Timothy Thatcher

[dawho5]

I think more people should do this kind of thing for guys who are now in a bigger role somewhere. To me the interesting part about reading this is seeing how Thatcher performs in different match types against different opponents. It really points out the strengths and weaknesses to a degree that just looking at the highly thought of matches would not allow. This could be something of a resource if, say in 5-10 years, Thatcher has found a home a la Danielson in RoH 2002-2006 where he really shines. A running tab of how he performed at different stages of his career would show where he hit big improvements in his game, how he handles the things he struggled with early different, the how of carrying a no-talent guy to a decent or even good match as compared with the early struggles with that process. With a lot of the really highly regarded guys, we don't have access to much early footage of them struggling to find ways to put their imprint on a match in a positive way. We usually end up with their matches against the guys they end up replacing as top dogs, not so much the more gritty parts of their journey. If I ever do get into indies, that's probably the reason I will do it, to track the progress of personal favorites and see how wrestling careers develop.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: Unknown Event (03-20-2011) Cjay Kurz vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is for Thatcher's SPW Heavyweight Championship.

 

A very interesting, and nearly great match. Kurz very early on establishes that he's not a grappler in the Thatcher sense but more of a shoot stylist. Thatcher is really good at giving offense to Kurz, at working within a more shoot style to really put over the immediacy of Kurz's approach. There's an early segment where they exchange reversals on the ground, working within the concept of BJJ with guard, half mount, and full mount exchanges. It's all so very interesting, and very well done.

 

The match picks up even more once Thatcher goes on the offensive, because he does bring is old school grappling style to bear. However, in his efforts to get the approach of Kurz over Thatcher melds his style with what Kurz is doing. He never completely takes over the match, and he augments his attacks to be based more on quickly destructive as opposed to wearing down and working over a limb. Thatcher adds in little flourishes like a nifty Hangman's Swinging Armbreaker, which I don't recall seeing before or since, but it sure as heck is a great move to add variety to working over an arm. The whole while Kurz keeps working in his shoot style stuff, and adds some pro wrestling touches as well. Of special note was the way he modified a Lung Blower so that he executed it from the side and put all the impact of his knees into the side of Thatcher's ribs.

 

Where the match falters is when both guys attempt to get too cute. There's a Kurz springboard into a Thatcher European Uppercut that is slightly off, and another attempted Spingboard DDT from Kurz later in the match that goes horribly awry. Unfortunately that is the set up for the finish, and the initial mess up just leads to the entire finishing stretch coming across as being off. It didn't help matters that going for a Kurz German Suplex where Thatcher gets his shoulder up at the last second to win isn't a finish that works within the story and execution of the match prior.

 

I don't want to sell Kurz short. He had his guffaws with the ropes, but all in all he was on point in this match and presented a very different style for Thatcher to work with. That made for a very interesting match, with the icing on the cake being the 98% of the match was well worked and very well thought out. Matches like this are a real boon to Thatcher as they show he's not a one trick pony and can easily switch his style to fit his opponents and get something great without applying the same approach.

[BillThompson]

Pro Wrestling Bushido: Lucha Rulez 6 (01-11-2012) Johnny Goodtime vs. Sami Callihan vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is a Three Way match for Timothy Thatcher's PWB Heavyweight Championship.

 

Three way matches aren't for me, at least not ones that take place in the singles ranks. This one is no different. I give all three gentlemen credit for trying early on to work a faster pace that makes the inevitable :one guy sitting around and waiting for the others guy to do their thing" stuff not as terrible as could be. The first half of the match is not big on Thatcher, he spends most of his time down and selling so that Goodtime and Callihan can go at it. All three are good workers and that shines through even the overly choreographed and bad looking three way spots. I really can't forgive the triple submission spots though, those are just stupid.

 

The second half of the match has more of Thatcher, and it is not unexpectedly a little bit better than the first half. He really lays into his strikes and executes some stiff looking moves. Still, Thatcher's style isn't really suited for the mayhem and melee that is a three way match and it comes across loud and clear in this match. That's probably why he spent so much time down on the mat selling, because Thatcher as a grappler just doesn't fit into a spotty three way. Of course if that's the match the other two guys want to work then it's up to Thatcher to work that match and make the best of it. He doesn't really and truly do that here and the match suffers accordingly.

 

The best part of this match is when Thatcher almost executes a Baseball Slide Dropkick, but it ends up just a sick tease. A tough match for me to write about because honestly I'm not the audience for three way matches as they aren't my cup of tea. As I said earlier all three men are good workers, but this wasn't the environment for them to really shine.

