Highlights:
- Dasher Hatfield took advantage of some uncharacteristic shakiness from Ophidian to gain the school boy victory.
- Shayne Storm, Rorschach, Jolly Roger and Lance Steel all returned to a Chikara ring to team with Crossbones as the Season 3 All-Stars.
- Alas, they fell victim to chicanery. Kobold removed Steel's protective chestplate and landed a top rope hip press for the victory.
- The Sendai girls dazzled and amazed, and in the end, nothing Dash Chisako or Sendai Sachiko could do could put away their teacher as Meiko Satomura got the win with a fireman's carry Queen Bee Bomb.
- King of Trios' venue was announced as Easton, PA.
- Despite apparently dying in the middle of the ring, the judges awarded Darkness Crabtree the unanimous decision victory over Archibald Peck in their MMA exhibition. Afterwards, Peck attacked the judges, knocking two out but having the better of him taken by third judge the Swamp Monster.
- The Gekido stole a victory from the Season One All-Stars as 17 tapped Dragonfly with an inverted Lightning Lock. Afterwards, Dragonfly was taken from the arena with an injury.
- The match between Tim Donst and Hallowicked at Chikarasaurus Rex was made into a lucha de apuesta, Donst's hair vs. Wicked's mask, after an altercation between the two.
- Colt Cabana overcame football shenanigans to defeat Mark "Mr. Touchdown" Angelosetti with his super elevator drop.
- Jigsaw scored the upset victory over Eddie Kingston in atomicos action with a super brainbuster.
General Observations:
- Gavin Loudspeaker promised to funk the pre-show song up, which he did with a parody of Cameo's "Word Up."
- I definitely noticed Ophidian convulsing and twitching pre-match. Could it be the staff of UltraMantis is screwing with him because it knows it's been stolen?
- The people in the front row of my section sang the "Whacking Day" song from The Simpsons to Dasher Hatfield as he held his baseball bat before the match. I love Chikara fans.
- At one point, Hatfield mocked Ophidian with his collection of masks while he had him in a submission hold.
- Both guys looked really sharp in this match, especially Hatfield, who segued an Eddie Guerrero-style senton ring-in into a side cradle pin. Ophidian had his moments, especially giving Hatfield a bulldog where he ran and jumped through the ropes to the outside.
- At one point, Ophidian screamed "DEATH TO AMASIS" before rolling in with a shining wizard. Obsessed much?
- The Season Three Team reveal was pretty much the first of what would be many building-shaking pops from the crowd. Shayne Storm was probably the most satisfying of all of these (mainly because Crossbones had returned already last season).
- All three of the Batiri ended up hurting their hands on Steel's chest plate, eliciting a "YOU'RE SO STUPID" chant.
- I pretty much lost my poop when Jolly Roger hopped on Steel's back and jousted everyone on the rudo team.
- Jakob Hammermeier at one point dropped "This is no longer PG, it's rated YARRRRR", which would've inspired groans from anyone else except Jakob Hammermeier.
- Shayne Storm breaking out the STOP sign and freezing all the rudos was pretty awesome. It got even better after the tecnicos landed a quintuple suplex on the other team, and referee Jon Barber turned the sign around to SLOW, initiating the best use of slo-mo I've seen in Chikara.
- Chisako was quite the posing maven all night, taking opportunities to ham it up for the camera while Sachiko was working over Kagetsu early on the in the match and when she herself had Kagetsu tangled in the ropes later on.
- Speaking of Kagetsu, holy poop, she has the most violent looking dropkick I've ever seen.
- Satomura was billed as the top ranked joshi coming into this match, and there really was nothing she did that would suggest otherwise. Those attending the New York show are in for a treat when she goes one-on-one with Sara del Rey.
- Kagetsu and Satomura sure loved wrangling their foes in submission holds. A lot of face in peril work here, even if the ones on the receiving end of it were more rudo than tecnico in this match by their mannerisms.
- At one point, Sachiko countered a suplex with a guillotine choke so gracefully that I almost wanted to cry.
- At intermission, Mike Quackenbush invited everyone to come to the ring area for a picture taken by TWB's super rad photographer friend Zia Hiltey. She had to climb into a precarious position to get the shot, which elicited a "PLEASE DON'T DIE" chant from the crowd.
- I'll have more thoughts in a separate post about the King of Trios venue choice, but I will say this. In terms of being able to watch a show, the Palmer Center is the perfect choice.
- Your judges for the MMA Exhibition: Steve "The Turtle" Weiner (in full turtle get up), Jervis Cottonbelly and the SWAMP MONSTER
- Pre-match, Archie called for a fist-bump, and Crabtree fell flat on his face trying to reciprocate.
- Just like in a regular match, Archie scampered to the top and called for his finisher, except round 1 ran out of time before he could execute it.
- Crabtree "hulking up" after taking all his meds was frigging awesome.
- Archie called for his finisher again, which was a leap from the top and then a simple application of the guillotine choke. Guys, the Mixed Martial Archie character kinda rules.
- Bryce checked to see if Crabtree passed out, shouted "HE'S COLD" and jumped back in horror. The funny thing was, Crabtree pretended to be dead for about 10 minutes before Bryce revived him with his iPhone, but none of the kids in attendance seemed fazed at all by this. Just goes to show that any topic can be made kid-friendly with the right tone.
