PW Chronicle

A good place to talk all things in professional wrestling

[pwchronicle]

Can Survivor Series Survive?

When the WWE Network launched in February 2014, I had the nutty idea to just binge on all of the Survivor Series events they had. That idea never became a reality, partly because I had I other things going on (and consume a lot of entertainment beyond wrestling on a regular basis), mainly because the WWE Network was very buggy in its intial couple of weeks, especially for on-demand programming. Regardless, my desire to binge-watch past Survivor Series existed for a reason. 

Right behind the Royal Rumble (which was my only PPV purchase when I was younger, and which I now watch in party atmospheres), the Survivor Series concept was one of my favorite concept shows. Teams of four or five coming together to do battle in elimination tag team matches. They felt huge, and they felt unique, as the teams were so eclectic. When I started watching WWF regularly in the dark days of 1993, relying mostly on the raw talent amidst the stupidity, I was drawn in by this wild team concept. After competing at SummerSlam a few months earlier, “Made In The USA” Lex Luger and the monstrous WWF Champion Yokozuna (and his handlers) assembled two teams: the All-Americans and the Foreign Fanatics. In the build-up, each team would take out one of their members and in turn recruited substitutes. The All-Americans lost Tatanka but replaced him with the Undertaker, while the Fanatics recruited newly heel Crush after losing Pierre of the Quebecers. This in turn led to more intrigue in the eventual Survivor Series match, with Crush’s feud with former friend Randy Savage coming into play and Taker scaring the hell out of Yoko. Elsewhere on that card, you had two teams of the midcard talent to which I was most drawn (with Savage joining in as a late replacement for Mr. Perfect), and two other 4 v 4 matches that would drag the show down by today’s standards, with their highs (Bret & Owen Hart, Bam Bam Bigelow) and their lows (four Doinks and three misplaced knights assigned to Shawn Michaels when Bret’s real nemesis, Jerry Lawler, was indicted on rape allegations).

Not one of the best shows for a new young fan to watch on VHS, but the concept still intrigued me. You’d have a few feuds, large or small, between two wrestlers, and these feuds would be prolonged to this pay-per-view, with the feuding parties assembling allies for battle. It’s like an all-star game. The concept led to my enjoyment of similar matches, such as Chikara’s 8 v 8 Torneo Cibernetico matches. Over the years however, as WWF became WWE and kept increasing how many hours of television they offer (be it on cable, pay-per-view, or their own streaming service), the main concept shrank. Some Survivor Series events only had one of these elimination tag team matches. Some events were more focused on tournaments for the vacant world championship, with elimination tags as background noise. A bummer, but understandable for various reasons. There were championships to be won and Authorities to be overthrown.

For the most recent events, the focus has shifted back to these elimination tag team matches, but for the sake of “brand supremacy,” not traditional feuds. The managing entities of Raw and Smackdown have been assembling their own teams, a mix of faces and heels, putting them in matching T-shirts, and letting them have at it. It’s even expanded with champion vs. champion matches, and this year these matches pitting two sides against one another have grown another side with NXT joining the fray.

Unfortunately, problems emerge from this recent promoting strategy and contribute to ongoing problems which should be no surprise to those of us that have been watching regularly. Given the changeover in the rosters from one year to the next, with wrestlers going from Raw to Smackdown and vice versa, there’s no consistent identity for either show. NXT is at least providing some freshness, but from watching this week’s NXT with its multiple t-shirt run-ins, the Raw and Smackdown invaders consisted of the old guard of NXT (or in the extremely recent guard with the appearance of the Street Profits in Raw shirts). Equally annoying is that for the month of Survivor Series build, at least one of these sides/shows come off like massive heels, regardless of their regular alignments. Remember when Smackdown decided to put Raw “Under Seige” by invading them and beating them all up? I found it very obnoxious and put everybody on Smackdown (a show I was enjoying more at the time) in a bad light. It’s kind of been happening to NXT this year with Triple H as their general. Regardless, these matches still go on as planned, one side performs better than the other, but what has happened on the TV that follows? Basically nothing. No high stakes, no big rewards, no feuds advanced or ended to my recollection. Just bragging rights, for whatever they’re worth: Jack and Shit, and Jack just requested his release. 

Is there a chance things could be different with NXT so heavily involved now? Who knows beyond those booking, but NXT is contributing something else. As recently as this week, NXT has had the unenviable to admirable task of building two big shows at once: Survivor Series, and their own annual Takeover: WarGames. When it comes to WarGames (another team-based concept, originally from WCW but adopted by NXT), we’ve been getting those old Survivor Series vibes from many years ago: the continuing/ending of feuds through assembled teams. The first year, NXT did this, it opted for three teams of three: the already established factions of Sanity and the Undisputed Era, plus a makeshift team of Roderick Strong and the Authors of Pain (they even dressed alike!). Last year, it was a more traditional 4 v 4 war, with Ricochet, Pete Dunne, and the then-War Raiders uniting against the Undisputed Era. We’re getting that again this year, with Tommaso Ciampa leading an anti-Era team en route to him reclaiming the NXT Championship, but also a second 4 v 4 WarGames with the top women. Shayna Baszler has recruited two past challengers and her NXT UK champion equivalent (rather than just her usual cronies) to combat new threat Rhea Ripley and her team of faces. We’ve been able to see these teams gradually come together over the weeks, work together over the weeks, and even this week cut promos together, with the women’s teams involved in a fantastic promo package. 

I was worried about NXT losing what has made it special when it became a live show with an extra hour and change on cable, but I’ve continued enjoying it and seeing it maintain its general presentation and storytelling. This includes WarGames. Even though it’s a different match concept, I see it as the general Survivor Series build and follow-through of old. For Raw and Smackdown, Survivor Series just feels less special, less like tradition and more like an obligation (refer also to recent Hell in a Cell and TLC events). So at the very least, the old tale of teams of five that strive to survive can be preserved and in some cases revised within the company, on a show/”brand” where they still know how to tell stories and present and protect talent. Maybe that will continue, either with old concepts, tossed aside for the sake of the autonomy, spruced up in NXT, or with NXT’s brain trust making their way to the bigger shows. But this is all wishful thinking on my end. 

[pwchronicle]

New Japan Pro Wrestling “Fighting Spirit Unleashed 2019 - Night 3″ Live Show Report September 29th in Philadelphia, PA

New Japan completed their three-night tour of the Northeast at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia. Running on their own without the assistance of a domestic promotion, tonight drew a near-capacity crowd of fans from all over. I was last at the Arena over two months ago for EVOLVE 131 (the one that aired live on the WWE Network). That was a no vacancy crowd as well, though I was close to the ring in the North section and really felt the heavy body heat. This time, I secured a Row 10 seat (though it still had good views) in the South section, where it felt considerably cooler. Granted, it’s also late September, and it was more comfortable outside today than yesterday, but I didn’t have as many people surrounding me. The referees were three from Japan (including Red Shoes in the main event) and one from the US (presumably California).

1. Rocky Romero beat Clark Connors with a cross arm breaker out of a Falcon Arrow. Right off the bat, the crowd was up for everyone, including the Young Lions of the LA Dojo. Romero is still a ball of charisma. Romero and Connors exchanged a lot of strikes and chops, with Connors delivering the heavier ones. Connors came close with a nearfall from a small package; the Young Lion nearfalls are a tried and true trope that still hooks the crowd.

2. Mikey Nicholls beat Karl Fredericks with a running Mikey Bomb. The former Nick Miller of NXT (not New GIrl), back to his TMDK moniker with a slight Mad Max aesthetic was pretty evenly matched by the recent winner of New Japan’s Young Lion Cup. Nicholls got heat from the crowd by shoving the ref. Fredericks came close to winning with a half-crab, then Nicholls locked on one of his own for the near submission. Nicholls was able to follow up with a Death Valley Driver and a sliding lariat leading into the finish.

3. Lance Archer beat Alex Coughlin with the EBD claw. During Archer’s entrance, he clocked some ringside attendants and hit Coughlin with a lariat before the bell. He’s not wasting any time. Coughlin went after Archer right at the start after recovering, but the next five minutes was pretty much all Archer. He nearly walked all four top ropes while holding onto Coughlin, only stopping his full trip to spite the crowd. Archer was tremendous here. Coughlin started to mount a comeback and successfully bodyslammed Archer after some failed attempts, but Archer hit him with a spinning splash off the middle rope, as well as the Blackout, prior to the finish.

4. Amazing Red beat Ren Narita with Code Red. Narita has begun his United States excursion, rocking the LA Dojo colors (which are still black and white). Red doesn’t seem like someone who retired, but definitely came off like a humble veteran (in that current-day Rey Mysterio mold), very well-liked by the crowd. Narita stood up to him early on, and he came close to winning with a rolling cloverleaf.

5. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, and Shingo Takagi) beat Juice Robinson & Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) when SANADA made YOH submit to Skull End. The first big dose of star power of the night, with each of these six guys getting chants before it ended with a chant for “All These Guys.” Naito still wrestled in his shirt, but whatever, tranquilo. Very fun match that had the crowd fully invested; everyone went nuts when SANADA put Robinson in the Paradise Lock. Following the end of the match, Naito and Robinson spat loogies at one another.

6. Los Ingobernables de Japon (EVIL & BUSHI) beat Kota Ibushi & TJP after EVIL hit TJP with Everything Is Evil. The G1 Climax 29 winner Ibushi was beloved, while his still-babyface partner TJP was soundly booed by everyone in the crowd. Interesting dynamic. Everyone looked good here as this continued to build towards Ibushi and EVIL going one-on-one at King of Pro Wrestling next month. This included EVIL taking Ibushi into the front row and working him over against fans’ chairs. Ibushi was taken out of the match towards the end when BUSHI sprayed mist in his face, then hit him with a tope suicida on the floor.

7. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI, and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) beat Bullet Club’s Jay White, KENTA, Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa), Chase Owens, and Gedo (w/ Jado) in a 6-on-6 Elimination Match. Within New Japan, eliminations in these matches occur via pinfall, submission, or being thrown over the top rope with both feet touching the floor. I’m usually not a fan of these matches that I’ve already seen from New Japan a few times this year, but I was swayed by being in a crowd for one, especially this crowd, and seeing the star power on display, Individual entrances for everyone. After each team had a chance to run wild on the other, it settled onto Tanahashi getting worked over by the Bullet Club. The first man eliminated was Gedo when he was tossed over the top by both Morton and Gibson. These two are still game for everything. Owens got into it with Morton and attempted to hit him with a package piledriver, but Morton back body dropped Owens and hit him with a Canadian Destroyer to a standing ovation. As Morton celebrated though, Jay White came up from behind him and tossed him over the top to eliminate him. Right after this, I believe it was Owens that rolled up Gibson to eliminate him as well, so both Ricky and Robert got to leave the match together to a big ovation from the crowd. Rock ‘n’ Roll lives on. YOSHI-HASHI had a chance to shine after this. He eliminated Loa by tossing him over the top, and then he fought with Tonga afterward, leading YOSHI-HASHI to end up on the outside apron. While Tonga drew away the ref’s attention, Loa yanked YOSHI-HASHI down the floor, eliminating him. A few moments later, YOSHI-HASHI turned the tables by eliminating Tonga the same way. Down to three on each team, this led into KENTA and Ishii squaring off. They both went over the top rope wound up on the outer edge, striking each other until they both fell to the floor, eliminated simultaneously. Once they got up, they continued fighting to the back, so This Feud Must Continue. White and Goto went at it, continuing to build towards an eventual match for White’s newly won Intercontinental Title. Goto was able to toss White over the top rope to eliminate him, but then right afterward Owens (who I forgot about still being in this match) came up from behind and tossed Goto over the top to eliminate him. As Owens celebrated, Tanahashi came up from behind him. Tanahashi avoided being eliminated (holding onto the top rope and powering himself back into the ring), hit Owens with a sling blade, and pinned him the High Fly Flow to win the match. This match went a little over 20 minutes.

After this, Tanahashi teased leaving the ring, but stayed inside and invited the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express back out, wanting to play guitar with them. Tanahashi retrieved invisible guitars for Morton, Gibson, and himself, they jammed on them, played an encore demanded by the crowd, and then smashed them on the mat in unison. After Ricky and Robert left, Tanahashi thanked us all in the crowd for coming in English, then gave us all a brief lesson in the Japanese language so that he and the crowd could say his closing catchphrase together for the hard cam. Tanahashi ended the night by going around ringside to greet and take pictures with fans.

This show lasted around about two and a half hours, and with no intermission, it flew by. You could consider these three US cards B-Shows, but this one was still very fun to watch in person. Just a great time. Much like what I saw from the New York event on New Japan World, this Philadelphia crowd was hot for everything and treated pretty much all of the wrestlers like superstars. By all accounts a successful tour that I hope will lead to return trips to the Northeast. 

[pwchronicle]

Chikara “Earning the Lucha Libre Merit Badge” Live Show Report September 6th in Mount Holly, NJ

After a summer where I watched a lot of wrestling from home, including an outstanding G1 Climax in its entirety, I attended my first of two Chikara shows this weekend. This was a benefit show for the local Boy Scouts of America council, held in the gymnasium of Westampton Middle School. This is the closest Chikara has ever run near me, about 15 minutes from home. It had a nice turnout, a mix of regular Chikara fans I’ve see regularly at the Wrestle Factory, as well as South Jersey locals, including a lot of kids, out to see what this Chikara was all about. Among the things available at a table associated with the scouts was a program explaining who all of the wrestlers on the card were. After some kind words from one of the men associated with the council, a snafu with the sound system, and Mark Adam Haggerty thanking the sponsors for the event (including the Mount Holly-based comic book shop I go to), we got going with the matches.

1. Boomer Hatfield beat Callux the Castigator with a meteora. Betsy Ross and the AEW-bound Bryce Remsburg were the refs for the night, with Ross up first for this match. Boomer was supposed to be wrestling Der Wildebeest, Jakob Hammermeier’s latest charge, but he didn’t make the show, with Haggerty explaining that the tracking device on him was lost. Callux was available, sporting a quality farmer tan, for a textbook David vs. Goliath match. Hatfield was able to make Callux budge before Callux overpowered him, and then Hatfield came back with some flashy offense, including a quesadora DDT and a basement rana. This got the show off to a good start.

2. The Grimy Scots (Hamish Stuart & Grizzly Duncan McBain) beat The Colony (Green Ant & Thief Ant) when Stuart pinned Thief Ant after striking him with a club. The Grimy Scots are a team that Cagematch tells me started out in Virginia two years ago. They both wrestled in kilts (with trunks underneath), and McBain sported Braveheart paint and a large club. He attempted to use it early, but Remsburg stopped him and had it removed, in a spot that played well with the family audience. The Scots kept saying that they wanted to use International Rules, which I guess includes the use of clubs. Decent work, up to the finish where Stuart used a much smaller club to his advantage. The two Scots then did their best to hide the club from Remsburg after kids in the front row told him it was used.

3. Solo Darling beat Molly McCoy with the Sharp Stinger. My first time seeing McCoy wrestle since “The Infinite Gauntlet” in May, and I like her darker version of the Hatfields’ music. Darling brought out Officer Magnum with her for her entrance (because, yes, Magnum is her dog), but he didn’t stick around for the rest of it. A more technical match to start that the crowd only gradually got in to, though the regular fans’ enthusiasm and the use of kicks and bigger moves down the stretch helped motivate them. McCoy came close to winning with a type of body scissors submission, with one of her legs around Darling’s head.

- First of two intermissions, allowing the fans to meet a bunch of the wrestlers, and then...

4. Hallowicked beat Lucas Calhoun with the Rydeen Bomb. Fun match, with both guys looking good, especially Wicked. Calhoun did his best to get babyface fire and hit a superplex towards the end.

5. The Creatures of the Deep (Hermit Crab & Merlok) beat Cornelius Crummels & Sonny Defarge when Hermit Crab made Crummels tap to the Boston Crab. The Creatures assumed the babyface role in what would normally be a Rudo vs. Rudo match. Crummels & Defarge got the upper hand a few times by sneezing in their faces, and Merlok was the hot tag guy. A little sloppy at times, but the crowd was into it.

6. The Whisper beat Danjerhawk with a rollup. Fun, faster-paced action for the crowd. Danjerhawk went for a splash off the top to halfway across the ring, but the Whisper moved out of the way, leading to the finish.

- One more, shorter intermission, and then...

