wrestling / Columns

Contemplating CHIKARA 6.28.09: Bah Gawd!

June 28, 2009 | Posted by Kevin Ford

Hello everyone, and welcome to final edition of Contemplating CHIKARA for the month of June. Jeez, has summer been flying or what? I swear it feels like yesterday were early May. Anyways, here I am (rock you like a hurricane) to bring you all the goings on in CHIKARA this week. So yeah, what the hell, let’s go!

In sad news, Ophidian suffered a serious break in his right arm when he and Amasis competed in the NCPI Tag Team Tournament in Michigan last weekend (other CHIKARA wrestlers competed in the tournament as well). He will undergo surgery next Wednesday and have a steel plate inserted into his arm to fuse the bones together. Because of this, Ophidian will be out of action for quite some time, meaning he won’t make it to the Dragon Gate USA debut. Ophidian is currently one half of CHIKARA’s Campeones de Parejas, so what exactly will happen with the titles? Amasis and Ophidian got a 60 day grace period from November to January when Amasis hurt his ankle to not defend the titles without having to forfeit them. Lord knows how long Ophidian will be out for, but it certainly will be longer than Amasis was out back then. I’m sure both the CHIKARA office and The Osirian Portal will keep us updated on the situation. As they do, so will I. So keep your eyes peeled, and best of luck to Ophidian in his recovery.

CHIKARA’s 4th Pod Per View this Tuesday, June 30th!

The time is almost here for the fourth CHIKARA Pod Per View to be unleashed on the world. Usually the podcasts go around 40 minutes long. The price tag will be $3.99. No worries, in the past, you have not needed iTunes or an iPod to purchase the Pod Per Views, so it should be no different this time around. I’ll be reviewing the Pod Per View, so check for that as well. But I highly recommend purchasing this. For four bucks, you can’t go wrong, and CHIKARA rarely disappoints.

Here’s the official word on the Pod Per View from CHIKARA via their newsletter:
“Next Tuesday, June 30th, is the premiere of CHIKARA’s fourth ever “Pod-Per-View,” an original program with never-before-seen content available for download right on your computer or portable thingy/whatever! Included are matches pitting F.I.S.T. against Cheech Hernandez & KC “Cloudy” Day, as well as The Osirian Portal in non-title action against The Colony. We also dug up some clips from a recent 6-man tag match where Mike Quackenbush squared off against Mexican mat master Negro Navarro, in an exchange of holds that pits the two submission artists against one another. CHIKARA’s own Bryce Remsburg hosts the (approx.) 40-minute program, and sheds some light on CHIKARA’s first out-of-state ventures for 2009, in addition to tons of great action you won’t find anywhere else!”

So make sure this upcoming Tuesday, you check it out!

New match added to “Never Kneel At The Altar Of Conformity

With Ophidian benched, Amasis will go it alone against Lince Dorado in late July. The two are no strangers to each other, even though this is their first singles encounter. Two have met in tag action at least once (Lince teamed with El Pantera once against The Portal) and at least twice in trios action (King of Trios 2009 and The Bobliographon). Amasis has very rarely ventured outside of tag action, so how will he fair against the Golden Lynx of Lucha Libre?

MOAR Young Lions Cup news!

As noted in last weeks column, CMLL minis Pierrothito and Mascarita Dorada will be making their CHIKARA debuts during the Young Lions Cup weekend. Until earlier this week, what they would be doing was unknown. As it stands, the two minis will be joined by two other Lucha stars for a tag match, as Masacarita Dorada & Turbo will team up to face Pierrothito & Jorge “Skayde” Rivera. Turbo debuted for CHIKARA in May of 2008, competing on all four events that month. Turbo is a stand-out student of Skayde’s, and had quite the showing in May of ’08. Skayde has been in CHIKARA at various times throughout the years, and is no stranger to any CHIKARA fan out there. His experience and skill speak for themselves, and Skayde always delivers when he comes in. This match will certainly be a fun one.

