Category: Wrestling

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Reviews Wrestling

Mae Young Classic Episode 2 Review

 

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Nice highlight video of the first episode and quick summary of this week’s competitors before the standard opening video.

 

Round 1 (continued):

 

5) Xia Li vs. Mercedes Martinez *3/4

Interesting setup here with a debuting wrestler against a 16 year veteran and Mercedes really sinks her teeth into it, doing an excellent job of getting herself over in the short time given in her intro package. In under a minute we know her experience, style, outlook, and attitude. Well done. Xia’s wisely emphasizes her martial arts background and desire to prove herself in this new environment.

Mercedes mocks Xia and wipes her hand after the handshake to a fair amount of heat, which the announcers immediately undercut by saying she’s “having fun with the inexperienced Xia” and ridiculously talking about how it was to intimidate through the language barrier. JR’s also still talking about single elimination tournaments like it’s an alien concept. I’m going to try to ignore the commentary dumpster fire from here on out so I don’t go insane.

This is kept brief, with Xia countering Mercedes’ superior grappling skills with hard strikes to show fighting spirit while being overmatched. The veteran ties Xia up in a leg trap dragon sleeper for the submission victory in short order though. Made its point. Xia is of course super green and a bit awkward, but she kept it basic, connected with everything, and there’s definitely potential for her going forward.

 

6)  Marti Belle vs. Rachel Evers – UGH (zero stars)

Evers is new to me, while I’ve seen a fair bit of Belle in Shimmer and elsewhere. She’s honestly a pretty generic heel who’s ok but doesn’t remotely live up to her near decade of experience. Evers’ video package focuses on her being adaptable in style and growing up the daughter of Paul Ellering yet isolated from his profession until now. Marti’s touts her being a “powerful Dominican woman” with “street smarts.” Neither did much to make the viewer care.

This was the first actively bad match of the tourney. Pace, timing, execution were all off all match long, and most of it looked to be on Marti’s end. At one point the relative rookie actually had to stop, walk over and pull the wrestler with seven+ years more experience back into position for a senton when Marti forgot what they were doing and started to roll away. Neither looked very good, but Rachel did look better between the two and was the right choice to advance (which may have been an audible do to Marti’s poor performance if rumors are to be believed).  Really though, either going to round 2 when Kay Lee Ray, Jazzy Gabbert, etc are already out is nonsense.

 

Wow, the placement of a clip of HHH telling the 32 participants to make the most of the opportunity they have right after that last match is (unintentionally?) biting.

 

7) Miranda Salinas vs. Rhea Ripley *1/4

I know nothing of either competitor coming into this one. Miranda’s summary primarily explains her “look sets her apart,” she’s short (and doesn’t care), and was trained by Booker T. Rhea’s shows a quirky personality, highlights her nine year soccer career at just 20 years old and the kicking ability it gives her, and JR calls her “one of the most highly regarded performers in this tournament.” Am I supposed to think Miranda’s going to do anything except be demolished after that?

Indeed, the match lasts just long enough to Miranda to cheat a couple of times, the six foot tall Rhea to show off some nice dropkicks, a couple of strike exchanges, and Rhea kicking Miranda’s head off then hitting a full nelson slam for the win. Like Baszler’s and Mercedes’ matches this was about making a point, and it did.

Ok, I have to break my silence on the commentary for a minute. “These women don’t care about how they win. It’s just winning. Nothing wrong with that quite frankly – the losers go home.” YES THERE IS. There are RULES and you’re supposed to be praising those who do care and win while following them! How the hell are heels supposed to get heat when the announcers are advocating winning as everything and cheating as a normal, justifiable part of the match? Blah.

 

8) Mia Yim vs. Sarah Logan ***1/4

In a nice touch, Mia’s video mentions her devotion to raising awareness about domestic abuse and how she shared her own story to help others. Her martial arts background is spotlighted with clips that give a good idea of what to expect from her in the ring. The wild woman gimmick is an interesting hook for the former Crazy Mary Dobson. The matchup is interesting, although given Logan appeared in a losing effort to Peyton Royce at NXT Takeover tapings just days before this aired I’m not sure why we’re supposed to believe she has a chance here.

Solid back and forth match of a style we haven’t really seen yet in the tournament. Early the story was Logan countering Yim’s mat skills with ferocity and strikes, but of course Yim’s an accomplished striker herself and eventually lays in hard kicks to fight fire with fire. So Sarah adapts and goes to some submissions herself.

They have a great exchange of seated palm strikes and kicks at one point. Logan also hits some fun offense like a cartwheel dodge into a double knee strike and a fisherman suplex out of the corner. Mia keeps wearing her down with German suplexs, etc though and eventually hits “Eat Defeat” for the win. This edges out Laith vs Gabbert as the best so far. Mia’s got Shayna in round 2.

 

——-

Presentation and background packages were little better this time overall, although the commentary’s still a problem. Format’s still fine, with two matches there to serve a specific purpose (which they did) and the best match in the main (let’s just forget about that other match in the middle).

Eight more matches left across two episodes for round 1, including two of the participants I’m most excited for (Savoy and Sane). Onward to episode 3.

Categories
Reviews Wrestling

Mae Young Classic Episode 1 Review

Finally getting a chance to dive into this, and am hoping to get caught up before the live final next week. Excited for this not only based on what I’ve heard, but also as a longtime fan of women’s wrestling as well as being familiar with a majority of the field. Nearly half of them have previously wrestled in Shimmer (a fantastic Chicago based women’s wrestling promotion – find more information here), and a number of other highly regarded wrestlers from around the world are involved as well.

 

Let’s get started.

 

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The tournament introduction narrated by Stephanie McMahon walks a line between appropriate and heavy handed / self indulgent.

 

Round 1:

1) Princesa Sugehit vs. Kay Lee Ray **1/2

The video packages seem quite short. Sugehit’s really gives no background on her other than the meaning of her name. Kay Lee Ray’s does a much better job getting her over, being just a little longer and using a fair amount of Shimmer footage to good effect. Never seen Sugehit before, while KLR’s a personal favorite.

I understand why Jim Ross and Lita were chosen as the announce team, but right off the bat they are all over the place and detracting from the action to a frustrating degree. JR comments about the tournament having a “very unique format: single elimination.” Uhm, actually single elimination ladder brackets is the most standard tournament format there is.

They spend the match trying to sell the “rookie” story of grappler Kay Lee Ray needing to ground high flying veteran Sugehit to have any chance (including constant criticism of KLR’s strategy EVEN WHEN SHE’S IN COMPLETE CONTROL OF THE MATCH. Seriously – WTF?), but every once in a while they remember that KLR is herself an eight year pro AND a high flyer herself and say something that contradicts all their previous points.  They repeatedly mention the talking point of Sugehit’s “confusing style” being hard to handle, yet she does pretty much NOTHING odd or unique in this match. It’s like they wrote a story before the actual match took place based and were sticking to it no matter what. Not a good first impression.

As for the match itself, it was a solid enough start to the tourney, though a little disjointed. A particularly great sequence saw KLR reverse a sunset flip attempt into gory bomb attempt, but Sugehit reverse that into a code red instead. Overall KLR looked better than Sugehit, and it’s a shame to see her out so early.

 

2)  Vanessa Bourne vs. Serena Deeb *1/4

Former cheerleader who’s only hook is apparently claiming to be more than that against former WWE star and redemption story for the tourney. No uncertainty here, and the short video packages do nothing to change that. Deeb did create the slightly bit of doubt/drama through eating the corner hard on a spear miss though, which was a nice touch. Nothing match otherwise, with Bourne mostly dominating in basic fashion (and looking a bit lost at times) until Deeb hit a “surprise” spear for the win.