7. John Francis of Coronado, Missile Assault Man, Danjerhawk, and Mick Moretti beat The Crucible (Ophidian, Matt Makowski, Devantes, and Lance Steel w/ E.M. Demorest) via disqualification. My first time seeing the Crucible in action in earnest after their sort-of debut at “The Infinite Gauntlet.” I’m not a Chikaratopia subscriber, so my intake of extra Chikara content is only whatever they put up for free, but I just don’t see how Lance Steel fits into this group. Nor what version of Lance Steel this is, as it’s been years since this character was around. Also, Devantes looked very green in this match, but he’ll get better, and all around is associated with a good crop of talent. Demorest was at ringside just to hold Ophidian’s three point medallions the Golden Opportunity he won in the Infinite Gauntlet. Moretti is back in the states for a lot of wrestling the next few weeks, including a return to King of Trios with the Nations and debuting in PWG as part of the Battle of Los Angeles, and I thought he looked very good here. This was the longest match on the card, with lots of big action as is accustomed to Chikara Atomicos. The Crucible got good heat with their gang mentality, jumping the tecnicos after teasing a one-on-one start to the match, as well as ganging up on one of them at a time. The end came when the tecnicos had it won after Devantes was hit with a Burning Hammer by Missile Assault Man and a Swanton off the top by Razerhawk, but as Razerhawk made the pin, Ophidian slid in and pulled off Razerhawk’s mask for the instant DQ under Chikara rules. An admittedly flat ending to all of the action that preceded it, but their were other plans later.

8. Travis Huckabee beat Mike Quackenbush after a low blow and a headbutt to the chest. Quackenbush was introduced as an Eagle Scout. Huckabee amped up the jerkiness for this crowd, taking a mask from a kid in the front row and tossing it across the gym. Huckabee later tried to run away after getting monkey-flipped around by Quackenbush, only for Quackenbush to quickly retrieve him and toss him back in... only for Huckabee to turn around and stomp on Quackenbush’s hand as it rested on the edge of the ring. The dirty end of this match came after Remsburg was inadvertently knocked down by Quackenbush diving off the top.

- Right afterward, with Quackenbush still nursing his groin, Ophidian came out with his Crucible charges (five of them, including the Whisper) and said he was cashing in his three points... on Quackenbush, for the title of Head Trainer of the Wrestle Factory. A pretty major angle to do on a show like this, as opposed to a bigger show at the Wrestle Factory or elsewhere, but nevertheless, we had a quick bonus main event.

9. Mike Quackenbush beat Ophidian with Quackendriver 3. Very short, but with good drama. Ophidian did his best to finish off Quackenbush early with his Death Grip as his Crucible charges surrounded the ring. On two occasions, Quackebush was able to roll to the outside, only for the Crucible to gang up on him while Ophidian drew away Remsburg’s attention. This caused a bunch of the Chikara tecnicos to run out and fight off the Crucible. Ophidian was thrown off by this, leaving the door open for Quackenbush to win. Ophidian was understandably distraught, but this is his fault for wasting his Golden Opportunity like this.

Fun show overall, adhering to the time and setting well, going just a little over two hours. Nothing blow-away, but pretty easily the best show I’ve ever attended within my South Jersey county (anyone who knows me knows I’ve attended a lot of shows in Voorhees, NJ, but that’s a different neighboring county). My weekend with Chikara will continue later today with the bigger and likely longer Chikarasaurus Rex event at the Wrestle Factory.

[pwchronicle]

Ring of Honor “Best in the World” TV Taping Report June 29th in Philadelphia, PA

ROH followed up their annual Best in the World PPV in Baltimore with a TV taping at the 2300 Arena. For fans in my neck of the woods, it was either this or All Elite Wrestling’s second show, Fyter Fest, available for free on B/R Live. There was also UFC airing on regular ESPN, so plenty of choices tonight. A number of people chose not to attend tonight’s taping; it definitely did not look like the sell-out ROH was reporting, certainly down from the last two times ROH ran here last October and December. Myself? I can catch these other shows later in the weekend. I went in to this after just reading about what went down in Baltimore, unfortunately not all that compelled to order it, but still looking forward to fun stuff tonight. 

Future of Honor: Azrieal beat Matita (?) with a splash off the top rope. That’s right, Azrieal, the former Special K member who cleaned up his act, has made his way back into ROH after being absent for several years. He and his opponent (billed from Africa) both looked pretty good. I probably butchered his opponent’s name, but towards the end he was up on the top rope when Azrieal shoved the ref into the ropes, pretending it was an accident as his opponent was crotched on the top. Azrieal then hit him with a draping DDT to lead to the finish.

Future of Honor: The Tate Twins (formerly The Boys) beat Geddy Cahoon and “Classy” Max Stenway after a double chokeslam on the larger Cahoon. The Boys have matured a little, with a Batman-esque video screen that still calls them The Boys as they come out in capes. I’ve seen Cahoon once before in Chikara’s Young Lions Cup tournament last year I think. He has an old-school look, black trunks with white boots, while his partner wore gray pants and a top that looked like a buttoned vest. I thought this was okay, one noticeable hiccup being one of the twins and Cahoon doing some sloppy pin exchanges. 

The injured Colt Cabana was able to make it out tonight, with the help of a cane, to call the action with Ian Riccaboni. Kenny King joined them on commentary for the first televised match.

1. Shane Taylor beat Rhett Titus in a Proving Ground Match after hitting him with a headbutt. Titus did some flexing early to get out of Taylor’s grip for comedic effect, and he was able to hit a nice dropkick early. Taylor was all business and gave him a legdrop on the edge of the ring. Nearfall by Titus following at least three running boots in the corner and a Samoan Drop.

- Following Titus’ loss, King came down ringside and said he was disgusted. He brought up his history with Titus as the All Night Express, when they picked up wins over the Briscoes, the Young Bucks, Roderick Strong, and Tyler Black. Now King thinks Titus is a joke, and he brought up his pregnant wife in the crowd. He asked Titus how she could be proud of him, and why Titus’ son (Jimmy Controversy? I’ve seen him wrestle late last year) can’t look him in the eye. Titus got hot, but he just left the ring as King called him a punkass bitch.

2. Tasha Steelz won a 4-Way #1 Contender’s Match over Angelina Love (w/ Velvet Sky and Mandy Leon), Jenny Rose, and Stella Grey when she pinned Grey after hitting an ace crusher. Kelly Klein joined commentary for this, and this was the first time I’ve noticed Brian Hebner reffing for ROH. Sky said this match was bull and that Love is already the true #1 Contender to Klein’s WOH World Title. Leon, meanwhile, had a dog with her, and the dog was wearing a leather jacket. There were no incidents between the Allure and fans in the crowd, but there wasn’t much enthusiasm from fans during this match either, even though Rose and Grey got hometown wrestler pops, and everyone liked the dog, though it didn’t get involved. Leon got involved trying to trip one of the women, and Hebner ejected her, Sky, and the dog from ringside because of it. Love hit a dive to the floor from the top rope, then got up in another corner to call out to Klein afterward. Klein came down to ringside briefly, and this distraction led to the other three wrestlers taking down Love.

- After the match, the lights went out while Love and Steelz were still in the ring, the Maneater video played, and when the lights came back on, newcomer Maria Manic was standing behind Love and Steelz. Manic got a good reception. Love bailed out of the ring while the next title challenger Steelz stepped up to her. Four crew members separated the two of them. Manic took out all four guys herself, including putting one of them in a torture rack before dumping him out of the ring, and taking out another with a tree slam. This made Manic even more popular, so a job well done on her arrival into ROH and Women of Honor.

3. Jay Lethal & The Bouncers (Beer City Bruiser & Brian Milonas) beat The Kingdom (Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan, and Vinny Marseglia) after the Bouncers hit O’Ryan with Closing Time. Good action with three popular babyfaces. Before the match, Lethal demanded timekeeper Amy Rose (not Sonic the Hedgehog’s friend) to leave the ringside area because of her interference in Lethal’s match against Kenny King at Best in the World (she returned maybe two matches later). The Kingdom preferred to be in the ring with Lethal as opposed to the Bouncers, and Lethal was worked over before making hot tags to each of them. Lethal hit his suicide dives towards the end. The Bouncers’ stock continues to rise (they recently earned a Tag Team Title shot in the Northwest), but before they could celebrate with post-match beers, Taven yanked Lethal down from the apron and gave him a Climax on the floor. The Bouncers and other crew attended to Lethal as he was helped to the back.

4. Eli Drake beat Grizzly Redwood with an air raid crash. Pretty short squash by new NWA signee Drake on another returning face in Redwood, though he’s local, so I’m not sure how much of a return it really is. Nick Aldis, flanked by Kamille, was on commentary during this. Drake cut a promo afterward about his arrival into the NWA and his pursuit of the World Title, and I thought he came off well.

5. Coast 2 Coast (LSG & Shaheem Ali) beat Marcus Kross & Griff Garrison when Ali pinned Kross after a Boss Man Slam spun out from a powerslam position. This ended up being a competitive match and not a squash, with Kross (with gear and hair inspired by Goku) and Garrison (who just looks like an in-shape wrestler) getting a good amount of offense against the more established Coast 2 Coast. I also thought it was quite good, and a portion of the crowd chanted “Please Come Back!” to Kross and Garrison.

6. Jonathan Gresham won a Four Corner Survival over Jeff Cobb, Kenny King, and Dalton Castle. Caprice Coleman joined the commentary team from this point on. Castle, who is now heel and has ditched the flowing, winged robe for just a glittery jacket, was still beloved by the crowd. He and King hesitated getting in the ring, while Gresham and G1 Jeff kept it more serious. The Four Corner Survival rules of only two men in the ring at a time via tags (which confused the rowdy group of guys behind me, down from Ottawa, ONT Canada [!] for a bachelor party) naturally broke down, leading to Cobb going nuts with his suplexes. The end came when King took a shoe from Amy Rose to use as a weapon, but Gresham got a hold of it, hit King with it, and pinned King with a handful of his trunks. I thought it was fun, and it might come off better to me if I were to watch it on TV. Gresham returned the shoe to Rose. 

- Jay Lethal came out to speak to the crowd. He said he hasn’t spoken about his losing the ROH World Title at G1 Supercard because he’s a bad loser, and it was a heavy pill to swallow. Then he remembered that he’s a two-time World Champion, meaning he lost it once, but worked hard and was able to win it again. He will have a title match next month in New York, and he plans to win the title back from Matt Taven. This cued Taven to come out and dress down Lethal. He said Lethal was embarrassing his parents, who were in the crowd, and that Lethal was proving that his parents raised a liar. Taven said Lethal choked in Madison Square Garden, and now Taven is the face of ROH, and they’re living in the Time of Taven. As Taven finished what he had to say, out came Alex Shelley in a suit. He’s making his return, as he said he was careful not to say he was retiring when he last appeared in ROH. He said he’s been wrestling for seventeen years, has constantly been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but he’s left his mark around the world. He said he’s pulling out his proverbial veteran’s card yet again, and that he wants a shot at whoever is the champion after the match in New York. This segment was followed by intermission.

7. The Soldiers of Savagery (Moses & Kaun) beat two wrestlers after hitting double chokeslams on both of them. After just doing run-ins up until now, the Soldiers of Savagery had an official entrance, and it was a pretty cool one. Quick post-intermission squash, as they attacked their opponents (who were in matching gear) before they could be introduced.

- Caprice Coleman came out to the ring to host an interview segment with Nick Aldis. Kamille held the NWA World Heavyweight Title for Aldis. Coleman brought up the Summer Supercard happening in Toronto on August 9, with ROH hosting talent from New Japan and CMLL. Coleman had heard the NWA World Heavyweight Title would be defended at Summer Supercard and asked Aldis who his challenger would be. Aldis started by bringing up his fight with the Briscoes at Best in the World, and he offered Jay Briscoe a title shot whenever he pleases. As for Summer Supercard, he suggested he might want to have another match with Marty Scurll. This prompted Scurll to come out, and he said that he would also like to have a rematch. Aldis said he wasn’t finished, as he’s actually offering the title shot at Summer Supercard to any member of Villian Enterprises, and he will let Scurll choose who it will be. Aldis and Kamille left, as Coleman asked Scurll who he chooses for the title match, or if he’s taking the match himself. Scurll stalled for a little bit and said he had a lot to think about. Coleman closed by reiterating the name of the event and it’s August 9 date.

- Another segment followed, with Riccaboni and Cabana coming down to ringside. Riccaboni talked a little about Cabana’s injury and asked him for an update. Cabana stated how he has a cane now, barely got the the okay from his doctor to fly out to the events this weekend, but then James Storm interrupted. He was dressed to wrestle, brought up his match against Cabana in Chicago for the NWA National Title, and that he’s here for those five more minutes Cabana offered after the match went to a time limit draw. Cabana brought up how Cabana would have given him those five more minutes, but the Briscoes attacked him and Storm did nothing. Cabana began to leave when Storm shoved him from behind to the ground and berated him. Cabana agreed to the title match after this, despite his bad leg and not being dressed to compete.

8. James Storm beat Colt Cabana to win the NWA National Title. This couldn’t have lasted more than five minutes. Cabana tried for his Superman pin right off the bat but couldn’t get it properly with his bad leg. Storm worked over Cabana’s leg as Riccaboni remained at ringside and tried to convince Storm to stop, very concerned for Cabana. Storm put Cabana in a half crab on the injured leg, but Cabana got to the ropes. Cabana fought back, and he tried and failed to get Storm in the Billy Goat’s Curse. Storm hit a superkick and locked in the half crab in the middle of the ring, finally forcing Cabana to submit. Storm then made Riccaboni announce him as the winner and new NWA National Champion. Good drama throughout that the crowd followed. This was likely the end of Cabana’s commentary for the night.

9. Silas Young beat Josh Woods with a small package. After the opening bell but before any action took place, Young got a hold of the mic. He said Woods has been in ROH for two years, but he hasn’t accomplished anything. He said the fans don’t respect Woods like they respect him, and that Woods could benefit from learning from him. He then gave the mic back to the ref, and as the ref did so Young kicked Woods in the groin and rolled him up for the quick win. Young has already corrupted Gresham, and he might be doing the same to Woods.

10. Shinobi Shadow Squad (Cheeseburger, Eli Isom, and Ryan Nova) beat Brian Johnson, Joe Keys, and Dante Caballero after they hit Caballero with a draping DDT/top rope double stomp combo. The three Future of Honor regulars, especially Johnson and Caballero, got a chance to show more of their personalities during this match. They suffered from some miscommunication though, ending with Keys accidentally hitting Caballero to lead to the finish. Afterward, Keys and Caballero came to blows with each other and had to be separated while Johnson just walked off.

11. Karissa Rivera beat Sumie Sakai after sitting down on a sunset flip attempt for the pin. This was Sakai’s first match back from injury, and this seemed to get a good amount of time with a lot of nearfalls. The action was pretty decent, though there was a moment where Sakai bowed to Rivera, Rivera went to bow back, and Sakai rolled her up in a small package that looked pretty bad. Rivera getting the upset win here came off well to me based on the crowd reaction, and Sakai sold the shock of it. Quinn McKay came into the ring to interview Rivera about it, but Sakai intervened and offered Rivera a handshake and congratulated her. If this is just a torch passing from Sakai, that’s A-okay.

12. Rush & Dragon Lee beat Jay & Mark Briscoe when Rush pinned Jay after hitting the Bull’s Horns. This match came off fantastic, as it was basically a fast-paced brawl. They began brawling on the floor early, starting when Dragon Lee went to hit a suicide dive onto the Briscoes, but they caught Lee and gave him a double suplex onto the floor. A little later, Mark came up bleeding heavily from the forehead, and I don’t know how it happened if it was hardway. It likely was as someone retrieved a towel to attend to Mark. This wasn’t at the level of how Jay has bled in the past, but Mark was bleeding so much Rush began focusing on it, wiping some of it on his chest and biting at the wound. ROH TV likely wouldn’t allow spots like this, so I imagine this match will be heavily edited when it airs, with the full uncut match featuring these spots put on HonorClub. Nevertheless, the blood added some intensity to the match, and the wrestlers capitalized on it. Mark used a chair to assist his running dive over the top to the floor. Rush was given a neckbreaker by Jay and the Froggy Bow by Mark, but Rush still kicked out that a lot of fans saw as three. Lee took out Mark with a running hurricanrana over the top rope to the floor to leave Rush to finish off Jay. A wild match that had the crowd shitting apes. Dragon Lee continues to be on a roll after some stellar matches these last two months in New Japan.

- There was a quick change of the ring canvas and wiping down of the ropes as Bobby Cruise announced that Villain Enterprises would be out next. When the ring was ready, the LifeBlood trio of Bandido, Tracy Williams, and Mark Haskins came out (they’re all that’s left of this faction!). Haskins brought up how Villain Enterprises played a fast one on them at the PPV with their recruiting of Flip Gordon when they thought he would join LifeBlood, and they demanded they came out. Marty Scurll came out again, accompanied by Gordon, Brody King, and PCO. Scurll properly introduced Gordon to the crowd as the newest employee of Villain Enterprises, the understudy, the intern, and the mercenary. He then gave Gordon the night off (following a potential injury at the PPV) to watch this six-man tag team match from the back, and he told LifeBlood that this would not be for their recently remade Six-Man Tag Team Titles, as they just defended them at the PPV (against Haskins, Williams, and PJ Black). Williams was fine with that, as they just wanted a fight, and given where they were, he demanded a Philadelphia Street Fight. The crowd was all for this, Villain Enterprises agreed, and the match was on.

