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The show goes live just a minute or two late with an intro video, and then right into our first match!
Jason Kincaid vs. Tracer X
Feeling out early, Kincaid takes a breather to the first row to boo his opponent and X returns the favor with a cheer. The action intensifies, Jason taking Tracer's leg out from under him and really giving it to him, knucklelock into a step-up Arabian press springboard arm drag!
Ducking kicks from X, but a dropkick finds home, up and over, springboard lariat back into it, but it's only good for one. Back to the apron, Kincaid catches him with that wild triangle forearm, the up-and-over double stomp on the apron, he repositions the ring steps for a step-up imploding Tiger feint kick!
Back in the ring, a deep cover but it's not over, uppercut into a Gory Special, Tracer fighting out, arm drag, first kick ducked but the jumping roundhouse connects and both men are struggling on the mat. Back on their feet, jockeying for position, X counters a sunset flip and gives it to him with the pumphandle suplex... NO GOOD!
Kincaid with a, my god, like a hip toss against the ropes into an X-Factor, a really unique wheelbarrow half nelson shoulder jawbreaker follows, he's on a roll, looking for Compassionate Release, blocked, Tracer hits him with a tornado DDT... NOT ENOUGH! Climbing up top, scouting a counter, back down, 450 splash, nobody's home!
KINCAID SPRINGBOARDS INTO THE RAFTERS! DIVING DOUBLE STOMP FROM THE CEILING! IT'S OVER!
Jason Kincaid wins by pinfall with a diving double stomp from the ceiling.
Hell of an opener, just mile-a-minute fun from the bell. And that finish! Great stuff.
A Quickie with White Mike
Mike asks the crowd how they're doing and for them to give it up for the last match before welcoming us to PWSex This Is How We Do It. He has an issue near and dear to his heart, two outlaws who used to ride together, and he's gonna get to the bottom of the matter between Corey Hollis and John Skyler.
Corey makes his entrance. The mic is dead but he just yells at Mike anyway, telling him to shut up and that he's beneath him, because he's on TV every month. Mike says he travels a lot but last time he checked, it was PWX's favorite son Cedric Alexander pinning him 1-2-3 on TV. (205 Live continuity!)
And furthermore, Hollis needs to be this tall to ride, and he ain't half the man White Mike is nor half the man that John Skyler is, and if he can get a referee, he'll prove it!
Corey Hollis vs. White Mike
Hollis out the gates with a WICKED chop block! Mike struggles to his feet and Corey hits it again! Elbow drops, legscissor, White trying to club his way out of it, to his feet, and Hollis just kicks his leg right out from under him. Uppercut, chops, taking a break from the leg, snapmare into a kick to the back gets two.
Mike throwing forearms, he gets a jawbreaker, lariat, elbow, scoops him up for a slam, strugging through the pain and he connects! Right hands, mounted punches but Hollis slips out and he's right back on him, stomping away. Grounded punches, reverse chinlock gives way to crossface blows, a mocking pelvic thrust, whip into a dropkick, only two!
Back to the chinlock, wrenching hard, White escapes and again Corey goes low but he's lost sight of the leg, instead choosing to just try and cave his head in with punches. A disdainful stomp, Hollis tells him this is his house and he's going to the big time, but White Mike ducks a lariat, hits the Manhattan Drop, the Rude Awakening... NOPE!
Stinger splash ducked, countered to a schoolboy pin, Mike back with a Codebreaker, only a nearfall. Pele kick into a hell of a slam, Corey climbs, looking for the diving headbutt but he comes up empty! White calls for the end, he's climbing, this never ends well... HE HIT IT! WHITE MIKE HIT THE HEADBUTT! HE'S CRAWLING OVER... COREY HOLLIS LIVES!
The straps come down, hip swivel, front facelock, swinging him for the Can Opener but referee Frankie Gastineau gets clipped by the swing! Hollis goes low, Frankie wakes up...
Corey Hollis wins by pinfall with a folding press.
He hit the headbutt! It's a miracle! And also, a very good match. I'll admit I was a little disappointed when we zigged away from the leg, but what we got worked really well with Corey's continuing derangement, as he became less focused on winning the match and more on simply brutalizing Mike.
Entrances for our iTV Championship contender's match commence, and we have a surprise... CHIP F'N DAY!
