-Taped from Milwaukee, Wisconsin
-Your hosts are of course members of the Chikara roster and staff
Match in Five Words or Less: The Clear Favorites
Match Highlights: Ophidian is at ringside to make trouble. This show is taking place in the Mirmar Theater, where DG USA has run shows in the past. Hey, the lights are turned on nice and bright. The ring is there. They’re already two steps above DG USA. Although Fire Ant came back five days earlier in Easton, this feels like his real return to Chikara. Unlike Soldier Ant, assailANT seems willing to play ball with CHIKARAbrmetrics. Green Ant begins with Kobald. Green Ant controls things on the mat to begin. Kobald with a shoulder tackle off the ropes. Leaprfrog by Green Ant. Armdrag. Series of chops. Kobald ducks but gets hip tossed. Bodyslam by Green Ant. Running splash. Fire Ant… he’s pretty over. He matches up with Kodama. assailANT blind tags. Armdrag. Kodama with a dropkick that sends him out. Cheap shot on Fire Ant. Forearms by Green Ant. Kodama sent in the top turnbuckle. Green Ant kicks Ophidian away. Kodama tossed to the floor. Strike exchange with Obaryion. Knee strike to the head. Batiri work over Green Ant. Batiri show off some sweet triple teams and combinations. Green Ant begins coming back with headbutts and punches. Obaryion cuts him off. Choking by Ophidian. Kobald charges and bangs his face on the turnbuckle. assailANT tosses Green Ant to the floor. He takes control and wants to do Ants Go Marching with Fire Ant. He misses a dropkick but headbutts Kobald. Kobald on top for two. Low kick. Up and over. Spear by Kobald. Fire Ant hits a cross body. Swinging DDT on Obaryion. Kobald attacks from behind. Fire Ant driven down and out. Powerslam by Green Ant. Headbutt and stomps in the corner. Kodama kicked out of the ring. Kobald rolls him up but gets only two. Green Ant stretches the left arm. Crowd wants a tap-out. Drunk slam. Green Ant goes for the cloverleaf. assailANT wants to do the ant hill. Shoving match. Obaryion boots and tosses assailANT. Seventh Circle (Reverse Go 2 Sleep to the knee of Obaryion) ends the match and gives them yet more momentum toward King of Trios.
Match Analysis: I liked the dynamic of assailANT actually being enthusiastic about being in the Colony, maybe a little bit too much. I’m still never going to be fine with the overall storyline, but assailANT wanting to be a Colony member would give this storyline some much-needed freshness and also breath life to the Gekido storyline as well. Solid opener to the show. Nothing extraordinary but this served its purpose.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: The Batiri/9:21/**3/4/***
-The Mysterious and Handsome Stranger does his Dusty Rhodes impression. He’s been all over the world but is missing some of his contemporaries in the business. He lists some of them. Everyone from Geronimo to Sam Bass. He has a bird named Sapphire. Wonder if it’s sweet.
Match in Five Words or Less: Quote Donst Nevermore
Match Highlights: Donst is laying in the corner, being all emo and Raven like. He gets up and basically throws his hands up. Stranger proposes the code of honor. Donst passes. Stranger forces the issue and shakes his hand. He rubs his head. Knee to the midsection and clubbering blows by Donst. Elbow to the back. Double axehandle. Into the corner for a rake of the eyes. Series of jabs and punches. Stomps in the corner. Donst rammed head first into the turnbuckle. Another chop to the chest. Whip in the corner. Stranger ducks the charge. 9 punches in the corner. Big right hand is punch number 10. Donst sends Stranger into the corner. STDonst. Elbows. Boot from Stranger. Donst clotheslines and they both end up on the floor. Tope suicida. Stranger’s head rammed into the apron. Donst hits a backbreaker, which puts Stranger back on the floor. Cravat. Donst puts Stranger in a chair. Charge misses. Stranger with 10 punches. Donst clotheslines Stranger. He rams down by the mask. Stranger gets a boot out of the corner. Bulldog. Series of punches. Clothesline connects. Donst hits himself. Double axehandle from three of the four corners. Donst rolls outside, so Stranger hits the fourth while his cowboy hat is on his head. Donst tossed back in the ring. Spinning toehold. Donst kicks him away on the third spin. Stranger sent to the floor. Donst ties him up. Series of elbows. Stranger sent off the ropes. Spear. Stranger ducks and dodges. Donst rams his shoulder into the post. Face first Russian legsweep. Leg drop from the top. Stranger remains undefeated.
