By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
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Respect Women’s Wrestling “The Return”
Replay available via IndependentWrestling.TV
July 12, 2024 in Denver, Colorado at Embassy Suites Denver Central Park
This show was just released on IWTV. I admittedly only know four women on this show, with Abadon and Heather Reckless appearing on shows I watch most often, so I’m intrigued by what this show will bring.
The lights are on, but this is a poorly-lit convention center room with bland white walls. The crowd appears to be 200. Veda Scott and Mike Bailey provided commentary; I am presuming it was done in post-production. There were clear edits between matches, so definitely some editing on that end, too. The on-screen graphics remind of PWG releases to the point I can only assume that is intentional. Also, like PWG, ring intros and music were edited out.
1. Adrian Myscira defeated Noelle at 7:38. Noelle wore all black and is a creepy Goth like Tatum Paxley, or the deceased Daffney is an even better comparison. Adrian wore red and she has blonde hair. Noelle hit a Lungblower to the back for a nearfall at 1:30, and she choked Adrian in the ropes, and the crowd rallied for Adrian. Adrian hit a powerbomb at 5:30 and a 619. Noelle bit Adrian’s leg! Adrian hit a second-rope DDT for the pin. A fine opener.
2. Itzel Estrada defeated Lola the Adventurer at 5:51. Itzel wore a shiny black one-piece. Lola had a backpack and is dressed like Kids show “Dora the Explorer,” and she’s the babyface. They traded armdags early on, and they traded rollups. Itzel went for a crossarm breaker. Lola hit some clotheslines and a uranage for a nearfall at 5:00. Itzel hit a second-rope missile dropkick then an Alexa Bliss-style twisting second-rope splash for the pin. They are clearly quite green but they had the crowd into it.
3. Nikki Chase defeated Lilith Grimm at 8:19. Nikki is a thin blonde in green. Lilith is a bit heavier and she wore blue. Nikki refused a handshake. Nikki stalled on the floor and sat in the front row. In the ring, Lilith repeatedly slammed Nikki face-first at 4:00. Nikki hit a bulldog for a nearfall. Lilith hit a nice twisting uranage for a nearfall at 6:30. Lilith hit a backbreaker over her knee and some clubbing blows to Nikki’s chest, then a powerbomb that popped the crowd but she only got a nearfall. The ref got bumped. Nikki picked up Lilith’s “war hammer” (think Thor!), struck Lilith in the stomach with it, and scored the cheap pin. Decent.
4. Stormi Renee defeated Paradise at 11:28. Stormi is much taller (maybe by 7-8 inches!) and wore blue and orange top and bottom; she lost an AEW match in February to Toni Storm and another AEW match to Kris Statlander in July, using the moniker of “Sydni Winnell.” She is listed online at 5’11” which seems accurate. Paradise is short and wore white and glittery pink, and she’s clearly the heel. Stormi hit some forearm strikes and a clothesline into the corner, then a senton to the back at 3:30. She hit a Samoan Drop for a nearfall. Paradise hit a second-rope flying clothesline for a nearfall at 7:00. Paradise applied a straitjacket sleeper. Stormi hit a German Suplex for a nearfall at 9:00. Stormi put her in a fireman’s carry and dropped her for a faceplant for a nearfall. Paradise got a magistral cradle for a believable nearfall. Stormi hit an F5 faceplant for the pin.
* We have finally arrived to a match with wrestlers I’ve seen before! (Okay, I would have seen those AEW matches but they didn’t stick with me.)
5. Rachelle Riveter defeated Heather Reckless at 8:52. Heather is the 4’10” blonde from Chicago who has appeared on a lot of AEW/ROH shows and was recently on a TNA taping, too. I’ve seen Riveter in Las Vegas-based Future Stars of Wrestling, and she lost an AEW Dark match to Emi Sakura in February 2023. Rachell has her child, perhaps age 4, in the ring and the crowd loved this. Heather popped the kid on the head to start the match and WOW the crowd heat for that! “I think she’s going to have to skip town after this!” Bailey said. Heather stalled in the ropes. Angry mom Rachelle hit some flying forearms, and Heather rolled to the floor to regroup. Heather choked Rachelle in the ropes.
