Tastes constantly evolve, so as I mentioned in my first version from November 2015, I intend to periodically revise my top ten games to see how things change and share any new games that have impressed me.
Ground rules:
This reflects my favorite things to play right now. I love everything on this list. Order is pure personal preference and whole list HIGHLY subject to change and reshuffling, as ten is a small number to cover all the great games I’ve played and something’s bound to be missing.
I need to have played something at least twice for it to be eligible. I think something has to hold up to at the very least a second play to be considered a favorite. So Imperial Assault (still), Trickerion, Relic Knights, andSamurai (and several others) allget automatic honorable mentions, but may very well make it into this list in the future.
Some games have been replaced here simply because of other games that suit my current tastes (and those of my group) just a little more. Alhambra, Pillars of the Earth, and Anima are all still fantastic games well worth seeking out / trying.
Expansions I have are considered with the base game and won’t be listed separately.
The write-ups for reappearing games were changed only as needed.
10.Blueprints
Blueprints is a great pick up and play that’s extremely easy to teach and plays quickly, which makes it valuable to have on hand for in between longer games. However the setup and nuances make it more than just filler and add a reasonable amount of strategy and depth. It’s quirky, well designed, and most importantly fun.
9.Viticulture
The debut game from Stonemaier, which instantly made them one of my favorite publishers. Beautifully realized worker placement game that is just completely infused with the unlikely theme of winemaking. The Tuscany expansion adds several great aspects that make it even more amazing, and the game scales incredibly well and feels like the same game no matter the player count. As usual with Stonemaier the production quality is absolutely unreal, with individually shaped building pieces and gorgeous art elevating the immersion.
8.The Duke
This slips a bit due to other great two player games I’ve been able to try recently, limited opportunity to play two player games in general, and tough competition from multi-player games. Still The Duke is an incredible two player game with elements of chess reworked into a much more accessible and variable experience. The vast number of movement patterns allows for deep gameplay, yet the smaller board and limited starting pieces keeps things manageable. The combination of each piece having its movement grid printed on it and the fact that the pattern is different on each side is just fantastic, and makes this both incredibly new player friendly and deep.
7.Mysterium
At this point I’ve played so many games that something that seems to have a truly original approach intrigues me greatly. Mysterium is a wonderful asymmetric cooperative game that has a departed ghost trying to guide psychics to the culprit of its murder through sending “visions” consisting of cards with abstract art. It adds a more structured and “complete” feeling game to the base mechanics of Dixit. The hope is that the cards played by the ghost will indicate specific cards on the game board to the psychics, who are working together and can discuss as needed. It plays best with 4 or more players, but that’s not much of a limitation since it accommodates up to 7. Lots of fun.
6.Ghost Stories
Fantastic co-op game that’s fairly easy to teach but has a lot of variation and depth. Best on its own or with Ghost Moon (Black Secret has fallen flat with my group so far). Notorious for its difficulty, but we’ve found it challenging rather than frustrating. The changing board, player powers and enemy cards make every game significantly different, which greatly aids its longevity. It’s also great to have a go to co-op game on hand, as many of my “non-gamer” friends have really enjoyed trying something that has them working with, rather than against, the rest of the group.
5.Euphoria
Stonemaier Games’ second offering, a fantastic dice-as-workers game with an incredibly unique theme of trying to achieve prestige and status in a dystopian world. Little touches like artifact cards depicting objects from today’s world and trying to keep your workers happy and stupid bring the theme to life and it’s very well intertwined with gameplay. Also, the production quality is absolutely unreal, with realistic resources, wooden commodity pieces, wonderful art, etc all making this as great to look at as it is to play. As time goes on I personally find it just a little more compelling than Viticulture, which is why Euphoria leapfrogged it this time around.
4.La Citta
La Citta is fifteen years old and feels so timeless and classic I’m actually surprised it’s not older. Wonderfully thematic game that combines tile laying and resource management as players try to build the most attractive cities and lure the greatest population (the game’s victory points) to them. Details like needing water sources to grow beyond a certain point, having to produce enough food to feed your population, and a changing priority system signifying what people value most in their cities each round make this a fantastically deep, balanced game.
3.Castles of Burgundy
Castles of Burgundy is unlike any other game I’ve played, and it shines in the unusual way uses dice to determine both which tiles a player can buy and which purchased tiles can be placed on their personal player boards. There are a lot of “moving parts” and things to keep track of, but it’s all logically laid out and intuitive once you get the hang of it. There’s tons of replayability and different viable strategies, even before considering the numerous different player boards available. I fall more and more in love with this game each time I play.
2.Tragedy Looper
Tragedy Looper is unlike anything else I’ve played and I adore both the atmosphere and the way its core mechanics combine mystery elements with those of a logic puzzle. It’s somewhat of a tough game to get your mind around, given unusual mechanics and a non-trivial learning curve, but once you do it’s a great mystery game (a genre that’s underrepresented and hard to do well). It’s asymmetric, with players who are time traveling and trying to prevent a tragedy, and a gamemaster that is trying to stop them. There are limitations on possible actions based on the scenario and various stats of the characters being controlled, which is where clues about what has happened and how to prevent it come from. It requires the right group of players, but is highly enjoyable once you’ve found them.
1.Princes of Florence
Despite tough competition, Princes of Florence is still my favorite game of all time. It incorporates what’s usually one of my least favorite mechanics (the auction) in a quick and enjoyable way that enhances the balance of differing strategies greatly. At any point if an opponent’s strategy seems to be working too well, the others players need to be making them pay more for the needed components. The way the different elements that can be purchased and used come together is wonderful and allows deep and varied gameplay. The combination of resource management, strategic choices and maximizing opportunities is just perfect and I could (and probably will) play this a million times.
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And that’s it for this time. Will be interesting to track how this list changes in the future. What are everyone else’s current favorites?
