A Very Meltzer Christmas
Dec 11, 2019 18:56:44 GMT -5
“The RevolutiDaddy” Wesley, Quixote Della Torre, and 2 more like this
Post by Spencer Adams on Dec 11, 2019 18:56:44 GMT -5
Part 1: ESPN First Take
Molly Qerim: Huge news coming out of the wrestling world this week as Crow McMorris is set to make his in ring return to the business after more than three years away from in-ring competition.
Max Kellerman: About three and a half actually.
Molly Qerim: Not only a return to the business, but accepting the call of an open challenge from the King of Slabs. I mean, this is huge guys.
Stephen A. Smith: CROW MCMORRIS IS AN INSANE PERSON!
Max Kellerman: Really?
Stephen A. Smith: KOS IS NOT A RETURN MATCH! KOS IS THE BAR!
Molly Qerim: Sure, but we’re talking about a guy who in a lot of ways, paved the way in WCF for someone like Spencer Adams to break through at the highest level.
Max Kellerman: Right, it’s not like Crow McMorris is bad or even anywhere close to it. Maybe you forgot, but I think you’ll be reminded soon enough. I mean, we’re talking about a UCI Hall of Famer. The FIRST UCI World Champion.
Stephen A. Smith: Correct, but OPEN YOUR EYES! Three and a half years can make all the difference and that’s exactly what it did! In those three and a half years, KOS has become more hard hitting and racked up HIS OWN list of hall of fame worthy accolades! This is the US Champion we’re talking about, Mr. TRIPLE CROWN!
Molly Qerim: I don’t think Crow’s in over his head here though.
Max Kellerman: No, he’s not. Anyone could’ve stepped through that curtain and taken KOS up on that offer, but Crow was the one who did and these two will have a clinic in Minnesota! You want to make a return, you want to make a statement? KOS is the perfect opponent for Crow prove himself!
Stephen A. Smith: This isn’t how you shake the rust off, this is where you get it knocked off and get yourself KNOCKED OUT! KOS is fresh and maybe better than ever, Crow has been away for YEARS! One guy is fresh, the other guy is gonna have to go out there and in some way, relearn how to be ELITE...AGAINST THE ELITE!
Max Kellerman: It’s the co-main event for a reason Stephen A. We’ve seen call outs before, this match is one that has had a lot of lowkey buzz in the sports world for awhile. We know that KOS is going to come into this one prepared, but Crow knew EXACTLY what he was signing up for! This is a dog fight, but I think it’s going to be a lot more split than you’re giving it credit. You’re a fool if you expect anything less than a five star classic where one of these two escapes by a hair.
Molly Qerim: So, final predictions for this one and why?
Max Kellerman: Crow McMorris IS deadly. Not long before Spencer Adams arrived to the mainstream, it was The Scarecrow who was taking out opponents with ring general skills and exceptional ability to put the exclamation on a finish. He’s six foot eight, he hits hard, he’s a McMorris. What about you, Molly?
Molly Qerim: I think you said it best. Crow is a big guy who brings a lot of grit and surprising speed to the table. It’s going to be a toss up, but Crow wants this and he wants this badly. Stephen A?
Stephen A. Smith: K-O-S IS A W-I-N-N-E-R! HE’S PART OF ACTION WRESTLING’S MT. RUSHMORE AND HE’S GOING TO SHOW CROW AND THE REST OF WORLD WHY AT XIII! CROW MIGHT BE ON THE ROAD BACK, BUT IT’S A TRAIL THAT KOS BLAZED IN ADUB! HE WON’T JUST WIN, HE’LL PULL IT OFF CLEEEAN! KOS...GON’ BE ALRIGHT!
Part 2: Catching up (AW Network exclusive)
In a dim lit balcony overseeing rows of general seating inside The Varsity Theater, KOS stands centered along the railing. His hands are wrapped around the steel and his eyes fixate on the floor below, more specifically the unoccupied ring in the middle of it.