In the ring, Riveter clocked her with a forearm and she hit some clotheslines and a flapjack face plant. She nailed a Meteora running double knees at 6:00 for a nearfall. The ref got struck and was momentarily blinded. Heather spit water in Rachelle’s eyes, hit a Shining Wizard and a moonsault. Rachelle’s child got in the ring and broke up the pin! Heather teased she was going to spank the kid! Rachelle hit a kick to stop that. With mom’s help, the kid hit an RKO stunner on Heather! Mom and child scored the pin! The crowd heat was tremendous for this. Easily best match so far.
6. Pixi Pulsing defeated Tyra Russamee at 7:55. Pixi wore shiny white and wore blue face paint. Tyra wore a green outfit and she has green and pink streaks in her hair. Tyra hit some punches. Tyra hit an enzuigiri at 3:30. They traded chops on the ring apron. Tyra hit a back body drop, with Pixi then crashing to the floor. In the ring, Pixi hit a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall. Tyra hit a Razor’s Edge at 6:30. Pixi hit an RVD-style split-legged moonsault for the pin. Okay; this was quite a step down from the prior match.
7. Abadon defeated Heidi Howitzer at 25:44. I love Abadon and I wish Tony Khan knew how to use them better. Heidi is taller and her hair is in pink braids today, and she has a significant height advantage. The crowd chanted “eat her soul!” which Veda said was “a little extreme.” Heidi shoved Abadon to the mat, then hit a shoulder tackle. Abadon hit a clothesline at 2:30, stood over her and screamed at her. Heidi hit some hard chops in the corner, including a double-handed overhand chops, then a buttbump in the corner at 4:00.
Abadon hit a huracanrana and a Meteora into the corner. They rolled to the floor at 6:00 with Heidi trying to run from Abadon. Heidi spit water into Abadon’s mouth! Gross. Heidi hit some more chops as they fought at ringside. She slammed a garbage can over Abadon’s back at 8:00. Abadon hit an Ospreay-style heel hook kick to the face. Abadon struck Heidi on the butt with a leather strap at 11:00 as they kept brawling on the floor, looping behind the seats and along the wall.
Abadon hit a running crossbody block, sending Heid flying onto a chair; they’ve now been on the floor longer than they had been in the ring. Abadon hit her with a chair across the back. Heidi hit a stunner at 14:00. She put a chair over Abadon’s face and hit a running buttbump onto the chair as Abadon was leaning against the ring. Heidi hit a Tombstone Piledriver onto a table at 16:30. They finally got back into the ring! Abadon put a trash can over Heidi’s head and kicked her, then hit a senton onto the can. Heidi hit an Air Raid Crash in the corner for a nearfall.
Heidi dumped a bag of tacks onto the mat. She powerbombed Abadon onto the thumbtacks at 21:00; Abadon rolled over and they had a LOT of thumbtacks in their back! Ouch! Abadon hit a uranage onto the thumbtack pile. They traded chops while on their knees. Abadon still has a lot of tacks on their back. Abadon hit a Sister Abigail face plant — including a kiss to the forehead before hitting the move! — for the pin. A good brawl; longer than it needed to be but they kept the crowd.
Final Thoughts: The two matches with the four women I knew both delivered. Abadon and Heidi went above and beyond to have a match like that in front of a relatively small crowd. Stormi Renee was the standout of the ten women I really didn’t know, so it wasn’t surprising to me to then learn she has appeared on AEW TV twice. I admire the effort here, even if I’m not saying any of these unknown undercard wrestlers are ‘must-see’ talents.
I admire the work done here in post-production, with a good use of replays. I do wish the room had been a bit brighter but it was fine. I am always glad to hear Veda Scott on commentary, but I presume she knew as little about these wrestlers as I do. I have watched some shows this year where she’s called matches with Japanese wrestlers I had never heard of before and she was able to fill me in on who they were. That didn’t really happen here; that’s not meant as a criticism, but just an acknowledgement that these wrestlers are so relatively unknown that even someone with the wealth of knowledge that Veda has didn’t know much to say about them. Veda and Bailey of course did a great job calling the action nonetheless.
SO wish Abadon would get a push in AEW. She’s so good with her character and works her ass off, and most importantly, actually gives a damn about her in-and-out of ring work, not just the money.