Views from the Hawke’s Nest: AIW Damn It Feels Good to be a Gangsta 2013

AIW has an iPPV coming up. Order it if you are so inclined. The iPPV is being done by Smart Mark Video; they have an excellent record on iPPV so far. The card is Eric Ryan vs. Colin Delaney, Tim Donst vs. Michael Hutter. Michael Elgin vs. Josh Alexander, BJ Whitmer vs. Chris Dickinson, Gregory Iron & Veda Scott vs. The Batiri, The Submission Squad vs. Marion Fontaine, Jock Samson, & Tracy Smothers, Josh Prohibition & Matt Cross vs. Rickey Shane Page & Bobby Beverly, Louis Lyndon vs. ACH, The Jollyville Fuck-Its vs. The Sex Bob-Ombs, and Johnny Gargano vs. Ethan Page.

Also, check out Alex Torres‘s AIW article, which is hosted by Wrestling On Earth.

I don’t often write about AIW, as they are a promotion that I don’t normally watch. Why? I honestly don’t think most of their shows are worth my money. AIW books a lot of cool matchups (They booked Gargano/Elgin before anyone else, for instance), but their crowds are just not that good. In my opinion, pro wrestling is most fun when the performers draw in the crowd to create a crazy atmosphere/emotional roller coaster. A lot of cool AIW matchups have been severely harmed by the lack of heat in the past. That’s not to say I did not like the promotion, but spending money on their DVDs/MP4s/whatever just was not (and is not) a financial priority for me. Independent wrestling is a competitive market place, and the AIW product just is not worth it compared to promotions like PWG and Chikara. Well, Chikara is no more, and I haven’t bought much PWG lately. So, I decided to check back in with AIW. These were the results…

April 26, 2013
Cleveland, OH

EXTENDED VIDEO OF PROMOS TIME
BJ Whitmer cut a promo about not liking what Chris Dickinson has had to say about him.

Josh Prohibition cut a weird promo. He buried RSP, Eric Ryan, and Bobby Beverly. He said they all sucked. Hopefully, he doesn’t lose to them. That would mean he really sucks!

The Submission Squad complained about not getting respect in AIW. Aaron Bauer took the camera away from them.

Veda Scott and Gregory Iron cut a promo. It was weird. I stopped paying attention after a few moments. Sorry.

The Duke and Nixon cut a promo on Prohibition, Cross, and Delaney. It was a good promo.

Aaron Bauer tried to get a promo with Ethan Page and Seleziya Sparx. She wasn’t there though. Bauer didn’t seem interested in just interviewing Page. That caused the latter to flip out. Page was upset about Alexander beating him at National Pro Wrestling Day.

Chris Dickinson cut a promo about BJ Whitmer’s past demons. Dickinson said Elgin would be Whitmer’s opponent for the Pick Your Poison. Dickinson is so nice and humble in person (at least based on my one experience), I forgot how insane he comes across in promos. I love Dickinson. He’s a potential star.

All the matches on this show are no holds barred. Fans were allowed to bring weapons to the show.

Commentators: Denver Colorado, Matt Wadsworth, Aaron Bauer

The Jollyville Fuck-Its (Russ Myers & T-Money) vs. The Submission Squad (Evan Gelistico & Pierre Abernathy)
The Fuck-Its have been fun in the few times I’ve seen them. As for the Squad, I haven’t seen them in a while. I hope they’ve improved.

The Squad attacked their opponents before the bell rang. They all brawled. During the match, Abernathy grabbed a microphone, and he told a riddle that ran down Cleveland. The Squad were in control for a bit, but eventually Money used the head of a plastic goose to come back. Myers went for the amazing cannonball top rope splash, but he came up empty. Gelistico caught Myers with a rollup with a handful of tights: 1…2…3.

This was a rather dull brawl. The highlight was easily T-Money using a plastic goose head as a weapon. The Fuck-Its do a lot of cool shit in a lot of their matches, but they didn’t really do any of it here. Oh well. The Squad are who we thought they were.
Match Rating: *

ACH vs. Davey Vega vs. Gary Jay vs. Louis Lyndon
This is quite the combination of talented wrestlers. And Gary Jay. Jk lol.

