CHIKARA "Tag World Grand Prix 2005 Night 2"
February 19, 2005
Emmaus, Pennsylvania
With Commentary by Dave Prazak, "The King of Diamonds" Eddie Kingston, "The Anarchist" Arik Cannon, Jigsaw, and Bryce Remsburg

B.J. and the Bear (Beef Wellington and The Bear) vs. Team M.P.W. (Version 2.0 and Darrin Corbin)

After hitting a nice powerbomb, Beef gets double-teamed and occasionally breaks character to get a laugh from the crowd. The Bear eventually comes in and dominates Team M.P.W. After an E. Coli and an Ass Punch, a bearhug to 2.0 by the Bear, which 2.0 submits to, ends the match.

Analysis: A good match with a decent mixture of head drops, two or three highspots, and comedy, but it had some notable problems. My main beef (pun intended) was with Beef Wellington, and how, when double-teamed, he occasionally broke character to get a laugh from the crowd. This is best shown when, after mounting a comeback and whipping an opponent into the ropes, he nonchalantly walks over to him and waits to get kicked in the ribs. It was a cheap laugh, and it hurt the match. The set-up time to some of the bigger spots was also a bit too long to be conceivably realistic. Still, besides that, it was a good match; it just had some drawbacks. **¾

The Death Match Kings (Mad Man Pondo and Necro Butcher) vs. Matt Turner and Anthony Franco

Where to begin with this one. Turner and Franco are two R.O.H. students, and they cut a pre-match promo basically spitting on "garbage" wrestling. If only they knew. Throughout the course of the match, Turner and Franco are stiffed, dropped on their heads numerous times, shoot-punched, chopped hard enough to clear up a person's asthma, and basically assaulted very brutally. Turner and Franco respond with some stiffness of their own, and at times hold up quite well against Pondo and Necro. Towards the end, the match almost breaks down into a shoot-fight. Franco has his spine nearly shattered with a brutal suplex off the apron to the floor, and then he's completely and utterly knocked the **** out by a lariat from Necro, which gives the win to The Death Match Kings. Post-match, the students receive a standing ovation.

Analysis: To be honest, I felt it was a fantastic match. It's easy to see how this spawned the Necro Butcher/Samoa Joe feud: both Pondo and Necro would be in jail if they did the things they did in this match anywhere other than inside a wrestling ring. Pondo and Necro were absolutely relentless in shutting down the false bravado of the students, which was the main storyline of the match. In that regard, the story played out perfectly: the students may have been a bit arrogant and biased because they believed "pure" wrestlers could easily and quickly beat "garbage" wrestlers, yet they quickly fought for their lives once they experienced first-hand how brutal Pondo and Necro could be. And, in the end, their pain threshold was far below two men that are borderline masochists and put their bodies through absolute hell. From the first minute to the sickeningly brutal finish, this match had cringe-inducing levels of expertly-done brutality. This was an early Match of the Night candidate, and by the show's conclusion, this would indeed be the best match on the entire card. ***½

Team C.Z.W. (D.J. Hyde and Jon Dahmer) vs. C.K.N.Y. (Cory Kastle and Niles Young)

There's a light bit of comedy during the match, but D.J. Hyde is the first man to quit fooling around and break out the stiff-shots. Corey Kastle is subject to a frighteningly brutal overhead belly-to-belly suplex, as he comes centimeters short of having his chin planted while his body folds over himself. There's a badly blown spot where Kastle accidentally super-kicks his teammate when aiming for Dahmer, as the superkick doesn't connect at all but it's still sold by Niles Young. Dahmer eventually gets the win with a Canadian Backbreaker into a Piledriver.

Analysis: Just too bland and archetypal for me to get in to. Whereas the previous match reaped the benefits of "violence with a meaning", this match suffered from the all-too-often used "violence for the sake of violence" psychology, which may've popped the crowd a bit but produced the same type of match I've seen dozens of times. Even if it didn't do anything new and I'm a bit tired of seeing this type of no-meaning random head-drop stiff-fest, at least it was average. **½

The Nightshift (Blind Rage and Hallowicked) (with Ultramantis Black) vs. Eye Candy (D.J. Skittlez and Private Eye)

D.J. Skittlez nails a plancha to the outside on Hallowicked and Ultramantis Black in the first note-worthy spot of the match. After more basic wrestling interspersed with a couple highspots, a dance-off comedy moment, and a cluster-****, Hallowicked takes the match with a Fisherman Buster off the second rope.

Analysis: It was a lot like the previous match; in the vein that it was nothing to write home about but still wasn't all that bad. All four men didn't do anything particularly well, and they even felt a bit disorganized at times. They didn't do anything bad, and I was slightly entertained, but I just can't give out that much praise for a match I felt was better off ignoring if you have something better to do or are pressed for time. It'll do, for now, but it was an average, average, average match. **½

Team Toryumon X (Skayde and Milanito Collection A.T.) vs. Perfect Strangers ("Tremendous" Emil Sitoci and Trik Davis)

The match follows a very Lucha Libre-like structure, but not in the good way, complete with show-offy crowd-popping little-meaning highspots, double-teams, near falls, and cluster-****s. Skayde wins the match with a rollup.