In addition to excellent matches and an incredible number of highly talented wrestlers, I love watching independent wrestling to see people develop and grow and get a glimpse of tomorrow’s stars today. I previously featured Timothy Thatcher, Dalton Castle, and Nicole Savoy in my first The Future is Now blog, and Su Yung, Leah Vaughn (then Leah von Dutch) and Takumi Iroha in my second.
Here’s a look at four more wrestlers who show signs of big possibilities down the road and all certainly have the potential to make that a reality.
Courtney Rush
I find myself starting yet another rising stars piece talking about an experienced wrestler (eight years), but Courtney Rush is not the same performer she was just a year or so ago. Her transformation into the demon assassin has been remarkable and made her one of the most compelling performers in all of wrestling. Her presence is absolutely captivating (and disturbing).
There isn’t anyone in wrestling more in command of their character than Rush (and only Dalton Castle and Su Yung even really come close).Her mannerisms are appropriately creepy and intimidating, and she blends it all seamlessly with her ring work. With Courtney now working for TNA under the name Rosemary the next step for her already seems to be underway.
Matthew Riddle
I’ve never seen ANYONE develop as fast as Matt Riddle. His growth in the short year he’s been a part of pro-wrestling is incredible. He’s taken his MMA background and adapted it to the particularities of his new profession and gets better and better every time he gets into the ring. He’s still working on little details of character and the finer points of selling, but overall his level of performance, instincts, and charisma for his experience is unreal.
His time spent in Evolve has let him wrestle a variety of opponents and exposed him to many different styles, all of which can only help him continue towards fully becoming the star he already shows signs of being. Watching him wrestle fellow grapple based experts like Timothy Thatcher and Drew Gulak, as well as other world class stars like Chris Hero, Zach Sabre Jr., etc, has been an absolute treat.
Shayna Baszler
Just about everything I just said about Matt Riddle also applies to Shayna Baszler. I only recently saw her for the first time so didn’t get to watch her progress over the course of her initial year like I did with Riddle, but she shows the same high aptitude and ability to incorporate her MMA skills into a pro-wrestling appropriate style. She’s more “dominant monster” where Riddle’s more “cocky but extremely dangerous,” which is awesome as they each are playing to their strengths and carving out their own niches.
Baszler already carries herself like a star and has the presence and in-ring charisma to match. The intimidating edge to her character is fantastic, and I can’t wait to see more from her recently formed team with Nicole Savoy and Mercedes Martinez.
Rhia O’Reilly
O’Reilly has wasted absolutely nothing from any of her training and six years of experience and it shows in the way she continually evolves every time she gets in the ring. I feel she is sometimes underrated and it was wonderful to see her wrestle the some of the best Shimmer had to offer at the recent taping weekend, including Nicole Matthews, JWP Champion Arisa Nakajima, and the previously mentioned Shayna Baszler.
Rhia’s extremely adaptable and reminds me of an Arn Anderson type that can adjust to any style and make any opponent look their best. I hope she continues to get opportunities to really show what she can do, as she’s definitely capable of making the most of them.
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Hope everyone enjoyed my look at some more of the best on the indies, and definitely jump at the chance to see them if you get one.
This is an amusing send up of action/Shounen manga, taking standard elements to their extremes and featuring a main character that has no equal and is so strong he’s bored. Outside of the over the top build up to fights completely described by the manga’s title, ridiculous amounts of emphasis are placed on odd things for comic effect both during the fights and when spotlighting One Punch Man’s past. His real worries are things like forgetting to do chores, side characters wear shirts labeling them generically (like one that reads “school child”), etc. The entire manga is built around how far absurdity can be pushed.
One Punch Man is a good parody, although I don’t know how much I could read before the humor gets stale. Fun first volume though.
“I can’t even say what’s gonna happen tomorrow. But as long as I’m with this girl…”
Minato Sahashi has failed his college placement exams for the second time and is considering giving up on life in the city when a girl modified for fighting falls from the sky and declares him her fated partner. He’s now part of an elimination game against other pairs for control of the universe.
Sekirei in no way shies away from what it is: an Ecchi action series. There’s heavy fanservice with nudity, super endowed fighting girls in search of partner/master with all the cliches that go with it, and a “game” being played among all the pairs with the fate of the world as the prize.
But acknowledging and embracing its core allows Sekirei to revel in its cliches and use them well, being quite entertaining overall. The romance between Minato and Musubi is charming despite “in your face” aspects, and there are a variety of intriguing plot threads being seeded.
Surprisingly good. Want to read more at some point.
“With two brushes and four chopsticks, we’ll get by anywhere. ”
Journey back to 19th century Edo for a look at famous painter Hokusai and his work through the perspective of his daughter O-Ei, who possesses a talent to rival his own.
The trailer to this looked delightful and I enjoyed Keiichi’s Colorful, so my anticipation was high for NYAFF’s screening of Miss Hokusai. I’m pleased to say it lived up to expectations.
This look into the life of famous painter Hokusai through the eyes of his daughter is beautiful both visually and thematically. The backgrounds are gorgeous and extremely evocative of the featured period. The art being created by the characters is depicted wonderfully, feeling authentic to the styles and techniques employed. A variety of animation techniques are used here and there to enhance the atmosphere and/or illustrate a particular point. Contrast from scene to scene is used exquisitely. At one point a dark, heavy scene showing a fascination with the beauty behind the danger of fire immediately gives way to a stark, calm, white winter’s day to great effect. It all comes together wonderfully as a perfect vehicle to to tell O-Ei’s story.
The thematic and emotional core of the movie comes from it being appropriately and strongly character driven. Creativity and inspiration aren’t direct subjects of the film, but are rather the lenses that shape the main characters’ view of the world around them. The characters’ personalities and idiosyncrasies are often not directly tied to specific events, but are extensions of their emotions and overall experiences. They feel real and relatable as we receive little glimpses of their lives, which is of course exactly the goal of a good biopic. I don’t know how accurately the artists and their lives are reflected here, but the version presented is wonderfully thoughtful and poignant.