13. LifeBlood beat Villain Enterprises in a non-title Philadelphia Street Fight when Bandido pinned Scurll. Chaos from the start. The timekeeper’s table was cleared off early and set up where the entrance way reaches ringside. The first big moment was King attempting to superplex Haskins onto two rows of chairs, but King went through them himself after Williams and Bandido made the save. LifeBlood began using canes. Bandido gave PCO a hurricanrana off the top rope through the table on the floor, and it all seemed perfectly executed. This left Scurll alone, and he was put into a sharpshooter by Haskins and a cane-assisted crossface by Williams, but King made the save. Dives to the floor from King and PCO was followed by a twisting dive from the top by Bandido. The landing looked rough but Bandido still got up. Back in the ring, Bandido gave PCO his version of the GTS, followed by the 21-plex onto an open chair. During all of this, a woman in the crowd shouted, “Leave him alone! He’s old!” This was only a nearfall as Scurll and King made the save, and then they brought a second table into the ring. Williams and Haskins peppered King with more cane shots. Scurll responded with shots from his umbrella. Scurll took down Bandido with his umbrella, placed him on the table, and went up top, but Bandido recovered and stopped Scurll, finally giving him his moonsault slam off the top through the table for the big win. Another wild, crowd-pleasing match. Bandido, Haskins, and Williams shook hands with all of the ringside fans, and then Williams took the mic and thanked the crowd for coming out on behalf of LifeBlood and everyone at ROH. 

The main show started at about 6 PM and ended at 9:47 PM. I had some issues with the pacing of this show early on. A lot of talking segments that were good, some longer matches that weren’t good, and some shorter matches, but I really enjoyed the two last matches, and they energized the crowd and ended the night on a high note. A lot of focus on the NWA, and I’m not sure how it will play into ROH as I don’t know how much of it will be part of ROH TV. Cabana vs. Storm likely will be, but I don’t know about the Aldis-Scurll segment or the Eli Drake squash. ROH has a little bit of direction with the faction warfare, the World Title picture with Alex Shelley returning, and Maria Manic joining the women’s division, but I listened to the reactions, and they varied to people from Dalton Castle to Rush. No direction for Jeff Cobb following the PPV as he’s off to be G1 Jeff, and late in the game I joined the bandwagon of wanting him to win the ROH World Title and take it with him to Japan for a month in change, throwing the other contenders into crisitunity over the summer in the attempt of some more compelling stories. But no, ROH is focused on Matt Taven and company, and Taven still has his fans. No return date was given for Philadelphia, while they hit up New York City and Lowell, MA next month.

[pwchronicle]

Chikara “Summer Night City” Live Show Report June 7th in Philadelphia, PA

So, you may not know it if you’re only watching Raw and Smackdown, but wrestling has been really exciting recently. We’ve had a stretch of highly publicized (to varying degrees) events that I all thought really delivered. AEW Double or Nothing was a strong start to their promotion, NXT Takeover: XXV was packed to the rim with great matches, and the finals of New Japan’s Best of the Super Juniors 26 has had the whole world buzzing ahead of what is supposed to be an even bigger show with Dominion on Sunday morning. Meanwhile, the WWE main roster has been bogged down in lazy stories, a non-nonsensical Wildcard Rule to create false excitement, and by now WWE’s latest overseas blood money show as part of a deal that has felt no less scummy. So I was pleased that Chikara happened to be running later on Friday night to offer an alternative.

This show took place deeper into Philadelphia, closer to Chinatown for the first time since Chikara ran a few shows at the Trocadero (RIP). It was being held at a brewery called Love City Brewing, in conjunction with both Philly Beer Week and Pride Week, with proceeds to this show going to Valley Youth House. 

This rear room of the brewery housed the ring, with standing space only for fans on two of the sides, and the curtained-off area for the wrestlers and crew on the other side. They made drinks available back here too. Early on, I noticed Philadelphia resident, Chikara alumni, and now AEW Superstar Chuck Taylor hanging out. Tickets were only $10, and by the time the action started, this room filled up, and the body temperature rose. This was perhaps the most unique venue at which I’ve seen Chikara action since they ran matches at an indoor music festival six or seven years ago.

1. Solo Darling, Razerhawk, and Danjerhawk beat Hermit Crab, Cajun Crawdad, and El Hijo del Ice Cream when Darling made Hijo tap to the Sharpstinger. Hot opener, with the crowd (a mix of regular fans and curious newcomers) sounding very loud for it. During some of the entrances, the wrestlers (especially the tecnicos) took the time to interact with the crowd, especially these three. No dives to the floor during this show though. Hijo did some of his usual antics, and Darling spent the most time in peril before rallying back with big moves. 

2. Missile Assault Man beat Rick Roland with his inverted DDT. More of a hoss battle between these two. Roland got Missile Assault Man onto his shoulder after knocking him off the top rope, but Missile Assault Man was able to escape this potential powerslam and turn it into his finish.

3. Still Life With Apricots and Pears beat Boomer Hatfield to retain the Young Lions Cup after a kick to the back of Boomer’s knee and a rollup. This was a rematch of the Young Lions Cup Finals in March. Boomer is coming off what I’ve heard is a fantastic match two weeks ago in Chicago, where he beat his father Dasher in the non-title Mask vs. Mask Match. Boomer wore rainbow socks and received red, white, and blue streamers upon entering, while Still Life had a rainbow-colored shin guard and received rainbow-colored streamers. Still Life didn’t overtly play the heel as strongly as they have previously. Boomer started off hot before Still Life focused on his knee again, nearly making him tap to the Venus de Milo. The end came when Molly McCoy (Boomer’s cousin, Dasher’s niece) hopped up on the apron and distracted Boomer to lead to the finish; following the Mask vs. Mask Match, McCoy vowed to make Boomer’s life miserable. This was the only real element of an ongoing story on this short card. Boomer received a nice ovation as he left.

4. The Proteus Wheel (Volgar, Frantik, and Callux the Castigator) beat Off the Hop Rope (CPA, Troy Nelson, and a wrestler I didn’t recognize) following the old Quebecers finisher, with Volgar squashing Nelson. Off the Hope Rope consists of three wrestlers that podcast about beer. They sounded like they had a lot of fans here, with a rallying chant of “What’s On Tap” for them. CPA wrestled in trunks but still wore a buttoned shirt and a tie, which was of course revealed to be a clip-on in an early spot. The wrestler I didn’t recognize tired out the three Proteus Wheel members by frequently running the ropes and dodging their attacks. The Proteus Wheel eventually took over on their way to victory.

5. Travis Huckabee beat Rory Gulak with a spinning Stretch Muffler submission. Battle of the two previous winners of the Johnny Kidd Invitational, as well as a rematch from the first round of last year’s tournament. The most technical wrestling up to this point, but the crowd was still up for it. Gulak’s local ties and his “Amazing” catchphrase certainly helped. The usual strong work from both of them.

6. Fire Ant beat Tony Deppen with a brainbuster. Deppen was a very loud and agressive heel during this, much like he was at the Game Changer show I attended in April. He’s definitely assumed the Chuck Taylor role of this new F.I.S.T. Fire Ant had the crowd behind him.

A fun night out, with no intermission and the action lasting about 90 minutes. Even though it got pretty hot inside (it was cooler outside afterward), I knew I was going to have a better time here than watching whatever WWE had going on in the afternoon. They had their first minor league baseball spot show the day before, and they will have six more (including Wilmington, DE, Trenton, NJ, and Waldorf, MD) before returning to the Wrestle Factory in early September for Chikarasaurus Rex. Not I expect them to slouch it during these baseball spot shows, especially with Ophidian and his Crucible in full effect.

[pwchronicle]

Chikara “The Infinite Gauntlet” Live Show Report May 11th in Philadelphia, PA

This was my first Chikara event since “Once Upon a Beginning” in Jersey City last month, which featured Sidney Bakabella return to the promotion as the new Director of Fun, as well as Dasher Hatfield defeat Mr. Touchdown in the best Ladder Match of the week to become the undisputed Grand Champion of Chikara. This was also my first event back in the Wrestle Factory since March. A very full crowd with a number of new fans coming in.

1. Still Life With Apricots and Pears beat Thief Ant to retain the Young Lions Cup with their Venus de Milo leg lock. It started with Still Life requesting referee Kris Levin to position the Young Lions Cup (now sporting a bouquet of flowers while in Still Life’s possession) on the entrance stage for the cameras. As Levin obliged, Still Life chop blocked Thief Ant’s knee before the opening bell, establishing Still Life as the heel after they received a warm reception during their entrance. Still Life continued working over Thief Ant’s knee, applying a figure four that Thief Ant was able to reverse. A little later Thief Ant used a figure four as well, but Still Life got to the ropes. The finish came out of Still Life throwing the Cup into Thief Ant’s hands, followed by Still Life hitting a bulldog amidst the confusion. Solid opener.

2. Lucas Calhoun & Stray Kat beat Travis Huckabee & Icarus when Calhoun pinned Icarus following a back suplex from a powerslam position following a kick from Kat. Allie Kat is now based on the East Coast, and she has started working in Chikara more with a modified name and black gear to mesh better with new partner Calhoun. Huckabee came out with his Campeonato de Parejas (his co-campeon Tony Deppen was absent, having popped up in PWG the previous night), and Icarus came out in a loud shirt, claiming to be on vacation and just acting especially sleazy. Kat wanted each of them to scratch her belly. When Icarus removed his shirt, Kat scratched his back twice to his displeasure. The match had some clunky moments but overcame them. Kat was able to survive a pedigree, and when Icarus went to hit a shiranui on Kat, Calhoun caught him on his shoulder to set up the finish. This was Calhoun & Kat’s second point towards a title shot.

3. Der Wildebeest (w/ Jakob Hammermeier) beat Missile Assault Man with a running cross body. Hammermeier is back in Chikara, with a new hair cut and a new monster to do his bidding in Der Wildebeest, a wide masked man with a thick beard, tattoos, furry gear, and no shoes. Hammermeier handled the ring announcing for him (his role for the BDK when he first appeared nine years ago), but did both that and corner his new monster while in his wrestling gear. He did a lot of talking and interfering during the match. At one point Wildebeest plowed Missile Assault Man over the top rope, and he had two front row fans help him back into the ring before he could get counted out. Towards the end, Jakob got on the edge of the ring to instruct Wildebeest to give Missile Assault Man a death valley driver, but Missile Assault Man slipped out and booted Jakob off the ring, only to lose right afterward. Jakob then kicked him low and hid behind Wildebeest as they left to the back. I can totally get behind Jakob being back.

4. The Colony (Fire Ant & Thief Ant) beat The Creatures of the Deep (Merlok & Cajun Crawdad) after they hit Merlok with a spiked Beach Break. My favorite match of the undercard. The ants worked together early on, only for Merlok to take them both down with a pounce when they attempted Ants Marching on Crawdad. Merlok showed off his power early, hitting a corner cannonball on both ants while one of them was on his shoulders. He and Crawdad hit Fire Ant with an Emerald Frosion/top rope double stomp for only a nearfall, with Green Ant making the save. They also set up a spot that was very well executed, with Crawdad attempting a springboard move into the ring, only to be taken out by Green Ant hitting a dropkick off the ropes. Even after this hard-fought victory, Merlok and Crawdad still attacked the Colony afterward, even forcing the ref to count a pin on Fire Ant, just so Crawdad could celebrate as if he actually won.

- Intermission.

5. Ophidian won the Infinite Gauntlet Match to win a Golden Opportunity. This match made up the remainder of the event, nearly lasting a full hour. Thirty-three wrestlers, starting with two in the ring and a new entrant coming out every eighty-eight seconds (though there were hiccups with the countdown screen and entry sound effects early on before they were sorted out) Eliminations occurred via pinfall, submission, or being thrown over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor (this match predates MLW’s Battle Riot, having started in 2016). The order of entry was:

1. Boomer Hatfield 2. Danjerhawk 3. Sonny Defarge 4. Dasher Hatfield, rocking the gold mask he debuted in Jersey City 5. Ice Cream Jr. 6. Nytehawk 7. Kobald 8. Frantik 9. Fireman’s Carry Fry, the first of five enhancement wrestlers in this match 10. Cornelius Crummels 11. BLANK 12. Molly McCoy, a debuting student who came out in hockey gear and wrestled in Flyers colors 13. Volgar 14. Snapmare Matt 15. John Francis of Coronado, now waving the American flag and decked out in stars and stripes, including his bow tie 16. Armbreaker Amir 17. Worker Ant 18. Rick Roland 19. Officer Warren Barksdale 20. The Whisper 21. Jawbreaker Josue 22. Oleg the Usurper 23. Bull James, formerly of NXT 24. Unsocial Jordan, an Australian wrestler 25. Enzuigiri Evan 26. Hermit Crab 27. Shazza McKenzie, back again from Australia 28. Razerhawk 29. Duke “The Dumpster” Droese, now in his 50s and wrestling with a prosthetic leg 30. Hallowicked 31. El Hijo del Ice Cream 32. Solo Darling 33. Ophidian

A number of stories to come out of this, the biggest one having nothing to do with the result. After being able to pin Danjerhawk and eliminate Defarge, Boomer and Dasher were left in the ring. Dasher instructed Boomer to leave the ring, but Boomer stuck around and fought. They eliminated Ice Cream Jr. and Nytehawk quickly as they continued wrestling each other. Then the next few entrants opted to stay on the floor while the the two Hatfields fought, beginning with Kobald taking a seat in the front of the bleachers and having a snack. BLANK rallied the others on the floor when he came out, but they all got eliminated, save for Fireman’s Carry Fry, who landed on an eliminated Frantik, escaped a powerbomb from him, and got onto the bleachers, hiding out while taking a seat next to me (I wasn’t able to get a good picture of us). When McCoy entered, she was revealed as Dasher’s niece, and she tried to smooth things over between Dasher and Boomer. She turned out to be on Dasher’s side all along and assisted him in eliminating Boomer. When the third enhancement wrestler Armbreaker Amir entered, he helped Fry re-enter the ring, and Amir, Fry, and Snapmare Matt worked together to toss out McCoy, as well as pin Worker Ant and Barksdale by piling up on them.

As this story of the enhancement talent rallying together begins to build, the recently rechristened John Francis of Coronado goes on a tear, gaining great support from the Wrestle Factory crowd that once largely despised him. Francis was able to eliminate Roland, who was still going after him after the Closers beat him up. He dropkicked Volgar to assist Dasher and someone else trying to eliminate him. Dasher gave Francis a high five for this, taking him by surprise, then immediately tried to toss him out, only for Francis to reverse it and toss him out for a huge ovation! Shortly after this, focus shifted back to the enhancement talents, as Jawbreaker Josue entered to join the other three, retrieving some tools from underneath the ring and proceeding to loosen the top turnbuckles so as eliminate the top rope. This pretty much happened by the end, but it got difficult as Oleg and Bull James shifted their focus from each other to them. When Enzuigiri Evan entered, he was the biggest and most powerful of the five students. I could see him having a future beyond this. He was able to pin James, and then the five students all ganged up to pin Oleg. Hermit Crab and was unfortunately eliminated by them almost as soon as he entered the ring, and the two Australian guests didn’t get a chance to really do much. Francis was able to kick out after receiving a pop-up powerslam from them (or maybe he wasn’t meant to be pinned after such a strong showing in his new tecnico role?). He was tossed out of the ring afterward, but the students slowly started to get eliminated. Droese of course brought a trash can with him, using it to eliminate one of the students. Armbreaker Amir used his armbreaker to make Droese tap out. The final four left in the ring, if I recall correctly, were Hallowicked, Darling, Whisper (who lasted a while), and Enzuigiri Evan. With the ropes being so loose at this point, all four of them tumbled to the floor... just before Ophidian made his entrance as the final entrant. As soon as he stepped in the ring, he was declared the winner and was awarded the three point medallions for his future Golden Opportunity. He nonchalantly accepted them and left, and talking with someone else online about it after the show ended, there’s a chance that the students rallying together was all in an effort to help Ophidian, their trainer, win the match. Time will tell.

