TJPW Live In Philly
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Dave Prazak, Veda Scott

This is Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling, a women’s promotion based in Japan. As you might be able to guess, we’re in Philadelphia over Wrestlemania Weekend and that means we’re probably in for a bunch of guest stars. I remember liking the show from last year’s Wrestlemania Weekend so hopefully they can do it again here. Let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow TJPW whatsoever so I apologize in advance for missing any plot or character points.

As is customary for the promotion, some of the wrestlers come out to welcome us to the show and do a song and dance routine. With that over, they seem to say a promotion catchphrase and we’re ready to go.

Arisu Endo/Suzume vs. Yuki Aino/Zara Zakher

Endo and Suzume’s Princess Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line. Suzume and Aino start things off with Suzume’s dropkick not working. A shoulder drops Aino and it’s off to Endo vs. Zara. Aino hits the ropes and charges right into a pop up right hand. Everything breaks down and Endo/Suzume take them both down for stereo basement dropkicks. We settle down to Aino taking over on Endo and dropping a backsplash for two.

Zara comes back in for her own basement dropkick but Endo is up with a regular version for the double knockdown. Suzume comes in to pick up the pace…for all of five seconds before Zara drops her with a clothesline. A rope walk bulldog puts Zara down though and it’s Endo coming back in for a knee to the back of Aino’s head.

Everything breaks down and Endo knocks Aino to the floor, only to have Aino grab an apron suplex to bring them back inside. They switch off again and Suzume grabs a sleeper on Zara, followed by a facebuster. Zara is fine enough to pull her out of the air for a toss, followed by a spinebuster to give Aino two.

Suzume is back up with a high crossbody for two of her own before locking hands with Aino for a slugout. Endo is back in but gets caught with a reverse DDT to send her right back to the floor. Zara loads up what looks to be a fisherman’s buster but Suzume reverses into a rollup for the pin (on the third attempt) at 11:19.

Rating: B-. Starting a show with a tag match is often a good idea as you can get something fast paced like this to fire the crowd up early. I’m not sure why the champs weren’t defending if they were going to win anyway but that’s a minor issue at best. What matters is getting the show off to a good start and they managed to do so rather well.

Hyper Misao vs. Billie Starkz

Starkz has Athena with her and Misao looks like a superhero. She then says she is a superhero, so at least I can recognize a costume. Misao offers her a gift (looks like a stuffed animal) but then hammers Starkz down with it to start fast. They trade rollups for two each until Misao elbows her in the face. Misao ties up the limbs and swings her head first into the bottom buckle in the corner a few times.

Back up and Starkz grabs a German suplex for two but a big kick to the head is cut off. Misao hits a running knee to the back and then plants her on the apron for two. We get a bit wacky as Misao grabs the mascot head that Starkz wore to the ring, which allows Athena to hit her with the stuffed animal that Misao brought. Kind of serves her right for cheating.

The distraction lets Starkz hit a fireman’s carry backbreaker into a Swanton for two, giving us the surprised kickout face. A Nightmare On Helm Street gives Misao two, with Athena putting the foot on the ropes. Misao sprays….something in Athena’s eyes, allowing Starkz to hit a suicide dive. Another Swanton gives Starkz the pin at 6:07.

Rating: C+. Misao was someone who stood out to me the last time I watched this company and she did so again here. Having her as a superhero who cheats is something that worked well enough and made her a bit more interesting, which is the point of such an over the top gimmick. Starkz and Athena are the far bigger names though and it makes sense for them to win, even in a short match like this.

Viva Van/Yuki Kamifuki vs. Trish Adora/Raku

Adora is apparently a substitute. Raku is one of the women who sang to start the show and is carrying a pillow. Van and Raku start things off with Van hitting a clothesline and posing a bit. Raku instead hits her with a pillow, which would seem to be some kind of rule violation. Van and Yuki are put on the pillow for a quiet two but Van gets up and throws the pillow into the crowd.

We settle down to Yuki sending Raku throat first into the rope, allowing Van to grab a Tarantula. A running facebuster gets Raku out of trouble though and Adora comes in to clean house. Van and Adora trade the big forearms until Van grabs a hurricanrana. A running boot in the corner gives Yuki two but Adora plants her with a Samoan drop. Yuki is back with an Octopus, which Adora breaks up and hits a Rough Ryder. Raku comes back in and is quickly kicked in the face but manages to grab a guillotine. Everything breaks down again and Yuki hits a Fameasser to pin Raku at 8:55.

Rating: B-. They kept this one energetic in the not overly long run time and that made for a nice sprint. Yuki and Van seem to be a regular team who work well together while Adora and Raku made for a nice makeshift team. Adora continues to feel like she could be a big deal somewhere but that isn’t going to happen when she keeps losing over and over, even on a show like this.

Mizuki/Vertvixen vs. Aja Kong/Pom Harajuku

Kong gets the big legend entrance and reception, which is more impressive since she’s a replacement for Max the Impaler. Pom and Vertvixen start things off with the latter grabbing a headlock. That’s broken up and we have a standoff before it’s off to Mizuki vs. the much larger Kong. Mizuki bites the arm to limited success so Kong misses an elbow, allowing Mizuki to hit a basement dropkick.

Back up and Kong picks up Pom to throw her at Mizuki for two, which I guess is the same as a tag. Vertvixen slugs away in the corner and the villains (I think?) stomp Pom down. Mizuki steals Pom’s shoe and throws it into the crowd, leaving Vertvixen to hit a hard forearm in the corner. The one shoed Pom manages an anklescissors for a breather and the tag brings Kong back in to wreck the mortals.

The spinning backfist misses and Vertvixen gets in a kick to the head, only for Kong to knock Mizuki out of the air. Pom comes back in for a wristdrag out of the corner but misses a backsplash. Kong seems rather gassed on the apron as Mizuki hits a running shot to Pom’s back, only to miss a top rope double stomp. Mizuki is fine enough to put pom over the middle rope and now the double stomp connects. Kong makes the save but gets Stunnered by Vertvixen. That leaves Mizuki to hit Pom with a shoe, setting up the Beauty Special (kind of a tabletop suplex) for the pin at 10:31.

Rating: C+. The action was fast paced, but this felt more like a way to have Kong in a match, which is more important than anything else. The fans seemed way into what they were seeing (as has been the case all show) and it was cool to see a legend in the ring. Odd name aside, Vertvixen feels like someone who could be a star somewhere, but she has been treated as such a jobber whenever she is in AEW or ROH that she has an even longer way to go.

Shoko Nakajima vs. Rhio

Nakajima stands about 4’10 and is billed as a Big Kaiju (a Japanese monster). The much larger Rhino throws her down to start but Nakajima takes over on the arm. That’s reversed into a headscissors on the mat but Nakajima flips over into a headlock in a nice display. Nakajima flips away from her and hits a dropkick, only to get planted with a high angle spinebuster.

A full nelson goes on to keep Nakajima in trouble and a backbreaker makes it even worse. Rhio goes up but gets caught with a super hurricanrana, allowing Nakajima to hit a slingshot hilo for two. Nakajima sends her outside for the suicide dive, followed by a running flip dive to make it worse. They trade forearms on the floor and then keep it going inside, where Rhio drops her with a headbutt.

A top rope superplex plants Nakajima hard but she’s able to block the package piledriver. Nakajima strikes away until a superkick into a torture rack slam gives Rhio two. Rhio goes up but gets kicked down, setting up a 619 despite being back on her feet. A double arm DDT sets up a top rope backsplash to give Nakajima the pin at 13:24.

Rating: B. This was straight out of the little vs. big playbook and believe it or not, the story still works. Nakajima is a ball of energy who never stops moving and throws everything she has at you to stay in there. Rhio is someone who feels like she could be a star somewhere on the bigger stage after a bit more seasoning, but the talent is pretty clearly there.

Maki Itoh/Miyu Yamashita vs. Miu Watanabe/Rika Tatsumi

Itoh gets a heck of a reception during her entrance. Yamashita and Watanabe start things off and apparently they have been feuding over the company’s top singles title. Yamashita powers her back up against the ropes to start but has to avoids some kicks for a standoff. Tatsumi and Itoh come in for an exchange of headlocks takeovers and a cute-off. Itoh knocks her down and loads up her falling headbutt, only to have Yamashita stand her in place (with Itoh standing there like a board) and roll Tatsumi into place so the headbutt can connect.

Itoh’s right hands in the corner are broken up and Tatsumi takes it to the floor as everything breaks down. Tatsumi chokes Yamashita with a belt as we have to go split screen, much to the surprise of commentary. They tease going back to ringside but head over to the bar, with commentary saying this is a great way to showcase the building if you can’t be here in person. Watanabe buys some beers (and leaves a tip) but Yamashita and Itoh steal the drinks and raise a quick toast.

That’s broken up and the drinks are spilled, much to a variety of chagrins. Back in and Watanabe elbows Itoh down for two before Tatsumi starts in on the knee. The Figure Four has Itoh in trouble but she makes the rope rather quickly. Watanabe tries a reverse Alabama Slam to send Tatsumi onto Itoh but only hits mat. That’s enough to bring Yamashita back in but Watanabe powers her into the corner.

A powerslam puts Yamashita down again and the giant swinging into Tatsumi’s dropkick gets two. Yamashita blocks a Twist of Fate and kicks Tatsumi in the head before Itoh low bridges her to the floor. Back in and Yamashita hits a delayed AA with Tatsumi having to make a save. Everyone is knocked down until Tatsumi and Yamashita strike it out. Itoh is back in and a top rope Codebreaker into a German suplex (not the smoothest of transitions) knocks Tatsumi silly. A Skull Kick gives Yamashita the pin at 19:07.

Rating: B. This felt like a mixture of a fun brawl and a regular match which made for a good back and forth fight. The fans were WAY into Itoh here and it makes sense given her incredible charisma. I had a good time with this and it wound up being probably the best thing on a solid show.

Overall Rating: B+. Rather solid effort up and down here, with the worst match being completely decent. Shows like this are meant to be something of a sampler for fans and they got a good result here, with the whole thing working. I’ve liked everything I’ve seen from this promotion before and while some of it might not be for everyone, there should be something worth seeing here if you’re looking for something different.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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DDT Goes Philadelphia
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Dave Prazak, Lenny Leonard

So last year, DDT put on a show that had good moments, but it also had more than a few things that made me want to throw my TV through the wall. I’ve seen enough DDT to know that it can be better though so I’ll give it another chance here. There is always the chance that is a terrible idea but let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow DDT whatsoever so I apologize in advance for missing any storyline or character development bits.

CCK vs. Bryan Keith/Shota

CCK is Chris Brookes/Kid Lykos and they jump Keith and Shota to start fast. Lykos even puts on Keith’s….whatever you call that thing he wears to the ring, earning himself a beating from Keith. A slam puts Lykos down so Shota can add a slingshot hilo. Lykos is right back with a Codebreaker into a backsplash from the rather tall Brookes, followed by a legdrop for two.

Brookes adds some mocking kicks to the face, which fire Shota up enough to hit a quick Backstabber for a breather. It’s back to Keith to pick up the pace and clean house, including an exploder suplex for two on Brookes. We get the “here, let me stand still so you can chop me” exchange until Keith hits a running knee to the head for the double knockdown. Lykos and Shota come in to pick up the pace, with Lykos’ sunset flip getting two.

Shota calls for a brainbuster but gets flipped into a dropkick from Brookes instead. Keith plants Lykos so Shota adds a frog splash, followed by a suicide dive for the big crash. Another frog splash only hits knees back inside though and Brookes dropkicks Shota into the corner. The brainbuster gives Lykos the pin at 8:27.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of hot opener that you want on any show and it worked well here. CCK is a team I’ve seen before and they work well together, while Keith has enough star power from being a regular in AEW. There didn’t seem to be any kind of a backstory here and sometimes that works just fine, as they had a fast paced match here and kept the crowd energized.

Andrew Everett vs. Tetsuya Endo

Everett is the guy who thinks he’s the Giant from WCW and it still doesn’t really work. Endo on the other hand has done quite a few good things around here and I remember him being pretty solid. They lock up to start and Endo hits a quick dropkick into a slam to take over. Endo’s version of the People’s Elbow misses (apparently a tradition) and Everett missile dropkicks Endo outside.

The Asai moonsault hits Endo as well, with commentary saying other giants can’t do that. Back in and the chokeslam gives Everett two (with a bit of a nasty landing), only to miss a rope walk 630. Endo sends him outside for a Sasuke Special but Everett is right back with a chokebomb for two of his own.

The shooting star press misses for Everett and Endo’s spinning torture rack bomb gets two. It’s Everett’s turn now as he snaps off a poisonrana, only to have another chokeslam countered into a Canadian Destroyer (that was nifty) for another double down. They both head up top, where Everett tries the chokeslam but gets reversed into a super torture rack bomb. The Burning (shooting) Star Press finishes for Endo at 11:32.

Rating: B-. These two had a rather nice back and forth match, with the only downside being the whole Giant thing, which isn’t funny and is more of a distraction than anything else. Endo continues to be someone who does well every time I see him out there and this was no exception. That rack bomb would have been enough to finish but adding in a gorgeous shooting star isn’t a bad thing.

Here is Dan The Dad (a caricature of the perfect neighborhood dad) to interrupt despite not being invited. He was told there was no room for him on any of the Collective shows so now he’s issued a challenge to the toughest star in all of Japan. And we have an answer.

Chiitan vs. Dan The Dad

Chiitan is a yellow mascot who is apparently an otter (who wears a hat). Dan starts with his coffee cup in hand but Chiitan slaps it away. A bunch of right hands don’t hurt Chiitan because it’s a big helmet, meaning Chiitan can hit some sumo strikes. Chiitan’s slingshot hilo connects as commentary says don’t worry because they don’t know what is going on either.

Old School staggers Dan but he’s back with a spinebuster into an elbow for two. Dan throws in some chairs and a door, the latter of which has no effect. Another shot puts Chiitan down and the door is bridged between the chairs. Chiitan catches him up top though and a superplex through the table finishes Dan at 5:29.

Rating: C. I think we’re going to call this “not for me” as I have never heard of Chiitan and the match was a bit less than serious. The fans were way into it and Dan is a goofy enough guy that beating him in a match like this won’t matter. It wasn’t serious and it was fast so we’ll call it harmless enough.

Post match Chris Brookes, who HATES mascots, comes in to destroy Chiitan, with an assist from Dan. Cue Yoshihiko (a blow up doll) to crossbody both of them for the save. While Yoshihiko is here, we might as well have our scheduled match.

Yoshihiko vs. Kazuki Hirata

They fight over a lockup to start with Hirata taking it to the mat, only to have Yoshihiko come back with a headlock. That’s broken up and Hirata hammers away in the corner but gets caught in a cross armbreaker over the top. A Fujiwara armbar sends Hiarata to the rope for the break, allowing Hirata to grab a brainbuster.

Hirata hits a rather hard clothesline in the corner and a top rope superbomb gets two. Another superbomb is countered into a super hurricanrana for two so Yoshihiko goes back to the Fujiwara. That’s broken up as well so Yoshihiko rolls some German suplexes for another near fall. A very spinning headscissors into a hurricanrana gives Yoshihiko the pin at 5:31.

Rating: C+. Again, I’m not sure what to make of something like this, though Hirata does deserve points for wrestling himself with a prop out there. Yoshihiko is the definition of a thing that pretty much only works for the right audience and that was the case with these people. It wasn’t a match, but it was a rather impressive performance.

Universal Title: Mao vs. Billie Starkz

Mao is defending and this is No Rules. Starkz offers a handshake and gets flipped off instead, as tends to be Mao’s custom. A quick takedown gives Starkz two and she…puts Mao’s hands in his pockets for an odd counter. That’s fine with Mao, who does an Orange Cassidy impression with a dropkick into a nip up despite his hands in his pockets. The hands (with the middle fingers extended) come back out and he loads up a hanging DDT, only to flip off the crowd as he lets Starkz drop instead.

Starkz snaps off a German suplex but gets kicked in the head. A pop up Stunner doesn’t work for Mao as Starkz hits a fireman’s carry backbreaker onto the knee for the double down. They both grab chairs and have a duel, with Starkz cracking hers over Mao’s back. Mao is right back with a kick to the face and a Michinoku Driver onto the chairs gets two. Starkz fights out of something on the top and hits a kind of Black Out onto the chairs for two of her own.

The stacking of chairs takes too long and Mao hits a super Michinoku Driver onto the chairs for another near fall. A frustrated Mao loads up a door in the corner and lawn darts Starkz through it (GEEZ that looked scary) for one, giving us the stunned reaction. Another door is bridged between some chairs but Starkz is up to flip Mao off for a change. Mao’s 450 only hits door so he grabs a German suplex but all four shoulders are down for the double pin at 10:54.

Rating: C+. Mao seems like someone who is holding the title so that someone can beat him to take it in a big moment. That’s not the worst way to go but Starkz wasn’t the one to take it from him here. I guess they were going for a good/innocent vs. evil here and it worked well enough, but the match was hardly memorable.

Since there is no winner….we do Rock, Paper, Scissors (seriously) with Mao retaining (scissors to paper).

Damnation T.A. vs. Nick Wayne/Takeshi Masada

That would be Daisuke Sasaki/Kanon, who get jumped before the bell as the fight starts fast. The fight heads outside with Sasaki taking over on Masada, allowing Kanon to come in with a backbreaker. Some knees to the back get two and a swinging neckbreaker gives Kanon the same. Masada gets up with a dropkick and Wayne comes in to pick up the pace. An Asai moonsault takes out T.A. and a fisherman’s suplex gets two on Sasaki back inside.

