Ring Around Wrestling- The Weekend that Will Be

Being that I was in New York this past weekend, I haven’t had the opportunity to get excited for what will be another exciting weekend for professional wrestling. Thankfully, Dragon Gate USA and AAW are a lot closer to home.
What makes Dragon USA so special for me is that there is only one show every two months. And with not being able to see the Philadelphia shows until the Pay-Per-View airs, it’s basically three or four months before I have to focus on the company. I think this helps avoid burn-out and makes every show feel special. Keeping up with WWE’s weekly television output is difficult enough, and when you combine that with Ring of Honor’s combination of mediocre television and mediocre DVDs, burn-out can happen quite easily.
As far as DG USA this weekend. I can’t understand why tickets haven’t moved as well this time, but it’s very frustrating. Dragon Gate put on a tremendous show last time they were in Chicago over Labor Day weekend, and the card looks just as good this time. Yet, seats in the first three rows are still available. I realize the economy isn’t exactly in the greatest of shape and money is tight, but Ring of Honor is not running until April. WWE isn’t in town until February, and it’s not even a television taping. The local sports teams don’t come close to deserving your money unless the Blackhawks are at the United Center.
Why am I going to Saturday? Because I want to see good professional wrestling. I don’t want to see a screwjob finish in the main event. I don’t want to see random matches that go nowhere. I want to lose my voice and be so exhausted by the end of the night that all I want to do is sleep. Some might classify that as burn-out, but I consider it part of what makes pro wrestling great. The idea that something you’re watching, not even participating in, can suck you in so much that you’re as tired as the competitors is a tremendous feeling. There are certain matches I’m geared up for, but there’s one match I’ll be watching closely.
The three way tag team elimination match could easily be a Match of the Year Candidate. The Young Bucks are perhaps the best tag team in indy wrestling, and they should be motivated to have a series of great matches before they become permanent members of the TNA roster. Speed Muscle of Doi and Yoshino are one of my favorite tag teams. I wish I could watch these guys on a regular basis because of what these guys bring to the table. Just getting to see these two team and being there live will be special. And then there’s Yamato and Shingo Tagagi. I’m just curious to see how these two interact because while I know they were the Open the Twin Gate Champions, they’ve basically been set up as opposites in DG USA.
When I heard that BxB Hulk and Dragon Kid had never met one-on-one, I was floored. I’ve seen Kid wrestle live a handful of times and while I won’t say he’s bad or overrated, I’ve never walked away thinking he had the best match on the card. Hulk is someone I’m way more interested in since I’ve never seen him perform live; however, I’ve enjoyed what matches I’ve seen. I think this is an opportunity for these two to show what they can do in a main event singles environment.
I think having Kid and Hulk in the main event shows how Dragon Gate USA stands out from other companies. It is their willingness to give opportunities to different wrestlers. Kid and Hulk will likely be the main event of the show, but there are also a number of American wrestlers that are finally getting their chance on a major stage. The CHIKARA guys like Akuma, Hallowicked, and Jigsaw are just some of them. Jon Moxley is another. His personality and gimmick alone could easily make him one of the guys who fans take notice of in 2010. And Kyle O’Reilly? The hype surrounding him is incredible, and it’s only going to increase as he is booked more by Dragon Gate and his upcoming match with Davey Richards in EVOLVE. Then there’s Johnny Gargano. All I need to do is mention “The Power Hour” to illustrate what how unique this man is and how much personality he’s already shown
If Dragon Gate USA ran all by itself, I’d be fine with that, but AAW is running tonight. To be able to see Davey Richards against Super Crazy is a personal thrill. I’m not sure if Crazy can be as good as he was in ECW thanks to a combination of weight issues and his last major appearance in the United States being saddled with a horrible gimmick in WWE. Hopefully, that’s put in the the parking lot where it belongs. Davey Richards can’t do much wrong at this point. There are some other matches that I’m curious to see, but I don’t want to come off as a schill. All I’ll say if if you have the opportunity to be a part of this doubleheader, please take this chance because I think it’s going to be a fun weekend of wrestling.
Sometimes I feel like watching and reading about wrestling is more like a chore. I’ve spent way too much time on the podcast discussing my issues with Ring of Honor. WWE is always a mixed bag, and just reading about TNA’s constant failure could easily be enough to make me quesrion why I remain a wrestling fan. By 11:00 p.m. central time on Saturday night, I hope to have my answer.