Just as Ophidian left, Boomer re-entered the ring and called out his dad to exchange some harsh words. Dasher took the mic first, quietly called him “you little disappointment,” then got louder in running him down. He said Boomer doesn’t deserve to carry his bags, wrestle in his ring, share his last name, nor wear his mask. Boomer took over, saying that Dasher taught him a lot of great values in the past, but now he just sees him as a liar, a cheater, and a bully. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re not my dad!” The two began fighting again, refs tried to separate them, and then Bakabella walked out to calm them down. He referenced Fritz Von Erich in his intolerance for family in-fighting, so he made an official match for the return to Chicago in two weeks, Dasher Hatfield vs. Boomer Hatfield, Mask vs. Mask. Dasher then kicked Boomer low and swarmed him as Bryce Remsburg and seemingly the entire tecnico roster (including John Francis) caused him to leave the ring. Then Boomer got up on his feet as everyone else in the ring took a knee, and without a mic cut a fiery babyface promo about how Dasher’s new mask does not represent his legacy, and he will take it in Chicago.

This may have been the shortest full-fledged Chikara event I’ve attended in a while, clocking in just at two hours, and this was with an intermission. It was no less fun and intriguing, with a lot of interesting stories told in the Infinite Gauntlet Match and a strong segment afterward to close it. Chikara doesn’t hold their next Wrestle Factory event until September, as after their Aniversario weekend in White Oaks, PA and Chicago, they have half a dozen spot shows in conjunction with minor league baseball games (one of which will be in Trenton!), as well as a chairty show in June at a Philadelphia brewery near Callowhill). I do have some other big wrestling plans in June and July though.

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[pwchronicle]

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Report May 3rd in Philadelphia, PA

 I decided to see Impact Wrestling (the former Total Nonstop Action) live and in person Friday night for the first time in years, giving them a shot based on a lot of the talent they’ve been building around. My live TNA experiences have consisted of a big house show in the summer of 2006 in what was then the New Alhambra Arena, Lockdown 2009, and Bound For Glory 2011. Those last two were in the Liacouras Center, and I only attended those because my Up North Radio colleagues decided to make a thing of it, so I was with plenty of friends. Friday was the first of two nights at the 2300 Arena to tape matches for TV. Doors opened around 7 PM when they were supposed to open at 6. There were a couple meet & greets (Madison Rayne, LAX and Konnan), but no merchandise in sight. The ring announcer was also unseen, just a voice booming within the building. They also brought out risers for the first time in forever to set up across from the hard camera. Not a full crowd, but it was a good size, and they were loud throughout most of the night.

I should note that I barely follow Impact and watch it even less, so apologies if I don’t know the names of every move.

Josh Mathews and Don Callis came out after previously being out to check on things. I recognized two of the four refs as Brandon Tolle (EVOLVE) and Kris Levin (GCW and Chikara). The first two matches were taped for Xplosion.

1. The Rascalz (Wentz & Trey) beat oVe (Jake & Dave Crist) when Dave was pinned after a meteora from Trey [Miguel] and a swanton from [Zachary] Wentz. A considerably hotter opener for a TV taping than the dark matches I’ve seen before ROH TV tapings. A lot of fun fast-paced action between four guys that know each other very well, beginning with the Rascalz hitting dives onto the Crists.

- They always played music in between the matches, and the invisible ring announcer would always talk to hype up the crowd before a match started.

2. Cousin Jake beat Wrecking Ball Legursky with a sidewalk slam. I know Jake better as out-of-focus Bruiser Brody on Viceland, and I thought he looked solid. Legursky was an Earthquake-type without being as heavy-set. This went longer than I thought it would.

- Matches for Impact started here, with several women coming out for a battle royal, some of them at the end likely to be highlighted on the actual show.

3. Glenn Gilbertti won a Knockouts Battle Royal over Tessa Blanchard, Madison Rayne, Jordynne Grace, Scarlett Bordeaux, Kiera Hogan, Alisha Edwards, Solo Darling, Tasha Steelz, Ashley Vox, and Karissa Rivera. Gilbertti was the last wrestler out, and he talked down to the ten women as the crowd chanted at him to shut the fuck up. No language warnings given to the crowd before hand. The bell rang, the ten women put the boots to him, and he slid out and joined in on commentary for the rest of it. The four freelance wrestlers (including Chikara regulars Darling and Vox) were all eliminated first and waited around ringside in heaps. Then Blanchard lifted up Edwards above her head, and the four eliminated women conveniently grouped up together to catch her on the floor for her elimination. It took two women to eliminate Grace. Taya Valkyrie ran out to beat up Rayne on the floor, then tossed her back in the ring so that she could be properly eliminated. Down to three, they all hit big moves on one another. Hogan eliminated Bordeaux with a clothesline. Hogan and Blanchard fought on the apron, with Blanchard eliminating her to seemingly win the match. Then Gilbertti slid back into the ring, clotheslined Blanchard, and tossed her over the top to actually win. Big heat for this finish as Blanchard angrily went after Gilbertii to the back.

4. Rosemary beat Su Yung in a Demon Collar Match with an F-5. Solid brawl between these two scary women, chained together by their necks. They both blew mist into the air before getting started. Rosemary was able to fight out of Yung’s mandible claw move. Rosemary also dodged Yung’s red mist. The detached from Yung’s collar, but it didn’t matter so much at this point. Yung was hit by Rosemary’s green mist as she came off the top, then Rosemary hit her with a spear and her finisher to win it. Rosemary then put her chained collar on Yung and grabbed a tight hold of the chain, hauling Yung on her back like a bounty hunter bringing in an outlaw. The fans got behind this and were high on both women, especially Rosemary.

5. Mad Man Fulton (w/ Sami Callihan) beat Randy Shawn with a tilt-a-whirl into End of Days. Total squash match. Fulton came to the ring with Callihan riding on his shoulders. Fulton hit his smaller opponent with three chokeslams before finishing him off, then continued attacking him afterward until Callihan pulled him off.

6. Killer Kross beat Eddie Edwards with a backdrop driver. Hard-fought match between these two, with Edwards still coming off as a strong wrestler underneath his brawly-brawl-brawl gimmick. The end came when Edwards got a hold of his kendo stick (Kenny?) that Kross had stolen from him, but whiffed on his attempt on hitting Kross with it.

- Kross put down Edwards with a head kick after picking up the win, and then he zip-tied Edwards to the middle rope. He put on gloves and looked to hit Edwards with the stick, and Edwards was ready for it. Instead, Kross paused before striking him and broke the stick in half, much to Edwards’ dismay. Kross laid the two halves of the stick and his gloves in front of a distraught Edwards and bowed to him, then scared off the ref (Tolle) with the broken stick and left with it, leaving Edwards to be freed by the ref.

7. Rich Swann beat Michael Elgin via disqualification. Swann is the Impact X-Division Champion, and I assume this match was non-title, and... hoo boy. Swann has had his personal issues that seem to have mellowed, and I’ve mellowed my attitude towards him too. The reputation Elgin has garnered still bothers me, and I was pretty bothered that Impact decided to bring him in. This exact match happening a year and a half ago would have been my ground zero for disdain. So I was already uneasy with it. Oh, and I should also mention at this half-way point of the show that there were a couple of drunks standing behind my seat, shouting really dumb stuff at the top of their lungs (especially during the women’s matches). So my general uneasiness with the match coupled with two assholes drilling their bullshit into my head led me to getting up for a snack break and hanging back. For what it’s worth, this match received maybe the hottest reactions up to this point. They were given a lot of time and did a lot of big moves for believable nearfalls. The end came when both were on the floor, and Elgin powerbombed Swann into the ringpost. The ref (Levin) warned Elgin to get back inside, and Elgin shoved him to the ground. He gave Swann another powerbomb into the ring post, and the ref called for the bell.

- Elgin looked to finish off Swann in the ring with an Elgin Bomb when Willie Mack ran in to make the save. After taking Elgin down, Johnny Impact ran in and laid out Mack. The two babyfaces down, Johnny and Elgin acknowledged one another before Johnny returned to the back. This led into intermission. Still no merchandise available. These were the only appearances of Johnny Impact and Willie Mack during the night.

8. Sami Callihan beat Fallah Bahh (w/ Scarlett Bordeaux) with a slingshot piledriver and his feet on the ropes during the pin. A longer match than I thought it would be. I saw how beloved Bahh was in his native WrestlePro over WrestleMania Week, and he was pretty popular here, so I guess he’s doing well in Impact. Since Bahh wrestles barefoot, Callihan focused some offense on his feet, including biting them. Late in the match, Bahh was going for a Banzai Drop in the corner when Dave Crist distracted the ref and Jake Crist knocked Bahh out of the corner. Bordeaux stood up to them, avoided getting a superkick from one of them, and then dove onto both of them off the apron. Then he opened the ropes so that Bahh could take them out with a tope. The match still continued a little longer before this. Better than expected.

- By this point, I realized that if I can just stand in the spot behind my seat where the drunks were standing, the drunks wouldn’t return. This pretty much worked.

9. Taya Valkyrie beat Madison Rayne to retain the Impact Knockouts Championship with a Glam Slam. The crowd was largely cold to this match, leading Tara to shout out to us, “Are you not entertained?” Taya worked Rayne over a lot, Rayne got some hope spots, and then Taya avoided Rayne’s finisher by holding onto the ref.

- As Valkyrie celebrated afterward, out came Rosemary. She was still leading around Su Yung on a chain like a leash, fastened the chain to the ring post so that Yung couldn’t escape, and put her focus on Taya, intimating that she’s coming for her title. Taya backed off and left. Rosemary got a great reception from the crowd during all of this.

10. LAX (Santana & Ortiz w/ Konnan) beat The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander) to retain the Impact World Tag Team Championships after they hit Alexander with a double-team flipping facebuster move. Online advertising I saw said it would be LAX vs. Swann & Mack, and while I wouldn’t have been balked at that match, I thought this match happening instead was a very pleasant surprise, and I wasn’t disappointed. It didn’t seem to last very long, but they packed a lot of double-team action into it, ending when they were able to isolate Alexander. All four guys were over, as was Konnan, who was basically a non-factor in the match.

11. Glenn Gilbertti vs. Ashley Vox went to a presumed No Contest. Gilbertti still had massive heat with the crowd from earlier in the night. He took a mic and said this was a public exhibition. After Vox made her entrance (big night for her!), Gilbertti asked for her name and how long she has been wrestling. She said four years. Gilbertti asked if she was dating any of the guys in the back, thinking that would be the only reason she would be here. The match started with Gilbertti taking a cheap shot and taking Vox down with a side headlock, still holding onto the mic to talk to the crowd. I always think back to Jerry Lawler doing this a few times in the mid 90s. He let up on the headlock and began cutting a promo to the hard cam on Scarlett Bordeaux, when Vox surprised him with a schoolgirl rollup for a nearfall. Gilbertti hit her with his Chart Buster finisher, but pulled her up from the pin. He looked to hit it a second time when Tessa Blanchard ran out, causing Gilbertti to quickly bail. Blanchard had the refs check on Vox.

12. Dez won an X-Division 4-Way over Petey Williams, Ace Austin, and Rohit Raju (w/ Gama Singh) when he pinned Raju following a running backflip kick. Singh came out first, talking briefly about the “EWC Arena,” bringing up names like Eddie Guerrero, Tommy Dreamer, and Rob Van Dam, and how his boys, the Desi Hit Squad, could have taken them all on. He introduced Raju, then Williams, Austin, and Dez[mond Xavier] each came out to strong reactions, with Wentz and Trey giving last minute support to Dez before heading to the back. More fun, fast-paced action, with Austin getting the biggest showcase of the four of them... until Williams took him out with a Canadian Destroyer. Williams went to hit Dez with one, but Raju stopped it with a doublestomp off the top to Williams’ back. The finish came up quickly after this. Dez and Williams shook hands afterward.

13. Rob Van Dam beat Tommy Dreamer with a Five Star Frog Splash. The return of RVD to Impact has led to the return of RVD’s dumb music from his band. RVD largely looks the same, just slightly older in the face. ECW nostalgia still runs wild, especially for what I assume were a lot of fans that have rarely or never been to this building. The crowd couldn’t believe their luck, as they were immensely hot for both guys as they did very little to start. The action picked up when Dreamer took RVD to the floor and spit water at him. A chair was introduced, leading to a lot of their greatest hits. Dreamer was able to hit RVD with a piledriver, and RVD was able to sell it by bouncing off the ring upon impact. When RVD hit his frog splash, he was able to get an impressive amount of distance on it.

- The two of them showed respect to one another after the match, but then The North ran back out and attacked them. RVD and Dreamer were able to fight off Page and Alexander, but then Moose ran out for the man advantage. Then the arena went dark to everyone’s delight, and sure enough Sabu appeared when the lights came back on, accompanied by Melissa Coates as his genie valet and a few chairs. She handed chairs to Sabu as he threw them at Page and Alexander’s heads to take him out, then he threw a chair to RVD so that he could hit Moose with a Van Daminator. The three ECW originals and Coates posed in the ring together, and then at the top of the entrance ramp, to close the show and send the crowd home happy.

Overall, I thought this was a show of peaks and valleys, and peaks within valleys, so I was left mostly cold to this show. A number of wrestlers on the card I enjoyed, interspersed with some I don’t and some segments that didn’t click for me. Some of the matches I liked the most I hoped would go longer, while a match I wasn’t looking forward to received a lot of time and is likely a TV main event. It’s nice seeing Rosemary and some of the other women getting a big showcase, and I’m hoping the angle with Gilbertti will have a nice payoff. I’ve had my fill of ECW nostalgia after my friend’s documentary was released. Surprisingly little of Johnny Impact here, and maybe not so surprisingly, nothing from the (likely very busy) Lucha Brothers. I only felt like going to the Friday taping, with no intention for the Saturday taping.

They announced that they will be back on June 8 with an Impact Plus special, with Great Muta the focus of the advertising. Based on who else I hear will show up (Lucha Brothers hopefully?), I might give them a shot. Otherwise, my live wrestling schedule for the summer so far is very eclectic.

[chikararesults]

S20 Results - “Fright Knight” (4.27.19)

1) Ophidian/Green Ant/Thief Ant beat the trio of Volgar/Cornelius Crummels/Sonny Defarge in 12:29 when Thief Ant pinned Defarge.

2) Shazza McKenzie pinned BLANK in 7:15.

3) Lucas Calhoun/Stray Kat upset the team of Oceanea/Merlok in 5:30 when Kat rolled up Oceanea for the win.

4) The match between Jakob Hammermeier and The Patriot turned into a tag match that saw John Francis of Coronado/The Patriot triumphant over Jakob Hammermeier/Der Wildebeest in 7:55.

5) Young Lions Cup: Still Life With Apricots And Pears retained the Cup by making Brayden Lee tap out in 7:30.

6) Los Campeonatos de Parejas: Travis Huckabee/Tony Deppen took the titles from Princess KimberLee/The Whisper in two straight falls, in a total runtime of 13:33.

7) Grand Championship: Dasher Hatfield retained the championship over Missile Assault Man in 16:41.

8) “The Hurricane” Shane Helms/Fire Ant/Solo Darling/Razerhawk triumphed over Callux the Castigator/Rory Gulak/Cajun Crawdad/El Hijo del Ice Cream when the Hurricane pinned Rory with a Chokeslam in 21:09.

[pwchronicle]

Game Changer Wrestling “Crime Wave” Live Show Report April 25th in Philadelphia, PA

This GCW card was my first live show since WrestleMania Week, when I attended eight live events that weren’t WWE-affiliated, most of which I recapped on both my Twitter and that of Last Word on Pro Wrestling. Attending just one event this time (as opposed to three on that Thursday and two each on Friday and Saturday) was more my thing. The presence of some standout names and my inability to get an Avengers ticket for last night made the decision to go even easier.

This event was held in a smaller venue than White Eagle Hall. It’s called the Voltage Lounge, and though it also has a stage, balconies, and a bar, they’re all within a smaller space. The ring used was barely able to fit, with one side coming up against the bar, and half of another side coming up against the set of stairs to lead to the balcony area. This was announced as a sell-out too (though I noticed some empty seats in my area), so the place was packed, and my view from my fourth row stage seat was kind of obscured. It would have been better to stand up, though I’m pretty tall and it would have been rude to those behind me, so I split my time between sitting down and standing up in a crouched stance. Making my way up to the balcony to watch may have been a better option as well. The club was at least easy to find coming right off the Ben Franklin Bridge, with a convenient parking lot next to it.

Emil Jay was the master of ceremonies, while I recognized two of the three referees: Bryce Remsburg (coming off a memorable WrestleMania Weekend himself) and Kris Levin.

1. Facade won a “Fuck Fest” scramble match over Grim Reefer, [Pinkie] Sanchez, Wheeler Yuta, Brandon Kirk, and Kit Osborne when he pinned Kirk after hitting a Coast to Coast Dropkick. The first four wrestlers were officially announced, whereas the other two, both more regular to CZW to my knowledge, came out in what was conveyed as a surprise. Osborne said something I couldn’t make out and probably wouldn’t want to repeat, and then both he and Kirk received superkicks from the other four. The veteran Reefer was a real standout to me, though pretty much everyone here contributed here to a fun, fast-paced opener. Reefer introduced a ladder on the floor to assist in a springboard senton into the ring, but he missed.

