By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
We are looking for reports on all WWE, AEW, NXT, Impact Wrestling, MLW, GCW, and other notable live events. If you attend a show, you are encouraged to send a report or even basic results to dotnetjason@gmail.com
Pro Wrestling Revolver “Tales From the Ring”
Streamed on FITE TV
September 17, 2022 in Clive, Iowa at Seven Flags Event Center
This is a large fieldhouse, and they once again drew perhaps 600. Veda Scott and Bork Torgleson provided commentary.
Quick storyline note: At the last show here, there was a three-on-three “Wargames”-style match, where Swerve Strickland turned on his babyface partners, tossing Rich Swann off a scaffolding into the ring.
1. Josh Alexander defeated 1 Called Manders to retain the Impact world title at 10:48. Manders is the Iowa cowboy and the fans are behind him. Good mat wrestling to open. Manders hit an impressive delayed vertical suplex at 2:00. They traded blows on the floor. In the ring, Manders hit a DDT at 5:30. Josh went to the ankle lock. Manders hit a Bulldog Powerslam for a nearfall. Alexander hit three consecutive German suplexes and went back to the ankle lock.
Manders hit a left-armed lariat, and they were both down at 8:30. Alexander hit a Finlay Roll. Manders hit a top-rope superplex, then a Doctor Bomb for a believable nearfall. Alexander fell to the mat to duck a hard clothesline, and he hit the C4 Spike/butterfly piledriver to score the pin. That was really, really good… as good of an opener as you’ll see.
* Damian Chambers hit the ring and got heavily booed. He said fans see him as “a reincarnation of Colby Lopez.” (Iowa native Seth Rollins). Chambers issued an open challenge.
2. Heath (Slater) defeated Damian Chambers at 2:54. Heath got on the mic and fired up the crowd. Heath hit a pair of flying forearms in the corner. On the floor, he dropped Chambers throat-first on the guardrail. Chambers got in some offense, before Slater hit his Russian Leg Sweep move for the pin. Chambers loses every time, but he has a great look and is great on the mic and is only getting better.
* A video package aired, with Rey Fenix announcing he will be at the next show here in December.
3. “The Rascalz” Myron Reed, Zachary Wentz, and Trey Miguel defeated “The OGK” Matt Taven, Mike Bennett, and Vincent at 9:45. Taven and Bennett are the PWR tag champs as well as the Impact tag champs. The Rascalz are all in lime green gear. Wentz and Vincent started, with Vincent keeping up with Wentz’ quick offense. Trey and Taven entered at 1:00 and immediately traded forearm shots. Taven hit a backbreaker over his knee that looked painful. Myron entered at 3:00 to face Bennett. The OGK began working over Reed. Bennett hit a Death Valley Driver, and Matt hit the Just the Tip of the Knee for a nearfall.
Wentz hit a top-rope moonsault to the floor. Taven dove over the top rope onto everyone at 7:30. In the ring, Bennett hit a spinebuster. All six brawled in the ring and the offense has picked up. Reed and Vincent traded mid-ring moves, when Reed suddenly got a rollup for the pin. Fun match, but it definitely could have gone longer.
4. PCO defeated Crash Jaxon, Madman Fulton, Warhorse in a four-way Monster’s Ball match at 17:40. All four brawled at the bell, with PCO squaring off with Jaxon, while Fulton and Warhorse brawled. At 2:00, Jaxon and Fulton traded numerous clotheslines in the ring. Warhorse slammed a garbage can over Jaxon’s head. Warhorse got a ladder, but Jaxon pulled him off it and hit a high back suplex at 5:00.
On the floor, Fulton tossed PCO into a guardrail. Fulton went under the ring and grabbed a tattoo gun. “Why was this under the ring?” Veda asked. He tried to use it on PCO, but it was blocked. Warhorse jabbed the tattoo gun into Fulton’s head. Jaxon and Warhorse tossed PCO off the top rope onto several open chairs in the ring at 10:30. Jaxon got a baggy and emptied thumbtacks into the ring. Warhorse got a box and emptied more tacks in the ring! Warhorse and Jaxon traded blows, and Jaxon nailed a uranage onto the thumbtacks.
