NWA POWERRR is the nostalgia cash-in some fans have been dying for

All the happenings from the debut episode of NWA POWERRR from October 8, marking the return of classic-style studio wrestling.

I HAVE THE POWERRR

It’s pronounced “power,” by the way.

The show opened at 6:05 p.m. EST — just like back in the day, only now on YouTube or Facebook. Dokken’s “Into the Fire” played over the introduction package, cobbled-together footage from the Ten Pounds of Gold mini-documentaries and various clips from the Ring of Honor-hosted events featuring NWA stars from this year and 2018, among other clips of footage. NWA Worlds champion Nick Aldis, Tim Storm, Eli Drake, James Storm, the Wild Cards and Jocephus all appeared in the intro with their names listed, as they were the stars of this week’s episode.

Jim Cornette and Joe Galli welcomed the audience at their announce table. The set looks incredible, but not in the way that, say, SmackDown’s set looked on Friday. It’s like when you come across those meticulous Star Trek houses that look amazing but are also functional; that’s what this NWA setup looked like, a spiffy replica of the old NWA set. They cut to a few shots of old wrestling magazines from the era — The brief gamut showed us everyone from Jos LeDuc and a young Jacques Rougeau to Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes — as Cornette talked over it, explaining the history of studio wrestling in Atlanta.

They cut to David Marquez (Championship Wrestling from Hollywood) who interviewed NWA champion Nick Aldis who came along with Kamille, his assistant. Aldis mentioned he’s been NWA Worlds champion for nearly a full year and Aldis said it’s hard to stay humble or hungry. He put over the Wild Cards, James Storm and Allisyn Kay as serious champions and that they’ve all paid their dues. He then addressed Tim Storm and explained that he’d been all over the world and has put food on his child’s table with money from pro wrestling, and that if Storm thought Aldis would be doing the “J-O-B in A-T-L” then he’d better think again. It was a terrific promo to kick the show off.

The Dawsons defeated Sal Rinauro & Billy Buck

This was a classic squash match, just like you’d see on an episode of NWA Mid-Atlantic in the 1980s. Sal Rinauro, of Wrestling Road Diaries fame, looked like the only one in this match who still exercises regularly. Cornette called them “mean motor-scooters” and I don’t think he was being facetious. The Dawsons won with a mess of a tombstone and avalanche double team spot on Billy Buck.

After the match, and just like the good ol’ days, the Dawsons walked over to the standing announce table to join David Marquez. The Dawsons were actually decent on the mic, but the crowd decided to start doing the “What?!” chants at them. They spouted general tough-guy rhetoric about how they’re going to take everyone in the NWA out in time because they’re the big, mean bullies we remembered from school, all of this with growly Southern drawls, and then they were off. David Marquez said they were “double tough.”

NWA spoofed Lord Alfred Hayes’ old “Promotional consideration paid for by the following” catchphrase from WWE’s Coliseum Home Videos for reasons I’m not sure of. Then came an ironic ad for Austin Idol’s wrestling school. This was the NWA production team’s attempt at levity, applying the overused Tim and Eric visual trope to this bit more than a decade too late. “Make yourself some money, jack!” was the funniest line here, intentional or not.

After this, we were back with Joe Galli along with Eli Drake at the standing announce table. Drake said the NWA don’t have children, but men who want to face the best. NWA Women’s champion Allisyn Kay doesn’t count then, I guess.

Eli Drake def. Caleb Konley

This match was fine, if uneventful. Cornette continued pushing that “real men wanna fight” idea that Drake mentioned just beforehand; poor Allisyn Kaye. Conley, one of the wrestlers under the Suicide gimmick in TNA, did a slingshot tornillo splash onto Drake while Cornette stayed silent until the next beat. Conley later missed a turnaround moonsault from the top rope and Drake landed the Gravy Train for the win. Fans chanted “E-LI!” before they cut to the next segment.

We cut to some footage of Tim Storm, who said the NWA title is his life and that he accepts Nick Aldis’ challenge and said he knew in his heart he had to do it.

Back in the studio, we cut back to Cornette and Galli and what sounded like piped-in studio applause. There were a few instances of this throughout the show, where the crowd either sounded a) a lot sweeter than they should based on capacity or b) made no sound at all, like towards the end of the program.