One of the the film’s greatest achievements lies in its depictions of an artist describing the world to a blind child. These moments are touching and emotionally charged, and comprise Miss Hokusai’s best scenes
This is an excellent film that provides a nuanced look at life and art via gorgeous animation. Highly recommended for anyone with any interest in anime and/or Japanese art and culture in general.
With Madison Eagles having survived the challenges of Rush, Arisa, and Viper, and Kellie Skater having won tough matches against top competitors all weekend, it was announced in the morning that the latter would receive a well deserved shot at Madison and the Shimmer Championship in the main event of Volume 84.
The opening match was a rematch of Volume 81’s opener, as Nixon Newell looked to avenge the loss Veda Scott handed her in her Shimmer debut. These two have good chemistry and the underdog vs established, hated heel dynamic worked well once again in this rematch. Veda’s streak of stealing matches came to an end as Nixon earned her first Shimmer victory.
Next the new team of Solo Darling & the debuting Scarlett Bordeaux faced Melanie Cruise & Yumi Ohka. This was a blast, as Cruise and Ohka are really clicking as a team and were great as bullying/dismissive heels against Darling and Bordeaux.
Along with some great action and Yumi working the crowd into a frenzy using her whip behind the ref’s back, the highlight was Cruise and Ohka appropriating Solo’s sugar drink and Bordeaux’s wine for a taste. Their reactions were priceless.
The victory made Cruise and Ohka the obvious next challengers for whoever came out of the tag title elimination match with the belts.
While Logan Square has a lot going for it as a venue, the atmosphere was definitely different from the Eagles Club. Back in the latter for Volumes 84 and 85, Arisa was greeted with a huge “Nakajima” chant in her Berwyn debut as her match with Rhia O’Reilly began. She was clearly surprised and was smiling from ear to ear as she looked around the crowd.
I feel Rhia is somewhat underrated at times and as I’ve mentioned before she’s quite versatile and adaptable, so seeing her given the opportunity to up her game against top level opponents this weekend was awesome. She held her own against the JWP Champion, and they had a great hard hitting contest. Arisa eventually won with her trademark German suplex.
Table and chairs were brought out to the ring and you could hear half the audience groan. To be fair, this was the best of the PISS (ugh) interviews, as it built to conflict. Portia calls Thunderkitty out to show she’s sincere about these interviews, but never lets TK actually answer any questions. TK eventually has enough, grabs Portia’s hands to hold the mic in place so she can talk, then destroys the set when Portia gets snippy.
Nicole Matthews came out to defend Portia, and makes an exception to giving younger competitors a chance in order to face Thunderkitty. So we’re veering from her new gimmick two matches into it.
During the introductions someone jumps the railing and it’s former announcer Kevin Harvey! He steps in for Lenny to do his trademark “Thunder…Thunder…THUNDERKITTY!” intro for her, then disappears as fast as he came. Amusing touch. Match was ok, but it was a tad slow and there was never any doubt Nicole would be stealing a win.
Tessa Blanchard came out for her match against LuFisto without Kraven at ringside and if you can’t see where this is going you’ve never watched wrestling. 😉 This was the best Tessa looked all weekend, as she and Lufisto had an intense back and forth match. Lufisto always seemed just a little too much for her, and sure enough as soon as the proper opportunity arose Kraven dashed out and grabbed Lufisto’s feet from the outside, holding her down out of sight of the ref or Tessa so Tessa could get the win. Nice touch afterward as Tessa was totally oblivious to the interference and told Kraven how nice it was that Kraven came out to congratulate her.
If I had a remaining dream opponent for Ryo Mizunami this weekend Courtney Rush was definitely it. They’re two of the most charismatic performers on the shows in addition to being phenomenal wrestlers and this was all kinds of fun.
Mizunami repeatedly just kind of shrugging off Rush’s strangeness and the two waging war with each other was pitch perfect. Strong finish to a great weekend for Mizunami.
Coming off a victory in the 4-way on Volume 83, Jessicka Havok received a shot at the Heart of SHIMMER Championship held by Nicole Savoy. Was surprised not to see a Baszler rematch, but that would be explained soon enough. Savoy makes a big deal about Havok having a weapon with her and insists the bat be sent to the back. That seemed significant.
Indeed late in the match the ref is knocked out, and Shayna Baszler comes running from the back with Havok’s bat. She teases revenge on Savoy, but blasts Havok instead. Savoy retains and has a powerful new ally. This was executed very well and I love the pairing of Baszler and Savoy.
The Kimber Bombs (Kimber Lee and Cherry Bomb) finally had to face the consequences of their suspect methods for retaining their titles as they defended the SHIMMER Tag Team Championship in an elimination match against Slap Happy (Evie & Heidi Lovelace), Balespin (Xandra Bale & KC Spinelli), and WDSS (Kay Lee Ray & Mia Yim).
Early on the challengers all ganged up on the champions and completely dominated them for quite a while, including isolating Cherry Bomb and putting tape over her mouth to stop her angelic voice. It was such a comeuppance to begin the match I started to suspect the Bombs might escape with their titles at the end and drop them next volume.
Once it settled down a bit we got a lot of great back and forth action, and eventually WDSS made Balespin the first elimination. However Cherry snuck up behind KLR and got a quick rollup to immediately send WDSS out to. So it came back down to the original number one contenders coming into the weekend against the champs.
The Bombs tried to use the belts as weapons one time to many, and Kim accidentally hit Cherry instead, allowing Heidi and Evie to hit their top rope double stomp – frogsplash combo for the win and the titles. Great use of the format and Slap Happy’s win delighted the crowd.
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Heir apparent Kellie Skater faced Madison Eagles for the SHIMMER Championship that was exactly as good as expected from two wrestlers the calibre of Kellie and Madison. It was even throughout and constantly felt like it could go either way.