Sasaki is back with a superkick into a quickly broken crossface but Masada is sent outside. Wayne slips out of a powerbomb attempt and it’s Masada coming back in with a brainbuster for two. Everything breaks down and a double Wayne’s World is broken up. An accidental (allegedly) low blow puts Wayne on the floor and an over the shoulder powerbomb/top rope elbow combination gives Kanon the pin on Masada at 7:07.

Rating: C. This was a rather basic tag match and that is not the worst thing. What matters is that an established team (they have a name so they must be a regular team) gets a win with Wayne’s AEW connections offering some star power. They didn’t have much time to get very far here but what they got in wasn’t bad.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Shunma Katsumata

Takeshita is a bit popular. Shunma jumps him on the floor to start and hits a running dropkick in the corner as the bell rings. They head outside with Shunma hitting a DDT on the floor but some forearms just wake Takeshita up. Back in and Shunma scores with a top rope Meteora into a double stomp but Takeshita casually dodges a dropkick. Some kicks to the head have Shunma on the floor and there’s a brainbuster to drop him on his head.

Back in again and Shunma dives into a powerbomb, followed by another brainbuster for two. The one armed camel clutch goes on but Shunma fights out and slugs away. More forearms just annoy Takeshita again so he hits one heck of a forearm to drop Shunma hard. Shunma’s clotheslines finally put Takeshita down for two but a top rope splash only hits raised knees. An elbow to the face and the running knee give Takeshita two each so he grabs a Liontamer for the win at 9:42.

Rating: B-. They got a bit more time here and it was cool to see Takeshita shrug off so much offense and then end Shunma without much trouble. This was more about Takeshita getting a big showcase and he felt like a huge star out there. Shunma seems to have a history with Takeshita and tried to do everything he could, but this was Takeshita’s match and it went well.

Yuki Ueno vs. Mike Bailey

Ueno’s KO-D Openweight Title isn’t on the line for some reason. We get a rather intense handshake to start before Bailey hits a brainbuster for two less than ten seconds in. They slug it out with Bailey being knocked to the floor but managing to kick a dive out of the air. Another strike off on the floor sees Bailey kick the post by mistake and a running knee puts him down again. Bailey’s foot is kind enough to kick Ueno off the apron and hit a triangle moonsault to the floor.

Back in and Bailey hits a top rope double stomp to the back of the head for two, followed by some kicks to the chest for two each. Bailey grabs a kneebar, with Ueno making the rope rather quickly. Ueno shrugs off some shots to the head and grabs a brainbuster for two. Bailey is knocked outside for a corkscrew dive, followed by a running crotch attack to the back of the head back inside. Naturally Bailey shrugs it off and kicks away, with a running shooting star press connecting for two.

Ueno grabs some German suplexes but Bailey keeps popping up with kicks to the face. They finally both collapse before coming back up to trade forearms. Ueno takes him to the apron for a German suplex and they crash to the floor with the hold not being broken. Bailey blocks another suplex and hits the moonsault knees.

Back in and Ueno snaps off a super hurricanrana for two but a springboard moonsault misses. Bailey kicks him in the head for two more but the tornado kick misses. Ueno gets kicked down again and Bailey hits the Ultimate Weapon for two. The poisonrana into a running knee gives Ueno two and another running knee gets one. A big dropkick sets up something like a DDT STO to give Ueno the pin at 18:53.

Rating: B. This one is going to depend on your tolerance for Bailey no selling most of the offense against him and throwing a bunch of kicks. Other than that, they had a hard hitting match and beat on each other until Bailey couldn’t get up after a kind of lame finisher. The match’s intensity made it work, though why was this not a title match? Does it make that much of a difference?

Overall Rating: B. I had a lot of fun with this one as they didn’t waste any time and were flying through a bunch of stuff. Nothing on here was bad and it made for a rather entertaining two hours. There was just enough of a mixture of good action with goofiness to make it work and this was one of the more enjoyable shows of the weekend. Maybe just go a bit longer, but what we got was quite effective.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Progress Chapter 166: Freedom Walks Again
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Jack Farmer

So this is the British Progress Wrestling promotion, which isn’t quite what it used to be but it’s still a big enough deal to warrant a Wrestlemania weekend spot. There are some familiar names around here but there will also likely be some guest stars, as tends to be the case over the weekend. Let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow Progress so I apologize in advance for any storylines or character points that I miss.

I was in attendance for this show, sitting in the fourth row with the entrance on my right.

Opening sequence, which doesn’t seem to be specific to this show.

Leon Slater vs. Cody Chhun vs. Simon Miller vs. Marcus Mathers vs. Gringo Loco vs. Lykos II vs. Tate Mayfairs

One fall to a finish. Hold on though as Mayfairs brags about his greatness on the way to the ring, saying that the fans only know what Dave Meltzer tells them about British wrestling. We get the usual “I’m awesome” speech, with the expected WHAT’s to make it even longer. Mayfairs gets inside and manages to drop everyone until Mathers (in old school Philadelphia Phillies gear) takes him down with a springboard high crossbody.

Loco counters Lykos’ running hurricanrana but Chhun is back in with a dropkick to put Lykos down. Slater clears the ring and hits a dive onto Chhun before Miller gets to clean house to quite the reaction. Back in and Mayfairs gets to clean house and pose again (he has a tendency to do that). Lykos gets sent outside but walks into a spear from Miller, who gets kicked down by Slater.

Loco catches Slater on top with a super Spanish Fly before side slamming Mayfairs for two. Lykos’ slingshot Code Red gets two and he slugs it out with Mathers. Slater is back in for the big running flip dive over the post before it’s time for a run of cutters. Slater’s Swanton 450 (that looks awesome) gets two but Lykos is back up with a running flip dive of his own. A brainbuster to Chhun gives Lykos the pin at 9:20.

Rating: B-. If you watch an independent show, especially around this weekend, you know you’re going to see something like this as it’s a guaranteed way to get a bunch of people into the ring at once. That doesn’t mean it’s high quality, but it’s often fun and that was the case again here. Lykos winning is fine, as it’s not like the result is what matters in something like this. Good, fast paced opener.

Atlas Title: Yoichi vs. Ricky Knight Jr.

Yoichi, on excursion from Pro Wrestling Noah, is challenging and this seems to be something like the Hoss Fight Title. They trade running shoulders to start with Yoichi getting the better of things until Knight sends him outside. There’s the big dive, followed by the rather hard chop back inside. A testicular claw and a belly to back suplex have Yoichi in trouble but he slams his way to freedom (which Walks Again).

Something like a Vader Bomb gets two but Knight Death Valley Drives him into the corner for the big crash. A hanging DDT gives Knight two but Yoichi slips out of a slam and nails a discus lariat for the double knockdown. They chop it out (Yoichi’s chest is red in a hurry) until Yoichi grabs a belly to belly for two. Knight is back with a Razor’s Edge toss for two, meaning frustration is setting in (fans: “YOU CAN’T BEAT HIM!/YES HE CAN!”).

Yoichi shoulders him down and goes up, only to dive into a cutter. A MuscleBuster gives Knight two and now he’s really stunned. Knight grabs an over the shoulder sitout Tombstone but Yoichi rolls into the corner in a smart move. Knight brainbusters him hard onto the apron and drops a 450 for two more and NOW the fans are into this as Yoichi keeps hanging on. Back up and Yoichi hits a hard clothesline for two but Knight staggers him with a superkick. Knight tries a springboard, only to dive into something like a high angle spinebuster to give Yoichi the pin and the title at 13:36.

Rating: B. This was pretty much as advertised, with two good sized guys beating the fire out of each other with one big shot after another. The fans got into the idea with Knight not being able to finish him, resulting in Knight trying one too many big moves. Yoichi could have done more to get the win in the end but they drew me into the story with people I don’t know so well done indeed.

Respect is shown post match.

Bussy vs. Session Moth Martina/Gene Munny

Bussy is Effy/Allie Katch, while Munny seems to think he’s a dog. That leaves you with Martina, who really, really, REALLY likes beer and comes out to Cascada’s Every Time We Touch. That would be a rather jazzy number (giving me high school flashbacks) and Bussy starts dancing in the ring as Martina takes a rather long time getting to the ring. Munny is not impressed as the dancing continues when Martina gets in as well.

Then Martina passes out, only to be woken up with a beer. Munny and Martina don’t get along before the bell and argue over who starts with Effy. They both try to get on the apron, then both try to get in, then do it again. Munny: “On the count of three, one of us is going to make an adult decision!” By the time he gets to two, Martina is in the ring and dancing with Effy as the bell rings.

Munny isn’t having that and pulls Martina to the corner for the tag before headlocking a still dancing Effy. We pause for Effy to drop to his knees in front of Mummy with quite the look on his face. Munny: “SIR! I am flattered! But I am a married man!” Instead Munny pulls the bandanna down over Effy’s face and tries a low blow but gets blocked (the HI-YAH didn’t help).

Instead, Munny settles for two off a Regal roll into a falling splash and it’s off to Martina. Munny and Martina agree to use “TAG TEAM MANEUVERS”….but can’t decide on which one to use, with one trying a Russian legsweep and the other a suplex. Effy tells them to focus so they hit him in the face but still can’t figure it out. Allie comes in and does a mirror bit with Martina before they both grab beers for a drink.

They toast and ask “DID WE JUST BECOME BEST FRIENDS???” before Munny tags himself in. That isn’t going to work for Allie….who decides that this is now Allie/Martina vs. Effy/Munny. Effy doesn’t approve of the attempted Bronco Buster and even calls her Allison, which is enough to set up a double hip attack to Munny as the original partnerships are back. A double hip thrust and a seated senton gets two on Munny before Effy sits on his arm to give us a focus.

Bussy takes over on said arm as Martina has strolled over to the bar. Martina is sitting with the fans and cheering as Effy slams Munny down. Munny manages to go up and dives onto both of them, much to Martina’s disturbance. Martina gets back on the apron for the tag, is rather fired up…and falls flat on her face as she gets in. Bussy stomps away again and Allie adds a running Cannonball for two. Martina is back with a Codebreaker into a tornado DDT and the tag brings Munny back in to take over.

There’s a double spear to drop Bussy but we pause for Munny to twist Effy’s nipples. Martina is back in and NOW the “TAG TEAM MANEUVERS” work far better, with the double Russian legsweep setting up Martina’s Bronco Buster on Effy. Munny goes coast to coast for a low headbutt to Effy in the corner but walks into an accidental middle rope Codebreaker from Martina. Effy hits a Rough Ryder on Martina and a top rope Hart Attack (with another Rough Ryder) finishes Munny at 11:34.

Rating: B. As you might have guessed, this absolutely was not about the quality, but rather the pure entertainment value. In short, this match was FUN with Munny and Marina being hilarious together and Bussy more than holding up their end. They weren’t trying to do anything remotely serious here and it wound up being one of the most entertaining matches I’ve ever seen in person. Heck of a fun match here.

Danhausen makes a random cameo to celebrate with Bussy.

Spike Trivet vs. Luke Jacobs

Trivet (pronounced Trivay) is a former World Champion and was the top heel for a long time. Jacobs on the other hand is just a straight powerhouse. Trivet takes him up against the ropes to start and hits a headbutt, only to be dropped with a heck of a running shoulder. They trade chops in the corner until Jacobs is low bridged to the apron and Codebreakered to the floor.

Back in and Trivet starts in on the hand/arm but Jacobs fights up and hits a Rock Bottom out of the corner for a breather. A suplex into a brainbuster gets two on Trivet, who is right back with a middle rope Codebreaker for two. Jacobs catches him on top for a superplex and a sitout powerbomb gives Jacobs two of his own. They slug it out until Trivet suplexes him into the corner. A double stomp gets two on Jacobs, who is right back with a heck of a lariat for two. The Drill Claw finishes Trivet at 10:33.

Rating: C+. The match wasn’t bad, but it was pretty easily the weakest on the show so far. Trivet is a rather generic looking heel and Jacobs is a run of the mill power guy. What we got was good enough, but I didn’t find this overly interesting during the show and that was still the case watching it back.

Women’s Title: Rhio vs. Lana Austin

Austin, the former champion who is described as annoying, is challenging. They fight over a lockup to start and that gets them absolutely nowhere. Austin stops to flip her off, earning a shotgun dropkick into the corner. Rhio sends her outside and hits a suicide dive, only to have Austin suplex her on the floor. Hold on though as Austin needs a microphone for “Lana-oke”.

This involves talking/singing (badly) as she beats on Rhio, who blocks a kick to send Austin face first into the mat. Austin is back up with a dropkick for two and there’s a suplex into the corner for the same. The trash talk takes too long for Austin, allowing Rhio to superkick her down for two. The package piledriver is blocked though and Austin sends her face first into the buckle for the big crash.

A hurricanrana attempt is countered into a powerbomb to give Austin two more and Rhio rolls to the apron. That works rather well as she comes back with a springboard Stunner but Austin blasts her with a discus forearm. What looks to be a powerbomb is countered into an Air Raid Crash but Austin grabs a rollup with feet on the ropes, only to get caught. The arguing with the referee lets Rhio come back with a package piledriver to retain at 13:51.

Rating: C+. They were trading moves and you could get an easy sense of the idea here (the talented champion against the more showy challenger) but it never quite hit that next gear. Rhio is someone who could be a pretty intriguing prospect with some more coaching due to her natural athleticism, but she’ll need more time against better opponents. Nice match, though like the previous one, it wasn’t exactly must see.

Tag Team Titles: Cheeky Little Buggers vs. Sanity vs. Sunshine Machine

The Buggers (Alexxis Ferguson/Charles Crowley) are defending against Sanity (Axel Tischer/Big Damo) and Sunshine Machine (Chuck Mambo/TK Cooper). Ferguson takes Mambo down with a top wristlock to start…but Mambo says “RING RING!” He holds his hand up to Ferguson’s ear, where she says “Hello.” Mambo: “IT’S A WRISTLOCK!” Ferguson then tries the same thing but Mambo sends her into the corner and rolls her up for two.

Crowley comes in for a small package, followed by a springboard Downward Spiral for two more. It’s off to Cooper, but hold on because Crowley asks if we want to see a magic trick. He reaches into a hat (because he has a hat, complete with horns) but finds nothing inside. Instead he reaches into the back of Ferguson’s tights (oh dear) and finds….a fist, which he uses to punch Cooper.

Back up and Cooper gets two off a dropkick before Mambo comes back in for some stereo knees to the arms. Crowley manages to get over to the monster Damo though and house is quickly cleaned, including a double fall away slam to Sunshine Machine. Axel comes in for a release suplex to Cooper, who manages to send Sanity into each other for a breather. Mambo’s springboard wristdrag sets up a frog splash to give Cooper two but it’s Axel hitting a Backstabber to cut Mambo down.

Mambo kind of slips off the top to forearm Damo and it’s off to Ferguson, who gets caught in the Sanity corner (that’s not good). The neck crank goes on but Ferguson fights up and brings Crowley back in to pick the pace way up. A big flip dive to the floor takes out Sanity, leaving Ferguson to slug it out with Sunshine Machine. That doesn’t go so well as it’s a double headbutt to put Ferguson down, followed by a double suplex for two.

Cooper dives onto the pile at ringside and Mambo’s frog splash to the back gets two on Ferguson. Axel is back in to clear out Sunshine Machine and snap Ferguson’s finger. Ferguson manages a spinning suplex to Damo and Crowley adds a top rope backsplash. Cooper gets tossed into a sitout powerbomb from Ferguson as even commentary thinks there is too much going on at the moment.

Ferguson gets sent into the corner so Crowley tries to make a save, only to get kicked in the face a few times. The Death Valley Driver onto the apron plants Crowley again but Sunshine Machine is back in to take out Sanity. Cooper’s shooting star press gets two on Damo but he tosses Mambo into a German suplex from Axel. A powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Copper is enough to give Axel the pin and the titles at 18:52.

Rating: B-. The match was definitely entertaining due to the pure insanity, but there was so much going on and the last ten minutes or so were spent on one big wild brawl. There was too much going on to really have a good match, which tends to be the case with this many people involved. Sanity did feel like the bigger stars here though and it’s nice to see them winning the titles, as they were the best option.

Progress World Title: Man Like Dereiss vs. Kid Lykos

Lykos, with Lykos II, is defending and Dereiss raps himself to the ring, as tends to be his custom. They stare at each other for a bit as the fans are rather divided. We get a handshake and they lock up over a minute in, with Dereiss backing him up against the ropes. A shoulder drops Lykos and we pause again as he takes a breather in the corner. Lykos is back up with a quickly broken Octopus hold before dropkicking Dereiss outside.

Back in and Dereiss snaps off some slams, followed by some dancing and a whip into the corner for two. More dancing and right hands give Dereiss two as commentary talks about social media. Lykos is back up with a kick to the head and some rolling suplexes to put Dereiss down for a change. The corkscrew shooting star press gives Lykos two but calling out the name of a brainbuster lets Dereiss shove him away.

A Michinoku Driver gives Dereiss two but Lykos rolls away before Dereiss can do something from the top. They knock each other down for a double breather before an exchange of rollups gets two each. Stereo nip ups lets Lykos try a victory roll but Dereiss puts him down and hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for two more.

