OK I know this is like a whole week late, but I finally have time to post this so...
Here's my recap of Anarchy Championship Wrestling's "Delusions of Our Childish Days" show, which was held last Sun. at the Mohawk in Austin, TX.
This was a show I was really anticipating. I must not have been the only one, because the whole crowd was early. This would also be an extra-fun show for me because in addition to the guy I always go to shows with, I had two complete noobs in tow with me--not wrestling fans at all--and we were all sitting front row. Yes, that's right, two people who had never even been to a wrestling show before. Yup. Sitting front row with me at an ACW show. You know, ACW...with no barricades. And all the high-flying, and brawling. And this show of course had a six-woman DEATHMATCH on the card. And MASADA. This would be an interesting sociology experiment for sure.
So, we all beer up, and sit down, I go through the whole "if I move, you move" speech and tell them where to escape. And it's on with the show...
Prelims:
"The Business" (c) featuring Jojo Bravo & Thomas Shire v. "The Lost Boys" (Sky De LaCrimosa & Jason Silver) v. "The Electric Company" featuring Ricky Romida and Jack Jameson for the ACW Tag Titles: As usual with ACW, this was an elimination match, and it was a mostly "just for fun" affair that you may or may not see on YouTube someday, like all the other prelims.
"The Business" is a stable (Featuring the aforementioned two guys and Joshi molten-heat heel Angel Blue) managed by Chris Trew, a guy that kinda needs to be experienced rather than explained. He's a legit comedian, and his gimmick is wildly over as
the heel manager in Anarchy. "The Business" is also apparently following the "Freebird Rule" in title defenses, meaning the lineup can and will change at a moment's notice. So in this match, since Angel Blue had other concerns later in the card, we got Shire in her place. This is great, because Shire is pretty fucking awesome.
The important stuff to know here is that Jojo Bravo is freaking awesome, Jack Jameson's beard is indestructible, Shire got to show more stuff, and Sky De LaCrimosa, who often kinda gets overlooked as the tank to Jason Silver's flashy high-flying, has some really cool throws in addition to his awesome head butt. The last two shows he's put up some offense that I've really liked, so I'm noticing him more and more as time goes on.
Heel stable retains the titles.
My noob friends were kinda in shock at this point.
Athena, Christina Von Eerie, Jessica James, and Jessicka Havok v. Barbi Hayden, Machiko, Portia Perez, and Rachel Summerlyn in a 8-joshi tag match. This was brief but fun, and notable for a couple reasons. First, DAMN, look at that lineup. ACW has some awesome joshi wrestlers on the roster, and traveling talent. Second, this was sorta the "debut" of Machiko as a regular ACW joshi. She actually had her first couple matches at the huge Fun Fun Funfest music festival, (where ACW was a featured attraction) but this was the first time she has appeared as a wrestler in a normal Anarchy venue. Nice company to be in with seven women who are right up there with the very top talents in N. America today. She carried herself well, and didn't try to do too much, and it was all good. I really like watching Christina Von Eerie wrestle in ACW. She belongs in Austin.
My noob friends were amazed at the women's action throughout the match, but especially at Rachel Summerlyn and Jessicka Havock's power suplexes and the deadly strikes of the likes of Jessica James and Athena. I tried to tell them how good these women were, but they were stunned. I kinda dig the fact that this was the second live wrestling match either of them had ever seen, and as far as they probably know, this is what
all women's wrestling is like. LOL.
After, Jason Silver comes out and gets on the mic. He corners Barbi Hayden, who was still strutting her Joshi title around the ring. He offers her his beer bottle full of blood, and the chance to be a vampire like him. She eventually refuses, and stomps him. Intrigue.
The Main Card:
Ricky Starks and Kyle Hawk v. "The Takeover" featuring Houston Carson and "Cowboy" James Claxon: Starks and Hawk are pretty awesome, and relative newcomers to ACW. Both guys can really, really go. This probably should have had more heat building to the "Cowboy" James Claxon v. the "Indian" Kyle Hawk confrontation, but too many smarks were patting themselves on the back for chanting "beer money" at Claxon earlier in the match to notice. Oh well. Hawk and Starks bumped all over the ring and were awesome. Claxon is a total dick, and Carson is freaking hilarious with his facials and character. Fun match, kinda squashy, and "The Takeover" notches another win.