- Icarus was pretty much the best performer in the Gekido/First Years match, especially for his stunt during the chaos in the early going, yelling at Bryce to "LOOK OVER THERE" so he could bash one of the Swarm with his jack-o-lantern.
- Of course, Icarus wore his shirt the whole time, lest he got booed out of the building.
- I liked how all the Gekido had moves that were the same or slightly different of their mirrors.
- In the altercation segment, Donst pretty much showed why Chikara is just the best promotion around for setting up story with his promo foreshadowing and setting up the hair vs. mask stipulation.
- I loved the football interplay between Cabana and Angelosetti during their match. The best was Bryce showing why he's kinda the best referee ever with his whistle and readiness of having a yellow penalty flag. I'm not just saying this because he comes on my podcast either.
- Scott Parker had taped ribs, which was the centerpiece of the opening exchange he had with Sara del Rey. It led to him asking nicely and having Sara let go of her rear waistlock (which he was hemming and hollering throughout) and having other humorous exchanges.
- They teased 3.0 imploding through most of the beginning of the match. Both of them were in the ring with each other at one point, but Saturyne tagged herself in to foil it. Later on, they'd go at it on the outside after Matthews got pissed at Parker for "eliminating him from the Rumble". (they hugged it out after the match though)
- Speaking of "implosions", Green and Soldier Ants really put a clinic on mat wrestling and grappling when they were in against each other.
- Jigsaw by far does the best Gory Special of anyone on the scene today. His actually looks like it hurts the way he stretches it out.
- While Jigsaw and Kingston were antagonists because of their Grand Championship match in New York, the hush over the arena was greatest when del Rey finally was in there with the War King. They traded blows, which caused Kingston to dismissively say to her "If you're gonna hit me sweetheart, you better make it good." Of course, right after, she almost knocked his teeth out with a bevy of kicks, ending with her signature koppo kick.
- Our section started a loud "LET'S GO SARA" chant that caught on in the whole building. It seemed to catch del Rey by surprise.
- After the match ended, Kingston shook hands with everyone on the other team except Jigsaw, which sent him into a rage. Another great bit of storytelling.
Match of the Night: There were no fewer than five matches that I thought could've gotten this honor, but my pick was definitely the Season 11 All-Stars vs. the Season 3 All-Stars. It was more than just nostalgia vs. the present day. It was a juxtaposition of the old and the new to show that while the players and the techniques have changed, the spirit of Chikara has remained the same since day one, that it's still one of the places in wrestling where the spirit of fun is alive and well. There was the signature mix of great wrestling and superb comedy. Seriously, even if I wasn't around when Roger and Steel were doing their thing for the first time, I still felt like I was watching something that was innately familiar when they teamed up to go jousting for rudos.
All of it has to do with the performers. Everyone, from Crossbones and Storm down to Donst and the Batiri, knew how to pull the strings of the crowd and get people lost in the performance. It's more than how tight the chinlock is or how closely the limb is sold. It's about facial expressions, giving into the other guys' gimmicks, enthusiasm. This match had all that personified and more.
In the end, they did end up telling a great story with great psychology. Sure, it centered around a vinyl chestplate that was sold to be like steel, but if it works, it works. Chikara for ten years has been the place for people who embrace the absurd alongside the intense, and no match on this card emphasized that more than this one.
Overall Thoughts: This definitely was a night where the past met the present, with the confluence producing one of the best Chikara shows I've ever had the privilege of attending. There was such a feeling of nostalgia in the air, and with every nod to the past, whether it was the outright return of a former wrestler like Mister ZERO or Jolly Roger, Icarus dressing up in his old attire or even something like former ring announcer Carolina Jim making a special appearance, it heightened the birthday atmosphere on this important anniversary. That being said, things did not stagnate either. While the nod to the history was nice, there were notes for the future as well. The Gekido continued to run amok. Chess pieces were set in motion for both Chikarasaurus Rex in two weeks and for the Grand Championship match later today. When I tell you that Chikara is the best wrestling promotion around right now, it's shows like this that I can turn to and use as proof that I am, beyond the shadow of any doubt, correct.
Results:
- Dasher Hatfield pinned Ophidian with a school boy.
- Obariyon, Kodama, Kobold, Tim Donst and Jakob Hammermeier defeated Shayne Storm, Jolly Roger, Crossbones, Lance Steel and Rorschach when Kobold pinned Steel with a hip attack from the top rope.
- Meiko Satomura and Kagetsu defeated Dash Chisako and Sendai Sachiko when Satomura pinned Sachiko with a fireman's carry Queen Bee bomb.
- Darkness Crabtree defeated Archibald Peck in a MMA exhibition by unanimous judges' decision.
- 17, The Shard, assailANT, combatANT and deviANT defeated UltraMantis Black, Hallowicked, Mister ZERO, Dragonfly and Icarus when 17 tapped Dragonfly with the inverted Lightning Lock.
- Colt Cabana pinned Mark Angelosetti with a super elevator drop.
- Jigsaw, Sara del Rey, Green Ant and Shane Matthews defeated Eddie Kingston, Saturyne, Soldier Ant and Scott Parker when Jigsaw pinned Kingston with a super brainbuster.