 

 

3) Shayna Baszler vs. Zeda *1/4

The conversion Baszler’s made from MMA to pro wrestling has been incredible (as I’ve talked about here), and she’s been really impressive in Shimmer. I know nothing about Zeda. Her introduction as “representing China from Richmond VA” screams WWE stretching to make the tourney seem more international.

So the role model who’s trying to “be her own superhero” gets destroyed in 2 minutes by an unsportsmanlike bully who has three friends cheering her at ringside. I feel like literally ANY other story would have better here. Shayna’s the clear star, so crowd cheers her regardless of her being the heel. Just a squash, but with a beautiful finish that sees Baszler counter a guillotine into a suplex position then drops right into the choke. The point of Baszler’s choke being deadly was made, but her character and skills come across much better in longer, more even contests.  Rousey’s getting as much attention than the actual competitor, which is understandable but disappointing.

 

4) Jazzy Gabbert vs. Abbey Laith ***1/4 

Nice intro for Alpha Female (Gabbert), whose video has the best distillation of a competitor/character yet. Haven’t seen her wrestle before but obviously have heard quite a bit about her. Her opponent, the former Kimber Lee, references Mae Young as an inspiration and points out she indirectly inherited a finisher from Mae (the Alligator Clutch). That doesn’t bode well for the apparent favorite Gabbert.

One thing I have liked about the commentary is reference to past accomplishments, including acknowledging Laith as former Chikara Grand Champion (a hell of an achievement as she’s the only woman to hold that title). Gabbert comes out carrying a German flag and carries herself like a star.

Abbey goes straight at the imposing monster to little effect, and the combination of her determination and Gabbert just setting herself and playing immovable object fires the crowd way up. This was good, with both getting a chance to shine with some back in forth. Although I will say Gabbert shouldn’t be using rear naked choke in the middle of the match right after Baszler established it as instant death.

Unsurprisingly after the intro, Laith eventually counters into the Alligator Clutch for the win. Another curious early exit, but in terms of getting Abbey over as a threat by beating the imposing Gabbert mission accomplished.

——-

Decent beginning overall. The presentation isn’t what I’d hoped, from superficial video introductions to the competitors to disappointing commentary, but the important things still get across just enough. This round is definitely being built for episodic format, with some matches clearly more about making a point or just introducing someone in as little time as possible rather than extended action with longer ones to open and end each episode.

Effective enough, just remember it’s the early part of a tournament and not everything’s supposed to be tearing the house down at this point. Already wishing certain people had gone farther, but we’ll see how things shake out going forward. And I suppose some big matches needed to happen early to provide main events for each episode.

Twelve more matches left across three episodes for round 1. Onward to episode 2.

 

Categories
Japan Reviews Wrestling

SEAdLINNNG 8/24/17 Live Thoughts

August 24, 2017 in Tokyo, Japan

 

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During my first trip to Japan in 2015 my favorite match (well tied with one other) featured two incredible tag teams going full throttle competing for Ice Ribbon’s International Tag Ribbon Championships at Ribbonmania. When a best of three series of rematches (one hosted by each wrestler’s home promotion) was announced I was beyond excited, and ended up lucky enough to be able travel to see two of those three starting with here at my first ever SEAdLINNG show.

Although despite it being my first show under the SEAdLINNNG banner, I had previously seen all but two of the wrestlers live before, and that includes several personal favorites. On the other hand, one of the new to me in ring competitors is someone I have a large issue with watching/supporting and I feel I need to say something here. I had (and still have) mixed feelings about attending shows Yoshiko’s on, and I’m even more conflicted on her return to wrestling after eerily similar recent events with Sexy Star. There are a number of different angles and components that get into this (that I won’t expand upon here because it’d be longer than the review I’m trying to write), but for now I’ve chosen not to skip shows/matches she’s on in favor of supporting the other wrestlers on the shows (and for admittedly selfish reasons of not wanting to miss certain matches).

 

Alright, on to the show:

 

1) High Speed Match: Manami Toyota vs Maruko Nagasaki vs Kaho Kobayashi 

 

 

This was an amusing opener centered around the legend having some difficulty with the match concept (super quick counts and covers only valid after some sort of running move from what I could tell) and getting annoyed with special referee Natsuki Taiyo. She eventually adapted and outlasted the youngsters, picked up the win, then sold being exhausted from so much running. Amusing, particularly in watching Toyota’s protege Tsukka crack up at ringside at the various antics. 

 

2) Ultra U-7 Semi-Final: Yoshiko vs Mio Momono 

 

 

I hate to admit it given my previously mentioned personal bias, but Yoshiko was awesome here and this was easily the second best match of the night. She was a perfect monster for Mio attempt to outlast while just refusing to stay down under the larger, more experienced wrestler’s onslaught. The crowd was evenly split between heavy home promotion support for Yoshiko and visiting Marvelous fans (like me) going nuts for Mio. They went to time limit, then overtime where only a two count was needed. The heat for the nearfalls during that final portion was insane.

As I’ve previously gushed about, Mio is just incredible and shines even among the impressive crop of current Joshi rookies across all companies. Her timing, mannerisms, and technique are all well beyond normal for her experience level and she just keeps getting better every time I see her. Sky’s the limit if she keeps on this trajectory.

 

3) Ultra U-7 Semi-Final: Takumi Iroha vs Sareee 

 

 

The second semi-final also featured a Marvelous wrestler against a SEAdLINNG talent. Iroha’s incredible power eventually overwhelmed Sareee to send the former to the finals for another interpromotional match. This was quite good, but I do feel like they have a better match in them. I hope this rivalry continues and we get to see many more contests between the two.

 

4) TLC Match: Nanae Takahashi vs The Great Sasuke 

 

 

I found out about this match just a couple of days before the show, and what a treat it was to be there for. It exactly what it should have been: a spotfest featuring two honored veterans. I have to say even with all the crazy stunts and complicated ladder/chair spots, my favorite was a comedy one. Nanae was in the corner under a ladder and Sasuke essentially played whack a mole with a chair trying to hit her head whenever she poked it up between the rungs, only to have her duck back down and Sasuke hurt his own hands as the chair hit the ladder.

 

5) Best Friends (Tsukasa Fujimoto & Arisa Nakajima) vs Avid Rival (Misaki Ohata & Ryo Mizunami) 

 

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So here we are – the reason for this trip. Going into this match Avid Rival was up 1-0 in this series of 3 (having won at Wave on 8/12 in a match I haven’t seen), and things were tied between the teams overall if the first match in 2015 was considered.

 

 

As expected, this was excellent. The lack of finish (time limit draw) and time spent on some comedy put this just a touch below the other match I had seen from them, but that’s mild criticism. Best of the night and exactly what I was hoping for from two of the greatest teams in all of wrestling.

 

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Neither team was happy with the lack of resolution, and there was tension between the specific pairs of Ryo & Tsukka and Misaki & Arisa afterwards building to the final match at Ice Ribbon a few days later.

