Laz

Isn't it down to him and Super Dragon?

Important question. Excalibur > Disco Machine.

And Republican talking heads.

Looking forward to it, Astro. I dig OI4K quite a bit and have enjoyed what little Ugly Ducklings I've watched. For you, though, I chose a deathmatch classic, and one that makes the most of drama and selling over just sheer violence. https://youtu.be/BSdMiVV_fnQ

He's a fine talent, but he's a spotmonkey who prefers chain wrestling to flips.

In the sense that it's an artform based on real fighting that is choreographed, yes, but then so are Hollywood fight scenes. I do love how the sequence linked uses a Burning Hammer as a finish, though. If pro wrestling were to ever make it to some form of legitimate competition, where judges base their ratings on delivery of sequences and workrate and whatnot, this is what I imagine it would look like.

House of Glory (Amazing Red's indy) just live streamed a 4-way Tag title match and the 10 minutes I caught of it were excellent. LAX (EYFBO) are easily my favorite tag team right now, both Ortiz and Santana really have a good sense of ring awareness and how to keep the action constant without resorting to SPOT-SPOT-SPOT. TJ Marconi still needs better gear, though. Nothing too crazy but maybe something that he doesn't need to keep adjusting after each move. I have no idea who Brian Burgundy is, but damn that kid sold the apron powerbomb he took like complete death. The way it SHOULD be.

My review for the Last Battle of Atlanta: http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/35433-tommy-rich-vs-buzz-sawyer-gcw-last-battle-of-atlanta-102383/?p=5827618&do=findComment&comment=5827618 I have a feeling most people are going to disagree with my feelings on it.

I'm going to outwardly proclaim that my opinion on what an appropriate ending to a blood feud should look like has been forged during the era of hardcore wrestling. While I was never expecting a CZW stunt-and-guts splatterfest or even a Terry Funk-tier slugfest, I was at least expecting it to match the Slaughter/Patterson Alley Fight from 4/21/81. And why wouldn't I have? That match was from cartoonish New York, seen as over-the-top compared to the gritty southern products even before Vince Jr. booked with a Saturday morning cartoon on his mind, and it was one of the most vicious things I've seen still. We start immediately with the heat segment and Rich gigs early. My only real exposure to him was with the FBI in ECW, and then some clips here and there, usually of him covered in blood. Sawyer is just as physically imposing as I'd always heard, and he lays in some early shots that made me wince, but as Rich starts making a comeback I realize how plodding he feels. He punches Tommy and Rich splats himself down, his selling being so obviously great that I immediately understand his legendary status, but then looks as though he's gingerly stepping over rocks in the road to go back on offense. What little offense is given between the two comes across as rather pedestrian, to be honest. Buzz slams Tommy into the cage, they throw a few punches (of which Tommy's look far better), and then the finish comes after half a dozen counts from a disembodied referee with both men lying down to sell the exhaustion. Of a 10-minute fight. That is almost immediately overshadowed by the angle following it in tempo and quality of offense. Also, fuck Ole for booking a feud-ending match that had drawn for 2 years across the country into a preview of his side angle. PRO: -Tommy Rich deserves his selling accolades and then some -Buzz Sawyer has one of the downright meanest auras I've ever seen in pro wrestling -The heat was constant throughout and flowed perfectly from Rich/Sawyer to Ole/Ellering CON: -Lack of diversity and intensity in offense -Finish comes out of nowhere and feels anti-climatic as a result -Seriously, why book your own side-piece match to immediately follow a huge ending to a years-long blood feud? This match is saved by "Wildfire" Tommy Rich for me, and the disappointment I felt watching it matches my teenage self discovering how mediocre most "video nasty" films actually were. FINAL VERDICT: 5.5/10, **3/4

Mediocre is a good way to put Cody. I'd have him on a similar level as Jay Lethal, since both are clearly competent and have moments of brilliance but never stand out too much from the pack. No matter how hard they're pushed.

