A look at four wrestling shows over 10 days!
It is a good time to be an indy wrestling fan. In a 10 day stretch, I saw four indy cards: Mercury 1 (2/23), Neo Pro (2/25), Neo Pro (3/4) and NIW (3/5). There are a lot of positives to talk about, and this is my all-positive news report of the very best of what I saw between those four shows.
First, I named my “top 10 MN/WI wrestlers of 2005” in January. In order, they are: Cody O’Neill, Kid Krazy, Arik Cannon, Joey Envy, Chris Jordan, Shimdog, John Johnson, Silas Young, Punisher and Pete Huge. Between the four shows, I had the opportunity to see each of those 10 men wrestle.
The crowd size was up in Lonsdale last week, but the small crowds for both Neo Pro and NIW this past weekend have to be considered a disappointment, especially since each promotion had good shows.
The top 10 matches! Interesting to note that the top four matches all came from each of the four shows; I didn’t make that determination to ‘balance out this list,’ either.
(10) Tu Gloccs & Vinnie Devine vs. Ryan Cruz & Darin Corbin (NIW). Ryan and Darin have some creative tag offense, and they’ve played up their constant communication problems in Amery. Vinnie Devine has improved vastly. **1/2
(9) Arik Cannon vs. Malikite (NIW). Cannon gave Malikite a beatdown, with some sick-sounding open-hand chops. Malikite held his own in perhaps his biggest-ever singles match. **1/2
(8) Arik Cannon vs. Dinn T. Moore (M1W). This was a good stand-up brawl, with Moore trying out some mat wrestling too. This match opened the Mercury 1 show and got the crowd fired up out of the gate. **1/2
(7) Silas Young vs. Colt Cabana (M1W). This was another very good first-round match in the Mercury 1 tournament, with Silas getting tremendously over as a heel against the always goofy and popular Cabana. **1/2
(6) El Viejo vs. Joey Envy vs. Kamikaze Klecker vs. Casanova (Neo 2/25). Good, hot cruiserweight match. All four busted their butts, and there was some great high flying moves here. El Viejo was hilarious. Klecker draws the cheers from the women, and Nova is great for heel heat. Fun, non-stop action. **3/4
(5) Silas Young vs. Dinn T. Moore (M1W). The finals of the Mercury 1 tournament, these two brawled all over the floor, after the other matches of the night all stayed in the ring. Creative finish that allowed Silas to score a cheap win to get the Midwest Cup. **3/4
(4) Kid Krazy vs. Al B.C. (NIW). Krazy has put on a bit of size, and he was intense and focused here; no comedy stuff tonight. Krazy brought his usual stiff arsenal of kicks, and his leapover dropkick to Al’s back… I’ve never seen anyone hit that move better. Al took a beating, but he held up his end of the match. The best match of a good night of wrestling. **3/4
(3) Magnus vs. John Johnson. (Neo Pro 2/25). Very good big-man match. Johnson got the crowd to rally behind him, and Magnus is a good heel, and he’s definitely back in ring shape. Johnson took an impressive dive off the steel ladder, and Magnus really battered around Johnson’s injured neck. ***
(2) Silas Young vs. Austin Aries (M1W). A mat-based match, these two traded some good reversals and kept the match stiff and realistic. Aries looked good as always, and Silas proved again that he is way too overlooked. Good finish that had Silas tapping out, but the ref missed it, as he counted Aries’ shoulders down. ***1/4
But the best match I saw of the four shows was...
(1) Cody O’Neill vs. Chris Jordan. This best of three falls match was intense and exciting. They traded some stiff forearms, as Cody’s prevalent indy style meshed well with Jordan’s WWE main event style. Cody has developed some nice submission holds, and Jordan stepped up his game. Both of the top two matches here will be among the best matches I see this year.
Top 10 performers
(10) Arik Cannon. A solid pair of matches, first against Dinn T. Moore, then against Malikite. He’s always strong in his mat game, and his stiff forearms and chops always look good. He definitely schooled Malikite, and gave the kid his best match yet.