 

Main event) Ultra U-7 Final: Yoshiko vs Takumi Iroha

 

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It was fitting to have this main, given Best Friends vs Avid Rival didn’t have a finish and how over Yoshiko is in SEAdLINNNG. Her essentially being a heel who plays to the crowd is so uncomfortable. Don’t know if it was because of how engrossing Mio’s matches are or just the general structure, but I found it harder to look past my personal feelings on Yoshiko in this one. They still put on a hell of a match though. Good showing for Iroha in defeat in a back and forth power match. I wish Iroha had won for a multitude of reasons, one of the most relevant of which is a young outsider taking the tournament seems like a better story. Strong finish to the tournament regardless, and a large portion of the crowd was thrilled.

 

 

Great show overall, and an extremely good first impression made for SEAdLINNNG. Of course my favorite parts involved outside talent (and the resulting atmosphere, due to the rabid support of the Marvelous contingent), but the core roster members are also great wrestlers and a solid base to build around. Will be interesting to see more in the future.

 

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Japan Reviews Wrestling

Gatoh Move 8/26/17 Live Thoughts

August 26, 2017 in Tokyo, Japan

Gatoh Move’s Ichigaya shows are always unique and interesting given the venue (with small space and lack of ring) and how the performers use and adapt to it. For more detail see my previous reviews. Being summertime the building was a hotbox, but a slight cross breeze from the open window frames and cold packs handed out as the show began helped a lot (Gatoh Move is incredibly considerate and thoughtful of its fans in things like that).

As usual for Gatoh Move the show opened and closed with a song/dance, but Emi sat out this time. The opening was a solo by Aasa and the closing performed by her, Riho and Kotori. The card looked interesting, with a big tournament main event, a men’s match to open, and several “outside” guests (perhaps in place of Obi, who’s out injured, and Mitsuru, who couldn’t make this event – hope to see both back soon).

Pictures are not allowed during the show but can be taken afterward, so my pics here won’t contain anything from the matches and will only be of the roundtable and dancing following the shows.

 

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First was Masahiro Takanashi  against Yamada Taro. This was a great example of the different styles that can work in Ichigaya Chocolate Square’s unique environment. It was near entirely grapple based, with the combatants trying to out power each other on the mat. Solid, interesting opener.

Up next was a tag match of Kaori Yoneyama & Emi Sakura vs Riho & Saki. Little touches like Emi’s glare as Riho was introduced as Gatoh Move’s Ace and somewhat of a heel edge shown by Kaori & Emi gave this additional depth. This was a hard hitting, back and forth encounter with some ref involvement in the finish as he was out of place and used to trip Saki into a pin by the crafty veterans, giving an out to Riho & Saki and seeming to set up additional angles during the roundtable.

 

 

 

The main event was the second semi-final of Gatoh Move’s title tournament to determine who would face Riho in the finals at their September Greenhall show.  Kotori vs Aasa was appropriately treated like a big deal and felt important. The outcome was never really in doubt with Kotori on a march to face her tag partner in the finals, but they did an excellent job building drama for near falls regardless and put on a main event that is a testament to their skill even at relatively short times in wrestling.

They went right for each other from the first second in another match that made good use of the environment yet felt different from the other two on the show. I continue to love Aasa’s gimmick, and her energetic onslaught trying to overwhelm the more experienced Kotori was a perfect story for the match as the latter was forced to get creative in countering Aasa’s exuberance. One particularly great spot involved them fighting out the window then running around the building back through the door. Kotori entered first and tried to ambush Aasa, but the latter just BARRELED through Kotori with one of her Vader splashes instead. As expected Kotori eventually prevailed, and she beamed pride throughout the roundtable and even during the meet and greet afterward while Aasa did likewise with little spots of disappointment and despondence. Great touches from both. Koroti vs Riho to crown a champion should be great.

 

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I enjoyed this from top to bottom as it had three diverse, very good matches. Fun time.

 

 

Categories
Reviews Wrestling

Evolve 91 and Progress NYC Live Review

August 12, 2017 in Queens, NY

Evolve returned Queens yesterday, but in a new venue at Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities Center, presumably to better handle the large crowd expected for Progress wrestling’s NY debut in the second half of the double header.

 

I want to spend the majority of this talking about the wrestling, so let me address this upfront: the venue turned out to be a horrible choice for the Progress event. During the Evolve event it was largely fine (although the floor seats and ring being down a giant set of bleachers was not at all disability friendly). But there were plenty of seats open for that event and no standing room fans. For Progress every seat was taken, both reserved and GA bleachers, and there were tons of standing room tickets sold. The arena became a suana, with no air flow at all and an unbearable level of heat. Cramming 1,500+ people into that space was irresponsible and dangerous. Two fans needed help from fainting.

Most disappointing has been the reactions I’ve seen, both from fans not at the venue and people involved with WWNLive. There’re undercurrents that it’s somehow wrong to “complain” about this situation because it could damage the company/business and that this type of things should be expected and just has to be accepted when attending indie events. Both are utter nonsense. People should not have to fear heat exhaustion nor fainting when going to an event they paid money for, nor should everyone have to rush to concessions to literally buy bottles of water in handfuls (which was only available on and off) to try and prevent such things. The venue was improperly ventilated and cooled, and way oversold. As fans we have to stop accepting this as normal, and call out those who dismiss valid concerns as “moaning and complaining.”

I would like to note that Progress has not yet made a statement about this (due to being busy with something else I’ll discuss later), and was extremely apologetic about the heat during the show. Also, the wrestlers (who were clearly suffering from the sweltering conditions themselves) ran to get water for a fainting fan in the front row and stood in front of him fanning him. It seemed they were doing everything they could to deal with the unfortunate circumstances. If they arranged the venue (which is unlikely considering it was a double header with an established company in this country), I hope they accept responsibility and do better in the future. If WWNLive did (which is probable), I hope Progress holds them accountable and takes steps to ensure a safer environment for their fans next time.

 

Alright, on to the shows themselves.

 

Evolve 91

The “Troll Boys” of Ethan Page and ACH came out together for the opening contest against each other, which was meant as punishment for not taking their last match seriously and goofing around. So they didn’t take this one seriously and goofed around, putting on a parody match poking fun at a lot of the current conventions in well regarded matches. Page is better at the comedy stuff than ACH, so this was uneven. The angle also appears to be backfiring a bit, as most of the crowd is highly amused by the petulant, selfish antics of these two and thus they’re getting over as FACES by being assholes. That’s not really good for any of the stories Evolve’s trying to tell. Hard to rate this. I didn’t like it and again if they’re supposed to be heels it was a failure, but in straight up terms of getting a crowd reaction it definitely succeeded.

 

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As expected, Darby Allin defeated Timothy Thatcher in their rematch by surprising the veteran with some nice grapple based wrestling to further Darby’s quest to be seen as more than a stuntman. Him pulling out the coffin drop to the floor again undercuts that sentiment, but overall the story was solid and Darby is improving in the ring (although I personally don’t care for his style). Thatcher of course played his part to perfection in putting the rookie over on what seemed like his way out of Evolve for a while. Shame, as he’s one of my favorite parts of the promotion.

 

EVOLVE Tag Team Champions James Drake & Anthony Henry are making quite a strong impression so far and looked very good against a surprisingly fun makeshift team of Fred Yehi & Jason Kincaid. Kincaid continues to really make the most of his gimmick and the slow burn angle of the zen master having trouble controlling his temper is progressing nicely.

 

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The Progress involvement in the latter half of the show was excellent, with a strong match between Mark Haskins and Austin Theory and a hell of a tag match between Chris Dickinson & Jaka and The South Pacific Power Trip (Travis Banks & TK Cooper). All six men involved in those two matches looked quite good.