He annoys me because I know there's a great talent in there somewhere but he's fine with surface-level gimmicks and cheap heat. I remember that early promo with Holly where he came across as so comfortable on the mic, but he just doesn't say much of anything and, even worse, lacks the insane charisma to make even nothing by-the-numbers promos captivating. Obligatory "but whatever, he's making a good living his own way" post-script.

For soup23, I'm choosing a match between two US indie legends that, had it happened a year later in another company that both worked for, would likely have received the praise it deserves. LowKi vs. Homicide, JAPW 7/7/2001

I'm watching Defiant #4, on the ME right now of Primate/Ridgeway. Primate feels like what Chris Candido would've been like if he came up during the current scene. He's got a presence in the ring and throws strikes with really great fire, putting all his weight into them, and practically oversells for Ridgeway's kicks on the floor. It made Ridgeway's kicks look absolutely killer and I loved when he was on the offensive. Hopefully he stops trying to emulate the kids who trade elbows because STRONG STYLE OMG and learns to make his shit matter.

We immediately start with Dory and Terry attacking the opposition, the highlights of which include Terry showing that violent streak he's become legendary for by choking the heel manager (can't tell if it's Grand Wizard or Eddie Creatchman) with his own scarf. What makes this extra special is how Terry shoves his feet against the bottom rope to really wrench it back, and this is followed quickly by Dory stomping a bloodied Abby (surprise!) and dropping elbows, stopping only when Sheik (who's taken a worse beating and sells the hell out of it) kicks him in the ribs. The pace crawls for a bit as the heels get their shine, but it picks up in no time when Sheik spikes Terry's arm and shoulder as Joe Higuchi just sorta lets it happen. That's one of my few complaints that don't involve Dory's aversion to charisma. Terry gets taken out and Dory gets double teamed for a bit. Again, Higuchi ignoring the in-plain-view spike is annoying, but all is saved by Terry making his triumphant return. Bandaged, bloodied, but he'll bring the fires of hell if they think they're treating big brother Dory the way they treated him. The finish comes when Sheik spikes Higuchi in the throat, bringing a DQ. While not a satisfying ending by any stretch, knowing that the feud goes on for a few more years alleviates my issues. Post-match brawl, the heels leave, and the Funks are presented their trophy. PRO: -There's a match featuring three of the godfathers of hardcore and it's as bloody as the time period allowed. -Seriously, Terry Funk is incredible. -The pacing is nigh perfect, to the point where I completely lost track of time and didn't check until, unbeknownst to me at the time, the finishing stretch was about to kick in. This is something missing from most matches I've seen in the last 5 years. -BELIEVABLE SELLING. These 4 men are presented as either fantastic athletes or just all-around tough SOBs, and seeing Dory jump right to a sell mid-kick was beautiful. Sheik deserves a ton of love here, too, as he took that early beating and staggered back for more. -TERRY. FUNK. CON: -Higuchi ignoring Sheik's blatant use of a foreign object. -While the finish may work in the context of the feud overall, I hate screwy finishes to tournaments. Always have, always will. -Too much Dory, not enough Terry (even if Terry's role was utilized perfectly). -HIGUCHI IGNORING THE GODDAMN SPIKE. Overall, this was a blast. It's so odd to hear a Japanese crowd unglued for an entire match instead of key dramatic moments, and the heat definitely added to it. This is exactly the type of wrestling I love the most, Richey, and I'm glad you sent it to me. FINAL VERDICT: 7.5/10, ***3/4

They had a few solid brawls with the London Riots for both Progress and Southside, a few available on YouTube. My exposure to them is mostly via YouTube searches since the bulk of their work is in WXW, which I don't have a sub to. It seems like they started to get more bookings right around when Tommy End started getting eyed by WWE, and I want to say Michael Dante (really underrated indie hoss, just tons of fun, almost like Samoa Joe through a sloppy-as-hell ECW filter) had either a knee or shoulder injury. They also backed Mikey Whiplash as the muscle in Legion, which is probably my favorite ICW (Scot) angle to date. If the video package for the NAK feud blow off doesn't make you want to see it then check your pulse.