2. Ophidian beat Gringo Loco with a meteora through a door set up on two chairs. Chikara veteran Ophidian once again took off his more traditional mask to reveal a newer mask. Ophidian was the first to use the bar surface as a platform for springboard moves, including running along the bar to launch over a corner to the floor. The action was fast and slick between these two, and I guess Ophidian figured that since he couldn’t put him away, he’d take advantage of GCW’s environment by using their usual plunder. Enjoyable match here.

3. Jimmy Lloyd beat Marko Stunt with a Gonzo Bomb. My first time seeing Stunt in person after he increased his spotlight at Joey Janela’s Lost in New York last summer. The big story here was Lloyd, after overpowering Stunt but not finding much luck otherwise, introducing a square board with open pairs of scissors taped onto it. Every time Lloyd tried throwing Stunt onto it, he kept avoiding it, reversing them into pin attempts. The teases turned around when Lloyd was on his knees over the board of scissors, with Stunt using a chair in an attempt to smash Lloyd into the scissors, but Lloyd moved, causing Stunt to just smash the scissors with the chair and wreck the contraption. Lloyd then salvaged one pair of scissors. Stunt avoided getting stabbed with them and having his hair cut before Lloyd was able to hit him in the head with them and jab them in a little, resulting in Stunt getting slightly busted open.

4. Mance Warner won a match. I’m not going to bother mentioning who the other guy was. I try not to be shy of my thoughts on him.

Though I like Warner just fine, I had no desire to watch this match. I mostly stayed on my phone sitting down, occasionally looking up to see that it was a bloody affair.

During this match, as you probably heard, an alleged drunk driver struck the ring truck parked outside the club. His yellow Corvette was wrecked, but the the ring truck seemed to suffer little or no damage. Intermission followed this match, so myself and other people were able to go outside and see all the hoopla. A couple other cars parked behind the ring truck were unscathed, no injuries, and the driver, an older man, went to jail. The irony of police showing up outside of a wrestling show titled “Crime Wave” was not lost on people.

5. Homicide beat Colby Corino via outside forfeit. I liked the story of this match a lot, as it alluded to Homicide’s feud with Colby’s father Steve Corino in ROH, well over a decade ago. Before the match started, Homicide spoke to the camera to address Steve, vowing that he would rape Colby. Damn D! A lot of fans seemed to laugh at this, but then Homicide made himself the heel to the crowd by talking up New York over Philadelphia and dissing Bryce Harper. Once the bell rang, Colby started pummeling Homicide. Very heated exchanges, with Corino working over Homicide’s arm at times. Homicide threatened to strike Corino’s ear and bust his ear drum like he did to Steve in 2003, but Corino blocked it and struck Homicide’s ear instead, working it over. Corino nearly got a submission with the Fujiwara arm bar. Homicide got a heck of a nearfall with the Gringo Killa. Homicide then locked Corino in the STF and had it on him for several minutes before a young woman later identified as Colby’s wife got up on the apron and threw in the towel, ending the match. Homicide continued to yell at both Colby and his wife (who does not seem like a good actress based on this) on the mic, then further held him in the STF as Monsta Mack showed up at ringside in an attempt to calm down Homicide. Quite the match worth checking out.

6. Dustin Thomas beat KTB with a slingshot 450 splash. This was my first time seeing Thomas, the legless wrestler who emerged at Joey Janela’s Spring Break 3, and he is a remarkable athlete. I don’t know how long he’s been wrestling, nor how long he sees himself wrestling, but he seems to be taking advantage of the spotlight with what he can do. It should also go without saying that KTB was a consummate professional here to help showcase Thomas as well. KTB bullied him a lot, but Thomas used his upper body strength and some momentum to pull off some surprising moves, including hitting a superplex reversal and a flipping pildriver off the top on KTB. Thomas also hit his version of the 619 to lead to the finish. Thomas received standing ovations before and after the match.

7. Nick Gage (w/ Dewey Donovan) beat Conor Claxton to retain the GCW Title with the choke-breaker. At first a lot of us thought this would be a squash, as CZW regular Claxton was getting in no offense against GCW flag-waver Gage, who in a matter of minutes put Claxton through a door and cut open his forehead with a pizza slicer. Claxton finally gained control after giving Gage a Death Valley Driver onto a chair. Gage introduced a second door, but this one just would not break after three attempts. Gage finally smashed the door himself, breaking it in half and giving one of the halves to Claxton for a duel, consisting of hitting each other in the head with these hard door halves for an uncomfortable few minutes. Claxton was also backdropped from the ring into the staircase prior to the finish. Gage cut a promo afterward, rallying up his fans and claiming that not even Joey Janela could take the title from him.

8. Joey Janela beat Tony Deppen with a sit-out fireman’s carry facebuster off the top turnbuckle. A very worthy main event to the show, as they went all out in this match, using the environment to their advantage. They took their fight up on to the stage where myself and others sat, throwing each other through the chairs before leaping back to the ring. They later fought on the bar, culminating with Janela giving Deppen a package piledriver from the bar onto the edge of the ring. This was one of many big nearfalls.

After finally getting the win, Janela talked on the mic about how he has been wrestling for fourteen years, his first major injury was the one he suffered in September against Psicosis for GCW, and that he was able to return to the ring four months early. He called this match the most physically taxing match since his return, and he put over Deppen as a tremendous wrestler. He advised him to stop being such a dick to people, because he feels Deppen can definitely carry GCW if he was to get injured again, or if Nick Gage were to get injured. He then told Deppen that if he can start on the right path by shaking his hand, he can put in a few calls and get Deppen on some flights. Despite Janela’s persistance, Deppen just spit water in his face and left the ring. Janela then closed by saying he’s going to win the GCW Title from Gage next week in Asbury Park, NJ.

Another wild spectacle from GCW thanks to their roster and their fan base, and partially thanks to this intimate venue. They clearly have a strategy down with the shows they put on, they have access to real unique talent like Marko Stunt and Dustin Thomas, and I found a lot to enjoy from this event.

[wamaneuver-deactivated20220405]

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[pwchronicle]

Chikara “Young Lions Cup XV, 1st Stage/ 2nd Stage” Live Show Reports March 16th in Philadelphia, PA

Chikara came back to the Wrestle Factory for the first time this year with two full shows over a Saturday, both to decide the next Young Lions Cup Champion and to attempt to sort out the ugly situation surrounding the Grand Championship.

The 1st Stage in the afternoon started with all of the entrants in this year’s tournament coming out to the ring for a group photo. Blanche Babish was unable to take part for some reason, so new ring announcer Mark Adam Haggerty helped Bryce Remsburg draw a new name, albeit a little haphazardly. Sonny Defarge was already scheduled to wrestle later, and Roman Reigns was unavailable (not sure either one would qualify as a Young Lion), so the vacant spot went to Lady Frost, a wrestler I was cheated out of seeing in person at Beyond’s last trip here. Sixteen entrants, with all of the first round matches were all 4-way elimination matches.

1. Young Lions Cup 1st Round: Boomer Hatfield won over Lady Frost, Jay Sorbet, and Lee Moriarty. Sorbet (pronounced like the frozen dessert) was one of two visiting Australians in the tournament, calling himself the the Australian Scooperman and doing a lot of ice cream wordplay; he would get along swimmingly with Los Ice Creams. Frost (a convenient opponent) used a lot of flashy offense that could double as dancing. Moriarty, out of the Pittsburgh area, was another late replacement and assumed the rudo role here, mocking Boomer’s height. Moriarty eliminated Sorbet first after high knee and a leaping flatliner, then right afterward rolled up Frost to eliminate her. The crowd favorite Boomer was able to pin Moriarty after spiking him with a basement rana. He had a post-match interview with Scott Holladay, but Dasher Hatfield intervened immediately, congratulating his son (“This is the boy’s moment!”) and talked about how both will be champions by the end of the day.

2. The Regime (Juan Francisco de Coronado, Sloan Caprice, and Rick Roland) vs. three enhancement talents went to a No Contest. This presumed squash match never got going, as Caprice wanted to speak to Juan. He said Juan hasn’t been paying him and Roland, that they’re not his friends, and when people don’t pay them, those people get “whacked.” The two Closers proceeded to beat up Juan, and their three opponents and the ref chose to leave. Roland finished off Juan with a sit-out tree slam, but the fans chanted for one more time, so they returned and hit him with the Deal Breaker (Hart Attack power bomb). They then tossed their bowtie armbands and Ecuadorian gauntlets to the mat and left. Pretty heelish actions that the crowd loved. Juan eventually got up and retrieved the bowties.

3. Young Lions Cup 1st Round: Jaden Newman won over Thief Ant, Frantik, and Air Wolf. Newman was the big unknown of these four, coming from Tennessee and having a gimmick of calling himself Number One. He established himself as a heel, leading to the crowd chanting Number 2 at him. Air Wolf returned after being in last year’s Young Lions Cup tournament and winning the Rey de Voladores tournament over King of Trios weekend last year. Frantik was the first one gone when Thief Ant pinned him with an O’Connor Roll. Newman used a finisher where he hit a sliding forearm to the back of a seated Air Wolf to eliminate him, and soon afterward did the same to Thief Ant to win. I thought Newman assessed himself well.

4. Missile Assault Man beat Rory Gulak with an inverted DDT. Gulak had fun with his “Amazing” catchphrase early on and tried to let Missile do the same, then they began grappling. Solid work, ending shortly after Gulak went for a splash off the top but ate Missile’s knees.

- They went to an intermission and said the next match would be an Unsanctioned Chain Match. Haggerty warned fans that this match would be more violent than usual Chikara matches and advised parental discretion.

5. Lucas Calhoun beat Volgar in an Unsanctioned Chain Match. There was no ref for this match. The two of them were supposed to be attached to each other by a long chain, though Calhoun actually just held onto to it. This was unsanctioned anyway, so I’ll give them leeway. This followed Last Man Standing rules, with Calhoun asking the fans to count when one of them was down. This was not a smooth process as it took a while for counting fans to get coordinated, but it got into a pattern of us counting slowly when Calhoun was down, counting normally when Volgar was down, and not counting at all when one was about to do a move to another. They brawled in and out of the ring, and I thought they used the chain well. Calhoun was slammed onto two steel chairs at ringside that he himself set up. The ending sequence saw Volgar dish out excessive punishment, hitting two top rope splashes, followed by a senton off the top. He went up a fourth time, but Calhoun crotched him on the top rope by yanking the chain, then he grabbed a glass bottle from a planted fan and smashed it over Volgar’s head. Calhoun then hit Volgar with a Samoan Drop off the top, and this was good enough to keep Volgar down for a regular ten-count, giving Calhoun the hard-fought victory. Not perfect, but a very effective brawl and potential feud-ender by the end of it. They took another, shorter intermission to clean up the ring.

6. Young Lions Cup 1st Round: Still Life With Apricots and Pears won over Cam Carter, DL Hurst, and Davienne. The returning Carter and the debuting Davienne, who wrestles in Beyond and elsewhere in the New England area, were the stars of this match, with Carter using a lot of his agility and Davienne throwing guys around with suplexes. She was the first one gone, however, when Hurst made her submit to the Rings of Saturn. Carter eliminated Hurst with a standing Spanish Fly out of nowhere. Still Life, looking considerably messier today, largely stayed out of the action, but immediately got involved when it was down to them (Still Life uses they/them pronouns now) and Carter. After some back and forth, Carter went to hit his running 450 Splash from the entry ramp, but Still Life moved out of the way of it and rolled up Carter with a La Magistral Cradle to win. In a post-match interview, Holladay asked Still Life about the whereabouts of BLANK. Still Life had no comment.

7. Young Lions Cup 1st Round: Ricky South won over Green Ant, Allie Kat, and Brayden Lee. The very popular Green Ant was matched up against three newcomers that did very well for themselves. I’ve seen Allie Kat before, and the gist is she thinks she’s a cat and I think it’s an infectious act. “Tuff Stuff” Ricky South is another wrestler all the way from Australia; he acts a bit androgynous with his lipstick and flashy gear, but showed off a lot of power and solid wrestling. Brayden Lee came all the way from Indiana with his chiseled abs and lunch carrier containing his carb-free diet. I thought this was the most fun of a series of fun first round matches. Kat plowed through her opponents after getting her belly scratched, but she was the first one eliminated after Green Ant pinned her with a springboard cross body. Lee upped the ante (sorry) when he eliminated Green Ant with a Shooting Star Press off the top. South was able to score the win after hitting Lee with a piledriver off the top.

8. Mr. Touchdown beat Chris Dickinson with the Flea Flicker. Strong main event of the first stage that told a story of Touchdown fighting from behind. Dickinson alluded to Mr. Touchdown’s injury at King of Trios throughout the match worked over Touchdown’s knee while bullying him verbally. He also got on ref (and Director of Fun) Bryce Remsburg’s last nerves. This was Touchdown’s second straight win since coming back and picking up a victory at National Pro Wrestling Day.

- Afterward, Dasher and Boomer Hatfield came out. Boomer attended to Touchdown while Dasher commended him for beating “the Hatfield family’s Kryptonite.” He said if Touchdown wanted to earn the Grand Champion back, he had one more opponent for him waiting in the dugout later in the night. Remsburg said Dasher doesn’t make the matches around here, but Dasher appealed to Touchdown’s fighting spirit as Touchdown got to his feet and requested the match Dasher had for him.

- About ninety minutes later, the Second Stage of Young Lions Cup XV began.

1. Young Lions Cup Semifinals: Boomer Hatfield advanced over Jaden Newman with a huricanrana. Boomer gave Newman multiple sliding baseball kicks to the outside, but Newman stopped him by pulling up the ring apron. Newman took a lot of the match and hit his sliding forearm that helped him in the first round, but Boomer was able to survive it by maneuvering towards the ropes.

2. Young Lions Cup Semifinals: Still Life With Apricots and Pears advanced over Ricky South when he countered South’s top rope piledriver into a roll-up. A good mix of personalities here. South received a “Please Come Back” chant afterward.

3. Air Wolf beat Cam Carter with a delayed butterfly suplex. A very fun, fast-paced match. This was also a Magic Move Match, meaning if a specific move was hit during the match, everyone in attendance would receive a prize. The magic move was a 450 Splash, of which Carter hit of the springboard variety late in the match for a nearfall, and the prize was a new poster with the spring event schedule on it. After this 450 Splash didn’t work, Carter went for his running 450, but Air Wolf caught him to lead to the finish. Holliday interviewed him afterward about his scheduled match on the next Chikara event - April 5 in Jersey City, NJ - against A-Kid, the Spanish wrestler from Whitewolf Wrestling making waves. Air Wolf gave A-Kid credit for how well he’s done, but he has beaten A-Kid previously to win the Rey de Voladores tournament. He said this next encounter wouldn’t be a match, but a hunt.

4. The Colony (Fire Ant, Thief Ant, and Worker Ant) beat The Creatures of the Deep (Merlok, Hermit Crab, and Cajun Crawdad) when Fire Ant pinned Crawdad following a Beach Break. Originally announced as just a tag match, Thief Ant was added after being eliminated from the Young Lions Cup tournament, and Merlok joined his crustacean comrades to turn this into a trios match, Chikara’s calling card. Worker Ant, recently returning to the ring, held his own, and had a brief hoss battle with Merlok late in the match where Worker was able to take him off his feet. Thief Ant employed some thievery, giving Crawdad his own Gator Roll and putting Hermit Crab in the Boston Crab after they had just done the moves themselves (counter-clockwise on the N64 control stick). At one point, Crawdad was looking to dive from the top rope from the floor, but Fire Ant tried to prevent it. Crawdad grabbed onto the ceiling of the Wrestle Factory (the framing in between the tiles), kicked Fire Ant away, and briefly swung from the ceiling to pull off his dive to the floor. A wild spot pulled off perfectly. The two trios wound up having a showdown in the middle of the ring, ending with Worker Ant and Thief Ant doing suicide dives to Hermit Crab and Merlok on the floor, while Fire Ant delivered a kick to Crawdad to set up the finish. I had so much fun watching this.

- Intermission, as Hermit Crab and Merlok tried to help Crawdad to the back.

5. FIST (Travis Huckabee & Tony Deppen) beat Cornelius Crummels & Sonny Defarge when Huckabee had Crummels in a horse collar to allow Deppen to hit him with a double stomp off the top. Fun rudo vs. rudo tag team match that started with some underhanded tactics from both teams, including fish hooking and face gouging each other in a circle. Deppen is really channeling Beavis for me, when I think he’s supposed to be the obnoxious member of the FIST trio that Chuck Taylor was. Crummels was worked over a lot, being able to make a tag after sneezing on Deppen. This win gave Huckabee and Deppen their third point for a shot at Los Campeonatos de Parejas.

