[2022-01-21-ACTION] Alex Shelley vs. AC Mack

[Wahoos Leg]

This match is for Shelley's IWTV World Title. What ensues here is a modern twist on the old tale of a traveling champion coming into town to defend against the local favorite. The story centers around the left arm of Mack, which Shelley focuses on with ill intent for the vast majority of the match. Credit Mack for selling Shelley's arm attack like it rendered the limb useless. That also negates Mack from using his signature move, the Mack 10 -- a cross-armed version of the Pedigree and a well-established match-ender in ACTION and other affiliated promotions. Shelley does a masterful job as the visiting champion and Mack is in his element as the hometown hero finally getting his big match. The crowd is invested for every second. The work is smooth and compelling. The conclusion is sudden, satisfying... and also historic. With the win, Mack becomes the first openly gay male world champ in wrestling history.

Check out my full review, as part of the 365 Wrestling project.

 

[corwo]

From the outset, there’s a great atmosphere that sets the tone for the match. The crowd is firmly pro-Mack, with some fans even going so far as to bring signs with his face on them. He can be a jerk sometimes, but he’s their jerk. The crowd erupts into a “this is Mack’s house!” chant before the bell even rings. They eat up every word of his signature pre-match promo, echoing some of Mack’s key phrases. Shelley is delightfully smug in the pre-match, talking trash to Mack and the fans, quickly establishing his role here.

Shelley goes after Mack’s arm, trying to take away the Mack-10. His work is brutal and disdainful, snapping Mack’s arm across the canvas and throwing him limb-first into the post. Shelley eggs the crowd on as he stomps the arm and delivers uppercuts. Mack goes for body shots, but can’t capitalize because of his bad arm. The locker room empties as everyone pounds on the apron to cheer on Mack. AC catches his second wind with an enziguri and a pair of suicide dives, but it always comes back to his bad arm. AC eventually catches Shelley with a swinging DDT but has to throw his body over Alex for a pinfall in a nice little detail. Shelley goes to the well one too many times with the Shell Shock and Mack kicks out and reverses into a roll-up to snag the title.

I love this match for its simplicity. At its core, it’s a tale of morality, one of an outsider the crowd loves to hate and a hometown hero overcoming the odds. All of the tropes that could’ve come off as tired, such as the locker room surrounding ringside, came together to create a genuinely special moment, one that will hopefully stay in my memory for a long time.