The main event fatal four way for the WWN Title was as great as expected. There were nice threads running underneath the hard hitting action, such as bitter rivals Matt Riddle and Tracy Williams breifly working together to try to control their much larger opponents (Keith Lee and WALTER) to retain, Williams acting like a vulture constantly trying to take advantage of everyone else’s work to steal a win, and the two behemoths getting interrupted a few times before finally laying into each other. The strikes Riddle, Lee, and Walter hit each other with were unreal. One incredible spot saw Lee German suplex Walter while Walter was trying to do so to Riddle, sending the champ FLYING across the ring. In a somewhat surprising finish Riddle made Williams tap in the center of the ring with the Bromission, seemingly definitively dealing with his former stablemate without a singles match. Excellent stuff overall. Lee and Riddle have another tentative fist bump after the match, and it’s clear at some point Lee’s going to lose patience with coming up short to his friend and snap in spectacular fashion.

Good show from Evolve with a lot of strong action and a good look at some of the Progress talent which got me even more excited for the second show to come.

 

Progress

This was my first experience with Progress, and it certainly lived up to the hype. The atmosphere was INCREDIBLE, with the crowd going nuts right off the bat and launching into a “please come back” chant as soon as the show started. Jimmy Smallman was overwhelmed and extremely gracious and grateful. He addressed the topic on everybody’s mind right away, bringing out Pete Dunne who was scheduled to defend the WWE European Title against Jack Gallagher but was injured the night before and not cleared to wrestle. Dunne, who the crowd was thrilled to see at all, was masterful in getting them to boo him regardless and eventually stomped off when Jack came out to issue a challenge for a later date. Zack Gibson then came out to run down Jack to boos so loud he could barely cut his promo, and we had our replacement match. It was a treat to see Jack live and they held nothing back, putting on a strong opener with absolutely incredible heat.

The other bonus appearance of WWE contracted talent was next as Dakota Kai (the former Evie) teamed with Dahlia Black (who had seconded the South Pacific Power Trip during the Evolve show) against Jinny & Deonna Purazzo. A little rough in parts and Jinny seemed rather limited in the ring, but this was a very good tag match overall that got the crowd involved after energy dropped a little following Jack’s match. Kai’s past was acknowledged with healthy “Team Kick” chants. Good job and excellent effort from all four. Nice Progress debut’s for Kai and Purazzo.

In a contest featuring two of my personal favorites, Timothy Thatcher defeated Donovan Dijak in a number one contendership match for Progress’ Atlas Championship. Dijak is so smooth and fluid (especially for his size) he’s always a pleasure to watch. Really enjoyed this battle of Dijak’s agility against Thatcher’s ground game.

 

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The next match was said to be ending the first half because “there will probably be a lot of clean up needed” following it, and everyone knew it was tim for Jimmy Havoc’s no-DQ match against the debuting Joey Janela. In a crazy match featuring cinder blocks, tables, and Janela being dropped barefoot first onto thumbtacks, the most impressive spot was amusingly Janela being monkey-flipped out of a chair by Havoc, holding onto it, and landing STILL SEATED in the chair. This was great, and Havoc’s everything I’d heard and more.

After intermission, Smallman pointed out a fan in the front row that had travelled to see the show, and it turned into a marriage proposal to his girlfriend next to him. The crowd got into the happy moment and it was a wonderful thing to share in. 🙂 Really awesome of Progress to make time during their show for a special moment for a fan.

Then Mark Haskins and Mark Andrews came out for their previously advertised three-way with Zack Gibson. Smallman said it was advertised as a multi-man match, so that’s what we were getting, and called out a third man in the form of Austin Theory. Great choice, as not only is Theory an extremely capable rising star with good heat behind his current heel gimmick, he had some built in backstory from losing to Haskins on the Evolve show earlier in the day. But before they can start Smallman says it’s an important night so let’s go big and make it a four-way, and out comes Keith Lee (!!!) to a thunderous reaction. Excellent match, with everyone firing on all cylinders and the monstrous Lee once again demonstrating why he’s both incredible and crazy by throwing people around, attempting moonsaults, and taking Canadian Destroyers and reverse ranas. One jaw dropping spot saw a normal looking tower of doom arrangement turned on its head when Lee walked out of the corner carrying Theory in powerbomb position, who was STILL HOLDING Andrews straight up in superplex position. The strength and balance of all three men there is amazing. By a slim margin this may have been my favorite of the night.

 

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The big Progress’ Tag Title match seeing British Strong Style (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) defend against The South Pacific Power Trip (TK Cooper & Travis Banks) was cut short early when Cooper injured his ankle on a corkscrew dive to the floor. Once the ref threw up the “x” and had people coming out to help Smallman explained that TK was injured and asked everyone to please be patient while they figured out what was going on. While this was happening a fan in the front row opposite had medical issues (apparently due to dehydration) and British Strong Style got him water and fanned him while Tk was being checked across the ring. The fan was helped out and TK eventually carried out by wrestlers. It’s been reported that TK dislocated his ankle, and the Progress crew was in the hospital with him last night after the show before heading to Boston for today’s. Smallman thanked the crowd for their patience and respect afterwards during the unexpected, unfortunate situation.

He then said that Banks was insisting on fighting, and while it’d have to be non-title, if we wanted to see it there could be a handicap match between him and the champs. Banks said now it’s “not about titles anymore, it’s about family.” They did a good job adjusting and putting on a decent little underdog match that saw Banks eventually use the champs’ numbers against them and neutralize the interfering Dunne to isolate one member and get a quick three count for the feel good win.

 

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Last up was Progress’ Atlas Champion WALTER defending the title against the man he won it from, Matt Riddle. After seeing the two of them interact during the WWN four-way title match I was hyped up for this, and it was fantastic. They hit the hell out of each other, Riddle bounced around as Walter showed his strength, and Riddle showed his own astounding strength tossing Walter and hitting THREE Bro-to-Sleeps throughout the match. Eventually The King of Bros locked in the Bromission to win the title back and send the crowd into a frenzy.

 

From the action to the atmosphere to the way they operated in difficult circumstances Progress’ NYC debut was a huge success. The hellish venue was unfortunate, but the show itself was incredible and a wonderful introduction for me to a promotion I’ve heard a ton about.

Categories
Japan Reviews Wrestling

Japan Trip 2016: Top 10 Matches Part 2 (Live)

Like last year, I was lucky enough to spend two and a half weeks in Tokyo to close out 2016 / start 2017. Here I’ll be going over my top 5 matches from this year’s trip. See part 1 for some general info and stats about what I saw, honorable mentions for this top 10 list, and matches #6-10.

Match reviews copied/modified from my show specific blogs when possible/appropriate.

I’m pleasantly surprised at how many rookies made this top 10. I did a spotlight on several of them, all of which have bright futures ahead. Check it out here.

 

Top 5:

5. Mio Momono vs Mika Shirahime – Marvelous 12/25/16

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I mentioned this match when talking about Mio’s performance in the 7-way at Ribbonmania (#7 on this list, featured in part 1). It was a perfect storm of excellent chemistry between opponents and both performing at a level far beyond their experience levels. Incredible instincts and craft were shown by both rookies, who built drama expertly through the 15 minute encounter and had the crowd going crazy at the end. There were a couple awkward spots, such as an instance from each where they essentially forgot to roll up their opponent, forcing the other to kind of roll herself up and wait for the other to get in proper position. But otherwise this was smooth and well executed. And even in the places I mentioned the ability of the other wrestler to adapt and keep things on track was impressive.

