CHIKARA Review: Best of 2008, Disc 2

Posted by Kevin Ford on 06.05.2009

All of CHIKARA's best matches, put together in an affordable four-disc set!



Jorge “Skayde” Rivera vs. El Pantera
From “Aniversarioma”: May 23rd, 2008

This is just like the previous match in which descriptions don’t do much. This is one of the few matches I have seen in which neither man had an advantage the entire time. Seriously, these luchadores went hold for hold, tit for tat. However, they still told a story. Both men shook hands at the beginning of the match. Then they exchanged some very innocent submission holds with both men playing a game of “can you top this?” They of course busted out some Lucha as well with each man faking one another out. There would be sequences of arm drags and other Lucha with the sequences ending at a stand still. Both men went at it for awhile teasing dives to the outside on one another. Pantera was definitely the heel as he certainly seemed more needy of approval and validation than Skayde. There was one point when Pantera was on the outside and the fans chanted “Pantera!” then as soon as he turned around they chanted “Jorge!” just to screw with him. Pantera first a dive on Skayde on one side of the ring, then Skayde retaliated with a dive right back! They exchanged dropkicks and holds once again, building from a contest to see who the better wrestler was to outright wanting to hurt each other. The fun lucha and submissions turned into hard hitting maneuvers. Skayde and Pantera were perched on the top rope and slapped one another until Pantera hit a hurricanrana off the top. The two men continued to go hold for hold, until they found themselves rolled up in a position where both men’s shoulders were pinned to the mat. Bryce called the match a draw. All the fans gave the match a standing ovation and Skayde and Pantera raised each others arms. This was a fine contest of two Lucha veterans and told a great story that all worked in the end. ****

Lightning Storm (Mike Quackenbush & Shane Storm) vs. The Osirian Portal
From “Aniversarioct”: May 24th, 2008

The match starts of with Quack and Ophidian, but it quickly turns into Shane Storm and Ophidian. Storm and Ophidian exchange moves back and forth, including a really sweet rope assisted hurricanrana from Ophidian. After coming to a stalemate, Quack and Amasis come in. Quack and Amasis are also evenly matched in the ring. Quack went for an Enzugiri, but Amasis ducked. Mike then used his upper body strength to push up, wrap his legs around Amasis’ head, and toss him down to the ground with a forward roll. Ophidian ran in to help out his partner, but Mike caught Ophidian and Alabama Slammed him down onto his own partner. Mike then locked all four of there legs and turned them over for an amazing double sharpshooter. Grown men were giving this a standing ovation and cheering loudly for this. The Portal decides to roll out of the ring after the hold was released and danced to shake themselves out. Amasis comes back into the ring and does a little dance signifying a potential dance off. Amasis however palm strikes Quack in the face! Quack gains a slight upperhand and tags out to Storm. Amasis and Ophidian get the advantage on Storm using their trademark Portal double team tactics to keep him down. They busted out their awesome wheelbarrow arm drag shoulder block combination. Amasis constantly mocked the fans during the match. The high point of this is when Storm was on the ground, Amasis danced off the ropes as if to set up for an elbow of sorts, but instead just calmly lays on the mat and applies a chin lock. Ophidian made the grave mistake of throwing Storm into his own corner allowing Quack to blind tag himself in. Quack came in and nailed an awesome corkscrew DDT onto Amasis for a two count! Lightning Storm followed up with the Total Elimination on Amasis, but Ophidian broke up that count. Ophidian and Storm fought once more, and Ophidian leapt off the top with double knees to Storm’s chest. The Portal recovered and hit a beautiful double STO for the two count on Storm. They once again attempted their wheelbarrow arm drag shoulder block combination, but Quack pushed Amasis to the outside and caught Ophidian with a wheelbarrow suplex! Storm capitalized by nailing Ophidian with That Japanese Move! Storm launched himself onto Amasis on the outside to prevent him for coming back in the ring. Meanwhile, Storm picked up Ophidian and nailed him with the Quackendriver for the win! Lightning Storm now has 2 points. Holy crap, this was an amazing match. This may possibly be the best opening match I have ever seen on any show. The crowd was so awesome, all four men looked so good, and everything could not have worked better. To everyone else on the show, good luck following this one. ****

