All-Star Superslam Wrestling
All-Star Superslam Wrestling, in the midst of its 50th anniversary year, has just returned to New Brighton’s Floral Pavilion.
British wrestling conjures up fond memories for the older audience, who remember the product from its World Of Sport heyday in the 1980s. The unique brand of sports-entertainment has progressed in the decades since, but to many, there is still a fondness for the way that wrestling used to be, with a simple focus on making audiences young and old smile due to the easy nature of a show that encourages you to cheer the good guys and boo the villains. That remains the basis for All-Star Superslam Wrestling, as evidenced here.
Description
The show lasted little more than two hours, with a 20-25 minute interval to break things up. There were three matches in the first half and two in the second, along with an additional segment that I will mention shortly. Several matches followed the structure of the UK battling against rivals from across the globe, and all saw the UK come out on top. In a setting like this, there will always be a captive audience invested in the action, and for those who “get” wrestling, it’s very easy to put your attention into the show, especially when it goes beyond the ring and into the audience, as was the case on more than one occasion!
In terms of the matches themselves, we had James Mason (who holds a WWE win to his record, having pinned MVP during a 2008 episode of SmackDown) defeating “Nasty Boy” Micky Long; 16-year-old Wirral lad Jordan Black claiming a major pin over Paul Savage; and one of our main events as Oliver Grey (a former NXT Tag Team Champion in WWE in 2013) defeated Nathan Cruz, a well-known star of the British wrestling scene. Prior to the second half properly beginning, we had a special appearance by UK wrestling legend Kendo Nagasaki, which included a charitable donation by ASW and a re-enactment of his famous unmasking, a memorable moment during the World Of Sport era. After a clash between two British babyfaces in the form of Johnny Miles and Tony Spitfire, which was won suddenly by Spitfire, we had our final bout, as the team of Dean Allmark and Love Island alumni Adam Maxted defeated the dangerous combo of Niwa and “K9” Kane Khan. Post-match, the heels and the faces had a major brawl, with Dean challenging all of their opponents to a bonus match, only for the villains to decline and walk away.
Analysis
With the focus being firmly on entertainment, there was more scope for the wrestlers themselves to make the kids happy and to get them involved in the show with chants, cheers and the raising of foam hands at particular moments to demonstrate support for the heroes in action. The meet & greets after the show also added to the experience, allowing those who were particularly captivated to get autographs and photographs to take away as memories. And the wrestling itself proved that while the general structure remains in place for ASW to appeal to those who remembered the golden age of British grappling, the action itself has evolved to the point where the wrestling purists would still have something to take away from attending this show.
Summary
All-Star Superslam Wrestling was a lot of fun and a great way to relax and smile for a couple of hours. ASW will return to Floral Pavilion this October, and we’ll be there to cover them again as they continue to celebrate their milestone half-century of activity.