6. Dasher Hatfield beat Solo Darling to retain the Chikara Grand Championship with a powerslam into the corner. Strong match with Darling the clear favorite. Hatfield was able to escape the Sharp Stinger. He hit a Jackhammer late into the match, but Darling kicked out at 1. Darling was able to string together a DDT on the edge of the ring and a bulldog on the floor, but Dasher came back with a powerbomb on the edge of the ring.

7. Young Lions Cup Finals: Still Life With Apricots and Pears beat Boomer Hatfield to win the Young Lions Cup when they made Boomer pass out to a grapevine leg lock. The big story to this match was Still Life working over Boomer’s knee, to the point where Boomer tried for his corner charge (which he used in his previous matches during the day), his knee gave out. A big moment later saw Still Life go after Boomer’s mask while both were on the top, but Boomer knocked Still Life off and delivered a Meteora to them. Shortly afterward, Still Life twisted around Boomer’s mask and went in for the kill on his knee, clinching the Cup. As Still Life was just starting a post-match interview, BLANK emerged and interjected himself. He seemed happy for Still Life at first, but he then yelled how Still Life is no longer his magnum opus. He said Still Life was destroyed by Penelope Ford at National Pro Wrestling Day, and that the splash of gold from the Young Lions Cup won’t help it. Where this relationship between art and artist goes, I have no clue.

- They announced via a video that this year’s King of Trios will take place in Reading, PA, October 4, 5, and 6 (away from what has become a crowded Labor Day Weekend in recent years for wrestling). They’re tying it into the video game they still hope to release. Their ticket site says that King of Trios will be held at The Goodwill Beneficial Association in Reading, which they have run before for other shows.

8. Mr. Touchdown beat Icarus with a cradle pin. Mr. Touchdown was still selling the wear on his body from his match with Chris Dickinson earlier, and Icarus took advantage of it. Touchdown still fought back, and went for a superplex, but Icarus slammed his face on the top of the ring post. Icarus was able to hit a Pedigree, but only for a nearfall. A second Pedigree attempt was countered by Touchdown for the win. Solid main event with a strong technico and rudo at the center of it.

- Boomer ran out afterward to check on Touchdown, followed by Dasher coming out and telling Icarus he failed at his job. Icarus proceeded to hit a Blu Ray on Touchdown into the corner. Dasher said Touchdown’s three victories won’t earn him the championship back, and he told an incensed Remsburg (who officiated this main event) that he can’t take the Grand Championship from him. He ran down all of the challengers he’s turned away, up to and including Solo Darling, and claimed he is the real Grand Champion now. Touchdown got up and said that he earned the title back, that they’re family, and was looking for a hug, but Dasher still clocked him with the title. Remsburg finally had enough, and said that he even though he can’t physically take the title away from Dasher, he came up with a solution. In what he said was his final act as Director of Fun (news that took everyone by surprise), he announced Dasher Hatfield vs. Mr. Touchdown for April 5 in Jersey City in a Ladder Match, to decide the undisputed Grand Champion. Dasher stormed out and called Boomer (who was trying to tend to a downed Touchdown this whole time) to his side, while Fire Ant, Air Wolf, and the other refs came out to make sure Touchdown could get up and leave on his own power, which he did.

A heck of a double-header from Chikara, two full shows with sixteen (technically fifteen matches between them, setting the stage for April 5 and future shows. Lots of quality matches, and I thought all of the new and returning guests did well for themselves, so the independent scene continues to thrive. I intend to be at that April 5 event, along with a number of other events happening in Jersey City (and one in Rahway… and one in Manhattan, my first time in Madison Square Garden!). I definitely can not promise rundowns like this for all of those shows (even this weekend, fatigue set in, which is why this was posted now and not late last night), but I do hope to write up some general articles about what I will have witnessed over Wrestling Week.

[pwchronicle]

NXT Live Show Report February 7th in Toms River, NJ

NXT kicked off a weekend house show tour of the Northeast with a stop in Toms River, NJ at the RWJ Barnabas Health Arena, the gymnasium to a local high school that offers a good space for the likes of NXT or other companies if they ever come here. This was NXT’s second time here, as they ran here a little over a year ago the night before Takeover: Philadelphia (I attended both). Outside of a WWE show in Atlantic City, these are undoubtedly the biggest shows I have been able to attend via toll-free drives, and I lucked into having a very close seat, equivalent to the type of floor seats I’ve been able to get at the 2300 Arena. It looked like a full crowd of people. After a playing of the National Anthem with Lilian Garcia’s vocals, NXT backstage interviewer (and New Jersey native) Sarah Schreiber went straight into the action as the event’s host and ring announcer.

1. Dominik Dijakovic beat Kassius Ohno with Feast Your Eyes. Not the all-out big man battle you would have expected from these two a couple of years ago on the indies (they’re in WWE now after all), but they got the crowd into things, as did every match on this card. Dijakovic had early control with a standing headlock, then Ohno took control by stomping Dijakovic’s feet and working him over. Big moment with them knocking each other down with big boots. Dijakovic got Ohno up for his finisher after Ohno missed hitting him with a moonsault. Ohno acted dazed, selling Feast Your Eyes, on his way to the back afterward.

2. Matt Riddle, Oney Lorcan, and Danny Burch beat The Forgotten Sons (Steve Cutler, Wesley Blake, and Jaxson Ryker) when Riddle pinned Cutler after a knee strike. Riddle was introduced as a pseudo mystery partner, as Lorcan stated on the mic how he and Burch couldn’t find a third partner, but they did find a bro. The recently-dubbed Original Bro got on the nerves of the Forgotten Sons when he flipped his flip-flops towards them during his entrance, and Lorcan got the crowd to chant “1 2 Bro!” Riddle got a hot tag after the Forgotten Sons had worked over Lorcan and then Burch, but both Oney and Danny (still Biff and Martin to me) got some highlight moments, including Lorcan throwing chops and hitting a dive to the floor. Lorcan and Burch hit their tandem DDT on Cutler for a nearfall towards the end, then Ryker (formally and forever Immortal’s Gunner) ran wild, including a big Polish Hammer to Burch right before the actual finish.

3. Bianca Belair beat Deonna Purrazzo with the K.O.D. Purrazzo got a big reaction and had crowd support for being announced from New Jersey, despite her hometown being over an hour north of here. She has gotten a lighter hair color now, and Belair likewise has changed up her hair, with her mighty braid now conveniently going down her back rather than coming out the top of her head. Purrazzo came off as the bigger crowd favorite, and they seemed to act accordingly in the match. Purrazzo went for her arm bar and got a standing arm triangle late before Belair just stomped on her. Belair picked up the win after Purrazzo charged shoulder first into the ring post.

4. Kairi Sane & Io Shirai beat Jessamyn Duke & Marina Shafir after Sane hit Shafir with the InSane Elbow. A repeat of a match shown on the post-Takeover: Phoenix episode of NXT TV, pitting two of the greenest women on the roster against two women who should be on the main roster yesterday. I didn’t think this was as good as that TV match, mainly because it had to be longer. Sane and Shirai were very popular, whereas Duke and Shafir definitely were not. Duke and Shafir were also announced as representing the Four Horsewomen to a reaction from the crowd that felt like surprise mixed with intrigue. Sane got the hot tag after Shirai was worked over a lot, though Shirai did get in a springboard dropkick to Shafir towards the end of the match.

- Intermission. At the end of it, Schreiber brought out two local kids, one of whom beat cancer. She played an easy game with them involving clips from Raw last year, which led to them winning a bag of merchandise.

5. The War Raiders (Rowe & Hanson) beat Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel to retain the NXT Tag Team Titles when Rowe pinned Aichner after he and Hanson hit a pop-up powerslam. Aichner and Barthel cut promos before their match, getting across who they are and how good they are, and getting the “What” treatment for their troubles. It was during the War Raiders’ entrance that I first noticed Jeremy Borash at ringside, filming entrances. The War Raiders hit a lot of their big moves, though Aichner and Barthel had time to shine as well, including Aichner hitting his double springboard moonsault for a nearfall.

6. Shayna Baszler beat Candice LeRae to retain the NXT Women’s Title with the Kirifuda Clutch. Big “Candice Wrestling” chant at the start of this. Baszler dominated a lot of it, with LeRae the latest recipient of Baszler’s elbow stomp, but LeRae also had time to shine as the challenger, including hitting three consecutive dives to the outside. Baszler locked in the clutch after LeRae missed with a springboard moonsault, and she had it in a little longer than necessary, letting go after the bell rang for a second time.

7. Ricochet & Velveteen Dream beat Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano when they both hit Ciampa and Gargano with dual Dream Valley Drivers and Purple Rain Maker elbow drops, pinning them at the same time. Undoubtedly the the hottest match of the night, with four of the biggest stars. Gargano indeed came out with the NXT North American Title, so them apparently shooting two finishes for his title match with Velveteen Dream (airing in two weeks) was likely done for the benefit of shows happening before that match airs, such as Halftime Heat (which happened live on Sunday after the last TV taping last Thursday) and these house shows. Gargano was looking very tan. Velveteen Dream wore a frayed Gargano shirt that Ciampa eventually tore off. Ciampa and Gargano acted like reluctant partners at first. Velveteen Dream did Ricochet’s moonsault into a pose early on. Lots of big moves led to the usual big chants from the crowd. Ricochet avoided getting hit by Gargano and Ciampa’s old tandem kicks. Ciampa received multiple super kicks towards the end, including two errant ones by Gargano.

- After the match, even as a lot of people were filing out to leave, Ricochet and Velveteen Dream spoke to the crowd briefly, with Ricochet thanking them for keeping up the energy from start to finish, and Velveteen Dream calling NXT the hottest brand in sports entertainment.

Another very fun night from NXT, clocking in under three hours. All of the wrestlers worked hard, and the crowd for the most part recognized that and reacted big during the matches, which all had the similar competitive formula. Some names that could have returned here from last year’s Toms River visit were absent (including Aleister Black, all of Undisputed Era, and the Street Profits), but this was still a deep card with a lot of experienced talent.

[pwchronicle]

Major League Wrestling “SuperFight” and “Fusion” TV Taping Report February 2nd in Philadelphia, PA

MLW came to the 2300 Arena tonight for the first time since their 2017 relaunch that has led to running events across the country, a weekly TV show, and a fruitful relationship with their cable home beIN Sports that has led to live shows airing on nights like this. They ended up drawing a large crowd, and I was impressed by the clean, slick-looking ring, the entrance setup, and the different kind of pre-show playlist (Tyler the Creator, Ghostface Killah, etc.). Before matches got underway, ring announcer Timothy Barr (also of EVOLVE and WWN) and correspondent Kacey Lennox threw shirts out to the crowd. Rich Bocchini and Matt Striker handled commentary from ringside. Two matches were taped starting at 7:30 PM prior to SuperFight going live on TV.

1. Rich Swann beat Lance Anoa’i when Anoa’i missed a 450 splash and Swann rolled him up afterward. Swann very gradually played more of the heel here, and he just barely used the bottom rope for leverage for his pin. Anoa’i, who had a tribute for Roman Reigns on his shorts, impressed the crowd with his agility.

2. Alexander Hammerstone beat Ariel Dominguez with a sit-out side slam from a vertical suplex position. Hammerstone, a newcomer to MLW from Phoenix, AZ who has wrestled out west a lot, looked like a taller Tyler Durden and towered over Dominguez, who I believe is mainly used in positions like this. Hammerstone dominated him, from a massive release German suplex, to a delayed pump handle exploder suplex, to quickly killing Dominguez’s comeback with a forearm strike. Hammerstone truly has shoulders like boulders.

After this came the live TV airing of SuperFight, with perhaps the three most heavily advertised matches on the card. Teddy Hart and Davey Boy Smith Jr. (with Brian Pillman Jr.) won the MLW World Tag Team Titles from Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix in a predictably crazy opener. Cool to see Smith come out with a bulldog, in addition to Hart with his cat. Despite some slight miscommunication and loose rules, the crowd was very much into this. Both teams came off as beloved, though the new Hart Foundation used plenty of dirty tactics: Pillman pulling the ref out during a pin count, Smith unmasking Pentagon, and Hart giving Fenix a low blow prior to the spectacular finish. Hart Foundation dripping in gold. Kotto Brazil and Ricky Martinez received a big spotlight for their grudge match, and I thought they worked pretty hard, but I didn’t think this match didn’t have the same level of star power to draw in the crowd more, and I thought the finish (Selina De La Renta spraying something in Brazil’s good eye) was fairly silly. Low Ki, De La Renta’s other client and the man “undefeated in MLW for 15 years” defending his MLW World Heavyweight Title against Tom Lawlor went by quicker than I anticipated, but I thought these two made the most of their time. Big fight feel, Low Ki punching through a door, and Lawlor getting the victory and the title via choke out. With a lot of his other MMA-to-pro wrestling contemporaries signed with WWE, Lawlor really seems to be making a name for himself outside of the corporate behemoth. Following these three bouts (matches 3-5), they put on several more matches for later editions of MLW Fusion.

6. Mance Warner beat Jimmy Yuta with a lariat. I think Wheeler Yuta has been here, as Jimmy, since the relaunch, whereas Warner was making his much-promoted MLW debut, dressed up like Bunkhouse Buck. More of a showcase match for Warner, as he took the action to the floor and made it into a bit of a brawl. He pulled out his patented eye poke and delivered a running knee lift prior to the finish. Afterward, Kacey Lennox interviewed Warner on the stage, and he cut a promo into the camera that the crowd couldn’t hear.

7. Jacob Fatu & The Almighty Sheik beat two enhancement wrestlers after Fatu pinned one of them after a big moonsault. Fatu is another member of the Anoa’i family, new to MLW, and borrowing a lot of his look from Umaga. This Sheik would be the same Sheik who held the NWA World Heavyweight Title under auspicious means. These two were announced as representing a new unit called Contra, and they decimated their opponents, with Sheik using a spike during the match. They appeared to be a throwback to the likes of the the original Sheik, Bruiser Brody, and the like, as they just kept causing chaos after the match. The opponent who wasn’t pinned was the recipient of a fireball from Sheik, Fatu did a moonsault on the other guy again as he was being stretchered out of the ring, and then this poor guy was slammed on the floor, all while the timekeeper kept ringing the bell in his failed attempts to control the action.

- They aired the backstage confrontation between The Hart Foundation and Maxwell Jacob Friedman, that I understand aired during the live airing. Good reception from the crowd.

8. Myron Reed beat DJZ with a rollup reversal with a handful of tights. To be fair, DJZ had a hold of Reed’s tights on his initial rollup attempt, but Reed was subtly acting heel in the match. Very slick and athletic action from both of these guys.

9. Ace Romero beat Simon Gotch by disqualification. Gotch has changed up his hairstyle and did away with his old mustache, and he was also announced as representing Contra. Romero was more popular here, though I’m not sure how well the crowd received these two odd bodies. Gotcha and Romero both fought hard like it was a grudge match, leading to Romero bleeding from the nose, but it all ended with Jacob Fatu and Almighty Sheik coming back out to attack Romero. Sheik spiked Romero’s head, drawing even more blood, as Gotch took the mic and directed his two colleagues. He said the three of them are the new global merchants of violence, demanding the crowd to carve this moment in their flesh so as to remember it (no thanks, we have phones). Gotch promised that they would burn professional wrestling to the ground and remake it in their image. He proclaimed themselves Contra, and that the hostile takeover has begun.

- Barr announced that MLW would return to the 2300 Arena on June 1st. This led into a very brief intermission, during which Teddy Hart made himself available to fans.

10. Ace Austin beat Rich Swann after a backwards top rope splash. Solid action that won the crowd over, though I thought they dueling dropkicks and dueling kip ups were really silly, trying for the type of stuff Ricochet and Will Ospreay did to much greater effect. The finish was hampered by a really awkward three-count, as if the ref forgot this was the finish. Afterward, Rich Bocchini got into the ring to speak with Swann, who slapped the ref to the mat. Bocchini tried asking Swann about his change in attitude, but Swann just shoved him down and proceeded to jaw with fans at ringside.

11. Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Brian Pillman Jr. beat Tommy Dreamer & The Sandman after Smith powerbombed Dreamer onto two chairs. Smith and Sandman were the respective mystery partners for the feuding Pillman and Dreamer. Pillman cut a promo before introducing Smith, saying he wasn’t going to bring out an old ECW junkie. He channeled his father’s first promo in ECW (which I happened to rematch recently), calling the crowd smart marks and saying he was exercising his constitutional rights to pick an appropriate partner, in the city where the Constitution was written. Good delivery from him despite not having as hoarse a voice. Sandman did his full entrance (a lot of MLW entrance music is actual songs with the lyrics removed), and for some reason Teddy Hart came through the crowd with his cat, walking right past me and walking around the front row of fans while still behind the barricade. Sandman acted like he hurt his hand from chopping Pillman, and I felt he really showed his age here, even more so than in his recent ROH appearances. Dreamer was more of the workhorse for his team, including taking a delayed vertical suplex from Smith. Sandman even complimented Smith’s strength. Sandman eventually started chasing Pillman around the ring as Pillman retrieved various plunder from under the ring, ending with him pulling the Blue Meanie out from under the ring; he ultimately just punched Pillman after being used as a shield from Sandman. After the finish, there was a standing ovation for Dreamer, partially encouraged by the announce team.