[BillThompson]

Pro Wrestling Revolution: Watsonville (06-08-2014) Timothy Thatcher vs. El Pistolero

 

An interesting styles clash and one that works for the most part. There are a couple of exchanges where neither man is on the same page, but they are small in the grander scope of the match. Ultimately this is the Thatcher offense and Pistolero selling show. Both men do really well at both of those facets in this match. Thatcher viciously attacks Pistolero's arm, really working it over. Again he shows a pleasant amount of variety busting a couple of new moves to work over the arm. Pistolero sells the arm work like the vicious affront to his person that it is. The end comes suddenly, but it's been well built to and really works. A very short match, not so much a sprint as a methodical beatdown that is well bumped and sold for.

[BillThompson]

Unknown Promotion: Unknown Event (09-11-2011) Perry von Vicious & Timothy Thatcher vs. Suburban Commandos (D-Rent & T-Unit)

 

Paint by numbers tag match where Thatcher doesn't do much of anything. The match has its moments, but to be honest most of them are courtesy of the double teaming from the Commandos. There's really not much to say when it comes to Thatcher in this match, he's just kind of there.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: Sacramento (12-17-2012) Brian Tannen vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Neat short match where Thatcher acts very un-Thatcher like. He plays the face in this match, which is never a role I've seen him take on in a match. He's playful as the babyface, mocking Tannen and playing to the crowd to get under Tannen's skin. I'm not sure if Thatcher can be a babyface long term, but in this match he's able to pull off being a face very well. Mostly it further adds to the idea of Thatcher being extremely versatile and not just capable of working a single specific style.

 

Being the babyface Thatcher has to bump a little more and his offense has to have a bit more pep to it. He succeeds in executing both, working well from underneath to make Tannen seem like a true power guy who can, and is, tossing Thatcher around with relative ease. Thatcher times his comebacks really well, his European Uppercuts are especially nice to see as he really puts some pop behind them and hits them at the right time and elicits a pretty vocal babyface reaction from the crowd when he uses them.

 

Tannen is good as well, really playing up the jock idiot aspects of his character. He's able to keep pace with Thatcher on the mat, but he does so in a much more cumbersome fashion. Tannen presents himself as a skilled wrestler, but still a jock who can't be smooth because there's no way a jock would be smooth. His offense is more clubbing than anything else, but it really fits his character.

 

From bell to bell a well done sprint. They played to the crowd really nicely and told a neatly compact story. Thatcher looked great as the babyface and Tannen was really good as a the boorish heel. Quality professional wrestling this match be.

[BillThompson]

All Pro Wrestling: Gym Wars (09-11-2010) Timothy Thatcher vs. Mr. Wrestling IV

 

This is for Mr. Wrestling's APW Internet Championship.

 

This starts out as a comedy match, and that's really where it's at its best. Thatcher is splendid as the dumbfounded heel who can't get a grasp on what Wrestling is trying to do. Watching Thatcher line up for a test of strength and the growing face of consternation he manifests as Wrestling keeps switching hands and refusing to lock up is quite funny. Wrestling really does have the comedy aspect of the art down pat as just about everything he did was able to elicit laughter from me. My hats off to Thatcher as well, because he had me laughing with his frustrated heel antics.

 

Then they start wrestling and it's pretty pat once that happens. Nothing they do is egregiously bad, but it's all so vanilla. Thatcher hits his usual routine of arm based offense, but it has no lasting impact as Wrestling doesn't really bother to sell the damage. He hits multiple Polish Hammer's where the lead arm is his damaged arm, and he goes for a Backslide where his has to use his damaged arm to power Thatcher into position. Thatcher's offense can look as great as it wants, but if the opponent isn't selling then it's useless.

 

Useless is a great way to describe this match, because though there's nothing terrible it all ends up coming across as mundanely useless. Stay for the comedy and leave once the wrestling starts.

[BillThompson]

Pro Wrestling Bushido: Lucky Fest (03-16-2013) TJ Perkins vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Reviewed on Free Pro Wrestling.

