By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Prestige Wrestling “Alive!”
Streamed on IndependentWrestling.TV
November 12, 2023 in Portland, Oregon at Hawthorne Theater
This was added to the IWTV lineup on November 19. This is a small theater and a stage is opposite the hard camera; the wrestlers come out though the curtains on the state and I hate seeing no fans across from the ring. It appears attendance is in the 250 range, as it’s pretty packed on the other three sides of the ring. Lighting is really good. Cody Von Whistler and Jordan Castle provided commentary. I like Castle’s youthful enthusiasm, I always describe him as a young Don West.
This lineup isn’t as ‘star-studded’ as most Prestige Wrestling shows. I actually don’t know a lot of names on this lineup.
1. Drake Kwon defeated Kris Brady at 7:32. Brady looks a bit like a heavier Ricochet and he wears bib overalls. My first time seeing Drake; he’s of Asian heritage, a bit heavy and menacing and he wore a bandana. Kwon dominated the action. He hit a swinging side slam for the pin. Castle said it’s his first singles victory in Prestige.
* Drexl (think a twisted Mankind with weird makeup) snuck in behind Kwon and hit him with a chair. Drexl then hit a piledriver on Brady. Von Whistler said of Drexl, “this man is absolutely unhinged.”
2. “Hammer Bros” Jack Hammer and Sledge Hammer defeated “Flamin’ Aces” Zaye Perez and Spencer Scott at 8:02. I’ve seen the construction worker-themed Hammer Bros just once before. Sledge Hammer is a 400+ pound man. Jack opened but he quickly tagged in the massive Sledge. (I can’t shake my thoughts of WCW’s High Voltage when I see these two.) My first time seeing Flamin’ Aces: Scott is a curly redhead (think Heath Slater), and Zaye’s character is flamboyant and Latino. Jack hit a powerbomb on Spencer Scott. Sledge Hammer got back in at 5:00 and he hit a swinging uranage on Perez, earning a “Holy shit!” chant.
Scott hit a Lionsault on Sledge Hammer. The Hammer Bros hit a ‘wheelbarrow stunner” on Spencer for a nearfall. Sledge hit a Rikishi Driver piledriver, and Jack covered Scott for the pin. A bit cartoonish but an acceptable mid-card match. Sledge Hammer is really big in an unhealthy way.
3. Jaiden defeated Jordan Cruz at 11:35. I’m a big fan of the muscular Cruz; he’s appeared on several New Japan Strong episodes. Jaiden is the Black superhero; think the Hurricane Helms gimmick. Castle said this is Cruz’ Oregon debut; he towers over Jaiden. The crowd chanted “please don’t die!” at the bell which I thought was pretty funny. Jordan hit a jumping knee in the corner and a second-rope superplex for a nearfall at 2:30, and he took control of the offense. Jaiden hit a Code Red at 5:00 for a nearfall. He did a ‘super hero landing’ and hit an enzuigiri. Cruz nailed an Air Raid Crash into the corner for a believable nearfall at 7:00; that one looked devastating.
Jaiden went for a Sliced Bread but Cruz blocked it and nailed a Flatliner for a believable nearfall. Nice sequence. Cruz set up for a top-rope superplex but Jaiden shoved him to the mat, and he hit a frogsplash on Cruz’ injured knee. Cruz nailed a German Suplex and a neckbreaker over his knee. Jaiden got a rollup with a jackknife cover for the pin. Far better than the first two matches. Cruz beat up Jaiden after the match.
* Alex Shelley was slowed by a calf injury and pulled out of the main event but still showed up for the local fans. He wore a suit and had his Prestige title belt over his shoulder. He talked about his recent schedule including a trip to Europe with Impact Wrestling, and he’s got a ‘grade 2 calf strain’ and couldn’t wrestle. “That breaks my f—ing heart because I love Portland,” and that got a nice pop. Alan Angels‘ music played and he was loudly booed as he walked to the ring. Angels told Shelley that ‘veterans like him are ruining indy wrestling.’ Shelley called him a “bitch” and that popped the crowd. The crowd taunted him with an “Alan Asshole!” chant. Angels told him to hold the title belt tightly because he won’t have it much longer. Decent segment.
4. “Midnight Heat” Ricky Gibson and Eddie Pearl defeated “Brothers Divine” Brendan and Danny Divine at 9:38. Gibson is bald, Pearl has short curly hair, and they are the 1980s-style throwback team. I think I’ve seen the Divine brothers just once. Gibson opened with Danny. I can’t tell the Divine brothers apart; they are both white with short curly brownish crewcuts. MHeat worked over Danny in their corner. Brendan hit a bodyslam on Pearl at 9:00. The brothers hit a team faceplant for a nearfall. Gibson hit a legdrop across the throat and Pearl made the cover for the pin. Okay; pretty standard stuff.