12. Gringo Loco beat Puma King after a Spanish Fly off the top turnbuckle. It sounded like Barr mixed up the order of his ring announcements for these two heavyset luchadors. I thought they worked quite well together and came off well, up until the finish when Puma King kept slipping off the top and had to get back up for it.

- Barr announced that Teddy Hart would defend the MLW World Middleweight Championship against Maxwell Jacob Friedman in the main event. Hart came off as the crowd favorite as Barr gauged who they predict would win.

13. Rey Horus beat Aerostar with a victory roll bomb off the top turnbuckle. I thought this had the slickest, cleanest wrestling out of any match on the card. Very strong stuff from both guys. Aerostar wrestled with lights on his mask and gear, which was different. Both luchadors showed respect to each other afterward, may they find solace outside of the Temple.

- Barr announced that tonight set a new box office record for MLW, and he thanked the crowd on behalf of the everyone.

14. Teddy Hart beat Maxwell Jacob Friedman to retain the MLW World Middleweight Title with a springboard twisting senton. MJF cut a promo before Hart came out, claiming that if you like ECW, you’re white trash. He called Hart a jailbird, claimed he never officially lost his title, and challenged Hart to come out on his own without Smith and Pillman. Hart did so, but he still came out with his cat, who he placed on the top turnbuckle during in-ring introductions. Much like in the tag title match earlier in the night, these two loved their piledrivers. MJF countered Hart’s big moves by grounding him with headlocks. The ref went down when MJF collided with him (barely, from the looks of it) after Hart had hit him with a Canadian Destroyer. With the ref down, MLF attempted to use a chair, but Hart kicked him in the groin and used the chair himself. He then gave MJF an electric chair lung blower prior to the finish. Good main event with good character work that ended the night on a high note.

By all accounts, this was a pretty successful excursion to Philadelphia, especially given the purported business and the return date. For a company that bills itself as Major League and has such slick production, there were lots of moments in matches that felt off or awkward, including two botched finishes. They ultimately shouldn’t matter as much if they don’t repeat too often, and they likely don’t leave that big an impression on the majority of the live crowd and television audience. The title changes during the live airing say a lot about who the top stars are, and possibly what the future may hold for Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix. This card still made a good impression on me that will keep me focused on Fusion and the return date in June.

[pwchronicle]

Ring of Honor “Final Battle Fallout” TV Taping Report December 15th in Philadelphia, PA

The night following Final Battle in New York City, featuring a lot of good matches but no real clues as to what will happen next year, ROH taped TV at the 2300 Arena to begin airing early next month. There was a large crowd on hand, though not an entire sellout. My biggest highlight of the night was an impromptu reunion with friend and founder John Philapavage, who I haven’t seen in years. Hanging out with him throughout most of it made the night go by smoother.

Future of Honor Match: The Bouncers (Beer City Bruiser & Brian Milonas) beat The Sons of Savagery following a leg drop by Milonas off the second rope while Bruiser held the opponent in place. Before the match happened, Rhett Titus came out in a speedo and with a trophy, flexing his muscles like he’s at a body building competition, while sultry music played; he joined in on commentary for this match, of which the Bouncers took 90%.

- Introductions for the commentary team throughout most of the night, Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana. Riccaboni has an entrance video where his photo appears as a bobble head doll.

1. Jeff Cobb beat Luchasaurus in a non-title Proving Ground Match with Tour of the Islands. Luchasaurus, last seen on TV getting decapitated on Lucha Underground (and before that, allegedly taking part in a season of Big Brother and helping take down Bill DeMott in NXT) could potentially fill the role vacated by Punishment Martinez. He threw a lot of kicks to take down Cobb, including a spinning kick at the start of the match for a very early nearfall. Cobb fought back, and both guys pulled off standing moonsaults. Cobb hit a belly-to-belly superplex that looked scary, followed by a piledriver, prior to the finish. Cobb continues to look dominant despite his opponents having him on the ropes, and these two scary men still shook hands before and after the match.

- Cody, The Young Bucks, and Adam Page came out for a segment likely just for the live crowd. They tossed out free shirts to the crowd. Otherwise, all Bullet Club shirts were announced as being $10 each at the show. Cody said this was the final night in ROH for all four of them. Matt Jackson proposed that they all have a match together on their final night, but Page and Cody said they did not bring their gear. Matt said that if that’s the case, they can wear the Bucks’ “Marty Jannetty cosplay” gear from Final Battle. Cody quickly backtracked and said that he did bring his gear, as well as Brandi. Page also had his gear on hand. Matt then said that he would like two of their opponents to be Best Friends, Page suggested Jay Lethal despite his bad luck against champions, and Cody chose Flip Gordon. So that match was promised for later in the night.

2. Sumie Sakai & Jenny Rose beat Team Sea Stars (Ashley Vox & Delmi Exo). I believe Rose got the pin, based on what happened shortly afterward. I had just met up with John during this, so I wasn’t entirely focused on the match.

- In a segment taped for TV to definitely air after January 1st, Riccaboni came to the ring and introduced Chris Sabin, Flip Gordon, Marty Scurll, and Dalton Castle (who came out with the Boys). He said all four men had earned shots at the ROH World Title in 2018. Sabin via going to a draw in a Proving Ground Match with Lethal, Gordon via winning the Sea of Honor Tournament, Scurll via winning Survival of the Fittest, and Castle via a contractually obligated rematch. Riccaboni said these four guys would wrestle in a 4-way to determine who would get their shot first, which would be at the HonorClub event Honor Reigns Supreme on January 13th, in Concord, NC. As Riccaboni was about to introduce the World Champion, out came Matt Taven, proclaiming himself to be the real World Champion and cutting biting promos on the four contenders, including saying Scurll was left behind by his friends on their trip to Jacksonville. Lethal came out and got in Taven’s face, and they fought in the entrance way before getting separated. The four contenders did not get physically involved.

3. Kelly Klein beat Nikki Adams to retain the Women of Honor World Title with a knee to the face. Before this match, Klein cut a promo about how she’s the new WOH World Champion and beat three other women to win it. Therefore, she’s now looking to be a fighting champion by putting her title on the line in every match, starting with this one against this newcomer from Long Island. Fairly competitive. Following Klein’s victory, Jenny Rose came back out and kind of struggled through a promo where she said she and Klein have unfinished business, as she has pinned Klein in the past. She challenged her for the title on January 13th, and she wanted it to be a Street Fight. Klein, in maybe the line of the night, promised to see her on the “streets” of Concord.

- Christopher Daniels came out in a suit. He said Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky were at home recuperating following the Ladder War at Final Battle, and that since he lost at Final Battle, he now has to say farewell. He cut a very nice speech about how he’ll remember everything, going back to the first main event against Low Ki and Bryan Danielson, and the first match for the ROH World Title in sweltering heat. He said every opponent he’s had in ROH has gone on to be his brother. He will also remember the ROH fans, and said this company will continue to grow. Once he finished, Joe Koff, who may have appeared on the entrance stage before he wrapped up, spoke about how he has rethought things about Daniels since his edict about him being done following Final Battle 2018. He said his protecting Cary Silkin at Final Battle (from Bully Ray and his kendo stick) said a lot about what he’s become and what he thinks about ROH. Therefore, he wanted to reissue a new contract to Daniels. This very nice moment was quickly ruined by a returning Shane Taylor, showing up out of nowhere to attack Daniels. Koff ran away as Taylor gave Daniels the 216 onto a chair in the ring. Taylor then tore up Daniels’ new contract, and Daniels was helped out afterward, this presumably being his sendoff.

4. Dalton Castle (w/ The Boys) won a 4-way over Chris Sabin, Flip Gordon, and Marty Scurll after hitting Sabin with the Bangarang. A number of the moments in the match saw Marty bailing to the floor and encouraging the other three to fight each other. With Castle winning the January 13th title shot here, Lethal came out and congratulated him.

5. Zack Sabre Jr. beat Tracy Williams via verbal submission to his double wrist clutch octopus stretch. A great change of pace from a lot of other things in ROH. Lots of strong back-and-forth technical wrestling throughout this one, with Williams throwing in some chops as well.

6. Madison Rayne & Dr. Britt Baker DMD beat The Twisted Sisterz (Thunder Rosa & Holidead) after Baker hit Rosa with a pumphandle facebuster.

7. Jay & Mark Briscoe beat SoCal Uncensored (Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky) to retain the ROH World Tag Team Titles after they hit Kazarian with a splash mountain bomb into a neck breaker. This was announced as a TV main event and felt like a serious grudge match from the start as they threw chairs at one another. Ref Todd Sinclair was taken out at ringside when Kazarian gave one of the Briscoes a huricanrana on the floor, sending him crashing into Sinclair. With him out, the Briscoes took the opportunity to use the chairs. Ref Paul Turner took over as Kazarian countered an attempted Doomsday Device into a rollup. Sky was taken out by a Jay Driller, and there was an even bigger nearfall when Kazarian survived a superplex and the Froggy Bow. After the match, Kazarian and Sky saluted the crowd and took time to greet ringside fans as their music played, perhaps implying that they too were leaving.

- Marty Scurll came out, rhetorically asking the crowd what’s next for him. He said he made his intentions clear “last night” when he confronted Jay Lethal, and he’s coming after the World Title. The Kingdom came out, with Taven saying Scurll is kidding himself about that, and also brought up how he’s lost his friends and is all alone, as he, TK O’Ryan, and Vinny Marseglia surrounded him in the ring. Scurll said they were right about his friends leaving, but that doesn’t mean he can’t make new friends. Right then, the lights went out, with Brody King appearing in the ring once they came back on. The lights then went out again, another figure ran out to the ring, and there were flashes of electricity on the screen to signal that it was PCO (Pierre Carl Ouellet). The three of them fought off the Kingdom, with King giving Marseglia a Gonzo Bomb, and PCO following up with a moonsault off the top to the floor onto all of the Kingdom. Scurll then introduced this new trio of himself and the two new signees as Villain Enterprises.

- Intermission. At the end of it, Bobby Cruise announced that Villain Enterprises would be in action later. He then threw it to Bill Apter and another writer for Pro Wrestling Illustrated, who awarded two plaques for Best Commentary Team of 2018 to Riccaboni and Cabana. The two of them thanked everyone for this honor.

8. Eli Isom (w/ Ryan Nova) beat Facade with a brainbuster. This was announced as part of a mini-tournament to determine the #1 Contender to the ROH World Television Title (held by Jeff Cobb). Decent action, which included Isom hitting a suicide dive that nearly overshot Facade (they held it together), and Facade hitting a springboard somersault dive to the floor.

9. Rush beat TK O’Ryan with a running corner dropkick to a seated O’Ryan. My first time seeing Rush, a star from CMLL and co-founder of the original Los Ingobernables, and I was really taken by his charisma. He took part of the match to the floor, fighting O’Ryan in the crowd, hitting him with chairs, and seemingly whipping him with a camera cable. After his victory, Marseglia confronted Rush, allowing Taven to attack him from behind. As has been stated by ROH themselves, this stems from Taven’s history with Rush in CMLL, which included Taven losing his hair. The Kingdom beat him down and all gave him a conchairto. Not sure if this issue will continue in ROH (maybe the Madison Square Garden card?) or CMLL.

10. Juice Robinson beat PJ Black via disqualification. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis came out before this match, alongside his valet Camilla, to join commentary for this match. Solid action, and Robinson was beloved, but the finish came when Black shoved ref Paul Turner into the ropes, causing Robinson to get crotched on the top. Black kicked Turner after the bell to further get heat, which makes me think he’ll be back around. Robinson got some promo time afterward, saying he didn’t come here just to win like this. He put over Philadelphia, as well as ROH for being good old fashioned pro wrestling. He said he will be back in ROH on a regular basis in 2019, and he’s looking to bring honor back to Ring of Honor.

11. Shane Taylor beat Mike Law after a knockout punch (No Hitter Quitter) and the 216. That was all there was to it. Afterward, he said people were wondering who paid for his services to take out Christopher Daniels. He revealed that nobody paid him, that he decided to do it himself, and that he’s just getting started.

- Cabana came to the ring and introduced Flip Gordon for an interview segment. He commended Gordon for defeating Bully Ray in the I Quit Match at Final Battle, and he asked him about his plans for 2019. Gordon said he dealt with a bully for eight months, and that he finally made that bully quit, so mission accomplished. He said his next mission was winning the ROH World Title. He was interrupted by Kenny King, who said that he deserved a shot at the World Title next, as he was the last person to pin Jay Lethal. In maybe a first for ROH TV, he threw to video footage of him pinning Lethal at Global Wars: Toronto last month, showing it from three different angles, but having the picture zoomed in on all of them so that they didn’t show King’s feet were on the ropes for leverage. Funny stuff. King then ridiculed Gordon for how he was caned the last time he was in this building, and he closed by calling him  a weekend warrior who got paid to join the reserves. Another new story the new year.

12. Silas Young beat Beer City Bruiser in a No DQ Match with Misery after Bruiser crashed through a table. This was another match in the TV Title #1 Contender tournament, and ref Todd Sinclair returned to reffing for the first time since the Tag Team Title Match five matches ago, getting a big ovation from the crowd. Rhett Titus also returned to commentary after doing more posing. Bruiser cut a promo to make this match No DQ, saying after Young told him he wasn’t a friend and left him, he finally realized that Silas sucks (cue a crowd chant), and that they should have a fight as opposed to a match. Bruiser quickly introduced chairs and tables into the match, and he put Young through a table in the corner with a running cannonball for a nearfall. Bruiser was rammed into a chair wedged into the opposite corner. Bruiser gave Young a flying hip toss off the top, but then was slammed off the top onto chairs he had set up himself. Young zip-tied Bruiser to one of the ropes and looked to punish him with chair shots, but Brian Milonas made the save. He was taken out when Young avoided a banzai drop from him and hit him with a chair to send him crashing through a table on the floor. These guys really went all out for this, potentially putting a bow on their standing issue.

- The next match announced was the new trio Villain Enterprises challenging the Kingdom for the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Titles. When the Kingdom entered, Taven told them that they don’t deserve a shot at the titles yet. They said they would consider giving them the opportunity if they get past another team that is both proven, and undefeated.

13. Villain Enterprises beat Cheeseburger, Eli Isom, and Ryan Nova after Nova took a Gonzo Bomb from Brody King and a moonsault off the top from PCO. Despite the setup, this match was longer and more competitive than expected. King and PCO got to have monster moments against their smaller opponents, with King throwing big chops. Cheeseburger, Isom, and Nova still had time to shine, and they got a way-too-close nearfall on PCO. A cool moment towards the end saw Scurll give one of them a tombstone on the floor while the other two received chokeslams onto the edge of the ring.

14. Jay Lethal, Flip Gordon, and Best Friends (Trent Beretta & Chuckie T.) beat The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson), Cody, and Adam Page (w/ Brandi Rhodes) when Gordon pinned Cody after a 450 splash. This was announced as an HonorClub exclusive. and it felt like a post-show dark match as it went along, with lots of silly but crowd-pleasing moments. The Best Friends invited Lethal into their hug, but did not allow Gordon to join. Ref Paul Turner went down, allowing Lethal’s team to go crazy on the Elite and put Cody through the timekeeper’s table. Brandi hit Beretta with her bionic spear, but Beretta came back with Shattered Dreams to Cody. Leading up the finish, they were all doing each other’s signature moves. The Young Bucks hugged, so the Best Friends gave them superkicks. Cody then hit Lethal Injection on both Best Friends, so Lethal hit Cody with CrossRhodes to set up the finish. All eight wrestlers still hugged each other afterward.

- The Elite had the ring to themselves afterward to say goodbye. Matt said how he Nick first showed up on ROH on HDNet ten years ago, and that at least for him these last two years have been the best of his career. Just then, out came Bully Ray and Silas Young, with Bully yelling at the four of them, allowing the Briscoes to jump them from behind. The four of them were then joined by Shane Taylor in the beatdown. Lethal and his team ran out to avenge them, but they were fought off, with Lethal getting laid out in the ring with a Jay Driller. Bully Ray yelled at fans in the crowd, asking if this was the farewell they wanted. He said to a laid out Lethal that twenty years ago, fans would be jumping the rails to save him, but not today, because these fans are pansies. Bully and the Briscoes kept trying to incite the fans into rioting (thankfully everyone knew better), Lethal tried to fight back only to be knocked down again by Taylor, and Cabana tried and failed to make the save. The Elite had long left the ring by the way, so the only fallen body being celebrated over by the heels was the ROH World Champion. Jay Briscoe more or less closed this segment by saying we can all lick his balls.

