again as I post my ramblings and rants here for one & all to view. Come have fun with me. I guarantee it will be a wild ride.

Till I Howl and Prowl again, this is The Bloodhound saying Support Your Local Independents.