I was at Mio Momono’s debut in New York, and it’s wonderful to see how much she’s capitalized on the potential she showed even then. Her progression in 10 months was incredible. Can’t wait to see what the future holds for this extremely talented youngster.

 

4. International Ribbon Tag Championship: Avid Rival (Misaki Ohata & Ryo Mizunami) (c) vs The Lovely Butchers (Hamuko Hoshi & Mochi Miyagi) – Ice Ribbon 12/31/16

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Photo by Oliver Saupe.

 

I was a bit trepidatious headed into this match, as I generally don’t care for the Butchers’ gimmick, and signs seemed to be pointing towards them dethroning my current favorite tag team for IR’s tag team titles. Mizunami won Wave’s (her home promotion) singles title the night before, and Misaki was declared her #1 contender. Between the roll the Butchers had been on and the new status quo in Wave, it would have made sense for AR to begin dropping their tag titles here (they held the Wave tag titles too).

But I find Hamuko and Mochi vastly more entertaining when they get serious, which they did here to great benefit. They went toe-to-toe with Misaki and Ryo, leading to an excellent match. A particular highlight was an intense lariat exchange between Hoshi and Mizunami, who both throw them with incredible force.

In a pleasant surprise for me, Avid Rival persevered and retained their International Ribbon titles when Misaki hit her beautiful Sky Blue Suplex (bridging half wrist clutch tiger suplex) on Mochi. Kudos to all four here. Fantastic stuff.

 

3. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Kenny Omega – NJPW 1/4/17

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The so called “Six Star Match” was admittedly fantastic, if not quite what the hype suggests. Okada and Omega built to a tremendous crescendo while telling a solid story of the cocky Omega being assured victory if he could hit the One Winged Angel, with the champion avoiding it at every turn until he simply outlasted the challenger and beat down Omega until he just couldn’t continue. They had a good first half of a match that felt largely unconnected to the phenomenal second half once they really kicked into gear.

Again still excellent overall though (which should be an obvious opinion with it here at #3 of 71 matches I saw), it’s just I personally don’t think it was the best match of all time up to that point, considering I didn’t even think it was the best of that show…

 

2. World of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai (c) vs Mayu – Stardom 12/23/16

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In the main event of last year’s Climax Io Shirai claimed the World of Stardom title from  Meiko Satomura in one of my top five matches from that trip. In this year’s main she defended that same title against her former Thunder Rock partner Mayu Iwatani.

This was a great, pedal-to-the-floor main event with tons of jaw dropping exchanges from two pros extremely familiar with one another. Highlights include Mayu hitting dragon suplexes on the apron and floor (ouch!), trying for one from the top rope only to have Io flip out and LAND ON HER FEET, and a trio of rolling Germans from Io that has to be seen to be believed. Strong back and forth contest and an incredible main event.

 

1. IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Tetsuo Naito (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW 1/4/17

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… so here it is. In what I’m sure will be a largely disputed opinion I enjoyed the semi-main of Wrestle Kingdom 11 a bit better than the main. Naito and Tanahashi built an amazing back and forth struggle from start to finish. The tension gradually ramped to build to a perfect crescendo. Naito is in such command of his character now and the little touches he brings to his performances are a joy to see. Tanahashi is as always wrestling’s rock star. Definitive win for Naito too, which was 100% the right call.

 

——-

 

That does it for this trip. Hope you enjoyed reading about these great matches. Everything I’ve mentioned is well worth seeking out if possible.

Categories
Japan Reviews Wrestling

Japan Trip 2016: Top 10 Matches Part 1 (Live)

Like last year, I was lucky enough to spend two and a half weeks in Tokyo to close out 2016 / start 2017. During this trip I saw 12 shows from 7 promotions with 71 matches featuring 148 wrestlers.

Slightly less shows and matches than the first trip, but interestingly because of adding in NJPW Wrestle Kingdom (with it’s 11 matches and entirely filled with wrestlers I wouldn’t otherwise see during my Joshi-centric schedule) I actually saw a few more different wrestlers this time.

Here’s a breakdown of matches by company: Gatoh Move: 14 matches, Ice Ribbon: 19 matches, Marvelous: 6 matches, New Japan Pro Wrestling: 11 matches, Pro Wrestling Wave: 8 matches, Tokyo Joshi Pro: 7 matches, and World Wonder Ring Stardom: 6 matches.

Happily, once again the vast majority of what I saw was extremely good. So it was VERY difficult to choose my favorite matches. In fact, things were so close this year I’m doing a Top 10 instead of 5. Even then there are still a lot of worthy wrestlers and matches that won’t be mentioned here, and the order is highly subject to change.

Match reviews copied / modified from my show specific blogs when possible/appropriate.

I’m pleasantly surprised at how many rookies made this list. I did a spotlight on several of them, all of which have bright futures ahead. Check it out here.

This entry will cover honorable mentions and #6-10.

 

Honorable mentions:

Survival Ribbon – Ice Ribbon 1/3/17 

Ice Ribbon’s entire 1/3/17 event gets a mention here, as everything was connected and the appeal was in the whole concept and execution rather than an individual match. Two teams of six were formed, split based on time in IR, with opposite team members randomly paired off in singles matches with the winners advancing to a tag main event. The atmosphere was incredible, with both teams at ringside cheering their side vocally and some fun pairings. Fantastic themed show.

 

Kairi Hojo vs Nana Suzuki – Stardom 12/22/16

In her debut match model Nana Suzuki got to get in the ring against one of Stardom’s aces, Kairi Hojo, in a singles contest. Nana actually played her role as an overmatched but determined underdog well and the match was quite good. Kairi rightly dominated most of this, but the story was well told and Nana got the crowd behind her comeback spots. Nana seems like she could make the transition and wrestle regularly if she wants to.

 

Misaki Ohata 10th Anniversary Match: Misaki Ohata & Mayumi Ozaki  vs Hiroyo Matsumoto & DASH Chisako – Wave 1/2/29/16

As no Sendai Girls shows fit my schedule, it was a real treat to see Dash chosen to be a part of this match (which I was already excited for as Misaki’s a favorite of mine) and thus give me one opportunity to see her wrestle. This was a fitting and fun “tribute” match.  All four wrestlers were clearly enjoying themselves, particularly Misaki having an absolute blast playing heel alongside Ozaki.

 

Top 10:

10. Ice Cross Infinity Title Tournament Finals: Tsukasa Fujimoto vs Risa Sera – Ice Ribbon 12/31/16

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Technically speaking, I thought this was a great match. It would likely be even higher on the list if not for the atmosphere and lack of crowd heat, as I thought it was pretty much the epitome of the “wrong match for the wrong crowd.” More specifically, it was the wrong match for the story they chose to tell.

It was instead exactly the match they should have had under the original trajectory of Tsukka’s title reign. This match would have been PERFECT as the end of Tsukka plowing through everyone else on a quest to best her own defense record just to run into a determined Risa dead set on proving she could reclaim her title from the woman who dethroned her.

However without Tsukka’s streak still in tact to add drama and uncertainty not one person in arena bought a Tsukka win here. The tournament was sold on the possibility of the unexpected, which made a back and forth contest between determined rivals the wrong framework for the finals. Both competitors should have been conveying desperation here (or better yet someone else should have advanced to face Risa, or the whole tourney been skipped). All that said, the wrestling itself again was great. And this will likely play better on disc.