(9) John Johnson. A pair of solid face matches, losing to Magnus one week, but beating Johnny Parks the next week. His character is still over.
(8) Darin & Ryan. These two earn a team spot, as they have broken out so many creative team moves in the past year. So often, a tag match is simply two singles wrestlers who are paired up for the match, but these guys have some great tag offense; the sum is greater than the separate parts.
(7) Kid Krazy. I’ve already noted it elsewhere, but Krazy is bulking up a bit, and his character was more intense and serious, less of the goofing around and pointing at himself. His kicks are stiff, his Uh-OHH looked great, and the crowd loves to cheer for him.
(6) Magnus. A sharp pair of shows for him in his comeback stint. He had a nice match with John Johnson in Lonsdale, then a solid match against another heel, Pete Huge, in Faribault. He definitely has the size, and he has the heel charisma, to get the crowd into his matches.
(5) Aaron Corbin. Aaron is in the early stages of his first, probably ever, face run, and the crowd has rallied behind him, treating him like a rock star. His matches on both shows were solid, and I’m surprised at how well he’s doing in drawing the face pop.
(4) Punisher. The opening promo at the NIW show was simply awesome. He ripped in to the crowd. He told a fan he would apologize to him, then he ripped him in a ‘back-handed apology.’ His interaction with this nine-year-old girl is fantastic. He makes you laugh, and he’s willing to be the center of the joke. No heel is more over in Amery than Punisher.
(3) Chris Jordan. No one in the MN/WI scene is working a better WWE style match these days. He’s in great shape, and it’s great to see him back working for Neo Pro again. Jordan showed Saturday why he is among the best workers in the state. Last week in the six-man tag in Lonsdale, he looked like a star as he beat up on the Twins.
(2) Silas Young. Each of Silas three matches in the Mercury 1 Midwest Cup Tournament made my top 10 list, and that’s not surprising, as he is fluid in the ring, and this was as good as I’ve ever seen him look as a heel.
But the best performer of the four shows was:
(1) Cody O’Neill. His forearms are stiff. His Chaos Theory/top rope belly-to-belly suplex looks sharp. His new submission hold is unique. He oozes charisma. Cody and Jordan put together a fantastic 21-minute match Saturday, and Cody’s name on the marquee is selling tickets.
Best show
Second-place goes to Neo Pro’s 2/25 show, which had the largest crowd in a hot atmosphere, the star power of Molly Holly and Ken Kennedy, a good cruiserweight opener, a hot Johnson-Magnus match, and the show continued after the top rope broke halfway through the show! For all of the intangibles that had little to do with the in-ring product, this was a good show. (And I’m not putting down the in-ring action either!)
But the best show of the four I saw during this stretch was the Mercury 1 event. I ranked five matches at ** or higher among the seven matches in the tournament. Colt Cabana and Austin Aries provided some star power, and the locals, Silas and Dinn T. Moore, provided some good action in their matches as they made it to the finals.
Other random thoughts:
--Rob Page lives far, far away. His home in Rockford to my Mom's house in Brooklyn Park is 23 miles! Giving him a ride home doubled my time after the Neo show!
--The food at Perkins in Faribault is terrible! And cold! But good times with Aaron Corbin, the afore-mentioned Page, and Cody O'Neill sitting at my table.
--Why is the weather always bad when there is a show in Amery?
--The IWA-Mid South show on Mania weekend will be awesome! Low Ki vs. Necro Butcher? Milano Collection AT vs. Chris Hero! Kevin Steen, El Generico and Ruckus in action? Wow! Let's hope this show comes together as announced!
--Mania weekend is coming together, with Darin Corbin, Joe Lonke and Rain all in for a big weekend!
--I'm getting new carpet in my living room. Which means moving everything out of my living room. Which is pretty much like packing up to move. Which really, really sucks. My new ROH tapes arrived Monday, and I likely won't get to them anytime soon, now.