Fulton scooped up thumbtacks and put them on Jaxon’s back, then Fulton chokeslammed Warhorse onto Jaxon’s back. A guardrail was set on its side, creating a bridge from the ring apron. Warhorse hit a flip dive to the floor. Warhorse dove off the top rope and hit an elbow drop on Jaxon on the floor at 16:00. In the ring, Fulton hit a Mafia Kick on Warhorse, dropping him onto the thumbtacks. Fulton chokeslammed PCO onto the thumbtacks, but PCO hopped to his feet and slammed Fulton through a door in the corner. PCO then hit his top-rope moonsault onto Fulton, who was lying on thumbtacks, to score the pin.
* Officials went to clean up the ring. However, Jake Crist hit the ring and demanded his hardcore match happen right now! The thumbtacks were still everywhere.
5. Jake Crist defeated Joel Bateman in a hardcore match at 10:13. I don’t know Bateman, but he looks a lot like Erik (Ray Rowe) of the Viking Raiders. We have barbed wire in the ring, and Bateman immediately used it on Crist. Crist hit a powerbomb onto thumbtacks and light tubes. Both men are bleeding heavily from their foreheads, as Crist jabbed a light tube into Bateman’s forehead. Bateman hit a superplex at 4:30. and this was now gross with the amount of blood loss.
Bateman hit a Swanton, but Crist used a display of plastic forks to jab into Bateman’s back as he came down. Crist put him in a Sharpshooter, but Bateman reached the ropes. Crist went under the ring and got some glass panes, which he used as a bridge between open chairs in the ring. Crist’s manager squirted gasoline on the glass and set it on fire, right before Crist powerbombed Bateman through the glass pane, to score the pin. Never seen that finish before. Bateman’s back was shredded and this was disgusting. I didn’t enjoy much in that match. Quite bluntly, if Crist hadn’t been in it, I wouldn’t have watched.
Intermission bonus match: Swerve Scott defeated Athena in an intergender match. This happened a few months ago at the “Swerve’s House” show in this building. I reviewed it at the time. I write it every PWR show, but I love that they fill intermission with a match for viewers at home. In comparison, GCW had a red screen for 15 minutes this week in their England shows. I don’t know if you need to show a main event (Swerve-Athena headlined the show), but I like showing a match.
6. Dan the Dad and “Man Scout” Jake Manning vs. “Infrared” of Logan James and Tyler Matrix in a campfire match at 10:27. They have coolers and pop-up tents and this is silliness. Manning hit a “trust fall” onto everyone on the floor. They traded punches while seated on canvas camping chairs. Dan and Manning hit a Team 3D stunner for a nearfall at 5:00. All four brawled in a very tiny tent and this is just cartoonish, but the crowd was into it.
Infrared dumped a bag into the ring. but instead of it being filled with thumbtacks, it had the ingredients for making S’mores. Funny. Dan hit a double clothesline at 8:30 and he was fired up. Jake got a tent that was covered in barbed wire and that was brought into the ring. Manning slammed James onto the barbed-wire tent for the pin. A satisfying popcorn match.
* Sami Callihan hit the ring and talked about his upcoming Impact match against Steve Maclin and Moose. Out of nowhere, Maclin hit the ring and attacked Callihan. The commentators were shocked, saying Maclin was not booked to appear on this show. Callihan got on the mic and vowed he would cut Maclin “ear to ear” on the Impact Wrestling PPV. (Unfortunately, Callihan’s promo was far too scripted, making it clear he was pushing the Impact match.)
