The North-South Connection

Shooting Sharp #5 - Building A Dynasty

Welcome to Shooting Sharp with Mike Rossi. This is Episode #5 - Building A DynastyMike hits on the News in the Wrestling World coming out of WWEs tour of Europe and the lead into AEW DynastyThe show Reviews AEW Dynamite, AEW Collision, as well as NXT, WWE Smackdown and WWE Raw before previewing AEW DynastyThen Mike runs through his rant of the week, gives out weekly superlatives and previews the week aheadJoin us every Tuesday for Shooting Sharp on the North South Connection Podcast Network

WWE WAR #71: Royal Rumble 1988

Welcome to WWE WAR: Wrestling Above Replacement! JT, Marcus & Producer Tim are breaking down each WWE "season" and giving a comprehensive by the numbers breakdown of each PPV event using a specific set of metrics.
In this episode, the boys continue the 1987-1988 WWE PPV season with a deep statistical dive on Royal Rumble 1988. They also continue to build their list of complete WWE PPV rankings based on the scoring system.
Do your personal ranking synch up with the WWE WAR formula? Tune in and find out!

ChroNoSo #45 - WWF SuperStars, PrimeTime. HBK Unreleased DVD & More

It’s… ChroNoSo! The North-South Connection Podcast Network takes you down memory lane each month by exploring one match from WWE history.
This month on ChroNoSo, the crew dives into the start of June 1990. They also cover other matches, segments & events from PrimeTime Wrestling, SuperStars & More. 

No Holds Barred: The Podcast #158 - The Best Moment From Each WWE WrestleMania

First they were making the cut. Then they made the cut! And now... Aaron and JT are covering the gamut of wrestling, pop culture and beyond because... it is time to get NO HOLDS BARRED!
In this episode, JT and Aaron go through every WrestleMania and choose the best moment from each show! What did they get right? What did they get wrong? Listen and weigh in!
Come for the concept and the absurdity, stay for Bermuda, Kokomo, the Property AND Neville Brothers. JT! Aaron! NO HOLDS BARRED!

A La Carte With Keithie Episode #40 - NoSo95 Special - Talking Baseball

On a very special episode of A La Carte with Keithie we are joined by the man, the myth, the legend; ol' Pudge himself, Petey Winson.
 
Today, the guys discuss the 94 strike and into the 95 season where we get the Full Petey of details surrounding the whole deal. And what an interesting story it is of greed & lust, well, not lust, but just greed. 
 
The boys then talk about the upcoming season and we hear Vinnie Vegas' Corner on who to bet the house on to win the World Series. 
 
Don't watch strike three pass you by and listen to this explosive homer of an episode.

Extreme Three Way Dance #135: ECW TV 12/24/99 - 12/31/99

From the eagle’s nest, high above the ECW arena, this is the Extreme Three Way Dance! In this episode, JT, Jenny and Matt review the last three episodes of ECW television in 1999!
The troublesome trio talk about two TNN wars between Mike Awesome and Masato Tanaka, Cyrus's new gig, the potential directions for Rob Van Dam, Spike Dudley's elevation, closing out a millennium and so much more!
So jump on board, grab a chair and get ready to join this threesome for an extreme journey through time!

X-Position: An X-Men Podcast #15: X-Ternally Yours

"I don't care about which spirit ladies do what to which Cajuns, I'm here to stop a wedding."
 
One of the gradual changes apparent in season two's more episodic format, with more zoomed-in, character-centric stories is the corresponding zoom-out on human-mutant relations as a unifying theme. That's not to say it's gone entirely by the wayside - domestic terrorist group the Friends of Humanity and President Kelly's unpopular newfound support for mutants were introduced as conflicts in the season premiere and continue to simmer in the background. The more globe-trotting adventures of subsequent episodes are less overtly concerned with these familiar social dynamics than with the exploration of character backstories, but they can still be read as having something to say about the issue, albeit through more of a geopolitical lens (i.e. the oppression or exploitation of mutants by the state, as dictated by wavering national interests). So while the societal angle might have ceased to be the driving force of every plot, it has managed to play some small part at least in all of this season's one-and-done installments.
 
That is, until "X-Ternally Yours."
 