Back up and Lykos hits a superkick for two before the Octopus goes on again. Dereiss powers out and they’re both down for another breather. Lykos’ springboard flip dive is countered into a powerbomb, followed by another to set up Dereiss’ 450 for two more. Dereiss loads up another powerbomb but Lykos reverses into a suplex. A springboard Swanton retains the title at 17:07. Bocchini in something of a deadpan voice: “Lykos retains.”

Rating: B-. That dull reaction to the result sums up the match. The action itself was perfectly fine, but there didn’t seem to be a story to the match and they were just trading moves at the end. I’m not sure I get the appeal of Lykos either, as he was just kind of there for the most part. Maybe there is a better backstory to him, but if that is the case, I didn’t see it here.

Overall Rating: B. This show was starting red hot and then hit a wall hard about halfway through. You could feel the energy go out as it went from a fun show to a good show that was just kind of happening in front of you. If this was all about the first half, I’d watch every Progress show but the second half made it feel like pretty much every solid independent event you’ll find. It was one of the better shows I watched over the weekend, but it loses its steam fast.

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WrestleCon Supershow 2024
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Kevin Gill, Veda Scott

It’s one of the biggest independent events of Wrestlemania Weekend and as usual, the card is rather stacked. You will regularly get some rather nice surprises to boost up what is already advertised and that makes it a lot more fun. This time around most of the card has been advertised in advance to change it up a bit. Let’s get to it.

I was in the crowd for this, sitting near the stage (all of three feet in front of commentary, which I could hear throughout for a really weird feeling). However, I had a bad case of vertigo kick in just before the show started and it didn’t wrap up until around the start of the main event so I spent a good chunk of this show trying not to fall over. I don’t remember much of it as a result so this should be fun.

ECW announcer Stephen DeAngelis welcomes us to the show and shows us a video on Mark Hitchcock, a graphic designer who passed away on his honeymoon. The show has been named in his honor ever since.

Joey Janela vs. Nic Nemeth

Feeling out process to start with neither getting anywhere off an exchange of lockups. Nemeth wrestles him down without much trouble and Janela seems to realize he’s in trouble on the mat. Janela gets over to the ropes before running Nemeth down in a bit more successful strategy. Back up and Nemeth misses a Stinger Splash, allowing Janela to hit a rather snazzy chop.

Nemeth gets sent into the ropes for a quick German suplex and Janela sends him outside as commentary talks about the paths these two took to get here. Back in and we hit the neck crank as Gill has quite the trouble remembering if it’s Nemeth or Ziggler (fair enough). Janela hits some more hard chops as commentary talks about how you can hear the chops throughout the arena (true).

An Angle Slam gets Nemeth out of trouble for a much needed breather as they’re both down. Back up and Nemeth starts the comeback, with a ram into four different corners. The superkick is blocked though and they go into a pinfall reversal sequence for two each. They slug it out and trade superkicks until Nemeth hits a dropkick for another double knockdown.

Janela manages to grab the Death Valley Driver onto the apron but Nemeth is right back with the running DDT for two. Nemeth’s Fameasser is countered into a powerbomb, followed by the package piledriver for another near fall. Janela takes too long going up and gets superplexed back down for the big crash. Back up and Janela hits a running elbow to put both of them down again. Nemeth shrugs that off and hits a Fameasser into the Danger Zone for the pin at 18:17.

Rating: B. Janela likes to go long in his matches but he did well here. This isn’t about some big long term story or anything serious, but rather having an entertaining match. Nemeth getting to do things outside of WWE is rather interesting for a change and facing Janela in a long match is almost a rite of passage. Good stuff here and it felt like a match that could have hung on a more traditional show.

Los Boricuas vs. FBI/???

This would be Savio Vega/Miguel Perez Jr./Nathalya Perez (with the rest of the team) vs. Little Guido/Tommy Rich/a mystery partner in the form of….Deonna Purrazzo (and Tony Mamaluke to even things up a bit). For those of you who don’t know who Nathalya is Miguel’s daughter, making her the first ever third generation Puerto Rican wrestler. Miguel and Guido start things off but it’s quickly off to Savio vs. Rich.

Nathalya comes in and wants Purrazzo, which does not seem to be a good idea. Nathalya actually takes her into the corner and chops away, only for Purrazzo to demonstrate it a bit better. Purrazzo drops her rather quickly so it’s off to Miguel, who drives Rich into the corner. An elbow to the head gets Rich out of trouble and Guido comes in for a Paisan elbow in a nice flashback.

Hold on though as Guido is sent outside for some Boricuas cheating, meaning we have a big ejection. Miguel grabs a chinlock on Guido before Savio comes back in and is promptly crossbodied. Miguel is right there to cut him off with a clothesline but Guido gets in a middle rope…we’ll call it a clothesline. The tag brings Rich back in for the right hands as everything breaks down. Nathalya slugs it out with Purrazzo and they trade kicks to the head, only for Purrazzo to grab the Fujiwara armbar for the tap at 9:33.

Rating: C. This was there for the sake of some goofy old school fun and there is nothing wrong with that. The fans are going to be into the FBI and their goofy dancing while Los Boricuas certainly have a reputation. Purrazzo was a nice surprise and fit in well with the team, while Nathalya’s biggest flaw is she looks incredibly young. That will change with time, but for now, she looks like a teenager out there. Anyway, fun match to pop the live crowd.

Rob Van Dam vs. Mike Bailey

Veda Scott is a bit biased here, which might be due to her being married to Bailey. Bill Alfonso is here with Van Dam for the old school feeling and yes it’s Walk for the entrance music. As a bonus, Jerry Lynn is guest referee. They fight over a lockup to start until Van Dam fakes a clean break by grabbing a headlock. Said headlock takes Bailey over a few times but he headscissors his way to freedom.

Back up and they both miss kicks for a standoff, with the fans dubbing this awesome. For some reason Van Dam thinks it’s time to pose, allowing Bailey to kick him down. You don’t break up Van Dam’s posing so he chokes on the ropes, poses, and hits a slingshot legdrop. Bailey is draped over the barricade for the spinning kick to the back for the nasty landing on the floor. Van Dam takes too long getting some water from a fan and gets taken down by an Asai moonsault. Gill worries about Fonzie being taken out as well but Scott said “don’t worry, he’s a resilient chap”.

Back in and Bailey hits a hard Helluva Kick into a Tajiri handspring elbow into a running shooting star press for two. The moonsault knees miss though and Van Dam gets two off a rollup. That’s enough to draw Fonzie in for an argument, which only allows Bailey to nail the bouncing kicks. Bailey misses a big kick but Van Dam misses the Rolling Thunder. The shooting star misses for Bailey so Fonzie throws in the chair for a Van Daminator. The Five Star finishes Bailey at 10:57.

Rating: C+. Oh like Van Dam was losing in the ECW Arena on a special show like this. The good thing about Van Dam is that unlike most of the former ECW stars, he can still more than hang in there and have a perfectly watchable match. That was the case here as he and Bailey had an entertaining match with the right ending. Nice stuff here and seeing Van Dam in this building was special.

Rev Pro British Heavyweight Title: Michael Oku vs. Titan

Oku, with Amira, is defending. They go with the grappling to start with Titan twisting out of a wristlock. Stereo dropkick attempts miss and they chop it out, with Oku sticking his chest out but getting kicked in the stomach instead. Back up and Oku sends him outside, only for Titan to jump back inside for the suicide dive.

They get back inside where Titan kicks him in various areas but Oku is back with a middle rope dropkick. With Titan on the floor, Oku hits a running shooting star over the ropes to take him out again. A high crossbody gives Oku two back inside but Titan drops him on the apron. That means a top rope double stomp, only to have Titan come up favoring his knee. Back in and Titan misses another double stomp, allowing Oku to knee him in the face.

The Lionsault sets up the half crab (Oku’s finisher) but the rope is reached rather quickly. Titan’s knee is fine enough to hit a springboard tornado DDT and we get a double breather. They forearm it out until Titan gets the better of an exchange of kicks to the face. Titan’s top rope double stomp gets two but bangs up the knee again. Oku pulls him into the half crab and bridges back for the tap to retain at 15:32.

Rating: B. It was a good, back and forth match with the title helping a lot. I’m not sue I get Oku’s appeal a lot of the time, but he was feeling it here and the submission/high flying combination worked well here. Titan did well with his own stuff as well and it was a rather entertaining match that felt like it could have been on any regular show, which is a nice fit in on a show like this one.

Rascalz vs. Matt Riddle/Mustafa Ali

That was unadvertised so all three entrances get quite the reaction. Riddle takes Wentz down without much trouble to start and they wrestle to a standoff. Wentz gets a headscissors but Riddle slips out, only to miss the big kick to the chest. Back up and Wentz slips out of a German suplex and they slap each other in the face, followed by an exchange of respectful nods.

Ali comes in and takes over on Miguel’s arm but Miguel is right back up with an armbar of his own. They trade some quick near falls and that’s good for a standoff. Everything breaks down and Riddle sends the Rascalz to the floor for the big dive from Ali in a nice bit of teamwork. Back in and Wentz kicks Riddle down to grab the chinlock, followed by the wishbone into stereo basement dropkicks (ouch) for two.

Miguel kicks him in the head again but Ali gets over to bring Ali in and pick up the pace. Riddle gets pulled off the apron though and Ali misses a charge into the corner, allowing the double teaming strikes to drop Ali for two more. Wentz’s hard DDT gets two but Ali fights right back up (as tends to be the case) and brings Riddle back in to clean house. A snazzy German suplex gets two on Miguel but the Floating Bro is broken up. Ali is back in with the tornado DDT, only to miss the 450 and roll into a cutter from Wentz. A springboard cutter drops Riddle, who bounces back up with a double cutter. The Bro Derek finishes Miguel at 14:20.

Rating: B. Ali and Riddle are something of an indy dream team at the moment and it was cool to see them getting together and having a heck of a match here. At the same time, there is something odd about seeing a makeshift team beating a regular team, which was a major focal point from commentary. That being said, it’s hard to imagine most people beating Riddle when he gets into that mode and the match was rather good.

Respect is shown post match.

Josh Alexander vs. Masato Tanaka

Alexander easily takes it to the mat for an early standoff and they fight over hammerlock control. A running shoulder puts Tanaka down but he’s back up with the right hands in the corner. They chop it out until Alexander dragon screw legwhips him down. Tanaka’s leg is fine enough for him to grab a suplex, only to have Alexander roll some German suplexes for two.

The C4 Spike is countered into the sliding elbow to give Tanaka two of his own. Tanaka’s top rope superplex…doesn’t really hurt Alexander, who pops back up for the clothesline comeback (?). The Roaring Elbow gives Tanaka two but his top rope splash hits raised knees. That means the ankle lock (the first of many I’m sure) goes on for Alexander but Tanaka rolls out, earning himself the running crossbody to the back.

Back in and Tanaka wins a slugout, even knocking Alexander’s headgear off. Alexander elbows him down for two and they forearm it out again. Tanaka knocks him into the corner for Diamond Dust and another near fall but Alexander is back with a powerbomb onto the knee. The C4 Spike finishes Tanaka at 12:16.

Rating: B. Take two hard hitters and let them beat the fire out of each other for about twelve minutes until the bigger name hits his finisher for the pin. It was a good, hard hitting match and one of those “hmm, that’s interesting” deals that you can see on a show like this one. Alexander continues to feel like a big fish in a small pond with TNA so it’s nice to see him getting a moment to shine here.

The ring announcer thanks the fans.

Team CMLL vs. Team Dragon Gate

CMLL: Averno/Barbaro Cavernario/Mistico/Star Jr./Villano III Jr.
Dragon Gate: Dragon Kid/Kota Minoura/Kzy/Shun Skywalker/Yamato

The annual ten man tag is a WrestleCon Supershow signature. Skywalker (quite the villain) bails to the floor to start as commentary is flat out saying they can’t keep track of all these people. Cavernario and Kid start things off with some grappling on the mat until Cavernario pulls him into a quickly broken surfboard. Cavernario hits him in the face but Kid snaps off a headscissors.

Averno and Yamato come in with Averno taking Yamato down but getting caught with an arm crank. With that not working, we get the big staredown between Skywalker and Mistico, with the handshake not happening. Mistico snaps off a running headscissors to send him outside and there’s the dive to take Skywalker out again. Everything breaks down for a brawl on the floor until we settle down to Star chopping it out with Kzy.

Star hits a jumping uppercut to put Kzy down until Star ties him in the ropes for a springboard fadeaway legdrop (ala Carmelo Hayes). A kind of flipping slam plants Kzy for two and Star hits a springboard clothesline. Villano comes in to hammer away on Minoura as everything breaks down again.

We settle down (kind of) to Skywalker throwing Cavernario into the corner, allowing Kid to come in and drop some knees. Averno comes in and gets stomped down before Yamato grabs a quickly broken chinlock. It’s back to Villano, who is taken down as well with Dragon Gate holding his partners back in a smart move. That doesn’t last long either as Star comes in and gets taken down in a hurry.

Kzy’s elbow to the back gets two with Mistico making the save but getting caught in the wrong corner as well. Mistico and Minoura strike it out until a swinging Boss Man Slam gives Minoura two. Skywalker comes in but Mistico is back with a handspring double elbow and it’s back to Star. The big dive to the floor takes out most of Dragon Gate and Mistico hits a bigger dive to send them into the crowd.

Back in and Kid gets triple teamed but manages to hand it back to Averno. Skywalker gets caught in the ropes for a bunch of strikes to the chest/head and back to back triplebombs get two with Kid making the save. Averno gets super hurricanranaed down and a frog splash gets two and Cavernario gets kicked in the head….sending him into the Worm.

Something like a Vader Bomb hits Kid or two as everything breaks down. Mistico gets kicked down by Kzy but Skywalker shoves his own partner down, wanting the win for himself. That lets Star hit a top rope double stomp on Skywalker, setting up an arm/leg crank. Mistico adds La Mistica to Kzy for the double submission at 24:47.

Rating: B. This was quite the display of talent with everyone in there going nuts to get int heir own bit of offense. That being said, the match ran long as the stretch where Dragon Gate triple teamed people and cut the ring off just kept going. It was a fun spectacle but never really did anything all that huge to take it up to the next level.

Post match Skywalker goes after CMLL again and gets stomped down.

Of note: following the show, I went to dinner and wound up sitting next to most of Team CMLL (minus Mistico). They were all unmasked but I recognized Cavernario, who confirmed it was the rest of the team and apparently some others. None of them could say who they were, but it was a rather cool treat.

Gill hypes up the main event and intros the ring announcer, who isn’t quite ready, resulting in a 47 second run on sentence introduction with Gill all but begging him to start talking. You could hear the relief in Gill’s voice when the introductions began and he got some applause for his efforts.

Paul Walter Hauser vs. Sami Callihan

Street fight and Hauser is mainly an (Emmy Award winning) actor who occasionally wrestles. Callihan jumps him from behind to start and says F*** Philly/WrestleCon because he’s about to cut up an Emmy winner. The stomping is on, followed by a kendo stick shot to the back. Callihan grabs a bag of toys, starting with a piece of paper to cut the creases between Hauser’s fingers.

Naturally he follows with a lemon to squeeze the juice into the cuts for the real pain. The pizza cutter slices Hauser’s head up as commentary brings up Hauser invading Callihan’s Wrestling Revolver promotion. Back in and Callihan carves him up with the cutter again but Hauser busts out some powder for a needed breather. Callihan hits him with a table but chops the post by mistake.

It’s time for a door, though we pause for Hauser to trade his torn shirt to a fan for a fresh one. Back in and Hauser misses a charge to get sent through the door and Callihan whips out some staple guns. Callihan even throws one to Hauser and they trade staples to various body parts. Hauser staples him low and drops a headbutt for two. It’s time for thumbtacks but Hauser’s middle rope elbow only hits said tacks.

A table is brought in and a powerbomb sends Hauser through it for two. Callihan knocks the referee down and grabs the kendo stick. Said stick is thrown down so Callihan kicks him low and gets two from Bill Alfonso of all people. The near fall doesn’t work for Callihan, who decks Alfonso and grabs the kendo stick….for the Sandman’s pose.

The lights go out and we get the full Enter Sandman treatment as the Sandman is here. I remember watching Sandman as a kid and thinking this was the coolest entrance ever so getting to see it in person, in the ECW Arena, even when Sandman is 60 and has been retired forever, was an all time wrestling moment. For a bonus, we also cut back to the ring where Alfonso is just sitting in the corner watching the entrance in a funny moment. Sandman finally gets in and canes Callihan, allowing Hauser to hit the White Russian Legsweep into the tacks for the pin at 23:38.

Rating: C. The match itself was WAY too long, but the only thing that mattered here was getting in the big Sandman moment at the end. Hauser gets to beat the evil Callihan in a fun and special ending and it did that well enough. The problem is the match could have been ten minutes shorter, as you can only see so much of Callihan beating him up in between short comebacks. This had to headline for the sake of Sandman though and that was worth the wait.

Hauser thanks the fans for letting him into their world to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show is always tricky to do as it has so many things going on with all kinds of interesting matches. While some of them didn’t quite work, the stuff that was good was very good, especially with just the right amount of ECW nostalgia. I look forward to this show every year and it worked again here, albeit with a few less than great spots.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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For The Culture 2024
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Big Swole, AC Mack

This has become a tradition from GCW over Wrestlemania Weekend and the shows tend to be pretty good more often than not. The show focuses on Black wrestlers and there is quite a bit of talent on the card. GCW can do rather well when they try and hopefully that is the case again here. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Team Myron vs. Team Dolla

Myron: Myron Reed, Ruckus, Devon Monroe, Darian Bengston, Calvin Tankman
Dolla: AJ Francis, Isaiah Broner, Keita, Mr. Danger, Terry Yaki

Francis yells at Reed to start with Reed not being able to do the test of strength. Instead Reed hits him in the face but gets taken down with a single shoulder. Tankman comes in for the rather large lockup with Francis taking him into into the corner but missing the big chop. Back up and Tankman hits something like a Pounce to send Francis into the corner. It’s off to Monroe for a bouncing hurricanrana to send Broner outside.