--Timberwolves win again! I'm now 5-2 this year, with three games to go!
--RIP Kirby. I'm deeply saddened.
--My first (of many) Twins games in 2006 will be Thursday afternoon, April 13.
First, I named my “top 10 MN/WI wrestlers of 2005” in January. In order, they are: Cody O’Neill, Kid Krazy, Arik Cannon, Joey Envy, Chris Jordan, Shimdog, John Johnson, Silas Young, Punisher and Pete Huge. Between the four shows, I had the opportunity to see each of those 10 men wrestle.
The crowd size was up in Lonsdale last week, but the small crowds for both Neo Pro and NIW this past weekend have to be considered a disappointment, especially since each promotion had good shows.
The top 10 matches! Interesting to note that the top four matches all came from each of the four shows; I didn’t make that determination to ‘balance out this list,’ either.
(10) Tu Gloccs & Vinnie Devine vs. Ryan Cruz & Darin Corbin (NIW). Ryan and Darin have some creative tag offense, and they’ve played up their constant communication problems in Amery. Vinnie Devine has improved vastly. **1/2
(9) Arik Cannon vs. Malikite (NIW). Cannon gave Malikite a beatdown, with some sick-sounding open-hand chops. Malikite held his own in perhaps his biggest-ever singles match. **1/2
(8) Arik Cannon vs. Dinn T. Moore (M1W). This was a good stand-up brawl, with Moore trying out some mat wrestling too. This match opened the Mercury 1 show and got the crowd fired up out of the gate. **1/2
(7) Silas Young vs. Colt Cabana (M1W). This was another very good first-round match in the Mercury 1 tournament, with Silas getting tremendously over as a heel against the always goofy and popular Cabana. **1/2
(6) El Viejo vs. Joey Envy vs. Kamikaze Klecker vs. Casanova (Neo 2/25). Good, hot cruiserweight match. All four busted their butts, and there was some great high flying moves here. El Viejo was hilarious. Klecker draws the cheers from the women, and Nova is great for heel heat. Fun, non-stop action. **3/4
(5) Silas Young vs. Dinn T. Moore (M1W). The finals of the Mercury 1 tournament, these two brawled all over the floor, after the other matches of the night all stayed in the ring. Creative finish that allowed Silas to score a cheap win to get the Midwest Cup. **3/4
(4) Kid Krazy vs. Al B.C. (NIW). Krazy has put on a bit of size, and he was intense and focused here; no comedy stuff tonight. Krazy brought his usual stiff arsenal of kicks, and his leapover dropkick to Al’s back… I’ve never seen anyone hit that move better. Al took a beating, but he held up his end of the match. The best match of a good night of wrestling. **3/4
(3) Magnus vs. John Johnson. (Neo Pro 2/25). Very good big-man match. Johnson got the crowd to rally behind him, and Magnus is a good heel, and he’s definitely back in ring shape. Johnson took an impressive dive off the steel ladder, and Magnus really battered around Johnson’s injured neck. ***
(2) Silas Young vs. Austin Aries (M1W). A mat-based match, these two traded some good reversals and kept the match stiff and realistic. Aries looked good as always, and Silas proved again that he is way too overlooked. Good finish that had Silas tapping out, but the ref missed it, as he counted Aries’ shoulders down. ***1/4
But the best match I saw of the four shows was...
(1) Cody O’Neill vs. Chris Jordan. This best of three falls match was intense and exciting. They traded some stiff forearms, as Cody’s prevalent indy style meshed well with Jordan’s WWE main event style. Cody has developed some nice submission holds, and Jordan stepped up his game. Both of the top two matches here will be among the best matches I see this year.
Top 10 performers
(10) Arik Cannon. A solid pair of matches, first against Dinn T. Moore, then against Malikite. He’s always strong in his mat game, and his stiff forearms and chops always look good. He definitely schooled Malikite, and gave the kid his best match yet.
(9) John Johnson. A pair of solid face matches, losing to Magnus one week, but beating Johnny Parks the next week. His character is still over.