Up In Smoke (Cheech & Cloudy) vs. The Super Smash Bros. (Player Uno & Stupefied)
From “Aniversarioct”: May 24th, 2008

This match was incredible. The match opened with everyone tagging in and out and so many cool flips, dives, double teams, and everything you could think of being thrown out. All four men really gave it their all and put on an awesome show. I could list the moves in this segment, but it really wouldn’t do much good. Everything came to a halt when UIS cornered Stupefied in the ring. Both Cheech and Cloudy tagged in and out to beat up and ground Stupefied using some of their classic double teams to keep him down. UIS attempted to throw Stup into the ropes, but Stup halted and backflipped kicking both men in the head. This allowed Stupefied to make the hot tag to Uno who came in and took out both members of Up In Smoke. There was a neat spot where Cheech attempted to gain the upper hand with the clothesline, but Uno ducked and pulled him by the back of his head right onto his knee. Uno took Cheech and Cloudy to the outside, but Cheech dived through the second rope and rolled up Uno! It was seriously one of the coolest roll up spots ever. The Super Smash Bros. continued to work over Up In Smoke nailing a sweet Alabama Slam/double knee combination on Cloudy. Stupefied hit an awesome looking frog splash on Cheech, but Cloudy broke it up at 2.95. The fans then began to have a split chant between the two teams. The Smash Bros. continued to work over Cloudy as Uno went up top and Stupefied held on. As Uno was coming down, Cloudy moved Stupefied into his target range causing Uno to accidentally nail the M. Bison Stomp on Stupefied! Cheech leapt up and hit Uno in the face with a boot. Cheech placed Uno in a powerbomb position, as Cheech came off the top with a Shining Wizard. Uno crashed down to the mat allowing Cheech to pick up the victory and their first point! More dissension in the ranks when it comes to the Super Smash Bros. I know, I know, I did a poor job giving an idea of the play by play in this match. But to be honest, this match was SO INCREDIBLY AWESOME that I think it really is useless to list all the moves. First of all, I admittedly don’t know all the names of what they did or could explain it better. Second off, I think it’s far better to just see the awesomeness for yourself. This was just as good as the first match; the tag teams really are giving it their all tonight. ****

Young Lions Cup Six Way Elimination Semi-Finals
Lince Dorado vs. Ophidian vs. Fire Ant vs. Tim Donst vs. Shayne Hawke vs. Marshe Rockett
From “Young Lions Cup VI, Night II”: June 14th, 2008

