Shine 37

Pre-match notes: 

*Show stars with Lufisto coming out to the ring, pissed as all get out. I love this.
*Looks like Lufisto gets that title shot after all tonight.
*Everybody from the back has already cleared out once.

Match 1: Sparkle Showcase match - Dominique Fabiano vs. Priscilla Kelly.

*I've never seen either of these wrestlers actually wrestler, but I have heard of both. Just based off entrances/inital thoughts i'm rooting for Fbiano. I'm a fan of the pink hair.
*Kelly trained by Murder-1, holla.
*Lots of mat based slow wrestling early on - not entirely sure this is what the crowd is wanting right now.
*"I'm surprised that none of the ladies have used a shortcut yet" - Cheating is the normal around here.
*Kelly gets the win after Fabiano dominated most of the match. Jayme Jameson comes out after the match to announce that Marti Belle is going to be at the show tonight. Jameson also hates the crowd.
*Jameson says how there is nobody to challenge for the tag team titles, Fabiano and Kelly decide to team up to challenge the tag team champs.

Match 2: Layne Rosario vs. Luscious Latasha

*Luscious Latasha so over with the crowd. Poor Layne Rosario - doesn't have a chance to get over with this crowd.
*I like the character of Rosario just being this badass tough girl.
*Rosario tries to hit Latasha with the skates again, misses, they bounce back and hit her. Latasha continues her win streak.

Match 3: Randi West vs. Rachael Ellering

*Randi West has some real dope entrance music, I'm a fan of that.
*Match begins with some grond work and the two ladies are just trying to feel each other out right now.
*Ellering and West just trading shots back in forth. Pretty awesome stuff.
*Big fan of how Randi West uses the outside to her advantage.
*West being in charge of this match is absolutely killing the crowd, but that's pretty normal for Shine crowds when their favorite isn't winning.
*Ellering gets the victory after hitting a TKO on West. A real good back and forth match. I'd like to see more Randi West in this promotion.

Match 4: 4-Way Freestyle - Kennadi Brink vs. Tracy Taylor vs. Amber Gallows vs. Leva Bates

*Cool to see Leva Bates back, Leva also already did a suck it chant in this match. So she's really going for the crowd favorite award.
*I like how this is supposedly a four way match that instantly breaks down to a one on one match.
*I like that I have more perspective on when things go out of the ring now that I know how truly small The Orpheum is in person.
*The thing is besides Leva (and that's mostly just because it's her return), I don't really have anybody to root for in this match.
*Credit to Kennadi Brink for playing a good heel though. She truly gets the crowd to hate her.
*Amber O'Neal hits a spinning kick on Leva and it looks like Kennadi Brink was going to break up the pin attempt, but just allows Amber Gallows to get the victory. That's an interestnig way to finish the match.

Match 5: Stormie Lee vs. Thea Trinidad

*Thea Trinidad has some great entrance music too. No idea why she comes out with a baseball bat though.
*I really like how this card is pretty loaded with new talent showing up in Shine. Shine doing a pretty good job of keeping things fresh considering how regularly their talent gets raided.
*In the early moments of the match, Trinidad is controlling the match. Stormie wisely goes to the outside to take a break.
*Heels kind of have it easy when in the Orpheum, all you have to do is take a shot at the crowd which in fairness is pretty easy to do. Granted, if you are int he crowd it's easy to yell some dumb stuff. Those cheap Pabsts go a long way.
*Stormie Lee has some sweet looking submission moves a whole lot. I also like how it's a key part of her offense and she keeps going to that well.
*Thea Trinidad hits a moonsault to get the victory. I was more impressed by Lee to be honest.

Match 6: Raquel vs. Santana

*I don't expect this match to last very long. I don't really have any expectations from Raquel. That being said it would be interesting to see if she has improved.
*Santana vs. Raquel? Apparently Santana trains Raquel that's pretty dope. Though, saying that Raquel is on tv every week on Impact is something. (Somethign that could be true, I'm not sure).
*I don't know if Santana is just carrying Raquel or if Raquel has improved that much. But she is looking really good in this match so far.
*Santana needs to be in NXT already. And then on the main roster two months after that. She rules.
*Right now this is easily the match of the night and I don't think I would've ever expected Raquel to be in a match of the night candidate.
*After a series of back and forths, Raquel manages to get the upset victory. Awesome win for her - surprising finish.

Match 7: Vanessa Kraven vs. Su Yung

*Looking forward to this one, hope it's a real slugfest.
*Su Yung's transformation to this character is fantastic stuff. Like, the progression of Su Yung in this promotion is amazing.
*"OH JUST GETTING PAINT BRUSHED BY SU YUNG" - That's a funny call on commentary.
*Every show gotta have a spot at the bar because that's why you fight in the Orpheum.
*"I think the referee is giving these guys some leeway" - Good, that's a referee who knows what he is doing. Giving the fans what they want.
*This fight has devolved into mostly a brawl and I expected nothing less and yet I still love it so so much.
*Su Yung is more of a flyer than I thought. Not that that's all that she relies on, but she goes to the top rope/high flying moves more than I remembered.
*"The native of Dead Horse, Alaska" - Is that a real city? Oh technically it's Deadhorse, Alaska and they have an airport.
*Su Yung kicks out after 1 after taking a beat. Crowd erupts in a one chant, Kraven can't believe it.
*Kraven wins as a result of the ref calling off the match. Su Yung gets on the mic and breathes heavily and requests more.
*The two fight to the back.

Match 8: Paris Kelly & Dominque Fabiano vs. BTY (Marti Belle & Jayme Jameson) for the SHINE Tag Team Championship

*Shut up commentary, I don't want to hear travel excuses. Marti Belle was probably in the airport buying things at Hudson News, eating garbage food, and having some fun times.
*They keep using the term New Kids On the Block for Fabiano and Kelly, that has to be their tag team name right?
*Unsurprisingly, BTY is looking strong in the very beginning of the match. Champions gonna look good.
*I like Marti Belle just denigrating Kelly and patting her on the head, giving her no respect whatsoever.
*Not a fan of Marti Bella wrestling with a t-shirt on. I don't like anybody who wrestles with a t-shirt on. It's alawys garbage.
*Oh ok, she finally took it off - so I can forgive her now.
*Commentators are doing a good job tonight with actually providing key information and analysis, but dear lord do I miss drunk Amber Gertner.
*I love how Kelly & Fabiano are showing a lot of fight. Not giving into the champs. (I still think their inexpeience is gonna cost them)
*I love how SHINE really uses the Rolling Elbow as a badass move in a lot of these matches.
*Kid Cadet screwed up that call - but, BTY manages to reatain their titles. Probably the best of scenarios really. I still like the fight/spirt of Fabiano and Kelly though. Fabiano a two time loser tonight, rought night in the Orpheum for her.