7. “Speedball” Mike Bailey defeated Billie Starkz, Dante Leon, Gringo Loco, Chris Bey, J.D. Griffey, and KC Navarro in a seven-person scramble match to retain the Impact X Division Title at 14:39. Just like the Alexander match to open the show, I just don’t see a scenario where Bailey loses here. Bailey made this an “open challenge to everyone.” Just in the past 24 hours, Leon was added to the match. My first time seeing Griffey, who is a tall, thin Black man, and wore the “shooter” fight gloves like Ken Shamrock, and he’s bare-foot like Bailey.
All seven brawled in the ring at the bell. Bey and Navarro traded quick offense. Dante hit a standing moonsault on Bey. Billie hit a German Suplex on Dante, then one on Bey, then on Navarro. Loco powerbombed someone onto Billie. Griffey hit a series of punches, and he dropped KC. Bailey and Griffey squared off at 4:00 and traded kicks, and Veda immediately pointed out they have the same style. Loco slammed KC onto Bailey, and everyone was down.
Loco hit a Best Moonsault Ever in the ring, then a flip dive over the top rope onto everywone else. Bey and KC fought away from the ring and up onto a stage at 8:00. They hit simulteous dives onto the other five wrestlers on the floor. Bey and Navarro got in the ring and traded more forearms and quick offense. KC hit a Cradle Shock on Billie, then a tornado DDT on the floor on Loco, then a Code Red on Bey for a nearfall. Loco hit a top-rope Spanish Fly on KC, with them barely avoiding landing on the top of their heads. Loco hit a piledriver for a nearfall.
Griffey hit a nice kneestrike move to Loco’s face for a nearfall, but Bailey made the save. Bey hit a doublestomp on Bailey’s chest, then a flip dive to the floor. In the ring, Bey hit a Cloud Cutter for a eblievable nearfall. Billie hit a Gory Bomb on Bey. Billie hit a Swanton Bomb for a nearfall at 13:30. Leon hit a flipping cutter on Loco,, then a top-rope flip dive onto several guys on the floor. In a neat spot, Bailey hit the Ultimo Weapon/moonsault kneedrop onto three guys, and he pinned Dante. That was a blast, and I feel like everyone had a few moments to shine.
8. JT Dunn defeated Jessicka (Havok) in an intergender match to retain the PWR title at 9:11. Bork said that “Jessicka debuted” last month, which of course is absurd because everyone knows this is Havok with a different look and presentation. Veda pointed out that Allie Katch is in London for GCW right now, so that means she can’t help Dunn cheat. Dunn clocked her with forearms, unafraid to strike a woman. But Jessicka is as tall, and probably a bit heavier than he is. She hit a running Stinger Splash in the corner. Dunn hit a German suplex at 2:30.
They brawled to the floor, and she tossed him into a guardrail. In the ring, Dunn hit an X-Factor faceplant at 5:00. Jessicka hit a series of kicks and a legdrop for a nearfall. She hit a Sky High pop-up powerbomb for a nearfall. Dunn hit a standing powerbomb out of the corner for a nearfall at 8:00. The crowd is a bit flat; they’ve certainly been louder at other points of this show. A video played on the screen of Allie Katch, distracting Jessicka. Dunn immediately hit a roaring elbow to the back of Jessicka’s head for the pin. Ugly finish and the crowd wasn’t pleased at all.
9. AEW Tag Team Champions Swerve Strickland and Keith Lee defeated Rich Swann and Matthew Palmer at 27:55 in a non-title match. See my note above about the feud between Swann and Swerve. Strickland and Lee had their AEW tag titles, but the commentators stressed their belts are not on the line in this match. Palmer and Swerve started. In his long red jacket, goatee and mustache, and grey-ish hair, Palmer looks like an aging magician. Swerve scrambled to his corner to tag in Lee when Swann got in. Swann leapt at Lee, but Lee caught him in his arms.