All six men pose, with all the Tecnicos getting cheered and the two Rudos being booed. Shayne and Lince start off. They bounce back and forth off the ropes until Shayne knocks Lince down to the mat. Shayne lies next to him and begins convulsing; openly mocking Lince’s real life seizure he had back in 2007. Lince chases Shayne around the ring. Both men run back in and Shayne tags in Ophidian. Lince tags in Marshe Rockett. Marshe and Ophidian also go back and forth with Marshe getting the advantage. Marshe hits a big leg drop off the ropes, causing Ophidian to roll out of the ring. Shayne comes in and sets up for a double axe handle. He runs at Marshe who throws him against the ropes. Shayne bounces off the ropes screaming while still in the double axe handle position until Marshe takes him down with a big boot, sending Shayne to the outside. Ophidian runs in, but Marshe puts up his fist causing Ophidian to flinch. Marshe tags in Donst. Ophidian and Donst lock up. Ophidian attempts a victory roll but only gets a two. They roll on the mat, until Ophidian throws Donst in the corner. Ophidian uses the ropes to wrap his legs around Donst’s head and toss him. Ophidian gut wrenches Donst and rolls forward into a pin but only gets two. Ophidian slaps Lince on the chest, tagging Lince into the match. Donst and Lince begin rolling on the mat with each of them attempting a pin. Lince then asks for something and is handed a black singlet. He puts on the singlet and gets in the Amateur position. Donst grabs his waist and Bryce signals for them to go. Both men begin exchanging waist locks back and forth with Bryce even getting in the middle! Eventually this ceases and all three men drop to the mat. Lince and Donst look at Bryce wondering why he got involved, and Bryce swears it was unintentional. Donst tags in Fire Ant. Lince and Fire Ant do some lucha ending with Fire Ant locking on an Anaconda Vice on Lince in the ropes. Fire Ant relinquishes the hold and goes to the outside. Lince does a tope con heilo to the outside onto Fire Ant. Shayne Hawke and Ophidian toss in Marshe Rockett and double team him. They toss him off the ropes looking for a double team clothesline, but Marshe ducks and flies over the top onto Fire Ant and Lince Dorado. Ophidian and Shayne high five and lock to both fly over the top, but Shayne puts on the breaks and chops Ophidian instead. Shayne tosses Ophidian over the top rope. Ophidian lands on Marshe and takes him down with a headscissors. Shayne then goes up top and hits everyone with a senton. The crowd chants “Donst!” as he is the last one in the ring. Donst looks to go over, but Fire Ant comes back and takes him down with a fireman’s carry. Fire Ant then takes out every other competitor in the match with a fireman’s carry and almost hit Bryce with one as well. Donst takes Fire Ant down with an STO for a two count. Fire Ant is taken out with a suplex into the ropes. Lince comes in and knocks down Donst and hits a backflip onto Donst causing him to leave the ring. Shayne comes in and pounds away on Lince. Shayne follows up with an elbow to Lince off the second rope for the two count. Marshe tries a pin on Shayne for a two, followed by Ophidian striking Marshe with double knees for a two count. Lince and Marshe are in the ring. Marshe hits a chin breaker on Lince for the two count. Marshe catches Lince in mid-leap frog for a roll up, but Lince turns it into the CHIKARA Special! Marshe submits, giving us our first elimination.

Ophidian immediately locks on the Ophidian Death Grip on Lince! He gets Lince on the mat near the point of him passing out, but Lince is able to escape. Lince hits Ophidian with a flurry of offense and comes off the top rope with a senton. Lince rolls up for a two count. Lince picks up Ophidian and hits a flip Urinagi, and locks on the Anaconda Vice! Ophidian slaps Lince in the chest to alleviate some of the grip. Ophidian rolls through into a reverse Rolling Prawn Hold and pins Lince Dorado! Lince is eliminated.

Donst comes in looking for an STO, but Ophidian rolls him into a reverse Rolling Prawn Hold for the pin! Tim Donst is also eliminated.

Fire Ant comes and Ophidian locks on the Ophidian Death Grip. Fire Ant backs Ophidian into the corner forcing him to let the move go. Ophidian gets Fire Ant into the reverse Rolling Prawn Hold, but Fire Ant reverses it into a regular Prawn Hold and gets the pin on Ophidian! Ophidian is eliminated, leaving Fire Ant and Shayne Hawke as the last two men.

Hawke comes in and goes for the Tomahawke on Fire Ant, but Fire Ant gets him in the Beach Break position. Hawke rolls out of that and lands a hard super kick on Fire Ant for the two count. Fire Ant gets up and takes Hawke down. He lands a back senton on Shayne but only gets two. Shayne hits a second super kick on Fire Ant and follows up with a Swanton off the top. Shayne hits a third super kick and goes for the pin, only to get two. Shayne picks up Fire Ant and hits the Tomahawke, yet Fire Ant kicks out! Shayne then takes Fire Ant up top looking for a Tomahawke off the second rope. Fire Ant nails his elbow into the head of Shayne and picks him up. Fire Ant hits an awesome Beach Break off the rope onto Shayne. That’s enough to get Fire Ant the three count! Fire Ant heads to the Young Lions Cup finals tomorrow night opposite Vin Gerard. This was a great match; not as good as last night’s six way, but still very good. ***3/4

2008 Young Lions Cup Tournament Finals
Vin Gerard vs. Fire Ant
From “Young Lions Cup VI, Night III”: June 15th, 2008

Fire Ant comes out to “Heat of the Moment” by Asia, in a PIMP new neon-orange costume. The two take the ceremonial YLC finals picture with Leonard F. Chikarason and official Bryce Remsburg. Bryce holds the cup up for all to see.

