Survivalism

19th January 2008 was supposed to be a rather different day for RWL.

Almost exactly one year after Overdose: The Interfed had brought together wrestlers from across the UK backyard wrestling scene, we’d intended to do it all again with Overdose 2.

The event had already been advertised, with Leaping Spoonkick From Hell 2 spending much of its time promoting a proposed Triple Threat Hardcore Ladder Match between Valo, “Cyanide” Danny Cooper and Scott Smith for the RWL World Championship.

Unfortunately, Overdose 2 never happened.

Instead, RWL returned to Witton Park in Blackburn for Survivalism, another afternoon of wrestling beside the athletics running track.

The familiar blue tarp was back, along with the nearby hillside, metal railings and long-jump sandpit that had become rather important during our previous visit.

And there was plenty of unfinished business.

At Leaping Spoonkick From Hell 2, Valo had betrayed fellow Omen member Overkill, costing him an opportunity to win the RWL World Championship before attempting to rekindle his old alliance with Cyanide.

Neither man had been particularly impressed.

Cyanide rejected Valo’s offer, Overkill attacked his former leader, and the afternoon ended with The Omen looking considerably less united than it had at the beginning.

Now, just thirteen days later, Valo and Overkill were scheduled to face each other in a Death Match.

Apparently, a normal wrestling match wasn’t going to be enough.

A Championship Lost, and a Friendship in Pieces

There had been another significant development since RWL’s previous recording.

On 12th January 2008, Valo had travelled to Houghton Regis Leisure Centre for NAW Fusion 16, where he lost the NAW Cruiserweight Championship to Chris Goodwin.

Valo had been the championship’s inaugural holder since July 2007, and the belt had become a familiar part of his RWL appearances throughout the second half of the year.

Now, after more than six months, he was arriving at an RWL show without it.

But there wasn’t much time to dwell on the disappointment.

Overkill was waiting.

The two opened Survivalism in a Death Match, with Cyanide Danny Cooper serving as special guest referee.

An interesting choice, given that Cyanide had spent the previous show being attacked, betrayed and generally annoyed by the people involved.

Overkill initially received a mixed reaction, but that began changing as the match progressed. After spending much of 2007 alongside Valo as part of The Omen, he was now finding himself increasingly supported by the people watching.

And the two certainly gave them something to react to.

The match was fast, physical and particularly violent, with baking trays soon giving way to forks, which both wrestlers used against one another.

Before long, there was blood.

Then Valo introduced a glass picture frame.

Placing it across Overkill, Valo climbed onto the nearby metal railing and delivered a Swanton Bomb straight through the glass.

Unfortunately, the broken pieces weren’t going anywhere.

After several increasingly unpleasant exchanges, Valo attempted another Swanton from the railing, only for Overkill to move out of the way.

Valo landed directly in the shattered glass.

The fight eventually spilled onto the hard athletics track and towards the hillside, where Valo produced another enormous Swanton, running from the top of the slope and launching himself onto Overkill at the bottom.

It was the kind of match that made the original betrayal feel like something considerably more personal than a simple disagreement between teammates.

And, by this point, the crowd was firmly behind Overkill.

But just as the two appeared to be approaching a conclusion, the special guest referee decided he’d had enough.

As Valo prepared to attack Overkill again, Cyanide suddenly delivered Crystal Clear to Valo onto the broken glass.

Then he turned his attention to Overkill.

Cutter.

And walked away.

The Death Match ended in a no contest, with neither former ally getting the satisfaction of defeating the other.

Cyanide, meanwhile, had managed to annoy both of them.

Quite an achievement for somebody whose job was supposed to be counting to three.

Expecting Kazuki, Were You?

Following the Death Match, Overkill went looking for Kazuki Lyger, who had appointed themselves RWL General Manager at the previous show.

Fortunately, Kazuki’s office hadn’t moved.