Keita comes in and kicks Monroe into the corner for a suplex right back out of it. It’s off to Bengston to take Keita down by the arm but Danger comes in with a springboard moonsault. Francis cleans house and everything breaks down, as you probably expected it to do. We get back to back stereo dives to leave almost everyone down.

That leaves Francis to tease a dive, only to flip the fans off instead. Danger busts out a big springboard corkscrew moonsault and NOW Francis busts out the big dive. Back in and we get the parade of big knockdowns until a hanging F5 hits Broner, followed by a sitout powerbomb from Ruckus to give Reed…the pin (it wasn’t quite clear) at 11:48.

Rating: C+. The problem here is there were so many wrestlers in there at once that it was hard to keep track of what was going on. It doesn’t help that they had so much going all over the place, with no one really getting to stand out. Francis was the biggest name in the whole thing and was only featured part of the time. Fun enough match, but not exactly focused.

Thick N Juicy vs. Kings Of The District vs. Killionaires Club vs. The Mane Event

That would be Brooke Valentine/Faye Jackson vs. Eel O’Neal/Jordan Blade vs. J Boujii/PB Smooth vs. Duke Davis/Ganon Jones Jr. Hold on though as we need to see if Jackson will give Smooth (a 6’9 giant) a Stinkface. That won’t be happening so it’s Blade starting with Valentine instead. Blade snapmares her down for a dropkick to the back before it’s off to the test of strength.

That goes nowhere so they trade running shoulders to limited avail. A double knockdown gives us a double tag to O’Neal and Jackson, with O’Neal’s headlock not getting him anywhere. Jackson runs him over with a shoulder and sits on his chest for two and O’Neal, dubbed Bad Brain, goes into the wrong corner in a not so bright move. Thick N Juicy hit running hip attacks on the Kings, who seem to approve. Stereo Cannonballs crush the Kings again but the Club comes in to clear the ring.

We get the big Club vs. Event showdown, with Boujii not being able to do much against the rather large Duke. Almost everyone heads to the floor, allowing Jones to hit a big dive onto the pile. Back in and Blade manages a German suplex on Jones but the Kings Club clears the ring again. O’Neal strikes away at Jones to limited success. Jackson goes up (taking over a minute due to a bunch of slipping) and dives onto almost everyone else, setting up a Banzai Drop to pin O’Neal at 12:45.

Rating: C+. This was a bit easier to keep track of than the opener, though that might have been due to having four teams instead of two. There were some short form showdowns in there and that helped a bit, though again there is only so much you can get out of a match with eight people involved at once. Thick N Juicy were the focal point here, which is impressive given a giant like Smooth being involved.

Man Like DeReiss vs. Sonny Kiss

Kiss grabs the wristlock to start and flips around to start to slip away. Some hip shaking has DeReiss out on the floor but he comes back in for some dancing of his own. Back in and Kiss does Naomi’s headscissors to ram him into the back of the trunks, only for DeReiss to hit a hard shoulder.

DeReiss works on the arm until Kiss flips out of a belly to back suplex and strikes away. A German suplex and a hard clothesline give DeReiss two and they trade rollups for two each. Natural Selection gives Kiss two but DeReiss is back with a sitout powerbomb for another near fall. Kiss gets up and manages a gorilla press (that’s impressive) into a torture rack Stunner for the pin at 9:03.

Rating: C. While it was rather nice to have a singles match and both of them have a good bit of charisma, the action was nothing special. It was mainly a power vs. speed match, though Kiss’ gorilla press at the end was quite the surprise. Perfectly fine match, but nothing that stood out much for what is supposed to be a special show.

Janai Kai vs. Jada Stone vs. Joseline Navarro vs. Maya World vs. Mazzerati vs. Tiara James

Elimination rules…or not actually as the ring announcer says there is a change of plans, making this one fall to a finish. It’s a brawl to start with Maya, Mazzerati and Stone hitting stereo dropkicks to the floor. Maya and Mazzerati hit dives, followed by Stone’s corkscrew moonsault onto the pile.

Back in and Stone strikes away on Maya until a German suplex drops Stone for two. Mazzerati comes in and gets kicked in the head and hits a sliding clothesline to the back of the head. Navarro avoids a charge in the corner and hits a basement DDT to put Mazzerati down. James comes back in and gets kicked in the face but catches a returning Kai with a gutbuster.

Everyone gets together for a suplex attempt, with Mazzerati, Maya and Stone managing to get the others over. Mazzerati goes for covers on a bunch of people but can’t get anywhere. Well she can get to two but that’s it. Everyone is back up Mazzerati hits a hurricanrana to send Kai into everyone else. We hit the parade of suplexes and throws until Navarro hits a running crossbody in the corner to pin Mazzerati at 10:32.

Rating: C+. Much like the first two matches, there was so much going on here with so many people that you can only get so much out of it. No one had a chance to stand out and it felt like who managed to get a pin first rather than whoever won. That’s the problem with these scramble matches and it was on full display again here.

2 Cold Scorpio vs. Jah-C

They shake hands to start and fight over arm control, with Jah-C powering out of a top wristlock. We get a standoff, allowing Jah-C to yell at a woman in the crowd, which seems to be a bit of an overreaction. They go to the mat with Scorpio grabbing a front facelock, which is reversed into an armbar. Jah-C takes him down and seems to tell Scorpio to bring it, which works for him. An armdrag puts Jah-C down before Scorpio lures him into a fake handshake.

Scorpio kicks him down and grabs the chinlock, which doesn’t last long. They slug it out until Scorpio leverages him outside without too much effort. Back in and Scorpio kicks him down, setting up a springboard moonsault for two. Jah-C rakes the eyes though and hits his own springboard moonsault for his own two. Scorpio drops him and busts out the Tumbleweed for another near fall but Jah-C kicks him down again. A Lionsault gives Jah-C and a superkick finishes Scorpio off at 10:43, with Scorpio kicking out at 3.1 in a bit of a weird look.

Rating: C+. I’m always going to be interested in seeing Scorpio as I’ve been a fan for over thirty years. The guy has such a natural charisma and while he can’t quite go like he used to (as he’s 58), he still has enough ability to put on a good match. I’m curious about that ending though, as it definitely did not seem to go as it was supposed to.

Post match Scorpio gets to dance a bit.

Pan-Afrikan World Diaspora Wrestling Title: Suge D vs. Alex Kane

Kane is challenging and has Faye Jackson with him. The much bigger Kane blocks a whip into the ropes to start and Suge realizes he needs to do something else. Suge hits about ten straight running shoulders but can’t get anywhere, so he stomps on the foot and then runs Kane over. Back up and Kane shrugs off a shot to the face and grabs a German suplex. Kane fires off some knees to the head but Suge is back with a facebuster for two.

That just annoys Kane again as he ties Suge in the ropes for a running boot to the face and two of his own. Some rolling German suplexes set up a t-bone suplex to send Suge into the corner but Suge talks trash as he comes out. Some running clotheslines and forearms stagger Kane and Suge grabs his own German suplex. They trade more suplexes until Suge gets two but Kane is back up with a Crash Landing. A spear gives Kane two but Suge hits his own, setting up a piledriver to retain at 12:07.

Rating: C+. Suge seems to be more of the scrappy brawler while Kane is there to throw suplexes. It turned into a hard hitting fight and that helped a good bit, making it perhaps the best match on the show so far. Kane is a bigger deal in MLW so he has some status here, which made him feel like a stronger threat to take the title. Nice match here.

Darius Carter vs. Billy Dixon

Darius Lockhart is the guest referee. Commentary says this is five years in the making though doesn’t exactly explain how we got here. Carter shoves him to start and gets pummeled out to the floor, where Carter manages a quick posting. Back in and Dixon kicks away, setting up a middle rope elbow to the face for one. Carter’s dropkick puts Dixon down again though and the pace slows a lot.

Carter starts going after the leg and grabs a Hartbreaker, despite Lockhart’s protests. The Figure Four goes on back inside but Dixon makes the ropes in a hurry. That’s fine with Carter, who takes it to the apron for a piledriver, which is countered into a backdrop. Back in and Carter starts in on the finger so he can stomp away in the corner. For some reason Lockhart helps Dixon up and tells him to fight back, which is exactly what Dixon does. The comeback doesn’t last long as Carter knocks him outside but Dixon beats the count.

Carter hammers away at the forehead but Dixon runs him over with a shoulder. Dixon sits up ala Undertaker and gets two off a middle rope Thesz press. Another shot drops Dixon but Carter stops to yell at Lockhart, allowing Dixon to grab a Pedigree for two. Carter picks the leg again though and we hit the Figure Four again. Dixon fights up but gets his fingers snapped to put him back down…and he passes out for the pin at 19:14.

Rating: C. This is a match where commentary really hurt things, as it felt like it was supposed to be this big grudge match and we were never given any reason why. Was there some significance to the Figure Four? Or why do Lockhart and Carter not like each other? This was the main event and something treated as bigger than the rest of the show but you would never guess it based on most of the presentation.

Overall Rating: C-. For The Culture has been hit and miss over the years and this was on the latter side. The biggest problem here was a focus on quantity over quality, with three of the seven matches being multi-person messes in one form or another. The main event, while not bad, didn’t feel overly important and that hurt things even more. On top of that, the show didn’t start until around midnight so the main event was starting around 2:30 in the morning. Overall, this wasn’t a great show and it needed to be laid out a good bit better to really improve.

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Can’t Deny It
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers
Commentators: Jack Farmer, Rich Bocchini

This is from Defy Wrestling and that’s not a promotion I know very well. I’ve seen a bit from them before and I do remember liking them so there might be something worth seeing here. The main event will see Kenta defend the World Title against Gringo Loco, which should at least be good. Let’s get to it.

Schaff is in a four wheeler (or whatever you call a vehicle for driving through the woods in the mud) and wants everyone in the BMF battle royal for his Pacific Northwest Title.

Tag Team Titles: Bollywood Boyz vs. Man Like DeReiss/Michael Oku

DeReiss and Oku are challenging and have Amira with them. Oku is apparently a replacement for Leon Slater who isn’t here due to travel restrictions. DeReiss raps his way to the ring and seems to be rather popular. Gurv and DeReiss start things off with the latter powering him up against the ropes. Some running shoulders put Gurv down and we hear the Birmingham, England (DeReiss’ hometown) area code or whatever he keeps shouting.

Oku comes in and gets armdragged into an arm crank as it’s back to Gurv for more arm pulling. That’s broken up as Oku sends him into the corner, where he jumps over DeReiss for a kick to the chest. They head outside where Gurv hammers away on Oku, setting up a middle rope bulldog for two back inside. Oku fights out of the chinlock rather quickly so it’s a top rope elbow Hart Attack for two instead.

A quick shot to the face lets Oku go up for a frog splash high crossbody and it’s back to DeReiss to pick the pace way up. Everything breaks down and Oku hits a big running flip dive, followed by DeReiss’ powerbomb for two. Stereo half crabs (Oku’s signature) have the champs in trouble but they reverse into stereo Sharpshooters. That’s broken up as well so it’s a 3D to send Harv into Gurv for two. Harv shrugs it off and sense Oku outside, setting up the Bollywood Blast for the pin on DeReiss to retain at 16:36.

Rating: C+. Nice enough match to open the show here, though it really did start to break down near the end. There is only so much drama to be had out of a thrown together team challenging for the titles but it was about all that could be done. The Boyz aren’t the flashiest team in the world but they can do their thing more than well enough.

CCK vs. Moonlight Express

That would be Chris Brookes/Kid Lykos (with Kid Lykos II) vs. Mao/Mike Bailey, because Mike Bailey is everywhere over Wrestlemania Weekend. Mao flips the rather tall Brookes off to start so Brookes teases leaving. Not that it matters as he comes back so Mao can start with Lykos. Mao takes him down and flips him off so it’s off to Bailey, who can’t get into a test of strength with Brookes (as Bailey barely comes up to his shoulders).

Brookes pats him on the head so Bailey starts kicking away in a much smarter move. That lets Bailey pat him on the head for a nice touch and it’s Lykos coming in for a change. A poke to the eye just makes Bailey kick him even more and there’s a double dropkick to send Brookes outside. Stereo moonsaults (from the same corner) take out CCK on the floor and we head back inside.

This time Mao is sent crashing outside, allowing Lykos to hit a top rope Codebreaker on Bailey. We pause for some exchange of fluids from CCK to Bailey (who does have a funny face in reaction) before Lykos shouts BRAINBUSTER. Bailey blocks it so Lykos does the same thing again and, again, is blocked. Serves him right for telegraphing his offense. Mao comes in and sends CCK into each other but CCK is right back with stereo octopus holds.

Those are broken up so Brookes and Mao trade strikes to the face for a double down. Bailey is back in to strike Lykos down, setting up a running shooting star press for two. Brookes misses a kick to the head so Bailey moonsaults onto Lykos on the floor. Back in and the Express miss stereo Ultimate Weapons but Lykos calls for the brainbuster AGAIN and AGAIN it’s broken up.

Bailey’s tornado kick (which he didn’t advertise) hits Lykos and a rollup gets two. Brookes is back in with a kick but Map kicks him right back down. Lykos is back in with the unadvertised brainbuster for two on Bailey so Brookes adds a top rope double knee for two of his own. Mao is taken out again so it’s a Gory Bomb/Diamond Dust combination to finish Bailey at 16:13.

Rating: B. They got rolling near the end there and it was just one big move after another. Bailey is kind of perfect if you want a bunch of cool looking stuff with pretty much no selling in between so he fit in well here. Brookes stands out alone because of his size but he can move well out there to balance it out. Good stuff here, as they just did a bunch of stuff to show off.

Respect is shown post match.

Women’s Title: Vert Vixen vs. Jazmin Allure vs. Trish Adora

Vixen is defending and Mega Ran is a guest commentator. The champ is sent outside to start, leaving Adora to lift Allure up and bent her over the knee in a rather wacky looking hold (the wave to her mom makes it even better). Back in and Vixen makes the save, including a running elbow to drop Adora.

They go outside with Allure hitting a big dive, setting up the chinlock back inside. Adora comes back in but gets her leg kicked out, allowing Allure to hit a Sling Blade. Allure kicks at both of them but Adora pulls a high crossbody out of the air. Vixen’s missile dropkick puts the other two down, followed by a nasty German suplex to plant Allure.

A Blue Thunder Bomb gets two but Adora is up for the save. Allure drops Adora again and runs the corner for an armdrag to Vixen. That means it’s time for Adora and Vixen to trade kicks to the face until Adora is knocked outside. Allure’s guillotine is broken up and Vixen plants her with a powerbomb, followed by a brainbuster to retain at 12:52.

Rating: C+. This was the definition of a match that just kind of happened as they were getting in as much stuff as they could in their limited amount of time. There wasn’t much in the way of a story and while Allure stood out, the other two did well enough. Good enough for what it was, but they needed a better layout.

Pacific Northwest Title: BMF Battle Royal

This is an eight man battle royal, which appears to be either a Royal Rumble or gauntlet match, with Schaff defending. Luke Jacobs is in at #1 and Galeno del Mal is in at #2 with Mal hitting a hard shoulder to take over. Charles Crowley is in at #3 (as this is apparently a Royal Rumble with 57 second intervals) and dances around ringside as Jacobs takes over. The other two pause as the dancing gets inside, followed by Crowley slams Jacobs.

LJ Cleary is in at #4 and fires off some strikes, setting up a springboard armdrag on Mal. Shota is in at #5 as the ring is filling up quickly. Shota runs into and gets kicked down by the much bigger Mal and it’s Gene Munny in at #6. A slingshot spear hits Crowley and house is quickly cleaned by the less than serious Munny.

Ricky Knight Jr. is in at #7 and easily fireman’s carries Cleary and Munny at the same time for a double Samoan drop. Schaff is in at #8 to complete the field and house is quickly cleaned. In this case, cleaning doesn’t mean eliminating though as everyone pairs off. Munny gets clotheslined out, leaving Cleary and Crowley to fight out to the apron. Both tease getting back in but Munny pulls them out, leaving us with five.

Schaff cuts off Shota’s tornado DDT attempt and throws him out. Knight is eliminated as well, leaving us with Schaff, Jacobs and Mal. Jacobs catches Schaff up top and grabs a superplex (instead of knocking him to the floor), followed by a pop up powerbomb to Mal. That doesn’t go well though as Mal tosses Jacobs and we’re down to two. Schaff low bridges Mal over the top but he barely hangs on, giving us a Shawn Michaels reference. They slug it out on the apron until Schaff grabs a Death Valley Driver to retain at 15:00.

Rating: C+. This was another match where it felt like they were trying to get in as many people as possible. That isn’t the worst idea on a show like this, but it doesn’t exactly let anyone but the winner show off. Thankfully they didn’t spend too much time with the ring full, but it was more or less “everyone comes in and then Schaff beats the up”, which isn’t much of a match.

