Beyond built up some momentum at “I Want It All” the night before, with a lot of the stories leading up to this event.
Doom Patrol and Janelope were both successful in their tag team matches the previous evening, and in the opening contest, these two teams would meet. Last month, Janela was successful against Dickinson in singles competition (with Penelope playing a part in his victory), so now the odds would be even for Doom Patrol. Because Janela wrestled both matches the night before, including a violent main event against Nick Gage, Dickinson and Jaka decided to attack and isolate Janela right at the bell. Janela slipped outside when he got whipped to the corner, allowing Ford to come in with a high crossbody to both Jaka and Dickinson. Janelope wiped Doom Patrol out in opposite corners after the fact, but Doom Patrol got control back with a piledriver from Dickinson to Janela on the apron and Jaka wiping them out with a suicide dive. Ford saved Janela from being pinned by a Pazuzu Bomb, but fell victim to a double chokeslam. Event hough Janela got a chair kicked into the side of his head, Janela and Ford managed to hit Dickinson with the Janelope Device, only for Jaka to stop the pin. We got Dickinson and Jaka imitating the Sandman before hoisting Ford up for the Death Trap. Janela and Ford prevented that from occuring, sending Jaka tumbling outside. Janela superkicked Dickinson into a bridging roll-up from Ford, giving Janelope a big win. This strayed from your typical tag team formula, which allowed them to keep a quick pace and make the most of their time. The ECW cosplay was a bit hackneyed but didn’t last long enough to do any real harm. While I do like Doom Patrol, there’s so much value in keeping Janelope undefeated that I think Beyond made the right call. This was exactly what one would want out of an opener.
After a successful debut in Beyond Wrestling, DJ Z was pitted against someone looking to get back on track: Josh Briggs. Z immediately powerbombed Briggs as he posed during his introduction to get things going right away. Unfortunately, Briggs threw him into a literal brick wall not long after. This turned into a fun strength vs. speed match, and while it wasn’t outwardly stated, I liked the veteran vs. rookie vibe the match gave off as well. While it seemed DJ Z had Briggs down and out as he came off the top with a shooting star press, Briggs caught him around the throat with his hand upon landing. Briggs then hoisted DJ Z up into the M-5 (chokeslam into a double knees backbreaker) to earn the win and get back on the winning track. Briggs is somebody who’s going to be in Beyond monthly, so it was definitely the right call to get him a nice win over DJ Z here. There differing styles worked together and the crowd dug it, so this was a success.
Silver’s rivalry with both members of Team PAWG reached its natural conclusion as Silver and Alex Reynolds went to war with Jordynne Grace and LuFisto in a tag match. The two teams began brawling on the floor before the bell rang. Unfortunately for PAWG, Reynolds suplexed Grace on the ring apron, putting her out of commission and left LuFisto at the mercy of Reynolds and Silver. Of course, they took this opportunity to gang up on LuFisto while Grace recovered. Eventually, Grace did recover, and LuFisto had enough in her to fight off Silver and Reynolds and get a tag. What I liked about this match is that I came in thinking there was no way PAWG was going to lose, but the Beaver Boys wrestled such a strong match that I doubted myself. Maybe it’s because I hadn’t seen them together in a long time, and/or that both Silver and Reynolds have many years more experience, but I thought this was an exceptional performance from the two of them as a team. They did in fact end up on the losing end, but I think with Silver exhausting just about everyone on Beyond’s singles roster, I absolutely think he and Reynolds proved they could become a force in their tag team division. Grace and LuFisto are obviously great too, and I think this was an appropriately intense match to put the issue between them and Silver to rest.