Dory Funk Jr./Terry Funk vs. The Sheik/Abdullah the Butcher, AJPW Open Tag League 12/15/77 We immediately start with Dory and Terry attacking the opposition, the highlights of which include Terry showing that violent streak he's become legendary for by choking the heel manager (can't tell if it's Grand Wizard or Eddie Creatchman) with his own scarf. What makes this extra special is how Terry shoves his feet against the bottom rope to really wrench it back, and this is followed quickly by Dory stomping a bloodied Abby (surprise!) and dropping elbows, stopping only when Sheik (who's taken a worse beating and sells the hell out of it) kicks him in the ribs. The pace crawls for a bit as the heels get their shine, but it picks up in no time when Sheik spikes Terry's arm and shoulder as Joe Higuchi just sorta lets it happen. That's one of my few complaints that don't involve Dory's aversion to charisma. Terry gets taken out and Dory gets double teamed for a bit. Again, Higuchi ignoring the in-plain-view spike is annoying, but all is saved by Terry making his triumphant return. Bandaged, bloodied, but he'll bring the fires of hell if they think they're treating big brother Dory the way they treated him. The finish comes when Sheik spikes Higuchi in the throat, bringing a DQ. While not a satisfying ending by any stretch, knowing that the feud goes on for a few more years alleviates my issues. Post-match brawl, the heels leave, and the Funks are presented their trophy. PRO: -There's a match featuring three of the godfathers of hardcore and it's as bloody as the time period allowed. -Seriously, Terry Funk is incredible. -The pacing is nigh perfect, to the point where I completely lost track of time and didn't check until, unbeknownst to me at the time, the finishing stretch was about to kick in. This is something missing from most matches I've seen in the last 5 years. -BELIEVABLE SELLING. These 4 men are presented as either fantastic athletes or just all-around tough SOBs, and seeing Dory jump right to a sell mid-kick was beautiful. Sheik deserves a ton of love here, too, as he took that early beating and staggered back for more. -TERRY. FUNK. CON: -Higuchi ignoring Sheik's blatant use of a foreign object. -While the finish may work in the context of the feud overall, I hate screwy finishes to tournaments. Always have, always will. -Too much Dory, not enough Terry (even if Terry's role was utilized perfectly). -HIGUCHI IGNORING THE GODDAMN SPIKE. Overall, this was a blast. It's so odd to hear a Japanese crowd unglued for an entire match instead of key dramatic moments, and the heat definitely added to it. This is exactly the type of wrestling I love the most, Richey, and I'm glad you sent it to me. FINAL VERDICT: 7.5/10, ***3/4

Interesting as in how though? Confirmation of beliefs that the general grain of wrestling fans hold? The opposite? Is somebody a bigger draw than we've been led to believe?

Fellow SHOOT Soldier here. Been doing it off and on since 1999 or so. Most recently I handled a tag team where one half was a super annoying artist type and the other a Worcester thug and low level mob muscle. Bonus points: it was in the EWA mentioned above, where a lot of ex-SHOOT guys went. So if you ever get that bug again, TTK, that place is a good one. Ross and Michael are super flexible on schedules and I never had a problem working with anybody there.

In turn, sir, I present you with a match that actually reminds me more of a late 80s tag than a more modern one, with its production and the moves used being what betrays how recent it is. Sumerian Death Squad vs. OI4K, CZW WrestleCon 2012

While a great get for the game and its developers, I'm a little bummed. I'm just not into the Fire Pro series and was hoping for a brand new game.

I have Progress and ICW, plus YouTube.

Assuming all goes according to plan and my computer gets hooked up in time, I'm in. Haven't written a match review in years .

In those scenarios, do we still get Sarge beating the shit out of Serpentor?

Agreed. He's one of my favorites from the UK scene because he works like the top guys from that era (my favorite for overall product quality), and he's only getting better at it all.