The end came while they were on the top turnbuckle and Kellie blocked a kick and fell inside the ring while holding Madison’s leg, torquing the latter’s knee over the top rope. Madison fell to the outside and failed to make it back in before ten, giving Kellie the countout victory but not the title. In the spirit of competition Madison says she’s not going to let her knee rob Kellie or the fans of the title match, and sets up a rematch for the title on Volume 85. That announcement got a big ovation.
Pic with the champ during intermission.
Volume 85
This volume had a different feel, as it was much shorter than usual. It was still totally a complete and satisfying show though, and outside of a couple matches that felt abbreviated almost everything was given enough time to breathe.
Lufisto bounced back after her loss to Tessa and defeated Amanda Carolina Rodriguez in her only appearance this weekend to open the taping. Brisk match that let the newcomer fight back a bit before the veteran put her away.
Nicole Matthews expanded on her “Locker Room Leader” gimmick by declaring herself the “Shimmertaker.” Her challenge this time was Rhia O’Reilly, who instantly became the defacto face. Rhia’s impressive weekend continued and her mannerisms, presence, etc in this match were fantastic. Right after the bell she told Matthews “you are the locker room leader” and laid down for her, only to small package her for a close 2 when she tried to cover Rhia. That got a big pop. Later after taking a bit to much of Nicole’s abuse she told a seated Nicole “Saraya says Hi!” and hit Knight’s signature dropkick between the legs.
After current TNA Women’s Champion Allysin Kay scored a dominant win over Xandra Bale, the table and chairs came back much to my chagrin. This time Portia’s guest was Kellyanne, out to explain her absence from competition.
Portia got a ton of boos and the expected “PISS Break” chant broke out several times and loudly (I still can’t believe they went with that acronym), but it really felt like the audience was trying to hijack/end the segment instead of it generating the desired kind of heel heat. This one in particular was way too long for what it was, and Kellyanne wasn’t quite good enough on the mic to draw the crowd in enough to keep them engaged.
There’s potential here, but as Portia’s retired and there’s no physical consequences in her future she needs to find a way to get heat on her GUESTS, not herself. Streamlining is also needed, as dropping pointless stuff like cheating Kellyanne in table hockey before getting to the actual interview will bring these down to a better length and they won’t sap the crowd’s energy and disrupt the pace of the show so much.
Case in point, Arisa Nakajima got nowhere near the same reaction from the crowd to start her match against Shazza McKenzie that she did earlier in the day. There was applause, but the audience had been cooled down considerably by PISS (I hate myself for having to type that). Thankfully with two fast paced wrestlers squaring off they woke back up quick.
Like Rhia, Shazza was given great opportunities this weekend against Matthews and Nakajima. Also like Rhia, she looked good against the veterans. This is the match that I most would have like to see go longer, as it seemed it was just getting going when Arisa finished Shazza with the German about five minutes in. Fun while it lasted. Expectedly and deservedly, Arisa got a huge “please come back” chant as she left the ring.
Kimber Lee was out next and pouted dejectedly as the crowd taunted her about losing the tag titles. Her match with Thunderkitty was heavily humor based, as they stole the similar flowers they wear from each other’s hair at various points.
I cannot say enough about how little things like Shayna Baszler and Nicole Savoy taking out a stool from under the ring for their corner before the match enhance their characters and general immersion so much. Mia Yim fought valiantly, but she was just taken apart here by Baszler (with opportune help from Savoy).
One slight problem with all the teams established this weekend is it makes the faces look bad when Mia is getting attacked behind the ref’s back by Savoy and KLR never comes out to help. That aside this was another strong showing for Baszler and a good introduction for her partnership with Savoy. Odd that Havok didn’t come looking for blood, but that may have been addressed in the next match.
Viper, Vanessa Kraven, and Courtney Rush made their way out for a 4-way, and Jessica Havok’s music played. There was some talk about it being a mistake by the music guy who didn’t know a change had been made, but given that has never happened in Shimmer and something similar with the music would happen later in the show quite deliberately I’m guessing this will make the dvd and commentary will explain Havok’s too injured to compete, thus explaining why she didn’t spend this volume chasing Savoy and Baszler with her bat.
The music that follows brings Nixon Newell out as the final competitor, and her opponents are amused. “Please don’t die” chant from the crowd.
This was another excellent 4-way, with great highlights like Rush and Viper cornering Tessa on the outside and a spot where Viper shows hesitant trepidation when she realizes Kraven has snuck up behind her. Viper showed more personality here than she did all weekend and I think the role of cocky heel who sometime bites off more than she can chew suits her a bit better than that of unstoppable monster. Nixon continued to be a natural underdog that the crowd loved rallying behind.
Great stuff from all four and while I expected Tessa to cost Kraven another match giving Nixon the upset, instead Rush ambushed Nixon with the mist and scored her only victory of the weekend. Of course Courtney and her character are pretty much teflon at this point and can always be quickly reestablished, but the win here was good to remind the audience how dangerous she is. “Please come back” chant for Nixon as she exits.
Nicole Savoy successfully defended her Heart of SHIMMER Championship against Kay Lee Ray in another strong showing for both in a match that repeatedly featured Baszler’s involvement to incite the crowd and further establish the new duo. I’m again impressed with how well Savoy’s tweaked her act to get fully booed instead of the mixed cheers she had been getting due to how good she is.
Heidi came in for Slap Happy’sShimmer Tag Team Title defense selling her leg heavily, and Yumi Ohka & Melanie Cruise made the most of it. They ambushed the champs right off the bat and spent a full ten minutes beating the high holy hell out of Heidi, targeting her leg, and knocking Evie off the apron at every opportunity. The champs got ZERO offense that whole time.
The challengers cheated and mocked the champs magnificently by doing everything from using Yumi’s whip to biting Heidi while in submission holds to Yumi dancing while grinding her heel into Heidi’s knee. Yumi is clearly having the time of her life with her new heel character and she’s amazing at it. Her mocking faces at the ref as she does her “release the hair pull at the count of 4 by switching to the other hand” routine are a sight to behold.
