Review: Jersey vs. Frey (Thunder's Arena)

There's something fun about seeing a new wrestler, a rookie, in action, because you don't really know what to expect. It's a bit of a thrill to be surprised. Of course, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.

I've learned the hard way about buying based on pictures, but I did it anyway. I bet $32 on the latest stud from Thunder's Arena, Jersey. It's a hefty investment on an unknown quantity. One I've refused to make on "sure-thing" Dirty Daddy from the same company. All based on the hope that Jersey would live up to the promise of a few pics on their Tumblr.

Source: Thunder's Arena Tumblr

Source: Thunder's Arena Tumblr

I'll spare you the suspense. He does. It turns out that Jersey is a hot, charming stud who knows how to wrestle. Jersey vs. Frey is a winner. It's a back-and-forth match that sold me hard on the rookie and made me hungry for more.

Phew. So what was it about him that caught my eye? I mean, he's pretty standard Thunder's fair, isn't he? In fact, if you posted his pic, I would've guessed he was a Thunder's wrestler over any other company. He has the look, body and gear that screams Thunder's.

Source: Thunder's Arena

But what made him a must-try guy?

Well, his looks are one of my soft points. I use the word "adorkable" a lot to describe good looking guys who have kind of a goofy or geeky angle to their handsomeness. That's how I see Jersey.

Cute

Fun

Next, I love his type of body - strong, but he's not over-muscled or over-ripped. Jersey has the kind of smooth stomach that drives me crazy. Beefy isn't the right word, but it's like that. The red posing trunks are perfect for body watching. 

Pumped and sweaty

The back is as great as the front

Even Frey's a little impressed

Wow, loving it. Frey is a hot stud, but here he's just the conduit for me to enjoy Jersey. I wasn't sure if I'd prefer Jersey as dominant or as jobber. Turns out he works both ways. He brings some Jersey-boy cockiness to the match, which is entertaining.

For his part, Frey does a good job showing off the rookie with bearhugs and stretches. As is typical of Thunder's Arena, many of the holds are way too short. Their guys always seem to be in a hurry. This match could've been five minutes longer without adding a single hold.

Jersey suffers like a pro. He's got an expressive face and knows how to sell the holds with moans. He even begs a few times, but he's got the determination to not submit when asked.

The match isn't nearly as one-sided as my screen caps make it appear. I just preferred the ones of Jersey being put on display, since this post is really about him.

Frey suffers, too

And looks good doing it

Not uncommon for a Thunder's Arena match, the ending is a little random. A pin doesn't end it. A submission doesn't end it. The action keeps going, with the guys struggling for dominance. In the end, one guy snaps for no particular reason and we get some tough guy posturing as the other runs off with no real conclusion. We get demands for a re-match, which is already being teased as a match in their swimming pool.

Video quality: Typical Thunder's. It's standard, middle-of-the-road video. Not the best out there, but not the worst. The black curtain works well to show the bodies. There are times when the camera is too tight or not in the ideal position, for example on a couple of spladles. There are a couple of moves where I'm not sure what they're doing. But it worked out okay.

Value: I thought it was worth it because of Jersey. It's slightly expensive for what you get - I paid $31.88, but it's supposed to be going up to $33.88. The match is 24 minutes - roughly 3 minutes of intros/banter + 19 minutes of wrestling + 2 minutes of ranting.

Overall, I'm glad I bought it. I've already bought the next Jersey match vs. Dozer (for $28.88, but it's already gone up to $33.88) and my review of that will appear here on 8/4/15. Jersey's gear choice looks worse in that match, but I'm willing to give him another try.

If you think you'd like this new rookie stud, I'd say do it. He's the reason to buy the match. If you're not into him then obviously I wouldn't recommend it.

So, what do think? Do you share my opinion of Jersey or not? Let me know in the comments!

Alex