Chase Owens vs. Chip Day vs. Darius Lockhart vs. Jason Cade (PWX iTV Championship #1 Contender's Match)
Cade does his usual four-way "try to convince everyone to beat on somebody else" schtick and just eats a knockout roundhouse from Day! Down to Lockhart and Owens, trading hands, big dropkick from the Revolt!sman, jockeying for position, springboard elbow takes Chase out, Cade back in, fast and furious, flying headscissors connects!
Chip in with a boot, Shining Wizard, leg kick for Owens, Darius thinking suplex, lands on his feet, Day's got more kicks, a sliding knee! Chase and Chip brawling outside, Lockhart lands a tope con giro into the fray! Darius and Jason at it in the ring, Lockhart with knees in the corner, his suplex denied with a chop to the back from Owens!
Struggling, German suplexing Darius who exploder suplexes Cade! Lockhart with a tight nearfall off a lariat on Chip Day, Day holding on for dear life to block the followup, crescent kick to an enzuigiri, Owens over with a pump kick, slingshot Rock Bottom backbreaker, Jason breaks the pin up with a stomp!
Cade to the apron, lands a kick, thinking Frankensteiner but Chase reverses to a Death Valley Driver! Crotch chop for Darius, ducking haymakers and throwing straight rights in return, one too many crotch chops and Lockhart pastes him with a right hand! Running knee hits hard, Owens looking for the package pieldriver, Darius breaks out and throws him into a jumping reverse STO from Cade!
Jason with a high angle back suplex, a Codebreaker on Day, clearing house, the Flying Gambino dives from every angle! Up top, the frog splash connects but Owens picks him off with a package piledriver! Lockhart slides in...
Darius Lockhart wins by pinfall with a tossing back suplex on Chase Owens, becoming #1 contender to the PWX iTV Championship.
Hell of a match-- great fun to watch, hard to recap, because stuff just kept happening.
Chip Day gets on the mic to put Lockhart over, saying he was the same way when he started out in PWX. He talks about missing out on a title opportunity and not wanting to see Darius promised the world and not get it. Chip then says he has a piece of paper, a golden ticket that gives him a shot at a title shot at any title he pleases, and all the champions in PWX had better be looking over their shoulders.
John Skyler vs. Timothy Thatcher
Thatcher right on the leg, forcing Skyler to scramble a bit and go for a knucklelock reversal but Tim turns that around and grabs a keylock. John working his way around, getting a schoolboy pin for a second, stalemate. Test of strength, Thatcher forcing him to the mat, Skyler bridging out, so Tim steps on his jaw and snaps his arm down into a cross armbar, broken ony by the ropes.
Jockeying for position on the mat, the Southern Savior escapes a headlock into a pin but finds himself caught again immediately. Back to the leg, the elevated half crab, just wrenching it in as Skyler tries to roll out and fails. John manages to kick him off, looking for a crossleg hold of some kind but Tim rolls through it and slaps his face off!
Looking for a heel hook, Skyler with the clinch, and they trade seated forearms until Skyler bites the former Evolve World Champion's forehead! Single arm camel clutch, to a sleeper as Tim rises to his feet and forces him into the corner for a break. A boot sends John to the apron and Tim deadlift vertical suplexes him over the ropes and back inside!
Thatcher stomping away, to their feet they begin trading uppercuts, Skyler looking for a modified figure four but he gets caught by a grapevined ankle lock! Skyler reverses to a stepover toehold, looking for an STF or a Regal Stretch but he's denied and Tim grabs the wrist and rolls through into an armbar, defeated by the ropes.
To the apron, trading strikes, step-up kick from the Southern Savior sets up the apron spear! But Thatcher is quicker back in and cuts him off in the ropes with a knee lift. Karelin lift connects and Stokely Hathaway is well pleased at ringside. Dropping knees against the ribs, grinding the arm and stepping on the wrist, a smile plays across Tim's face as he stomps the shoulder!
Just beating John down in the corner, hard elbows and knees, a straight suplex, Russian legsweep into a grounded octopus hold! Skyler slips out of it, uppercuts to the back of the knees, knee drop into a Trailer Hitch and Thatcher has to claw for the ropes!
Skyler rolls with him, stepover toehold, rake of the back, he doesn't have all of it, Tim grabbing his hand to keep him from locking it all the way in! Thatcher with a heel hook, Skyler elbowing the crap out of his knee to break! Sharpshooter applied but they tumble into the ropes! John kicking his leg out from under him, snapping it, Tim to the ropes, fending off a followup with a slap and an elbow.