It was still the long-jump sandpit, complete with an imaginary desk and a door that didn’t actually exist.

Overkill arrived to find somebody sitting with their back turned, wearing a hood.

“OI, KAZUKI!”

The figure turned around.

It wasn’t Kazuki.

It was “The Next Level” Ciaran Kennedy.

“Expecting Kazuki Lyger, was you? Good match, by the way.”

For reasons that weren’t particularly well explained, Ciaran was acting as Special General Manager for the day.

Overkill was furious about Cyanide costing him the Death Match and demanded another opportunity to face Valo, along with revenge on the World Champion.

Ciaran initially insisted that Overkill had simply lost, conveniently ignoring the fact that the match hadn’t actually produced a winner.

But he did offer a solution.

Valo vs Overkill vs Cyanide Danny Cooper, in a Barbed Wire Triple Threat Match for the RWL World Championship, to take place at Turning Medieval.

Overkill liked the sound of that.

Unfortunately, the match never actually happened, joining the growing collection of RWL announcements that sounded wonderful at the time but never made it beyond the planning stage.

Ciaran’s next visitor was KillSwitch, who stormed into the office, grabbed the temporary GM by the throat and demanded that all his matches be contested under No Disqualification rules.

Ciaran threatened to fire him, then agreed that his matches against Mini Lyger and Cyanide Danny Cooper would both be No Disqualification.

KillSwitch also demanded a World Championship opportunity, pointing out that he hadn’t lost a match.

Ciaran wasn’t particularly impressed.

Jayyy was undefeated too, he argued, and he wasn’t getting a title shot either.

Apparently, being undefeated was no guarantee of anything in RWL.

Finally, Teddie H arrived and began arguing with Ciaran.

The new GM pointed out that Teddie wasn’t even booked on the show.

So naturally, he booked himself against him.

Immediately.

For somebody who’d only been in charge for a few minutes, Ciaran was having a remarkably busy afternoon.

Mario, Mini Lyger and a Rather Unhelpful Boss

Ciaran’s newly arranged match brought another addition to the roster.

Teddie H arrived accompanied by Mario, a new character making his first RWL appearance.

The two wrestlers traded control before making increasingly enthusiastic use of their surroundings. Ciaran climbed onto the metal railing for a Whisper in the Wind, while Teddie introduced another glass picture frame.

That particular decision backfired when Ciaran caught him with a Superkick straight through the frame, prompting Mario to check on Teddie.

Then somebody found a blue plastic bin.

Teddie placed it over Ciaran’s head and delivered a huge Dropkick on the hard athletics track, breaking the bin in the process.

Ciaran retaliated by smashing what remained over Teddie’s head.

There wasn’t much left of the bin by the time everybody was finished.

Next came another match that had originally been announced for the abandoned Overdose 2.

Mini Lyger, RWL’s Number Two Japanese Superstar, was scheduled to face KillSwitch.

Mini arrived wearing a different face covering rather than the familiar Lyger mask. Standing under five feet tall and weighing roughly six stone, he was already giving away an extraordinary amount of size to RWL’s 6’7” monster.

Then Mini removed the covering.

Underneath was a 12-year-old child.

The reveal was intended as a surprise on the show, although everyone involved already knew Mini’s age. He was the younger brother of one of the RWL wrestlers’ girlfriends, and KillSwitch, who had received professional wrestling training, was familiar with who he was working with.

On camera, however, KillSwitch appeared reluctant to compete against somebody so much smaller and younger than himself.

He began walking away.

Enter Ciaran Kennedy.

The temporary GM announced that if KillSwitch refused to wrestle, he would be fired from RWL.

That changed his mind rather quickly.

KillSwitch stormed back towards Mini and delivered a Chokebomb followed by a Go To Sleep.

But the more important development came immediately afterwards.

Cyanide appeared from behind and attacked KillSwitch with Crystal Clear.

Then Overkill arrived, still furious about the earlier Death Match, and attacked Cyanide.