Match 9: Andrea vs. Mercedes Martinez

*It's crazy how good Andrea has gotten and how much she's done a hell of a job of improving herself from the Rosie Lottalove days. Like she put in the work, and that deserves all of the credit.
*I never really got to see al ot of Mercedes Martinez action before she came back to the indies after her long hiatus. I really only knew of her reputation, but I'm glad to see her back.
*Andrea had an extensive carerr in Japan? Is that actuall true? I'll have to look that up.
*I thought that this match was going to be a bit of a quick cooldown prior to the main, but it's geting more time than I thought it would.
*It's in no way shape or form a bad match, I'm just ready for the main event and getting tired. I Hate when things like sleep affects your enjoyment in a show. Trying to stay as positive as possible.
*That's mostly how I want to watch/view every wrestling show. Find the fun parts of that and talk about it. Don't focus too much on the negative.
*"This one starting to break down right now" - Couldn't this be said about almost every match in SHINE Wrestling?
*Match ends in a Double DQ, shoot. I really hate non-finishes but I guess they have to do what they are going to do.

Match 10: Malia Hosaka (w/ Leilani Kai) vs. Thunderkitty in an "I Quit Match"

*Gonna flip alignment, I'm rooting for Hosaka in this one even though it seems unlikely that she'll win.
*Only gross thing I will say about this crowd right now is that when these two went for the face to face showdown some people in the crowd said "KISS". But eh they've been at the Orpheum for two and a half hours, they are drunk. It happens.
*I shouldn't really dislike Malia Hosaka - she's pretty badass really. Then again, I don't know if they ever let her win either. If so not every often anyway.
*Crowd is getting real into this - they might be feeling the booze and also growing indifferent. If I was in that crowd (which I could've been I would've been having so much fun tonight)
*I like how unlike a WWE I Quit Match, they don't ask them every 30 seconds if the person is ready to quit.
*Oh hell yea, they are going into the crowd and just wrecking shit.
*One of my favorite spots in wrestling is when both wrestlers sit on chairs and just exchange blows and I'm glad that they did that int his match right here.
*Hosaka beinng more brutail in this match than Thudnerkitty is being in my opinion.
*Crowd is chanting for blood, you mosnters.
*I like the fact that Thunderkitty is just smashing Hosaka across the head with a beer.
*Uh... what? That ending came out of nowhere after a ref decision. Was that legit?
*Apparently Hosaka loses. Guy in the crowd nails it - "that's the third match you ruined ref".
*Only time I've ever been pro-Hosaka but that end was bullshit.

Match 11: Lufisto vs. Ivelisse for the SHINE Championship

*I'm all in for Lufisto winning, but if Ivelisse retains I'm not going to hate on that. I love both of these competitors.
*Hell yea, match starts off as an explosion of energy and fighting.  Will always love when matches start 'hot' versus when the start in 'slow' buildups, even though I get why that is effective.
*Crowd is too pro-Ivelisse. I wish Ybor City at least did some more dueling chants. They always have their one favorite thoguh.
*So awesome, the intensity that Lufisto is wrestling in this match. This match is telling a good story about how much Lufistio wants this title.
*I like how Lufisto is just staying intense and brutal and isn't letting up at any point in this match.
*Lufisto really controlled most of this match, Ivelisse took a hell of a beating, but is finally starting to get some momentum.
*Ivelisse retains.. ugh. The one thing that drives me crazy about Shine is how the finishes just happen quickly.
*There's a stable run in at the end of this event, because there is always a heel run in at the end of these events.
*Shine booking crutches are something.
*I love that the people in the crowd are crapping on this end show promo. Because whooph it's rough.
*Holy hell, the end of this show doesn't make much sense.
*So the end of the show is the formation of C4 which comprises of Amber Gallows, Lufisto, Kennadi Brink, and Andrea. (yawn)

Wrestle Kingdom X

Match 1: New Japan Rumble Match

*A mild heads up, I"m going to get confused with who is who in this match a whole lot.
*The match begins with Liger, Fujiwara, and Tiger Mask. Fujiwara kepts a decent amount of offense in.
*Fujiwara's expression of disbelief comes out is fantastic.
*So minute intervals I guess.
*Mascara Dora's entrance outfit is great.
*The Mascara vs. Dorada sequence is real great where they just go at it.
*Captain New Japan gets elminated by Fujiwara, who then gets eliminated by the remaining people in the ring. It shouldn't surprise me that Captain New Japan was first out. Of course he is.
*I love how Nakanishi is going for multiple top rope moves in this match, even though it makes no logical sense.
*Did Yuji Nagata's shirt say anti-aging?
*Saito eliminates Tiger Mask after a splash. Also it took me awhile to realize that you can do pin or submission to eliminate somebody in this match.
*It's kind of a bummer that all these guys who have awesome masks end up taking them off when they wrestler.
*I don't really have a lot to say about this mch, except it's nice to see these older guys getting the chance to mix it up and do their spotlight moves at a spotlight event.
*King Haku really fills out a Bullet Club shirt. I like how they let Haku enter the ring and at least wreck some fools.
*The Great Kabuki's entrance is like "here our my karate moves and nunchucks" - now hold on, lemme saunter to the ring.
*Cheeseburger is actually pretty great in this, really plays up to his strong points of being cowardly.
*The Great Kabuki doing a karate kick-off I don't know if that was well advised. And then he gets disqualified for mist? Mist shouldn't be a disqualification.
*I love how the match completely stops for Jado's entrance and I like the firey spirit of his valet (Momoka Ariyasu).
*Though, I'm not enitrely sure how the ring cleared out so quickly. It seems like there were a few eliminations that weren't shown.
*Last person in wins, never my favorite outcome of a rumble. But Jado is so thrilled so it works.

Bonus: Doraemon segment. 

*I know nothing about Doraemon at all or what is going on here. But I will try to make sense of it. 
*So I'm guessing that this girl is the main lead and hangs out with this nerd boy in glasses, and the E.T. looking character somehow plays a role either as an imaginary character type or something. I don't know what caveman underwear dude's do though.
*I think the most confusing part of this is why Japanese underwear man needs to wear the workout clothes.
*Why isn't the English commentary trying to make sense of this?
*Whatever problem or presentation was going on leads to a dance off, and everybody in the crowd is going to get some nachos. (I don't know if they eat nachos in Japan).
*I'm mostly disappointed that the alien figure didn't have more of an impact/role in this segment.

Match 2: The Young Bucks vs. reDRagon vs. Roppongi Vice for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship

*Cody Hall made the show, as the designated piggyback guy. And the crowd loves The Young Bucks.
*The Roppongi Vice theme is so so good.
*Really excited to see what Matt Sydal & Ricochet bring to this match. I haven't seen them tag before.
*I will always laugh at a crotch chop.
*Trent goes to the top and Nick Jackson hitsthe rope which makes him crash into the ring buckle hard.
*The Young Bucks work so fluidily with each other and are totally in synch with what they want to do. Actual tag team parternships rule.
*I love how Ricochet gets in the ring and starts to take over, leaving to a sweet double flip onto one of the Jackson's.
*Cody Hall hurling Ricochet with a Razor's Edge to the floor is pretty good.
*I can't believe that Ricochet manages to kick out even after that beating he got from Hall and the Jacksons.
*I love the psychology of how this match is paced. It's funny how you don't see a team for awhile and then they just come in and tear the house down.
*Cody Hall is makin ga huge impact in this match, but he is also getting a lot of comeuppance for interfering too.
*An everybody gets suplexed spot is awesome. In fact so awesome, that NJPW actually bothered showing a replay on that.
*Rocky Romero being a clothesline machine is awesome.
*The Jacksons win after hitting More Bang For Your Buck.
*Fun match.

