Highlights
- AR Fox did a shooting star press off the apron
- Brodie Lee in sequence pulled off a rana on a kneeling PAC and then a plancha to the outside.
- Rich Swann challenged Akira Tozawa to a rap-off. Tozawa refused and instead sang baritone.
- Swann's offense on Tozawa included thrusting.
- Sabu nearly broke Pinkie Sanchez's face off with a stiff Arabian facebuster through a table.
- Chuck Taylor tried choking YAMATO with a piece of streamer.
- Taylor would have won the Open the Freedom Gate Championship if it weren't for
those pesky kidshis stablemate, Johnny Gargano, alerting the ref that YAMATO had gotten his foot on the rope out of a corner Omega Driver.
Observations
- Uhaa Nation went from being no one to an indie phenomenon in like three months, and I can see why. Dude is impressive, at least in his offense. I'd like to see him in something other than a tag match where his partner, BJ Whitmer, has to take all the heat, but so far, I like what I see.
- They teased Nation/Brodie. This is a match that I want to see like now.
- PAC is a LOT larger than I thought he'd be. For a guy his size who can do the high flying stuff the way he does, the only reason I can think of him not being in a major company right now is that he'd rather be with DG. That's not necessarily a bad thing though.
- While I liked all the matches, there were two spots I thought were a bit excessive. One was a 450 from Fox on Masato Yoshino and the other was a top rope Emerald Fusion by BxB Hulk on Johnny Gargano. Both went for two counts. I know it's Dragon Gate/Toryumon and all, but c'mon.
- Akira Tozawa should be the World Champion in every promotion on Earth. Even SHIMMER.
- Would anyone believe that I've lived in Philly all my life and tonight was the first time I ever saw Sabu at the ECW Arena?
- YAMATO looks like Dick Togo with shaved hair. In fact, he's probably the guy who drastically changes his look most with the lack of hair than anyone else.
- Dirty Ugly Fucks. Wow, they're like my new favorite tag team.
- How the hell does the merch table only have three Blood Warriors t-shirts?
Match of the Night
CIMA and Ricochet (c) vs. the Dirty Ugly Fucks (Arik Cannon and Sami Callihan), Open the United Gate Championship Match - This main evented the show, and they certainly made the right choice. From the beginning of the match, when the Champs feigned walking out and Callihan got on the mic and EVISCERATED them, I knew it was going to be an awesome match. Like fellow attendee and baseball blogger Jeff Paternostro said though, CIMA is entertaining when answering e-mails, and wow, Ricochet, I wanna know where he found the personality.
I liked how there was in-show continuity all night long, and that manifested in the match when Brodie Lee, part of Blood Warriors, interfered in the match early, but was chased off by BJ Whitmer. Brodie in the pre-show match had attacked Whitmer and Nation after their win over The Scene. This left a big chunk of the match with no shenanigans from other people. However, in a match where CIMA was being CIMA and where the DUFs had a few spots based around their beer of choice (Pabst Blue Ribbon), it wasn't lacking in the fun department. There was such a frenetic pace that gave it a big main event feel, big spots and hard hitting abounding. Callihan "hulking" up fit for him because I can legitimately see him no-selling shoot hits in real life and going buck. He just has that crazy vibe. As things are won't to do in Toryumon style tag matches, things fell apart by the end, and that made for some pretty big spots unfolding, the biggest of which found Ricochet delivering his 630 senton for the win. Really strong way to end a strong show.
Overall Impressions
When I last saw Dragon Gate USA live, I left underwhelmed by the experience. The show felt like it dragged, and a few good second-half matches couldn't save it from feeling bogged down by its own seriousness and lack of identity. Two years later, and I feel the total opposite of what I felt back then. Everything felt fun, fresh, fleshed out, full of personality. I guess the lesson is that Davey Richards is a personality suck... well, only half-joking there. The real lesson is that even the best bookers need time to get their cards in order. Gabe stocked the roster with the right guys and let their characters develop. Ricochet is no longer this guy who does flips. He's got a mohawk and he talks shit on behalf of his English-challenged partner, CIMA. Rich Swann isn't some dude who does a standing 450. He raps and uses thrusting as the major crux of his offense. Callihan isn't just some bland goth guy. He's Stone Cold if Stone Cold wasn't a redneck but a punk rock scumbag.
Of course, the wrestling was good. One would expect it to be under the Dragon Gate banner if they went into it as a fan of the product (not everyone is a fan of the Toryumon style, and that's okay). However, while wrestling is the most important part of a wrestling show, personality isn't very far behind. I think DGUSA gets it. Their roster, with CIMA, Tozawa, Swann, Taylor, Gargano, Ricochet, Brodie, Cannon, Callihan and Sanchez, has great wrestlers with great personalities. That's a winning combination.
So the show tonight was at a weird time, and at times it had a weird vibe. However, the first three matches and the main event were all must-see. The middle of the card felt a bit slower at times, but it was all still good stuff. Even Sabu wasn't really that offensive, even if I feel like he's holding on way past his prime right now. This show is well worth the catch on the replay.
Results
(Pre-Show Bonus) Uhaa Nation and BJ Whitmer d. The Scene (Caleb Konley and Scott Reed)
Masato Yoshino d. AR Fox
PAC d. Brodie Lee
Rich Swann d. Akira Tozawa
Johnny Gargano d. BxB Hulk
Sabu d. Pinkie Sanchez in a South Philly Streetfight
YAMATO (c) d. Chuck Taylor, Open the Freedom Gate Championship match
CIMA and Ricochet (c) d. Sami Callihan and Arik Cannon, Open the United Gate Championship match