This taping pretty much lasted five and a half hours, but until the last two matches or so, it went by pretty smooth for me. Helped to have a friend (and a friend of his) nearby, far more comforting and less monotonous than sitting next to a stranger. Some good matches to look forward to from these tapings, and a number of seeds planted for next year, from new feuds, to a new faction, to lots of Matt Taven.

[pwchronicle]

Chikara “Let’s Get Invisible“ - Live Show Report December 8th in Philadelphia, PA

This was Chikara’s final show of 2018 and the finale of their 19th season. A loaded card in front of a capacity crowd.

1. Juan Francisco de Coronado beat Green Ant via submission with the Coronado Clutch. I thought this was a good way to open the show with Wrestle Factory favorite Green Ant, and a nice opener featuring a lot of mat exchanges. Juan worked over Green Ant’s leg, and he caught him in the Clutch when Green Ant came at him flying off the top rope.

2. Cornelius Crummels & Sonny Defarge won a Four Corner Tag Team Eliminator over Los Ice Creams (Ice Cream Jr. y El Hijo del Ice Cream), F.I.S.T. (Icarus & Tony Deppen), and Jeremy Leary & Blanche Babish. Deppen tried to come on to Babish at the start to no avail, offering her a night out at Olive Garden, her treat. Icarus wrestled the entire match wearing his jacket, so he didn’t show off his back tattoo, but he was wrestling in trunks and showing off his leg tattoo, which Leary mocked. Los Ice Creams were the first team out fairly quickly, when Crummels rolled up Hijo as they attempted to suplex Defarge. A new trick in the repertoire of Crummels and Defarge was Defarge ramming his foot into Babish’s face after Crummels sneezed on it (it’s Flu Season you jerks!). The two rudo teams worked together against Leary and Babish, but they eventually came at odds over who could pick up the pinfalls, allowing a hot tag to Babish, who cleaned house on all four of them briefly. Babish soon after made Deppen tap out to the Soda Jerk, eliminating him and Icarus. Crummels and Defarge scored the third and final fall after hitting Leary with the old high low, clipping his knee and hitting him with a lariat. These two falls led to Crummels and Defarge accruing three points for a shot at Los Campeonatos de Parejas next year. Fun character exchanges, fun action.

3. BLANK (w/ Still Life with Apricots and Pears) beat Penelope Ford with a forearm to the back of the head. Still Life came out with a camera. Decent match between these two, with Ford fighting from behind and hitting some cartwheel-based offense and a dive to the floor to get the crowd going. She may have done one backflip too many though, as BLANK caught her with the forearm as she rebounded off the ropes to pick up the win. Ford acted like she was knocked out, and after the match BLANK positioned her into a pose while laid out on the mat. BLANK called this pose “A Lilly in Place of a Rose” and had Still Life take pictures of her. Shades of “The Killing Joke” if you ask me.

4. Lucas Calhoun & Missile Assault Man & Axel Ford beat Professor Nicodemus and the Proteus Wheel (Volgar & Frantik & Callux the Castigator) in a 4-on-3 Philadelphia Street Fight when Missile Assault Man pinned Nicodemus after an inverted DDT. This was the first time I can recall Chikara having a street fight on one of their events, and it was suitably chaotic. The Proteus Wheel brought a trash can full of plunder. Calhoun (wearing a shirt reading “Punch More Nazis”) and his partners were able to send the Proteus Wheel to the floor early and isolate Nicodemus, but he sprayed something in their faces to get away, opting to stay on the floor throughout most of the match. Callux hit Ford (no relation to Penelope) with the trash can lid and a cookie sheet. Calhoun retrieved a bunch of steel chairs from under the ring and walloped his opponents with them. Ford, continuing to have a tough time, received a double chokeslam onto a dusty ironing board. Calhoun was able to prevent Missile Assault Man (sporting a bandaged ankle from “Don’t Go To Sleep!”) getting pillmanized again, leading to Missile Assault Man pillmanizing Frantik’s ankle. He then put Frantik in a figure four, but Volgar broke it up with a splash. Volgar also slammed Calhoun off the top rope onto a bunch of chairs Calhoun had set up earlier. Missile Assault Man hit Volgar with a fishing rod and buried him under chairs, Nicodemus hit him with a bat to no avail, and Nicodemus was once again cornered before his experiments saved him. Callux hit a Boss Man Slam onto a trash can for a nearfall. Eventually, the Proteus Wheel was wiped out on the floor after Calhoun clocked Volgar with his own chain and sent him off the top, allowing for the rather anticlimactic comeuppance for Nicodemus. The fans were into the action and outcome. Other trash can plunder, such as a golf club and a hockey stick, were not used.

- First of two intermissions held.

5. Hallowicked beat Boomer Hatfield after a third snapmare off the top. A short match where Hallowicked was largely dominant, suplexing the younger Hatfield around the ring. Boomer was able to leave the ring on his own afterward.

6. The Creatures of the Deep (Oceanea, Merlok, Hermit Crab, and Cajun Crawdad) beat Fire Ant, Thief Ant, Razerhawk, and Danjerhawk after Oceanea and Merlok hit the Tidal Wave on Razerhawk. They attempted the Tidal Wave the first time on Danjerhawk, but his partners pulled him to the floor, so Oceanea dived onto them off of Merlok’s back. A second attempt, onto Razerhawk, was countered into powerbomb on Merlok by the two ants. Razerhawk scored a nearfall on Oceanea with a Swanton afterward. A lot of fun action throughtout, including Crab hitting Thief Ant with a Spanish Fly off the middle rope, Crab attempting his crab walk on the ropes but taking a hurricanrana off the ropes by Razerhawk, and Razerhawk immediately afterward taking a Muscle Buster by Merlok. Fire Ant caught Merlok with his running kick, but almost fell prey to Oceanea’s fish hook. On the last event November 24th (the Cibernetico show that I was unable to recap here), Oceanea set a message to Crab and Crawdad that there would be consequences if they fail her again, so the two loyal servants/jesters of this court of creatures pulled their weight, preventing any interference from the third attempt at the Tidal Wave being successful. The Creatures of the Deep all celebrated over Razerhawk’s crushed body as Danjerhawk tended to him.

7. Solo Darling beat Travis Huckabee via submission to what looked like the Million Dollar Dream. A strong grudge match and maybe my favorite on the card. Darling wanted to get at Huckabee immediately upon her music hitting. She got him into a Regal Stretch right away. After lots of back and forth, including lots of kicks from Darling, it went to the floor, where Huckabee caught Darling in the Stretch Muffler and threw her into a ring post. Making their way back inside, Huckabee caught her with a piledriver, which he used to take put Darling on the shelf at “La Lotería Letal,” but here it was only good enough for a nearfall. He then hit a second piledriver. He then attempted a cloverleaf (perhaps Darling’s own Sharp Stinger), but Darling maneuvered to the ropes and was sent to the outside. Huckabee pulled the mats up off the floor to attempt a third piledriver on the unprotected floor, but Darling gave him a back body drop instead. Back in the ring, Huckabee suckered Darling into rollup nearfall after a fake apology and doing their old handshake with her, but Darling recouped and scored the satisfying submission win.

8. Princess KimberLee & The Whisper beat The Regime (Sloan Caprice & Rick Roland) to win Los Campeonatos de Parejas 2 falls to 1. Carrying on with the story from when they won the tournament at “La Lotería Letal,” Lee wanted nothing to do with Whisper during this match. They never made actual tags, just lucha style tags by exiting the ring, such as when Lee entered the match for the first time after Whisper took a ton of punishment. Caprice pinned Lee with a rollup to score the first fall. Lee was at a disadvantage afterward, but she didn’t tag out when she had the opportunity to. She was able to even up the falls when Roland missed hitting her with a sexton off the top. Lee also weakened Caprice’s knee with a targeted kick, and Caprice sold it for the rest of the match. Whisper got back in when Lee went to the floor and scored a number of nearfalls. Caprice caught Whisper with a rollup, but Lee instinctually came in and broke it up. Whisper hugged her afterward, causing Lee to hit him with a German suplex. However, Whisper was suplexed onto Caprice and pinned him, resulting in new champions. Lee was dumbfounded by this and left the ring, leaving Whisper alone with the titles. The team that fans in the crowd here referred to as both “WhisperLee” and “Silent Kingdom” are now Tag Team Champions Who Can’t Get Along.

- Second intermission before the main event.

9. Dasher Hatfield beat Ophidian to retain the Chikara Grand Championship with a rolling elbow. This was Ophidian’s second shot at the title this year, earning his third point towards this title match on November 24th with a win over Tony Deppen. When ref Bryce Remsburg asked Ophidian before the match if he was ready to do this, Ophidian responded with, “I’m ready to actually earn this,” a shot at interim champion Hatfield. Good, competitive main event, with Ophidian getting a lot of offense in and getting increasingly aggressive in his attempt to win the title. He got a lot of momentum, including a near submission from the Cobra Clutch Death Grip, and a flipping piledriver right before Hatfield got the win.

- With Ophidian still laid out in the ring after the finish, Boomer came out to celebrate with his dad, as did the returning Mr. Touchdown. He said he was proud of Hatfield for what has now been four defenses of the Grand Championship on his behalf, and then revealed that as of December 10 (Monday), he will be cleared to return to the ring. Remsburg congratulated Touchdown and handed him back the Grand Championship, but Hatfield held onto it… and laid out Touchdown with an elbow! He acted like this was still his title. Boomer was at a loss and went to tend to Touchdown, but Dasher yelled at him to come to the back with him.

This troubling incident put a bow on a very fun season finale to Chikara’s year, which has been almost exclusive to the Wrestle Factory in Philadelphia. They will be back to touring more next year, with the earliest returns to the Wrestle Factory being March 16 for both stages of Young Lions Cup XV, and May 11 for The Infinite Gauntlet.

[pwchronicle]

Chikara “Don’t Go To Sleep!” Live Show Report November 10th in Philadelphia, PA

Chikara heated up a cold November day at the Wrestle Factory. Though it relied entirely on its core roster (and still left off some names), this one likely got increased attention due to being shown on two live streaming services.

1. Callux the Castigator beat Fire Ant with power slam out of a bear hug. Fast, spirited opener. Callux was nearly declared the winner by forfeit, as Preston Blathers announced that Fire Ant had not arrived yet, but before it could be made official, Fire Ant came running in with his bag to get the match started. Fire Ant was able to fight from behind with his signature moves, as well as a vertical suplex on Callux on his third attempt at it, but Callux used his power to his advantage.


- Afterward, Callux got a hold of Fire Ant’s bag left on the floor at ringside. He dumped its contents onto Fire Ant, including his King of Trios medal. Callux took the medal and put it around his neck, then dropped a big elbow on Fire Ant. Green Ant and Thief Ant ran in for the save, but Callux fought off both of them and laid them out with two sidewalk slams at once. He walked to the back still wearing Fire Ant’s medal, so this big scary dude is a thief as well!

2. Hermit Crab & Cajun Crawdad won a Four Corner Tag Team Eliminator over The Colony (Green Ant & Thief Ant), The Nouveau Aesthetic (BLANK & Still Life With Apricots and Pears, and Jeremy Leary & Blanche Babish. This one got off to a really hot start and maintained its momentum quite well. Green Ant and Thief Ant made their entrance first after just being beat up by Callux. Crab and Crawdad put their normal entrance aside and rushed out to beat up The Colony. Leary and Babish ran out next to fight off the crustaceans, while the Nouveau Aesthetic came out and just waited on the entrance ramp, biding their time. The bell rang when it finally came down to just two wrestlers in the ring, and the Colony was the first team eliminated when BLANK slipped into the ring and cradled Thief Ant. The Nouveau Aesthetic worked alongside Crab and Crawdad to beat down Leary. Eventually, the Aesthetic was eliminated after Babish caught Still Life in a crucifix pin. Crab and Crawdad then won the match, and only one point towards a title shot, after hitting Leary with a back body drop slam. Fun to watch.

3. Hype Rockwell beat The Proletariat Boar of Moldova with a sit-out powerbomb off the top rope. Rockwell acted disinterested in the match at first and avoided Boar, only to get into the action and call Boar a loser as he worked him over. Boar fought back, and he hit his gore for a nearfall. Rockwell put down Boar with a shoulder breaker and went to the top, but Boar got up and met him up there, which led to the Super Bomb finish. Pretty solid hoss battle, with the crowd (another big one, with late arrivals during the first match) getting on Rockwell’s case.

- Brief intermission. Whoever is making the cookies named after Chikara wrestlers sold at intermission continues to do a good job on them, while continuing to add to Chikara’s independent spirit.


4. Lucas Calhoun beat Missile Assault Man via disqualification. The story of Missile Assault Man upon his return last month has only gotten stranger.

Before the match started, Lucas (holding a mic that didn’t work but that he thankfully didn’t need) talked to Missile Assault Man about how he knew why this match had to happen, remarking how the only way out is through. They fought hard, with M.A.M. stomping on Calhoun’s limbs (as he used to do as Missile Assault Ant). Eventually, Calhoun got M.A.M. in a sleeper, but then Volgar and Frantik ran in and beat attacked him from behind to cut this match short. Professor Nicodemus came out, and with Calhoun out from a chain punch, the professor and his two subjects focused on M.A.M. Nicodemus yelled at him as Volgar and Frantik Pillmanized his ankle with chairs. After Nicodemus and company left, Missile Assault Man was able to get up, Calhoun woke up, and M.A.M. slapped Calhoun and told him that they were going to get Nicodemus together. More of an angle to further a larger story here.

5. Hallowicked, Travis Huckabee, Cornelius Crummels, and Sonny Defarge beat Solo Darling, Razerhawk, Danjerhawk, and Boomer Hatfield when Huckabee had Darling passed out while in a Texas Cloverleaf. Slight lineup change here, as Tony Deppen was originally billed for this match, but Defarge took his place in the end I thought this was even stronger story work, contained within a very fun Atomico. A lot of good work from everyone involved, especially a one-on-one exchange between the veteran Hallowicked and rookie Boomer. Huckabee and Darling was ongoing story that continued boiling underneath, with Darling taking issue with Huckabee’s interference. Darling made a hot tag into the match that picked up the pace of the match following periods of her partners getting worked over. It eventually got down to Darling and Huckabee in the ring alone. Attempts by Huckabee’s partners to stop her were stopped by Darling’s partners, except Boomer’s attempt to stop Hallowicked saw him tossed to the floor and allowing Hallowicked to hit Never Wake Up on Darling. Huckabee’s partners then stopped Darling’s partners as Huckabee prepared to put the Cloverleaf on an already-out Darling. Darling’s partners helped her get to her feet afterward.

- Joey Janela, a guest commentator at Chikara today, came out to the ring on crutches to speak with the crowd. He promoted the doubleheader two weeks from now, with Chikara presenting “Cibernetico: 7 Man Army” in the afternoon, and Beyond Wrestling coming back to present “TFT: Night One” in the evening. The Cibernetico match will see a Chikara team take on a Beyond team, and Janela said he would be fighting for Beyond if he wasn’t injured. Fans booed this, but Janela diffused it by stating how he’s only had two matches in Chikara whereas he’s wrestled for Beyond every month. He announced Beyond’s team: Brian Milonas, Cam Zagami, Chris Dickinson, Ryan Galeone, the Beaver Boys (Alex Reynolds & John Silver), and yes, Nick Gage. Janela faltered a little in promoting these wrestlers when he let out “God Damn” in this PG environment, but he was instantly apologetic, pressed forward, and was very careful with his language when he revealed Gage would be coming to Chikara. 


6. Ophidian beat Rory Gulak via submission with the Cobra Clutch Death Grip. A strong match as I expected it to be, with lots of sharp wrestling and counter-wrestling. Ophidian introduced some aerial moves into the match, but his attempt at a meteora late in the match was countered into a Boston Crab by Gulak for the submission attempt. Gulak also kicked out of the bridging backslide that has given Ophidian a lot of wins previously. Ophidian came flying at him again to get the body scissors on Gulak, leading to the full submission and tap out from Gulak.

- Another brief intermission.

7. Dasher Hatfield beat The Whisper to retain the Chikara Grand Championship with a deadlift superplex. Very good main event with a lot of athleticism from the Whisper in his second straight main event. I didn’t entirely get the impression that Whisper would win the title here, especially given his impending shot at Los Campeonatos de Parejas next month, but he certainly held his own with the veteran Mr. Hatfield.

A lot of fun stuff on this show overall, with a good flow to everything. May the momentum of this level of quality continue on to both shows happening in the Wrestle Factory in two weeks.