The thing that made this so special, besides the expert level at which the four wrestlers told the story, was that it was so off formula for title matches in Shimmer. Champions practically never get dominated to this extent, and it was done perfectly so that the crowd never lost interest and continued to get more and more worked up about Heidi escaping and getting Evie into the match. And when she did they went wild. The champs eventually persevered and retained with their finisher on Cruise in one of the best matches of the weekend.
Kellie Skater’s music hit for the big main event rematch, but it was not to be. After a few false starts with Kellie’s music it changes to that of Tessa Blanchard, and the crowd is ready to riot. Tessa comes out with Kraven carrying a limp Skater over her shoulders. In a clever bit Tessa claims they just found Kellie like that, which of course no one believes at that time. She says Kellie clearly can’t compete, and after defeating Evie and Lufisto she thinks she should get the title shot against Madison Eagles.
The crowd does not like where this seems to be going, but receives a pleasant surprise that blows the roof off the place when Eagles comes out, rushes Kraven and kicks her out of the ring, then grabs Tessa for Hellbound and retains in three seconds flat.
Eagles isn’t content to end the night like that however, and issues an open challenge for her title. As the crowd wonders if Kraven is going to jump in the ring, Savoy and Baszler come out of nowhere and DESTROY Madison’s knee with Havok’s bat.
The clever part I referred to comes back here, as the implication seems that maybe Tessa and Kraven really did find Kellie laid out and it was instead these two who did it. When they decide they’d done enough, they both strangely jump out of the ring, neither accepting the open challenge. Music strikes up and my jaw goes slack as Mercedes Martinez returns to Shimmer.
She tauntingly asks Eagles whether they’re going to start this challenge or not, and Eagles glares a hole through Martinez as she pulls herself up in the corner and signals the match to start. Sadly for Eagles her knee’s not up to it and Martinez shortly becomes your new Shimmer Champion. Jaw dropping angle to close out the weekend and the combination of Martinez, Savoy, and Baszler look like vicious, heartless, world beaters. Exquisitely done.
Hell of a way to finish up a Shimmer weekend filled with incredible action and major developments, including a new dominant force for the faces to try to overcome. The shows weren’t flawless, but they were excellent none-the-less. And Sunday showed Shimmer can trim some time off of their usual extra long 3+ hour shows without losing any of the quality they’re known for.
After the end of the previous night’s taping of Volume 81 anticipation was through the roof for a possible Eagles vs Nakajima match. Sure, enough, in the morning it was announced as the main event for Volume 82. 🙂
The opening match for the first taping of the day built off tensions from Volume 81’s 4-way and saw Vanessa Kraven take on Lufisto. This was a great way to start, as it was high energy and felt appropriately heated for a contest between rivals who don’t like each other. Tessa Blanchard was back in Kraven’s corner after her absence the previous night, and ended up costing Kraven the match to further the slow building tensions between the two.
Amusing side note: at one point Kraven was distracting the ref by complaining about the audience taking pictures, so I lifted my camera and got a pic just as she turned her accusing finger at me.
Shayna Baszler and Viper both continued their dominating debuts defeating Solo Darling and Heidi Lovelace respectively. Shayna continued to look awesome, displaying good instincts and complete commitment to pro-wrestling details and conventions, including applying a “tail-bar” on Solo like she was trying to torture the latter. Big crowd reaction for it. Little touches like the spade gesture and dumping a deck of cards over her fallen opponent add a lot to her mystique.
Still wasn’t completely sold on Viper here, but she got to show more of her agility against the quick Lovelace and Heidi’s an established enough name in Shimmer that defeating her continued Viper’s rapid march up the card.
Another two teams new to Shimmer as pairs faced off as Balespin (Xandra Bale & KC Spinelli) faced Crazy Mary Dobson & Samantha Heights in a decent little match that would play into the (brisk) tag team booking that continue all weekend. It went well enough given the lack of established teams, so no big complaints. Odd dynamic here as Mary and Samantha were slightly portrayed as the heel team, but Mary is not getting booed in Shimmer so it didn’t work quite as well as they perhaps expected. I preferred Dobson and Heights as a team a bit over Balespin, but the latter was fine too.
After a nice showing in defeat at the end of Volume 81’s 4-way against Kellie Skater, Shazza McKenzie got a huge upset victory here against Evie in a great back and forth contest. Shazza continues to improve and looked quite a bit better in all of her matches this weekend than in her previous visits to Shimmer.
Portia’s Interview Segment Spectacular (who ok’s these acronyms?!) debuted next, and was brutal. I adore Portia on commentary and she’s generally a fantastic heel, but this did not come across well. Portia and Nicole got booed themselves, but this segment significantly cooled off a hot crowd overall. Nicole declares herself locker room leader and says she’s going to give opportunities to the younger members of the roster.
Nixon Newell comes out to take Nicole Matthews up on her challenge, and does manage to get the crowd into the match somewhat by the end. Foregone conclusion though both due to Matthews’ level and her just established gimmick.
Thunderkitty comes out and cuts a very good promo about feeling disrespected, but it shouldn’t have been placed so close to Portia’s segment. That made it seem longer than it was, and when Tessa Blanchard answered TK’s open challenge all remaining momentum the show had was gone. Not bad, but Tessa’s getting more “we don’t want to see you” heat than “we want someone to beat you” heat, and TK’s ring style is not one to re-energize the crowd. Kraven stole the spotlight here, as her mannerisms on the outside and the way she reacted to Tessa were perfect.
Nitpick: “The following match is scheduled for one fall with a twenty minute time limit” should not be announced when someone is coming out for an interview to make an open challenge.
Courtney Rush continues to be incredibly intimidating and a serious threat despite coming up short in her Shimmer title match. Her presence is just amazing and Kellie Skater was not only the perfect foil for her, but playing off the fact that they’ve both been mainstays in Shimmer and asking “what happened to you Courtney?!” added a touch of depth and increased the intensity.
