Tonight I went to my first ever non-WWE wrestling event at the ECW Arena up in South Philly. Chikara's annual King of Trios, a six-man tag team tournament held over three nights, began its extravaganza tonight, and I have to say, all the good things I've heard about the fledgling indie fed are true. I had a blast, and every match was a crowd-pleaser. That's rare, given that the bathroom-break match has been around since, well forever.
I can't even begin to give you a detailed run-down because I was only familiar with so few guys going in, and I don't remember a lot of the names. I will, however, give the highlights.
- Night started off with Hydra coming out and tossing frisbees into the crowd. For those who don't know, Hydra is this guy in a mask and a muscle-suit. I'm guessing he's Chikara's mascot or something. He got a good pop, and the night started off on a high-note.
- First match featured Austin Aries. I really have no idea how this guy isn't on one of the Big 1.5's rosters right now unless he's consciously deciding to stay in the indies. This guy has the look and sweats more charisma out of one pore than I've ever seen from Randy Orton, to give a specific example. One of Aries' partners, Ryan Drago, kept hot-tagging himself in when Aries was getting started, giving him the distinction of heel of the night (at least until the main event). Good match, and Aries' team took the loss, but the affair set the tone for the night - great action with surprisingly funny comedy interspersed within the matches.
- No BRAINBUSTAAAAAHH~! from El Generico, and I think he was the one who took the fall in his team's match against The Osirian Portal. Sucks, because I was looking forward the most to Generico, although he did unleash two brutal corner Yakuza kicks, and participated in a cool dance-off.
- Speaking of The Osirian Portal... man, Ophidian lives his gimmick. He was really hamming it up in the crowd during intermission. More on that in general later.
- Comedic match of the night was Team Uppercut (Brian Danielson, Claudio Castignioli, Dave Taylor) against the The Roughnecks (Grizzly Redwood, Brodie Lee and Eddie Kingston). I was slightly disappointed that I didn't see a lot of what make Danielson and Castignioli the darlings of the indie community, but it was entertaining as hell. The best was when Danielson engaged in the test of strength with various members of the other team, from the borderline midget Grizzly Redwood to the massive Lee.
- Comedic moments of the night go to the Soul Touchers vs. Team CZW match. First one had Beef Wellington calling for a mic and reciting the entire first verse of "Ice Ice Baby" to Willie Richardson, who proceeded to give him the last line and then belt him in the face. Wellington retorted to that "I deserved that." The second was when Greg Excellent, who's this big, Mike Knox-looking guy, and Trauma engaging in the Carlton Dance, replete with the accompanying music. Even when not wrestling, these guys were consummate entertainers.
- After intermission, it was Necro Butcher and his team against FIST, featuring Chuck Taylor. Necro Butcher was easily one of the two most over guys of the night.
- The next match featured probably the most over team of the night, Team DDT, comprising of Kota Ibushi, KUDO and Michael Nakazawa, who covered himself in oil pre-match and at various points during the match, causing some slippery situations.
- The other guy who got a huge pop was Johnny Saint, a veritable living legend who looked like someone's rough and tumble Marine grandfather. He teamed with Mike Quackenbush and Jorge Rivera against Delirious, Hallowicked and Frightmare, a threesome that I can only describe as what Kane or Undertaker would be on crack. Saint got the pinfall over Delirious, whom I think is in the same boat as Aries, and could be a massively over heel in the 'E as he is right now.
- Main event time, with Colin Delaney and two other guys taking on the team of Al Snow, Glacier and Iceberg... only Iceberg's plane was delayed, so they needed a third. They went through a whole schtick where they picked the names of former alter egos of Snow and Glacier out of a hat until they came to... D'Lo Brown. Brown got a huge pop. Delaney was probably the heel of the night, getting various chants from "You're a jobber" to "You got fired". Good one, Philly, because D'Lo also got fired from the WWE recently. He shed a fake tear, but he knew where the chants were directed. Delaney actually got the pinfall on D'Lo after a roll-up, but the faces went finisher-mania after the bell. In fact, the main was the only match where the teams didn't shake hands afterwards, but I guess you had to send the crowd home happy.
- The thing that amazed me most about the show was how accessible the wrestlers were. Much like the aforementioned Ophidian, the Soul Touchers, El Generico, Team DDT and a score of others were milling about the arena during intermission and after the show, taking pictures with fans and just talking to them. I got to shake El Generico's hand. That was really cool.
I have to say, I was very impressed with Chikara and their set up. I would definitely go back, and I highly recommend it for anyone who likes wrestling and who likes to have a good time.
Banner by K. Sawyer Paul
