.
Welcome kids to another spectacular edition of CHIKARMY Insider. This week, we look at the results of Chikara’s two huge March shows. April brings us King of Trios and May brings us Aniversario but before all that lies Chikara’s debut in Williamsport, where The Band finally debuted, and its return to New York, where Frightmare tried to defend the YLC Title, Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw tried to defend the tag titles and Claudio Castagnoli faced Eddie Kingston for the first time in over a year! Thanks to several members of the Chikara 101 message board, who provided detailed live accounts and photographs. I can only take credit for arranging them legibly. Plus, we’ve got a couple news items to bookend this mutha, including new teams from Trios. Want answers to your burning Chikara questions? The Insider has you covered! Now all I need is a credit card number…
.
.
1. Grudge Match #1: Tim Donst & Pinkie Sanchez d. Acid Jaz & Marshe Rockett (7:28). No Dorado for some reason, but it works out for the BDK, who are victorious when Donst rolls up Rockett with his feet on the ropes for the win. First point for those two “gentlemen”.
2. Special Singles Match: Toshie Uematsu d. Madison Eagles (14:34). Uematsu wins in her Chikara debut with a huracanrana into a cradle.
~ Eddie Kingston is out but his match isn’t scheduled until later. He’s got words for Claudio Castagnoli who just came out. The entire Bruderschaft is out to beat down Kingston. It’s five on one! Kingston is laid out in the center of the ring, asking for Claudio. But The Band is here! Archibald Peck and Vanessa, The Band, made the challenge to Kingston and Peck is all over King. The match is officially under way!
3. The Band Debuts: Eddie Kingston d. Archibald Peck w/ Vanessa (5:03). Kingston has NO IDEA what to make of Peck. Regardless, he puts Archie down with Backfist to the Future for the win.
4. Grudge Match #2: 3.0 & The Throwbacks d. The UnStable & The Roughnecks (14:19). Vin Gerard & STIGMA are out in street clothes claiming that their gear was stolen. Scott Parker & Shame Matthews walk out and it’s abundantly clear where the gear went. Gerard and Sugar Dunkerton pick sides for a little 4 on 4 B-Ball! Finish comes when Big Magic reverses a Gerard roll-up into one of his own for the victory in a wild match.
5. One on One: Fire Ant d. Icarus (9:20). Ick’s win streak dies at the hands of Fire Ant, who pins him with a high crossbody.
6. Six-Man Tag: Amasis, Ophidian & Hieracon d. Sinn Bodhi, Obariyon & Kodama (14:49). During the match, The Portal hypnotizes Obariyon & Kodama and “Thriller” hits! Take a wild guess what ensued. Due to interference from Kobald on behalf of Bodhi & The Batiri, The Osirian Portal rack up yet another trios win.
7. Grudge Match #3: Tursas d. Willie Richardson (5:42). A flying crossbody puts “Da Bomb” down. Soul Touchaz go 0-2 on the night.
8. Main Event: Mike Quackenbush, Hallowicked & Frightmare d. Claudio Castagnoli, Tim Donst & Sara Del Rey (16:44). A Super Fisherman’s Buster from Hallowicked kills Donst and the BDK’s dreams of victory.
.
Overall Thoughts
I’ll be honest, this show really underwhelmed me on paper. I was mostly interested for two reasons: the much-anticipated debut of The Band and the eight-man tag. It would seem that, by live reports, one delivered while one did not. The Band was the most hyped event in Chikara in quite some time, maybe ever. I had a lot of guess as to what it might’ve been, everything from Waltman & Hall to The Rock ‘n Rave Infection to an entire marching band sent out to greet Eddie Kingston. Instead, it was the debut of some guy and his valet. Chikara rarely conceptually misfires on this level, but I hold my tongue until I actually see it. All the being said, the show has received darn good reviews, especially the main event and Toshie Uematsu’s debut against Madison Eagles. Aside from Archibald and Kingston, everything seemed to get the right amount of time, none longer or shorter than required. Even if the debut of The Band doesn’t live up on DVD, we’ve still got two strong matches, another random sporting contest and “Thriller”. Does YOUR favorite indy company have that? No, it probably has Eddie Edwards…or Sami Callihan…or BOTH. *shutters*
.
.
.
1. Ein BDK Debüt: Jakob Hammermeier d. Green Ant (4:25). Jakob takes quite a beating but, thanks to the help of Tursas & Derek Sabato, is victorious in his debut.
~ Tim Donst & Pinkie Sanchez come out to celebrate with the rest of the Bruderschaft. Suddenly, The Osirian Portal runs out and their trios match gets underway!
2. Chikara vs. BDK: Amasis, Ophidian & Hieracon d. Tim Donst, Pinkie Sanchez & Tursas (14:13). Once again, we have no Dorado and no word on why. Hieracon pins Pink Ant with his version of Lightning Spiral, giving The Portal yet another huge win going into King of Trios. After the match, Tim Donst was furious at Pinkie, calling him a loser and leaving him in the ring by himself.