KOS: You know..in a way..it’s sort of like coming back to the warehouse. That feeling of being able to fill a small venue with the same energy you would a stadium in only a fraction of the attendance rate? I’m feeling that right now and a blockbuster match in an intimate locale? These are the sort of things that pump new life into you as a competitor. The big arenas? Those let you know that you ARE the star you strived so hard to become over the years, but it’s the small crowds that really challenge you to flex that same star power. It’s that commitment to the craft in smaller settings that put me on the path I’ve found myself traveling since arriving at the A list level in professional wrestling. Throwing caution to the wind and getting hundreds up on their feet? Learning that is how you learn to move the masses.
Personally, I live for these type of situations. From the very first time The Antidote arrived on that big stage, I was no stranger to bringing the fight to people who I thought needed some sense knocked into them, but this is different. Crow McMorris at XIII is special and definitely isn’t like the sort of week to week undertakings I often find myself tasked with. This match isn’t about making some sort of stand against somebody who is here with none of the true passion indicative of career dedication and a varied list of shitty and vain motives. This is a blockbuster matchup for the sake of putting on a show that people will remember for years to come and being able to walk away with the pride you get from doing so.
KOS steps over the railing, resting against it as his feet are positioned carefully along the lip of surface in front of it. His hands remain wrapped around the metal and his eyes dart to the concrete below.
We’ve got history, you know? Back when I was little more than a determined greenhorn by most people’s standards and people were quick to call my bluff..to say that I wasn’t good enough or throw the cliche “placebo” jab my way, it was Scarecrow and people like him who stood opposite me and challenged me to show them that I had that fire in my belly, that I could persevere and reach that next level and it’s through that type of faith and fair chance that I was able to go from an underling to a true contemporary and that’s a gesture that has never and will never be lost on me.
The bonds I formed through those early battles with Crow and others like him is what helped make UCI a reality and give it the identity it had. At the peak of my time in WCF, I became the target of a #BeachKrew attack and was put on the shelf for some time. I could’ve chose to dive back in full force at the dub, but opted to do things bigger and better, to help repay people who showed me the way back then by showing everyone a place that worked without obstruction and let the proven talent who deserved the shots they never got prior really go for it. Crow helped me and many others so in return, UCI was created and carried on in the name of people who put blood, sweat, and tears into their work.
I was so fucking proud to see Crow become the first person to hold the top belt in UCI and help make it into what it was. Back in the days of the dub, everyone would look to Crow as one of the next up, a cutthroat anti-hero with the potential to define the modern era as a world champion. It just so happened that the era he defined was the first of many for an upstart that made it big in a way that few promotions ever manage to actually do. At Clash, I rolled out the carpet and extended this invitation, because I still hold belief in the people that had faith in me back then and were willing to take the leap that they did...and because I knew that UCI can still go and hang with the best there is.
I ended up receiving the answer I was seeking from someone who in a lot of ways is the perfect compliment to the King of Slabs when it comes to tearing the house down. See, Crow is the type of person who lives without an off switch. Sometimes it’s something that works in your favor and other times it leads to you crashing and burning via your own actions, but more than anything..it tests your prowess when put in survival mode and when that bell rings, I know that I’ll be given nothing less than the next gear from Crow. This is dig deep wrestling at its finest.
I get the honor of catching an old friend up to speed with the landscape, but I do have my concerns with it all. I see the parallels between us in the way that I know we both have that tendency to overindulge in who we are. Unfortunately, you can end up missing out on a lot via a personal commitment to the game and I know that SOMETHING has to take the place of that. For Crow, I hope that the combination of the McMorris lifestyle and a lengthy hiatus haven’t weighed too heavily on him. I hope that this comeback sees him in a proper state of mind, because I know what it can do to a person when that’s missing.
We have the chance to not only close out AW’s sophomore year in a huge way, but also to single handedly set the bar heading into the next decade. Crow McMorris is a giant with viper like speed, a competitor read to hit fast and hard the second you let your guard down. At the same time, he’s not facing the same “I think I can” babyface from five years ago. While Crow has been away, I’ve been at work..scratching and clawing my way to the status of those I’d previously looked up to. I am in the exact position I aspired to be back then and there’s a reason for that. In the absence of my mentors, I became one myself. I am a world champion..a triple crown winner. They mention my name in the same breath as this company’s theoretical Mount Rushmore. Action Wrestling and special events like these...they’re mine now. This is what I’m bringing to that ring when the time comes. Crow..brother...just fucking bring it and let’s show Minneapolis what six stars looks like.