By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Wrestling Open “Episode 97”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
November 9, 2023 in Worcester, Massachusetts at White Eagle
The crowd was in the 200 range. Paul Crockett provided commentary…
1. RJ Rude defeated Lucas Chase (w/Brother Greatness) at 6:00 even. Again, Chase is muscular and reminds me a bit of the Usos brothers and a bit of Angelo Dawkins. Rude came off the ropes but Chase caught him with a European Uppercut, and Lucas dominated early on. Rude (think a young Chuck Taylor) hit a dropkick at 4:00, a Go To Sleep, and a half-nelson suplex for a nearfall. Chase went for a second-rope back suplex, but Rude rotated and landed on top. Rude then hit a springboard Swanton Bomb for the pin. Lucas dominated the whole match again until Rude’s final two moves.
* RJ Rude got on the mic and told Brother Greatness he wants another match with Tyree Taylor.
* Brother Greatness joined Crockett on commentary.
2. Griffin McCoy defeated Jermaine Marbury (w/basketball mascot) at 5:36. McCoy’s debut on MLW would have aired within minutes of this match. I don’t know Marbury. Jermaine wore a basketball jersey, maybe channeling former NBA player Stephon Marbury. He has big goggles and big hair like No Way Jose. Marbury hit a flying splash for a nearfall. The crowd started chanting “defense.” When Griffin cheated, the fans chanted “Technical!” Marbury missed a frog splash. Griffin nailed a half-nelson suplex, then a Cody Rhodes-style springboard spin kick to the face for the pin. Basic. I didn’t warm up to the basketball player gimmick.
* A video aired of the feud for the next match. Three or four weeks ago, Paris Van Dale ripped Kennedi Copeland’s nose-ring out of her nose, causing a sudden stoppage to their match, so this is Kennedi’s revenge match. PVD cut a very disingenuous promo apologizing for her actions.
3. Kennedi Copeland vs. Paris Van Dale ended in a double count-out at 6:03. Kennedi came out second and charged in the ring and they brawled immediately. Paris slapped Kennedi in the face; Kennedi hit a Thesz Press and punches to the face. They brawled to the floor. PVD hit a DDT back into the ring for a nearfall at 2:30, and she was in charge. Copelad hit a series of kicks and a Kota-style Kamigoye kneestrike for a believable nearfall. PVD went back to grabbing at the nose. They brawled back to the floor; the commentators pointed out that the ref was counting, but they kept brawling at ringside until the double count-out. They brawled up oto a stage, and PVD sprayed Kennedi in the face with an aerosol then choked her out.
* Paris got on the mic but the crowd loudly drowned her out. Paris said Kennedi could only beat her if she had someone who had her back, but Kennedi doesn’t have any friends. Sounds like we’re going to continue this feud with a tag match…
4. Brad Baylor vs. Kylon King went to a 10-minute time-limit draw. Teenager Baylor is just a natural heel. Kylon carried his tag title belt. An intense lockup to open, and Baylor posed and was booed. King hit a Northern Lights Suplex at 3:00. Baylor hit a shotgun dropkick and played with his feathered hair. He locked in a sleeper, but King hit a back suplex at 6:30 to escape. Baylor hit a powerslam for a nearfall. Kylon nailed a top-rope superplex and they were both down. King hit a Northern Lights Suplex and a spinebuster for a nearfall at 9:00 as we were told just one minute left in the time limit. King hit an Asai Moonsault on the floor, and he rolled Brad into the ring. King hit a tornado DDT, but Baylor wisely rolled out of the ring to avoid being pinned. I had it at 9:54 but that’s close enough…
5. Dezmond Cole defeated TJ Crawford at 7:43. Ricochet clone Dezmond took control early on and repeatedly rammed the Silver Sniper’s head into the middle turnbuckle. Dezmond hit a huracanrana at 5:00, then a Falcon Arrow, then a rolling legdrop across the throat for a nearfall. TJ hit an enziguri. Cole hit a stunner. TJ hit a pop-up forearm strike. Cole hit a superkick for a nearfall at 7:00. Crawford missed on a kick and Cole immediately got an O’Connor Roll, rolled back for leverage, and scored the fluke pin. Good match.
* A video package aired of the Stetson Ranch and their growing feud with former stablemate Brett Ryan Gosselin.