Match 3: The Briscoes & Toru Yano vs. Bullet Club for the NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship

*Tama Tonga looks like a a juggalo, but is he the best juggalo wrestler.
*The pairing of the Briscoes with Yano seems super random.
*Match starts out with the Briscoes in control and super into performing in the Dome.
*Bad Luck Fale is not very good. He looks godo when he actually kicks it into another gear, but it takes him awhile/forever to get there.
*Tama Tonga was really the only strong point of his team. The Briscoes made that match decent, and Yano's influence finally paid off.
*I'm a fan of how the Briscoes get a nice spotlight moment in NJPW.

Match 4: Jay Lethal vs. Michael Elgin for the ROH World Championship

*Elgin wearing a pretty boss robe.
*Elgin begins in acontrol nd looks impressive as all hell. Especially when he is just refuseing to take these knee strikes and holding up Lethal forever.
*Lethal jumps to the outside and just crunches hard against the guard rails. Apparently that only souped him up for a second dive.
*Jay Lethal deserves some credit for some of these stiff shots that he takes from Elgin.
*Lethal somehow manages to take the unrelenting assault from Elgin and manages a comeback.
*Elgin's rolling series of Geran suplexes is great. I like how Elgin seems poised in this match.
*Lethal kicking out of that Deadlift from the top rope is crazy.
*Lethal hits Elgin with the Book of Truth, which makes Elgin loopy. He then follows it up with the Lethal Injection to maintain the title.
*Not sure where Elgin goes from him, thought this was going to be a redemption match for him. Either way, still an impressive showing from him.

Match 5: Kushida vs. Kenny Omega for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship

*Kushida is dressed up like Marty Mcfly which is sweet. 
*Doc Brown/Taguchi getting superkicked before the match starts is ridiculous. But I do like how Omega begins by just whipping the snot out of Kushida with his own vest.
*I do love how the Bullet Club seems like a strong unit here, unlike in that Bad Luck Fale match. The Young Bucks doing all of this while wearing their championships is a nice touch too.
*Young Bucks drumline, why not.
*Kushida is focusing on one target which is somethign that I always like, also his kicks look good.
*Kushida gets some huge air when he dives at Omega on the outside.
*When wrestlers come in with a game plan and just stick to it, I love it.
*Both Kushida and Omega are doing a nice job of selling the impact of every single move.
*Taguchi finally gets summoned back to life after forever and takes out the Young Bucks.
*The strikes in this match are brutal.
*Omega has a weird fascination where he likes to grab on the trunks a lot.

Match 6: Great Bash Heel vs. Bullet Club for the IWGP Tag Team Championship

*Crowd is really behind Makabe and Hona. When Makabe first gets tagged in they explode.
*Doc Gallows very explicitly yells out "Fuck You Makabe."
*Not that this ref is even counting, but I think that a twenty count is probably better for outside of the ring segments than a ten count.
*Frustration in wrestlers is awesome. I love where Anderson goes for three straight pinfalls in a row and I also like how Striker actually makes a solid point on commentary about this. He mentions that at the very least it takes a lot of energy for a wrestler to kick out.
*This match has a ton of brawling outside the ring with whoever isn't involved in the match at the time for some reason.
*This spot where Makabe and Gallows both get the hot tag and just throw shot after shot after each other is great.
*Makabe is a workhorse in this match. Everything from Lariat after lariat to reviving HOman just to toss him into Anderson.
*I feel like Makabe started bleeding and that set him into a completely other gear.
*Match started off slow, but the ending made up for it.

Match 7: Hirooki Goto vs. Tetsuya Naito

*Evil has a pretty sweet entrance. Really everything about Los Ingobernables de Japon entrance is awesome.
*Attacking before the bell, what a trend.
*Goto gets driven through a table and this table seems to have far less give than WWE tables.
*I like how eeven though Naito is trying to cheat his way through this match, he is also balancing this out by imploring tons of submission moves and grinding down Goto.
*Goto delivers a ridiculous top rope flip maneuver to Naito, that Naito somehow manages to kick out from.
*Goto is getting stronger through the absorbing of kicks.
*Ref takes a bump, Los Ingobernables interfere and this doesn't seem to work out. Naito responds with a huge kick to Goto's dick.
*Despite everything, Goto manages to overcome the odss and prevail in that match. Makes the Ingobernables look like chumps.

Match 8: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii for the NEVER Openweight Championship

*Shibata's entrance has so many spotlights, but I like how he just goes by 'The Wrestler' and seems so determined on only fighting.
*I expected that these two just wanted to beat the hell out of each other, and I wasn't wrong. The intro starts extremely furious and fast.Hell, they start to do the forearm trade off spot super uickly.
*I love how these guys are just sitting down to take kicks from each other back and forth. Bunch of tough bastards. I never thought this match would just be let's see how much we pain we can tolerate.
*Both of these men are tough s hell, but there is no denying the speed advantage and quickness that Shibata has over Ishii.
*More of  war than a match. 
*This feels like a never ending battle of punching brick walls, but in a good way.
*Every once in awhile, one of these men do attempt to do a subission or  wrestling move and it just feels so so wrong in ways.
*There are multiple instances in this match where both men just seem to grow exhausted at the same time after a series of beatings and just collapse at the same time. It's such a nice touch and puts them over as both super strong.
*Every single collision in this match looks completely devastating.
*Ugh, trading headbutsss. Ouch.
*After a long brutal, hard hitting battle, Shibata comes away with the win.

Match 9: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for IWGP Intercontinental Championship

*AJ Styles doesn't really seem intimitidating in his Bullet Club mask. He just kind of seems like a dork.
*Crowd really got so much hotter with this match.
*Match starts out interesting with a series of strength tests and submissions.
*Match continues going back and forth, and AJ uses his back as an advantage to lure Nakamura into a false sense of safety which allows AJ to gain control in the match.
*These guardrails will get involved in every single match I"m pretty sure.
*Nakamura is brutal and continues to target the back.
*A weird subtext in this match is "how many times can Nakamura miss his finisher?"
*And he finally hits it, but doesn't have the energy to make the pin. And the matches continues.
*After a series of exchanging blows left and right, Nakamura goes for the cocky pin. Doesn't get the win.
*Nakamura refuses to give up after AJ hits him with a BOO MA YE (sp?) and the 450 splash.
*This match picked up heavily. Mostly, I think the story of this match is that both of thes guys are equally matched with each other and that this match is mostly a competition of wills.
*No matter has really been able to gain an advantage at any point in this match.
*Nakamura finally manages to retain after hitting two consecutive Bom Me YEAs.
*A sign of respect at the end of the match always rules.