Analysis: I'll be brutally honest: the match was bland, generic, short, had no flow, and had little rhyme or reason. It was below average, and the good moments were few and very far between. I just didn't like this match at all. The moves were used only to pop a crowd, and the match was the worst kind of spotfest. Hate to say it, but thumbs-down on this one. **

Men at Work (Mister ZERO and Shane Storm) vs. Sweet and Sour International ("Sweet and Sour" Larry Sweeney and Share Cropper)

Sharecropper has his pants pulled down and takes the brunt of Men at Work's offense. Shane Storm comes up with nothing but floor after attempting a somersault senton through the ropes only to have Sweet and Sour International move out of the way. Shane Storm is quickly isolated following that, Mister ZERO eventually comes in and takes it to Sweeney and Cropper, you've heard it all before. After some brawling and a few near-falls, Shane wins with That Japanese Move (Shining Wizard) and a rollup.

Analysis: Still more of the same, but respectively better than the last few matches, with the last few minutes being especially entertaining. Even so, at times the match felt simulated, and barely organic. While it lost a good amount of its appeal because it felt like the same thing with different people, the match gets an above-average score for its good ending minutes. **¾

Team I.W.S. ("Mr. Wrestling" Kevin Steen and "The Generic One" El Generico) vs. All Money is Legal (K-Pusha and K-Murda)

The beginning of the match has a bit of comedy that only El Generico can do, but Generico quickly gets planted with a monkey flip into a corner. All Money is Legal quickly separates Generico, and a flurry of consecutive double-team moves only gets a two-count on the Generic Luchador. Generico hits a huge D.D.T. to tag in Steen, and then there's a great "everyone takes out everyone else" spot, complete with near-falls aplenty. K-Pusha is eventually the one to get pinned, after he gets nailed with both the Brainbuster and the Package Piledriver.

Analysis: This very well-done match benefited from loads of emotion, a logical and gradually progressing series of risky moves, and the mega-overness of El Generico. The double-teams and frequent near-falls were also done very well. The story and psychology of the match benefited from several different, intertwined plot points: All Money is Legal seemed to have the advantage since they were the "real" team and not two separate wrestlers "uniting under the company banner", but Generico and Steen proved to have enough unity with each other to pull out a win. K-Pusha and K-Murda played along with Generico in the opening moments, but quickly became the heels, as they showed, quite violently, that they were laughing "at" Generico, not "with" him. Steen remained the bad-ass stiffness head-dropper guy he plays well, but cared enough about winning to show some signs of sympathy towards Generico. All in all, it didn't disappoint, and pulled the show out of the "below average to slightly above average" problem it had been caught in for the past three matches. ***¼

"The King of Diamonds" Eddie Kingston and Mickie Knuckles vs. The SuperFriends (Chris Hero and "Lightning" Mike Quackenbush)

For those wondering, Blackjack Marciano was originally Kingston's partner, but he became injured and was forced to pull out. So, Mickie's name is pulled out of a hat. For the bulk of the match, Mickie plays the "student against teacher" role when facing both Hero and Quackenbush. Kingston is very arrogant and only tags in when he thinks it'll be towards his advantage, even though he keeps telling Mickie to put up a better fight and generally making light of her. Quackenbush eventually takes some sick German Suplexes and gets isolated, and when Hero eventually gets the "hot tag", he and Mickie stiff each other very fiercely. Kingston comes in and drops Hero on his neck with a backdrop, but it only gets 2½. Afterwards, Hero and Kingston also stiff each other, Hero hits the Hero's Welcome, and there's plenty of near-falls. Mickie Knuckles eventually taps to the Hangman's Clutch.

Analysis: Another great match that, once again, centered around several different story arcs and made a great match by playing off them and mixing them all together very well. Both Quackenbush and Hero didn't want to touch Mickie at first, partly because she was a girl but mainly because she was their student, but quickly had to as Mickie had no such hindrance and started stiffing both of them. Hero and Quackenbush badly wanted to hurt Kingston, and even though he was a bit cowardly and snide in the opening minutes, by the time Hero got ahold of him, he was ready to prove that he could stiff Hero just as badly as Hero could stiff him. Quackenbush's cleverness and chain-wrestling abilities gave him a boost, but his relatively small stature allowed Kingston and Mickie to throw him around when they got the chance. Hero was bigger, but he had a short fuse, and his anger nearly cost him the match and made the crowd turn against him when he somewhat-ruthlessly choked out his student and then left to the back without even checking on her. The wrestling was, as one could expect, very good, and only added to the numerous storylines inter-woven in the match. It was simply a good, entertaining contest, and demonstrated a great effort from all involved. ***¼

Team Toryumon X (Skayde and Milanito Collection A.T.) vs. B.J. and The Bear (Beef Wellington and The Bear)

The Bear hits a Gore (GORE! GORE!) on Milanito after a few minutes. The Bear also squeaks in an Ass Punch before everyone brawls in-ring. The Bear ends up getting grounded with an enzugiri and tapping when he's put in a submission.