Match Analysis: Very fun little match as you’ve got two guys going in two different directions. Donst is clearly struggling and losing a lot of matches while Stranger is brand new and now 4-0. The way the match was constructed seemed to make sense given the context.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: The Mysterious and Handsome Stranger/10:50/**1/2/***
Match in Five Words or Less: Mr. Touchdown Scores
Match Highlights: Both Veronica and Dasher Hatfield are at ringside for this one. Angelosetti misses a charge. Stone takes him over. Armdrag. Kick. Rolling snapmare into another kick. Angelosetti leaps up and over. Stone sweeps him down. Running punt misses. Flip and Angelosetti is sent head first into the ring post. Running dropkick in the ring. Running clubbering blow to the back. Forearms miss. Stone sits down on a pin and gets two. Stone works his way into a sleeper. Angelosetti falls back and sends Angelosetti back. Bodyslam. Knee drop. Leaping leg lariat by Angelosetti. Series of splashes. Knee to the midsection. Off the ropes. Stone ducks. Angelosetti applies an abdominal stretch. Angelosetti grabs the baton of Veronica. Hatfield can’t quite see it until the third try. He gets into it with Veronica. Hip toss by Stone. Dropkick by Angelosetti. Angelosetti… dances? Shoulder tackles in the corner. Backflip but Stone kicks him. Angelosetti catches him and sends him in the corner. Running shoulder tackle. Angelosetti goes into a three point stance. Punt to the buttocks. Stone flips to the tree of woe. He counters and hits a German suplex. Bridge over gets two. Angelosetti rams Stone into the corner. Veronica distracts Jon Barber. Angelosetti grabs the football helmet. Hatfield yells at him. Referee sees it. Roll-up by Stone gets two. Back elbow out of the corner. Stone hits a uranagi out of the corner while both men are on the middle rope. 1-2-NO! Stone hits a series of forearms. Back elbow. Spinning forearm. Tackle by Touchdown. 1-2-NO! Angelosetti spins him around. Stone spikes Angelosetti on top of his head. Kick. Forearm battle. Clubbering blow from Angelosetti. Enziguri by Stone misses. Angelosetti turns him upside down for a neckbreaker. 1-2-NO! Stone with a leaping enziguri. Angelosetti powerbombs him down hard. Angelosetti advances to the finals.
Match Analysis: Best match of the night and tournament if you ask me. Touchdown was a great base for a lot of what Stone was doing. It could be argued Stone was the more impressive performer, but Angelosetti has his character down, and there is so much traction with him a potential YLC cup holder. Good stuff all around.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: Mr. Angelosetti/10:47/***1/4/***1/4
-Shane Matthews calls out the Young Bucks. Parker says it’s a beautiful day in Milwaukee because they finally get a chance to get their third point. Even better, the Bravado Brothers are also in the match. More of a chance for revenge.