Match 10: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship

*Okada's entrance is on such a bigger level than anybody else's on this show (except for Doraemon).
*Lots of good back and forth wrestling and countering. Obviously opponents who have faced time and time again.
*Tanahashi finally gets sent to the outside, which gives Okada and opportunity to rest up. Of course since Tanahashi is outside, he has to get thrown into the the guardrail, which Okada then uses to fly over the guard rail and nail Tanahashi.
*Okada continues to control Tanahashi, who misses epcially on a swanton. Okada seems to be a slight step ahead throughout most of this match.
*Tanashi has a pretty wise game plan by going after Okada's various limbs.
*This spot where Okada barely meets the 20 count after being laid out on the outside by Tanahash was well done/well timed.
*The battle wages on as both men find the strength to get to theri feet and start exchanging harsh blows to each other.
*Okada's dropkicks are beaitufiul. Four dropkicks in a row, dang.
*Okada is just hitting finisher after finisher and it's having no effect. Tanahashi can not be defeated in this match.
*I will never root against anybody who is rocking the Texas Cloverleaf.
*In a similar fashion, Okada also won't go down without fighting.
*Okada pulls off the victory, oh yea.

Misc. Notes:

*I went with the English commentary on this out of curiosity. I really don't want to harp on commentary too much, but I don't think Yoshi Tatsu is very good.
*I like the set up around the ring. The led screens are a nice touch.
*So awesome that they are just hitting each other's finishers on each other now.
*I definitely lost track of how many fnishers there were awhile ago, but it doesn't m

Inter Species Wrestling - Boner Jam III

I am only vaguely familiar with this promotion. I have been following their stuff for years, from a distance, but I have never actually watched a complete show. I have seen what they offered at #Rawalternative (which I am glad that they are at the forefront of), but coming into this almost totally raw is definitely interesting. I love how the introduction/beginning of this show is just swearing/rowdy as hell. There's a lot of charm in how filthy/crass/and how generally chaotic this is.

Match 1: Dirty Buxx Belmar vs. Dave Cole

*Belmar has some ugly ass tattoos, but I don't know if these are actually real.
*"The dirtiest dick in all of wrestling", cock maneuvers galore.
*WAIT is Belmar rubbing a condom on his dick? WHAT AM I WATCHING?
*A CONDOM REVERSAl. RUBBERS TO THE CROWD.
*Belmar has a finisher called The Rape, I don't know how I feel about that. It's a pretty cool move but shit.
*MORE CONDOMS FROM Belmar. Diet Hep-C(Si) is a pretty funny move name.
*So Belmar wins with a finger in the throat move, that's interesting.
*A pretty decent opener with a good mix of "comedy" and high spots. Didn't flow too decently as an actual match, but the spots that were done connected well enough with the crowd.

Match 2: Fluffy The Killer vs. Leon St. Giovanni
*So, is Fluffy the Killer a cat? Oh no, it's the rabbit guy - that makes more sense, but he is managed by a cat guy apparently. Of course as any stereotypical killer gimmick that exsists he decides to go with the always devastating ring gear of "Scrubs".
*Is Leon St. Giovanni the guy with the fantastic mustache? I also didn't catch his managers name but he is wearing this pretty great vest. I think it's John Hart?. That seems about right.
*I wonder what this fluffy guy is billed as, he is a huge dude.
*NO A MUSTACHE GOT RIPPED OFF. And now Fluffy attached it to himself.
*I love how Fluffy completely whiffs this dropkick. Fluffy goes for another move/flip from the apron to the inside, again whiffs. I like how this rabbit seems to have a lot of spirit even if he doesn't seem to be the most technical of wrestlers.
*Giovanni pulls out an Easter basket and snaps a chocolate Easter bunny in half. This is ridiculous but in the best of ways. And now Fluffy is doing the standard hulking up part of the match.
*Fluffy's ask deserves some kind of appreciation. I don't know what this appreciation is, but I think it's because they simultaneously pull of both hideous and happy as looks of the rabbit.
*Fluffy wins the match with what might be one of the sloppiest finishing moves that I have seen. I seriously don't even know what move they were trying to go for, and then his manager comes into the ring and begins coddling him. Well alright then.

Match 3: Lucky Sabiti vs. Gran Akuma
*Oh no, Steven the Turtle is on commentary. This could be bad.
*I know him from his days of "Chikara" - WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?
*Gran Akuma looks dumber with hair. God bless the guy in the crowd who yelled "BABY HAIR"
*Akuma kind of looks like a badass. And this match is surprisingly more technical than I expected so far.
*God damn Akuma just delivered one sweet and fierce top rope dropkick to Sabiti's head.
*There is still the overwhelming feeling that they are just going through "moves" without a lot of flow. And I hate that I'm critiquing that. Because ultimately this match is pretty cool so far.
*That sequence where they do about 7 pinfall attempts in a row is ridiculous.
*That kickout from the Akuma Driver, fuck yes.
*Akuma ends up winning, but still Sabiti looks like a boss. I definitely am interested in seeing more of his matches and more of this pairig in the future.
*Weiner was at least tolerable, if not all and all solid in that match calling.

Match 4: Sexxxy Eddie vs. The Craiglist Homo
*Any introduction where you are introduced as having five pounds of cock is pretty cool, I also like how the lady coming out of the bathroom has poor timing with things, but Sexxxy Eddie just says screw that I will incorporate her into what I'm doing.
*These commentaries need to learn to shut up when the wrestlers are beginning their promos or not even talk during these parts. Like, I get where you are trying to be edgy but give the wrestlers their space.
*I kind of like everything about Sexxy Eddiee and how he brings a lady into the ring to strip him/deal with his gimmick/get dry humped. This rules in so many ways.
*I have only heard of The Craiglist Homo. Actually seeing this guy's gimmick is definitely something different. Ha, this rules - they are mimicking Sexxxy Eddie's entrance but with a dude instead. Tic for tac.
*Craiglist Homo seems to be the face/fan favorite in this match. I did not expect that, but I can't say that I disagree that he should be the favorite.
*Crowd solidly behind Homo. I wish I knew why exactly people were so behind this character. Is it because he is with one of the Gladd guys? Or is it just because his character is so "open"/transparent? If it's that, that's pretty cold for sure.
*The Gas Pedal, which is essentially a foot to your nut move is something.
*This match kind of suffers by going back to a heavy comedy basis, since it followed the last match which was mostly technical wrestling back. But The Craiglist Homo is grasping Eddy's dick and making him fade and I can't hate where this is going. It's ridiculous and Eddy is harnessing his dick power.
*Gladd Badd NO! Sexxxy Eddy's dick is probably being ruined. (This is hilarious)
*All three men are blown away by the power of DICKS.
*Did the Craiglist Homo just spray some kind of lube on himself?
*These spots where they are like holding each other while "Time of My Life" was playing rule.
*Ass punches! & Couples!
*That finisher seemed to just come out of nowhere, which is something that I never like. Wish there was some more build up to that.
*Some lady enters the ring to celebrate with Sexxy Eddy for some reason, or maybe to threaten her. I don't know the angle, is this suppose to be somebody that he knocked up? I'm getting that feeling but I'm not entirely sure. And if that's the case why did the lady even come into the ring to endanger herself. Also her panties are hanging out of her jeans in the front for some reason, that's something. The way they are treating her though definitely implies that there is some kind of pregnant angle going on.