Analysis: A good comedy match, but that's all it was, as there was not one particularly interesting wrestling moment. It was still above average, it's just that the in-ring product could've used more work, and a bit more focus. The chuckle-factor was certainly there, though, and even if the good-wrestling-factor wasn't, it was still an o.k. match. **¾

The Death Match Kings (Madman Pondo and Necro Butcher) vs. Men at Work (Mister ZERO and Shane Storm)

After Necro and Pondo try to start a brawl only to have their plans thwarted, Mister ZERO starts trying to break down Necro with submissions. He's shoot-punched for his troubles and generally stiffed as well. Pondo takes time off from doing actual wrestling moves (for comedic purposes) to hit Shane Storm with a stop sign. Necro Butcher takes a nasty double suplex to the floor, but Mister ZERO ends up loosing as Mad Man Pondo, of all people, hits a Dragon Screw and makes ZERO tap to an S.T.F.

Analysis: One huge brawl, but not as good as the Pondo/Necro vs. R.O.H. students match. Lots of stiffness from the Death Match Kings, which was expected, and Pondo pulled out a lot of athletic and/or quick moves to get a cheap pop from the crowd, which wasn't so expected. Pondo's "look at me, I can actually wrestle" moves, such as when he did a rope-walk, added a bit of comedy to the match. It wasn't good comedy, but at least it was there. Men at Work sacrificed their usually-entertaining blend of comedy and decent-to-good wrestling skills to try and brawl with Necro and Pondo. While ZERO and Storm were noticeably out of their element, and Pondo chose a less-serious approach, the match was still good, but only slightly-above average this time. **¾

Team I.W.S. ("Mr. Wrestling" Kevin Steen and "The Generic One" El Generico) vs. Team C.Z.W. (D.J. Hyde and Jon Dahmer)

Generico can't contend with big D.J. Hyde, so Steen handles the bulk of the work done against him. As one could expect, there's plenty of head drops, stiff strikes, and counter-moves throughout the match. Generico is picked apart, but one Blue Thunder Bomb later, Steen comes in, only to immediately take a sick Exploder Suplex. After some cheating by Team C.Z.W. and all four men brawling, D.J. Hyde takes a nasty Yakuza kick. Generico tries to do a schoolboy pin on Hyde, and when Hyde won't budge, Kevin Steen superkicks him to get him over, which allows Generico to pick up the win.

Analysis: It wasn't exactly original, but one could say it was unique enough. The "what will it take" atmosphere near the end, with both teams trying their best to figure out how to quickly and decisively end the match, was the best part of the somewhat unoriginal story and psychology of the match. Everything else you've seen before, but won't mind seeing it again since these four do it well enough to keep you entertained. A good match. ***

The SuperFriends (Chris Hero and Mike Quackenbush) vs. The Nightshift (Blind Rage and Hallowicked) (with Ultramantis Black)

Everyone does some chain wrestling, which is good, since Hero and Quackenbush know how to do it well. Submissions and chain wrestling are, inevitably, replaced with stiffness and highspots, though this is also a welcome addition. Quackenbush and Hero even work in a cool Pendulum/Cravate combo submission. Chris Hero manages to take out the entire Nightshift, including Ultramantis Black, when he does a crowd dive right through them. After everyone does a few signature moves and some near-falls are sprinkled here and there, Quackenbush hits the QuackenDriver for the win.

Analysis: A well-to-do match to end a bit of a sea-saw show. There was good wrestling, good highspots, good selling, good everything. Everything just screamed "entertaining", from the numerous submissions to the occasional stiff shot. Both teams had a good amount of chemistry, and, even though Blind Rage and Hallowicked were two of Quackenbush's earliest students, the "students vs. teachers" story didn't come into play, as it was mainly a "face team vs. heel team" dynamic, with Ultramantis Black playing the annoying-yet-evil manager. A nice match, overall. ***

Final Thoughts: As said before, this was a bit of a "sea-saw" event, where there was some notably good, but some notably not-so-good matches. As compared to Night 1, this had both better and worse matches, and had a larger "hit or miss" ratio, meaning some of the matches you'll either like or not, with very little or even no in-between room, whereas in Night 1 every match produced at least an "o.k." feeling. While some of the matches weren't exactly thrilling, most were at least decent, and the ones that were good were decidedly good. The event, as a whole, felt a bit more organized than Night 1 as well, as all the teams seemed to mix with each other well and usually weren't at a loss for what to do next.

As a show, itself, it was pretty solid, and had some good encounters. The first Pondo/Necro match was an absolute blast, and almost worth getting the show simply to watch it. The other good tag-team matches (Steen/Generico vs. A.M.I.L., Kingston/Knuckles vs. SuperFriends, etc.) all added to the show's appeal and helped round it out, making a solid purchase. Everything balanced out eventually, and it was a solid event from CHIKARA. While there was a bit of filler and even a small dose of things I didn't like, I still thoroughly enjoyed Night 2, and advise anyone to pick it up alongside Night 1 and, most likely, Night 3.

Overall Rating of "Tag World Grand Prix 2005 Night 2": ***¼