Match in Five Words or Less: Two Steps Closer
Match Highlights: Matthews chases the Bravados off the ring apron. Crowd is definitely behind 3.0 and Ultramantis Black. Matthews tags Frightmare in. Parker tags Frightmare. Parker comes back in, so Harlem leaves. Corbin and Frightmare finally settle things down. Harlem tags Corbin in the back. Harlem grabs a headlock on Frightmare. Shoulder tackle off the ropes. Hip toss blocked by Harlem. Armdrag by Frightmare. Rana. Into the corner with a step-up boot. Mantis comes in for tandem offense. Harlem whipped in the corner. Boot by Frightmare and elbow by Mantis. Sidewinder. Lance takes the Envoy out. Cannon chops him. Snapmare and dropkick the back of the head. Double gutbuster on Lance. Double dropkick. 3.0 with duel jabs. Corbin punched out of the ring. Double team on Cannon. Corbin recovers and gets an assisted sliced bread on Matthews. Leg lariat by Parker. Eye poke and knee to the midsection. Matthews with a knee to the back. SLO MO! O’Connor roll. 1-2-NO! Harlem misses an elbow drop. Lance misses an elbow drop. Parker ducks a Cannon punch. Chop by Harlem. Cannon no sells and shakes his head. Another chop by Harlem. A third. Cannon misses a right hand. Harlem waves his finger and knees him in the midsection. Exchange of strikes between Parker, Lance, Harlem, and Cannon. Matthews and Parker launch Frightmare into the other four men. Corbin tosses Matthews out of the ring. The slow mo motion continues on the outside as they brawl! Corbin and Mantis are in the ring. They shake hands. Double tope suicida. Cannon punches Frightmare. Superkick. Matthews rolls Cannon up and gets three for his team. 3.0 has three points.
Bravados clear the ring and double team Mantis. Bodyslam on Mantis. Off the ropes with a knee drop. Double back elbows. They hold on and drop two more elbows. Mantis sent off the ropes. Drop toehold into the knee. Small package by Mantis gets two. Boot from Harlem. Mantis whipped in the corner. Lance splashes his brother on accident. Frightmare cross bodies both men. Up and down with a clothesline. Kick to the side of the head and acecrusher. Frightmare slams the mat. Clothesline misses. Frightmare scares Lance out of the ring. Harlem fails to do the same. Frightmare scares him. Lance trips him. Harlem boots him in the face. Gentlemen’s Agreement and the Spectral Envoy are eliminated.
3.0 attack! Matthews and Parker work them over in the corner. Drop toehold right into the elbow drop. Knee to the side of the head. Running boot by Parker. Flapjack on Lance. Harlem dumps Parker ribs first into the post. Lance claims a low blow on Matthews. Referee waves it off. Lance rolls Matthews up for two. Boot blocked. Double team enziguri. Gentlemen’s Agreement. Bravados send 3.0 back to zero points and pick up their second point in the process. They also pick up their very first victory in Chikara.
Match Analysis: Very fun match that’s tough to rate for obvious reasons. How do you assess a match with an extended slow motion sequence. This match is why I use the entertainment rating. I liked the mixture of comedy in the beginning and the seriousness in the end. Also really happy for the Bravados. Lance and Harlem fit in so well with this promotion, and I’m all for them getting a shot at the titles soon. Plus, they’ve got a continuing feud for them with a very over team in their own right. Good match all around.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: The Bravado Brothers/12:18/***/***1/2
-It’s worth nothing Gavin Loudspeaker is announcing the exact times of matches, right down to the millisecond. I’m assuming this is CHIKARAbrmetrics related.
Match in Five Words or Less: Holla
Match Highlights: I feel like this is one of the few times Kingston is scheduled to wrestle both nights of a double shot weekend this year. Shard with an immediate dropkick.Forearm and clubbering blow to the back. Uppercut. Clubbering blow to the chest. Kingston hits a belly-to-belly suplex. Series of right hands. Chop in the corner. Kawada chops. Overhead throw. Kingston calls for the finish early. Might as well, right? Backfist misses. Enziguri by Shard. Tope suicida. Right hand as Kingston is in a chair. Kingston slammed on the apron. Knee to the kidney. Back in the ring. Blow to the back and a forearm. Choking along the bottom rope. Kingston with a shot to the body. Snapmare and kick to the back. Running boot to the head by Shard. Kingston looks more angry than anything else. Chinlock. Knee to the midsection by Shard. Elbow drop. Kingston with body blows and yet more chops. Low superkick to the knee and a clothesline to the back. Superkick number two blocked. Exploder by Kingston. Strap comes down. Back elbow. Forearm. Another back elbow. Northern lights suplex into the bridge for two. Backdrop driver blocked. Shard with a final cut. Frog splash. 1-2-NO! Crossface but Shard breaks it up before Kingston reaches the bottom rope. Shard shifts to the middle of the ring and replies it. Kingston desperately grabs the bottom rope. BACK DROP DRIVER! 1-2-NO! But you get the sense the end is near. Superkick as Kingston was charging. Another superkick. A third straight gets two. Kingston catches Shard with a Backfist to the Future as Shard comes off the top rope. The ending is academic.