Match 5: Tabernak de Team vs. E.D.F.B.O. (?)
*Sweet some tag team action, good to see some change up going on. So is Tabernak de Team rocking the lumberjack gimmick? That's cool enough I guess.
*No idea if I even have this stable's name right or why this table is so gigantic. I do like how Pinkie Sanchez just goes to the bar and chills the fuck out. So this is mostly just a brawl so far and that's pretty awesome.
*So this match ends up being nothing more than a filthy brawl and a lot of harassing a handicapped guy, but eh the handicap guy seems pretty cool with it so whatever. A real shitty way though to come back from the "half" if you will. I mean, I guess it's setting up an eventual angle/building to something long-term but in the short term, it seems really dumb.
*I also thought they called this match, but it actually seems to be going somehow.
*Both of these teams actually look pretty competent/decent when they actually wrestle. I think E.D.F. (whatever it is) seems to be a bit rougher around the edge, but Tabernak seems like they just get wrestling more.
*This match I think is getting more time than any other match has so far, either that or I'm losing track of time, it could be that.
*For apparently, only going with one camera angle - They still are doing a pretty great job of capturing most of the action and it looks pretty frigging spectacular.
*This match randomly decides to turn it into a second gear, and crank it up. And that is awesome.
*TdT works solid as team and does a lot of double team moves, that's all you want in a tag team.

Match 6: Thorsen Creed vs. Jeremy Leary
*Thorsen creed comes out using the Bull Dempsey theme (not really, but it reminds me of that for some dumb reason), Maybe because I gotta relate everything to WWE, which is stupid.
*There is a guy wearing a NFG:24/7 shirt, is he the biggest New Found Glory fan of all time? That's probably in no way what that shirt stands for, but hey that's what I'm getting from it.
*Leary grabs the mic and starts singing some Creed, Creed appears to have either skulls or ghosts on his tight. Either way pretty cool.
*"We don't do that shit" - In regards to countouts, I guess that's mostly a rule that I approve of. Countouts are stupid.
*I didn't see a lot of this match as I stepped out to get a beer, the little that I saw Leary looked ok and so did Creed. Didn't seem like much of a match.
*Leary's celebration is also ridiculous, you don't need to crowd surf after winning a single's match. Sorry.

Match 7: Ninjas with Altitude vs. Team Tremendous/Tremendous Investigation
*I've heard a lot of good things about Team Tremendous, I've never watched them and I only know that they have a cop gimmick, which seems like an easy gimmick to rocki in the indies but I love how one guy is full Bossman and the other is full Hawaii Five-o.
*So it's Dan Barry who is the cool one with the Hawaai Five-O look, HE IS WEARING A TACO SHIRT. A SHIRT WITH TACOS. No matter how great these other team is, there's no way that I can root against a guy wearing a taco shirt. That is probably the closest I can get to supporting a guy wearing a nacho shirt. And if you don't like nachos, then get the fuck out off this planet.
*"You Deserve It" chants for the ref just merely holding the tag team titles is a great sign that this crowd is at least pretty decent/cool.
*My bias for Dan Berry and Bill Carr, can't even control my feelings. I fee like Ninjas with Altitude is probably a pretty cool team, but come the fuck on Bill Carr is sitting in the corner and eating potato chips. CHIPS!
*Dan Barry CARTWHEEL What an athletic hunk.
*There's nothing wrong with the Ninjas with Altitude, they are competent in almost every way. They just don't pull me in like Team Tremendous does.
*Dan Barry can high fly enough. I'm down with that.
*#TACOSHIRTSFOREVER
*Shynron's nickname is "The Spirit Dragon" - that's pretty cool though.
*I don't like how Shynron has a tail, is he a furry? I mean if so that's cool, but I also don't get it.. Or maybe I missed a tag (I think I did) and his partner is the one who is a furry.
*Oh ok, that makes sense. Fox has the tail. Sorry Shynron for talking trash about you.
-Bill Carr just wrecking fools is pretty cool too.
*This is a real solid tag team outing. There's a bunch of silly spots, but it somehow manages to work.
*Glad that Bill Carr/Dan Barry retained - the most entertaining tag team champs at least right now. Match was super decent though.

Match 8: Team Pazuzu vs. The Undead Army
*So I guess the main event is a ridiculous tag team spectacular. Never a fan of when tag team matches are the main event. But, I guess I hpe that this brings it.
*The Undead Army trying to do their best Leva Bates, not working. Matt Tremont, trying to hype of the crowd - definitely working. Power of that glorious Tremeont beard.
*Pinkie Sanchez doing crazy spots always rules.
*Ref spots are always ridiculous.
*And mostly an easy victory. I like the Team Pazazu build/future it's going for.

Misc. Notes/Thoughts:
*I absolutely love this venue, it is the most divey thing that I think I have ever seen. There appears to be absolutely no seats, but there's a bar and an awesome stage so that works.
*I like also how the entrance works for this, just a simplistic curtain.
*The ring announcer's long sleeve zip jacket and cargo shorts combo makes me laugh.
*Mike Rotch on commentary is a truly fantastic thing on so many levels. He is absurd, crass, and fantastic.
*I guarantee you that if I was in this crowd, I'd also be ridiculously drunk and yelling some absurd shit.
*Intermission commercials for the snackbar, etc. This is a great touch. It's extremely hokey, but it works in all of the best ways.
*Got to love how the second half of the show starts with a note that it's presented with one camera angle and that SD Cards can get fucked. It's so ridiculous, and yet fits this promotion so well.
*Did this venue not have on their heat? Everybody in the crowd seems to be wearing long jackets/coats or even boots/scarves and more. There's a lot of people there so, you'd think it'd be warm but, apparently not.
*Still love how the people going to the pisser get in the way of the filming.
*I know that it's mostly a result of only having to run one camera or only being able to, but I kind of love how the one cameraman rushing around the ring to get into spots leads to a semi-Blair Witch experience.
*I laugh at how when the lonely cameraman doesn't know what to film, he is just like HEY HERE"S A MERCH TABLE.

After Dark Wrestling Debut Show Review

This is the inaugural event from the promotion After Dark Wrestling, which bills itself as an adult-orientated event. Wrestling that is specifically geared towards adults can be extremely hit or miss, but since Joey Ryan is involved in this I have some faith in it. I get what they are trying to get from these introductions and involving the fans, but reading from the phone kind of seams lazy.

Match 1: Brother Mallaki & Father Corbin vs. The Hooligans
*A woman enters the ring and was about to strip supposedly when the religious duo of Brother Mallaki and Father Corbin enter. I love how simplistic their entrance was with the light church music.
*A "Fuck You" Jesus chant. This crowd is pretty great.
*It's also great that Corbin is running down this obese guy.
*I like how The Hooligans are just throwing the crosses and all the religious imagery onto the ground and showing no concern for anything.
*The match starts in a straight brawl and I guess that's probably all I should expect from a group who bills themselves as The Hooligans.
*I'm really surprised that one of these Hooligans can do a moonsault, that's pretty sweet.
*A dive from the "DJ Area". I kind of love how sloppy and reckless this whole match is.
*I think Corbin in this role is real good.
*The Hooligans looked impressive, but I'm perfectly content with Father Corbin and Brother Mallaki winning. It got a good response from the crowd.