[BillThompson]

All Pro Wrestling: Gym Wars (09-18-2010) Vennis DeMarco vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Slowly worked very old school wrestling match. This is the sort of match that I could easily see fitting right in with the 1970s North American aesthetic, specifically the upper end WWWF stuff. They don't go for any real highspots. Rather, they work the match around the idea of wearing your opponent down. DeMarco doesn't look like much of a professional wrestler, but he is able to hang with Thatcher to a point. I say to a point because it becomes clear after a minute or so that Thatcher has slowed himself down and is helping to walk DeMarco through all the spots. It's not really a carry job, more of a cooperative job and it shows the ability of Thatcher to work at a level that gets the best out of his fellow worker. Very simple match, but really well worked, and quite good.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: Unknown Event (07-17-2011) Paul Isadora & Timothy Thatcher vs. Sir Samurai & Alan Sanchez

 

A match to set up an angle more than anything else. A lot of stuff happens, but it doesn't have any real meaning. I mean, everyone does their job: Isadora stands around like a bump on a log, Thatcher works the mat, Samurai bumps, and Sanchez gets the crowd pumped up. But, it's all for nothing as none of it means anything. One of those wrestling matches where maybe if I followed the promotion on a week to week basis the match would have more meaning in my mind.

[BillThompson]

Reno Wrestle Factory: Wrestlerawk (12-13-2011) Adam Thornstowe vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Hard hitting affair that was much the same as their first encounter, but better. It's a very simple match, worked around limb work and Thatcher grounding Thornstowe. To his credit Thornstowe keeps pace with Thatcher with no problems at all, and works in some of his own tweaks as well. I wasn't a fan of the big German Suplex near the end as it went against the arm work of Thatcher, but having the match end on a Cross Armbreaker almost made up for it. For as much as he was in control of the match Thatcher really gave a lot to Thornstowe, putting over his offense a bunch. I'd like to see a match between these two a few years down the line when both are even better.

[BillThompson]

Reno Wrestle Factory: Unknown Event (Unknown Date) Will Rood vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

I'm assuming this takes place at a later date than their previous meeting I reviewed. The reason for this is that they seem to have better chemistry, and Rood comes across as a much more refined pro wrestler. The match itself is pretty much an extended beatdown from Thatcher on the young Rood. It's about a ten minute match and Thatcher is on offense for eight of those minutes. When he does make his comeback Rood is iffy, mainly because of the way he chooses to go about his offense. Throwing a Dropkick works, but throwing awful looking windmill European Uppercuts does not. Standing in the middle of the ring and trading said European Uppercuts with Thatcher only makes him look worse when Thatcher's are delivered with such vicious crispness. Still, Thatcher does look very vicious here an seems to relish beating the snot out of Rood. I like that vicious streak in him, it's what makes me believe that he can take an opponent apart at will. It's a character quirk, and one that really makes him seem like a methodical killer.

[BillThompson]

All Pro Wrestling: Gym Wars (01-31-2009) Jeckles the Jester vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is for Thatcher's APW Internet Championship.

 

An odd match, mainly because of Jeckles, although Thatcher is off his game as well. Thatcher's timing is really off throughout the match, and he's out of position for more than one moment of Jeckles offense. This is not a performance to go into the plus column for Thatcher. Jeckles is impressive when he's throwing nasty elbow strikes, but that's pretty much the only time he's impressive. He's not that good at bumping or selling, and his non-strike based offense looks weak and is often hit in an ill timed fashion. All in all a very blah match, although I did like Thatcher cheating to win at the end, something I wish he would incorporate more often to fit his blue blood type character.

[BillThompson]

Championship Wrestling from Hollywood: #3-07 (10-14-2012) Ryan Taylor vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Outside of the finish I really dug this match, or at least what I could see. There was a guy who kept getting in the way of the camera so I missed some of the transitions, but I saw enough to have a qualified opinion. Very mat based affair, but again Thatcher impresses both in how much he is willing to give to his opponent and in how he varies his arm based offense. This time out he added in a Yakuza Kick to Taylor's arm while it was trapped in the ropes. Stuff like that adds up, it really paints the picture of Thatcher as a complete wrestler who is attempting to vary up a recognizable formula as much as possible.

 

A really good, and smooth back and forth contest, featuring lots of nifty transitions and great limb work from Thatcher. That's also why the finish doesn't work, because Taylor decides to say fuck you to all the limb work and lock in a Crossface where he's using his damaged arm for all the torque. It's not a smart finish, though I imagine it's a finish that Taylor sure thought sounded neato.

