411’s Wrestling is Fun!’s The Allentown Potassium Massacre iPPV Review 10.27.2012

October 27, 2012
Allentown, PA

Commentators: Leonard F. Chikarason, UltraMantis Black, Chuck Taylor

Gavin Loudspeaker starts off the show with some singing and the usual pre-show announcements. He then introduces Mike Quackenbush. Quackenbush discusses how Mr. Touchdown defeated him at the last show, and he mentioned that Veronica interfered constantly. That caused Mr. Touchdown and Veronica to come out. Quack says Veronica has to be barred from ringside for their 1v1 match tonight. Touchdown says he now wants a trios match instead. Quack hit Touchdown with a stunner! Wrestling is fun!

STIGMA vs. UltraMantis Black
STIGMA seemed pretty uninspired at the Wrestling is Fun! 4 show, which is the only STIGMA match I’ve seen in over a year.

UltraMantis had a satchel with him. Said satchel apparently had gifts for the fans. STIGMA attacked the satchel and UltraMantis. STIGMA completely destroyed the satchel. UltraMantis brought the rudo to the floor, and they started to brawl throughout the crowd and ringside area. Eventually, STIGMA managed to cut him off on the floor, and he brought him back into the ring to get the heat. STIGMA hit an airplane spin. STIGMA was really dizzy and accidentally grabbed a “fan” that had an UltraMantis mask on! STIGMA figured it out, but then the fan rolled up STIGMA: 1…2…3! STIGMA then rolled up the referee: 1…2…3! UltraMantis then rolled up STIGMA: 1…2…3!!! UltraMantis recovered his satchel and passed out candy to all the fans.

Wrestling is fun!
Match Rating: **1/4

Jervis Cottonbelly vs. Oleg the Usurper
Gentlemania is running wild! Oleg is the former Josh Thor, best known for his work in Beyond Wrestling. I never cared about Josh Thor in Beyond, and I’m disappointed that he was picked instead of some of the real standouts in Beyond. That being said, Oleg is a fun gimmick.

Oleg dominated Jervis early on. Oleg dominated him some more. Oleg then hit the Off With His Head: 1…2…3!

Oleg threatened to give a fan the Off With His Head. Then he took another “fan” and threw him into the door, as he left the ringside area. This show is taking fan interaction to a whole new level.

Oleg is a funny undercard gimmick, but this seems like a waste of Jervis Cottonbelly. I guess Gentlemania is not running wild.
Match Rating: SQUASH

Saturyne vs. Johnny Ego Juan Francisco de Coranado (w/ a manservant)
Ego had a pretty fantastic entrance. He had a butler, slow Titanic music, and a bowtie. Ego said that after his devastating loss at Wrestling Is Fun! 5, he did some serious soul searching. He is now going by the name, Juan Francisco de Coranado.

Saturyne sent him to the floor early on. Coranado got back in the ring and killed Saturyne with a spinning heel kick. Saturyne managed to send Coranado to the floor. Saturyne then hit a springboard plancha, but she only connected with the manservant. That gave Coranado a chance to drive her into the apron, and he then was able to get the heat. Saturyne managed to get a nearfall with a hurricanrana. Saturyne then hit a wheelbarrow bulldog. Saturyne then delivered a series of kicks. Coranado caught her with a bridging German suplex: 1…2…NO! Coranado then locked in a Billy Goat’s Curse variation! Saturyne taps out!

Coranado was very, very impressive in this match. It seems like he has the potential to be the next breakout star in Wrestling is Fun!/Chikara. Coranado should be a big part of Chikara in 2013. I would also say that this was one of Saturyne’s better performances, and she has been showing a ton of improvement this year. Plus, I don’t think she did anything that would require Maffew to feature her.
Match Rating: **1/2

Ophidian vs. Gran Akuma
Akuma was supposed to face Jaka, but that seems to be off. That’s very disappointing.

