Welcome to the seventh episode of CC Powerslam, Capsule Computers Wrestling Podcast! In our seventh episode, the CC Crew discuss their predictions of WWE’s No Way Out PPV and how Luke was right about Ziggler and Kane getting title shots.
Cast: Luke Halliday, Jahanzeb Khan and Dustin Spencer
We at Capsule Computers simply love the glorified male soap opera that is known as Professional Wrestling. In fact, we love it so much that we decided to share our love for this glorious sport in the form of our podcast series, CC Powerslam. You can also check out our monthly Pay Per View coverage for the World Wrestling Federation, and now Total Non-Stop Action Wrestling. With our passionate love for watching grown men pretending to beat each other up, we couldn’t help but notice the presence of Australia’s home grown wrestling federation at Supanova 2012.
This weekend at the Supanova pop culture convention, the Australian Wrestling Federation (AWF) was present in full force just like last year. They had an entire ring set up at the middle of the convention, with wrestlers of the AWF working matches in front of the live audience. It’s a smart way to promote and spread awareness, introducing their wrestling product to a whole host of pop culture enthusiasts.
Now it’s no secret that professional wrestling and little people go together like butter on toast, just ask WWE superstar Hornswoggle, and the AWF maintained this time honoured wrestling tradition by having actor Verne Troyer (best known for his role as Mini-Me in the Austin Powers trilogy of movies) serve as the guest announcer for the matches. The matches that followed did what they were supposed to do, entertain the crowd there, and needless to say there were plenty of laughs but at the same time some decent wrestling matches.
You can check out one of the matches embedded here for your viewing pleasure, a match that serves as a classic homage to the era when professional wrestling was, and perhaps rightfully so, a circus act.
Everyone’s favourite flamboyant voice actor, Vic Mignogna, made an appearance at Supanova Sydney 2012 in the Madman Area for his panel discussion. But no this was not your ordinary panel discussion, this panel had a sing along of the Dragon Ball Z Kai theme song as well, so Supanova Sydney 2012 was official Vic’d.
Vic Mignogna as you probably know is an eccentric fellow with a huge personality. When he stepped on stage in the Madman Area the crowd erupted with applause at the his very presence. That’s a true testament to the popularity of this man. As you can imagine the audience had plenty of questions or him and Vic had no problem getting up close and personal with the audience.
Special thanks need to go out to Madman for providing the stage for Vic Mignogna’s panel and of course to the man himself for returning to Supanova, an event he has graced several times before. It was certainly great to see the excitement on the face of Vic’s fans and his interaction with them that made for an ultimately very enjoyable panel.
The voice of Young Goku and Gohan from the Dragon Ball franchise, Stephanie Nadolny, made her presence felt in the Madman Area at Supanova Sydney 2012 when she held her panel discussion with fans.
She discussed the Dragon Ball franchise and her career as a voice actress as well as taking various questions from the audience. She even rubbed elbows with some fans for signing and meet and greets as well as mock up kamehameha posed photographs (such as the one to the right).
It was a great panel in general for both fans of Stephanie Nadolny and the series she was a part of. Special thanks go out to Madman for providing the stage for Stephanie’s Panel and of course to Stephanie for travelling down under for the convention.
Australian anime and media publisher, Madman Entertainment, had a strong presence at this year’s Supanova pop culture convention in Sydney, Australia. Like previous years, Madman were well prepared for the occasion with not just the usual stall where they were promoting their anime products, but also organising a full fledged cosplay competition.
The cosplay competition was not a typical one, where participants just come and pose in their costume, instead it involved a bit more effort on their part. Participants in the cosplay competition were required to perform dramatic reenactments from the anime or video game that were cosplaying, in the role of the respective character that they were portraying.
They had a nice set up where a screen played footage of the particular scene that each participant was acting out. The cosplayers came from numerous anime and video games, such as the Legend of Zelda and even obscure games like Magna Carta.
The sketches were quite dramatic to say the least, in particular the opening sketch which was based on the anime and manga series, D.N.Angel. Tragedy struck has the girl fell from the stage, there was a bit of commotion and the medics rushed into action. Unfortunately she was severely injured from the fall and our wishes go out to her and wish her a speedy recovery.
