For the first time in a long time I felt truly fulfilled watching Pro Wrestling again.
I never fell out of love with the sport of course. But like many of us, trying to stay engaged in the action and the athleticism has been difficult since March of 2020. This is not a condemnation on any particular office, brand or performer. It's just tough to get excited for empty arena or limited crowd events. And yes, the irony of a career Indy Geek who's performed for more empty seats than full ones is not lost on me, thank you very much.
So it has been a breath of freshly vaccinated air to be privileged enough to witness the return of crowds to wrestling events in parts of the United States. It gives me hope that we here in Canada will be able to do the same safely and around the world in the not too distant future.
The world of difference it makes to the performers (never mind the viewing experience) simply cannot be denied.
Others have and will break down the entire event in greater detail than I intend to. That's not the purpose of this blog, I wouldn't want to step on Bryan Alvarez's gigantic toes after all. However there are a few things that really stuck out to me that I'd like to mention.
Serena Deeb and
Riho may have been on the pre show Buy In but my God did they set the bar high for everyone to follow after. Both ladies are supremely talented in any scenario but seeing how they gelled on this night was something special. Hard hitting, snug, exciting and just flat out well wrestled. A terrific match and I think my personal favourite of the night.
Hearing the love that
Eddie Kingston received from that crowd was awesome. For a career indy guy with a lot of miles behind him seeing him get the chance to work on a stage that large in front of that crowd with those opponents on Pay Per View was truly inspiring.
The number of clean, decisive victories up and down the card is always so refreshing to see. Sure AEW is guilty of run ins and shenanigans as much as any pro wrestling card. But the amount of times where it affects the outcome is refreshingly rare, so that when Omega decides to lay out the ref in the World Title Match it means something to the crowd, and they react accordingly.
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Christian Cage continues to defy the hands of time by being so damned good after being out of the ring for so long. Plus, continually one of the least selfish performers ever, putting
Jungle Boy over decisively in the "Casino Battle Royale."
Hikaru Shida and Britt Baker also had an excellent outing, completing the ascension of the Good Doctor to Women's World Champion while still honouring the incredible year that Shida had as champion. Very well done.
Sting is still the man. That's all.
Finally, the main event "Stadium Stampede" was fun. While at first I was a bit put off starting the match pre recorded when they finally pulled the curtain back a la the original "Boiler Room Brawl" and the action spilled back into the packed crowd at Daily's Place the reaction from the people was pretty much exactly what everyone wanted. And they got to send everyone home happy.
An excellent show. Makes me want to dust off my boots and find a ring and a crowd right now. If you haven't seen it yet find it now on your favourite PPV provider, streaming service or download the FITE App and order it today.
***
Still laying groundwork on Joe's first adventure with the Queen's Guard. I think I might have something to share on here for that sooner than later. In fact I'm considering making this site the home for the ongoing Overdrive Adventures, at least the ones outside of the novels. Stay tuned.
AK