Entering the Young Lions Cup tournament is the Mini-Man Monster, Hydra! Hydra has been in two previous tournaments (2006 and 2007), but took a hiatus from the 2008 version as Ultramantis Black choose Tim Donst to represent the Order of the Neo-Solar Temple that year (Donst and Hydra were in the Temple at the time, and are not now). Hydra’s had some singles success since the last tournament, defeating his former mentor Ultramantis Black in singles and tag team action. Can Hydra’s success carry over to this year’s tournament, or will he be figuratively “swimming with the fishes”?

Next up is “The Littlest Lumberjack”, Grizzly Redwood. Grizzly made an immediate impact in CHIKARA by winning the first ever Super Fun Times Over-the-Top- Rope Elimination Style No-Holds-Barred Masked-Dudes-Welcome Battle Royal of Doom [and Honor] back in December. Although he’s been tagging up with Brodie Lee and Eddie Kingston recently, he did best Create-A-Wrestler in singles action in February, and fellow YLC competitor Hydra in May. Will Grizzly chop down the competition, or will Grizzly’s small stature prove to be too big of a hinderence?

CHIKARA is giving another relative unknown a chance at this years Young Lions Cup, as New England wrestler Brendan Michael Thomas (aka BMT) has be signed to enter. Not much is known about this giant fro’d rookie, but he has been engaged in a feud with CHIKARA veteran Eddie Kingston recently. You can check out BMT’s MySpace to learn more about “The Prince Of Pink.” BMT has a big opportunity to shine in CHIKARA, and looks to make the most of it.

Dragon Gate USA news!

Yes folks, that graphic you see is completely legitimate. WWE Hall of Famers Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler will make an appearance at the Chicago Dragon Gate USA show for an autograph signing. I think this is a great idea; get two names that the wrestling world respect to come in for a meet and greet, while getting some newer fans exposed to what DGUSA is all about. Word is that Highspots is footing the entire bill for them, so it’s even better than you’d imagine. J.R. actually had this to say about it on his blog: “The King and I are making a somewhat harmless appearance in Chicago on September 6 and some “scribes” are making a huge deal out of it and not in a positive way. I don’t get that quite frankly. We both enjoy meeting fans of the genre plus I like watching new talent wrestle as the next new “big thing” might be wrestling that night. It is the night before the September 7 Raw in Chicago of which I assume we will be taping a SD Superstars bout so I had to be in town anyway. If any wrestling websites are making a big deal of this matter then it really has been a slow, news week.” I agree with J.R., and I am hoping he will talk to some of the talent there that night. Who you may ask? Well, that answer comes in this next paragraph.

Speaking of announcements, Dragon Gate USA announced that Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, and Pro Wrestling NOAH stars Bryan Danielson and Davey Richards will be working with DGUSA, and debuting at the September 6th show in Chicago, IL. Needless to say, this is a gigantic coo for Dragon Gate. Lots of brand new matches have potential to occur here. My question is, what do YOU guys want to see? After these two announcements, it’s safe to say that you guys need to get your asses out to this show. (Jerome, I’m going to kill you. With death.)

Added to the Philadelphia card is a match between two of the hottest young stars in the company: BxB Hulk and YAMATO. Both men have made appearances in the U.S. before in ROH, FIP, and Dragon Gate’s L.A. show back in September of 2008. YAMATO is one of the most charismatic, young heels on the roster while Hulk is a tremendous, charismatic babyface. These two meeting in Philly should be a hell of a good time, and I expect this to be the sleeper match of the show.

In other news, Jigsaw has been added to the CHIKARA Relevos Atomicos match-up. Jigsaw has a lot of history with both members of F.I.S.T., as Jigsaw defeated Icarus in a Mask vs. Hair match back in 2006, and Akuma had a rivalry with Jigsaw’s old friend Shane Storm (now STIGMA, Jigsaw’s enemey). Jigsaw epitomizes CHIKARA’s Tecnicos, and he and The Colony will do their damndest to take out F.I.S.T. and Amasis. The only question now is who will fill the last spot on each side.