 

9. Gatoh Move Tag Team Championship: Aoi & Obi (c) v Riho & Kotori – Gatoh Move 12/24/16

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Aoi is a personal favorite of mine, and this was unfortunately the only chance I had to see her wrestle this trip. Thankfully though it was a main event match in with three other excellent wrestlers, and as such was great.

Both teams were sharp and this was exactly the quick paced, hard hitting main event it should have been. Kotori having a bit of a chip on her shoulder and something to prove was a nice undercurrent, and Riho and Aoi had some fantastic exchanges down the stretch.

 

8. Team REINA (Makoto, Mari Sakamoto, & Hirori) vs Team Gatoh Move (Emi Sakura, Aasa Maika, & Mitsuru Konno) – Gatoh Move 12/24/16

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This 6-woman tag was elimination style, with over-the-top rules in addition to pin/submission. Interesting set up here, with Gatoh Move’s founder and two of her trainees against Reina’s reigning Champion (who was also GM’s IWA Triple Crown Championship) and two of hers. I’d of course seen Emi and Makoto last trip, and also saw Mari when she came to New York with Syuuri last year. Hirori, Aasa, and Mitsuru were all new to me.

The story of the match was phenomenal, with both teams showing real desire to prevail in the inter-promotional contest. The seconds on the outside for each team were visibly engaged and cheering their promotion, which really added to the atmosphere and the sense of something important being at stake here, even if it was just bragging rights.

 

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The action was great too, with everyone looking sharp, things going back and forth nicely, building drama around the eliminations, etc. Makoto’s presence and mannerisms as a cocky heel were several levels better than what I saw of her in a babyface role last year. Aasa got a nice spotlight at the end being the last member of her team left trying to topple Makoto before coming up just short, and her ring style as a pint-sized powerhouse suits her extremely well. I’d like to see more of Mitsuru too in the future, as she looked quite good in the little time she had before being the first elimination.

 

7. 7-Way: Hiroe Nagahama vs Kyuri vs Maika Ozaki vs Mio Momono vs 235 vs Tequila Saya vs Uno Matsuya – Ice Ribbon 12/31/16

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This was originally scheduled to be a six-woman tag match, but shortly before the event Mio Momono was added to the match and it became a 7-way contest where eliminations could happen by pin, submission, or being thrown over the top rope to the floor. I’d been at Mio’s pro wrestling debut in NYC as well as seeing her in a fantastic opening contest at Marvelous’ Christmas Eve show (more on that later 😉 ), so was quite excited for her Ice Ribbon debut.

It was an extremely fortuitous change, as they really made the most of the format and this was much more interesting than IR’s traditional random 6-man would have been. EVERYONE got a chance to shine at various points, including Ozaki showing off her strength with a double torture rack, innovative multi-person moves and pin attempts, and an incredible sequence where Uno was thrown to the apron and went crazy trying to stay in the match running halfway around the ring on the apron while everyone inside tried to knock her off. The effort from all seven wrestlers was phenomenal, and they really got the crowd fired up for several sequences.

Excellent match overall, and one of my favorites of my trip. In the end Saya got to look strong somewhat surprisingly hanging in until the final two competitors, but the expected (and rightful) wrestler won when Kyuri pinned her with the Fisherman suplex. Great showings for all involved. Really hope to see Mio continue to wrestle in IR.

 

6. Emi Sakura, Sayaka Obihiro, & Mitsuru Konno vs Riho, Kotori, & Aasa Maika  – Gatoh Move 12/31/16

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This was my favorite Gatoh Move dojo match of the trip. Obviously they all know each other extremely well and have great chemistry together, which led to an thoroughly exciting contest with innovative multi person spots and use of the venue. Riho’s double knees to an opponent seated against the wall looks so vicious.

Towards the end Emi and Kotori tumbled out of the window into my (hastily vacated) seat. Kotori held Emi outside to prevent her from making a save as Riho pinned Misturu. Little things like that are excellent uses of the uniqueness of the environment.

 

——-

 

I  was blessed to have such a great opportunity to visit Japan and see so much phenomenal wrestling. I hope you’ve enjoyed my look at some of the best of the best. Will be back with Part 2 featuring my top 5.

Categories
Reviews Wrestling

Mae Young Classic Predictions

As a longtime fan of women’s wrestling I’ve been hopeful and excited with some of the developments over the last few years. Another potentially huge breakthrough is the currently taping Mae Young Classic tournament in the vein of last year’s Cruiserweight Classic. The participants represent a wonderful variety of styles, countries, and experience levels. The assembled level of talent is incredible.

I’m familiar with a majority of the field, and nearly half of them have previously wrestled in Shimmer (a fantastic Chicago based women’s wrestling promotion – find more information here).

The participants were not fully revealed until just before the first round was taped. As such there were no matchups to consider nor brackets to analyze until now, when half the competitors have been eliminated. Based on results from that first round there are now apparent brackets, and I’d like to take a shot at predicting how it will all turn out for fun. Given the circumstances however doing so will contain spoilers for last night’s round 1 matches. Here’s the place to stop reading to avoid them.

 

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I’ll be trying to predict what I think they’ll do, not necessarily my preferred results (although there really are no bad choices here).

——–

Edit 7/15/17: I’m not going to get into later round spoilers, but I will say the apparent brackets were not correct, so in retrospect this post is largely fantasy booking. Still interesting to see what I expected vs what came about though, so I’m leaving this up.

——–

Round 2:

1) Princesa Sugehit vs. Serena Deeb

This is a really interesting matchup, with an international veteran against a former WWE superstar coming out of retirement for the tourney. Either one is a solid pick to make someone look strong later by putting them over. I’m expecting a mini Brian Kendrick in the CWC story for Deeb, so will go with her.

Prediction: Deeb

 

2) Shayna Baszler vs. Piper Niven

The conversion Baszler’s made from MMA to pro wrestling has been incredible (as I’ve talked about here), and she has a great opponent here in the perhaps underrated Niven (who I know as Viper). The former’s MMA skills against the latter power and size should be a lot of fun. Seems too early for the MMA star to exit, so I expect Niven will come up short after a solid showing.

Prediction: Baszler

 

3) Mia Yim vs. Mercedes Martinez

This indie main event is perhaps the hardest to call. Both are excellent, experienced competitors, with Mercedes in the business longer and really on a roll lately but Yim also putting on the performances of her career and having perhaps a slightly higher profile due to her extensive time in TNA. It’s a coin flip really, so I’ll go with my personal preference.

Prediction: Yim

 

4) Rhea Ripley vs. Abbey Laith

I was originally thinking this would be an easy call in the former Kimber Lee’s favor, but as I research the newcomer Ripley she seems like exactly the kind of underdog that could go far (especially with Dobson and Kay Lee Ray gone already). And the solid Laith is destined to make someone else look good on her way out at some point…

Prediction: Ripley

 

5) Toni Storm vs. Dakota Kai

The former Evie is under contract and could really make a splash with a win here, but Toni’s a big enough name that her taking this one and putting Candice over in a big way and into the semis next would be a big deal. There’ll be time to build Kai (and get a match between her and Sane) later.

Prediction: Storm
6) Candice LeRae vs. Rachel Evers

Another tough call here. Evers is regularly in NXT and the daughter of Paul Ellering (although they’ve obviously chosen not to play that up much given the name change), while Candice is an indy darling and seems to be the Cinderella story outsider pick. I think there’s more upside to continuing Candice’s run.