Kellie’s roll continued with a tough victory over a top competitor, and it was becoming clearer that she’d be challenging for a singles title before the weekend was up. This got the crowd going again.
Nicole Savoy defended her Heart of SHIMMER Championship against the ultra-popular Ryo Mizunami. Tough challenge early in Nicole’s reign, even if Baszler’s trajectory seemed headed this way and made a title change here extremely unlikely. It was everything I expected and hoped for from these two, with the cocky heel defending champion trying to ground the powerhouse, who often responded by running through and/or over the champion. Great showing for both.
Viper hit the ring for an interview before the next match, and talked about her big wins and how her aspirations were to climb to “where Eagles nest,” foreshadowing the champion’s next feud. Wish she had cut this AFTER the main to leave her involvement a surprise.
The breakneck booking of the tag division I was referring to early was on display as Flying High WDSS (Kay Lee Ray & Mia Yim) received a Shimmer Tag Team Championship match against Cherry Bomb & Kimber Lee after a single victory against another duo who had never teamed in Shimmer before. Still, at least there was that one victory to establish them a little and I understand that they were doing the best they could with all the last minute changes to the roster.
The good news is all the new teams worked well together and looked good in the ring over the course of the weekend. Yim and KLR in particular wrestled like a well oiled machine here, performing double teams like they’d been teaming for years. Good title match that saw the Bombs use the belts again to steal a win.
I had no greater wish going into the weekend that to see Madison Eagles face Arisa Nakajima, and boy did they deliver. The SHIMMER Championship being on the line (as well as how early in the weekend this was happening and Viper’s promo) clearly pointed to a non-finish, but they completely tore the house down leading up to it.
It was an absolute joy to watch two of the best in the world battle, and my memory won’t do it justice. Definitely go out of your way to see this when it’s available.
Though I’ll admit the finish was flat. Even for a DQ run-in it didn’t come off well, as Viper choked an already tied up Eagles in the corner instead of leveling her with some impressive looking strike or slam first. Strategically it made more sense, but as the end of a hard-hitting, anticipated title match it was a poor choice. Still, the JWP champion was neither winning the Shimmer title nor dropping a fall here, so if that finish was the price paid for being able to have the wonderful match that preceded it at all in the first place I have no complaints.
Afterward Viper had left the area Arisa recovered from the spider suplex that had left her out of the confrontation and helped Madison to the back to a round of cheers.
Beware of lurking ninjas!
During intermission I got to talk to Kellyanne English a bit, who was out for the weekend due to medical issues. She was in relatively good spirits regardless, and I hope to see her back in the ring soon. She was extremely impressive in her debut Shimmer events last fall.
Volume 83
Suitable opener saw Veda Scott against Crazy Mary Dobson in a simple case of hated heel against beloved underdog. Good effort from both and they got the crowd properly riled.
Taylor Made made her only appearance of the weekend against Heidi Lovelace. Fine match that saw Heidi get the expected win with a senton from the top.
I was extremely disappointed to see Shazza McKenzie come out to face Nicole Matthews so early into Nicole’s new gimmick. It was obvious Shazza was going to lose and seemed a waste of upsetting Evie on the previous volume (even more so the next day when I saw who Shazza faced then: continued momentum would’ve added a lot to that match). Regardless, I do understand the opportunity she was given here against a former Shimmer champion and she looked good in the ring with Nicole.
The crowd (rightfully) got extremely excited as Allysin Kay, Mia Yim, Yumi Ohka, and Jessicka Havok made their way out for a 4-way contest. It was excellent. The competitors really took advantage of the format, from the expected awesome tower of doom and four person submission spots to individual encounters like Havok and Kay laying into each other and Ohka mocking Yim’s usual posing routine.
Incredibly hot end too, as Yumi just NAILED poor Mia in the face with her whip behind the ref’s back, but Havok leveled her in turn sending Yumi out to the floor hard right in front of me. Havok covered the still dead Yim for the win. They were clicking on all cylinders all the way through this.
Rhia O’Reilly’s opportunities against high level competition continued as she faced Kay Lee Ray (and she’d face even tougher competition on Sunday). Rhia is solid in the ring and can adapt to the style of her opponents, so it was wonderful to see her get these chances to continue to up her game and show what she can do. KLR eventually staved off Rhia’s assault and picked up the win with the Gory Bomb.
Also continuing was Evie’s tough weekend, as she lost to Tessa Blanchard after interference from Vanessa Kraven. This was fine, and Tessa generates a lot of heat, but she can’t quite keep up with someone like Evie.
After the match Lufisto came out and cut a fantastic short, to the point promo mocking Tessa for riding her father’s name and pointing out Kraven helps Tessa win matches while every time Tessa tries to help Kraven it backfires. She challenges Tessa to a match on Volume 84 with Kraven banned from ringside, and an irate Tessa accepts. If Lufi’s always this good on the mic she needs to be given it more often.
It was surprising to see Shayna Baszler get a shot at Nicole Savoy and the Heart of SHIMMER Championship so soon, but all would make sense later. This was a very short match, but quite good while it lasted. The double finish (with Savoy just putting Baszler’s shoulders down for a pin a second before tapping) kept Baszler strong while getting her first loss out of the way. Baszler shook her head after realizing she didn’t win but presented the belt back to Savoy in a show of respect. It seemed certain to set up a rematch where Baszler took the title, but we ended up with something even better.
Balespin (Xandra Bale &KC Spinelli) were the next in line for the Kimber Bombs’ (Cherry Bomb & Kimber Lee) SHIMMER Tag Team Championship. The challengers looked fine, but never felt like they had a real chance here and as expected the Bombs retained with another cheap shot with the belts.
