Photo courtesy of Eventbrite.

By Nicholas Jason Lopez

“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.

(Aired 2/25/16)

Kings Of The Ring 

– Continuing with matches taped at WrestleCade FanFest in Winston-Salem, North Carolina from Thanksgiving weekend 2015, we saw some good and bad this week. The opener between Shawn Schultz and Chance Prophet fell flat of any expectations. Emphasis was placed on it being Schultz’s AML Wrestling debut and he didn’t look bad, but there was nothing tangible there. On the other side, we had Prophet who rocked some sick face paint (Insane Clown Posse should take pointers) and a unique, methodical style, but too much of the bout was slow and plodding. No crowd reactions as Prophet applied submissions and Schultz sold them. Also wasn’t sure where Prophet fell on the heel-face scale coming from a first impression. Schultz sold well, but all that build up was for a simple DDT finish? Meh. Commentary sold the lack of reaction as a “stunned crowd” but we just don’t think anybody cared.

– Now for the much better second match – “The King” Shane Williams taking on Raphael King. Basically, the story here was that Williams was #1 Contender for the AML Wrestling Championship, which was held by Greek God Papadon and sought to keep his name in the running for that Title shot to be booked sometime soon. Queen Taeler made a good valet for Williams and kept a hearty presence throughout the match, getting the crowd into it at times. King also made a great heel, the way he carried himself with an overconfident swagger and even took Williams’ crown in his entrance and mocked his opponent before tossing it aside. These two had nice chemistry, as Williams spent the majority of the match selling for King, taking on that esteemed underdog role he plays brilliantly. Commentary also did a swell job putting Williams over as one of Smoky Mountain’s biggest players, gaining notoriety after his feud with Jerry “The King” Lawler, taking on Lawler’s likeness, moveset and even attire afterwards. You could definitely see his influence on Williams and the throwback gimmick actually works in this regard. The two went back and forth to the end, as Williams finally hit the piledriver after teasing it a couple times prior. Williams’ post-match promo also did a good job of establishing himself as someone who loved what he did, back from when he grew up watching wrestling on TV, the first match he saw that made him want to do this was the “I Quit” match between Magnum TA and Tully Blanchard. How can you hate an honest guy like this? To anyone who didn’t know what Williams was all about in the AML universe, this was the show to watch. On an ending note, there were two grown men in the crowd wearing “Team Bella” shirts. Someone had to lose a bet there.

Quick Results

• Shawn Schultz def. Chance Prophet via pinfall
• “The King” Shane Williams (w/Queen Taeler) def. Raphael King via pinfall