~ Vin Gerard came out for The UnStable’s match against 3.0 and had some sort of altercation with a female fan. Shane Matthews went berserk and they couldn’t be separated. Vin took a stiff shot to the dome at one point. Their match never officially got started. Scott Parker ushered both Matthews and the fan out of the building. Fans were very confused about what had just taken place, and Gavin no-sold the whole deal on the microphone after everything cooled off.
3. Special Singles Match: Sara Del Rey d. Toshie Uematsu (9:46). Uematsu breaks even on the weekend, falling to Del Rey and the Royal Butterfly.
4. Lumberjack Match: Dasher Hatfield & Sugar Dunkerton d. Grizzly Redwood & Brodie Lee (14:16). The locker room empties to serve as the lumberjacks. Gerard is sport a sick welt on his head from his run-in with Big Magic earlier. In Chikara’s first ever match of this kind, it was The Throwbacks who were victorious. Brodie Lee spent a great deal of the match arguing with UltraMantis Black for some reason. Dasher was bleeding fairly badly by the end. Brodie was ducktaped to the ringpost, allowing The Throwbacks to double team Grizzly. Finally, Sugar D pinned Grizz with the senton elbow drop for their second point and the dubya in a crazy contest. The Roughnecks lose the one point they had, of course.
5. Young Lions Cup: Frightmare© d. Obariyon (8:19). Obariyon comes out in his cloak from the druid days, but it’s actually Kodama! Obariyon attacks from behind, but it’s not enough in the end. Frightmare continues to roll, pinning one half of The Batiri with the Kneecolepsy in his quickest defense yet. He also becomes the first person to ever defend the YLC championship six times. Congrats!
6. Grudge Match: Sinn Bodhi d. UltraMantis Black (9:25). Bodhi obliterates Mantis throughout the match, rarely losing control for more than a few seconds. He eventually pinned him with Tullullah Belle, his bodyscissors butterfly DDT, and tore UltraMantis’s mask to shreds!
7. Campeonatos de Parejas: Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw© d. Fire Ant & Soldier Ant (19:38). The first fall goes to The Colony as Soldier Ant pins Jigsaw with a crucifix pin. He tries the same on Quackenbush, but “Lightning” Mike counters into one of his own for three! The teams are tied! The tie is finally broken when Jig plants Fire Ant with a second-rope Rack Bomb and gets the three! Defense number two for QuackenSaw is a success and no active teams currently sit at three points, though King of Trios will likely change all that.
8. Epic Main Event: Claudio Castagnoli d. Eddie Kingston (23:24). A wild fight fifteen months in the making left fans in attendance shocked. Derek Sabato was the referee, allowing the BDK to run in as they pleased. Tursas, Del Rey, Sanchez, Jakob & Donst all came to the aid of their leader at various times. In the end, Claudio wrapped a chain around his arm and drilled Kingston with a European Uppercut for the victory! Afterwards, all of the BDK came in the ring to hold Kingston down as Claudio violently whipped Eddie with a belt. Castagnoli got crazier and crazier as Gavin pleaded for it to stop. Even most of the other members of the BDK were repulsed, demanding that Castagnoli cease the assault! Only Tim Donst remained committed to his leader’s agenda, assisting him in the beating. Pinkie tried to physically stop Claudio, but was easily swatted away. All anyone could do was wait for Castagnoli to exhaust himself, so Sanchez, Del Rey, Jakob & Tursas all left! Claudio finally finished & stood tall over Kingston!
.
Overall Thoughts
I’ve already heard complaints about a real lack of storyline progression here, but I think that was before the details of certain events came out. In fact, I dare say that this had a pantload of development. Where does Bodhi versus Mantis go from here? This level of disrespect has never been shown to Black, so it will be VERY interesting to see how he responds. The 3.0 / UnStable feud has been dialed up to eleven after these events. I just hope they A) don’t have Jagged & Big Magic do the stereotypical “jokers get serious” routine, B) don’t rush the feud too quickly and C) actually finish the damn thing. Gerard & STIGMA have bounced around from one feud to another for way too long. This one’s gotta stick. It’s disappointing to see Frightmare/Obariyon get so little time, but the extra long QuackenSaw/Colony match was called match of the night, so it seems to have been a worthwhile trade-off. Reports have been mixed for Kingston/Castagnoli, but how could it be anything less than really good, eh? The aftermath is really interesting, and should have reproductions in the near future. Can’t wait to own this DVD.
.
.
.
Even More King of Trios News!