“Fuck me out of a match, will ya? Your title is mine!”

Ciaran returned to remind KillSwitch that he still had another match against Cyanide later that afternoon, once again threatening to fire him if he refused.

And then Valo joined the festivities.

He attacked Overkill before delivering a particularly brutal-looking CorZonE to Cyanide, leaving the World Champion laid out.

For somebody who’d only been put in charge for one afternoon, Ciaran was doing a remarkable job of ensuring absolutely nobody got along.

New Names, New Faces and an Old Habit

The next match introduced a few changes to RWL’s roster.

First, Tom Omega was now Tom Obscene.

There wasn’t a dramatic storyline explaining the change.

In fact, there wasn’t an explanation at all.

He’d simply changed his name.

Obscene was also now receiving cheers, and had acquired a new character to accompany him: Carnage, who would later become known as Johnny Thunder.

His opponent was another newcomer, Venom, making his RWL debut before eventually adopting the name Will Striker.

And joining them in the Triple Threat was Valo, making his second wrestling appearance of the afternoon.

There was actually a little more to Valo’s involvement than the storyline suggested.

As RWL’s promoter and booker, Valo liked putting himself into matches with newer wrestlers for two reasons.

Firstly, it gave him an opportunity to assess their abilities firsthand, getting a better understanding of how they worked and what they might be capable of.

Secondly, it allowed less experienced members of the roster to work with somebody who’d already gained experience wrestling at a higher level.

It wasn’t about padding his own win record, either.

Valo was perfectly happy to put newer wrestlers over, whether that meant taking the defeat himself or allowing somebody else to secure a victory without necessarily pinning him.

Only thirteen days earlier, he’d lost directly to Adam Watson at Leaping Spoonkick From Hell 2.

The intention was to give people opportunities, not simply use them to make himself look better.

On camera, however, Valo was considerably less generous.

Obscene and Venom initially tried to work together against him, but their more experienced opponent repeatedly brushed off their attacks.

Eventually, Valo decided he’d had enough.

“Fuck this, I’m not wrestling two little shits… they can wrestle each other.”

And with that, he walked away.

It wasn’t even the first time he’d pulled this particular trick, having previously abandoned a Triple Threat against Adam Watson and Project at RWL:ACW Hardcore Debut.

Apparently, when a match stopped being worth his time, leaving was always an option.

With Valo gone, Obscene and Venom continued without him, giving both newcomers an opportunity to demonstrate what they could do.

And they weren’t finished for the day.

An additional Bonus Match between Venom and Carnage was also recorded.

Interestingly, this was actually the final match filmed at Survivalism, although it was positioned immediately before the World Championship main event in the intended running order.

Both wrestlers received cheers, and the match eventually made its way away from the tarp towards a nearby storage building beside the athletics track.

Having apparently decided that the roof looked more inviting than the ground, Venom climbed onto the building and launched himself off with an enormous Elbow Drop onto Carnage.

A fairly impressive effort for somebody making their RWL debut.

Unfortunately, Carnage didn’t seem particularly impressed.

He simply got back up.

All that climbing for that reaction.

Still, both newcomers had been given an opportunity to work, and RWL had acquired another memorable dive for the archives.

As it turned out, the roof wasn’t going to be the highest thing anybody jumped from that afternoon.

The Champion Who Trusted Nobody

The intended main event saw “Cyanide” Danny Cooper defend the RWL World Championship against KillSwitch.

And by this point in the show, there was something noticeably different about the champion.

Cyanide entered with Teddie H, but immediately ordered him to leave ringside.

He appeared unusually serious and agitated, with the commentary openly questioning his mental state.

This was deliberate.

We were beginning to portray Cyanide as increasingly unstable and distrustful, somebody who was becoming suspicious of everyone around him, even people who genuinely wanted to help.