Match 2: AR Fox vs. Stephen Wolf
*I have never heard of Stephen Wolf, so this should be interesting to say the very least. Though, his shirt says "Party with Sluts" so that already gets some points in the respect category.
*AR Fox's into music is pretty great as are his space tights.
*I don't know if they didn't have a bell, but I kind of like them just going "Ding DING" to start the match.
*Holy shit, this match starts out fast.
*I love how AR Fox hits like three top-rope moves in a row, but adjusts them because of the venues' roof and then Wolf still kicks out.
*The 4th one apparently is the killer move and AR Fox wins the battle.

Match 3: Christian Rose vs. Kody Rice
*Kody Rice is another wrestler that I'm not familiar with at all. Based on intro and choice of tight colors alone though, I think that I can get into him.
*Nope, sorry Christian Rose. I can't buy into somebody else using "Cult of Personality." Not a diss against you, just a song that I don't think anybody else should be using as wrestling entrance. Why associate yourself with that other guy even if that guy isn't in the sport anymore?
*The crowd is behind Rose though, so maybe I'm the wrong one.
*Nope, Rice is wearing suspenders too. And is about to lube up his body. Anybody who does an oiled body gimmick is awesome. If you have multiple bottles of oil, you are even better.
*I love this silly spot where Rice is just running the ropes and Rose is just sitting there with his arms crossed.
Apparently if you have oil on your body, chops sound even greater.
*I love how long Rice is selling his damage from running those ropes.
*Some guy is trying real hard to get a "Dick Jokes" chant going. It failed, but I appreciate his effort.
*Rice wants some ring rats. He is a man with good priorities.
*Oh sweet, I was hoping to see Rice's butt at some point in this match. So glad I got to see that.
*"His entire asshole is still hanging out"
*That two count was so dumb, Rice's leg was under the rope the entire time. Guy in the crowd realized that too.
*Rose pulls off the victory.

Match 4: Arik Cannon vs. Joey Ryan
*Joey Ryan: "Are you drunk off your cheap beers?"
*I could just watch like 2 hours of Joey Ryan dressing down this crowd.
*The guy who tried chanting "We fuck sisters", I don't even know what to think about that.
*I'm somebody who likes to get drunk off Pabst Blue Ribbon.. uh oh, Joey Ryan might hate me.
*Cannon brings out 3 PBR Tallboys, I like that.
*Joey Ryan's beard is slightly better than Arik Cannon's, but Cannon's beard is still pretty respectable.
*A sucker with Arik Cannon's nut butter, oh my. And now it went ninto Ryan's mouth.
*No Joey Ryan is dumping out Pabst. This ring is going to get so sticky now.
*I like how they present Pabst Blue Ribbon like it's an exilir for Arik Cannon.
*"Nobody drink the beer, the beer's gone bad"
*SAT Question: Popeye is to Spinach as Arik Cannon is to Pabst Blue Ribbon.
*Arik Cannon wins via rollup, celebrates by casually drinking his last Tallboy.

Match 5: Nick Brubaker vs. PartyBoy
*Brubaker's hair is very unique, but his trash talking is definitely stellar. I don't like the dissing of his man bun. It's very stylish.
*I do like these announcers sucking up to him, after being intimidated.
*PartyBoy's "Damn I'm Good" shirt is something.
*I also like how these promotion really likes to feature huskier guys. Not everybody needs to be a hunk.
*Brubaker's absolute disdain for PartyBoy's buns of steel is good too.
*I wouldn't mind a tag team consisting of PartyBoy and Kody Rice. The Oily PartyBoyz. (They could be the same guy for all I know).
*Brubaker wins via dick punch and roll-up combo. I like how he continues his assault post-match.
*Some guy really loved himself some Brubaker.

Match 6: Connor Braxton & Paco Gonzalez vs. Zero Gravity
*If you enter to "Dancing Queen", you can be the blandest looking dudes and I'll still be pulling for you somewhat. Nice job Braxton & Gonzalez.
*The same guy is still chanting for Brubaker for some reason.
*I like the pacing in this tag team match, lots of quick action.
*In a lot of ways, this might be the most contained match so far on the card. Probably the most technical too in a lot of ways. I think it's because it's almost all been held in the ring and has used some psychology, whereas the AR Fox match earlier was just kind of moves and quickness.(Not that it was a bad thing)
*Connor Braxton looks like he has a lot of potential in the future.
*I don't know the members of Zero Gravity, but I like how much the action picked up when this guy got the hot tag.
*I looked it up, it's Brett Gakiya. I like this guy.
*I don't like how he just got murdered from a kick by Braxton though.
*This promotion has no rules, which leads to a lot of this tag team match just becoming 2 vs 1 and hitting the power moves. Zero Gravity finally ends up victorious.

Match 7: Dick Justice & Matt Cage vs. Harvey Bower & JJ Garrett
*These flashing glasses that Garrett and Bower are rocking are something.
*I talk about wrestling fashion a lot, no big deal.
*This is a Dick Justice match. I'm obviously pulling for Dick Justice.
*Garrett/Bower's pre-match promo was completely phoned in or at the very least entirely unconvincing.
*If you aren't persuaded by the sweet words of Dick Justice, I don't know what's wrong with you.
*Cage making the hero save is pretty awesome. He got a name graphic like thirty seconds after entertaining.
*He pulls out a knife and Dick Justice takes him down, Dick Justice isn't buying any of this shit.
*"I'm sorry you came at me with a knife and I got nervous."
*Cage and Justice trying to organize an in-ring drug trade is alright.
*"The 16th president of the United States is now taking 16 inches of dick." I've read some Abraham Lincoln erotica before.. seems about right.
*SwagTag is a pretty douchey/and also great nickname for a tag team.
*So JJ Garrett is apparently the one with slightly less ugly gear, but only slightly.
*Cage's kicks are vicious looking and I love how he just wrecks Bower and Garrett once he enters the ring.
*Cage's chop-a-thon in this match is pretty great.
*Big Black Dick gets the victory = hell yes.
*Cage just celebrated my motorboating a chick wearing a DARE shirt. That might be the most risqué thing on the show so far.

Match 8: Buck Nasty vs. Donovan Danhausen
*Let's talk about wrestling fashion and how great Buck Nasty's tasselled jacket is. Really, it is.
*Oh sweet, I didn't know Danhausen was going to be accompanied by Angelus Layne. She rules.
*Camera guy failure, Layne is twerking/shaking that butt and the camera guy doesn't focus on that. Come on.
*I do like Danhausen's look/aesthetics. Compared to most wrestlers, his tattoo game is on point.
*I'm not sure how it took me this long to notice that Buck Nasty's briefs have a nude lady on there.
*I like Buck Nasty's manager just trying to escape. Oh shit, he does a splash too. Manager involvement is always good.
*More manager involvement and I love how he is wearing the Andre/Big show ring gear.
*Layne is wrecking him. Don't threaten Angelus Layne, that's never a good idea.
*Bucky trying to get real gross with Layne. Layne flips him off the bird, only to to get spanked and then Danhausen makes the save with a superkick.
*A Stinkface spot and Buck Nasty is wanting to lick the butt. Layne removes herself, PartyBoy shows up in the ring and gets his butt licked instead.
*Nasty's manager makes the save with a chair shot.
*This match is probably what I expected this whole show to be like, honestly, but I'm sort of glad that they paced it better.
*Double Go To Sleep combos. And a "double victory" in a singles match.
*At least they got some of the celebration Layne twerking.