[BillThompson]

All Pro Wrestling: Gym Wars (10-16-2010) Matt Carlos vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is my third time seeing this match-up, and I've grown to like Carlos less and less. He's extremely limited as a pro wrestler, and every match he manages to show how limited he is. Thatcher keeps trying with the kid, but there's only so much he can do with a guy who seems to only know the same two or three moves. The first couple of minutes are interesting as they keep things on the mat and Carlos really works over a Side Headlock. Once they move beyond that though it's pretty much a case of Thatcher allowing Carlos to bust out his weak looking offense while they buy time until the finish.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: 11th Anniversary (04-17-2011) Bobby Hart vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is for Thatcher's SPW Heavyweight Championship.

 

There's a lot to like about this one, but just as much not to like. I'm not familiar with Hart at all, and while he tries it's pretty clear he's not capable of hanging with Thatcher. That's one of the things to not like about the match as they run through a lot of mat sequences that are based off of the idea of the audience going, "Wow, aren't these two so evenly matched on the mat. Oooh, they both rolled away from one another to a standing position in unison, let's clap for them." To their credit Thatcher and Hart really have the audience with them and they do indeed clap for those sequences. They didn't completely work for me and it's because Hart is always noticeably a step behind Thatcher. He comes across as capable on the mat but as a guy who really doesn't have a plan but instead is just grabbing a limb because Thatcher grabbed a limb.

 

Hart has decent strikes, and he's able to get a pretty loud crack behind his Elbows. Highlight of the match had to be a sequence where they did one of my least favorite spots; the back and forth Elbow strike exchange. However when they got to the part where they were screaming and hulking up both guys slowly lilted backwards and collapsed to the mat. A pretty ingenious way to turn a well known spot on its head. There's nothing in the match that rivals that moment, even if they do try to lay it in thick with a hard hitting finishing run. Still, by that point Hart is pretty blown up and is having to take a lot of time in between moves which in turn takes away from the momentum of the finishing stretch.

 

Thatcher's work is superb, especially his selling which is often something I overlook when it comes to his skillset. I'm not sure if Hart has more upside, but he at least shows in this match that he is capable of being a pretty decent wrestler. Shave a few minutes off of this and maybe work around Hart's strikes more as opposed to him trying to hang with Thatcher on the mat and this would have been pretty good.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: Unknown Event (Unknown Date) Dexter St. Jock vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

Total and complete annihilation of an arm, that's what this match is. What impressed me the most was how Thatcher is varied in his attack on the arm, and in how he wrenches everything in. Jock does his part by really selling the amount of pain he is in. However, the ruthless manner in which Thatcher goes after the arm is really the star here. The finish is the culmination of that, as Thatcher doesn't lock on a submission so much as he just wrenches back as violently as possible on Jock's injured arm until he has to submit. File this one into the very good squash category.

[BillThompson]

Pro Wrestling Bushido: Lucha Rulez (02-26-2011) Cjay Kurz vs. Amazing Red vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is a Three Way Dance for Thatcher's PWB Heavyweight Championship.

 

There are a few interesting sequences between Thatcher and Kurz, but on the whole a completely forgettable match. It's about seven minutes long and not much happens outside of your usual, and trite, three way spots.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: 8th Year Anniversary (04-20-2008) Bubba Blanchard vs. Sir Samurai vs. Mr. Frost vs. Vinny Massaro vs. Luster the Legend vs. Virgil Flynn vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is a Double Hell Challenge Seven Way match for Thatcher's SPW Heavyweight Championship.

 

Double Hell apparently means two rings, one is encased in a cage, the other had barbed wire draped over the ropes. There are weapons galore to be found, and the goal is to climb a ladder in one ring and take down the title, then traverse to the second ring, climb another ladder and hook the belt up there.

 

As should be expected, this is abysmal. I happen to be a somewhat fan of death match stuff, but this is the very worst of the style. I'm not going to bother breaking much of the match down, because it's just a bunch of weapons shots and stupid bumps. This is interesting merely from the vantage point of it showcases Thatcher in a completely different environment. He stays in character though, he doesn't work over an arm or anything, but he tries to keep wrestling even amid all the chaos. It adds a nice touch to his character and it's probably why he stands out compared to the rest even though he doesn't do anything special. Thatcher doesn't shy away from taking bumps either, he gets tossed into the barbed wire ropes, thrown off a ladder, slammed on a barbed wire sign, and is shot in the head multiple times with a staple gun. None of it adds up to anything good, but it's interesting watching Thatcher in such an environment, and how even in a garbage match he manages to stand out from the crowd.