Match Analysis: Pretty ironic how my favorite Gekido wrestler continues to lose so much. This was good for the time given. Shard looked competitive if nothing else, and Kingston just doesn’t lose. Chikara has booked him so well this year. I wish Shard could be built up more a possible rematch since these two did have good chemistry,
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: Eddie Kingston/8:44/***/***
Match in Five Words or Less: Poor Gekido
Match Highlights: Jigsaw misses a charge. Exchange of strikes in the corner. 17 with a boot. Uppercut. Another chop. Shoulder tackle in the corner. European uppercut. Jigsaw takes him back in the corner with a chop. Series of kicks in the corner. Headbutt to the midsection by 17. Choking in the corner. Choking as Jigsaw is tied up in the ropes. Backrake. 17 with a chop. Shot to the midsection by 17. He scratches Jigsaw’s back. More scratching. Forearm. Jigsaw catches him and drops him face first. Running knee strike. Tope suicida. Jigsaw does push-ups. 17 sent back in the ring. Missile dropkick hits. Jigsaw placed on the top rope. Boot. Back elbows. Jigsaw hits a Michinoku driver for two. combatANT tries interfering. Quack comes from behind and palm strikes him. 17 superkicks the leg of Jigsaw. Jigsaw tries elbowing out. 17 locks in some sort of leg submission. Jigsaw reaches the rope. 17 breaks. Jigsaw tries going outside. 17 takes Jigsaw to the post and rams his leg against the medal. 17 kicks the prone leg of his opponent. 17 rips at the leg. Jigsaw finally makes it back in the ring. KneeDT. Figure four leglock. Jigsaw reverses but 17 takes him closer to the ropes and holds onto them for a few seconds. Knee into the back of the leg. German suplex but Jigsaw hesitates because of the injured wheel. Series of chops. Jigsaw hits a back elbow. Enziguri but his knee gives. Quackendriver 3. 1-2-NO! Horse collar applied on the still injured leg. Jigsaw reaches the bottom rope once again. Jigsaw kicks away and gets a small package. Palm thrust by 17. 1-2-NO! Jigsaw hits a superkick. Brainbuster but 17 knee strikes him. He does it again. Low blow and 17 is disqualified.
Quack chases him out of the ring.
Match Analysis: The psychology of the match was sound as 17 worked over the injured knee of Jigsaw. If nothing else this made sense. But how am I supposed to take 17 seriously when he gets injured and is now DQ’d for stupidity. This match exemplified all of my frustrations with the Gekido storyline. And if 17 was to be disqualified, why couldn’t it be because he refused to break a hold instead of petering out so anticlimactically? Nothing wrong with the match quality regardless.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: Jigsaw/11:05/***1/4/**3/4
-Jakob Hammermeier has pigtails and is bragging about a potential upcoming victory. Tim Donst says the Young Lion’s Cup isn’t worth it. Very similar message as three weeks ago.