The winner of the contest was a cosplayer by the name of Roxas Wind, who was able to wow the fans in attendance with his sketch based on the ending sequence of the Xbox 360 Role Playing Game, Magna Carta 2. He played as the main protagonist, Juto, and delivered an energetic performance complete with on-stage props, not to mention he was dressed well for the part.
Congratulations to Roxas Wind, and a special thank you to Madman Entertainment for organising the contest which the fans in attendance enjoyed.
Suzie Plakson, former Star Trek star and guest star on How I Met Your Mother made an appearance at Supanova Sydney 2012 and hosted her own seminar in which she spoke on her lengthy career and what it takes to make it in the industry as well as what projects she is working on now.
A major focal point of her seminar was her upcoming audio book, The Return of King Lillian, a book that she has been wanting to write for nearly 30 years now. She spoke of how she has created clay sculptures of characters and dreamt of the world of The Return of King Lillian and spoke at length about the process of putting pen to paper. It was indeed an interesting seminar for both fans of Suzie Plakson and aspiring writers or artists.
She also appeared for autograph signings and meet and greets with fans. She was a very lively lady and more than happy to engage with her fanbase, especially given that she has so many different fanbases (Star Trek, How I Met Your Mother etc).
Buffy: The Vampire Slayer star Mercedes McNab headed down under this past weekend for the Supanova Sydney 2012 convention and was on stage for a panel discussion during the event in which she took some questions from her adoring fans and spoke about all manner of things including what it’s like to be part of the Whedonverse and the unexpected success of Buffy.
A particular tid-bit of interest to fans would be that she did not expect Buffy: The Vampire Slayer to be successful. She had signed on to the series at the young age of 16 and it was nothing but a surprise when the series became a runaway success, “We were on a brand new network and the show was based off a B-movie, no one expected a spin-off to come of it or such a great fan reaction. No one could anticipate how welcomed and received the show was.”
Outside of her panel discussion, she was also available for autograph signings and meet and greets with fans which would have been an undoubtedly incredible experience for fans of Mercedes McNab and of course the Whedonverse in general.
During the Supanova Sydney 2012 event, Nintendo of Australia made their present felt with a friendly Kid Icarus: Uprising tournament at the event. Fans of the game were encouraged to bring along their 3DS console and duke it out with other players.
People in attendance were able to visit the Nintendo booth and plug in their 3DS to one of the many chargers and engage in combat with one another in the Kid Icarus multiplayer and it was a damn good time to be playing Kid Icarus as the games best of the best duked it out in angelic combat.
Nintendo was also kind enough to give out Kid Icarus: Uprising AR Cards to those who brought along their 3DS consoles. The AR Cards were event exclusive, so if you managed to nab one of them your quite a lucky like angel. Despite being called a tournament it was an odd one at that due to the fact that there was no real winners or losers but it was the fun that all the people playing together had that counts.
TNA Slammiversary X Company: TNA Wrestling Location:Arlington, Texas Arena:College Park Center Date: June 10th 2012 Price:$35.99 – Order Here
Overview:
TNA Wrestling is 10 years old, but boy do they have to pull a rabbit out of the hat if they want to survive any further. TNA’s hasn’t been doing well in the PPV market or in TV ratings, but did this PPV change anything lets find out. Slammivsary has been hyped by TNA as their most important event ever. It is also TNA’s first time in Texas which is TNA president Dixie Carter’s home state. There were high hopes coming into Slammivsary, but boy did they not deliver.
The show starts with Hulk Hogan coming to the ring, and says TNA is 10 years old. Then makes Joe vs Ares an X Division Title match.
The one problem here is that matches do not need Hogans stamp of approval to be good. Hogan was not something TNA needed, and he’s quite the buzz kill, when he’s out there.
X Division Championship Match – Samoa Joe vs. Austin Ares(C)
Possibly one of the best matches in the last 2 years. This is the reason I still watch TNA. This was an old school TNA style match. Ares and Joe pulled out all the stops, and the crowd was into it. There were many times when it looked like Joe was going to win the title, but then Ares would comeback, and completely turn the tables. Just a great high impact back and forth match. The match ended with Ares retaining the X Division Championship after hitting Joe with his patented Brain buster.