He’d already rejected Valo’s attempt to revive their old alliance at Leaping Spoonkick From Hell 2, attacked both Valo and Overkill during their Death Match, and assaulted KillSwitch earlier in the afternoon.

Now even Teddie wasn’t welcome at ringside.

Cyanide began by laughing at KillSwitch and showing off the World Championship, but his confidence didn’t extend particularly far once they started wrestling.

KillSwitch had an enormous size advantage, and Cyanide repeatedly attempted quick pinning combinations, apparently hoping to catch the challenger before he could take control.

It didn’t work.

KillSwitch began using his strength to throw the champion around, while Cyanide resorted to targeting the bigger man’s legs and trying to wear him down.

Both men were becoming increasingly tired and sore.

Then Teddie H returned.

Despite being explicitly told to stay away, Teddie attempted to help Cyanide by attacking KillSwitch with a baking tray.

The first interference went unnoticed by the champion.

The second didn’t.

As Teddie struck KillSwitch again, Cyanide got to his feet and looked at him with obvious disapproval.

Rather than thanking him, Cyanide delivered Crystal Clear to Teddie H.

He’d told him not to get involved.

And apparently, that was that.

It was an important moment in the developing storyline.

Cyanide wasn’t simply determined to prove he could win without help. His distrust was becoming so extreme that he was willing to attack someone who was actively trying to protect him.

The World Champion was gradually isolating himself from everybody around him.

And unfortunately for Cyanide, he still had a rather large challenger to deal with.

Fourteen Feet and a Change of Plans

As the match continued, the action spilled onto the hard athletics track and towards a large metal staircase structure positioned beside it.

KillSwitch had apparently decided that the best way to finish off Cyanide was to climb the thing.

He dragged the champion towards the structure and began making his way up, while Cyanide attempted to follow from the opposite side.

KillSwitch knocked him away and continued climbing.

Then, from approximately seven feet above the ground, the 28-stone challenger launched himself with an enormous Splash onto Cyanide.

It was a remarkable sight.

Both wrestlers were left down, unable to answer the referee’s count.

The match ended in a double countout, meaning Cyanide retained the RWL World Championship without defeating KillSwitch.

But the show wasn’t finished.

As Cyanide began making his way away from the scene with his championship, Valo appeared at the top of the metal staircase.

And then, from approximately fourteen feet above the ground, he launched himself with a massive Swanton Bomb onto KillSwitch.

It was one of the biggest dives Valo had attempted during RWL’s backyard era.

And there’s a particularly interesting story behind it.

KillSwitch wasn’t originally supposed to be the target.

The planned finish involved Valo diving onto Cyanide, continuing the long-running rivalry between the two and giving the champion another reason to hate his old friend.

But once Valo reached the top of the staircase, the reality of what he was about to attempt began to sink in.

He was genuinely frightened of the jump.

Standing fourteen feet above the ground, he spent around a minute trying to convince himself to do it.

And while he was up there, he began reconsidering the landing.

KillSwitch was considerably larger than Cyanide, and Valo reasoned that landing on him would probably be less punishing.

So he changed the target.

Eventually, he committed to the dive.

The impact was substantial, although Valo’s lying motionless afterwards was mostly selling rather than the result of an injury.

In fact, two brown marks are visible in the grass where Valo’s feet struck the ground, an indication of just how forcefully he’d landed.

Interestingly, changing the target actually made a certain amount of sense within the storyline.

At Leaping Spoonkick From Hell 2, Valo had attempted to reunite with Cyanide after betraying Overkill. Despite the continuing hostility between them, attacking KillSwitch rather than Cyanide could be interpreted as another attempt to help the champion.

That hadn’t been the original intention.

But it worked.

The final moments showed Cyanide walking away with the World Championship, KillSwitch bleeding from the nose, and Valo laid out on the grass following the enormous Swanton.

A spectacular conclusion to an afternoon that had already featured considerably more climbing than any wrestling show really needed.