ACH v. Bolt Brady: FFFFFffffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuccccck! THIS WAS AWESOME!!! This is a legit MOTY candidate, kids. GET THIS MATCH. ASAP.
Everybody following the indies at all should know what ACH is all about by now. He's a hot commodity. This was Bolt Brady's time to get noticed, and boy, he should be noticed by everyone now. You can see he's got the athleticism just by looking at the guy, but until recently, he came across to me as sort of tentative...sorta afraid to mess up and hit somebody accidentally. An admirable thing really, wanting to be a safe worker, but his offense seemed to suffer because it sometimes lacked the illusion of real impact. Over the last few months, I've noticed this turning around. I didn't notice any of this at all in this match. It was almost like he took a handful of Athena's "I don't give a fuck about hitting you right in the damn face" pills. The result was some real-life state-of-the-art pro wrestling in 2015 shit here. (And yeah, I know it's 2012)
In a world where everything works right, this match would be coming to an arena near you sometime soon, no matter where you are. They could Steamboat/Flair this motherfucker into 1,000 matches in 1,000 arenas, and it wouldn't disappoint. Do whatever you have to do to watch this match.
My noob friends' mouths were hanging open through at least half this match. But then again, everyone in the building had the same reaction. They did get to see first-hand why I was telling them about the importance of clearing out space when the action comes your way though.
Shawn Vexx (c) v Pierre Abernathy, Gary Jay & Thomas Shire for the ACW Televised Title: Gary Jay is an amazing dastardly heel. Shawn Vexx is the polar opposite, but gets molten heat all his own. Pierre is a comedic wrestling phenomenon. And Shire can actually bring the funny too. This was lots of fun, and the perfect palate cleanser after the last match.
Vexx wins. Starts talking shit about Davy Vega and his girlfriend Athena, and how he's getting that booty now. Vega comes out. Pull apart. Athena comes out and tells both guys that she's sick of this beef, and that they are gonna have to fight it out, and the winner gets her. Nobody expected it to be cut-and-dry like that, least of all Vega.
Barrett Brown v. Evan Gelistico: So Evan comes out with Gary Jay (who was curiously not wearing his usual cheesy 80's-looking Le Coq Sportif jacket or whatever the hell that is, and was instead wearing a rather normal grey heather hoodie with the hood pulled up) and poor Barrett is all by his lonesome so right away you know there's going to be interference. Good match, as these two guys can go, but at some point another dude (looks like a teenager) in a similar hoodie comes over and stands next to Gary Jay at ringside. Shenanigans happen, interference by the heels, and this unnamed teenage boy jumps in the ring and starts choking young Barrett Brown. Only that's not a teenage boy at all...it's a now-bald "Five Star" Amanda Fox, returning to ACW!
This has me pumped in a huge way. I remember seeing her very first match, back at Booker T's PWA promotion back in the day when she was 16 or 17, against Jessica James. I missed her whole ACW run though, and have only seen it through the DVDs, so I'm super happy to see her returning to action.
EDIT: I actually found that match on YouTube!>
http://youtu.be/sPqaWnvlKW4
Darin Childs v. MASADA: This was one of the matches I was concerned about for my noob friends' safety and sanity. It's MASADA, a legend of hardcore and the current CZW champ, so you know it's gonna be brutal. Last time I saw a match of his in ACW (on DVD) he was in a scaffold war with "The Centerfold" Matthew Palmer and it was totally brutal. He quite literally jammed a handful of like 30-40 bamboo skewers in "The Centerfold's" skull in a way that must be seen to be believed. And that wasn't the worst thing. I was really worried that this could turn my friends off forever. This match started off with some really nice ground-based wrestling (who knew?) but ended with some brutal multiple chair action. Childs took some chairshots that rattled our teeth at ringside. My friends were rather stunned, but weren't totally horrified.