For the First match on the card it would be hard to follow those two, but you could believe that TNA was going to make this a great night for wrestling fans. Also I would like to note that it was a great decision by TNA to get rid of the weight limit for the title. So we’ve started the night on a high note lets keep it going.
Overall 5/5
Kid Kash vs Hernandez
The ECW original/ former X Division Champion Kid Kash returned, as well as Hernandez. Unfortunately this was a squash match, and shouldn’t have been on the card. They just had a great match with Joe and Ares, and they followed it up with this garbage match. First off Hernandez has a huge size advantage, and Kash is a brawler who can do high flying. The problem here is that there was no build up to this match so it’s like management said Hernandez go beat Kash for 5 minutes., and that what happened, the match ended with Hernandez pinning Kash.
The one thought I had throughout this match was they could have used the time to let one of the matches they built up for the past 2 months to a month. I was happy to see Kid Kash back, but other then that this match was terribly and unnecessary. On the bright side this was not the worst match on the card.
Overall 1.5/5
Television Champion Devon and Garett Bischoff vs Robbie E and Robbie T
There are so many problems with this match it’s not even funny. For those of you who haven’t watched TNA in the last year let me bring you up to speed. Garett Bischoff is the son of Eric Bischoff, and much like his father he can’t wrestle and therefore has no business in the ring, at least not yet. You can tell that Garett is trying to learn the craft, but it is painful to watch. Now onto the match. Now Devon won the TV title from Robbie E back in March. So the two have been warring for the title back and forth since Devon won the title. Now Robbie T is Robbie E’s bouncer. So Garett is there to back Devon up. The match had it’s moments, but wasn’t all that entertaining, and would have been more suited for Impact rather then a PPV.
Unfortunately I could care less for anybody in the match, but it was a decent match with the baby faces wining so the crowd was pleased at last.
Overall 2/5
Number 1 contenders match for the TNA world Championship – Mr. Anderson vs Rob Van Dam vs Jeff Hardy
This match was a solid triple threat match. All three contestants put on a show. Having two high flyers and a mat guy against each other made for an interesting match. Much like the Ares vs Joe match this thing went all over the place, and the crowd went absolutely nuts. It was looking like this was going to be RVD’s night, but Mr Anderson pulled out the victory after he took Hardy out of the match and Van Dam attempted Rolling Thunder on Anderson. Anderson dodged the move, and hit the Mic Check for the 1 2 3. This match was a pleasure to see definitely better then the last 2 matches, not quite as good as past matches these guys have had in TNA, but it was really good.
Overall 3/5
Crimson vs James Storm Open Challenge.
The Undefeated Crimson issued an open challenge to anyone in the world as he has been undefeated for over 470 days. Crimson even went as far as talking smack about Goldberg. So would Goldberg Answer the Challenge? The answer is no but the Cowboy James Storm would. It was great to see James storm return. Unfortunately the match was just over 2 minutes long with James Storm ending the streak. For a 2 minute match it was pretty good, but again it was a 2 minute match. This is certainly one of the matches that would have used the time from Kash vs Hernandez match or the Tag match.
Overall 2.5/5
TNA President Dixie Carter came out, and called the locker room to come join her on the stage to introduce the first inductee into the TNA Hall Of Fame. After the locker room appeared on the stage they revealed that Sting was the first inductee. A Video Package then played. Sting ten made a speak saying that he had no idea that this was going to happen. The crowd began chanting thank you Sting. Sting then thanked the crowd and Thank you Sting and YES YES YES Chants began filling the arena.
TNA Knockouts Championship Match – Miss Tessmacher vs Gail Kim(c)
TNA does women’s wrestling matches well, and really show what they can do this match was no exception. The match went back and forth with Gail having the upper hand for most of the match. It almost looked like Gail was going to retain, but Tessmacher would one up Gail, and capture her first title ending Gail’s 7 month reign as champion.