CHIKARA in their most recent newsletter discusses replacing Ophidian:
“While we are officially announcing Jigsaw as one of the tecnicos in the match today, we will not be making an announcement about a replacement for Ophidian for a little while longer. Since word has spread, virtually every full-time and part-time member of our roster has been campaigning to fill the vacant spot. Even tecnicos that would typically never team with F.I.S.T. or Amasis have voiced interest in getting the coveted spot. An announcement from our Director of Fun will follow in about a week.”

Finally, Gran Akuma, who will be competing in the CHIKARA Relevos Atomicos match, posted a blog on his MySpace talking about what the event means to him:

“A month from now, I’ll be on the verge of jumping out of my skin. Everything I’ve done for the last seven years – the sacrifices, the accomplishments,the injuries,all the highs and lows – it all comes full circle.

In 1999,I’d heard a lot about this hot new wrestling promotion in Japan. A blend of Mexican Lucha Libre and the “modern junior heavyweight style” of the Japanese juniors. In short,everything I loved about wrestling. I picked up a copy of the debut show from Highspots and my mind was blown. Crazy Max was taking what a rudo stable was to a new level, Dragon Kid was doing things people hadn’t even dreamed of, and as a whole, the group was something wrestling pretty much everywhere else had stopped being – progressive. I remember watching this and thinking that, if there was wrestling like this in the U.S., I’d train to wrestle in a heartbeat. Sadly, I’d apparently been born in the wrong country.

That same year, I started going to indy shows. To my suprise, I was lucky enough to see two guys absolutely tear it up one night, wrestling what was very similar to that style I’d instantly fallen in love with. Three years later, those two wrestlers – Mike Quackenbush and Reckless Youth – opened up a wrestling school/promotion. I attended the very first show ,and it was everything I was looking for. I quickly joined the second class. Not long after that, my world was completely turned upside down when Jorge Rivera, trainer of many of the Dragon Gate wrestlers, was in the CHIKARA ring at the old Wrestle Factory, training us.

Seven years later, I’m about to accomplish something I’d only dreamed about. On July 25th,I will be a part of the first Dragon Gate USA PPV. I’ll make my PPV debut, among some of the most cutting-edge, innovative wrestlers in the world. In 1999,I watched in awe as the Dragon Gate wrestlers raised the bar. In 2009, I’ll be raising it with them. It’s funny how things come full circle.

-Akuma”

Speaking of members of F.I.S.T. blogging…

Icarus, needless to say, ain’t happy with The Colony

6/22/2009: Let me thank all you stupid fans for taking the time to e-mail and MySpace me. I love your insightful, clever bald jokes. “Hair today gone tomorrow?” No, I haven’t yet heard that gem. Thank you. IDIOTS!

Get the giggles out of your system, you clowns. Mr. Taylor and I are not content to let this injustice stand. We were bamboozled, to put it plain and simple. Led to believe we would have a fair contest at Aniversario Yang. Instead, what did we get? Blatant interference on the part of two ants.

We got scalped because Referee Bryce Remsburg can’t do his job and control the match. Both Chuck and I have lodged formal, written complaints with Chikarason and the brass to open a full investigation into the matter. When one of the tecnicos gets screwed over, there’s no end to the outrage. Well look at what happened to us! That’s the real outrage!

First of all, there’s Green Ant. He’s at ringside from the beginning of the apuesta, whipping and snapping his towel through the air…how are we supposed to concentrate with him doing that? Gives me Gives me flashbacks to 2007.

As if that’s not enough of a distraction, late in the match, this so-called “Carpenter Ant” comes poking his nose into the main event. And not just at some random moment. He knew just when to stick his nose in…the exact moment to be there to be the big pest (did you think I was going to say “hero”?) Well isn’t that convenient. You ask me…a little too convenient.

