Some pro wrestling organizations are like a bonfire: They aren’t always spectacular, but they are always a steady and bright light. Others are like a firecracker: They only last momentarily, but capture everyone’s attention. WSX is a prime example of the latter.
Launched in the beginning of 2007 by MTV (along with many of MTV’s nigh-infinite corollaries), it had little fanfare. For that matter, it had little to no advertising. It lasted for an entire three months, had one championship with two pending and was fueled by explosions and pure ADD. With a roster that ranged from long-time veterans, like Vampiro and X-Pac, to favorites of the indies scene, such as Jack Evans and Teddy Hart, it had promise as a unique alternative.
With an emphasis on gimmick matches, special effects, unadulterated violence and pure insanity, WSX offered something different. It aired four pre-taped episodes in varying timeslots and air dates, with the next five being its “Season Finale,†and the last never being aired. It was released on DVD November 13th, 2007.
The matches ranged from chock full of high-flying spots and textbook mat wrestling, to over the top and rather sloppy brawling around the arena. It’s almost as if someone took ROH, CZW, and CHIKARA, and just threw them into a metaphorical blender. This was not a show for WWE marks, or mainstream marks in general. This was a show for those who could enjoy a good schlock movie. Over the top nonsense galore. And it was magnificent, in all of its violent silliness. No-DQ and falls count anywhere were standard stipulations, with additional modifications only serving to add to the mayhem.
With a roster that featured both the cream of the crop of tomorrow’s big stars, such as Evans, Joey Ryan, Tyler Black, Jimmy Jacobs, and Colt Cabana (Matt Classic) alongside the stars of yesteryear, like Vampiro and Sean Waltman, it provided for a highly entertaining show. With consistent characters, continuous (albeit somewhat fractured) story arcs, and a solid product, WSX could have been a staple of late night adrenaline junkies for years to come. It had plenty of feuds that would have easily brought in more viewers, had the show simply been properly advertised. This was the main issue. There was plenty of quality, but no publicity.
It utilized a multitude of things not used by mainstream American wrestling promotions, such as: fireballs, explosions, camera shaking, easily excited plants, explosions, piranha, scaffolds, and of course more explosions. Its broadcast team consisted of Kris Kloss and Bret Ernst (who make one realize how hard it can actually be to commentate) along with whatever musical guest they had for that episode. The announcer was an odd fellow by the name of Fabian Kaelin (better known as GQ Money in XPW), who seemed to be the living embodiment of ADHD.
The DVD itself features all ten episodes, including the unaired finale and the 10 online episodes, along with a slew of special features, the highlight being alternate commentary by the production team and various wrestlers. It is available through Amazon. Protip: watch it in marathon mode. This will have it go through the TV episodes along with the online episodes without breaks.
It is rather tragic that this promotion crumbled when it did. It had a diverse array of talent, entertaining matches and segments, and plenty of potential. It could have easily become a guilty pleasure for many. Go out and snag it. It’s not an expensive purchase, and is pretty entertaining, if sometimes in an “it’s so bad, it’s good†way.
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