Ophidian tried to jump Akuma before the bell, but that did not work out for the snake spirit. Ophidian gave Akuma a shot to the neck, and he then went after Akuma’s left arm. Ophidian used the same strategy against Frightmare at the fourth Wrestling is Fun! show. Ophidian worked Akuma over for a while, and he primarily went after the injured left arm. Eventually, Akuma caught Ophidian in a Tarantula, and he then hit a missile dropkick. Ophidian got the Ophidian Death Grip. Akuma reversed it into a stunner. Akuma went to the top rope again. Ophidan met him up there and hit a super hurricanrana. Akuma avoided the Meteora, and he then hit the Tenchi Crash! Akuma followed it up with the DVD: 1…2…3!

This was a pretty darn solid match. It seems weird that Akuma is a tecnico and Ophidan is a rudo when you really think about it though. That being said, these two had solid chemistry and worked the match that I’ve enjoyed the most so far on this show.
Match Rating: **3/4

Kobald vs. Estonian Thunder Frog
This is Thunder Frog’s debut. He is amazing.

Thunder Frog has a very heavy hammer that Kobald had a lot of trouble moving. Thunder Frog was dominating early on. Thunder Frog hit a gourd buster, and he called for a frog splash. Kobald managed to crotch him and sent him to the floor. They brawled on the floor for a bit after that. They ended up back in the ring, and Kobald was in firm control. Kobald hit the spear: 1…2…NO! They ended up back on the floor, and Thunder Frog sent him into some chairs. Back in the ring, Thunder Frog was back in control and hit a bridging northern lights suplex: 1…2…NO! Kobald attacked Thunder Frog’s eyes, and then killed him with a high angle back suplex: 1…2…NO! Thunder Frog then hit a big powerslam and called for the Froggie Splash Unfortunately, Obariyon ran in and interfered, so there was a disqualification.

Bullshit finishes are not fun. I have no idea why they felt the need to protect Kobald. On the bright side, it’s clear that Estonian Thunder Frog is here to stay.
Match Rating: **1/2

Jaka vs. The Swamp Monster (w/ Chuck Taylor)
Swamp Monster was a surprise participant, but SMV botched and had his name up when Jaka came out. The crowd was very excited to see Swamp Monster.

Swamp Monster took him to the floor with a dropkick early on. Jaka cut him off and got the heat. Chuck Taylor was on commentary, and he was screaming for Swamp Monster to cheat so that he could win. Jaka locked in a nerve pinch. Swamp Monster hit a tornado DDT, but Jaka hit a superkick: 1…2…NO! Swamp Monster came back with a couple of shoulder tackles and a headscissors takedown. Chuck Taylor then gave Swamp Monster a chair so that he could cheat. That only distracted Swampy, which allowed Jaka to catch him with a Baldo Bomb: 1…2…3!

Yep, you guessed it, this match was…fun. Swamp Monster is absolutely pitch perfect for every promotion ever, but he fits in especially well with Wrestling is Fun! Jaka continues to perform very well in WiF!, and I hope that he debuts in Chikara soon.
Match Rating: **1/2

Chuck Taylor yelled at the Swamp Monster after the match. The crowd did not appreciate that. Chuck made Swamp Monster cry.

assailANT vs. Dasher Hatfield
assailANT interests me to a degree because he seems to want to be a good guy, but because he is in the Gekido, the crowd does not respond to him as such. Dasher Hatfield is one of the most improved wrestlers of the year.

Dasher then hit a home run dropkick in the corner. They ended up on the floor, where assailANT gave Dasher a backbreaker on the apron. assailANT got the heat in the ring after that. Dasher managed to dump assailANT to the floor. Dasher then hit a baseball slide and a tope suicida. Back in the ring, assailANT hit a side slam for a nearfall. assailANT hit a DVD out of nowhere: 1…2…3!

assailANT tried to celebrate with the fans after the match, but they weren’t really having any of it. Someone in the crowd gave him the Ric Flair handshake treatment.