"The Centerfold" Matthew Palmer & Davy Vega v. The Kings of the Underground ("Showtime" Scott Summers & Ryan Genesis): KotU's entrance made a profound impact on my noob friends. These guys do look scary as hell, in their "Jason" hockey masks, and with Stan Summers in his evil clown/geisha mask ensemble accompanying these huge mean-looking dudes to the ring. At some point, the crowd, (including a certain best/worst of RAW writer's girlfriend) got into it with "Showtime," and Mr. Summers offered to take the young lady out for a form of what we'll just call a "romantic evening." A good match--and after KotU was victorious, Mr. Summers sat on the lap of the aforementioned journalist and proceeded to continue toward his plans for the aforementioned "romantic evening" much to the amusement of the ringside fans.
Jaykus Pliskin v. Jessicka Havock: Pliskin, who is a dickish heel, tells Havock that she is just a girl, and she doesn't deserve a match with the former ACW Heavyweight Champ. He also claims he never legitimately lost his championship at the Lone Star Classic tournament, because he should have been Jerry Lynn's injury replacement instead of Rachel Summerlyn (the eventual winner of the tourney and current champ) because, even though he lost, he was, after all the man who injured Lynn so bad he could not continue. So he questions not only the legitimacy of the title, but the legitimacy of any woman who wants to step into the ring. He tells Havok that she must prove herself to him, and the only way she can do that is by defeating "the toughest woman in ACW," Miss Maulie (another member of Pliskin's "Takeover" stable.) Maulie is taken aback at this, as she is in her valet outfit and not in her gear, but Pliskin says she can take Havok anyway.
Needless to say, in far less time than it took me to type that, (and actually less time than it took Pliskin himself to get out of the ring) Havok squashed the hell out of Miss Maulie, and the match with Pliskin was on.
This was real good. Jessicka came out of the gate early with some big power moves, including a SICK german suplex on the big man. Pliskin eventually got a semblance of control, and set about to beating Havok up (which she sold MARVELOUSLY) only to have Havok kick out time and time again and return fire. Eventually, Pliskin won. But in a rare act, was so impressed by Havok, that he took her hand after the match and kissed it.
"The Business" featuring Jojo Bravo & Chris Trew v. JC Bravo & Stan Summers v. Killa Kash & Sky de Lacrimosa v. "The Electric Company" for the ACW Tag Team Championships: So now Chris Trew ("The Business'" manager) is gonna wrestle. Huh. And Killa Kash is out with Sky because I guess Jason SIlver's pride is still wounded from being rejected by Barbi Harden in the prelim. JC Bravo and Stan Summers (ACW's smallest tag team) came out and did the "millions of dollars" dance much to the delight of me. This was basically the Trew and Jojo show though. They were awesome. The crowd delights in hating Trew. Trew is as ridiculous and cowardly as you can possibly imagine. Every time he does ANYTHING in the ring he hurts himself instead of his opponent, unless Jojo just throws him into somebody against his will, in which case both Trew and his opponent get hurt. Somehow though, "The Business" prevails. Trew then gets on the mic and cuts a great promo about how he is not only batting .1000 in the ring, he's also the most relevant manager in pro wrestling today. I gotta say, he's probably right on that. He's entertaining as hell, and people love to hate him.
Rachel Summerlyn (c) v. Angel Blue v. Athena v. Christina Von Eerie v. Jessica James v. Portia Perez for the ACW Heavyweight Championship in an ACW FAMILY CHRISTMAS DEATHMATCH:
A few notes before I talk about this main event-
*An "ACW Family Christmas Deathmatch" is a match done for the show nearest Christmas where all the weapons are Christmas-themed, and wrapped and under a christmas tree in the ring. It's quite festive. It was really nice to see the joshis had their little christmas stockings with their names in puffy paint on them and all the gifts under the tree, ect.
**A few bloggers and twitter folks I read kinda made a big deal about this being a milestone for women or whatever because ACW, a credible indy promotion, has actually put their Heavyweight Championship on a woman, and the first defense of that title was also going to be against all women. I think everybody recognized that, but the way ACW handles it, it's just awesome wrestling with awesome wrestlers. I don't think it was ever mentioned as something out-of-the-ordinary at the show. That was really cool, and kinda shows you how unusual ACW is.
