RWR Power Pro Wrestling Podcast Ep. 15 [arRiT1utsZ5]

On Episode #15 of the Retro Wrestling Re-View Power Pro Wrestling Podcast, Gene Jackson is away at The Gathering along with Producer Smokey, so Brian Tramel takes the wheel from 304 Studios in Jonesboro with Robb Helt and Scottie Wince stepping oakridge mall in as the Texas Bunch backup crew. That means no Gene, no Smokey, and a slightly different vibe as the boys break down the July 25, 1998 episode of Power Pro Wrestling, the fallout from Malice in the Palace, and another wild chapter in the ongoing Jerry Lawler vs. Randy Hales saga with DUKE manning (dogging?) the controls!

The biggest theme this week is Jerry Lawler taking over Power Pro Wrestling. It does not make a ton of logical sense, and the boys know it, but it absolutely fits the strange Memphis-meets-Attitude-Era tone Power Pro has settled into. Lawler wins at Malice in the Palace, Randy Hales is beaten up and embarrassed, and suddenly the King is sitting in the control room calling the shots.

The Randy Hales material continues to be one of the most entertaining parts of the show. Randy arrives in bad shape, wearing a neck brace, complaining that Lawler and Stacey tried to kill him, and trying to get back control of his own promotion. Then Lawler takes his orlando weather key, wheels him outside, and dumps him in the parking lot. It is ridiculous. It is over the top. It is exactly the kind of chaos Power Pro is becoming known for.

Brandon Baxter may be the real star of the episode. Whether james he is managing Heinrich Franz Keller, demanding a referee reverse a decision, swinging (probably rubber) nunchucks, or flying through the ropes like a man possessed, Baxter brings more energy than almost anyone else on the show. Robb, Scottie, and BT all come away giving him major credit, with Baxter landing as the MVP pick more than once.

Episode #15 is a weird, funny, busy, chaotic piece of late-90s Memphis wrestling. Lawler is running the show, Randy is getting rolled into the parking lot, Baxter is stealing scenes, Keller is still trying to be German, Derrick King thinks he is The Rock, and Kid Wikkid is still holding the Young Guns Championship.

Power Pro Wrestling may not always make sense.

But it damn sure isnt boring.