Beyond Wrestling is not a company to shy away from chicanery, but they brought things to a whole new level by bringing SHOCKWAVE THE ROBOT in for a six man tag team match where he, Orange Cassidy, and Dick Justice would take on Johnny Cockstrong and Massage NV. Due to some unfortunate incidents in Beyond of late, Justice’s finger gun was banned. The Robot was a major ex-factor in this contest. The Pull-It Club’s offense was not as effective on Shockwave as it would be a human, giving his lack of crotch and muscles. VSK even knocked himself out when he tried the baby oil backslide headbutt on Shockwave. Things took a dark turn when Orange Cassidy accidentally spit orange juice on Shockwave when going for one of his opponents. This caused Shockwave to malfunction and begin to attack everyone, including a fan! Because of this, the referee threw the match out. From reading this description you already know if this is a match for you or not. It wasn’t my favorite of the Beyond comedy matches, but it was fun enough. Just lacked a little Swamp Monster is all.
In a total 180 from the match that preceded it, Nick Gage put the Game Changer Wrestling championship on the line against Rickey Shane Page in a 10,000 thumbtack match. Gage instantly introduced a trashcan and thumbtacks into the match and the fight was on. They slammed each other into tacks, threw them in one anothers faces, even putting them in each others mouths. The craziest moment didn’t involve tacks directly, as Page put Gage through two propped up chairs with an Emerald Flowsion with tacks underneath. Piledrivers on the tacks couldn’t keep either man down. Page utilized a chokebreaker himself, but it wasn’t as effective as Gage’s, who used his signature maneuver to retain his title. For such a violent match, there wasn’t a ton of blood, but it was a gnarly fight and one that I think most fans of the GCW style would appreciate. It’s nice to see these matches every once in awhile in Beyond just to change up the dynamic.
Speaking of changing the dynamic, it’s always a fun change when the Hooligans and Viking War Party make an appearance. These two teams of brawlers would team up to face the Amityville Project making a rare “full force” showing in eight man tag action. The match was unfortunately just okay. I think the Project’s best matches are with people whose styles and sizes differ from them. The two teams didn’t mesh, put together much of a story, and had some awkward moments. This also felt like such a throwaway bout after the Project’s clash with EYFBO the day before. As expected, the Project won with Barry pinning Alexandre Rudolph after a Swanton.
The long and winding road that was the Tournament for Tomorrow finally came to a close as Wheeler YUTA and Maxwell Jacob Friedman met in the finals. MJF sent Stokely Hathaway to the back to start, ensuring an even contest…but maybe not a fair one. Sure, MJF used his wrestling prowess to get the better of YUTA, but he was not above his cheap shots. MJF wore down YUTA’s arm for a long time, preparing him for his Fujiwara armbar, or perhaps another submission hold. When YUTA grabbed the ropes, MJF decided to change the temperature of the match by introducing a garbage can. While he successfully gave YUTA tombstone on the garbage can, he hurt his knee in the process. While the fight could’ve come down to either man, MJF hurting his own knee led to his downfall, as YUTA did the damage necessary to lock on an Indian Death Lock and then the STF to tap MJF out and win the tournament. The wrestling told a compelling story and successfully saw YUTA win over the Beyond fans in his tournament win. YUTA had to wrestle every single round to get to the finals while MJF wrestled one less match than him in the process. While MJF was smart and his original focus of YUTA’s arm was successful, his own actions and YUTA’s resiliency cost him. All of the turmoil of the tournament was worth it for this really excellent final match. I recommend seeking it out.
American Strong of Rory Gulak and Jay Freddie were unsuccessful against Doom Patrol last night, but maybe taking on the other half off the former Team Pazuzu, LAX, would prove to be more successful. This match was similar to their match against Doom Patrol, in that both teams fought hard, but LAX ultimately prevailed. Once again, Freddie was also sent outside leaving Gulak to succumb to double team offense and take the L. Things do not like very good for American Strong, as they tested themselves against the two top teams in Beyond and were unsuccessful. This was a good back and forth tag team match, which is paint by numbers for LAX at this point.