Afterwards things got interesting, as Slap Happy and WDSS came out to surround the Bombs and inform them that the consequences of all their recent tainted victories would be an elimination match at Volume 84 against both of them plus Balespin. The build might have become a bit predictable, but that’s not an issue when done well and at this point it looked like all of the four teams had at least some chance of winning the elimination match.
Kellie Skater was given another tough challenge to overcome, and Ryo Mizunami was given another opponent she could tear the house down with. Which they did. Two complete pros having a great match.
Building off the events of the earlier taping, Viper challenged Madison Eagles for the SHIMMER Championship. This should have started molten, and looked like it was going to when Eagles tried to rush Viper, but the ref repeatedly held her back until she turned her head and Viper got the jump on her, deflating the crowd. Viper surviving Eagles’ flurry then establishing control would have worked better, and wouldn’t have made Madsion look stupid.
They got into gear quickly after that though, and had a good back and forth match with Madison constantly trying to find a way to combat Viper’s size and a concerted attack on Madison’s weak knee. Viper still wasn’t quite up to the reputation that proceeded her, but came across as a threat and held up her end of the main event. Madison toughed out the challenge and retained her title.
After the match Madison was slumped against the ropes calling for someone to help her out of the ring and to the back. It seemed like it could have either been selling Viper’s gameplan or a legit problem with the knee. Given the story of the rest of the weekend combined with the recent unfortunate news that Madison needs knee surgery and will be out of action for a year, it was probably both.
There were a couple of hiccups here and there, but overall these were two shows well up to Shimmer’s usual standards of excellence. I had a great time.
This was both Shimmer’s first show at Logan Square and the first time they’ve run a Friday night show to start the weekend. Logan Square Auditorium is a very different atmosphere than the Berwyn Eagles Club, but I liked the venue overall and was glad to see a decent crowd for those events at the new location. Having slightly more room for the merchandise tables was particularly nice.
There was a fair bit of anticipation for this weekend due to a number of debuts. Add in several regulars missing the tapings for various reasons and there was significant potential for some new breakout stars.
Nixon Newell is a natural underdog and debuting her against uber-heel Veda Scott guaranteed her a chance to win the crowd right away. She did so, looking good despite a loss and making an impression that would last the weekend. Veda keeps improving in the ring, and really knows how to work up the crowd. After the heat she generated last tapings showing sympathy for referee Andy Long he was assigned all her matches this weekend. I understand capitalizing on opportunities, but the fact that Shimmer has a ref that that is never shown to be crooked in any way yet gets more boos than most the heels on the roster is a problem, not something that should be emphasized.
One of the biggest debuts for the weekend was next as Shayna Baszler wrestled in Shimmer for the first time against Rhia O’Reilly. Shayna seems to have transitioned well into the particularities of pro-wrestling while still keeping an MMA based style. It reminds me of the style Timothy Thatcher, Drew Gulak, and others have been spotlighting in Evolve. She has an edge to her character too and showed a lot of charisma. It all combined to make her seem a dominant force right off the bat. Rhia is always solid in the ring and was a great choice as a first test for Shayna. Rhia would go on to have several more high profile opponents over the course of the weekend.
Several interesting aspects were woven into one 4-way match. Lufisto and Vanessa Kraven eventually lost all patience with each other and brawled to the back. Shazza McKenzie got to show an extra level of resiliency by lasting a while after that against top of the card mainstay Kellie Skater. Good action throughout this.
Another debut saw Viper make an immediate impact against Jessica Havok. This was an ok power match meant to emphasize Viper’s strength, but from what I understand (and saw later) what makes her unique is her agility for her size, which wasn’t much on display here. Havok’s so big Viper’s power moves didn’t come off crisply, which hurt the match a bit. Still, the main purpose of making her an immediate threat by defeating an established monster like Havok was achieved.
On a completely random note: Yumi Ohka has some of the most amazing ring robes and gear in all of wrestling.
With Cheerleader Melissa missing her first set of Shimmer tapings ever due to Lucha Underground tapings, Melanie Cruise was teamed up with newly turned Yumi Ohka in her stead. They had phenomenal chemistry as a team and I actually prefer this pairing slightly over Ohka & Melissa. Here they faced the ridiculously named new team of Flying High WDSS (Mia Yim & Kay Lee Ray).
The team name and new music essentially gave away the finish, but this was a great little match none-the-less. Ohka and Cruise’s excellent heel work agitated the crowd well and Yim and KLR are both natural babyfaces. The latter’s quick tag / jumping in and out over the top ropes sequence in particular was a nice touch to show them being on the same wavelength in a cool and unique way. Strong win for WDSS in their first teaming.
The fourth, final, and biggest debut of the night saw JWP Openweight Champion Arisa Nakajima face former Shimmer Champion Nicole Matthews. At first it seemed a lot of the crowd didn’t know Arisa or the level of this matchup. Nicole tried to cover and emphasize its importance by jumping on a fan who referred to it as a “midcard match,” but her protests about that rang a bit hollow considering it was inexplicably placed smack dab in the middle of the card. I appreciate her effort there but wish she had talked up Arisa’s reputation a bit more to get the point across.
So the initial heat wasn’t really as high as it should have been for a matchup of this caliber, but it didn’t matter by the end as Arisa’s work eventually won everyone over and the victory over a former Shimmer champ in her debut conveyed what Nicole had been trying to. Great work by both. Arisa’s a favorite of mine and it was wonderful to see her come over to the states and wrestle in Shimmer.
I’d guess KC Spinelli got the match originally intended for the injured Kellyanne English against Ryo Mizunami. If so, she certainly made the most of the opportunity. She looked better than ever here, keeping pace with the more experienced Mizunami. Speaking of which, Mizunami is on a completely different level than her last appearances in Shimmer. I got a taste of this during a trip to Japan last December, and was extremely excited when she was announced for Shimmer. Her charisma is amazing, and she makes use of little mannerisms combined with a high level of energy to really connect with the crowd and fire them up (seemingly) effortlessly. She was pitch perfect all weekend and it was great to see her back.
