SURVIVING THE GAME
“To be more than a conqueror. You have to learn to enjoy the pain. If you want to survive the game.”
The PRIME logo flashes repeatedly as “Surviving the Game,” by Skillet grows into heavy metal rumbling, screen transitioning to a flashing Culture Shock ‘22 logo. The music slows, a partition running down the center of the screen. The left side flows through the arenas of Culture Shocks of the past, while the right side pans across the current-day MGM Grand Garden Arena. The images that are to come on either side are somewhere between real-time and slow motion, bodies of PRIME wrestlers moving like they’re under water.
“You can try to defeat me, you don’t know it’s the pain that’ll feed me,
and I’m gonna take back what you took me for.”
Dusk lifts Jonathan Winters at Culture Shock ‘07 left of the partition, dropping him toward the mat for a brainbuster. It rolls into the right screen and into ReVival 3, where Hayes Hanlon takes a German suplex from “The New World Savior,” Julian Bathory
“All the bones that you’re breakin’, you pretend that you’re the one that can save me ,
now I’m takin’ it back, it was never yours.”
Jason Snow thrusts the powerful superkick known as “Snake Eyes” at Culture Shock ‘09, his leg disappearing into the partition. The boot of Impulse enters on the right side colliding with the jaw of Darin Zion at ReVival 1.
“Fightin’ for my focus, give the pain a purpose
Light the fire inside, feel it come alive.”
Center ring, “Your Personal Jesus” Hoyt Williams trades big right hands with “The Bad Dog,” Wade Elliott in 2009. Panning over into the right screen, Garbage Bag Johnny delivers a couple right hands against The Anglo Luchador at ReVival 3.
“Show ’em what I’m made of, victories for the brave ones,
who never bowed a knee when it’s do or die.”
Nitz Donnelly sprints across the ring at Culture Shock ‘08, but runs toward the spinning elbow of “The Underground Pimp,” Tyler Rayne. Before we can see the elbow blast into Donnelly’s face, the two disappear into the partition, where the spinning body of Rezin emerges to connect with a heel kick on Solomon Richards during ReVival 1.
“Ooone moore tiiiime,
SURVIVIN’ THE GAME!”
Missing the super kick known as “Snake Eyes,”, Jason Snow finds himself wrapped up in the clutches of Brandon Youngblood, who heaves him overhead for a German Suplex in 2010. Snow disappears into the partition, and King Blueberry enters on the right, taking a belly-to-belly suplex from Doozer.
“I can be unstoppable! Gonna walk through hell, gonna shake the walls!
Survive, survivin’ the game!”
The Dual Halo. 2009. Danny Ferguson drops off the shoulders of “The InHuman Being,” Tchu, who locks in a sleeper hold. He starts dropping him to the mat for “The Downfall,” but instead we slide into the right screen to see Nova, “The Risen Star,” plant Cancer Jiles with a double-arm DDT at ReVival 3.
“Livin’ the impossible, I’m the champion, indestructible!
Survive! ’cause I’m,
SURVIVIN’ THE GAME!”
At Culture Shock ‘09, “The Murder Show,” Hessian, stands on a table, hoisting Fusenhoff into pile-driver position. He drops, but the image pans to the right to ReVival 2, where John Kennedy Royko Jr. crushes Shawn Warstein to the mat with a cradle piledriver.
“All the liars around me, like the wolves of the walls, they surround me,
in the face of the fear, I keep standin’ tall.”
Devin Shakur bolts across the ring, leaping at Easton Hall and leading with his elbow at Culture Shock ‘08, his body enters the screen’s partition, making way for Teddy Palmer, who collides into the midsection of Anna Daniels with a spear at ReVival 4.
“I come out like a lion, I was born to be demon-defiant,
and I won’t ever let this kingdom fall.”
Lindsay Troy leaps back off the turnbuckle in 2008, corkscrewing through the air on the left panel with “The Crowning Glory”, blending into ReVival 3 and Anna Daniels, finishing her own corkscrew to connect the “Cake or Death” on Nicholas Pfefferman.
“Show ’em what you’re made of, victories for the brave ones,
never bow the knee, ‘cause it’s do or die.”
On the left, Tony “The Grin” Gamble drapes across Nova’s back, just before tilting over for the “Bourbon for Breakfast.” Hayes Hanlon takes over on the right, Dusk across his broad back, tilting and slamming him into the mat with a Death Valley Driver at ReVival 5.
“Ooone moore tiiiime,
2009. High Flyer runs and leaps with a Yakuza kick aimed toward the head of “The Malice Man” Duke Williams. He fades into the partition, bringing us to ReVival 4, where “The Murder Daughter,” Cecilia Ryan drives both knees into Ria Nightshade.