(8) Darin & Ryan. These two earn a team spot, as they have broken out so many creative team moves in the past year. So often, a tag match is simply two singles wrestlers who are paired up for the match, but these guys have some great tag offense; the sum is greater than the separate parts.
(7) Kid Krazy. I’ve already noted it elsewhere, but Krazy is bulking up a bit, and his character was more intense and serious, less of the goofing around and pointing at himself. His kicks are stiff, his Uh-OHH looked great, and the crowd loves to cheer for him.
(6) Magnus. A sharp pair of shows for him in his comeback stint. He had a nice match with John Johnson in Lonsdale, then a solid match against another heel, Pete Huge, in Faribault. He definitely has the size, and he has the heel charisma, to get the crowd into his matches.
(5) Aaron Corbin. Aaron is in the early stages of his first, probably ever, face run, and the crowd has rallied behind him, treating him like a rock star. His matches on both shows were solid, and I’m surprised at how well he’s doing in drawing the face pop.
(4) Punisher. The opening promo at the NIW show was simply awesome. He ripped in to the crowd. He told a fan he would apologize to him, then he ripped him in a ‘back-handed apology.’ His interaction with this nine-year-old girl is fantastic. He makes you laugh, and he’s willing to be the center of the joke. No heel is more over in Amery than Punisher.
(3) Chris Jordan. No one in the MN/WI scene is working a better WWE style match these days. He’s in great shape, and it’s great to see him back working for Neo Pro again. Jordan showed Saturday why he is among the best workers in the state. Last week in the six-man tag in Lonsdale, he looked like a star as he beat up on the Twins.
(2) Silas Young. Each of Silas three matches in the Mercury 1 Midwest Cup Tournament made my top 10 list, and that’s not surprising, as he is fluid in the ring, and this was as good as I’ve ever seen him look as a heel.
But the best performer of the four shows was:
(1) Cody O’Neill. His forearms are stiff. His Chaos Theory/top rope belly-to-belly suplex looks sharp. His new submission hold is unique. He oozes charisma. Cody and Jordan put together a fantastic 21-minute match Saturday, and Cody’s name on the marquee is selling tickets.
Best show
Second-place goes to Neo Pro’s 2/25 show, which had the largest crowd in a hot atmosphere, the star power of Molly Holly and Ken Kennedy, a good cruiserweight opener, a hot Johnson-Magnus match, and the show continued after the top rope broke halfway through the show! For all of the intangibles that had little to do with the in-ring product, this was a good show. (And I’m not putting down the in-ring action either!)
But the best show of the four I saw during this stretch was the Mercury 1 event. I ranked five matches at ** or higher among the seven matches in the tournament. Colt Cabana and Austin Aries provided some star power, and the locals, Silas and Dinn T. Moore, provided some good action in their matches as they made it to the finals.
Other random thoughts:
--Rob Page lives far, far away. His home in Rockford to my Mom's house in Brooklyn Park is 23 miles! Giving him a ride home doubled my time after the Neo show!
--The food at Perkins in Faribault is terrible! And cold! But good times with Aaron Corbin, the afore-mentioned Page, and Cody O'Neill sitting at my table.
--Why is the weather always bad when there is a show in Amery?
--The IWA-Mid South show on Mania weekend will be awesome! Low Ki vs. Necro Butcher? Milano Collection AT vs. Chris Hero! Kevin Steen, El Generico and Ruckus in action? Wow! Let's hope this show comes together as announced!
--Mania weekend is coming together, with Darin Corbin, Joe Lonke and Rain all in for a big weekend!
--I'm getting new carpet in my living room. Which means moving everything out of my living room. Which is pretty much like packing up to move. Which really, really sucks. My new ROH tapes arrived Monday, and I likely won't get to them anytime soon, now.
--Timberwolves win again! I'm now 5-2 this year, with three games to go!
--RIP Kirby. I'm deeply saddened.
--My first (of many) Twins games in 2006 will be Thursday afternoon, April 13.