Nicole Savoy defended her Heart of Shimmer Championship against Crazy Mary Dobson, who was likely filling in here in place of Candice LeRae (out for the weekend with a concussion). Savoy’s heel work keeps improving, as she’s more and more able to sustain boos from the crowd despite how great she is in the ring being appreciated by most of them. Crazy Mary was a perfect opponent in that respect, as the crowd always adores her. This was decent, but held back a little by the fact that Mary never seemed a credible threat to take the title. The momentum she had from upsetting Saraya Knight at the fall tapings was gone due to her early exit from the Heart of Shimmer tournament in April.
Slap Happy (Heidi Lovelace and Evie) received the shot at the Shimmer Tag Team Championship against the Kimber Bombs (Kimber Lee and Cherry Bomb) they earned by winning a number one contenders mini-tournament during the fall. Both teams fit their roles exactly, from Cherry’s voice and the Bombs cheating antagonizing the crowd to Heidi and Evie being the perfect competitors for the crowd to get behind. Lots of good action leading to the Bombs infuriating the audience by retaining with a belt shot. This would set up future developments later in the weekend.
There isn’t anyone in wrestling right now with more command of their character than Courtney Rush (and only Dalton Castle and Su Yung even really come close).Her mannerisms are appropriately creepy and intimidating, and she blends it all seamlessly with her ring work. She was pushed heavily during the fall tapings and it was no surprise when she was announced as Madison Eagles’ next challenger for the Shimmer Championship.
Madison stopped in front of me while walking around the ring to confess she was “a little bit scared about this one.” It was a great nod to the imposing and unsettling nature of Courtney’s character, which Madison continued at the beginning of the match by making a cross out of two of her trademark forks. I’ve heard some weird chants before, but “The Power of Christ Compels You” is a new one. Courtney laughed it off, chased Madison outside, then licked the “cross.” Madison responded with a huge kick to the head, then things got REALLY odd/fun.
Madison went under the ring and took out two containers of SALT, and poured them completely around the ring to form a barrier to keep demons out. Rush sold getting “burned” every time she tried to touch the ropes/get back into the ring. But as the ref reached around 7 on the count he got too close to the edge and “broke the barrier,” allowing Rush back inside. Absurd, but done perfectly and highly amusing. This was just the right amount of humorous proceedings to start the match, and it all stemmed directly from Rush’s current character and still centered around Eagles trying to win. From there they had a solid, hard-hitting main event that Eagles won in decisive fashion.
But we weren’t quite done yet. As Eagles went to leave ringside, Arisa came back out with the JWP title over her shoulder and gave Madison a little bump while smiling slyly. They both got back in the ring, raised their titles at each other, then shook hands in a show of mutual respect. The crowd picked up on this as a huge development and there was a lot of buzz about a potential match between the two as everyone exited. Eagles vs Arisa is the match I most hoped for when Nakajima was announced, so I was thrilled with this end to the taping.
Bell Cranel has big dreams of meeting and impressing the perfect girl while adventuring in his city’s monster filled dungeon. He’s off to a poor start when he becomes the damsel in distress and said dream girl rescues him. Further complications loom as the goddess he serves might just be jealous…
There are several interesting core concepts here, but the test of the story going forward will be whether they will all come together in a compelling way. I like Hestia herself, but the god hierarchy, rivalries and schemes (not to mention the several page argument/taunting about breast sizes) all feel run of the mill at this point and aren’t as intriguing as Bell’s end of the story. So at the moment certain elements are much more engaging than others.
Bell’s central desire to get stronger is incredibly cliche, but so far it’s being done well and has a nice twist with his growth potential possibly allowing him to get too strong, too soon.
The RPG trappings of the world are acknowledged in world as fact, which allows some fun perversions of said trappings without explicit fourth wall breaking. For example, character’s actually have experience gained and other stats and skills magically appear on their back to be totaled and tracked by their god, and it’s treated as a completely normal part of life. This approach is odd, but presented and handled in a fun way.
Decent start. I could definitely see myself reading more.
And he feared I was the last thing he’d ever see.”
Nolan ra Sinjaria is not only one of the fierce elite warrior group called Talions, he is a member of the Justice subgroup tasked with tracking, judging, and passing sentence on criminals in nearly every corner of the Shattered Empire. Though fully committed to his duties, Nolan’s past looms heavily over him and might shape not only his own future, but that of entire kingdoms.
I completely adored this when I first read it a couple years ago, and it remains my favorite fantasy novel after my second visit. There is less impact upon reread because the twists aren’t as flooring, but it’s equally nice to notice all the little clues laid in throughout the book when going through it again.
The book isn’t perfect and there are several genre cliches employed, but as always it’s the way those cliched elements are used that really matters. Here they’re woven together wonderfully with a handful of complex, diverse characters, a suspenseful atmosphere with good surprises, and Stackpole’s usual incredible word building. Nolan’s world, its history, and the specific role of the Talions is all fascinating and adds considerable depth to the action of the story (of which there is plenty). There seem to be a few minor internal inconsistencies here and there, but they don’t detract from the enjoyment of the story the framework supports.
Stackpole is an expert at providing vivd detail without bogging the pace down, and everything from the landscapes to characters to battles is extremely easy to visualize. This increases immersion exponentially and contributes to the compelling nature of Nolan’s adventures. It also enhances the perception of time and space, which is particularly important because of the parallel storytelling employed here. It’s done flawlessly.
The other key, which is always a big point with me, is that the plot is driven as much or more so by character as it is by action and events. There are various agendas and personalities in opposition and the story properly centers around individual feelings and reactions to what’s happening in around the characters and how their agendas align or conflict. Most importantly, the main characters are strong and smart but not infallible, which allows readers to admire and cheer for them while still empathizing with their struggles.
I found Talion: Revenant to be a fantastic read initially and am pleased to say it held up well the second time through. Highly recommended.
Derailments of Thought 