Cody Def. Darby Allin
Summary:
Both men start the show off jockeying for position and after some intense back and forth Darby lands a clothesline to the back of Cody’s leg giving him control. On the outside, Darby misses Cody with a spear and ends up spearing Brandi into the guard rail. Back in the ring Cody is furious and is on the attack, until Darby hits him in the head during a suplex and momentum changes. Darby continues to work the back of Cody’s leg and after some back and forth hits Cody with a Cross-Rhodes but only gets a 2 count. Brandi returns and Cody starts getting his fight back attempts a coffin drop on Darby. Darby gets his knees up and lands a coffin drop of his own but Cody slides the pin into a subtle roll up for a surprise win.
Review:
Cody and Darby have a great rapport with each other. Both men know each other well and work together to tell an effective story and create a great match. I feel like Cody and Darby using each other’s finishers should result in an under-the-radar feud which would let us see more from them. I also need to give credit to Brandy for taking that spear and adding to the story of this match. A good start to the show and a match that features two of the best when they work together.
4/5
Wardlow Def. Musa
Summary:
Wardlow dominates Musa in the opening with a big slam and continues by throwing him into the turnbuckle and attacking him. Musa does get in some offense in the form of a strike followed by a springboard kick, But Wardlow gains control. Wardlow puts Musa on the top turnbuckle and hits him with a falling knee strike, then performs an airplane spin for the pin.
Review:
Kenny’s enhancement match last week showed us that you don’t need to crush your opponent to look good. This match is unfortunately another squash. The big problem for lack of a better term is there’s three men (Wardlow, Brodie Lee, and Lance Archer) who can be summed up as big,powerful, and unstoppable. And all three are on this show.
Rating 1/5
Best Friends Def. Jimmy Havoc & Kip Sabian
Summary:
Havoc and Sabian control most of the match after Jumping the best friends. Havoc and Sabian get back in the ring and take turns assaulting Baretta until Taylor makes the save. Taylor and Havoc battle back and forth with both men taking bumps onto hardware littered throughout the ring. Orange Cassidy gets involved and foils Ford and Sabian’s plans. Havoc attacks Cassidy but ends up victim to Taylor who piledrives him onto chairs scoring the win.
Review:
One of the better match that all four men have had on this show. Baretta is clearly the star for taking some brutal bumps via the chair and being on the receiving end for most of the match. The feud between the best friends and Ford and Havoc has become one of the better things about the limited roster and this match feels like a good bookmark.
Rating 3.5/5
Shawn Spears Def. Black Baron
Summary:
Shawn loses the lock-up against Black but gets back on the second one with a kick. Spears taunts and showboats through the match and Black is able to get some defense in. After planting Black with a C4 Spears decides instead to end it with a sharpshooter and makes Black tap.
Review:
Better than the last enhancement match we see Black get in some offense and take control of the match for a bit. Honestly, I was it wasn’t so obvious because Black did look like he was gonna take advantage and could have beat Spears. A better enhancement match but still an enhancement match.
Rating: 2/5
Brodie Lee Def. Marko Stunt
Summary:
Marko spends most of the match being tossed around like a rag doll and having his offense stopped dead in its tracks. Brodie Lee powerbomb pins Marko for the win.
Review:
If you read this week’s match exchange you’d have seen a better match featuring Marko Stunt. Here Marko is just a name-brand jobber and gets tossed around for another tall unstoppable person. The fact they advertised this match like Marko stood a chance makes it worse.
Review: 1.5/5
Lance Archer Def. Dustin Rhodes
Summary:
Lance starts the match off beating up Justin Law on the way in. Dustin squares up with Archer and the action spills to the outside of the ring. Archer continues to dominate and bust Dustin open with a chair shot. Back in the ring Dustin starts to build some offense but Archer comes back and hits Dustin with an impressive Rope Walk to Moosault. Cody comes out and tries to convince Dustin to throw in the towel but he refuses. Archer smacks Dustin’s head on the canvas and pins him for the win.
Review:
It was a given that Archer was gonna win but this match helped to build story. It was one thing for Archer to win but he battered and beat Dustin to the point Cody wanted to end it. Dustin, as usual gives a great performance as a beat down and bloodied veteran who never gives up till the bitter end. In terms of moves this match is a lot better than the other two with both men showing more athletic prowess, including Archer’s ropewalk moonsault.