Match in Five Words or Less: The Right Choice
Match Highlights: Code of honor followed. ACH does the Blood Warriors call. ACH goes to work on the hair. ACH transitions to the hammerlock and pretty much controls Hammermeier on the mat. Hammermeier grabs a headlock. ACH grabs him by the nose. Hammermeier grabs his nipples. ACH goes for the nose. And again back to the nipples. ACH pulls a stooges and goes back to the headlock. Roll underneath and an inverted atomic drop. Hammermeier misses a dropkick. Takedown. ACH with a rana out of nowhere. Drop toehold into the middle rope. Elbow by Hammermeier. Choking along the middle rope. Chops in the corner. More choking. ACH with a series of kicks and a dropkick. He rolls out of the ring. Punch to Hammermeier. ACH misses something off the top. Kick misses. ACH steps on his foot. Bulldog by Hammermeier. Chinlock by Hammermeier. Boot to the midsection. Shot to the back. More choking. ACH with chops. Whip. Hammermeier takes off out of the corner. Russian legsweep gets two. Hammermeier turns to the forearms. ACH sent into the corner. Boots. Rana and Hammermeier… goes over. Dr. Keith’s response nearly ended my life. Rolls out and an enziguri to the head. Springboard acecrusher. Jesus. 1-2-NO! Bicycle kick blocked. Randy Orton backcracker before transitioning into the swinging neckbreaker. Tim Donst appears at ringside. To the top rope. Forearms by Hammermeier. ACH pushes him off. Back to the forearms. ACH pushes him off and hits a second rope 450. Hammermeier up and over. Out of the corner with an O’Connor roll. Back kick. Donst pulls his leg…literally. Small package by ACH. Into a planted DDT and bridge for three.
Angelosetti comes in for a staredown with ACH.
Match Analysis: Hammermeier looked the best he ever has in a singles match. ACH is an amazing wrestler and one of my favorites going in indy wrestling. He absolutely was the right person to win this match as he can put together a far better match with Mark Angelosetti the next night. Another good match in a series of them tonight. I’m not gonna say this is an amazing show, but everything is consistent and at least good.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: ACH/12:39/***/***
Match in Five Words or Less: I Hate CHIKARAbrmetrics
Match Highlights: Why are Soldier Ant and Sugar Dunkerton even here? Why show up? There are fans cheering for Icarus. Toss them. Now. Taylor and Icarus won’t even high five Dunkerton. Dunkerton encourages applause as he starts with Soldier Ant. Icarus tags Dunkerton from behind and wants him to take the jacket off. Great heel spot. Dunkerton won’t do it. Finally, Soldier Ant and Icarus engage in a test of strength. “Best in the world” chants at Icarus. You can’t see it right now but I’m crying. Regardless of when you’re reading this. Icarus sends him off the ropes. Armdrag by Soldier Ant. Another armdrag eventually hit. A third but Icarus sends him down. Off comes the jacket. Soldier Ant lifts him out of the ring by his feet. Icarus takes a walk and has a strategy session with Taylor. Taylor gets into with a fan. combatANT goes after him. Taylor whipped in the corner. Taylor whipped again. Back elbow. Moonsault ducked. Overhead throw. Dunkerton tags. combatANT out and here comes deviANT. Full nelson. We get some dancing. deviANT keeps going. Jabs from Dunkerton. Big right hands sends him down. Dunkerton with a big splash. Whip in the corner. combatANT pulls his partner out of the way and hits a back suplex. Heat segment on Dunkerton. Dunkerton battles off the swarm. Back drop on combatANT. Taylor tags from behind. Soldier Ant with a series of right hands. Icarus with a shot to the back. Soldier Ant knocks him off the apron. Taylor takes advantage of a distracted Soldier Ant with a right hand. Sunset flip by Soldier Ant. Icarus helps his partner. Dunkerton tells them to stop choking. Icarus has a butterfly choke. Series of forearms. Taylor bites Soldier Ant’s antennae and then forearms him. Dropkick. Icarus hits a back elbow. Soldier Ant’s head rammed into the top turnbuckle. Icarus takes him down by the antennas. Chinlock. Soldier Ant hits an acecrusher. Taylor tags. Soldier Ant refuses. Headscissors. Tope suicida on Icarus. Dunkerton goes to work on the Swarm. Forearms on combatANT. Kick from deviANT. Rolling forearm by combatANT. Boot by Taylor on Soldier Ant. Whip in the corner. Double team by F.I.S.T. Double stomp to the back and two. Dunkerton decides to help Taylor. Miscommunication. combatANT sends Soldier out of the ring. Firemen’s carry. Soldier Ant forearms combatANT. Clothesline by Dunkerton. Icarus prevents the pinfall and covers the man himself to get the victory. F.I.S.T pulls out a victory.
