I had the chance to spend an evening watching Shine 2. I know this is not Earth-shattering, topical or timely. But a lot of you out there probably work your 40+ hours and come home to a busy family going non-stop on weekends and weeknights. We can’t give of our time as much or as soon as we would like to. This is my reflection of my experience while watching Shine 2. If you want a play-by-play, I’m sure there is one out there. This is my stream-of-consciousness recap.
We open up the night with Leva Bates looking spot-on like Jack Sparrow. So uncanny, my 4 year-old (the girl who calls all wrestling “SHIMMER,” regardless of gender or promotion) was once watching this with me and said, “Look, Daddy, it’s a pirate.” We follow with a promo montage: Mercedes Martinez then Jessicka Havok. I love this format. Give me a few bullet points, a reason to love you or hate you. Why should I care about you or your match?
Daffney opens up the show itself as ring announcer. She is so enthusiastic and energetic, she makes the product better just by her being a host.
Kimberly vs. Su Yung
Not gonna lie. I have a little crush on Kimberly. She is quite the physical specimen. I have had the chance to see Su before many times. She is gorgeous and infectious. The story was nice here as they crescendo-ed from the chain wrestling into the more intense fury. I really liked what I saw here and even thought the match could have been longer. Every time I see Kimberly, she gets better. It was everything you could want from an opener.
Sojo Bolt vs. Taeler Hendrix vs. Heidi Lovelace
This was the OVW highlight match. I love Sojo Bolt’s look. Heidi came out with lots of enthusiasm. I like her better as a heel though. And of course Taeler is ridiculously hot and is a total star in the making. If TNA wasn’t busy financing Hulk Hogan’s retirement fund, she would be wrestling as a top name in the Knockouts Division. There were still the cool spots, but they relied on story as well. The match way exceeded my expectations. They had opportunity to showcase OVW and they held nothing back. They really took advantage of their moment.
Reby Sky cut a nice short promo.
Sassy Stephie vs. Mia Yim
Nothing more need be said about these two really good competitors. Stephie was in full heel mode, and Mia was in full face mode. I think Mia is perhaps the best women’s wrestler not signed by one of the big 2. Stephie has a nice fluidity all the while wrestling extremely nasty (in a good way), especially one chop. Mia took quite the beating or sold like crazy. This match stole the show. It was much better than it’s card placement. I would probably call this match of the night.
Jessicka Havok vs. Reby Sky
Without a doubt, Havok is one of the best wrestlers on the planet, male or female. And of course Reby has what they say is “The Look.” Sky took a lot of punishment at the beginning. I think Havok made it a goal to get Sky some respect by taking a beating from one of the best. This was quite the mugging, brutal, vicious and unrelenting. Mission accomplished. I respected Reby a lot more after this match. Plus, Havok looked like a total monster.
How you know you’re a total baller-when you get Daffney to cut your promo for you (as Jazz did). Then we cut to Kimberly kicking things after her loss. Yes, she’s cute when she’s angry.
Rain vs. Santana Garrett
Rain is one of those few wrestlers who not only doesn’t age, she seems to get younger with time. Garrett is a stunning, gorgeous up-and-comer who has a look to make it in one of the big two. Not only is Rain a thing of beauty but so is her work. Santana is such a natural athlete. Garrett bumped and sold like crazy. Rain got the win through her foot on the ropes. It reminded me of a Ric Flair ending where of course he won because he was Ric Flair. I watched her win with a smile, like, of course she won. She’s Rain.
Portia Perez vs. Leva Bates
So we had Ninja vs. Pirate (respectively). Portia Perez is by far one of the best heels out there in women’s wrestling. And with her different outfits, Leva is one of the best babyfaces. There were the serious moments of this match, but there was the comedy too. Portia Perez can just walk out into a crowd and get people to start booing. One of my favorite parts about Leva is that not only does she dress as a character, she also wrestles as that character, so she essentially never wrestles the same match twice.
Made in Sin vs. MsEerie
Made in Sin is probably the prettiest yet most deadly tag team combination. And as a matter of full disclosure, Allysin Kay is my favorite in-ring wrestler to watch. MsEerie is two really good established stars (and dare I say, in the case of MsChif, a legend). Made in Sin have such good heel chemistry together. I love MsChif’s scream. (It’s on my bucket list to have her scream at me.) The best part was Allysin taping MsChif’s mouth so she couldn’t scream. It had its comedy but it also had stiff, hard-hitting action you’d see on a Ring of Honor card. And then if this match wasn’t great enough, we got an April Hunter appearance. After the match, we had a nice interview with MIS saying they now had a “Fixer” in April Hunter.
Jazz vs. Mercedes Martinez
How do you build up this match? Jazz. Mercedes Martinez. What more do you need? You have two of the greatest women to ever set foot in a wrestling ring. As a matter of full disclosure, I used to watch Jazz wrestle at my local indy about 12 years ago. My ability to be biased might come up a little short. This match had an angle to set it up. There were no side headlocks. These were just ladies beating the piss out of each other. It ended in a no-contest. There was a really nice pull-apart.
All in all… A really nice follow-up show from the first Shine. There really wasn’t a match that stood out too much as must-see. I liked Stephie-Yim and the OVW 3-way. The combination of everything worked made this a well-taken venture. I really feel like we are getting to see some true talents as they hit an important place in their crossroads. It is still recommended viewing for any women’s wrestling fan, especially if you are a fan of any of these competitors.