Jocephus had come out and he’d started screaming at the announcers and asking for Tim Storm. He harassed Cornette and Galli at their booth and kept screaming “STORM!” until James Storm, NWA National champion, came out instead. He said Jocephus wasn’t cut out for this business, which came off as a veiled promo trying to express how much wrestling today has changed — but for the worse. Hot take, I know. The crowd chanted “let them fight” before they cut to the next segment.

There was another commercial where NWA staff was interviewing fans after an event, where each said a different version of the following:“This is professional wrestling the way it should be!” or “It feels like wrestling from 30 years ago!” They even interviewed the “It’s still real to me dammit” guy, who was real fired up about all of this. In many ways, he’s this show’s core audience.

NWA Worlds Tag Team champions the Wild Cards (Royce Isaacs & Thom Latimer) defeated Danny White & Mims in a non-title match

Latimer used to be Bram in TNA and Isaacs is a West Coast indie wrestler on the come-up. The two started cutting a promo until Eddie Kingston came out and interrupted them. He called Latimer “Bram” before referring to him as “Tommy Boy.” He said that the Wild Cards don’t speak for the outlaws of the world. Latimer threw the announce table and Kingston and the two started jaw-jacking until Homicide came out to back Kingston up. James Storm and Jocephus then appeared and there was chaos all throughout GPB Studios. Storm and Jocephus brawled into the studio crowd, who ate it up.

James Storm defeated Jocephus

They got into the ring, apparently had a match scheduled after all, and after the bell rang, Jocephus ran at Storm and Storm superkicked him, 1-2-3. He beat Jocephus up some more, then put Jo’s thumb in his mouth, like a sleeping baby, before things wrapped.

There was a sentimental Tim Storm promo video package next. I’m not sure if the audio wasn’t mixed, but the sound was very low-rent in this segment, especially during the voiceovers, which sounded like they were recorded with an internal laptop mic.

Storm then cut a promo with Joe Galli at ringside. He talked about how “the 6:05” inspired him back in the day, which elicited happy-chants. He mentioned his “Mama Storm,” which the crowd loved. He said Nick Aldis didn’t have to give him another chance at the NWA Worlds title but he did, so he’ll take it, and that nothing in the world meant more to him than that belt. Storm did a good job but this, like much of the show, was also really hokey.

NWA Worlds champion Nick Aldis defeated Tim Storm to retain his title

It was solid. That’s what it was, and that’s all it was meant to be. The studio crowd was enthusiastic and noisy for Storm and his Greatest Hits set he brought with him to this match. Midway through, Storm locked on a figure-four. He landed a superplex but landed early, before Aldis. Storm later missed a somersault senton and Aldis landed a flying elbow drop and then locked in the Kingsland Cloverleaf and the crowd chanted “Mama Storm” in support of Tim. Lots of noise here. When referee Brian Hebner’s back was turned to the crowd, Storm landed a low blow, then landed the Perfect Storm (Black Hole Slam) for a close two-count. The crowd was peaking at around this point.

On the floor, Kamille tried distracting Storm, but it didn’t work out and Aldis ended up taking Kamille out with a lariat. Back in the ring, Storm went for a final attack but Aldis rolled him into an inside cradle for the win. People chanted “NWA” after this.

Aldis walked over to Joe Galli and cut a promo saying that tonight ”NWA” also stands for “Never Without Authenticity.” He said Storm was as authentic as it gets, that he’s a “hell of a man,” and was a hell of a champion. Galli then asked what happened with Kamille after the match but she wouldn’t say anything, and Aldis kept answering for her. Aldis then told Galli to save his “clickbait stuff” for another day, which the crowd “oohed” at.

Final thoughts

The main event was very good, not spectacular, and the wrestling on the rest of the card was functional, not meant to be critiqued but created to get wrestlers over with a core fanbase. The production value is fine but low at the moment. Some might call it “gritty” while some might see it and think the production team hasn’t learned the ropes yet.

If you’re a diehard fan of JCP-era NWA and you want a show that tries really, really hard to be just that — an old-time pro wrestling show — then watch this. If you’re a fan unsatisfied with what’s on the wrestling market today, NWA has you covered, because this cashes in on nostalgia more than anything else. It looks back, not ahead, which is worrisome in a few year’s time.

The real challenge NWA POWERRR faces is whether it can outlast its gushing sentimentality for Crockett Promotions and build themselves into something new and meaningful in 2019, not 1985.