SURVIVIN’ THE GAME!”
The left side highlights Asa ‘Fro’ Fountain, leaping from the top turnbuckle at Culture Shock ‘06 with an elbow aimed at the black heart of Sonny Silver lying on a table, then blends into Cancer Jiles, connecting an elbow drop of his own on Teddy Palmer at ReVival 5.
“I can be unstoppable! Gonna walk through hell, gonna shake the walls!
Survive, survivin’ the game!”
Garbage Bag Johnny crawls to a fallen Jason Snow at the Dual Halo in 2009. He exhaustively holds out an arm to drape across Snow’s chest, reaching into the partition and giving way to the flailing arm of Impulse as “The Last Diamond” Brandon Youngblood smashes him into the mat with a Samoan Drop at the ReVival 5 Main Event.
“Livin’ the impossible, I’m the champion, indestructible!
Survive! ’cause I’m,
SURVIVIN’ THE GAME!”
And then, the music shifts. Skillet trails off as something more aggressive, more powerful, takes over.
“Otherworld.”
The partition fades off the screen as the music from Final Fantasy X hammers in, the two sides merging together to reveal “The Final Fantasy” Seymour Almasy inside an all-but-collapsed steel cage at Culture Shock ‘11. He heaves a lifeless Jacob McKail off his shoulders, and lifts a knee to collide with Jacob’s unprotected face. A smug grin remains across his face as McKail falls awkwardly to the mat.
And then, somewhat eerily, The Final Fantasy looks to the screen, his face softening to a small smile.
Though it’s short lived, as we rush out of frame and into the absolutely raucous MGM Grand Garden Arena, the crowd surging to Almasy’s former entrance music. A quick pan around the arena from the ACE Network cameras show some signs the PRIMEates brought with them to the first supershow of the ReVival Era…
KING BLUEBERRY MUFFIN MAN
THE ICYHOT LUCHADOR
HOYT GAVE ME CROHN’S DISEASE
WHERE’S CYRUS?
IT’S GONNA GET MUSSY IN HERE!
PASS ME THE BUNDT, BOBBY DEAN!
LAST DIAMOND = FIRST CHAMP BACK
FUCK CANCER (JILES)
MELVIN ONLY DOES MISSIONARY
I HOPE ALL TWELVE SURVIVOR TEAMS HAVE FUN
I HOPE ELEVEN TEAMS IN SURVIVOR HAVE FUN AND MIKEY UNLIKELY STUBS HIS TOE
MESSIAH HAS MY WIFE
(next to this) EVERYONE HAS HAD HIS WIFE
I AM IN A CULT… NO THE OTHER ONE… NO THE OTHER OTHER ONE
I LIKE GLUE! (But really what’s all this about)
#LUVTHABRUVS
CECILIA RYAN HAS RESTING BITCHFACE
BOOK RIA NIGHTSHADE!
REZIN OWES ME $50
I’M SNS’S DD
OSU!
(next to it) I AGREE, GO DANGEROUS MIX!
Finally, we’re taken to the Commentation Station where PRIME’s Hall of Fame announcer duo sit, looking dapper as ever.
Nick Stuart: I. Have. Goosebumps. After TWELVE. LONG. YEARS. Welcome BACK – to CULTURE SHOCK!!!
Nick Stuart’s heavy words hang in the air, the MGM crowd bellowing into the rafters. A lightshow of PRIME blue ‘n’ white dances around The Garden.
Richard Parker: What a moment, Nick! I never thought we’d see another one!
Nick Stuart: It’s all here, my friend! Big matches, title shots! The only thing missing? The Dual Halo.
Richard Parker: Maybe in 2023?
Nick Stuart: If you want to ask Lindsay Troy, be my guest. But let’s focus on tonight. Dusk opens us up against Tapioca, and no doubt, Muriel Puddings. We kick off the return of the tag team division with Tag Team Survivor. And the Anglo Luchador looks to cash in a receipt against Balaam, the Mask of Malice after a devastating flogging at ReVival 5!
Richard Parker: On top of that, a Number One Contender’s Match for the Universal Title involving Anna Daniels, Teddy Palmer, Impulse, and Julian Bathory. The FIVE STAR TITLE MATCH FIVE-WAY, with Cecilia Ryan, Shawn Warstein, Hayes Hanlon, Jonathan-Christopher Hall, and Rezin!
Nick Stuart: And in its historic return, The Uni. Versal. Championship. The Tower of Babel, Brandon Youngblood squares up with “COOL” Cancer Jiles to honor the life of Seymour Almasy and cap off the Almasy Invitational Tournament, and ultimately crown our next. Universal Champion. This is BIG, Richard!
Richard Parker: Bet it all on black! Culture Shock is BACK, baby!