Match 9: John Wayne Murdoch vs. Markus Crane in a 516 Death Match
*John Wayne Murdoch is a wrestler that I've of, but I can't recall if I'm seen any of his matches.
*Oh great ,a death match and they of course have legos. Legos.
*Markus Crane's shirt: "Smoke Meth & Hail Satan." (Satan is apparently his dick's name, as his shirt points to his dick). His entrance theme is badass though.
*More Dick Justice, the world can't have enough Dick Justice. The fact that he is running a sobriety test on Murdoch is pretty great.
*Dick Justice: "I"m off duty, I don't care what any of you do, LET'S PARTY!"
*Murdoch getting lippy with Dick Justice, come on - you don't mess with Dick.
*Apparently, that's good enough to start the match.
*Murdoch is already bleeding so quick after the actual match started.
*This barbed wire bat must be the littlest bat I've ever seen. Just little bat things.
*There go the Legos.
*Another Lego spot which involved Murdoch killing his own back. (Though commentary says there was thumbtacks too, so tacks and Legos)
*Crane wants to do a flaming table spot, can't ignite the table.
*LIGHT DAT TABLE BRO.
*When spots go wrong, you end up being the one who goes through the table instead.
*Crowd is really behind Murdoch. I guess, anybody whose gimmick is "getting drunk" is probably a crowd favoritte in LaSalle.
*Crane just absolutely destroyed Murdoch through a table, and yet he somehow managed to kick out.
*A big dildo has now entered the match. Crane is dousing it with oil.
*We have a flaming dildo. A Flaming dildo.
*I knew about this spot before watching this, it's still great to see that this match was decided by a flaming dildo.

Misc. Notes:
*Joey Ryan begins the show by talking about what woman we would like to fuck, none of them are from LaSalle.
*Joel Gertner's feather jacket is pretty spectacular.
*The way the commentary is boomed just over speakers is really rough, but I don't know if I'd prefer it any other way.
*There's a lady in the crowd who really likes yelling "EAT MY ASS!". God bless you fan.
*I like this venue a lot, it's intimate as hell and perfect for an event like this.
*I like the presentation between the matches and how they just fade away and then fade back in.
*More than half way through this, I'm sort of surprised by how little "adult" elements there have been. There was Kody Rice's butt, and some swearing but that's about it. Maybe they are saving it all for the last few matches. Maybe I'm wrong in wanting to see something really realy ridiculous.
*There is a "You Can Do It" chant in the crowd, great job Illinois.
*I probably missed it, but I have no idea who this lady on commentary is. It's probably Angelus Layne, but then again it might be that random chick who was going to "strip" at the beginning. Hard to say.
*"We promised you Beer and Blood" - And also boobs, where are the boobs?
*I love the staff member whose job it was to put out the flaming dildo and then the fact that it got outsourced quickly to Arik Cannon. Do you think that Cannon puts "dildo extinguisher" under the special skills section of his resume?

Beyond Wrestling - Flesh

Pre-game:
*I like the showing of what happened at EVOLVE 64 to get people to buy tonight's EVOLVE 65 show.
*Show starting pretty much right on time, yes. I like punctuality.
*Finally they remembered to turn off the backing music.

Match 1: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jonathan Gresham
*Announcing there there is going to be three matches in this series, already tells me what the outcome of this match is.
*This venue that they are wrestling in seems really really interesting.
*Commentary already hyping a Lufisto beating of Veda Scott. I'm rooting for Veda.
*I always like how people surround the ring, but I don't know if I'd ever want to stand through the whole show. I'd probably purchase a seat.
*One of the guys around the ring has a WCW Monday Night Jericho shirt, good job guy you have one of the best shirts.
*Just a bunch of real technical boys going at it. And going at it back and forth.
*I didn't catch who the second guy on commentary was right now, but his line about "Do I still get paid if I don't wrestle cracked me up"
*Sabre just threw a real nasty European uppercut.
*I like how both of these competitors can just turn on the speed and hard strikes at any point.
*Commentary also doing a marvelous job of making sure you know that Americanrana is going to be a huge event.
*Gresham taking a huge shot to his nose. Ouch.
*This segment where they are just trading kicks and shots is really really cool.
*These guys just really want to beat the shit out of each other in a lot of ways. Gresham looks like he came to steal the show tonight.
*That top rope  hurricanrana roll up back and forth segment was awesome. Crowd rightly cheering hard for it.
*Will we see a draw? I guess that's a possibility that I didn't even consider. 
*I like this part where Sabre is just scooting closer to Gresham on his booty. And now they are going to just slap each other whilst sitting down.
*I really like the fact that these guys seem to targeting specific areas of their opponents' bodies.
*Gresham locks Sabre into a sweet Octopus hold in the middle of the ring. Sabre tries to power out, but Gresham wins.
*The other guy on commentary was Brian Fury by the way.
*Sabre doesn't take the win in a good way. He is a poor poor sport. Hyping a two out of three falls match for the two.

Match 2: Veda Scott vs. Lufisto
*Kimber Lee joining on commentary.
*I like the title graphics that Beyond has for their introductions. Crowd is heavily into Lufisto.
*Veda begins the match by berating Lufistio who answers by throw huge shots at her.
*Lufisto just wants to wreck/destroy Veda Scott. And now she is just kind of toying with Veda.
*"Not going to call that one" - You mean where Lufisto smacked Veda in her lady parts?
*Veda's strikes aren't the most convincing. She needs to lay into them a bit more.
*Veda is so so good at character work/playing a heel.
*Veda gets powerbombed into the apron by Lufisto, ouch.
*Lufisto gets Veda back into the ring and has all the momentum. Just hitting moves left and right, but there is no quit to Veda Scott.
*Scott is so resilient and determined. I love it.
*Unsurprisingly, Lufisto manages to get the victory over Veda Scott. Match ends with a Burning Hammer.
*I want to see more Women's Wrestling Revolution matches and/or shows.

Match 3: Team Pazuzu (EYFBO [Mike Draztik & Angel Ortiz] & Jaka) vs. Team TFT4 (Da Hit Squad [Danny "Mafia" Maff & Steve "Monstaî Mack"] & Brian Fury)
*Tracy Williams on commentary for this one.
*Pazuzu having a pretty fun entrance going on.
*Two dad looking dudes who you don't want to encounter. Love how Tracy Williams describes the Hit Squad.
*"Jaka has trimmed down quite a bit in the past few months" - Yes, yes he has.
*I like how Da Hit Squad shirts are just the Grand Theft Auto font.
*I wish Da Hit Squad went without the shirts... 
*I like Brian Fury's look. Just saying.
*DA HIT Squad wears shirts, but also their gear should cover their bellies. Why am I so confused by their ring gear choices?
*The Penguin Splash is the silliest and also the coolest of moves.
*It feels like Fury hasn't been in this match at all. Come on, get that boy in there Da Hit Squad.
*Mike Draztik hitting both the big boys and taking them out at once.
*They are running Catch Point try out matches on EVOLVE - that's interesting, I suppose.
*Brian Fury throwing on a sweet double Boston crab, that's a cool spot.
*Pazuzu with a sweet double team move on Monstai Mack. Saved by Maff getting in the ring.
*How old are Da Hit Squad? Because they are going for some pretty crazy stuff.
*Ending seemed a bit rushed, but I'm glad that Team Pazuzu won.
*Also - when did Team Pazuzu get so cool? I remember not liking them when I saw them in ECW.
*So the Crusade for Change is just rushing DA HIT SQUAD. Oh my goodness.
*The facepaint that the Crusade for Change uses is pretty silly.