Skyler manages to knock him down before he can capitalize and locks the figure four leglock on! Thatcher struggling, sitting up but John falls to the mat before he can throw hands. Rolling through, reversing the pressure and meeting the ropes, again forcing a break!
To their feet, forearm for uppercut, Thatcher with the off-the-ropes belly-to-belly suplex but he can't make a pin off it! Determination and rage playing across the former Evolve World Champion's face but his leg goes out from under him! One-legged, still fighting, rolling and trying for an arm submission before taking mount and raining strikes down.
Looking for the armbar, Skyler keeps his hands clasped and Tim throws him off with a kick that cracks around the arena. Sleeper, John does the ol' step up the turnbuckles into a cover deal, only a nearfall, slingshot spear... NO GOOD! Sharpshooter applied, Thatcher wavering, Stokely gets on the apron and Skyler breaks!
Sleeper hold back on, the Southern Savior fades but rallies and gets the ropes! Ringkampf break, knee life, butterfly reversed into a back body drop, only two! Pick the legs, back to the Sharpshooter! Tim crawling, Skyler sits on his back! THATCHER MANAGES TO PUSH HIM OFF!
Back to the sleeper hold once again, Skyler reverses to a Finlay Roll! On their knees, both men spent, trading slaps, Thatcher pulls ahead with forearms but John picks the legs and reapplies the Sharpshooter! Crawling, the bell rings...
The match ends in a twenty minute time limit draw.
Excellent match, and I dig the idea of the time limit draw here, above and beyond the shenanigans you'll read about in a second that bring it into the greater context of the Hollis/Skyler feud.
The idea that Thatcher is so resilient, and so skilled on the mat that being down a leg wasn't enough to put him out of the match really works because, like, the disappointing thing about draws is they usually come in a situation where you basically know who would have won based on the action of the closing minutes and not getting the extra five minutes or whatever ends up a bummer.
But here, like, there's no telegraphing. Yeah, Thatcher was in a bad place, but one he'd been in several times and one that he kept finding ways out of, and Skyler's determination to bring it to a former Evolve World Champion in his natural habitat on the mat was keeping him from just ending it with his Pedigree.
And the prospect of a rematch is tantalizing. Maybe in, say, X16 this year?
Skyler wants five more minutes and Thatcher seems game but Corey Hollis has the bell! He says here at PWX, we stick to our times, and he's sick and tired of Skyler stealing his spotlight. He'll do whatever it takes to make him fight him, if he has to push him off a cliff, that'd be the greatest day of his life.
We proceed to take a brief intermission.
Back from intermission and it's time for the Syndicate to celebrate their recent title victories.
Tommy Thomas says it's a momentous occasion, and for the first time in our miserable lives, we're going to sit and enjoy four young men eat delicious meals for forty-five minutes. Tommy gives big introductions for his three compatriots, Timmy Lou Retton, the Boss, and Elijah Evans IV.
Evans addresses the crowd, who are quacking heartily. He says they're done with the Ducks, and they can't hang with talent the caliber of the Syndicate. He and his boys have finally reached the mountain top in PWX, and whether you like it or not, he told us he deserves it and he would take what he was owed, so sit back and appreciate the greatness.
JAMES DRAKE IS HERE!
He doesn't know if they think he's as dumb as they are, but he's not taking 'em on four on one, he's just here to talk. He tells Evans he doesn't deserve the title, he stole it, and the tag titles were stolen from the Ugly Ducklings to boot. But earlier today the Ducks were partying and the Syndicate crashed their party.
James doesn't know if you realize this, but a drake is a full-grown duck, and ducks fly together! LUDE AND KILLJOY ARE ON THE TURNBUCKLES! THEY CLEAR THE SYNDICATE OUT WITH A BIT OF HELP FROM THE NEW AGE ENFORCER! DRAKE WANTS A TORNADO TAG!
James Drake & Ugly Ducklings (Lance Lude & Rob Killjoy) vs. the Syndicate (Elijah Evans IV, the Boss, & Timmy Lou Retton) (Tornado Six-Man Tag Match)
The chaos settles, Lude drops Retton with a neckbreaker and sets to cutting Boss down but he gets wiped out! Drake in, HOSS FIGHT, trading chops, big back suplex but Boss catches him with a knee and Evans pulls him out of the ring after. Apron pop-up haymakers for Timmy Lou and Elijah alike! Ducks charging knees and forearms at Boss, monkey flip cannonball lays him out, JAMES DRAKE DOUBLE MONKEY FLIP CANNONBALL!