6. Danny Miles (w/The Stetson Ranch) defeated Brett Ryan Gosselin at 6:03. These two have been feuding for the past couple of months. BRG (seriously, he always reminds of Nick Carter from the Backstreet Boys) just debuted on MLW TV last week. The Stetson Ranch attacked BRG on the floor. In the ring, Miles hit a backbreaker over his knee at 1:30 and he took control. Miles hit a rolling cannonball in the corner for a nearfall and he remained in control. BRG hit a swinging neckbreaker and they were both down at 4:30. He hit a short-arm clothesline for a nearfall, then a spinebuster for a nearfall. BRG switched to a Boston Crab, so Steven Stetson hopped on the ring apron to distract the ref, and Hammer Tunis distracted BRG, allowing Miles to put BRG on his shoulders, slam him to the mat, and score the pin. Okay action.
* Footage aired of Brad Hollister challenging Ichiban to a title shot at Wrestling Open Episode 100, which is Nov. 30. This feels like the first legit challenger for Ichiban since he won the title.
7. Brad Hollister defeated Love Doug at 7:35. The crowd may um, love Doug, but this should be a squash. Ichiban walked to ringside before the bell. Hollister tricked Doug into hugging him, only to hit a release German Suplex at 2:00. We pan to Ichiban, who is seated in the crowd in maybe the third row. Hollister hit a snap suplex for a nearfall. Doug hit a Stinger Splash and a huracanrana, then a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall at 5:00. The camera again pans to Ichiban, who is now standing and getting the crowd to clap for Doug. Hollister hit a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall, and he began jawing at Ichiban, and he suddenly was ignoring Doug. It allowed Doug to hit his rebound lariat for a beievable nearfall at 7:00. Hollister hit a twisting suplex and glared at Ichiban while getting the pin. Everything about this was perfectly done.
8. Joe Ocasio defeated Tyree Taylor (w/Brother Greatness), Gabriel Skye and Bobby Orlando in a four-way to earn an IWTV title match at 11:40. Okay, I admittedly don’t like the dorky Orlando and his stupid stuffed goat, so I’m cheering for any of the other three. The muscular, white Ocasio and the Black, massive Taylor are the heels here. I’m a big fan of Skye, who recently said he was taking time off to rest his damaged shoulder, but yet here he is again. This match has just two in the ring, so we open with Skye and Ocasio brawling while the others are on the apron… this is going to wind up looking like a tag match.
Orlando tagged in and tried to bodyslam the big Taylor but couldn’t budge him. Ocasio took Orlando’s head off with a clothesline at 2:30. The heels began stomping on Skye and the heels were working together. Skye dove onto the heels, then Orlando dove onto all three. In the ring, Ocasio suplexed Orlando int the corner for a nearfall at 5:00. Ocasio hit a leaping splash. Taylor made a blind tag, angering Ocasio. Taylor continued the beatdown on Orlando. However, Ocasio ‘pie-faced’ Taylor, allowing Orlando to hit a bodyslam on Taylor. Skye hit a top-rope missile dropkick.
Skye hit a tornado DDT, then a Falcon Arrow, on Ocasio for a nearfall at 8:30. Taylor hit a powerslam. We finally had the two heels alone in the ring and they had an intense lockup, and they traded headbutts at 10:00. Orlando hit a top-rope missile dropkick and a Lungblower. Taylor hit a uranage on Orlando. RJ Rude suddenly hopped on the ring apron to distract Taylor. Ocasio put Gabriel on his shoulders and hit a swinging powerbomb on Skye for the pin. Good match.
* Post-match, Rude hit a top-rope Blockbuster on Taylor. Brother Greatness pulled Taylor from the ring as the show came to a close.
Final Thoughts: On paper, this show didn’t jump out at me but I’m glad I tuned in. And there were only two wrestlers here who also wrestled on the Fight Life show I reviewed from Wednesday. Even though it was a draw, Kylon-Baylor earns best match. Brad Baylor is 19. He has a great physique and he’s smarmy as hell. (And the “Swipe Right” tag team name is just so perfect for cocky, young good-looking men.) The fact he was protected here in a time-limit draw really says to me that he’s going to be protected here. Topping my expectations, I’ll go with Hollister-Doug for second, just for how they are moving forward that title match. Dezmond-TJ earns third place, ahead of the main event.
With Major League Wrestling having become essentially just another Northeast indy (There are four guys alone on this show who have been on MLW TV in the past three months, and that doesn’t include Wrestling Open regulars Ichiban and Alec Price!), it would make sense that Dezmond Cole gets a shot at MLW TV soon, too.
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