Jonathan Gresham was not going to wrestle this weekend thanks a bone bruise in his leg. However, he let his hubris get the best of him the previous evening when he was challenged to join “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams and Martin Stone in the main event of this event. Now, we have a triple threat elimination match with Gresham’s Powerbomb TV title on the line. Like the Tournament for Tomorrow finals, the beauty was in the storytelling. Both Williams and Stone had one-on-one opportunities against Gresham, but less than noble tactics from the champion and the Dream Team kept the gold around Gresham’s waist. Stone and Williams had fun making Gresham pay for his crimes against them. It would only be a matter of time though before miscommunication caused Williams and Stone to start fighting each other, giving Gresham momentary reprieve. Gresham solved his two on one problem by eliminating Stone after bashing him in the head with his title belt. Of course, the referee was distracted and saw none of this. We then saw Gresham pull all of his tricks out against Williams: trying to earn a count out after a figure four like he did against Flip Gordon, a groin kick, and yet another belt shot. None of these kept Williams down. Stokely Hathaway pulled the referee out of the ring after Williams stuffed Gresham with a piledriver, which got him kicked out. MJF grabbed Gresham by the waist when Williams whipped him to the ropes. Despite this, it actually gave Williams the opportunity to pull Gresham down into the crossface, tapping him out and crowning a brand new Powerbomb TV champion. I loved how this all came together. As a new champion celebrates, the Dream Team is falling apart. MJF slapped Gresham in the face after the match, proclaimed himself to be the #1 guy in the Dream Team, and made Stokely choose between the two of them (Stokely left with MJF.) Both MJF and Gresham failed to win, and after so many months of success, the group is imploding before our eyes. This is a story I am looking forward to following. Naturally, I am looking forward to Williams’ championship reign as well.
Overall: With the finals of the Tournament for Today and the crowning of a new Powerbomb TV Champion, this is a very noteworthy event. I’d say overall it’s not as strong as the previous evening’s event, but YUTA vs. MJF was the best match of the weekend. This is another fun, easy to watch show and did a great job capitalizing on the momentum from the night before, while also standing on its own strength.
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Quick Results/Match Times/Star Ratings
1. Team Janelope (Joey Janela & Penelope Ford) defeated Doom Patrol (Chris Dickinson & Jaka) in 9:40 with a bridging roll-up from Ford to Dickinson. **¾
2. Josh Briggs pinned DJ Z with the M-5 in 7:51. **½
3. Team PAWG (Jordynne Grace & LuFisto) defeated The Beaver Boys (John Silver & Alex Reynolds) in 7:50 with ATM on Reynolds. **¾
4. Dick Justice, Orange Cassidy & Shockwave The Robot vs. The Pul-It Club (Johnny Cockstrong & Massage NV (VSK & Dorian Graves)) ended in a No Contest at 10:57 when Shockwave short circuited after Orange Cassidy accidentally spit orange juice on him and he began attacking everyone.
5. Game Changer Wrestling Championship; 10,000 Thumbtacks Match: Nick Gage retained over Rickey Shane Page in 11:53 with a Chokebreaker. ***
6. The Amityville Project (Dan Barry, Ryan Galeone, Mike Verna & Rex Lawless) The Hooligans (Devin & Mason Cutter) & The Viking War Party (Alexander Rudolph & Jake Parnell) in 7:29 with a frog splash from Barry to Rudolph. **¼
7. Tournament For Tomorrow 2018 Final Round Match: Wheeler YUTA defeated Maxwell Jacob Friedman, submitting him with an STF in 19:19. ***¾
8. LAX (Santana & Ortiz) defeated American Strong (Jay Freddie & Rory Gulak) in 13:44 with a sit-out powerbomb/neckbreaker combo to Gulak. ***
9. Powerbomb TV Independent Wrestling Championship; Elimination Match: “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams becomes the new champion, defeating Jonathan Gresham and Martin Stone in 22:15. ***½
Martin Stone was eliminated by Jonathan Gresham in 8:17 after Gresham hit him with the title belt behind the referees back.
Jonathan Gresham was eliminated by Tracy Williams with a crossface at 22:15.