Prediction: LeRae

 

7) Bianca Belair vs. Lacey Evans

Honestly no idea. Both are under contract, I’m not familiar with either, and whoever wins is fodder for Sane in the next round either way. I’ve heard slightly more buzz about Evans, so will go with her. This is a case where I think the opportunity and spotlight on both will matter more than the result.

Prediction: Evans
8) Nicole Savoy vs. Kairi Sane

This was one of my dream matches for the tournament, particularly after seeing Savoy wrestle a variety of Joshi talent in Shimmer. Savoy is another wrestler I’ve written about as a rising star and the sky’s the limit for her. But Kairi’s already there and there’s no way she goes out in round 2. The match should be incredible.

Prediction: Sane

 

Quarter Finals:

So these matches are of course all theoretical based on my predictions above.

 

1) Serena Deeb vs Shayna Baszler

Deeb will eventually make someone look like a world beater, and I think it’s Baszler right here.

Prediction: Baszler

 

2) Mia Yim vs Rhea Ripley

My gut and preference says the indie veteran should go over, but I think the upsets continue and Ripley shocks her way into the semis.

Prediction: Ripley

 

3) Toni Storm vs Candice LeRae

I think this is about Candice overcoming the odds and advancing to face Sane.

Prediction: LeRae

 

4) Lacey Evans vs  Kairi Sane

Kairi’s run won’t end before the semis at the absolute earliest.

Prediction: Sane

 

Semi Finals:

1) Shayna Baszler vs Rhea Ripley

The overachievement ends here, as Ripley fights valiantly but falls to Baszler’s ground game.

Prediction: Baszler

 

2) Candice LaRae vs Kairi Sane

The first match it feels like Kairi could realistically lose, but she won’t. To the finals she goes.

Prediction: Sane

 

Final

Baszler vs Sane

This is the match it seems the brackets are set up to give us, and it would be an appropriately fantastic end to the tourney. Either would make a great inaugural winner. As much as I’d love to see Kairi take it, I think like with TJP in the CWC WWE will go with someone signed during / as a result of the tournament, with the already contracted Sane coming up just short (which honestly won’t hurt her at all).

Prediction: Baszler

 

It’ll be fun to watch the result roll in and see how incredibly wrong I end up being. Hope every one enjoys the tourney!

Categories
Reviews Wrestling

WWE at MSG 7/7/17 Live Thoughts

July 7, 2017 at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

 

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Surprisingly enough this was both my first WWE House Show and first time ever in the main part of MSG (I went to The Theater for the first time for a NXT show in November).  The card looked pretty good, so I was looking forward to the show and several specific matches.

 

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Whoever set up the match order knew what they were doing, as the show opened with the vibrating sound of a violin and the crowd came unglued for Shinsuke Nakamura’s MSG debut. He went a good twenty minutes with Dolph Ziggler in one of the best matches of the night. They had time to tell a good story with strong action and Dolph looked better and more motivated than he has in a long time. Hopefully it wasn’t just for the one night. Shinsuke’s a superstar and had the crowd in the palm of his hand.

 

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Goldust vs R-Truth was kept short enough to be inoffensive, but I’ve never cared for Truth and this did nothing to win me over.

In light of Austin Aries being granted a release earlier in the day Neville defended his Cruiserweight Title against  Cedric Alexander instead. Great opportunity for Cedric, who wowed me in Evolve and is capable of much more than what he’s been allowed/able to show on Raw and 205 Live. Fun little encounter, with Neville cheating to win with a rope leveraged pin like a good heel.

 

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Miz was out next and my friend commented the match had oddly been announced as a tag encounter, not an Intercontinental title match (as advertised). Sure enough, Miz cut a promo explaining we don’t deserve a defense and goes into Rick Rude mode asking the “New York City Sweathogs” to keep the noise down for his partner, at which point  Samoa Joe came out and that’s two advertised matches we suddenly weren’t getting. Out come their advertised singles opponents Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins in another mini-reunion for the Shield.

 

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Joe vs Rollins was one of the matches I was really looking forward to so this change was disappointing, but the resulting tag match was admittedly solid. They put on a good, old school house show tag match, working the crowd up with strong character work and timing. Several nice false finishes lead up to Ambrose eventually catching Miz with the Dirty Deeds for the feel good victory.

 

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The US Title match seeing Kevin Owens (c) defend against AJ Styles was my most anticipated of the night, but I had no idea of what was in store for us. The match was as good as to be expected from these two, but it also found a new gear late and started raising some flags when Owens kicked out of a Styles Clash and AJ returned the favor on a pop-up powerbomb.

 

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After that my friend pondered about it maybe being one of the few times a title would change hands at a house show, but we laughed it off not really believing it possible. Even when AJ nailed the Phenomenal Forearm and had Owens laid out in the center of the ring my first thought was “huh, odd that Kevin will be kicking out of both of AJ’s finishers.” Instead the ref counted 3 and the crowd erupted. Great choice to bring back a little unpredictability to the house shows, and MSG was of course a perfect venue for it.

 

 

Bayley, Mickie James, & Sasha Banks vs Nia Jax, Emma, & Alexa Bliss seemed like it was meant to be a thrown together six woman tag to slowly get the show restarted after intermission, but the six of them made the most of the small amount of time they were given to put on a well structured, action packed match that engaged the crowd nicely. I would like to see more done with Emma, as she’s better than being the person in the match obviously there to take the fall.  I’m a huge fan of Alexa Bliss, so was great to see her live for the first time.

 

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Karl Anderson is more than capable of tearing the house down with Finn Balor, but here his role was to be cannon fodder for his super popular opponent. Balor got the jump on Anderson and tossed him out onto his partner Gallows, then hit a gorgeous summersault dive over the top rope onto them.

 

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That seemed to indicate this would be a short one, and indeed once Balor rolled Anderson back in it was slingblade, shotgun dropkick, Coup de Grace, goodnight. Balor victorious in under a minute. Would have loved to get a real match between the two, but it was still fun to see all Balor’s signatures and this got a big reaction.

 

 

Cesaro & Sheamus are really gelling as a team and have been revitalized with the full heel turn (especially Sheamus, who looks consistently motivated and crisp for the first time in a while). As such I was excited to see them live to defend their RAW Tag Team Titles against The Hardy Boys (Matt & Jeff).  Good semi-main with a fantastic ending that saw blind tags on both sides leading to Jeff hitting the swanton on the no longer legal Sheamus only to be immediately rolled up by Cesaro for the pin. In a great touch Cesaro fireman’s carried his loopy partner up the ramp after the victory while Sheamus had just enough energy to clutch his title belt.

 

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Bray Wyatt vs Roman Reigns was a solid enough main event, hindered a bit by telling a standard face vs heel story when the NYC crowd was largely booing Reigns and cheering Wyatt. Good effort and action from both though. After Reign’s expected victory Braun Strowman made a surprise appearance to beat him down (with some help from Wyatt that provided great tentative interactions as Bray tried to subtly direct his former charge without angering him). Rollins made the save to a big pop and the former Shield allies cleared the ring.

 

 

With Reigns and Rollins alone in the ring celebrating the crowd got LOUD with a “we want Ambrose chant” to complete the reunion. After a few minutes with no Dean, Rollins got the mic and expertly handled the situation saying the bad news was Ambrose was probably already a few deep at a bar somewhere, but the good news is “we hear you NYC.” The acknowledgement, whether or not it leads to anything, that the crowd wanted to see the three of them together was a simple, perfect way to handle Dean not being able to come out without having the fans leave feeling disappointed. Nicely done.

 

 

Overall

I had a lot of fun at this show, and the surprise US Championship switch was icing on the cake.