Here we have the first episode of X-Men to be completely divorced from the social implications of mutants in the world at large. That's not necessarily to say the plot is worse off for it -- just that it is undeniably laden in backstory and melodrama. It's Gambit's turn to play protagonist, in a tale of star-crossed lovers with a little Cajun flair. There's perhaps an irony to be observed in the fact that the Thieves and Assassins, so caught up in their insular, centuries-old feud, fail to recognize how the existence of mutants could drastically shift the balance of power, absent the involvement of an ...external... benefactor. As it stands, both Guilds are completely indifferent to Gambit's status as a mutant, which could serve as a convincing motive for the Thieves in particular to bring him back into the fold. The episode has no time for that, however, as it must devote its runtime to establishing the stakes between these warring factions, the role of the tithing ceremony, contrivances to undermine said ceremony, Gambit's history with his jilted bride-to-be, and the X-Men doing their level best to untangle it all. Much of this is deeply silly, of which the script seems keenly aware as it gives Wolverine in particular some choice one-liners that threaten to invalidate the entire conflict. And yet, "X-Ternally Yours" manages to remain more charming than it is disposable by taking advantage of a fun setting and ratcheting up the soapy entertainment so intrinsic to some of the most memorable X-Men comics.
 
Marvel was understandingly eager to capitalize on Gambit's growing popularity at this time as a new, breakout star character. Striking while the iron was hot, and in an effort to gauge the X-Man's potential as a solo headliner, an eponymous limited series was published that would provide much of the source material for "X-Ternally Yours." In another serendipitous example of cross-media symmetry, said series wound up being released concurrently with the episode's airing (issue #3 of 4 was a little over two weeks away from hitting stores and newsstands). As a standalone television episode, it is less successful than its comics counterpart in giving Gambit a mythology to call his own. That said, given Gambit's versability as a natural lead in any number of genres, from action, to adventure, to romance, to crime, it's curious why Marvel felt that such convoluted world-building was additive in the first place. Regardless, positioning Gambit as a spin-off character was less of a concern for the animated series. Factoring in the production timeline for comics versus that of animation, the show staff would've been working from incredibly early drafts and concept art. When taken as an adaptation of a story that had yet to even be told, it could've turned out a lot worse.
 
X-TRA: Ghost Rider, who "appeared" as a brief mental image during Gambit's mind scan in "The Final Decision" (S1E12), regrettably does not factor into this blast from the past. Other than serving as one of the series many cameos inserted by director Larry Houston, character's significance to Gambit is presumably referencing an unlikely comics crossover: the team-up between Ghost Rider and the X-Men against parasitic aliens the Brood set in New Orleans! Spanning X-Men #8-9 and Ghost Rider #26-27 during the tail end of Jim Lee's tenure as X-Men co-plotter and artist in 1992, this story features the first appearance of Bella Donna Boudreaux and introduction of the Guilds, setting the stage for Gambit's 1993 limited series and its deep dive into the lore.

Shooting Sharp #4 - Opening the Beyond

Welcome to Shooting Sharp with Mike Rossi. This is Episode #4 - Opening the BeyondMike has a special episode this week as he interviews Beyond Wrestling Owner and Founder Drew Cordeiro. Drew runs down the history of Beyond, speaking to some of the concepts over the years including Uncharted Territory from the past and Wrestling Open of the Present and FutureWhether an existing fan or Beyond or a potential new fan, learn about one of the longest running Independent Wrestling Companies in the United States and how different the Independent Wrestling world is now versus pre Pandemic. Join us every Tuesday for Shooting Sharp on the North South Connection Podcast Network.

ChroNoSo #44 - WWF MSG, SuperStars, PrimeTime, Wrestling Challenge & More

It’s… ChroNoSo! The North-South Connection Podcast Network takes you down memory lane each month by exploring one match from WWE history.
This month on ChroNoSo, the crew dives into the start of May 1990. They also cover other matches, segments & events from Madison Square Garden, PrimeTime Wrestling, SuperStars & More. 

NoSo95 Live Watch: WCW Uncensored 95

Welcome to NoSo95... our special yearlong tribute to the year that was 1995!
And today, for your viewing and listening pleasure... the year is 1995, the place is Tupelo, Mississippi at the Tupelo Colosseum... which is the site of one of the finest, most entertaining wrestling shows of all time: Uncensored 1995!
Join host Jennifer Smith and some of your favorite North-South Connection Podcast Network personalities for a very special live watch celebrating the 30th anniversary of this incredible wrestling event! Including battles such as the King of the Road match, Harlem Heat vs. The Nasty Boys in a wild brawl through the concession stand, Hulk Hogan versus Vader in a strap match and more! Please join us as we celebrate the anniversary of this amazing wrestling PPV!