Sovereign vs. Dragon Gate vs. C4XKC

That would be:

Sovereign: Evan Rivers/Judas Icarus/Travis Williams
Dragon Gate: Ho Ho Lun/Kzy/Shun Skywalker
C4XKC: Cody Chhun/Guillermo Rosas/KC Navarro

Skywalker headscissors Chhun to start as Mega Ran talks about work he has done on entrance music and completely ignores the match. Navarro comes in to yell at Kzy but neither of them can actually make much contact. Icarus sneaks in for a hard clothesline on Kzy as Sovereign comes in to stomp away. Kzy gets pulled back into the corner but it’s Rosas coming in to clean house.

Everything breaks down and it’s time to start the rapid fire dives. Rivers sends Rosas into the corner and it’s Williams cranking on the arms over the ropes. Rosas is back up with a heck of a clothesline and the tag brings Chhun back in to pick up the pace. A DDT gets two on Williams and everything breaks down again.

Skywalker’s standing moonsault knees hit Chhun for two but Williams is back in with a moonsault for two of his own. We hit the parade of people knocking each other to the floor until C4XKC take over on Williams. Stereo rolling kicks to the head give C4XKC a triple pin on Williams at 12:40.

Rating: B-. As you might have expected, there is only so much you can get out of a match involving nine people in a single ring. While the teams probably have their own backstories and histories, we only got so much of those things here as commentary wasn’t exactly telling us much. The action was good and they did what you would have expected, but it would have been nice to know more about what I was watching.

The #1 Defy Match Of The Year is Judas Icarus vs. Mike Bailey. One might think they would give the date of the match but oh well.

Defy World Title: Kenta vs. Gringo Loco

Kenta is defending. They circle each other for about a minute until Kenta grabs a wristlock. Loco flips away and they stare it down again as this isn’t in the fastest gear to start. Kenta snaps off a headscissors and they head outside with Kenta taking him down again. The fight heads into the crowd with Kenta hammering away even more. Back in and some knees to the head let Kenta gloat a bit more.

An offer of a handshake just lets Kenta poke him in the eyes but Loco plants him down for a change. Loco works on the arm for a bit before going big with a double springboard moonsault for two. Some chops against the ropes just seem to wake Kenta up so he comes back with a release fisherman’s suplex. A tornado DDT gives Kenta two and he grabs the STF.

With that broken via the ropes, Kenta goes up but dives into a spinning sitout powerbomb for two. They head to the apron and slug it out where another powerbomb is countered into a DDT to plant Loco hard. The count is barely beaten so Kenta drops a top rope double stomp for two. Loco grabs something like a powerslam spun into an F5 for the same and they head up top.

Kenta tries a super Falcon Arrow but gets reversed into…uh well a super Falcon Arrow actually. The referee gets bumped and Kenta grabs a DDT, plus a chair for a bonus. A bunch of shots have Loco down but he counters a belt shot into an over the shoulder Tombstone. There’s no referee so Loco goes up, only to get kneed down for two. The Go To Sleep retains the title at 23:07.

Rating: B-. Lame ending to a pretty good match, as the chairs and ref bump felt like they needed a way to add drama. I’m not sure how regular Loco is in Defy but he felt like someone who was just there for the sake of having a challenger with a name. They were getting going near the end and then they did the stuff with the chair to bring it right back down. I was expecting more from this and it wound up being just strong enough for a main event.

Respect is shown to end the match. How nice of Loco to shrug off the rampant chair shots.

Overall Rating: B-. I remember having a great time with the first Defy show that I watched and this didn’t really come close to that. The biggest problem here was nothing about the show stood out. Save for maybe the battle royal, there was nothing on here that you couldn’t see on any decent independent show. This is the kind of show that I’m going to forget by the end of the day and that’s not something you want to say about any show, let alone something on the biggest wrestling weekend of the year.

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Joey Janela’s Spring Break 8
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Dave Prazak, Veda Scott

This is one of the bigger independent shows of Wrestlemania Weekend and the biggest GCW show as well. The main event if Joey Janela himself challenging the rather unpopular Black Christian for the GCW World Title. As usual this show could be all over the place and that makes it more fun. Let’s get to it.

I only follow GCW to a certain extent so I apologize in advance for missing details about characters or storylines. I’m basically going based off what commentary or the wrestlers tell me.

Note that I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the sixth row with the entrance on my right.

In Memory of Virgil.

Opening video.

Rina Yamashita/Masha Slamovich vs. Minoru Suzuki/Masato Tanaka

Rina and Tanaka start things off with the former’s running shoulders not getting her very far. Suzuki and Slamovich come in but I can’t stop looking at a rather stupid looking fan. Looks like some overrated wrestling reviewer. Slamovich can’t get very far so it’s back to Tanaka to take her down by the arm. The fight heads out to the floor and we go split screen, which is more than most major promotions can remember to do.

Back in and Suzuki stomps away at Slamovich in the corner before Tanaka just slaps her in the face. It’s back to Suzuki who alternates between cranking on various limbs to keep Slamovich down. Slamovich manages a quick suplex and it’s back to Rina to pick things up. We get the “let’s stand here and exchange forearms”, with Suzuki getting the better of things.

Tanaka comes in for a top rope superplex, which he rolls into another suplex. Rina gets away for the tag back to Slamovich, who strikes both guys down. A double powerbomb gets two on Tanaka and let’s get a door. Splash Mountain through the door is broken up by Suzuki, who is sent outside. Tanaka puts Slamovich (mostly) through the table for two but Slamovich is right back with a crucifix for the pin at 13:48.

Rating: C+. This was a nice start as the fans are always going to react to Suzuki and Tanaka was a big enough deal in ECW for the local fans. Other than that, it didn’t get too violent and that left us with a mostly clean tag match. It’s nice to see something like that on a show that has a tendency to get nuts, though I’m sure that’s coming later.

Rock N Roll Express/Kerry Morton vs. East West Express/Mike Bailey

The Rock N Roll (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) are legends (as opposed to the East/West of Jordan Oliver and Nick Wayne) and of course good guys but Kerry (Ricky’s son) is a loudmouthed heel. Before the match, Kerry tells the fans to shut the f*** up and asks who all of these people think they are to get in the ring with the. And then the fans BOO HIM??? Kerry jumps the three of them from behind to no avail and it’s a neckbreaker into Bailey’s shooting star press for two.

Wayne and Oliver start working on the arm before it’s off to Ricky, who gets elbowed in the face. Ricky tells Wayne to run the ropes but Kerry gets in a cheap shot, which doesn’t work for Kerry. The fans sing their disdain for Kerry, who doesn’t take kindly to it but does take Wayne down with a slingshot suplex. Wayne manages a running uppercut for a breather and it’s Bailey coming back in to pick up the pace.

Oliver snaps off a double chop and…bounces up and down a lot. The East/West comes in for their double cutter out of the corner but Kerry shoves the referee into the ropes for the break, earning him a big yelling from Ricky. He even slaps Kerry and I guess that’s enough for Ricky to be Legal. A Canadian Destroyer hits Wayne and he dives onto a bunch of people, including Kerry. The Mortons hit stereo dropkicks for two on Wayne as Bailey makes the save. Oliver and Wayne are back in though and it’s the double cutter for the pin on Ricky at 9:21.

Rating: C+. This was more about Ricky vs. Kerry than anything else while also having the Rock N Roll in there. It made for a good enough story, but the action was only so good. You can only get so much out of the Rock N Roll these days and while that’s fair enough, it was smart to keep this relatively short. And of course with Bailey in there, because he comes complete with every Wrestlemania Weekend show.

Dragon Gate Classic vs. Reiwa New Generation

That would be Dragon Kid/Kzy/Yamato vs. Ben-K/Kota Minoura/Shun Skywalker. Yamato and Ben start things off and they go to the mat for the grappling exchange. With that not working, Kzy and Minoura come in and the latter doesn’t think much of what appears to be dancing. That doesn’t work either, so it’s off to the masked Skywalker and the, uh, also masked Kid.

A Stundog Millionaire drops Skywalker so Ben and Minoura come in for an assisted kick to Kid’s face. Ben does his rotating gutwrench suplex to drop Kid again, followed by Skywalker’s suplex to keep Kid in trouble. Minoura comes back in with a Boston crab, sending Kid straight to the ropes.

Kid finally manages to get in a shot of his own and it’s back to Yamato to pick up the pace. Kzy hits a big dive to the floor, leaving Yamato to suplex Ben for two. Minoura gets super hurricanranaed down and Kzy’s frog splash gets two more. Back up and Skywalker monkey flips Kzy into Kid and Yamato but Kzy forearms the heck out of Skywalker. Minoura is back in and gets caught in a crucifix to give Kid the pin at 13:53.

Rating: B. They were doing the showcase route here and that went rather well. It’s a case where you take a bunch of talented people and let them go out there for a bunch of fun spots for a good while. It worked well here with everyone going nuts until someone got the pin. Rather entertaining stuff here and it went exactly as it should have.

Cole Radrick vs. Aigle Blanc vs. Alec Price vs. Arez vs. Leon Slater vs. Marcus Mathers vs. Mr. Danger vs. Myron Reed

Grab The Brass Ring ladder match, with a Sonic looking ring above the ring, meaning the winner gets a shot at any title on demand. It’s a big brawl to start and everyone heads outside and thankfully we go split screen again. Radrick and Blanc grab chairs and go back inside for a duel, with Radrick knocking him right back to the floor. Mathers comes back in to kick the chair into Radrick’s head before it’s Danger coming in for a springboard legdrop to knock a ladder onto Reed’s face.

Now it’s Arez and Mathers picking up a ladder to clear a few people out, only to have Blanc break it up. We get the required ladder around the head (Price’s in this case) so he can spin around rather quickly to knock a bunch of people down. Price is down as well so it’s Microman, who stands 3’3, in with a tiny ladder of his own. He does his own ladder spin, resulting in a bunch of low blows for even more knockdowns. Microman sends Mathers into a ladder in the corner and there’s a headscissors to Price.

Back up and Price nails a clothesline before going up. Arez breaks that up with a springboard cutter so Radrick grabs the ladder, only to have that broken up as well. Mathers shoves a ladder over to send Danger into another ladder. Blanc misses a Swanton onto the ladder, allowing Slater to hit a Swanton 450 (that looks cool) to crush Blanc again. Mathers powerbombs Blanc onto a bunch of people on the floor but Reed pulls him off the ladder.

A F5 onto the top into a Downward Spiral plants Mathers but Price sends Reed face first into the ladder. There’s the big dive to the pile on the floor, leaving Slater to hit the huge dive over the post. A bunch of people check on Slater until Reed dives over the top for a cutter onto the pile. Danger goes up for the huge moonsault onto a bunch of people, leaving the fans pleased and everyone else down. Back in and Danger goes up but Radrick slows him down. Mathers and Price go up as well before going crashing down, leaving Radrick to knock Danger off and win at 17:06.

Rating: B-. This was the big cluster (ok maybe not the best word on a Joey Janela show) ladder match and it worked rather well. It’s the best way to have this many people on the roster at once as the fans get to see a bunch of stars in one match. It helps that there were stakes with this being similar to the Money In The Bank ladder match. There were a lot of people out there, but at least they kept things moving well enough.

Matt Cardona vs. Blue Pain

Cardona, with Steph de Lander and Jimmy Lloyd, is dressed as Macho King (with Queen Steph) and lets us know how lucky we are to have him. He was on TNA AND AEW recently and this weekend, his best friend Cody Rhodes will finish his story. Pain on the other hand is better known as Blue Kane and he’s kind of the Xanta Claus version of Kane: he wears blue, he controls cold instead of fire, he comes out to Eiffel 65’s Blue song, and he weighs two Cease And Desist Orders.

Cardona strikes away to start and gets scared out to the floor, as the flashbacks to the old US Title days are still real (that’s a weirdly clever idea). Back in and Pain uppercuts Cardona right back to the floor, meaning it’s time to stalk Cardona into the crowd. They fight into the balcony (not that high) and Pain loads up a table, only to get hit in the eyes with…something. Lloyd has to make the save but gets put in a chair and sent through the table (call back to Kane vs. Cardona back in WWE).

They get back in, where a de Lander distraction lets Cardona knock Pain off the top, setting up stereo Broski Boots. An Urn is brought in but Cardona hits de Lander by mistake (she urned that one), allowing Pain to hit the top rope clothesline. A chokeslam gets two, with de Lander pulling the referee out.

Radio Silence connects and another referee, dressed like Zack Ryder and coming out to the Zack Ryder theme, comes in to count two but flips Cardona off and kicks him low. Pain fights up with a chokeslam attempt, only to have Ryder hit him low, as Cardona reveals (and drops to the floor) a cup. That doesn’t work either so chokeslams abound until Lloyd is back. A fireball to the face (oddly appropriate) blinds Pain and Radio Silence lets all four villains pile on for the pin at 9:04.

Rating: B-. We can call this the definition of “stupid, goofy fun” and that is not a bad thing. Cardona is a big deal around here and it’s nice to see him getting to do something as silly as beating up a blue version of a monster who messed with him about ten years ago. Sometimes you need to do something ridiculous to give the fans a good time and that is exactly what happened here.

Gringo Loco vs. Amazing Red

This should be fun. Feeling out process to start with neither being able to get anywhere, including Red offering a clean break. They run the ropes and exchange some near falls until Red pauses on a big kick to the head. Loco isn’t having a handshake and knocks him outside, only to have Red snap off a hurricanrana.

The dive drops Loco again and Red sends him into the chairs before going back inside for the chops. Loco fights up and knocks him to the floor this time, only to let Red get back in due to that pesky respect stuff. Back in and a tornado DDT gives Red two more as they’re going back and forth here. Loco’s sitout powerbomb gives him two of his own but a top rope superplex is broken up.

Instead Red sends him down for a top rope faceplant but Loco hits a standing version for two more. Another powerbomb is countered into a hurricanrana to give Red two so they both go up. This time it’s a super Spanish Fly to give Loco another near fall and they’re both a bit winded. Loco loads up…something but gets kicked in the back, allowing Red to take him up top for a super poisonrana. A top rope double stomp into a frog splash into Code Red is enough to give Red the pin at 15:55.

Rating: B. This was a way more straightforward match and it went rather well. After having all of the goofiness before and the violence that is still scheduled, it is nice to have something like this. Red is way past his prime but can still do some rather nice things. Loco is still more than good enough as well and they had a rather solid match here, at least given the circumstances.

Respect is shown post match.

We recap Mance Warner vs. Effy in an I Quit match. The commentary before the video said they’re former stablemates and now hate each other, but we’re not told why or what happened. Warner is rather violent though and apparently stabbed Effy with a drill to the head. As you do.

Effy vs. Mance Warner

I Quit and the fans do not like Warner whatsoever. We even get the Big Match Intros to really make this feel special. Warner hammers away to start and strikes away, only to charge into a German suplex. Effy hits a running boot in the corner and flips into something like a dragon sleeper. That’s broken up so Effy hits a spear to take Warner down again.

It’s time to bring in some chairs, one of which is thrown over the top and onto Warner’s head. Effy chairs him down and loads up a door, but does stop to chair Warner down again in a smart move. Warner is fine enough to spinebuster him through an open chair and a spinning DDT through the table connects. It’s way too early for Effy to quit so Warner chairs him down again.

Back up and Effy sends him through another door for another no, setting up a piledriver onto the chairs. Effy tries a Rough Ryder but is quickly powerbombed down onto the chairs as well. That’s nowhere near enough so let’s steal the referee’s belt to whip Effy over the back. Effy shrugs that off and grabs the belt, which he wraps around his fist to punch Warner in the face.

Some whipping in the corner makes Warner say no again and it’s time to bridge a door between some chairs. Choking takes too long though and Effy gets sent through the door, which is good for another no. They slug it out on the apron, with Effy snapping off a standing Blockbuster. Another door is loaded up at ringside but Warner grabs a chokeslam to send him through it as the violence continues.

Back in and they trade pieces of door shots to the head. Effy gets the better of things again and they trade low blows to put them both down again. Warner whips out a screwdriver to hit Effy in the head and it’s time to bring out some zip ties. The bloody Effy is tied to the top rope and Warner throws a chair at his head. That’s still a no so here is Allie Katch (Effy’s partner) with the drill…but Warner chairs her down and loads up the drill. Effy quits to save Katch at 21:47.

Rating: B-. This was the match that caught my eye more than anything else on the card and it told a story (unlike the story that we weren’t given about how we got here) but it never really got to that next level. Instead it was just a bunch of hitting people with stuff until they did the ending. It wasn’t bad, but I was expecting more in what felt like it could have been one of the best things on the show.

We recap Nick Gage/Maki Itoh vs. Danhausen/Ram Kaicho. Gage was unhappy with Danhausen for costing him a win so it’s time to bring in a partner each.

Nick Gage/Maki Itoh vs. Danhausen/Ram Kaicho

Kaicho appears to be a bit dead and Gage and Itoh have Discount Dewey Donovan with them (he still has a website, where he brags about how little effort he has put into it and has not updated it in about 18 years). The fans REALLY do not like Danhausen during the Big Match Intros and even he seems a bit surprised.

Danhausen and Gage start things off but Danhausen wants Itoh instead. The curse is blocked with a middle finger so Danhausen grabs a headlock. Itoh gets knocked down and Danhausen drops a falling headbutt, a signature Itoh spot. Back up and Itoh knocks him down so it’s off to Kaicho, who uses her….death dust to blind Itoh? With that shrugged off, Itoh hammers away in the corner and hits a running boot for two. Gage comes in and knocks a crossbodying Itoh down and an elbow makes it worse.