Overall 4/5
Anything Goes Match – Joseph Park vs Bull Ray
This match should have not taken place just horribly worked match. There is nothing good to say about this match. TNA needs to not have matches like this. The worst match on the card maybe the worst match TNA has ever had. There were no Moves just slaps to the face and pushing, and a broken table nothing good come out of this match. Joseph Park may have one the match thanks to his brother Abyss, but not even the appearance of Abyss would save this match.
Overall 0/5
Hogan came back out to introduce Christian. Christian grabbed the mic, and made a joke about how TNA now uses a 4 sided ring instead of 6 sided, like when he was in the company. Christian then revealed the top moment in TNA history which was Sting’s debut as a full time wrestler.
TNA Tag Team Championship Match – A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle vs Christopher Daniels and Kazarian(c)
The best tag team match in a long time. The build up to the match was great. and the Participants did not disappoint. Kurt Angle proofed that he still can hang with younger talent. Daniels and Kazarian play really good heels. This match and setup was classic Kevin Sullivan setup where they let the heels get over on TV, and let the baby faces get over on the PPV. The match ended with taking out Daniels of the outside, and Kurt locking Kazarian in the ankle lock causing Kazarian to submit making Styles and Angle the new TNA tag champ.
Overall 4.5/5
TNA Heavyweight Championship Match – Sting vs Bobby Roode(c)
It’s Time for the main event the “Icon” Sting vs Boddy Roode for the Title. The Match it self was great with Sting getting his revenge on Roode for taking him out back in March. It looked like Sting was going to walk out of Slammiversary not only as TNA’s first Hall of Fame inductee, but as the new TNA world champion, but it was not meant to be as Roode once again won unclean by smashing a beer bottle over the head of Sting. It almost looked like Sting would kick out as the bottle didn’t break, but Roode out the 1 2 3.
Roode has great matches, and they are enjoyable. Sting knows how to put on a entertainment match, but once again like all of Roode’s matches since becoming champion they do these stupid finishes. I understand that Roode is a heel, but even a heel can win a match clean. TNA doesn’t seems to realize that. The match was great finish was not.
Overall 3.5/5
Overall
Slammiversary X was suppose to one of TNA’s biggest PPV of the year. and less then half the card was worth watching. This was not good for TNA at all. One can only hope that TNA will start improving there PPV’s and start making fans want to care out the company. TNA really has to start working on better story lines in general. Hopefully Destination X will be a much better PPV.
Yep, you heard that right. After a short wait, Pokemon Conquest has hit the United States and is ready to bring it’s unique stylings to the franchises’ line-up. Now, most should know what Pokemon Conquest is about by now, but if you’re still in the dark, here is another run-down on what to expect.
Pokemon Conquest takes place in the region of Ransei, and lets players recruit and battle with up to 200 Pokémon from the main games in a strategy-esque form. There are 36 Warriors to control as a whole who are all linked to their Pokemon. Up to 12 can be on the battlefield at once as well, allowing for six-on-six battes.
“Pokémon Conquest offers new adventures for fans of any experience level,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “By stepping into the role of a Warlord who must form alliances to unite the region, they can discover a whole new way to enjoy the strategic battles and imaginative storylines that the Pokémon franchise is known for.”
Also included is a wireless mode, where two owners of the game can battle locally to testy their strengths. Yes, it looks fantastic and should be a sweet breath of fresh air for the series, and you can all run to your favorite retailer and pick up Pokemon Conquest now, as it’s now available everywhere. Look for our review soon.
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The voice of Young Goku and Gohan from the Dragon Ball franchise, Stephanie Nadolny, made her presence felt in the Madman Area at Supanova Sydney 2012 when she held her panel discussion with fans.
Suzie Plakson, former Star Trek star and guest star on How I Met Your Mother made an appearance at Supanova Sydney 2012 and hosted her own seminar in which she spoke on her lengthy career and what it takes to make it in the industry as well as what projects she is working on now.
During the Supanova Sydney 2012 event, Nintendo of Australia made their present felt with a friendly Kid Icarus: Uprising tournament at the event. Fans of the game were encouraged to bring along their 3DS console and duke it out with other players.