Vin Gerard slaps Fire Ant before the bell rings. The bell rings, and Fire Ant attacks Vin in the corner. Fire Ant comes at him with a barrage of chops then tosses Vin from post to post. Fire Ant nails a cannonball in the corner then tries to lift up Vin for the Beach Break. Vin however rolls to the outside to avoid it. Fire Ant dives through the second rope onto Vin, then beats him on the ground. Fire Ant stalks Vin around the ring slapping him multiple times. Fire Ant tries to lift Vin up for a Fireman’s carry, but Vin rips at his mask to get out. Vin beats on Fire Ant then rams him back first into the ring post. Vin tosses Fire Ant back in the ring and begins slamming his skull against the mat. Vin lifts up Fire Ant by the feelers and suplexes him back to the mat. Vin locks on a headlock and picks up Fire Ant. He attempts a suplex on Fire Ant, but Fire Ant turns it into a pin for two. Fire Ant rolls him up again for a two. Fire Ant goes for his wheelbarrow stunner, but Vin nails a wheelbarrow suplex instead! Vin gets a two count. Worker Ant hobbles out on his crutch to support his fellow stable mate! The fans chant “FIRE ANT!” as Vin chokes Fire Ant using the ropes, and his hands. Vin stomps away at Fire Ant when Soldier Ant comes out to lend his support. The locker room begins emptying out with every masked Tecnico coming to Fire Ant’s aide. Fire Ant works his way up and hits Vin Gerard with multiple fireman’s carries. Vin throws Fire Ant in the corner. He leaps up to the top looking for a back flip, but Vin runs in with his signature hip check to Fire Ant’s face. Vin hits the hip check once again, but gets a two count. Vin mocks the crowd by chanting “Come on Ants!” as Fire Ant lay on the mat. Vin chops Fire Ant and slams him in the corner. Fire Ant tries to hulk up, but kicks him back down. Vin whips Fire Ant to the opposite corner, and once more he tries to hulk up. Vin chops him and tosses him again, but Fire Ant hulks up! Vin attempts to beat him down twice, but Fire Ant attacks back both times. Fire Ant goes up top, but Vin pushes Bryce into the ropes causing Fire Ant to crotch himself on the top rope! Vin and Fire Ant both end up on the apron, and Fire Ant takes Vin down with a fireman’s carry off the apron to the floor! Both Fire Ant and Vin lay on the ground trying to regain composure. Fire Ant gets in the ring at the count of seven, while Vin milks his time on the outside, coming in at the count of eighteen. Fire Ant immediately pounces on him, but only gets a two count. Fire Ant chops away and hits his wheelbarrow stunner. He follows up with an AMAZING flying Enzuigiri off the top rope! Fire Ant follows up with a back senton on Vin off the top, but only gets a two count! Everyone claps and slaps the mat as Fire Ant beats on Vin in the corner. Fire Ant tosses Vin to the other side. Fire Ant follows, but Vin grabs his leg and locks in the STF! As he lay on the mat, the fans chant “FIRE!” with all their might. Vin hits two consecutive powerbombs but only gets the two count. Vin tries to mock the Tecnicos by locking in the CHIKARA Special, but Fire Ant rolls him over. Vin goes for a powerbomb again, but Fire Ant turns it into the Beach Break! Fire Ant goes for the pin 1-2-no! Vin kicks out at the last second. Fire Ant chops Vin and puts him on the top rope. Fire Ant looks for the Beach Break off the top, but Vin reverses with a huge powerbomb. Even with his feet on the ropes, Vin only gets a two count. Vin locks on the STF again with the fans chanting “FIRE!” and “PLEASE DON’T TAP!” Bryce lifts Fire Ant’s arm. It drops once…twice…Fire Ant resists the third time! Vin Gerard picks up Fire Ant and curb stomps him three times into the mat! Vin locks on the STF once more. Bruce checks him arm, but Fire Ant makes sure his arm doesn’t even go down once! Fire Ant grabs the ropes, but Vin rolls with him to the outside of the ring. Vin locks on the STF on the outside of the ring on the floor! Vin reminds everyone he has till twenty. After having the STF locked on for awhile, Vin drags Fire Ant’s lifeless body away from the ring and gets back in the ring at the count of thirteen. Fire Ant takes some time to get consciousness, but gets in the ring at the count of nineteen! The fans go absolutely bat shit insane in a surreal CHIKARA moment. In a state of disbelief, Vin goes for his standing Shooting Star Press! He hasn’t done that move since he was Equinox! He misses, and Fire Ant hits Vin with two big Enzugiri’s. Fire Ant hits Vin Gerard with a Burning Hammer, but Vin gets right back up no selling! Fire Ant picks up Vin Gerard and nails the Beach Break for the three count! Fire Ant is the new Young Lions Cup Champion! Holy cow; that was the best match I may have ever seen in CHIKARA history. Holy crap. You have got to see this; sweet lord. ****1/2