Only two on the cover, Killjoy charging in on Retton, up top, Timmy cuts him off with a rolling shotei, thinking superplex but Lance cuts him off! Beating on Mr. 500, knocking him down with punches, the Boss in, he climbs the second, jockeying for position... DOUBLE SUPERPLEX! But James is right on him with a stomp... BIG MAN MOONSAULT! EVANS BREAKS IT UP WITH A DIVING ELBOW DROP!
Retton looking for an F-5 on Lude, countered with an arm drag! Poison Frankensteiners from both Ducks! The Boss runs them both over with lariats! Boss takes Lance out of the corner and tosses him into a Blue Thunder Driver from EE4... NOT ENOUGH! Rob with a dropkick, he's fired up, quebrada comes up empty and Evans hits a spear!
James Drake is behind him and they get into it, going forearm for forearm, to the corner, the New Age Enforcer with wicked charging chops, he's setting up the Drill Bit but Montana Black is here for the Syndicate! Huge chokeslam on Drake! Killjoy misses a double stomp and gets wiped out with a thrust spinebuster from Boss! Retton climbs, shooting star press! Evans crawls over...
The Syndicate win by pinfall with a lateral press from Elijah Evans IV on Rob Killjoy.
When you read the words "tornado six-man tag match" you get a picture in your head, and this was exactly that. Wild, awesome stuff, and the return of Montana Black to turn the tide from our heroes, great beat. Plus the bit of pre-match wordplay with Drake pointing out that a drake is a full-grown duck and ducks fly together right before they cleared house is legitimately one of my favorite moments ever.
Fred Yehi vs. Martin Stone (Pure Rules Match)
Intense grappling to start, jockeying for position, trying to find an opening, but they stalemate. Yehi grabs a wristlock, reversed, snapmare but Fred follows through into a hammerlock and wrenches Stone's other arm back into a pin for a two count. Front chancery, shift to a waistlock, Martin reverses and wishbones the fingers!
Offering a handshake, Yehi isn't feeling it and soon takes him down and back into the chancery. Stone reverses to a headlock, gets shot off, but he wins the shoulder block! Off the ropes, picking the leg, Fred reverses and forces Martin to use a rope break after nearly getting the Koji Clutch on!
Struggle over a headlock, Yehi with the snap suplex, to the corner, hard chops, tight exchanges, he thrusts Stone to the mat and stomps the hand! Straight suplex, a stomp to the knee, the nuke connects! Wicked forearm puts Fred into the ropes in return and Martin capitalizes, throwing uppercuts for a quick cover.
Rear chinlock applied, shifting to a reverse chinlock and bridging back, locking the FIP World Heavyweight Champion down. Elbows to escape, waistlock lift, Fred reverses to a victory roll, only two, Liu Kang bicycle kicks, German suplex! Charging forearm, strike rush, the nuke, fisherman suplex, again only two.
Stone KO connects... NO GOOD! Crossface applied, Yehi reverses to a pin to break. Rolling elbow, Stone dodges a charge and connects with a kick, DDT, no good. Fred rallying, stomp to the back into a lungblower, repeat pins, but the Guv'nor will not fall! Struggling over the reverse STO, Stone takes him down, crossface applied, Yehi is out of rope breaks...
Martin Stone wins by submission with the arm-trap crossface.
Predictably great grappling from two of the best around, although to my chagrin I appear to have lost track of the rope breaks there. Still, excellent stuff.
Stone gets on the mic after to put Yehi over and tell him he has his respect.
Anthony Henry (c) vs. Ethan Case (PWX World Heavyweight Championship 2/3 Falls Match)
Handshake accepted, into a test of strength, Henry takes Case down, waistlock bridge for a quick cover, jockeying for position on the mat. Side headlock applied, wrenching it in, Ethan looking for a reversal and he gets a hammerlock. Reversed, crucifix pin, only two. Tight reversals, arm drags into pins, Anthony fires off a roundhouse kick and Case bails.
Ethan taking his sweet time to come back in, trying to get in the champion's head a little. Drop toehold, rear chinlock, half nelson, again looking for the quick pin. Knucklelock nearly into a double pin, both men bridge out. Champion with some flashy mat grappling, applying holds and shifting, again a quick cover and again Case bails.
Back inside, drop down, leapfrog, Ethan has the snap scoop powerslam scouted and holds the ropes. Thinking fast, Gedo Clutch, pin after pin, a fakeout to try and set up the Ace Crusher but Henry sees it coming and this time he bails! Back in, the Ace Crusher connects... NOT ENOUGH!
