Last week on The Masked Wrestler, we saw Genki defeat Barf in a highly technical bout. After all was said and done, Logan Easton Laroux turned out to be the masked Barf and staked a future claim to the IWTV Independent Wrestling Championship. Now I don’t know about everyone else, but I had my eyes extra set on this episode of The Masked Wrestler. You can have a tremendous debut episode of a show, but the important thing is what comes next. Would episode two be just as, if not, more gripping than the first to keep you coming back? That is what was on my mind going into this new episode.
The episode started with another random draw; this time with masked wrestlers Skid and Falcor taking the stage in this week’s featured match. Again, before the action gets underway, we get to take a little closer look at each wrestler as they shared a little bit about themselves to give us an idea of who they may be. Up to bat first was Skid, who claims to be a pro of over two years in wrestling. They are truly confident in how they’ll do in this tournament, saying “…I don’t care who my opponents even are to begin with.” and that they’re “…gonna beat everybody here no matter what.” Next came Falcor who someone who “…maybe some may call [him] a veteran.” Additionally Falcor said that this tournament could kill or break their career, but they want that Independent Wrestling Championship above all.
Two Truths & A Lie
Skid
⁃ This morning they squatted 300 lbs
⁃ This morning they benched 300 lbs
⁃ This morning they deadlifted 300 lbs
Falcor
⁃ Their little league baseball nickname was “The Night Train”
⁃ Their the first champ in a major indie company
⁃ They represent “H8 Block, the cell block, MDK all [f’n] day.”
The Match
Onward into the match we go and I have to give IWTV credit in diversifying the sizes of their competitors in this tournament. Skid held a height difference over Falcor, which in some respects makes the guessing process even tougher. Both combatants started off in a much shower pace as both tried to get the upper hand. Falcor eventually got the edge in on Skid after three consecutive clotheslines and finally put them on the mat.
Things then got interesting as Falcor put Skid on the ground in the corner, pulling out the infamous gang signs Boot Scrape, and Vader Bomb-esque Elbow, of the one-and-only Nick Gage. In fact, from this point, both competitors had started incorporating some signature maneuvers that wrestling fans are surely familiar with. When finding themself planted on the top rope, Falcor would counter Skid and pull off Undertaker’s Old School before later using a personal favorite move of mine, The Overdrive. Skid on the other hand, fought like a true giant, using their size to take control of the match from Falcor at every corner. They even used the Brain Chop as well as attempting the Choke Bomb that we’ve seen before from The Great Khali. But in the end one Chokeslam would do Falcor in as Skid would win in an entertaining 6:59.
The Reveal
Once again, we took it to the panelists’ podiums as the esteemed panel of Kris Statlander, Billy Dixon and Mr. Brickster got to take a crack at guessing Falcor’s identity before his unmasking. Leading off once again, Kris Stat took hints from Falcor’s rope walking and finger gun pose and guessed former IMPACT wrestler Suicide. Billy Dixon on the other hand, noticed Falcor “…going for the teeth” and thus guessed Issac Yankem DDS. Finally, Mr. Brickster once again returned to the hand gestures Falcor threw up over the course of the match and estimated that the identity of Falcor is none other than Nick Gage.
With another wrestler down, it was time yet again for an unmasking. The identity of Falcor was none other than inaugural GCW World Champion and recent AEW Dark star KTB. In his post match interview, KTB expressed his wishes for retribution though admitting that he doesn’t know exactly whom he was fighting. In his post show interview he further admits all he wanted to do in participating in The Masked Wrestler was win and destroy. KTB also admits that being behind the mask was no different than his typical face paint and that he has “…always felt like [he] was hiding behind something.”
From an overall package standpoint, I thought this episode was a great follow up to last week’s edition. I thought Skid’s Two Truths and a Lie was brilliant in the way that was really ominous and made you really have to think which wrestlers are serious lifters to be able to even attempt 300 lbs. I definitely enjoyed this week’s matchup a ton with all the references to other wrestlers that KTB and the unknown Skid threw into their arsenal of attacks. It also hit that sweet spot to me in match length where they put in almost seven good minutes in rather than tacking on an extra three just to bring it into the double digit match length area. Outside of the lens of this competition, I’d absolutely recommend this match if you’re looking for a quick, fun taste of professional wrestling. With another week of The Masked Wrestler in the books, in the pocket and out of sight. We can only look forward to next week’s surprise unmasking.