5. Vinnie Massaro defeated Daniel Makabe at 13:51. Vinnie is the heavyset over-the-top Italian stereotype gimmick and he always reminds me of Hugh Morrus with the way his singlet tries to hide his gut. I saw Makabe in a Prestige tournament in July and he reminds me of Alex Shelley but a bit heavier. (I recall he won a match against Artemis Spencer that was the upset of that tournament.) Standing switches to open; Makabe is several inches taller but I presume Vinnie has the weight advantage. Massaro hit a dropkick at 6:00 and they brawled to the floor, where they vanished into the shadows. They brawled over toward a wall.
Back in the ring, Makabe was in charge and he tied up Vinnie on the mat. Makabe applied a Danielson-style Cattle Mutilation, but Massaro reached the ropes at 11:30. Vinnie fired back with a modified Anaconda Vice on the mat, and Makabe got a foot on the ropes to break it. Vinnie hit a hard clothesline. He hit the Snoring Elbow for the pin. This admittedly didn’t do much for me but the crowd was fine with it.
6. Amira vs. Rose ended in a draw/no contest at 6:20. Amira is still a rookie but just debuted on AEW TV, and she always reminds me of Raquel Gonzalez, and she shows a lot of promise. Rose is essentially Shotzi Blackheart but with red hair instead of green; she came out to Papa Roach’s “Last Resort” which all diehard indy fans know was “Sick” Nick Mondo’s theme, and I’m impressed that youngster Jordan Castle acknowledged this. Amira hit a Stinger Splash at 2:30 and a rolling cannonball. Rose hit some kicks; Amira hit a spinning back fist. Rose hit the Eat D’Feat at 5:30. Amira hit a DDT. Drexl suddenly climbed in the ring and was booed! He hit a double clothesline on the women and the ref called for the bell.
* Drexl hit a powerbomb move on Rose. Amira hit some forearm strikes on Drexl. However, he hit a piledriver on her and creepily stroked her lifeless head. (Whatever happened to Dexter Lumis? Because that’s what this reminded me of.) Good match while it lasted. The fans chanted “rematch!”
7. Randy Myers defeated Evan Rivers at 13:52. Myers is best described as an eccentric, effeminate Joker character; he’s got green hair and he’s over-the-top as he danced his way to Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now.” Rivers is the curly dirty blond with lots of tattoos and I compare him to Zicky Dice. As expected, comedy to open. Myers hit a dive to the floor at 4:00. In the ring, Rivers hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip and took control. Myers applied a crossface at 10:00 and the fans taunted him to tap out. Rivers nailed a rolling stunner and a massive powerbomb, then a clothesline to the back of the neck for a believable nearfall at 11:30.
Rivers tied him in a leglock on the mat. Rivers hit a pumphandle slam. However, he missed a top-rope moonsault and the crowd rallied for Myers. Rivers had Myers in his arms and did a few curls. However, Myers got an inside cradle and the pin for the win. Meh. Rivers immediately attacked after the bell and hit another pumphandle slam. The crowd loudly booed him.
8. Sonico and “C4” Cody Chhun and Guillermo Rosas defeated Alan Angels, Judas Icarus, and Travis Williams at 30:05. This, of course is why I tuned in. Cody and Angels started; Castle noted that this is a rematch of the Cascadia Cup finals in July. Really good reversals, double clotheslines, and a standoff at 2:00. Icarus and Sonico entered, with Sonico hitting a basement dropkick to the back. Williams entered and hit a snap suplex on Sonico at 5:00. The heels began working over Sonico in their corner. The babyfaces cornered Angels and got some quick offense, and Angels bailed to the floor at 7:30 to regroup.
Judas backed Rosas into the heel corner and they worked him over. Cody entered and hit a series of chops on Judas at 12:30. Sonico and Cody hit a team suplex on Judas for a nearfall. Angels tripped Sonico as he went for a springboard move and the heels began working over Sonico. Cody made the hot tag at 18:00 and he hit a series of dropkicks on the heels and he hit a series of punches on nemesis Angels, then a tornado DDT on Williams for a nearfall. Williams hit a clothesline on Cody and they were both down. Angels and Sonico again traded forearm strikes. Sonico hit a DDT for a nearfall at 21:00.
Angels hit a half nelson suplex and tagged in Williams, who hit a German Suplex on Sonico for a nearfall. Sonico hit a Dragon Suplex. Williams hit a top-rope superplex. Angels went for a frogsplash but Chhun caught him with a Cody Cutter, and suddenly everyone was down at 23:00. They all got up and brawled as the referee has lost control. Williams and Icarus hit dives to the floor on the babyfaces. Everyone now brawled on the floor, but the hard camera has them in the shadows; the ringside camera was alright.
Sonico leapt off the balcony onto everyone at 27:00 and the fans chanted “holy shit.” (Honestly it wasn’t that high of a balcony.) In the ring, Williams hit a brainbuster on Cody. Rosas hit a spear. Sonico sprayed green mist in Icarus’ face! Meanwhile, Cody and Rosas hit a team powerbomb for the pin! A good match.
* Williams got on the mic and he was livid.
Final Thoughts: This show was built around the main event, with arguably the six best workers on the show all in this one. It was good, but I wouldn’t call it great, either. Jaiden-Cruz was good for second place. Check out Prestige shows at IWTV.
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