Struggle on the ropes, the champ gets caught up going for a tornado DDT but ends up hitting it all the same. Case on the back foot as Anthony throws hands but he's got the wherewithal to keep a half-halch suplex from getting much more than a one count. Bodyscissors applied, Ethan wrenching away at the feet to try and turn it around.
Tired of playing nice, Henry wrenches the nose and throws a kick to follow it up. Charging in, caught by a back elbow, again but with a boot, up and over, the snap scoop powerslam connects this time! Struggle in the corner, Case thinking Iconoclasm, blocked, Dragon sleeper blocked, such tight exchanges, Henry pulls ahead...
Anthony Henry wins the first fall by pinfall with a backslide pin.
Case charges right into a kick... NO GOOD! But the Fully Gimmicked man is out on his feet and the champ has free reign, wishboning his fingers repeatedly! Setting him up top, big forearm, thinking superplex but Ethan blocks, slips down, electric chair drop connects!
Step-up tornado DDT, Anthony blocks a suplex, northern lights connects, Case thinks fast...
Ethan Case wins the second fall by pinfall, rolling through on a Dragon sleeper.
Trading strikes, pop-up blocked, kicks on kicks, Case gets Henry up in the corner, Iconoclasm, no dice! Corner strikes, thinking tornado DDT, countered with a straight suplex into the turnbuckles! Heading to the apron, trading forearms, Anthony gets a boot, he's thinking Kudo Driver but Ethan blocks.
Kick caught... PILEDRIVER ON THE APRON! Champion willing to take the count-out but Case makes it back in! Henry is ready, frog splash... ETHAN CASE LIVES! Up top again, another frog splash but Ethan rolls away! One arm on the cover almost does it! Back on their feet, running low but fighting, trading forearms with increasing speed and intensity, rapid fire, forearms give way to slaps and they run low once more!
Pop-up forearm sends Henry into the ropes... he comes back with a flip piledriver! Drawing the challenger up, back to slugging it out with forearms, stumbling, hanging on each other between shots, overhead elbows from Case but the champion finds his second wind! Strike rush, German suplex, Ethan back in with a Crash Landing! ACE CRUSHER! NOT ENOUGH TO PUT ANTHONY HENRY AWAY!
KNEE LIFT INTO THE CRASH LANDING, STILL NOT ENOUGH! Case slashes his throat and goes to draw the Lethal Lover to his feet but he crumbles, dead weight! Finding life, knee lifts, off the ropes, hip toss, Penalty Kick, the Southern Lights suplex, only a nearfall! Spinning crescent kick, the Kudo Driver connects but Ethan rolls outside!
Rolling him back in, Case gets a small package for a nearfall! Henry with Case's own pop-up forearm! Kudo Driver! SOMEHOW ETHAN CASE FINDS THE ENERGY TO KICK OUT! Amber Young throws the title in the ring! Henry picks it up, considering the disqualification win, but he gives it back to her.
Looking for the Kudo Driver again, countered with an O'Connor roll, Henry kicks out... AND YOUNG CLOBBERS CASE WITH THE BELT WHEN HE BOUNCES OFF THE ROPES! Dragon sleeper applied...
Anthony Henry wins the third fall and the match by submission with the Dragon sleeper, retaining the PWX World Heavyweight Championship.
Great match. Steady escalation through the falls, both dudes trying for covers early and often but not quite so much that it takes you out of the match, and bombs coming hard and fast later.
Love the slow descent into villainy that Henry is facing as champion, where last time it was just "well hey, it sucks that you don't think you were really incapacitated but I won and that's how it happens sometimes" but now he's out here breaking fingers and raking noses and coming JUST short of intentionally disqualifying himself.
Henry checks Case's hand after, making sure we don't have a repeat of last time, and he's out cold. The Lethal Lovers leave, and Case wakes up, realizing he's lost again, the dejection palpable.
Overall
An excellent show from PWX, amongst the best. Match-wise we never dipped below good, and every match had a really unique identity, from the hard-nosed mat grappling of Thatcher/Skyler to the wild high flying of X/Kincaid, to the main event's story of two friends slowly torn apart by the allure of the title.
Storyline-wise, Hollis/Skyler largely treaded water this show but remains excellent, the Syndicate vs. Drake & Ducks is a fun start, and Henry's continuing descent into villainy is, as noted above, very compelling.
Check it out on FloSlam when it goes up, you won't likely regret it.