The Ballad of Jakob and Tim

In Happier Times
Photo Credit: Zia Hiltey

The best tale of unrequited love in wrestling this year no doubt, hands down, isn't even involving two people romantically linked. Jakob Hammermeier, the former ring announcer for the BDK and current up-and-coming wrestler, is devoted, absolutely devoted, to Tim Donst. The man is his idol. Donst helped train him, and when the BDK fell apart with Ares heading off to Las Vegas to be a full-time father, Claudio Castagnoli changing names and pursuing different career opportunities and Tursas, well, off doing Tursas things in and around the North Pole, the only man left to carry the torch was Donst. Because he was the only one who stayed, Hammermeier latched onto him.

Donst, however, was and has been preoccupied with far different goals. Hammermeier was a hanger-on to him, and a pretty inconsistently successful one at that. It almost felt as if he would have been better off chasing Hallowicked, obsessively taunting him and attacking him over the title of who the best Young Lions Cup Champion of all-time was alone. Then, after Chikarasaurus Rex, when Hallowicked shaved Donst bald after their lucha de apuesta, Donst's own mindset shifted, and it wasn't towards a closer relationship with Hammermeier. That shift in mind has caused Donst to do some questionable things, like attacking Eddie Kingston after his brutal title defense against Tadasuke at King of Trios Night 2. In fact, Donst's true feelings towards Hammermeier have been bubbling up at times when they would team together, most recently on Night 3 of the event.

Hammermeier would probably take a bullet for Donst, and during the Tag Gauntlet, he did about the closest thing he could do to taking one when he leapt in front of a tandem dropkick from Fire and Green Ants intended for his reluctant mentor. What was his reward? Physical and mental abuse both before and after the sacrifice. It's clear that Hammermeier is a broken shell of a man, and he plays the role so well that he has quickly become one of the most sympathetic wrestlers in all of Chikara. This dramatic shift has come in less than two years after he was probably the most fun person in all the land to jeer and boo.

While Chikara has come under fire for its creative direction, mainly surrounding the Gekido storyline, this has been an example of why they are without a doubt one of the best promotions in history when it comes to detailed storytelling and characterization. This very well could be a love story, and if any company was going to normalize a same sex romance, it would be Chikara. They're super progressive, and I hope one day they do tackle it. That being said, I guess there's a quota on romantic entanglements that any wrestling company should tackle, and the love triangle among Veronica, Mark Angelosetti and Archibald Peck seems a bit too fresh in everyone's mind.

That being said, regardless of whether it's love or just platonic relations, this has been one of the most under-the-radar great stories in wrestling. If the endgame is to create a moment where Hammermeier finally breaks free of his admiration, it's going to be a huge one because of all the emotional equity built up, albeit as quietly as it has been. Once again, Chikara proves that when you combine great direction and writing with great performers (and there's no doubt to me that both Donst and Hammermeier are great performers), you get magic.