The crowd did not like this result. Dasher is great at getting the crowd to invest in him, which means that pretty much every match he has these days is fun. This match was not the exception. That being said, they didn’t go out of their way to steal the show or anything like that.
Match Rating: **1/2

They did a brief costume contest that a little girl won. I got a sandwhich during this, so you will have to forgive me for not providing play by play.

Mr. Touchdown & The Batiri (Kodama & Obariyon) (w/ Veronica) vs. Mike Quackenbush & The Colony (Green Ant & Fire Ant)
I’m not sure what the thinking was regarding the main event change. It could mean that Quack was feeling especially banged up or something, but I really have no idea. Maybe they just combined two of the longer matches as a way of making the show shorter since the show was delayed an hour (because the ring truck arrived late). I’m disappointed that I’m not getting Quack vs. Touchdown here, but perhaps it will happen at a future show. Regardless, this main event will likely be…fun.

Touchdown refused to start the match against Quack. Quack started the match against Obariyon. From the apron, Touchdown dumped Quack onto the edge of the apron and to the floor. Quack took a safe looking nasty bump. He’s a pro. The rudos managed to isolate Quack after a bit, and they got the heat on him briefly until The Colony got fed up with their shenanigans. The tecnicos then did some posing. Veronica tried to throw the football at Quack, but she in fact, throws like a girl. Hashtag I’m sexist. Touchdown caught Green Ant with an exploder, and then the rudos started to work over Green Ant. That heat segment went on for a while until Green Ant caught Touchdown with a superkick. Fire Ant tagged in and ran wild on the Batiri. Quack and Touchdown then faced off. Quack hit a running sole butt, and then Quack took on Kodama. Quack hit the Black Tornado Slam, but Obariyon then tossed him out of the ring. The Colony tossed The Batiri to the floor. Green Ant and Fire Ant hit stereo dives. Quack sent Touchdown onto everyone else. Quack then wiped out everyone with an Asai Moonsault. Back in the ring, everyone traded some big moves. Green Ant had Touchdown in an ankle lock, but The Batiri made the save. Touchdown caught Quack with his running spinebuster: 1…2…NO! Quack smacked hit head on the mat hard on that one. The Colony and The Batiri battled. Kobald came out, but Estonian Thunder Frog tossed him from the ring before he could interfere. Fire Ant hit a springboard splash onto the Batiri to the floor. Quack gave Touchdown a palm strike, a superplex, and a Quackendriver III: 1…2…3!!!

This was a trememendous main event that was a clear level or two above everything else on the show. Everyone put in a great effort, and I am definitely looking forward to the inevitable rematch between Quack and Touchdown. I wouldn’t say that this main event makes this show’s MP4 worth buying, but I greatly enjoyed it.
Match Rating: ***3/4

Wrestling is Fun! made the following announcement after the show:

You guys rule! We’re so happy with the #Potassacre love tonight, that we’ll be streaming our Nov. 17 event on #iPPV for free as well!

— Wrestling Is Fun! (@Wrestling_isFun) October 28, 2012

The 411: This was my second Wrestling is Fun! show, and needless to say, both shows have been a lot of fun. There isn’t a ton of substance or meat to this show, but the light hearted atmosphere makes for a great changeup in the super serial world of independent wrestling. While I don’t think this show made me eager to spend a ton (or any at all) of money on WiF!, I am definitely excited to check out the next free iPPV offering from them, and I can’t say that I would mind if all future WiF! events were free iPPVs.

While I was glad to watch more WiF!, the real story of this show is that Smart Mark Video made an incredibly successful live iPPV debut. The picture and sound were clear, and I think there was only one split second where the screen went black. The market has proven that iPPV is a very important part of the future of independent wrestling and the fact that SMV has proven that they can do it successfully is very important. I look forward to using their iPPV services more in the future. Keep an eye out on the SMV website for future iPPV news.

Thanks everybody for reading! You can send feedback to my Twitter or to my email address: [email protected]. Also, feel free to check out my own wrestling website, FreeProWrestling.com. Also, check out my Best of Chikara blog.

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