The match started with tags. I never understood why a four-way would have tags unless it was an elimination match, but whatever. ACH and Jay started the match. Lyndon and Vega then squared off. The match broke down quickly. Lyndon seemed to be working heel, which is interesting. ACH then used some POOL NOODLES! This show just became five stars. Vega hit Lyndon with a suicida DDT. ACH then hit a ridiculous tope con hello! ACH then did crunches on the floor. ACH is genuinely the future of wrestling. Lyndon and ACH squared off. Gay gave ACH a ghetto stomp. Vega gave Jay a Liger Bomb for a nearfall. LOTS OF MOVEZ! This match has been a lot of fun. Lyndon and ACH were trapped in the corner. Vega then gave Jay a DVD into them: 1…2…NO! Jay tossed Vega to the floor. ACH punted Jay, hit a brogue kick, and hit a Gibson Driver. Lyndon then kicked ACH in the balls and got a small package: 1…2…3.

Very lame finish to what was otherwise an insanely fun match (especially the last two thirds of it). Louis Lyndon and Davey Vega need to get more opportunities in larger promotions.
Match Rating: ***1/4

Hope And Change (Gregory Iron & Veda Scott) (c) vs. The Batiri (Kodama & Obariyon) (w/Veronica Ticklefeather) [AIW Tag Team Championships]
Hope and Change attacked the challengers before the bell. Iron hit a tope suicida on one of the Batiri. Honestly not sure which one. Hopefully the commentators inform me. A pocket of fans went crazy when Veda got sent into the barricade. Kodama took out a bag of bacon bits and poured the bits on the floor. The crowd chanted bacon. Iron saved her, but he then ate a double boot that dropped him in the bacon. Veda is a known vegan. Veda got sent into the bacon. The Batiri rubbed her face in the bacon. Veda and Kodama squared off. The crowd quieted down big time after the bacon spots. Veda ate a big German suplex for a nearfall. Veda knocked one of the Batiri in the balls. Veda ate a drop toehold into a knee. The Batiri went for various double team moves but Hope and Change avoided them. Iron ate a diving DDT: 1…2…3…VEDA GETS AN OKLAHOMA ROLL: 1…2…3.

Hope and Change have a gimmick where their opponents have to get a four count to defeat them. The Batiri gave Veda a NASTY double team move. Then, they poured bacon on her. Iron didn’t help her, and he pronounced himself the best in the world (that was fantastic).

This was better than the opener. I compare the two, because the structure was very similar. It was a brawl between distinct heels and faces. The highlight was the bacon spots (similar to the goose spots in the opener). I’m not a huge fan of anyone in this match, but they definitely worked hard here, and it was honestly a better match than I expected. That being said, this is not what I want from a tag team division.
Match Rating: **1/4

Addy Starr vs. Jodi D’Milo
This is fun to watch retrospectively because Starr is no longer being booked by AIW. Hashtag George Lucas and Carrie Fisher (minus the cocaine, presumably).

Addy dropkicked D’Milo to the floor. Addy went for a crossbody, but they botched it. D’Milo cut her off and worked her over. Addy eventually came back with an awkward stunner and a double knees press in the corner. Addy went for a middle rope moonsault, but D’Milo avoided it. Addy hit an exploder into the corner. D’Milo came back with a wheelbarrow German: 1…2…NO! D’Milo took out a chair. That backfired though, as Addy used the chair against D’Milo. Addy then hit a Sliding D: 1…2…3.

They hugged each other after the match.

This was ok. I don’t have much to say about it. It was short and competitive. Both women looked ok and worked hard, but the crowd didn’t really respond to it. I don’t really blame them.
Match Rating: *3/4

Colin Delaney & Youthanazia (Josh Prohibition & Matt Cross) vs. NIXON (Bobby Beverly, Eric Ryan & Rickey Shane Page) (w/The Duke)
Colin Delaney will challenge Eric Ryan for the Absolute Title at AIW’s iPPV in June.

