Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood Character Spotlight

Currently scheduled for release on November 16, Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood is the brutal sequel to Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home. The game's roster will boast more than 20 fighters this time around, a number of whom are returning favorites from last year's game. Last week we profiled the wrestlers Violent J, Shaggy 2 Dope, and Andrew WK--this week it's Mad Man Pondo, New Jack, and Supreme.

Mad Man Pondo

Real Name: Unknown

Height: 5 feet 11 inches
Weight: 235 pounds
Finishing Moves: "The Sign of Pondo"
Quote: "Pondo's the king of deathmatch!"

Young-man Pondo was bitten by the wrestling bug at the age of 5 in rural Illinois. He attended all wrestling shows within a six-hour driving radius with a family friend, traveling to St. Louis, Indiana, and Chicago to witness his favorite wrestlers in action--legendary names like Bruiser Brody, Abdullah the Butcher, and The Sheepherders. Teen-aged Pondo was lucky enough to spot Canadian Wrestling Hall of Famer Jos Leduc after a wrestling show in Evansville, Indiana, and ran across the street to shake the man's hand and profess his admiration for him. In the old days of wrestling, bad guys "lived their gimmicks," and Jos was no different. Jos Leduc pinned Pondo to the ground, bounced his head on the concrete, and punched him in the face repeatedly, bloodying his nose and blackening his eyes. Fortunately, Pondo's grandmother was able to convince the 6-foot, 300-pound monster to stop the beating. The next day at school, Pondo got his first taste of fame, when he showed up at school with black eyes, and the whole school was buzzing with the story of the kid who went toe-to-toe with Jos Leduc.

Among many things, Mad Man Pondo is an innovator, coming up with his own specialty match: "The Four Corners of Pain," which features a pit full of thumbtacks in one corner, a pit full of barbed wire in the second corner, a pit full of mousetraps in the third corner, and a pit full of broken glass in the fourth corner. He began working regularly around the country, always carrying a stop sign, and rapidly gaining a name for himself and his over-the-top style and specialty matches, as well as his public-access TV show, Skull Talk.

New Jack

Real Name: Unknown

Height: 6 feet
Weight: 225 pounds
Finishing Moves: "New Jack's Dome Drop"
Quote: "New Jack Like What?"

Born in Atlanta in 1962, New Jack is the "original gangsta" of wrestling. New Jack entered the world of wrestling in 1993. A three-time ECW Tag Team Champion (twice with Mustafa as part of The Gangstas and one with John Kronus), he's lived through the rise and fall of ECW. He has attacked his opponents with staple guns, crushed them with guitars, and jumped off balconies to slam them through tables. New Jack is a true survivor, and has the scars to prove it. In 2004, New Jack defeated Balls Mahoney, and together with Ricky Banderas he defeated Homicide and Bad Boy Bradley.

One last thing--did we mentioned that New Jack used to be a bounty hunter?

Supreme

Real Name: Lester Perfors

Height: 5 feet 10 inches
Weight: 285 pounds
Finishing Moves: "Mecha Toad Splash"
Quote: "Who Am I?"

Lethal, tattooed, and pierced are words to describe Supreme. He makes his video game debut in Backyard Wrestling 2, and his eyes are focused on the cash prize. Stay out of his way or pay the consequences.

If there is a case to be made that movies desensitize people, Supreme--who is also known as "the human horror film"--is a prime example. A fan of horror films since childhood, Supreme is demented, sadistic, and malicious. It would be easier on his opponents if winning the match were the first thing on his mind. But it's not--pain, suffering, and mutilation are. To Supreme, the man across from him in the ring isn't an opponent. He prefers to call them, "My victims, little sheep being led to a slaughter." Supreme used the style he calls "gore wrestling" to win FMW Hardcore tag titles and his precious King of the Deathmatch Title from the now-defunct XPW. For now he says his goal is to terrify anyone willing to play Backyard Wrestling 2.