Itoh DDTs her way to freedom and hands it off to Danhausen to slug away at Gage, followed by the flying shoulder. Everything breaks down and Gage pulls Danhausen outside, where it’s time to grab a door. All four get inside and it’s a four way knockdown, with Gage grabbing the pizza cutter.

Kaicho blasts him with the dust though and hits a dropkick to put Gage through the door in the corner. Danhausen pizza cutters Itoh and pours the teeth in her mouth, setting up the running booth. Back up and Gage sends Danhausen through another door as Itoh drops Kaicho. Stereo falling headbutts give Gage and Itoh the stereo pins at 13:01.

Rating: C+. What were you expecting here? It was basically a way to have Gage vs. Danhausen and it wasn’t exactly good. Gage is as big of a star as he can be around here and more or less it gave him a way to get on the card. Danhausen has fallen really hard in recent months and while he’s not done yet, it would be nice to see him getting to do something else to freshen things up a bit.

Post match Gage thanks the fans so the winners can leave.

We recap Blake Christian defending the GCW World Title against Joey Janela. No one likes Christian so it’s time for Janela to save the title from a horrible champion. He’s also standing up to Christian for going after Missy Hyatt, because that is a thing that is happening in 2024.

GCW World Title: Blake Christian vs. Joey Janela

Christian, with Shane Mercer, is defending and Missy Hyatt (with Gucci purse) is here with Janela. We get the Big Match Intros and Janela is in the Lex Luger Summerslam 1993 gear, which can’t go badly whatsoever. The mic goes out during Christian’s entrance because even the electronics don’t like Christian.

They fight over a lockup to start and that goes a grand total of nowhere. Janela shoulders him out to the floor but Christian is back in to slug away. A backdrop does a bit better for Janela and it’s time for a door. That takes too long so it’s Christian hitting a dive to send the door into Janela for a change. We hit the hair pull, followed by a chinlock, which isn’t a good sign less than ten minutes into the match.

Janela fights up but gets sent outside, where Mercer puts him into the post. Christian sends him face first through a chair and even busts out a cartwheel inside. Back up and Janela manages a quick cutter into a brainbuster for two, meaning frustration is starting to set in. That takes too long so Christian is back up with a springboard elbow for two of his own.

Stereo clotheslines give us a double knockdown, followed by a DDT to plant Christian onto the apron. The door is set up at ringside but Christian slips out of a Death Valley Driver. Back in and Janela snaps off a German suplex, followed by the Death Valley Driver for two. Janela takes too much time going up and gets knocked down, allowing Christian to hit a springboard 450 for two of his own.

Christian sends him outside for the big flip dive into a Nightmare On Helm Street on the floor. A moonsault press is countered back inside and Janela hits a quick jackknife. Janela grabs a chair to knock Christian down and then wraps the chair around his head. Mercer offers a quick distraction though and it’s Christian coming back with a spinebuster through the chair.

A Stomp gives Christian two and the shock sets in quickly. Mercer throws in a mostly broken door and some chairs but Hyatt comes in, meaning Janela has to make the save. Janela knocks Mercer off the top and through another table at ringside, setting up a superplex through that rather lame looking door.

A top rope stomp onto the door onto Christian gets two but he’s back up with a quick DDT. They slug it out from their knees until Hyatt grabs Christian’s leg (only took her two tries). Christian pulls her in so Janela makes the save…and Hyatt hits Janela with the Gucci bag. A stomp onto the bag retains the title at 29:44.

Rating: D+. Janela has a tendency to go long in his matches and that was certainly the case here. This is a match that could have easily had fifteen minutes chopped off as they just didn’t have much going on here. Christian can do the moves well but he isn’t exactly a thrilling star otherwise. Janela did what he could but they couldn’t have telegraphed the ending any harder. Not a good main event, mainly as it went on WAY too long.

The fans throw in trash (the referee is NOT happy) to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show started off well enough but it went on about four hours in total and the fans were just done by the main event. It’s a show where they needed to cut some time off from more than a few matches. I liked the show well enough and a good chunk of it had some of that strong GCW crowd energy, but the main event was rough. It doesn’t help that there is nothing worth going out of your way to see. Spring Break is supposed to be one of the really fun events and this was more forgettable than anything else.

Results
Rina Yamashita/Masha Slamovich b. Minoru Suzuki/Masato Tanaka – Crucifix to Tanaka
East West Express/Mike Bailey b. Rock N Roll Express/Kerry Morton – Double middle rope cutter to Ricky
Dragon Gate Classic b. Reiwa New Generation – Crucifix to Minoura
Cole Radrick won the Grab The Brass Ring Ladder Match
Matt Cardona b. Blue Pain – Radio Silence
Amazing Red b. Gringo Loco – Code Red
Mance Warner b. Effy when Effy quit
Nick Gage/Maki Itoh b. Danhausen/Ram Kaicho – Stereo falling headbutts
Blake Christian b. Joey Janela – Stomp onto a Gucci bag

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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American Dream 2024 In The Keystone State
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Lawlor, Veda Scott

So this is from Stardom, the Japanese women’s promotion, who are in town for Wrestlemania Weekend. I was in town for the weekend and since I’m not likely to ever see something like this again in person, it was worth a look. I’m not sure what to expect from this and that’s part of the fun. Let’s get to it.

I was sitting in the corner of the arena for this show with the entrance on my right and the ring pretty much straight in front of me. Keep in mind that I do not follow Stardom whatsoever and will likely have no idea what is going on as far as characters or storylines. I apologize in advance for any errors but I’m coming in mostly blind.

The opening video runs down the card, which is only five matches.

High Speed Title: Mei Seira vs. Ram Kaichow vs. Saki Kashima

Seira is defending and from what I can tell, this is similar to the X-Division/Cruiserweight Title. The audio mix is really missing as commentary is barely audible over the entrance music and I can’t make out more than a few words of what they are saying. Seira has two belts and Kaichow has one, making things all the more confusing. The fans seem to like Kaichow, who might be a bit dead.

Kashima locks up with Kaichow, who has dust flying off of her to scare Kashima away. More dust gets Kaichow out of a double wristlock before they pick up the pace with Seira hitting a running basement dropkick on Kaichow. They run the ropes until the challengers fall down, leaving Seira as the only one standing. Kaichow rolls Seira up for two and an exchange of rollups give not-Kaichow two each. Back up and Kaichow throws more dust, allowing Kashima to pin Seira for the title at 5:06.

Rating: C+. Well they weren’t kidding about the HIGH SPEED part as this was rather fast paced until the ending, which came out of nowhere. I got the concept well enough and Kaichow’s dust thing made her stand out, but the other two didn’t do much to separate themselves from the other. Either way, it was a nice introduction to the show as it was flying by and kept me interested.

AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae vs. Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe

Saya and Kid start things off, which is apparently a big rivalry. They go to the mat and get nowhere so they both flip up for a staredown. Branae comes in for part of a triple Gory Bomb to put Kid down for two and it’s back to Saya, who gets caught with a headscissors. Watanabe crushes Saya in the corner but gets cut off with a spinning kick to the face. A springboard crossbody gives Saya two and a triple dropkick takes Watanabe down again.

Back up and Watanabe kicks Saya in the head and the double tag brings in AZM and Vaquer. AZM kicks Vaquer in the head and it’s back to Branae, who gets caught with Eat Defeat. Some running knees give Branae two but the villains (I think?) take her into the corner for the train of running shots. Everything breaks down and Kid dives onto the floor to take out AZM and Saya. That leaves Vaquer to headbutt Branae in the corner and go after her recently injured knee. Branae manages a neckbreaker but walks into a package piledriver onto the knee to give Vaquer the pin at 9:11.

Rating: C+. Another fast paced match here as they had a bit more time to showcase the people involved. Six women spread over nine minutes isn’t much but it’s better than cramming it into even less time. Vaquer felt like a star and that makes sense as she is the New Japan Women’s Strong Champion. Not a great match, but if the idea is to get as many people on the show as possible, they’re doing well.

Willow Nightingale/Saki vs. Konami/Syuri

Syuri is one of the most revered names going today and I might have seen her once before. Saki and Syuri start things off with Syuri grabbing a rollup for a fast two, giving us an early standoff. Nightingale comes in for a double shoulder to Syuri but she’s back up t kick Saki in the back for two. Konami comes in for a dropkick and a one kneed cover gets two. It’s already back to Syuri for a kick to the back but Saki suplexes her way to freedom. Nightingale comes back in to run Syuri over, setting up a spinebuster for two.

A Cannonball misses though and Syuri gets two off a DDT. Everything breaks down and Syuri and Konami grab stereo holds, both of which are broken up just as fast. Syuri chokes Saki on the floor, leaving Konami to missile dropkick Nightingale. Saki is back in to make a save and Konami is tossed onto Syuri. Nightingale has had enough of this and hits a heck of a Pounce on Konami, setting up a DDT for two. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 8:28.

Rating: B-. Another fun match here but they were blazing through it again. That’s been a trend with this show, which isn’t the best idea for a five match card. Nightingale continues to be a ball of energy no matter where she is and it’s great to see her getting a win like this. Now give her a win with some gold on the line and it’ll be even better.

Mayu Iwatani/Tam Nakano/Momo Kohgo vs. Mina Shirakawa/Mariah May/Xia Brookside

This is Stars vs. Club Venus, the latter of which comes off as some kind of pop band/Mean Girls deal. Venus seems to be mainly about Shirakawa, with the other two being her henchwomen. May ducks Kohgo’s running dropkick to start and plans her with a very spinning side slam. Brookside comes in for the running knees to the back and we get a triple Venus pose.

The fans approve of Shirakawa coming in and grabbing a quickly released surfboard. May comes back in but gets caught with a dropkick, allowing Kohgo to hit a crossbody. Iwatani comes in and gets to pick up the pace, including a double springboard wristdrag to May and Shirakawa. May is back up with a Sling Blade and it’s Shirakawa coming in for a kick to the head. Nakano comes in for the first time for a shake off (just go with it) with Shirakawa.

A hanging suplex gives Shirakawa two and it’s Brookside coming in with a neckbreaker for the same. Everything breaks down and a double 619 hits Brookside to give Nakano two. Venus is back in with a double Paige Turner to give Brookside her own near fall on Nakano. There’s a running Codebreaker to drop Nakano as everything breaks down again. Iwatani hits a big dive to the floor and a kick to the face gets two on Brookside, with the rest of Venus making the save. Nakano has had it with this and grabs Twilight Dream (tiger suplex) for the pin at Brookside at 12:13.

Rating: B-. This was another case where the extra time helped but the other thing here was it felt like Venus came off as a full time team rather than two people thrown together. Everyone got a chance to shine here and it felt like more of a showcase, with Brookside getting a lot of time in there. Good stuff here, and probably the best match of the show so far.

Post match the winners leave….and here is Toni Storm, with the AEW Women’s Title and a bouquet of flowers. She talks about the time she has had in Philadelphia, where she started with Easter Championship Wrestling. Storm: “I’ll have you know that this is the very place where I entered Sandman.” She puts over Stardom and praises May, even giving her the flowers. As for Mina Shirakawa, who is standing in the ring as well, the Forbidden Door is always open. Shirakawa is game.

We recap the main event. Maika is the World Champion, Megan Bayne is a power monster, they’ve teamed together and fought before, title match on.

World Of Stardom Title: Maika vs. Megan Bayne

Bayne, billed as the Megasus and the much larger of the two, is challenging. Maika tries some running shoulders to no avail so she tells Bayne to come on. An armdrag works better but Bayne is back up to run her over with a real shoulder. A butterfly suplex gets two, followed by a Samoan drop for the same.

Back up and some running clotheslines in the corner give Maika two and she goes after the arm. Bayne powers up and suplexes her way to freedom, setting up a side slam for two more. Maika puts her up top for a superplex and another near fall, followed by a cutter for the same. Bayne is back with a big boot and a heck of a running clothesline to leave them both down.

Back up and they slug it out until Maika snaps off a powerslam. Maika catches her up top with a powerbomb for one but Bayne is back with a heck of a spear. An apron German suplex gives Bayne two more with an F5 getting the same. They go up again and this time it’s a super Michinoku Driver to give Maika two of her own. A Michinoku Driver II gives Maika the pin at 14:24.

Rating: B. This was just starting to cook when they went home, with Maika being a good fighting from underneath champion. Bayne is a monster with something of a Beth Phoenix look/style so there was an obvious story to be told here. Good match and the best part of the show, though they could have gone longer.

Post match respect is shown and here is Momo Watanabe to say she’s the next challenger. Watanabe pulls back her baseball bat to swing at Maika but Bayne gets in her way and sends Watanabe bailing. Maika says they’re on for April 27 in Yokohama before leading the fans in the WE ARE STARDOM chant to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s it? The show didn’t even run an hour and forty five minutes, with the longest match out of five lasting less than fifteen minutes. I’m not sure if that is Stardom’s style, but this was really short and felt like it could have gone another hour or so. What we got was good, but I was sitting in the crowd wondering what else they were going to do because it wasn’t even two hours and then the show just ended. For the prices being charged, this should have been more, as it just didn’t last long enough. What we got was good, but egads give us more than that.

Results
Saki Kashima b. Ram Kaichow and Mei Seira – Crucifix to Seira
Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe b. AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae – Package piledriver onto the knee to Branae
Stars b. Club Venus – Twilight Dream to Brookside
Maika b. Megan Bayne – Michinoku Driver II

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Wrestle Kingdom XVIII
Date: January 4, 2024
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Commentators: Walker Stewart, Chris Charlton, Rocky Romero

It’s the biggest non-American show of the year and the show tends to be rather awesome. New Japan hasn’t seemed as prominent in recent months but this show is always worth at least a look. The main event will see IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Sanada defending against Tetsuya Naito, plus a secondary big match between Kazuchika Okada and Bryan Danielson. Let’s get to it.

Note that I barely keep up with New Japan so I will not know a good deal of backstories, alliances or anything in that area. I’ll be primarily going off what commentary tells me.

New Japan Ranbo

90 second (ish) intervals and the final four are qualifiers for the King Of Pro Wrestling competition (which is a whole thing in its own right). Chase Owens is in at #1 and Great O Khan is in at #2. They go with the expected striking and grappling to start but neither can get anywhere. Gabriel Kidd is in at #3 and gets to beat on both of them, as tends to be the case. Alex Coughlin (Kidd’s stable mate) is in at #4 as O Khan chops away at Kidd in the corner.

The double teaming is on until Jeff Cobb is in at #5 and house is quickly cleaned. Coughlin gets in some shots of his own and it’s Henare in at #6. O Khan, Henare and Cobb (stable mates in the United Empire) get rid of Coughlin and Kidd so here is Tomohiro Ishii in at #7. The trio goes after Ishii but can’t really do much to slow him down. Mikey Nicholls is in at #8 and slugs it out with Henare to little effect. Cobb can’t get rid of Ishii so we keep up with the brawling on the ropes until Shane Haste (Nicholls’ partner in the Mighty Don’t Kneel) is in at #9.

Haste dropkicks Ishii to start and Nicholls suplexes O Khan as Yujiro Takahashi is in at #10. For some reason he brings in a cane, which goes horribly wrong. The Mighty manage to get rid of Cobb and Henare (off camera) but Master Wato is in at #11 to keep the ring a bit more full. That gives us Owens, O Khan, Ishii, Nicholls, Haste, Takahashi and Wato. Yoshinobu Kanemaru is in at #12 and gets to stomp on pretty much everyone else.

A triple submission has O Khan in a lot of trouble but more brawling ensues instead of an elimination. Yoh is in at #13 and is wearing a track suit instead of regular gear so the Mighty beat him up out of principle. Ishii blocks a double suplex and DDTs the Mighty instead as Sho (the Murder Machine) is in at #14. Yoh, his former partner, comes up to brawl with him on the ramp, meaning it’s a fight over Sho’s….wrench. Uh yeah wrench.

Sho gets the better of things and it’s Fujita Hayato in at #15. That seems to be a big surprise and he jumps both Sho and Yoh on the ramp. The three of them get inside with Hayato cleaning house. Taiji Ishimori is in at #16 as Ishii puts Haste on the apron and sends Nicholls into him for the elimination. Ishii and Nicholls go to the apron, where the latter is eliminated as well. Some interference gets rid of Ishii and Hayato is kicked out as Douki is in at #17.

Douki and Ishimori are dumped out by some double teaming and Toru Yano is in at #18. His entrance takes so long that it’s Takashi Iizuka (apparently retired but still rather scary) is in at #19. House is quickly cleaned and Iizuka, after rejecting a House Of Torture shirt, grabs a choke. Taichi is in at #20 (singing his way to the ring) but Iizuka is up with some kind of iron claw (must be a movie fan) to beat up various people.

Sho and Kanemaru are tossed, leaving us with Taichi vs. Iizuka, which apparently has a history. They shake hands but Iizuka bites him in the head, allowing a bunch of people to toss them both out. We’re down to Owens, O Khan, Ishimori, Yoh and Yano (apparently there were some off screen eliminations), with everyone going after O Khan. Owens takes him to the apron but gets knocked out instead, leaving O Khan, Ishimori, Yoh and Yano as the winners at 32:43.

Rating: C+. This is the “get a lot of people on the show” match but this edition worked a bit better than previous years. It felt like they were trying to put some stories in there rather than random people coming out and getting in fights. I liked this well enough and it was a fun start to the show, with the fans certainly seeming to be stunned by Iizuka, who did look cool.