The Duke, who owns 50% of the company (and is a part of Nixon), decided to be the ref. Meh. I hate crooked referees. Seems a little weird that this fight for the company blood feud is having a trios match with tags when the whole show doesn’t have any rules. The babyfaces were doing well early, but The Duke was counting all their pinfall attempts very slowly. NIXON was eventually able to isolate Delaney, and they worked him over for a while. Colin made his own comeback and wiped out Ryan with a tope suicida. Cross hit his RIDICULOUS version of the Sasuke Special on RSP. The match became a brawl on the floor. Again, I ask, why did these guys even bother to obey the non-existent rules before now? Whatever. The match has been fun. Weapons. Bowling balls. Sandpaper. Light tubes. Ryan took out Prohibition with a tope suicida. RSP took out some thumbtacks. Delaney managed to drop RSP onto the thumbtacks. OUCH. RSP, with thumbtacks in his face, grabbed a bunch of light tubes. Cross then did the flagpole kick to Page, which caused the light tubes to explode in his face. Prohitibition hit Ryan with a Drunken Driver, and Cross then hit a lame shooting star on Ryan. Beverly made the save. Cross hit The Duke with a powder filled guitar. RSP was on a table. Prohibition then gave Beverly a Razor’s Edge out of the ring, onto RSP, and thus, through the table: 1…2…3.

This turned into a hell of a brawl. Ricky Shane Page took so much punishment in this match, and his efforts (or sacrifices, if you prefer) probably pushed this match to a higher level all by itself. Overall, the match was not perfect, but everyone busted their ass and the crowd was completely invested in this. Fun stuff.
Match Rating: ***3/4

BJ Whitmer vs. Michael Elgin
Elgin was the opponent Dickinson selected, as per the rules of Pick Your Poison. Elgin has yet to win a match in AIW.

These two went back and forth for a while. Neither man could get a decisive advantage. At one point, Elgin hit a lung blower, which I have never seen him do before. Elgin managed to hit the delayed vertical suplex, and he worked Whitmer over for a while after that. Whitmer eventually managed to slow him down with an exploder into a turnbuckle. Whitmer hit some suplex variations, which got him a nearfall. Elgin came back with a Buckle DVD. Whitmer broke up a pinfall by grabbing the ropes. Of course, that isn’t supposed to matter on this show. Elgin went for the corkscrew senton, but Whitmer got his knees up. They went back and forth some more. Elgin hit a superkick, a brogue kick, and a short-arm lariat. That last move got a nearfall. Elgin hit a buckle bomb, but Whitmer hit a Yakuza kick. Elgin hit a backfist, but Whitmer knocked Elgin down. Elgin came back with a Buckle German. They ended up on the top rope, and Whitmer hit a wrist-clutch exploder: 1…2…3! Elgin is now 0-3 in AIW.

Whitmer and Elgin gave each other Davey Richards Speeches after the match.

This was an awesome match. As I wrote above, my problem with AIW is that a lot of matches are just killed by the bad crowd. Now, don’t get me wrong, the crowd wasn’t great here. However, Whitmer and Elgin managed to work a match that kept me completely engaged despite the relatively quiet environment.
Match Rating: ***3/4

Ethan Page (w/Seleziya Sparx) vs. Josh Alexander
I believe there has been a story in AIW where Page has gotten gradually more and more abusive with his valet. His promo before the show seemingly confirmed that for me. These two had a match at National Pro Wrestling Day that Alexander won. I have yet to see that match. I am looking forward to this match greatly. I’m surprised it’s not the main event.