Shane Storm vs. Mike Quackenbush
From “Tragedy & Triumph”: July 13th, 2008

Oh baby; here we go. Storm comes out to tremendous boos. Quackenbush sprints to the ring. Quack face palms Shane to the arena floor. Both men exchange chops, slaps, and punches on the floor with the fans chanting “BOO!” and “YAY!” to Quack and Storm, respectively. Shane forearms Quack into the steps. Shane Storm runs at Quack, and Quack back drops Shane Storm right on the steps! The fans chant “QUACK!” at this. Quack tries to chop Shane on the apron, but Shane hits Quack in the gut. Shane almost suplexes Quack to the arena floor, but Quack lands on the apron. Both men sit on the apron exchanging blows. Shane Storm picks up Quack for the Air Raid Crash. Quack fights out of it and both men begin exchanging blows again. Quack hooks Shane’s arms looking for the Tiger Driver on the apron, but Shane gets out of it. Quack goes to kick Shane, but Shane catches him with a DDT on the apron to the floor! Quack landed awkwardly, and commentary discusses his recent history with head injuries. Shane clotheslines Quack in a way that Quack lands awkwardly on his knee. Shane begins working over the hurt knee of Quack. Quack tries to get out by nailing Shane in the head with a hard kick, but Shane Storm continues working on it. Quack gets to his feet and evades an attack by Shane in the corner. Mike attacks Shane with his windmill chops. Mike tries for a German Suplex, but Shane reverses and hits a German Suplex of his own! Shane crushes Quack’s knee then goes up. Shane comes off with a Swanton, but Quack moves. Quack goes up top and nails double knees on his chest. Mike attempts to lock on the CHIKARA Special, but Shane turns it into the Stretch Muffler! Quack grabs the ropes to escape. Shane goes for another German Suplex, but Quack turns out and delivers three hard palm strikes. He follows up with another series of palm strikes, then the Tiger Driver into a piledriver! Shane reaches up on Quack’s pants to try to get up, but Quack grabs it an locks on the CHIKARA Special! Shane Storm taps and Sabato calls for the bell. Sabato tries to get Mike to release the hold, but Mike refuses! The fans chant “DON’T LET GO!” as Mike cranks on the hold. Bryce comes in to try and get Quack off as well. Sabato reverses the decision, awarding Shane Storm the match on a count of disqualification. The fans boo as Quack releases the hold and stars down the referees. Quack remains cool however and heads to the back. This was excellent; short, but good for a first time encounter. ***1/2

The 411: What a tremendous disc to include. Six matches, all of them being three and half stars and higher. What is there to say? Disc 2 is awesome!

Final Score:  9.5   [  Amazing ]