Look out world, the Monday Night Wars are back.
Okay, not quite, but they definitely got far more exciting. While it’s not two competing promotions like the 90’s war between the WWE and WCW, it’s a delicious back to back offering featuring returning combatant WWE and it’s flagship Raw at 8pm, but it’s prefaced by the new kid on the block, WhatCulture Pro Wrestling (WCPW) and their new YouTube program, Loaded, which airs live from England at 5pm EST in North America (10pm in the UK).
Wait, what?
That’s right, a wrestling promotion that is indeed founded and created by entertainment website WhatCulture, a UK-based company who has become one of the most popular entertainment news sites on the web and YouTube, with their hilarious comedic info shorts that drip with a certain British snarkiness. Which is perfect for the world of professional wrestling.
Originally starting in 2006 as Obsessed With Film, WhatCulture has grown to a massive entertainment news site, from Star Wars to video games, launching a wrestling division and soon their videos, reviews, and lists became the hit of the internet. Their WTF Moments with King Ross are essential viewing following any major wrestling event.
WCPW was launched as a YouTube channel in May of 2016, and on June 27, 2016, they launched the debut episode of WCPW Loaded, a completely free YouTube exclusive wrestling program. Airing just before WWE’s Raw in North American, it started with a casual observation but is quickly becoming a cult favourite, in much the same way that Lucha Underground did in the past. Slick TV production, somewhere between Lucha Underground and NXT, combined with a storytelling that feels like it’s written by Douglas Adams and John Cleese, has made it one of the most enjoyable wrestling programs on the planet right now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvR3A3qzWVM
But it’s the roster that is the program’s bread and butter. The two “heads” of the promotion are two WhatCulture personalities, the Two Adams. Adam Pacitti is the face General Manager of the promotion, while his nemesis is Adam Blampied, the heel leader of the villainous faction BX, sort of the Eric Bischoff of WCPW’s nWo. But the rest of the locker room are stars none the less. In essence, WCPW has successfully launched what Jeff Jarrett has been trying to do for years now with his Global Force Wrestling (GFW) promotion. WCPW utilizes a core of wrestlers from some of the UK’s top indie promotions, like England’s Progress and Revolution Pro and Scotland’s ICW, and mixed in international stars from North America and beyond when they’re travelling through the areas. Their mainstays include such names as Grado, Big Damo, Joe Hendry, Doug Williams, Martin Kirby and El Ligero, but guest stars like former Ring of Honor World Champion Jay Lethal (who defended his title on a recent episode of Loaded episode), Will Ospreay, Noam Dar, and Aaron Stevens (aka Aron Rex in TNA, formerly Damien Sandow in WWE) also tape multi-episodes while in the area. Upcoming guests include Kurt Angle, Cody Rhodes, Drew Galloway and Ethan Carter III.
The best part is, if you haven’t heard of WCPW, that the promotion is still very much in it’s infancy. There’s only been seven episodes so far, and all are still available to watch on their YouTube channel. Episode eight airs this coming Monday August 28 and features a very special Guest GM for the evening, in former WCW/WWE General Manager, Eric Bischoff. And their very first PPV is coming on October 6, Refuse to Lose, and will feature Kurt Angle vs. the winner of a very special Invitational Battle Royale plus Cody Rhodes vs. Doug Williams amongst others. And the kicker is that the broadcast team will include WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross alongside wrestling legend Jim Cornette. Which will no doubt create some seriously hilarious opinions – after all, Cornette is a self professed hater of the “flippy doo” style of indie wrestling that many of WCPW’s stars execute.
So this weekend, here’s your homework. Binge watch the first seven episodes of WCPW Loaded.
Then come Monday, you’ll find yourself with the best appetizer for watching Monday’s Raw. But be careful. It may be so good that you’ll find the main entree a little less satisfying.
(Main Photo: wc.pw)