***If you missed Portia Perez's twitter posts in days prior to the match, they were hilarious. Needless to say, her rather salty personality was NOT LOOKING FORWARD to having to compete in a deathmatch.
****Special Props go to Jessica James and Angel Blue for their attire for this match. Jessica (who always seems to have pretty cool/sexy gear) added some nice Christmasy touches and looked very cool. Angel Blue came out in a "sexy elf" costume that was great. Much like her "sexy devil" outfit for the Halloween show, she knows how to wear these kinds of costumes and come off as an even bigger heel for doing so.
*****One of the first things you'd notice looking at the tree setup was one of the "gifts"--a lifesized cardboard cutout of Chyna. This, like everything else, would be used as a weapon at some point in the melee. The second thing you'd notice would be a hockey stick. Since there's only one Canadian in the match, it was obvious who that "gift" was for.
This match, like any deathmatch, had a lot of hardcore stuff you'd expect, but there were layers to the action, so it worked better than a lot I have seen. Plus, it helps that every woman in this match is really over in some capacity. But the biggest thing is that everybody here is actually a good wrestler, which you can't really say in a lot of deathmatches.
Match starts off with Portia sitting in the front row at ringside next to one of my noob buddies. She doesn't want to get in there and be in a deathmatch. Forget it. Great stuff.
The other girls go at it, and the ring kinda clears with all the brawling going outside. At some point, Portia does get in the ring, goes right for the tree, and gets herself a present. She unwraps it. Christmas Cookies. So she takes a chair, sets it right in the middle of the ring, sits down, and proceeds to eat the cookies, while this wild brawl goes on all around her. Sometime later, Jessica walks up to her and asks for a cookie. Portia will not share her cookies. This does not sit well with Ms. James, and the brawl is on. This was one of the best things ever, IMO.
I think Jessica James kinda stole this match for me. I'm a fan of her work, especially the Lady Poison stuff she had/has going on with Rachel Summerlyn. I think this new, hybrid character she has going on is really interesting. I'm not sure if the rest of the ACW crowd knows what to make of it, but I'm digging it. There were several parts in this match where I was saying "Wow, I need to see her in a bunch of singles matches with this girl or that girl" to myself. She really brought the intensity against CVE and Portia. She beat on portia in the corner with a chair. She eliminated Angel Blue. Her and CVE brawling was especially great. She beat the hell out of CVE with a giant candy cane, and CVE replied by opening up a gift, they both paused to look in the box, and then CVE pulled Jessica's top open and dumped about a thousand thumbtacks down her shirt and on to the ring and everything kicked up another notch with a bunch of women taking bumps in the tacks.
This match had some funny spots, and some downright brutal action. Portia finally got the hockey stick and crosschecked Jessica in the corner, serving her Canadian heritage well. CVE eventually produced two of those aluminum roasting pans you'd cook a turkey in, filled with glass christmas ornaments, and slammed Athena into them, eliminating her. Rachel hooked up with CVE and tried to staple gun some decorations on her. Jessica eliminated CVE with the kiss. Rachel brawled with Jessica and Gory Bombed her face first into those glass ornaments, eliminating her. This left Rachel and Portia for the title.
Portia found her stocking under what was left of the tree and found a long package inside. She unwrapped it, and found her wrench. This was the wrench that she terrorized ACW with as a heel. A wrench that Robert Evans has been trying to get her to pick up again and join him in the dark side. Rachel eventually avoids the wrench, gets Portia in the Texas Cloverleaf, and Portia is forced to tap. Rachel Summerlyn is still the ACW Heavyweight Champ.
Overall, a good show, with some wild action and one legit MOTY Candidate in ACH v. Bolt Brady.
Anarchy Championship Wrestling delivers again, and by the looks of things, with Jessicka Havock and CVE becoming more regular joshis, and the return of Fox, is only getting better. The noobs I brought? They're hooked, and planning on coming back in January (which is ACW's biggest show of the year) and THEY are bringing friends.