[BillThompson]

Supreme Pro Wrestling: Unknown Event (06-09-2011) Sir Samurai vs. Timothy Thatcher vs. Johnny Plinko vs. Josh Robertson

 

This is a Four Way match.

 

Odd set-up for this match, as it's a four way, but guys tag in and out all the time and it's not an elimination match. That makes the majority of the match feel pretty darn superfluous, because it's obvious the match isn't going to end until a pair is isolated in the ring. Maybe the singles matches will reveal more, but so far Samurai is not living up to his rep as a quality worker. He shows a lack of timing, and kind of just flies around the ring busting out moves at random. Thatcher is solid here, but this is a match where he needed to vary things up a bit and he didn't really do that. Him working over Plinko's arm \is interesting, but him doing the same exact routine to Robertson and Samurai is overkill. The one aspect of Thatcher's work that I wish he would expand is his moveset, because most of the time his arm work is fine, but in a match like this him pulling out some suplexes would be great. Still, Thatcher sells well here, bumps well, and is convincing with the offense he does use. Still, the format of the match makes this one pretty meandering.

[BillThompson]

PREMIER Wrestling: Cobb vs. Dutra (06-09-2013) Timothy Thatcher vs. JR Kratos

 

A bit of a fuck you finish from Kratos as he tries to time his kickout to be right after the three, but he mistimes and mangles the ending as a result. Otherwise a swell match. Nothing too flashy, just simple hold for hold wrestling. Thatcher excels, as it's pretty obvious right away that he is carrying Kratos. Don't get me wrong, Kratos is game, but he's a hair too slow and musclebound to really keep up with Thatcher. But, Thatcher works to Kratos' level and the end result is a really good match. Lots of believable transitions and submission attempts. I liked how they worked with the idea of Kratos being a powerhouse and how Thatcher used that trait against Kratos. For the most part Kratos did a fine job of selling Thatcher's offense, and I'd love to see Thatcher use the Running Knee as a finish more often.

[BillThompson]

Unknown Promotion: Unknown Event (11-07-2009) Timothy Thatcher vs. Riv Vampiro

 

Apparently this is Riv's first ever pro match, and it does show. There's not much here from Riv, as he looks quite nervous and off in everything he does. He's never offensively bad though, and that's a big plus. Thatcher looks good in guiding Riv through the match. He keeps things simple and allows for Riv to become more at ease the longer the match goes. Not exactly a great showing from Thatcher, but he did good in not blitzing the kid and giving him too much to work with.

[BillThompson]

WestCoast Wrestling Federation: WCWF Arena (01-11-2014) Timothy Thatcher vs. Dave Dutra

 

Reviewed on Blue Thunder Driver.

[BillThompson]

North American Wrestling: Lodi (Unknown Date) Bobby Hart vs. Timothy Thatcher

 

This is very early in Thatcher's career. he doesn't even have the Union Jack tights yet. This is a very interesting match as the ground work is present in Thatcher for the wrestler he will become. He works over Hart's arm, and he understands how he needs to work over the arm with a variety of moves and build towards his Thatcher Stretch. At the same time Thatcher has yet to understand the importance of transitions and moving from one move to another. Thus he stands around a lot in between moves, which is very odd to see coming from Thatcher.

 

This is mainly a back and forth grappling match, but it suffers because even a green Thatcher comes across as leagues better than Hart on the mat. Hart feels like a guy who watched a few tapes and thinks he can grapple now, and he acts accordingly by going with the same repeated moves like a Cross Armbreaker and Fujiwara Armbar. He may not get the transition side of things, but Thatcher's arm work is much more focused and crisp, and there are hints of the greatness that is to come.

 

As a match this is middling, but as a glimpse at a green Thatcher this is a fascinating watch.

[BillThompson]

All Pro Wrestling: Gym Wars (01-03-2009) Timothy Thatcher vs. Jeckles the Jester

 

This is for Jeckles' APW Internet Championship.

 

Awful match, mainly due to neither man being on the same page. There's multiple missed spots, including a glaring Polish Hammer attempt from Thatcher that Jeckles sells even though Thatcher misses him by a good foot. There's also a botched Chokeslam near the end, where Jeckles lifts Thatcher up and then Thatcher bumps forward instead of backward and they tumble to the mat. I don't know, maybe that's a silly move of Jeckles' and it's supposed to be that way, but it looked bad. Neither man really does anything other than miss spots. This is the first match I've seen from Thatcher where I've felt he was legitimately awful.