A brawl ensues post match and an announcer loses his clothes for some reason.

As usual, the opening video runs down the card in order (still not sure if I like that or not) with the bigger matches getting the attention.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Catch 22 vs. Bullet Club War Dogs

Catch 22 (Francesco Akira/TJP) are challenging Clark Connors/Drilla Moloney. TJP was locked in a coffin in an earlier match so here he has to claw out and seems a bit more monstrous. We get the intros and TJP reveals one heck of a scary mask (to go with the claws, because he has claws). TJP starts for the champs but gets sent outside for a quick double teaming, including a double dive. Connors is rather pleased and chains TJP to the barricade.

Akira gets beaten down inside and the bleeding Moloney gets in some shots of his own to keep Akira down. Connors powers him into the corner but Akira manages to ram them into each other, setting up a Canadian Destroyer. TJP is back in (commentary isn’t sure how he got free either) and it’s time to clean house.

A running knee in the corner rocks Moloney as everything breaks down. The Drilla Killa (over the shoulder running piledriver) hits TJP but he pops up, only to be taken down by Connors. A spear knocks Akira off the apron as Drilla gets two on TJP. Everyone gets back in and TJP mists Moloney, setting up stereo running knees to give Catch 22 the titles back at 9:26.

Rating: B-. Well they weren’t going to have Catch 22 loses after that kind of an entrance and this made for a good opener to the show proper. Catch 22 has been a good team every time I’ve seen them and the War Dogs got to show off here as well, which is often the case in an opener like this. Good stuff here as the show is starting well.

TV Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Tanahashi (now the company’s president) is challenging and the match has a fifteen minute time limit. Sabre goes after the arms to start and spins around to grab a hammerlock. A quick Twist and Shout gets Tanahashi out of trouble and then does it a few more times to set up a Sling Blade for two. Tanahashi hits a high crossbody but the High Fly Flow (frog splash) hits raised knees. Sabre’s PK is cut off so Tanahashi goes for the Texas Cloverleaf.

That’s reversed into a triangle choke, which is reversed into another Cloverleaf. With that broken up, Sabre grabs a cross armbreaker, only to have them fight over an abdominal stretch. Tanahashi rolls him up for two and they get up for a chop off. Sabre pulls him into a choke so Tanahashi flips backwards for two and the…well not escape actually as Sabre hangs on. Sabre twists his boots around Tanahashi’s head and they trade rollups….with Tanahashi actually getting the pin and the title at 8:51.

Rating: B. This didn’t have a ton of time to get things going but there’s the point of the time limit. I do like the idea of seeing the ending coming out of nowhere as it was a nice surprise and played up the idea of Tanahashi getting what might be one last moment. I’m sure there ill be jokes about Tanahashi getting the title after he takes over the company but Tanahashi winning a title feels right.

Post match Tanahashi wishes the fans a happy new year.

Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura

These two seem to have quite the rivalry with Tsuji looking rather evil. Feeling out process to start with Tsuji powering him out to the floor, setting up a heck of a suicide dive. Back in and Tsuji keeps up the slow beating but gets pulled into a quickly broken cross armbreaker. Tsuji kicks him down again but Uemura comes back up with some slaps to the face. The always nice dropkick puts Tsuji down and they both get a breather.

A belly to back suplex plants Tsuji but the high crossbody misses. They go up top, where Tsuji backflips down and superkicks a diving Uemura out of the air. A suplex into a powerbomb (cool) gets two on Uemura but he avoids a Curb Stomp. Instead Uemura snaps off a German suplex and a dragon suplex gets two on Tsuji. The Deadbolt (a double arm trap suplex) finishes for Uemura at 10:59.

Rating: B-. This was a match where it felt like they were telling a story, with the evil Tsuji facing the more wholesome Uemura. You could see Uemura doing the technical stuff and ultimately winning with a catchy suplex. Good stuff here, and it seems to be part of a rivalry that is going to be continuing.

House Of Torture vs. Shota Umino/Kaito Kiyomiya

Kaito is from Pro Wrestling Noah and Umino comes down on a motorcycle. The House is Ren Narita/Evil, flanked by all kinds of people. It’s a brawl to start and Umino and Kiyomiya grab stereo submissions. Fellow House member Yoshinobu Kanemaru rings the bell for the save and the ref if bumped in there somewhere. Dick Togo comes in for an assisted low blow for a delayed two on Kiyomiya.

Somehow Kiyomiya gets over for the tag but he has to beat up more of the House on the floor. Back in and a Trident (reverse inverted DDT) and a series of strikes get two on Narita. Evil makes the save with…something that looked like a jacket and Everything Is Evil plants Kiyomiya. Umino German suplexes Narita but he’s back with some kind of a bar to Umino’s face for the pin at 7:04.

Rating: C. I’ve seen the House more than once over the years and nothing they’ve done has made me want to see more. It’s like cheating is the only thing they do rather than something that they do and that gets old in a hurry. Umino vs. Narita feels like part of a big feud (tends to be the case with former Young Lions) so odds are they have a long way to go.

Never Openweight Title: Tama Tonga vs. Shingo Takagi

Takagi is defending and this is more or less the tough man title. As such they slug it out to start and trade shoulders to limited avail. Takagi gets caught with a dropkick to cut him down, followed by a suplex to do it again. Back up and Takagi manages a running elbow to the face and Tonga is knocked outside. That means the big running flip dive, followed by some seemingly meaningful yelling into the camera back inside.

Tonga manages to neckbreaker his way to freedom, followed by a top rope superplex for a heck of a bounce. Takagi is back up but can’t hit Last Off The Dragon. Instead it’s a Tonga Twist into a frog splash for two. One heck of a powerbomb gives Takagi two of his own and they both need a breather.

Tonga is right back with a Gun Stun, followed by Bloody Sunday for one. Takagi gets up so Tonga BLASTS HIM with a clothesline to put him back down. Tonga’s running forearm doesn’t work so Takagi hits his own Gun Stun. Made In Japan is good for a rather near fall but a second is escaped. Tonga hits a Styles Clash into another Gun Stun into the DSD (or something like that) for the pin and the title at 13:47.

Rating: B. These matches tend to be about who can hit the other the hardest and keep getting up and that’s what we had here. I’ll take this kind of a match over the “you chop me, I’ll chop you” fests as they were both laying it in throughout this one. Tonga wins the title back, which seems to be a recurring theme, but it’s also a nice fit for him. Good fight here, though I’m not sure if there was much of a story built in.

Nick Nemeth (Dolph Ziggler) and his brother Ryan Nemeth are here in a surprise.

IWGP Tag Team Titles/Strong Openweight Tag Team Titles: Bishamon vs. Guerrillas Of Destiny

For both sets of titles (not unification), with Bishamon (Hirooki Goto/Yoshi Hashi) holding the IWGP and the Guerrillas (Hikuleo/El Phantasmo) holding the Strong. Hashi chops away at Phantasmo to start but Goto comes in to run him over. Hikuleo comes in for a double suplex to take over and the fans seem impressed. A side slam into a middle rope elbow gets two on Goto as the Guerrillas clear the ring.

Sudden Death (superkick) is broken up though and Hashi suplexes his way out of trouble. The bigger Hikuleo is sent outside and a running Blockbuster/Russian legsweep combination drops Phantasmo. Back up and Phantasmo manages a running hurricanrana to bring Goto off the top and into Hashi for a big crash. Phantasmo superkicks Hikuleo by mistake though and it’s Goto getting to make the comeback.

An assisted knee to the chest gives Goto two on Phantasmo and an assisted Nightmare On Helm Street gets the same, with Hikuleo making the save this time. Goto manages a fireman’s carry backbreaker for two on Hikuleo but Phantasmo is back in with a superkick to put Goto down. With Phantasmo moonsaulting onto Hashi, setting up Super Thunder Kiss 86 (that’s a great name) for a rather near fall and what is apparently a first time kickout. A piledriver into a frog splash from Hikuleo finishes Goto for the titles at 9:46.

Rating: B. The match was good but it never hit that next level. I’ve heard little but praise for Bishamon and while they were doing good stuff here, it felt like the first half of what should have been a bigger match. The results also felt like a bit of an upset, even with the other champions having a rather rough night so far.

Celebrating ensues post match.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: El Desperado vs. Hiromu Takahashi

Takahashi is defending and these two feel like they’ve been feuding on and off forever. Desperado doesn’t feel like waiting around so he drops Takahashi with a running flip dive to the floor. Back in and Desperado has to bail out of a top rope splash, allowing Takahashi to hit a running corner dropkick. They head back to the floor with Takahashi sending him over the barricade, followed by a Falcon Arrow for one back inside.

Desperado pulls him into a Brock Lock to work on the leg, with Takahashi bailing straight to the rope. The leg is banged up though and a shinbreaker makes it worse. Takahashi manages a quick knockdown for a breather and then backdrops his way out of a double underhook. They both need a breather before Takahashi grabs a rebound German suplex. Desperado gets the Block Lock again but Takahashi fights out, this time grabbing the Time Bomb for two.

Time Bomb II doesn’t quite work due to the knee so Desperado winds up on top. A super sitout bulldog is countered though, with Desperado hitting a swinging belly to back superplex instead. Desperado misses the big right hand and gets superkicked down to rock him rather well. Time Bomb II is countered again, this time with Desperado hitting something like an Angle Slam. Pinche Loco gets two on Takahashi and they both need another breather. Desperado is back up with a Jay Driller into another Pinche Loco for the pin and the title at 13:51.

Rating: B+.Yeah this worked and you can tell that the two of them have worked together a bunch of times. They had the chemistry flowing and it felt like they were building all the way throughout. Desperado winning the title feels like a huge moment and that’s how something like this is supposed to feel. Probably the best match on the show thus far and I worked rather well.

IWGP Global Heavyweight Title: Jon Moxley vs. David Finlay vs. Will Ospreay

For the inaugural Title, which is replacing the United States Title, which was held by Ospreay. Moxley and Ospreay, who have a pre-match agreement (which only lasts five minutes), jump Finlay to start so he bails out to the floor. The fans don’t approve, but they do like Ospreay kicking Finlay in the face. Moxley crotches Finlay on the barricade for a running clothesline and the double beating goes into the aisle. Finlay manages to send Moxley over some crates and goes after Ospreay, only to get dropped by Moxley again.

A table is loaded up and Finlay is sent through it but the five minute time limit is (mostly) up so Ospreay and Moxley can fight each other. They forearm it out until Moxley grabs a nasty German suplex. Ospreay is able to catch him in the corner with the Cheeky Nandos kick but Moxley snaps off a sleeper suplex. Ospreay’s Spanish Fly is countered into a cross armbreaker but Moxley can’t hang on.

The Death Rider and Stormbreaker are both broken up but Finlay is back on his feet. A neckbreaker (with shillelagh) puts Ospreay down on the apron but Moxley (yes he’s bleeding) is back up. That’s fine with Ospreay, who hits a handspring double kick to the head. Ospreay sends them both outside for a heck of a moonsault. Back in and Moxley is fine enough to hit the Death Rider for two on Ospreay, followed by the bulldog choke. Ospreay is back up but the Stormbreaker is countered into a sunset flip.

With Moxley blocking said flip, he piledrives the invading Finlay onto Ospreay for two in a clever counter. Moxley grabs some chairs to throw inside, one of which hits Ospreay square in the head, and two of which are set up back to back. That takes too long of course, allowing Finlay to put Moxley down and plant Ospreay onto him. Moxley is back up to Death Ride Ospreay, who pops back up with the Hidden Blade, only to have Finlay steal the cover for two. Finlay gets sent outside but comes right back, where he is promptly beaten back down.

Ospreay and Moxley load up something but cue the Bullet Club War Dogs to jump both of them. Some tables are loaded up outside, allowing Moxley and Ospreay to fight back. The Dogs are put on the tables for a huge Swanton from Ospreay, with Coughlin being left in a hole in the table. Back in and Moxley hits Finlay with a Death Rider, only to get caught with the Hidden Blade for….one. Stormbreaker drops Moxley but Finlay is back with the brainbuster onto the knee for two. A knee to the back and another to the face finish Ospreay to give Finlay the title at 22:21.

Rating: B+. This was a heck of a match with Finlay not quite stealing the title as much as he survived to get the win. Moxley and Ospreay beat him up for a good while until everything went nuts, with the interference being the biggest downside. Finlay seems to be a big deal here and with Ospreay going to AEW and Moxley going back to AEW, it was the best choice of the three.

Post match Finlay yells at Nick Nemeth, who gets in his face and is slapped back down. The fight is on until everything is broken up. It’s split up but starts again, as tends to be the case in wrestling. Good debut for Nemeth, who showed some fire here.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Bryan Danielson

Rematch from Forbidden Door, where Danielson beat him. Okada steps into a glass case and his ring gear changes for a rather unique entrance. Danielson on the other hand has an eye patch thanks to Okada, so it’s time for revenge. Feeling out process to start with Danielson winning a grapple off, sending Okada over to the ropes. They forearm it out until Okada gets two off a DDT.

Okada goes vicious with the running kick to the eye and things head outside. Danielson is back up with a jumping knee and then slams the barricade onto Okada for a nasty crash. Back in and a wrist clutch northern lights suplex gives Danielson two, meaning it’s time to break an arm. Significant cranking ensues but Okada slips out and kicks him in the eye. An Air Raid Crash onto the knee puts Danielson back down and Okada goes up.

That takes a good while though and Danielson catches him with an uppercut into a butterfly superplex. The LeBell Lock goes on but Okada is right next to the rope. They head to the apron, where Okada grabs a Tombstone to plant Danielson again. Danielson manages to get back in so the eye patch comes off, with Okada getting in some boot scrapes in the corner. Okada misses his top rope elbow so Danielson kicks him square in the arm, followed by another to the head.

The hammer and anvil elbows have Okada…actually more angry than anything else so Danielson hits the running knee for two. Danielson is livid and grabs something like the Rings of Saturn with his leg instead of an arm. Somehow Okada makes the bottom rope so Danielson grabs the arms again and stomps away at the head.

The LeBell Lock is broken up though and Okada uses the good arm for the Rainmaker. Okada hits him in the face again but has to fight off another LeBell Lock attempt. Another Rainmaker is loaded up but Danielson kicks him in the good arm. A kick to the head and the running knee rock Okada, who avoids another running knee. The Rainmaker finishes Danielson at 23:24.

Rating: A. They surprised me a bit with that finish as I was expecting it to go on even longer. The arm vs. the eye stuff went very well and it wouldn’t shock me to see them face off one more time in some neutral territory. This was every bit as good as it felt like it should have been and I liked it more than the Forbidden Door match. It helped that I could feel the hatred from Danielson, while Okada was more about refusing to lose. Awesome match and well worth a look, as I was left wanting more for a rare feeling.

We recap Tetsuya Naito challenging Sanada for the World Title. Naito won the G1 Climax tournament to earn the shot, then played baseball. Sanada stood on a cliff and held up the title, while looking rather spiffy in a blue suit. This is also more or less Naito’s last chance, while Sanada wanted to show that he can beat his former stable leader.

IWGP World Heavyweight Title: Sanada vs. Tetsuya Naito

Sanada is defending and they go technical to start, with Sanada working on the leg on the mat. Naito reverses into a headscissors but Sanada is up without much effort. Sanada sends him outside and flips back in, where he holds the ropes open for Naito in a rather disrespectful move. Back in and Naito drops him down hard onto the knee to bang up the neck, followed by a cravate.

A backbreaker onto the knee sets up a double arm/neck crank with the legs as Sanada can’t get much going so far. With that one broken up, Sanada avoids a clothesline and dropkicks the knee, setting up a backdrop suplex. A double leapfrog into a dropkick sends Naito outside, with the required dive following. Back in and a TKO gives Sanada two, followed by the dragon sleeper. Naito gets over to the ropes and out to the apron, where a legsweep drops Sanada hard.

Another drop onto the head has Sanada’s neck in more trouble but he beats the count at 18. A super hurricanrana plants Sanada, with commentary calling the move a good luck charm for Naito. The springboard tornado DDT is countered though and Sanada grabs a hanging swinging neckbreaker for the double knockdown. Sanada nips up and hits a Shining Wizard, only to have the moonsault hit knees as he can’t go full Muta.

Naito is back up first and strikes away at the neck, followed by something like a flipping middle rope cutter. Destino connects for no cover but Sanada reverses into a TKO. Sanada’s moonsault gets two and frustration is setting in, but Naito suplexes him onto his head, setting up a spinebuster. More elbows to the neck set up Destino or no cover (that seems like a bad idea).

Another Destino doesn’t go through clean and Sanada is up at two. A Dead Fall plants Naito again and they’re both down for a bit. They strike it out again and Sanada hits something like a Destino of his own. Naito kick shim in the head and hits the tornado DDT but Sanada is back with a bridging rollup for two. Sanada blasts him with another Shining Wizard but Dead Fall is countered into the same thing from Naito. A brainbuster plants Sanada and one heck of a Destino makes Naito champion at 25:35.

Rating: B+. This took some time to get going but the last few minutes were were really good, with the ans going nuts on everything. Sanada put in a heck of a performance of his own and had some very good moments in there, but this was about Naito and the ending was a big rush of emotion from the fans. That’s what you want from a main event like this and Naito gets his big moment. Pretty great main event, especially when it was coming after Danielson vs. Okada.

