It’s hard to think of a squash match as great, especially when a team’s opponents seemingly weight a combined 200 pounds. But that’s what happened when The North (Ethan Page and Josh Alexander) defended their Impact Tag Team Championship against The Creeps.
A different kind of squash
The North claimed they scoured the entirety of Canada for opponents worthy of the chance to win the titles, but when The Creeps came out, well… no one was surprised. They literally looked like kids pulled from an audience and the match resembled beginners facing seasoned stars.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7BZf7DVpII
With a boombox playing fan cheers, The North make quick work of their squash match, but they added something we never see in other promotions. Their sense of humor and imagination.
Instead of just a match then preening each other as is the case elsewhere, they had mannequins here and there around the ring dressed in different clothes.
They argued with the “fans” and smacked a couple around before, during, and after their match. It was a great heel-like moment we used to see regularly. It harkened back to when heels would humiliate fans instead of just toss out an insult or two. Sure, the fans were in on it as they were plants, meaning they previously agreed to take part or were family members or friends of someone in the promotion. But it was still something that various promotions have moved away from except for a storyline like with the Miz and his father.
It’s some of what’s missing today
It’s a cool piece of heel history that’s often missing in today’s wrestling (obviously prior to the shutdown), and it’s missed.
There was something special about Ted Dibiase offering cash to fans to eat dog food, to Rick Rude’s kiss causing a woman to faint, and so on. It made us hate them a little more and cemented them as the heels they were.
A lot of the reason for these moments stopping is because fans become irate to the point they ruin it for everyone else. On social media, people have demanded that Brock Lesnar be suspended and/or fired for attacking Dominic Mysterio despite knowing it’s part of the storyline.
Some wanted MJF fired for flipping off a kid at a autograph signing event. He’s a heel, and he was doing what heel does.
These events are supposed to enrage us against the heels. It’s part of the show.
What The North did was with mannequins, so it’ll be ignored, but it was an awesome throwback to bygone eras where heels.
Impact is often treated like the cockroach of professional wrestling — despite what many wish, it just won’t die. And this is why. Many will criticize them for this or that, but they have top talented performers and have shown a great deal of imagination to capture out attention, and this was another bit along that line.
If nothing else, they managed to create the best squash match I’ve ever seen.
SUBSCRIBE NOW: Get TheOvertimer’s Hottest Stories, Breaking News and Special Features in your email, CLICK HERE!