They quickly ended up on the floor. Alexander tried to use a chair, but Sparx stopped him. She then slapped him. Alexander went to tombstone her, but Page saved her. Page then yelled at Sparx. Alexander then powerbombed Page on the apron and F5ed him onto a guardrail. Alexander followed that up with a moonsault to the floor! The crowd is into this. A piece of the guardrail got bridged between the guardrail and the apron. Page used it to his advantage. A bunch of guardrails were stacked on the bridged guardrail. Alexander went to splash Page on them. Sparx stopped him. Alexander chased her to the back. Page brought him back, but Alexander gave him a Jig ‘n’ Tonic on the wooden entrance stage. Ouch. Back in the ring, Alexander killed Page with a chair. Page came back with some chair shots. Page then hit him with an Ace Crusher through a chair. Alexander then got a nearfall with a…german suplex. Random nearfall given the context of this weapons brawl. Page came back with an iconoclasm onto a couple of chairs: 1…2…no. This match has lost a lot of momentum. A few fans were chanting about the match after that nearfall. The rest of the crowd seemed restless. Page grabbed a bunch of light tubes. The crowd liked that. So, Page smashed the tubes on the floor to piss the crowd off. Page then took out a table. Alexander managed to give Page a middle rope Jig ‘n’ Tonic through a table: 1…2…no? Ok. If the crowd was going wild for everything, this would be called a MOTY. As it is, it’s very long with some ridiculous spots that the crowd only seems vaguely invested in. If that’s your thing, I am happy for ya. They then traded wrestling moves, which made me laugh. Alexander ended up on the bridged barricades. Page hit a gamengiri and an Ace Crusher. Unfortunately, said Ace Crusher looked weird because of the barricades. Alexander then superplexed Page onto the bridged barricades. Both men crawled into the ring. Sparx came back to the ring. She took off her underwear, so she could use it as a makeshift towel to throw in. That’s a new one. Alexander was announced as “Winner via referee stoppage.” I’m not sure that’s technically how a match is ruled when a valet throws in a towel (but I honestly have no idea. Should I google it? Nah. Nobody cares.).

Page grabbed Sparx by the throat after the match and Rock Bottomed her. Page then broke up with her.

So, this match. I genuinely hate criticizing a match when the wrestlers kill themselves to put on the best match humanly possible. However, I honestly didn’t like this match. It started out good, but they went completely overboard and the crowd was barely reacting to any of it. I’m sure some people really enjoyed this (in fact, 411’s Kevin Ford and Bob Colling have written about this show and enjoyed it much more than I did), but it did not appeal to me at all. As for the “controversial” finish, I don’t really think it’s that big of a deal. The towel that is thrown in is just a symbol for submission; it’s not a necessary tool for a corner to call a match. All of this is a long way of saying is that the finish just seemed like an attention seeking spot more than anything else. I guess it worked in that regard.
Match Rating: **1/2

Chris Dickinson vs. MASADA
MASADA was Whitmer’s Pick Your Poison opponent for Dickinson. This is quite the main event.

MASADA caught Dickinson with a cross armbreaker early on, but Dickinson survived. Dickinson connected on a shot to the gut that made MASADA wobbly. They were on the floor for a bit, and Dickinson was in control. A table was set up in the ring. MASADA finally came back with a suplex. Dickson came back with a German through the table. Dickinson then powerbombed MASADA onto the remains of the broken table: 1…2…NO! They ended up on the floor again. MASADA then gave Dickinson a DVD off the stage through a table! That table crunched. MASADA tried to win the match by countout…on a show with no rules. The crowd was sure to troll the referee about it. Dickinson got in before the ten count. MASADA gave Dickinson a pair of suplexes on the table: 1…2…no. Dickinson came back with the Brain Eater on the table: 1…2…3. Flat ending.

I was disappointed in this match. I’m a huge Chris Dickinson fan, but he and MASADA didn’t have the chemistry I was expecting. I was expecting a crazy match, but it came across as very flat.
Match Rating: **3/4

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 and an archive of all my 411 video reviews.

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The 411: This show was definitely a mixed bag on tape. There was some stuff that I really liked (Elgin vs. Whitmer being the clear highlight of the show), but there was also some really bad stuff (Fuck-Its vs. Submission Squad), some lifeless stuff (Starr vs. Jodi), and some disappointing stuff (Alexander/Page and the main event). In my eyes, there are basically three matches on this show that I really enjoyed and that everyone is guaranteed to like. Are those three matches enough for me to recommend this show? Maybe. I don’t think the DVD price (+ shipping) is the best value for this show. The VOD and MP4 are much more reasonable. Support AIW directly by buying this show at their Online Store. You can also go to Smart Mark Video and get the show as a $15 DVD, a $11.99 MP4, or as a $9.99 Video on Demand.

Final Score:  6.5   [ Average ]