Post match Naito is busted open but gets the title. He loads up the Los Ingobernables Roll Call (a big thing that was interrupted in his previous chance) but cue the House of Torture to break it up again. Sanada comes in for the save and the fans approve. With the villains cleared out, Sanada shows respect and then leaves. Naito puts his hat on and says he’s holding his microphone because of Sanada, who appreciates that. He thanks the fans and promises a big year before getting to do the roll call that he didn’t get to do years ago. Naito gets the big walk off as commentary wraps everything up.

Overall Rating: A-. This show went the better part of six hours (Kickoff Show included) and it never felt that long, which is one heck of a trick. There was a lot of good stuff here, with the Danielson vs. Okada match being the best on the show. Some of the other matches were getting up there but didn’t quite get over the hump, but when you add them all up, it was a Wrestle Kingdom worthy show. At the very least, they kept it to one night to really make things better. Check this out if you have the chance, though skip the House Of Torture…well everything from them really.

Results
Great O Khan, Taiji Ishimori, Yoh and Toru Yano won the New Japan Ranbo
Catch 22 b. Bullet Club War Dogs – Stereo running knees to Moloney
Hiroshi Tanahashi b. Zack Sabre Jr. – Rollup
Yuya Uemura b. Yota Tsuji – Deadbolt
House Of Torture b. Shota Umino/Kaito Kiyomiya – Bar to Umino’s face
Tama Tonga b. Shingo Takagi – DSD
Guerrillas Of Destiny b. Bishamon – Frog splash to Goto
El Desperado b. Hiromu Takahashi – Pinche Loco
David Finlay b. Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley – Knee to Ospreay
Kazuchika Okada b. Bryan Danielson – Rainmaker
Tetsuya Naito b. Sanada – Destino

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Shiima Xion: From A To DJZ
Date: 2015
Commentators: Joe Dombrowski, Various
Host: Joe Dombrowski

So this is a rather random DVD I got in a grab bag sale a good while ago and I can see why I haven’t wanted to jump into it. What we have here is a look at the Pro Wrestling Ohio/Prime Wrestling career of Shimma Xion, who would go on to be Zema Ion/DJZ in Impact and Joaquin Wilde in NXT/WWE. I’m really not sure that warrants a DVD but I’ve been surprised before. Let’s get to it.

Joe Dombrowski narrates an opening, which is mainly an intro to the first match.

There’s no date given for this but I believe it’s from Pro Wrestling Ohio TV in Lakewood, Ohio on December 15, 2007.

Morty Rackem/Shiima Xion vs. V-Squared

Hobo Joe is with Rackem and Xion while V-Squared is Virus/Virus Grande. V-Squared jump them to start and are quickly knocked outside. Stereo dives take out V-Squared again as we hear about Rackem’s pirate enthusiasm. We settle down to Xion kicking Grande in the face and headscissoring him into Virus. Rackem comes in for a double elbow and a monkey flip out of the corner as this is one sided so far.

It’s back to Xion for two off a dropkick but Grande manages a quick suplex for the tag to Virus. A quickly broken Muta Lock has Xion In more trouble and Grande comes back in for a basement dropkick between the shoulders. Xion fights up and hits a reverse DDT to drop Virus, allowing the hot tag off to Rackem for the house cleaning. Everything breaks down and Rackem grabs some near falls but Grande hits a half nelson backbreaker. Xion gets in a tornado DDT though and Rackem rolls up Virus for the pin at 7:39.

Rating: C. If there was a story behind this one, I wasn’t exactly seeing it. Instead we had a pretty run of the mill match with Rackem and Xion flying around while V-Squared were generic villains. I’m not sure how much this was for a Xion showcase but it shows him early in his career, even if he didn’t do much here.

From January 24, 2010 in Niles, Ohio at a Pro Wrestling Ohio/Championship Wrestling Extreme joint show.

CWE Undisputed Title: Michael Facade vs. Hallowicked vs. Jigsaw vs. Shiima Xion

Facade (The Suburban Terrorist) is defending and this is one fall to a finish. Xion and Jigsaw start things off as apparently this has tags. They go to the mat to start with Xion’s headlocks not getting him very far early on. Xion works on the arm but Jigsaw is right back up as they’re still firmly in the “let’s flip around and not do much” gear. Facade comes in for a high crossbody on Jigsaw before Facade and Xion hit stereo running dives to the other two.

Back in and Facade kicks Hallowicked in the face but Jigsaw drops Facade with a clothesline. Hallowicked takes over on Facade before handing it back to Jigsaw as this has turned into something of a tag match. We hit the chinlock on Facade for a bit, followed by wheelbarrow into a gutbuster to give Hallowicked two. As expected, Jigsaw and Hallowicked get in an argument over the cover as commentary reminds us that Xion is in fact in this match. facade grabs a double DDT to escape and it’s back to Xion.

Everything breaks down and the villains are sent outside, leaving Facade to suplex Xion for two. Jigsaw rolls Hallowicked up for two but Facade takes them both down. A running STO gives facade two on Xion but Jigsaw tries to superkick Hallowicked. With that broken up, Xion superkicks Jigsaw into a German suplex, allowing Facade to get two off a rollup. Facade finally grabs la majistral to pin Hallowicked and retain at 11:39.

Rating: B-. It got better near the end as everyone just started doing stuff and Facade won. Sure it’s cliched, but I’ll take it over a pretty dull tag match. Facade always feels a little bit different than most stars and he did it again here. The villains did their thing well enough, but this really felt like a tag match over a four way. Much like the opener though, you would have almost no idea that this was on a Xion DVD as he was the least important of all four involved.

Xion is now rather heelish and brags about his Filipino looks and physique, complete with hairspray. He’s coming to us from “the finest sweatshops, straight out of Manila.” Obey the spray.

From Pro Wrestling Ohio TV, possibly sometime in mid-2011.

Shiima Xion vs. Ben Fruith

Fruith seems to be quite the nerd. Xion applies some hairspray and they fight over wrist control to start. Fruith is sent into the corner but avoids a charge and comes out with an armdrag into an armbar. Back up Fruith has to slip out of a bell to back suplex and gets a rollup (yes, it’s called the Fruith Rollup) for two. Not that it matters as Xion pulls him into a crossface for the tap at 3:47.

Rating: C. This was at least something of a showcase for Xion, which is what this has been needing so far. Fruith was little more than a guy who seems to be a bit out there and having Xion squash him made more sense. There wasn’t much to the match, but at least it was about Xion this time. This was also a much more interesting Xion, who was showing some more personality and charisma.

Post match Xion hair sprays Fruith’s eyes.

No date given on this one,

Shiima Xion vs. Michael Facade

Xion bails to the floor to start before coming back in for Facade to crank on his arm. Xion reverses that into a headlock takeover but Facade is right back up with a dropkick into the corner. The armdrag into an armbar has Facade in control, only to have Xion fight up and hit a dropkick. A middle rope moonsault gives Xion two and we hit the chinlock.

Back up and Facade misses a charge and falls out to the floor but comes back in with a rope walk dropkick. Back in and the Arabian moonsault hits Xion’s raised knees, meaning Xion can grab the crossface. Facade rolls out for the escape and grabs a rollup for the quick pin at 8:17.

Rating: C+. Facade is someone who can move around in a different way than a lot of people and it makes him easy to watch. That was the case in the four way earlier and it’s the same thing here. What’s also the same thing here is Xion not having much success, as this continues to be one of the stranger DVDs I’ve ever seen.

Post match Xion hits him with the can of hair spray before grabbing Facade’s spray paint. Two other guys run in to break up the blinding.

From some point after that match, Facade talks about losing a triple threat match with Xion jumps him. Xion loads up the spray paint, which his kids like to use on walls. He would be mad at that if he knew his kids’ names and then sprays the paint into Facade’s eyes.

From another Pro Wrestling Ohio/Championship Wrestling Extreme show in Niles, Ohio on May 2, 2010.

Championship Wrestling Extreme Undisputed Title #1 Contenders Tournament Semifinals: Shiima Xion vs. Louis Lyndon

Lyndon is also Facade’s friend and is fighting for his honor. Feeling out process to start until Lyndon kicks at the leg and scares Xion away. A German suplex gives Lyndon a fast two and some armdrags put Xion on the floor. That’s fine with Xion, who sends him face first into the apron and drops a leg back inside.

Xion crotches him on top and gets in the crossface in the corner (that’s a new one). A high crossbody gives Xion two but Lyndon is back with a jumping knee to the face, followed by a pump kick for two. Xion is right back to the (non-corner) crossface, which is stacked up for two and the escape. The hair spray is loaded up but the referee takes it away, allowing Lyndon to grab a dragon suplex for the pin at 6:51.

Rating: C+. Another completely decent match but I have to wonder what in the world is up with Xion losing almost every match on the set. We’re coming up on the halfway mark and unless Xion comes up with a heck of a winning streak, he’s going to come out of his own DVD with a losing record. Lyndon was just another guy who was fine enough but didn’t quite stand out, leaving me wondering why this was included.

From….apparently the same day, at an outdoor Pro Wrestling Ohio show this time in Berea, Ohio.

Pro Wrestling Ohio TV Title: Shiima Xion vs. Aaron Draven

Draven is defending (apparently having won the title at the same show from the previous match) and grabs a headlock to start. They go to the mat and fight over some hammerlocks until Draven gets a wristlock. Draven pulls him into an armbar as commentary ignores the match to talk about the main event. Xion kicks a standing moonsault out of the air, allowing him to get in some hair spray (to his own hair for once).

The chinlock goes on for a bit before Xion switches to choking on the ropes. Draven manages a Rocker Dropper for a breather and a high crossbody gets two. A missile dropkick gives Draven two more but Xion drops him face first onto the turnbuckle. Xion goes up but cue Michael Facade for a distraction, allowing Draven to hit a super Spanish Fly to retain (Maybe? The intro said it was for the title but commentary said it was non-title.) at 6:49.

Rating: C. My goodness this is already beyond ridiculous and it just keeps happening. Are we supposed to think of Xion as a loser after watching this thing? Anyway, another completely fine match and at least Xion lost via interference, but it would be nice to see him winning something on his own special.

Post match Facade runs back in and spray paints Xion’s eyes.

The voiceover talks about how Xion left for six months before returning to Prime Wrestling. Haven’t heard of Prime Wrestling? It’s the renamed Pro Wrestling Ohio, but that isn’t mentioned here as this DVD somehow gets worse and worse.

From Pro Wrestling Ohio TV (because it’s Pro Wrestling Ohio again) in Niles, Ohio, sometime around November 2010.

Shiima Xion vs. Jason Gory

Before the match, Xion talks about how he hasn’t been around for a bit and wants Michael Facade but can’t find him. Therefore, he wants anyone out here now and gets….Gory, who was mentioned by the voiceover. Xion takes him down with a headlock to start and grinds away. Back up and a running hurricanrana takes Gory down again but he grabs his own to send Xion onto the entrance ramp.

There’s the big running flip dive to take him down but Xion takes over again back inside. Gory slugs away though and grabs a Code Red for two. Xion hits a belly to back suplex flipped into a facebuster and they chop it out. Lust To Dust (forward Diamond Cutter) out of nowhere finishes Gory at 6:42.

Rating: C+. Well at least he won. It was against a guy in his second match in the promotion and didn’t last long but it’s better than another loss. If nothing else, it’s nice to see that Xion actually has a finishing move, even if it’s not one of the better options. Good enough match here, as Xion gets ready for his next match with Facade.

From Pro Wrestling Ohio: Pressure Rising.

Shiima Xion vs. Michael Facade

This is the big showdown after the exchange of eye attacks. Facade goes after him to start and Xion bails into the corner. After a chase on the floor, Facade grabs a springboard armdrag back inside and gets to hammer away. Xion misses a clothesline and gets caught with a springboard moonsault press for two. Some shots to the face finally slow Facade down and we hit the double arm crank.

Back up and Xion gets sent into the corner, setting up a Samoan drop for two. Facade gets his knees up to block a moonsault though and a bulldog drops Xion again. A superkick rocks Xion but Facade dropkicks the referee down (thanks to Xion pulling him in the way). They both grab their spray cans but miss the blasts to the face. Xion sends Facade into the corner, only to come back and reverse the hair spray into Xion’s face instead. A sitout Tombstone finishes for Facade at 7:02.

Rating: C+. We spent the better part of the last hour building up this match and it’s seven minutes long? I liked the ending and it was about as perfect of a way to wrap it up as they could have gone but I was expecting more from this showdown. The match itself was good, but not exactly a classic.

From some time after March 12, 2011 on Pro Wrestling Ohio TV.

Shiima Xion vs. Matthew Justice

Justice starts with an armbar as this show appears to be in a flea market or something similar, with customers walking around behind the crowd. An armdrag sets up another armbar to cut Xion off before a crucifix gets two. Xion grabs an atomic drop into a pair of boots to the face for two of his own.

We get the pose including the hair spray to the hair but Justice knocks him away and hits a middle rope sunset flip for another near fall. There’s a powerslam to plant Xion but he’s right back with the crossface. Justice is able to power up for a Death Valley Driver and a near fall so Justice heads to the apron. The springboard clothesline is pulled into the crossface though and Justice taps at 7:08.

Rating: C+. I’ve liked what I’ve seen from Justice before and he did well enough here, though Xion seemed to be a bigger star and the more logical pick to win. If nothing else, Xion needed a win coming off the loss to Facade and he did well enough here. It would be nice if Xion evolved a bit, but that doesn’t seem likely anytime soon.

Post match Xion hair sprays Justice.

From some other unspecified show.

Shiima Xion vs. Gory

Crimson, seemingly some kind of an evil force, leads Gory to the ring on a leash. Xion takes him to the mat to start before armdragging him into a front facelock (he’s wrestling much less evil here so we might have missed a change). Gory knocks him outside for a beating from Crimson and the choking is on back inside.

A slingshot elbow gets two for Gory, who shrugs off a middle rope crossbody and chokes away some more. Xion jawbreaks his way to freedom and slugs away before hitting a rather hard clothesline. Crimson’s distraction lets Gory Codebreaker him out of the air for two but cue Facade to distract Gory. Xion is able to grab a small package for the pin at 5:54.

Rating: C. This was a slightly different Xion and after watching him do the same thing for so long, it’s nice to see him getting to mix it up a bit. At the same time, this was another short match that didn’t get the chance to do anything. Anyway, at least it was something out of the ordinary, which is one of the best possible options.

Post match Facade and Xion stare each other down and don’t seem to like each other.

Another undated match from Niles, Ohio.

Shiima Xion vs. Gory vs. Michael Facade

For a future Pro Wrestling Ohio TV Title shot. Facade and Xion go at it to start but Gory quickly takes Facade’s name to go after Xion. With that not working, Xion is sent to the floor for a change, leaving Facade to send Gory outside. The rope walk dive hits Gory but Xion takes Facade down. Back in and Gory hits some rapid fire legdrops for two on Xion but Facade hits a springboard spinwheel kick for his own two on Gory.

Back up and Gory serves as the base for a Tower Of Doom, followed by the exchange of rollups for two each. Gory Backstabs Xion for two, with Facade making the save and taking him down as well. A sitout Alabama Slam gives Xion two on Facade, who is right back up with a springboard bulldog to Gory. Cue TV Champion Bobby Beverly to jump Facade for the DQ at 8:54.

Rating: B-. This is another match that was starting to get good before they wrapped it up out of nowhere. There is a good chance that this is going to result in a four way for the title anyway, which is not the worst idea as they were doing some good stuff. That being said, can we get another match to break ten minutes already?

Post match the beatdown stays on until Beverly finally leaves.

From another unspecified date in 2011 in Niles, Ohio.

Michael Facade/Shiima Xion vs. Bobby Beverly/Gory

Beverly grabs Facade’s wrist to start and shoves him down, only to have Facade tie up the leg on the mat. Gory comes in but gets shouldered down as Beverly has a seat at ringside. It’s off to Xion for a running boot to the face so Facade can come back in for a front facelock. Facade chops Xion for a tag so Xion chops Gory, saying that’s how Facade did it. A slap tag brings Facade back in but the argument lets Gory get in a shot to take over.

As commentary talks about Kevin Nash coming in for an upcoming show, Beverly comes back in for two off a suplex. Facade scores with a spinwheel kick and it’s back to a less than enthusiastic Xion. A springboard DDT hits Beverly but Xion superkicks Facade by mistake. Xion’s middle rope moonsault hits raised knees and Gory spikes Xion with a kneeling Tombstone. Facade takes Gory out by Beverly pins Xion at 8:04.

Rating: B-. And Xion losses again. Yeah it was to the champion, but they couldn’t make Xion feel less important if they were trying to with this set. This was your standard way to set up a multiman match and the action went well. Just come up with something better for Xion on the DVD ABOUT XION.

Then Xion signed with Impact Wrestling (as Zema Ion and later DJZ) and didn’t get to wrestle in the four way title match.

About eight minutes of trailers for other DVDs wrap us up.

Overall Rating: D+. What was that? There were 12 matches on here, Xion lost about half of them, and wasn’t even the focal point in more than a few of them. It was more a look at Xion’s feud with Facade than anything else and even then it didn’t feel like a special story. I’m not sure why this needed to exist as it’s basically a look at a short stretch of time for a midcarder in a middle of the road independent promotion.

On top of that, even the best matches were only decent at best. It didn’t make Xion look like a star and feels like nothing more than a cash-in on someone who became a bigger deal elsewhere. Pretty lame here, with one of the weakest DVD collections I’ve seen from just about anywhere.

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