Already announced for the biggest wrestling tournament anywhere: F.I.S.T., The Colony, The Osirian Portal, Da Soul Touchaz, The Throwbacks, The Dark Army, a Tim Donst-led Team BDK, Team Australia, Team Michinoku Pro, and the team of Mike Quackenbush, Jigsaw & Manami Toyota! You can add four more teams to that list as well: Team Osaka Pro (Atsushi Kotoge, Daisuke Harada & Ultimate Spider, Jr.), The S.A.T. (Amazing Red, Wil Maximo & Joel Maximo), ¡3.0LÉ! (Scott Parker, El Generico & Shane Matthews) and the team of UltraMantis Black, Frightmare & Hallowicked, now known as The Spectral Envoy! Only two spots remain. With Sean Waltman insinuating a return to his 1-2-3 Kid character on his Twitter, fans clamoring for Kevin Steen’s inclusion, and the fact that Daisuke Sekimoto & Zack Sabre Jr. will all be in town the weekend prior, it will be interesting to see who is selected in the final spots. Next week, I’ll run down all sixteen teams and give you my pick for who’s winning the whole damn thing!
.
New DVDs Are Out Now!
It’s that time again! Chikara has two new DVDs out for purchase, and for only $15 each! Caught in a Cauldron of Hate took place February 19, 2011 in Reading, PA. It featured The Osirian Portal versus The Colony in trios action, Frightmare defending Young Lions Cup against Rich Swann, Eddie Kingston taking on Johnny Gargano, a main event featuring Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw defending the Campeonatos de Parejas against Obariyon & Kodama and FIVE more matches from Reading! Bonuses included special videos and a match from Chikara’s tour of Osaka Pro: Black Buffalo, Tiger’s Mask & Tadasuke up against Dasher Hatfield, Vin Gerard & STIGMA! Clutch of Doom took place February 20, 2011 in Easton, PA. It featured a four way elimination tag between Los Ice Creams, The Osirian Portal, 3.0 and The BDK, a grudge six-man tag pitting UltraMantis Black, Hallowicked & Frightmare against The Batiri, Tim Donst facing Jigsaw, a main event featuring Fire & Soldier Ant taking on BDK bullies Claudio Castagnoli & Tursas and FOUR more matches from Easton! Bonuses included special videos and a match from Chikara’s tour of Osaka Pro: Tim Donst & Lince Dorado against Frightmare & Tsubasa! NOTE: Clutch of Doom has 2 different covers. They are packed randomly. Buy them today at Smart Mark Video!
.
.
– Please leave any comments or questions you might have and I’ll do my best to respond with as many hypnotic Japanese lullabies as I can conjure. I’d like to do a contest or something cool like that, but I’m not sure how much interest there’d be. Let your voice be heard! Also, let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see in the column, like fantasy booking, treasure hunts, wish-lists, secret handshakes, etc.
.
.
I’ve heard that Lince Dorado might have moved down to Florida to work in FIP. He might be out of CHIKARA for good.
1. I think people have been calling for me (Pinkie) to leave the BDK for the UnStable for a long time, these events could make it happen.
2. It’s interesting that in both of their defenses QuackenSaw have given up the first fall, especially after the BDK rarely gave one up at all, let alone the first.
3. I thought Obariyon had a shot at the cup to deny Frightmare from making history, but he’ll probably keep it until the tournament.
4. What matche was Donst supposed to be in instead on the second night? I can’t remember.
5. I like the idea of Claudio going too far and the BDK crumbling apart.
wrsisyphus2: I really hope that’s what happened, but I doubt it. I left it out of my column, but he was removed from the Roster Page today. No storyline, no reason…just gone. I posted about it over at 101 and I’ll say it here, too: he did something that you’re just not supposed to do in Chikara, and I think it got him in trouble. Nothing horrible or devious or anything; he just made a big mistake.
BTW, Archibald Peck is Robert Evans from ROH’s new Embassy, though I’m told he hasn’t debuted yet. I wouldn’t know; I stay away from everything Embassy-related. Also, Vanessa is supposedly that longtime Wrestle Factory student.
1. Yeah, I’ve been super vocal about it. Now people are saying Steen should team with The UnStable against Generico & 3.0 in King of Trios. I approve of THIS as well.
2. Not only that, but both required big top rope moves to finish the opponents off (QD1, Rack Bomb).
3. I’m floored to be honest. I REALLY thought Frightmare was going to lose. Glad he won, but they better be careful not to push him too hard.
4. He replaced Dorado in the tag match in Williamsport but still worked his scheduled match, the main event six-man. Tursas, who was without a match, replaced Lince the following night.
5. So do I! Love the touch of Donst sticking with him, too. One thing’s for sure: the Bruderschaft, in it’s current form, won’t be around much longer.
I heard Steen isn’t welcome in CHIKARA. Heard he cursed up a storm in his one previous appearance there; a huge no-no. Still, I’d like to see 3.0le! versus the UnSteenble.
What did Lince do?!
According to Chikarason on the Chikara101 board, “This endless speculation is pointless. Lince Dorado failed to make his scheduled appearances this past weekend. He had the dates months in advance, and failed to appear. There was no family emergency or natural disaster. He did not come to work. Simple as that.”
Ah… so as Paul London would put it, he’s just a bad apple.
Quack’s had to chew out Lince Dorado more than once, from what I heard. I suppose his no-showing was the final straw.