Fire Ant, Soldier Ant, own up to it you jerks. You might have been acting like you had no idea who this Carpenter Ant is, but the reality is, you had him waiting for a chance to put the screws to us…and your devious little plan worked. Well, no amount of clipped hair is going to un-retire Worker Ant. You cheated, you used outside interference to beat us, and the DVD shows it plain as day. So be men about it, admit your wrong doing, and surrender your masks to us at the next event.

It’s the right thing to do.
ICARUS

Pretty interesting stuff. I for one thought this feud was ended, but I guess Icarus says otherwise. Perhaps this will lead to the first ever tag team steel cage match in CHIKARA? That makes sense; a definitive end with no interference from Akuma, Green Ant, Carpenter Ant, or anything else. Genius booking if that is where they’re headed. I wonder how many fans have actually speculated Worker Ant being Green Ant or Carpenter Ant now (that’s false, by the way). But I am very interested to see where things go, and knowing CHIKARA, it will be great.

Absolutely shameless shills!

Click this banner to go!

The first shill is for Wrestling Interviews dot com. Their latest interview with “The Pyscho Shooter” and current CZW Champion Drake Younger is up now. Drake talks about lots of great topics, including his overall thoughts on ultraviolent wrestling and its place in the business, his time in Germany, and much, much more. Drake’s a great interview and I think you guys will dig that. No less than three other wrestlers make cameos as well, and they’re great. For only three bucks, the interview is all yours. The best part is that all the questions are submitted by us, the fans. Their next set interview is with CHIKARA wrestler and former WWE superstar, “The Extremely Cute Wreslter” Colin Delaney. Head to Wrestling Interviews dot com now to submit your questions and to watch the Drake Younger interview.

Here’s a free preview of the Drake Younger interview:

The second shill is for Pro Wrestling Ponderings. As most of you know, I actually came here to 411 because of my work over at the now defunct Cool Kids Table website. A bunch of my former co-workers now write at this new and growing website. There’s lots of cool stuff over there, so check it out.

The main reason I am plugging Pro Wrestling Ponderings is because I also do a podcast over there! Oh yes. Jerome Cusson (webmaster, and great man) and I sit down every week (sometimes more than once) to discuss all the news in pro wrestling. WWE, ROH, CHIKARA, PWG, DG USA, and more is covered. I suggest you give it a listen, I’m pretty proud of what we’ve produced so far. I highly, highly encourage all of you to go listen to mine and Jerome’s 100 minute podcast with Rob Naylor from the Dr. Keith Show. It’s insightful, vulgar, and so much fun. Definitely check that out and let me know what you think; I promise that it’s worth your time.

YouTube Fun!

Here we have the 167th episode of CHIKARA’s Podcast-A-Go-Go, where the show “Duel & Duality”. The matches covered are Lince Dorado, Halcon Guerrero, & Chiva V vs. F.I.S.T. (Icarus, Gran Akuma, & Chuck Taylor) and a Young Lions Cup match with Vin Gerard defending against Equinox.

This video has zero to do with CHIKARA (though Chuck Taylor is in it!) and everything to do with PWG. TigerDriver98 always does awesome hype videos for PWG shows, and this one is no different. This is a hype video for PWG’s show this Sunday, “The Secret of Guerilla Island”. Check the video out, check PWG out, and go to TigerDriver98’s YouTube profile and watch all his kick ass videos.

Alright everyone, I am out of here for this week. Thanks so much for your continued support. Please make sure to check out my CHIKARA DVD reviews on the site as well, and to leave feedback. I love reading what you guys have to say. Until next week, take care!

Links!
The CHIKARA Home Page .
CHIKARA Fans!
Buy CHIKARA DVD’s at Smart Mark Video
Follow CHIKARA on Twitter!
Follow CHIKARA Fans on Twitter!.
CHIKARA on MySpace
Dragon Gate USA Home Page
Follow Dragon Gate USA on Twitter!.
Dragon Gate USA on MySpace
NYC fans, get on the to the Dragon Gate USA debut!