Lee grabbed his head and slammed him to the mat. Palmer tried to armdrag Lee but couldn’t budge him. He used the ropes for leverage to get Lee down. Palmer chopped Lee and it had no effect. Palmer got chopped, and he had a comically delayed reaction to it. Too much ha-ha in the main event. Palmer acted like he was killed after a chop, and in a funny spot, the overhead music played Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel,” with an onscreen In Memoriam graphic for Palmer. However, after a few seconds, Palmer hopped to his feet and the match continued. But, the heels kept working over Palmer.
Palmer tried to make the hot tag at 9:00, but Swerve yanked Swann off the ring apron. Palmer now has a bloody nose and it may be broken. Lee tossed Palmer at Strickland, who hit a powerbomb. Swann finally made the hot tag at 13:00 and he unloaded punches on Swerve. Palmer drank one of his “potions.” The faces hit a team slam move on Swerve for a nearfall. Swann tried a Poison Rana; it was initially blocked, but then he hit it. Swerve hit a brainbuster on Palmer, who rolled out of the ring, and now it is just Swann and Swerve again.
They traded punches and Swerve hit a flying forearm. Swerve hit a clothesline and they were both down at 17:30. Palmer drank another potion and made the hot tag and beat up Swerve. Palmer hit a Lionsault on Swerve for a nearfall, then a dive over the top rope onto Swerve. Lee hit a Pounce on the floor that sent Palmer flying. In the ring, Swerve hit his running mule kick to the head for a nearfall, but Swann kicked out! Swerve hit another one, but didn’t go for the cover. Lee hopped in the ring, and they did some tag team moves on Swann. Swerve hit the top-rope Meteora kneedrop for a believable nearfall at 21:30, and Swerve was livid it didn’t get the pin.
Swerve accidentally kicked Lee in the arm, and Palmer hit a tornado DDT on Lee. Palmer hit a powerbomb on Swerve, and Swann hit a 450 Splash on Swerve for a nearfall, but Lee hit the ref to stop the count. Swann hit his handspring-back-stunner on Lee, and Palmer hit a top-rope frogsplash on Lee for a nearfall. Palmer hit an elbow drop on Lee for a nearfall. Lee powerbombed Swann onto Palmer. Palmer hit some dropkicks in the corner on Lee. Swerve went to the top rope and hit a Meteora on Palmer, who was sitting on Lee’s shoulders, allowing Swerve to pin Palmer. That perhaps went a bit too long.
* Swann fist-bumped Lee. Swerve was already gone to the back. Swann got on the mic and said his feud with Swerve is not over, and he wants a best-of-three-falls “Hell of War” match at a future PWR show. He danced to conclude the show.
Final Thoughts: A bit of a mixed bag, with two really, really good matches, but a lot that didn’t work for me, too. I am torn on best match but I’ll go with the seven-way scramble, as there were some top-notch high-flyers in the ring.
I get why wrestling shows tend to open with high-flyers and scrambles, as they get the crowd fired up and into the action. But I also see how it makes a lot of sense to open with a match that could be the “main event in any other building.” Sure, when it was announced that Alexander was putting his title on the line, the outcome was a foregone conclusion. But that said, Alexander and Manders had a great match, and that earned second best.
The main event was fine but a little long. They could have really shortened the extensive beatdown on Matthew Palmer. I think Palmer is just a bit too cartoonish to be in that main event slot, too. The match definitely peaked long before it ended. The good six-man tag of Rascalz-OGK was good for honorable mention.
The Monster’s Ball match gets approval from me. It was violent, but not bloody at all. No glass panes or light tubes. The fans got to see hardcore action without it being unsafe. (Any blood is from thumbtack punctures; no one’s face was covered in blood.) Thus, it made the Crist-Bateman match look completely different. and I didn’t enjoy it at all. I don’t like most intergender matches, but this one, they really didn’t click in the ring, and the cheap distraction of a video playing was really bad.
Including intermission, this show ran nearly three-and-a-half hours.
Be the first to comment