Categories
Reviews Wrestling

Evolve 87 Live Review

June 25, 2017 in Queens, NY

Evolve returned to La Boom last weekend with a big card headlined by two of their most popular stars colliding for the WWN Championship.

Here’s a quick rundown of my thoughts from attending live.

 

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During the opening announcements Lenny Leonard shares that this will be the last time both the Evolve and WWN titles are defended on the same show. Silly to make that an actual policy instead of just moving that direction quietly, as the option to have both defended so when appropriate is now limited. Also considering what the WWN title is supposed to be this comes across as inconsistent and unnecessary if it’s still going to be defended on FIP shows when there’s a FIP title defense, etc.

 

1) Tracy Williams vs ACH 

Decent opener, continuing both Williams winning streak and ascension as a threat as well as ACH’s parallel losing efforts and rising frustration. ACH hit a pair of insane topes to Williams that broke the guardrail and wiped out several members of the front row. Given everyone seemed ok, the dives were pretty awesome. Something about Williams’ current style isn’t drawing me into his matches the way he used to, but this was still solid.

After the match ACH’s impending heel turn took another step as he snapped at the ref when asked if he was ok. “Are you serious?” Of course I’m not ok. This is the first match, and I’m better than the first match.”

 

2) Timothy Thatcher vs Jason Kincaid

I was extremely excited for this one, as Kinclaid’s gimmick is a fresh and interesting one and Thatcher is a personal favorite of mine. The advertised clash of styles led to a fantastic encounter, with Kincaid befuddling the vet just a little and trying to adapt to stay alive but eventually getting too much into Thatcher’s grappling game and falling short. Kincaid’s showing cracks in his zen outlook, which should be interesting.

 

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Thatcher’s relentless grinding down of his opponents is a treat to watch, and he’s downright despised as a heel in NYC so the heat was off the charts (overall the crowd was nicely loud and engaged all night). And the best part is he wasn’t done yet…

 

3) Fred Yehi vs Chris Dickinson 

This was a pretty by the books Yehi match. The crowd’s generally behind him so it was well received. I personally don’t enjoy his gimmick or ring style, so this was my least favorite of the night. Not knocking the effort of either though, and Dickinson looked great.

Yehi has now torn through both tag champs. It seemed to be setting up for a match with Catch Point’s leader (and Yehi’s ex-partner) rather than some sort of tag title match, but in fact it’s been since announced that the wins have led him to an upcoming Evolve title shot.

Jaka consoled his partner after the loss and says there’s no shame in the performance Dickinson turned in. He then polled the crowd about his chances of winning the Evolve title, takes exception to the lack of support, and calls out Sabre immediately. GREAT promo from Jaka to add bite to the match and reenforce his role as the heel despite some hometown support. NYC loves Zack, so this was exactly what was needed to get Jaka booed.

 

4) Evolve Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr (c) vs Jaka

This was a nice spotlight opportunity for Jaka, and he made the most of it. This was not the typical Sabre match (as good as they are), as Sabre responded to Jaka’s aggression with a fierce edge of his own and it added an extra level of wonderful intensity to everything as they beat the hell out of each other. Jaka was also made to seem every bit a threat to Sabre (before losing clean to keep the champ looking like a world beater), which was a well deserved spotlight on a wrestler who’s been extremely impressive during his time in Evolve. If anyone was in fact “sleeping on Jaka,” they aren’t now. Excellent match.

 

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After the match, Stokely and Thatcher came out to confront Sabre, but were interrupted by Darby. Thatcher lays into Allin with an incredible, scathing promo about how Darby’s an idiot who risks his health for a crowd of people who won’t care about him once he injures himself to the point where he can’t perform anymore. Man’s not wrong. He then turned to Sabre and challenged him to a No Holds Barred rematch for the Evolve Title.

 

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As Zack ponders it, Thatcher dropped him with a surprise headbutt, then DESTROYED Darby, ripping the cast right off his arm and applying an armbar as the crowd went CRAZY booing, eventually “re-breaking” the arm! This entire segment was Thatcher’s to carry, and he absolutely knocked it out of the park. EVERYTHING he did was pitch perfect. I really wanted the teased title match to happen at the next NYC show after this…

 

5) Ethan Page vs Thomas Sharp

Sharp is one of the former Gatekeepers, now with a name and an issue with his former employer. He looked good, winning the over crowd in short order with his athleticism and some good fire as he looked for revenge against everyone’s (second) favorite man to hate. Short and intense. I’d like to see more of Sharp going forward. Page got the better of him, which I’ve seen some complaints about but I think was the right outcome for the beginning of such a feud if Sharp’s sticking around.

 

6) Trent Baretta vs Austin Theory

Nice to see Baretta back, and he received a strong reception. This being in the semi-main spot was an interesting choice and provided a chance for the relative rookie Theory to shine. And indeed this was a great spotlight for him, as he pushed the veteran to the limit before falling prey to the Dudebuster. There were a couple of awkward moments as the two lost their balance during complicated spots, but in both cases they adjusted extremely well, kept things from turning disastrously dangerous, and kept the match going with little loss of momentum. Both looked really good overall, the match got better and better as it went, and like Jaka earlier Theory really capitalized on the opportunity he had here.

After a showing of mutual respect, Priscilla Kelly came out and distracted Trent for a Theory low blow. Apparently finally receptive to Kelly’s message and advances, Theory laid out Baretta to loud boos and Kelly followed with a gloating/taunting bite to Trent’s neck (ok then…). Evolve’s getting heel overloaded again, but this was really well done and should provide a good story for the newcomer.

 

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7) WWN Championship Match: Matthew Riddle (c) vs Keith Lee

Anticipation for this was of the charts, and it turned out as awesome as expected. Lee was presented as the champ’s equal, and these two just beat and beat on each other until they both literally fell over. Highlights included a huge pounce from Lee, a Fisherman’s buster on Lee (?!) by Riddle followed by a barrage of sentons, and an incredible nearfall where Riddle just gets his shoulder up by centimeters after a huge Spirit Bomb.  In a beautifully timed and executed finish, both collapse after a vicious Lee headbutt, and Riddle happens to fall on top of Lee for the pin and retains his title. A less than definitive win for the King of Bros, which maintains the tension between him and Lee and keeps the latter strong without having to take belt off Riddle. Incredible match with a extremely well done, appropriate finish.

 

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After the match Ethan Page took advantage of the situation to attack the already downed Lee and Riddle, rambling in wonderful fashion about hating the two “golden geese” of Evolve and vowing to destroy them. Stokely Hathaway and Tracey Williams joined the fun to berate Riddle as Page continued to choke Lee in the corner. Williams then announced he’ll be challenging Riddle for the WWN title at the next Queens show in August. The feud’s been building well and the match’ll be decent, but I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t rather have gotten Thatcher vs Sabre. Williams let Stokely slap Riddle to big boos, then they left. As Page continued to gloat the faces recovered and cornered him between them, but he managed to slink away to safety. Left alone, Lee was reluctant to fist bump Riddle, but eventually gave in and all is fine between Evolve’s heroes for now.

 

Overall

On par with the excellent Evolve 79 in February, which was one of the best live shows I’ve seen. Commitment and effort was apparent from everyone here, and even the things that weren’t to my personal tastes were solid and well received. Jaka and Theory had potentially star making performances, and I continue to adore pretty much everything Thatcher, Riddle, Sabre, and Lee do. Check this out on Floslam sooner rather than later.