Match 4: Chris Dickinson vs. Pinkie Sanchez
*I have no clue when Pinkie Sanchez went so crazy/awesome.
*Also, I'm in love with Chris Dickinson's theme song.
*I didn't catch who was on commentary in this match. It's somebody from Team Pazuzu, but I do not know who it is.
*Chris Dickinson's booty tends to hang out of his briefs every so often. That's always an interesting thing to notice.
*Pinkie Sanchez has impressive/beautiful hair.
*"FEED ON THE FLESH OF PAZUZU" - this guy on commentary is crushing it. Ok - I finally caught that it was Jaka. Jaka is frigging cool.
*Production crew audio bleed in is always cracking me up.
*"If there is anybody in that group who has a soul, it's that guy right there, the long hair one"
*Why is Jaka's commentary stealing the show for me? Is it the best thing of this show so far? Probably not, but it's highly entertaining.
*Dickinson gets the victory, holla.
*Oh hey Jaka showing mad love to Pinkie. Just let him back into Pazuzu.

Match 5: JT Dunn vs. Kimber Lee
*Sweet we get the Dirty Daddy on commentary. 
*I'm all about Kimber Lee right here.
*In less than a minute of commentary, Dickinson already made a reference to WCW/NWO Revenge. So money.
*So there is a ref storyline apparently int his match, and I don't know if this is a ref who is in favor of JT Dunn or against him.
*"I remember the one time I smacked Kim so hard the day after show I went to confession" 5 seconds passes... "I"m just kidding"
*Kimber Lee has dance experience? Hmm.. what do they mean by that.
*Such an awesome segment where Kimber Lee hits like 5 suplexes onto JT Dunn.
*Hahahaha. Team HBK - Hard Body Karate. Please.
*Also Dirty Daddy is asking if Kimber Lee is on what Brock Lesnar got popped for.
*They are just letting Kimber destroy this fool. And suplex the hell out of him.
*This match is brutal, Kimber Lee has hit like 20 suplexes and now they are just trading hard shots.
*JT Dunn's trunk colors/panty colors are pretty legit.
*This match is cool, intergender wrestling is cool. More or less.
*JT Dunn tries to get into a confrontation with the fat ref (sorry I don't know your name), which allows to Kimber Lee taking advantage of that. She gets the roll up and wins the match.
*Uhh, Dickinson saying that you have the same birthday as Hulk Hogan isn't cool. "I got the same birthday as Hulk Hogan so you can kiss my ass" - Nope.
*The scheduling for Beyond is interesting.. Idk. 2 weeks from now seems like a quick time to run your big show.
*Crowd is all about Ciampa's last match in the promotion.

Match 6: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Matthew Riddle
*Ciampa getting such a dope entrance. "A professional wrestler with professional wrestling boots" - among other things.
*Oh dang we got Sabre Jr. on commentary too. Let's see how he works in this scenaro.
*I like Ciampa's asthetic, can't wait to see this boy in NXT.
*They do a real good job at selling Riddle's inexperience.
*"OOOH IN THE NECK" - That's a shrill commentary mark.
*Ciampa gives no fucks and is just like whatever Riddle, kick me.
*I like that Riddle still rocks the UFC trunks.
*Ciampa and Riddle both look so good int his match.
*I like that Riddle went for a tombstone in this match.
*Oh shoot, Riddle wins off a submission move. Didn't expect that would be how Ciampa goes out.
*Catch Point gets into the ring and hugs Riddle which I guess means he will be the next Catch Point member. (Yep)
*Team Pazuzu crashing the end of the show.

Additional notes:
*Rich Palladino seems like a pretty good announcer/cool guy.
*I like how every once in awhile the mics get audio pick up from somebody in the crowd or somebody on production and it's always really really funny.
*Denver Colorado is really good at his job/commentary.
*What does Pazuzu even mean anyway?
*Beyond is doing such a good job of hyping up their future events though.

Ringside #1

Wrestling comics, they've been done many many times before - from WWF Battlemania to lucha libre focused Sensacional de La Lucha Libres, through the current run of WWE comics written by Mick Foley. Some of them good, some of them bad - but, most of them are always intriguing. I didn't know what i was getting myself into when I decided to get this premiere issue. I guess, I was optimistic that wrestling comics could be again.

Our story begins in Japan, where we are introduced to a "lifer", who has yet to be formally introduced. He immediately introduces us to the fact that he is hiding something and is completely in denial of his identity. He immediately rejects acknowledging his wrestling career (by rejecting any memorabilia featuring him), he wants to present himself as somebody who has more. The magazine introduces us to his character, Matador. Who exactly is Matador?

The comic then flashes to a professional wrestling event. A show that seems abrupt with panic, a show that seems at the verge of collapse, but as they come to the conclusion "The Show Must Go On." Backstage with are introduced to a scrawny jobber known as Reynolds and another grizzled veteran. They are both struggling with their positions in the industry. The veteran wrestler gets a phone call from Dan - Dan Knossos, or the Matador, who wants to have dinner with him and catch up.

Andre - who is this guy? Andrew Aligreti is one wacky guy. But a hilarious character. Just thinking of him as a lawyer/shyster/manager/bails bondman/whatever else is interesting. I love how there is affection between these two characters, but also a distance to realign themselves together again.

Next we get to the diner scene at Murray's. Reynolds, and the other veteran, are waiting here for Danny Knossos. Reynolds turns out to be a complete mark for Matador. He can't help but show his inexperience and naivety, he is still super young in this business and has yet to learn proper respect. Reynolds then proceeds to get educated and warned about the business from Danny. Reynolds isn't exactly sure what to make of this speech. Reynolds also reveals that he has a boyfriend who he rarely gets to see. This is interesting in include and I hope that this idea gets explored in more detail going further.

Danny is now at a bar, drinking alone, when he is approached by somebody who goes by the name of Edward. Edward takes him to the alley where Danny gets jumped by several men. Men who he doesn't know and men who seem to have control of Teddy or know what is going on with Teddy. After this beating, Dan manages to find his way home where he is approached by his neighbor. She sees that he has been brutalized and she responds by granting her access to her stockpile of guns. I'm not entirely sure why she had this stockpile, but it's interesting. The comic ends with El Matador saying that he thinks that this stockpile of weapons is a good start.. The Matador is going to war, but the question remains - who is he going to go to war with?

Overall, I'm intrigued about where this comic is going to go. I like how even in this premiere issue they did a good job of creating characters that I want to know more about. Reynolds, Knossos, the neighbor, and more. I'm totally interested in finding out everybody's back story. I can't help but note how bright and vivid the art is which creates an interesting vibrancy to a story that is a bit more tame. A bit more reserved.