Match Analysis: I’m surprised how much I enjoyed this contest considering my general lack of enthusiasm for the storyline itself. Having Icarus, Dunkerton, and Taylor involved probably contributed to why the match was good and borderline great. Very fun match.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: F.I.S.T/16:00/***1/4/***
-Colt Cabana says there will be no shenanigans or chicanery in this match. He talks about the magic that happened last year when Johnny Saint and Johnny Kidd made their way to Chikara. He clears his throat a lot. Must be that Midwest air doing its damage.
Match in Five Words or Less: The Art of Wrestling
Match Highlights: These two met at the 2006 TPI and in a couple of tags, but for two long-time veterans of indy wrestling, this is a fairly rare meeting. Quick lock-up and a strangehold by Cabana. Exchange of arm work. Cabana fakes Quack out on an elbow. Back to the arm goes Quack. Takedown by Quack and he grabs the left leg. Cabana flips out of it. Headlock by Cabana. Snapmare into the front chinlock. Quack tries to use some of his British know how to get out, but Cabana knows better. Quack uses his leg to work out of the hold. Cabana snapmare and he goes back to the chinlock. Cabana stands up and has Quack locked up. Quack takes him down and stretches him out on the mat. Cabana flips over and ends up in the same position. Quack even grabs his right arm. Cabana lifts him by his legs. Shoulders on the mat. Quack is forced to swim. Cabana bodyscissors. Series of one counts. Quack uses his knuckles on Cabana’s legs. Cabana lifts him up and goes back to the bodyscissors. Cabana takes them both on their feet. Cabana armdrags him. Quack departs the ring but heads back in. Roll-up by Cabana gets two. Quack grabs a headlock. Off the ropes but Cabana hits a backbreaker. Cabana bends him back. Forearm to the lower back. Quack gets another headlock. Cabana takes him to the corner. Flying posterior misses. Quack refuses to be whipped. Cabana lets go. Quack sits there. Another whip denied. Cabana crawls under. Quack rides him like a horse. Cabana takes him down and applies the Billy Goat’s Curse. Quack misses a charge. Sunset flip by Cabana gets two. Quack gets one of his own. Charge but Cabana catches him. Quack rolls through. Taken up and over. Cabana climbs to the top rope. Chicago Skyline blocked. Rana but Cabana rolls through. Sunset flip by Quack. Chikara Special! Cabana taps.
Match Analysis: If you’re a fan of technical wrestling, then this is the match for you because they delivered one of the best you’ll see in 2012. Absolutely phenomenal mat work throughout. Great way to end the show as this was what is meant by the art of wrestling. This may not be for everyone, but it’s for me. And I rated it appropriately.
Winner (s)/Time/Match Rating/Entertainment Rating: Mike Quackenbush/17:20/***1/2/***1/2
-Cabana says he’s shy on the microphone. I think he’s kidding. Cabana requests another match with Quack. Quack gets on the microphone and shows his appreciation to the tremendous fans of Milwaukee. With the exception of the Icarus cheering, they were outstanding, and I will definitely be there next time they make their way 90 miles north from me.
The Verdict: One of the easiest and most fun Chikara shows I’ve watched this year. An absolute thumbs up for a great wrestling show with consistent work up and down. Honestly, I can’t say there was one must see match, just a lot of very good matches.
For more information in CHIKARA Pro, including tickets and event information, please check their website. While you can purchase DVDs there as well, you can also purchase their DVDs on Smart Mark Video. Something relatively new to Smart Mark Video is video downloads. This is a great way to save on shipping and not have a DVD clogging your shelf (if that’s what you’re concerned about). It’s super easy to purchase and then download on your computer. I could not recommend this service strongly enough whether you’re buying CHIKARA or many other promotions.
To get a great sense of history and participate in discussion of the company, check out their official messageboard. One thing the promotion does really well? Videos. They have frequent (almost daily) updates on their YouTube channel.
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