Hey, remember that match countdown I did last year? You know, the one where I listed my top 25 matches that I saw in 2009? Yeah, well, it's about to become 27 matches. Yes, I finally got around to watching Chikara's September 13th card, Hiding in Plain Sight, their foray into Nashua, NH, and let me tell you, it was yet another feather in a cap that would be looking like a peacock given all the killer shows they put on last year.
Given the other three Chikara shows I viewed last year, this one is on par with Aniversario Yang with quality. Some of the undercard matches were a bit on the sloppy side, but the best matches were top notch stuff. Really.
The curtain jerker featured the Team FIST duo of Chuck Taylor and Icarus taking on Frightmare and Hallowicked. This was probably the sloppiest match of the afternoon, but it was still fun, because really, Frightmare is maybe the most fun wrestler on the roster. The best part of the match was when he hit a move to the outside and spent a good five minutes slapping hands to the point where Hallowicked had to drag him back into the ring to complete the match. Finish was Hallowicked hitting the Graveyard Smash, a sort of fisherman's Alabama Slam, on Icarus.
Next up was a women's match between SHIMMER vet but Chikara newcomer Ariel and mainstay from both promotions as well as ROH and well, any indie fed around the country that has women wrestling Sara Del Rey. This was pre-BDK alignment, so Death Rey was still facing it up, laughing and having a good time with the crowd, which would shout "TWO!" at every two count. Ariel actually reminded me of Snooki from the Jersey Shore, although I'm pretty sure this match happened before the premiere of that reality smash. Ariel was pretty game, but again, it was kind of a sloppy match. Del Rey got the win with her delayed butterfly suplex/brainbuster type move called the Royal Butterfly.
Next up on the DVD was a presentation of a lifetime achievement award for charitable donations to local indie legend Lobsterman, which was interrupted by bad boy tag team 2.0 stealing the award and then Tim Donst coming out and attacking Hydra, who was there with Leonard F. Chikarason to present the award. Donst got himself suspended for 60 days, thus cancelling his match with Vökoder for the evening. Of course, we all know now that match could never have happened because DONST IS VÖKODER! VÖKODER IS DONST!
Next match was the Roughneck team of Grizzly Redwood and Eddie Kingston taking on Delirious and UltraMantis Black. This is where the action started getting good. AT this point, Kingston was of the frame of mind that Grizz was the weak link the stable. Even though he was technically a rudo in the match, Kingston spent half the match playing face in peril, and then, instead of making the hot tag, he started wailing on both Solar-Templars. He ended up getting tied up outside the ring with Mantis, and Delirious hit the Praying Mantis Bomb (Tiger Driver '98) on Grizz for the win.
Now, match of the year. Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli. Jigsaw and Mike Quackenbush. Wow. My jaw was dropped by the end of this one, and if I had seen it last year, it probably would have bumped the Hero/KENTA or one of the RAW matches with the wonky finishes off my list. It was that incredible.
We started with pre-bell shaking of the hands. Danielson shook both opponents' hands. Claudio only shook Jig's. Foreshadowing? I think so, even though the announcers sold it as residual heat from their ongoing friendly rivalry. Jig and Claudio started the match with some nice exchanges. Claudio tagged in Danielson, tow hich Jigsaw replied "I think Mike wanted to wrestle you." Quack tagged in and the crowd popped for the clash of the veritable indie titans. Some nice lucha stuff here and there, and once AmDrag tagged back out, so did Quack. The match would take a turn for the stiff as at one point, Jigsaw slapped Danielson from the mat, and Danielson lost his temper, shoving referee Todd Sinclair (a loaner from ROH... BRYCE~! was doing commentary). By this time, both Danielson and Claudio spent a good chunk of the middle of the match working over Jigsaw's hurt knee (one he hurt at DGUSA's Untouchable six days prior). After a good while working it over, Danielson had Jig's knee wrenched in a torture single crab, and Quack had enough. He charged into the ring and slapped the taste out of AmDrag's mouth. Sinclair lost control momentarily, and then the hyper-charged march to the finish started. Danielson got Quack in Cattle Mutilation, but Jig made the save. Quack got AmDrag in the Chikara Special, but Claudio made the save. The finish came with Quack countering Danielson from the top rope into the Alligator Clutch, a freakin' awesome lucha-type pinning move. The announcers were spent. The crowd was spent. All four wrestlers were spent. It was truly MOTY stuff.
After the match, Danielson cut a promo saying that he no longer deserved the moniker "Best in the World", that guys like the American Wolves, the Young Bucks, Claudio, Quack and Jig had surpassed him. The crowd didn't agree and really, neither do I, but hey, he was putting the guys over because he's classy. After that, they played "Final Countdown" and AmDrag rode off into the Chikara sunset slapping hands of the Nashua faithful.
The next match was a 10-man match featuring 2.0 and the UnStable taking on Carpenter Ant, Green Ant, Dasher Hatfield, Lince Dorado and Colt Cabana. Very fun match, and almost the exact opposite of the one that preceeded it. Very comedic in nature, and if you're tight-assed about believability and shit, then, well, you probably aren't watching Chikara in the first place. For fans of the fed, it was comic relief that was par for the course. Why? Rather than describe what happened, let me show you via Youtube:
That's right, they had a wrestling match and a baseball game broke out. I love Chikara, and right here is a big reason why I do and why Dasher is probably one of my favorites in the fed right now. Anyway, the match ended with Lobsterman coming out, getting his heat back by hitting 2.0's Shane Matthews over the head with the loaded lobster claw and getting his plaque back from earlier in the night. Lince hit a SSP, and it was academic. Funny looking back that 40 percent of the tecnico team, Lince Dorado and Carpenter Ant, aka Pinkie Sanchez, are now part of the BDK. I wonder if their placement in this match was intentional.
Time to change the discs, and to open disc 2, we have Smash Bro. vs. Smash Bro. for the Young Lions Cup. Champion Dos vs. Challenger Uno. Pre-match was a Dos promo showing his disappointment over Uno's obsessing over singles glory at the expense of their friendship. He also said that in the rare event that Uno won, he'd be the first to congratulate him. The match itself was very fun. Both guys knew each other well. Uno tried to grind the match down, and Dos took to the air. The finish was kind of awkward as they jostled in the corner with Dos hitting his signature B13, which is some kind of forward flip snapmare driver from the top, very hard to describe, so just click the link and watch the Youtube of him doing it to Austin Aries. After the match, Uno hid under the ring to avoid having to face his partner in celebration.
Main event time! It was a Campeonatos de Parejas match between the then-Champion Osirian Portal and the challenger Colony team of Fire and Soldier Ants. This was a highly enjoyable match, comparable to their one-fall tilt at Revelation X. I'd be hard pressed to decide which one would have made the list had I seen this card sooner. I just love the chemistry that the Portal and the Ants have with each other. You're guaranteed a good match. They spent a good portion of the match selling the fact that Ophidian's arm wasn't at 100 percent, which took away from his finishing submission cobra clutch. The Colony swept the first two falls and won the titles, first fall with a TKO from Soldier on Amasis, and the second fall with Ophidian tapping to a Fire Ant cross armbar. After the match, the Portal turned tecnico by presenting the Colony with the title belts with respect. Classy.
All in all, it was a strong card anchored by the utter absurdity of the baseball sequence on the comedic end and the awesome display of four indie wrestling warriors in the QuackSaw vs. Team Uppercut match. I'm beginning to sense that it's impossible for Chikara to put on even an average show, given that I've been wowed with each of the five cards I've either attended or viewed on DVD. This one was no exception. Indeed, the quality was Hiding in Plain Sight... har har har.
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