The Cast: Who's Who (March 2016)

Guys,

Here are the base models for this month.

Route 69: Bad Boys S105

Lou - Rampage Brown (Pro Wrestler)

Review: Nero Angelo vs. Duke Russo (Movimus)

Full disclosure: This match was provided to me by Movimus.

Duke Russo is a man I was very interested in watching. Nero Angelo is a guy I already know I like. And Joe at Ringside at Skull Island called this maybe the best Movimus match ever. I didn’t get around to buying it, as I already had a couple of Mikey Hanlon matches in my queue to watch. So when Nero Angelo vs. Duke Russo showed up in my inbox, I was definitely excited. I bumped it up in my viewing rotation and here we are.

Duke vs. Nero

I haven’t watched a ton of Movimus matches and definitely not nearly as many as Joe, so I can’t say whether this is the best ever. What I can say is that I absolutely enjoyed this match a lot.

Review: Ty Alexander vs. Beauxregard (BGEast)

Sometimes wishes do come true. Regular readers of the blog might remember that I've been pining away for Ty Alexander's Trophy Boy persona ever since he debuted it last year. The concept, the look and how he fills it out are all wonderfully fantasy-inducing, but with BGEast's catalogue 112, the fantasy becomes a reality as the Trophy Boy steps into the ring with BGEast newcomer Beauxregard.

The Trophy Boy checks out Beauxregard

One of my favorite elements in wrestling is a contrast between wrestlers. It might be age, size, experience, style, even race/ethnicity, but differences often increase the tension without any need for a ton of storyline. It gets my mind working and can take a match to another level. No one can do this like BGEast, with their diverse roster. Other than size, most other companies have a more uniform look and feel to their talent.

Review: H2KAS3 Transformation Fetish (Book Review)

The penultimate book in the How to Kill a Superhero series came out in late February. I was definitely excited to buy and read it after being left on the edge of my seat last summer. I consumed the first two books quickly, but they left a big impression on me. As soon as I saw on Twitter that Transformation Fetish was out I downloaded it.

Book 3 of 4: Transformation Fetish

Review: Bolt vs. Bucky vs. Eagle (Thunders Arena)

Let me just start with my opinion. Bolt vs. Bucky vs. Eagle is another ring winner from Thunders Arena. Great guys, strong action and just fast-paced fun. I bought this as part of their St. Patrick's Day sale, along with Cage/Talon and Brute/Peewee. I haven't watched those ones yet, but it's a good start.

It's a three-way ring adventure

Inspiration: Hangman/Gory Special/Hangman's Choke

If the objective of these posts is to help readers who aren't familiar with the various holds that I reference then what I call a Hangman is a perfect choice. Neither Google nor Wikipedia will lead you to the answer. At least not easily. In fact, it might take you to the wrong place.

I'm not sure if I'm even right by calling it a Hangman, although Rock Hard Wrestling refers to it by the same name. Since they're on my side and they use it a lot, I'm using them almost exclusively as my reference source for screen grabs.

Kyle Carter hangs Alex Waters out to dry (here)

Heroes: Tarzan and James 1

Chapter 1: James Porter Was Right

"It would appear that I owe you an apology, James. Your jungle man is indeed real. Very real, it would seem."

I merely nod at my employer as he surveys the scene. While I might normally appreciate his apology, I am still insulted that he treated me like some hysterical woman who imagined the entire event. As though I could ever imagine being manhandled and nearly killed by a nearly naked white savage in the heart of the African jungle.

Now Mr. Moorhead realizes my story was all true. I was quietly sketching right here. I saw a large, muscular, nearly-naked, bronzed white man. He attacked me. I barely escaped with my life. It was not a dream, as he originally accused, nor a fantasy as he subsequently implied.

The Jungle Man

Review: Aryx Quinn vs. Jonny Firestorm (BGEast)

Continuing the theme of BGEast heel vs. heel matches, I’m covering this BGEast Arena exclusive featuring two true mega-stars of the underground wrestling scene … Aryx Quinn vs. Jonny Firestorm. (Please note: It looks like this match is not available on the main BGEast website)

Two hot heels

This is a unique kind of heel vs. heel matchup. While both are mostly identified as heels, they're not the undefeated, unstoppable kind of villain. I've been an Aryx Quinn fan since his debut, but I feel like I have more matches where Aryx loses in the end than I do where he wins. Even when he wins, he might get knocked out or have the tables turned on him post-match.

Jonny Firestorm hasn't always been a heel, much less some unstoppable monster. Of course while he has had his moments as more of a face character, I think he's evolved into one of the best heels in the business. Whether as a fresh-faced, clean-cut bad boy or a beefy, hairy badass, Jonny always brings the moves and attitude of a true star.

Review: Joe vs. the Heels (BGEast)

I love heel vs. heel action. There's just something about two bad guys battling it out for supremacy. The arrogance. The attitude. The pure testosterone-fueled tension. It's especially hot when it's two undefeated, established heels going at each other. I’m talking two mega-heels with a line of broken jobbers in their wake. Heels who never lose rather than heels who go both ways. I love watching them put reputations as the baddest of the bad on the line.

BGEast has the biggest stable of traditional heels. They bring these matches out occasionally and I'm a total mark for them, even if I’m not a huge fan of the heels normally. For example, I was anxiously awaiting the Guido Genatto/Dolph Danner match from catalogue 112 to make it to VOD, which it finally has.

Bad boy face off

Review: Tak vs. Mogly (Thunders Arena)

Thunders Arena is pretty open about who sells and who doesn't. On the site, they were listing best sellers, including the best sellers by month. On their Tumblr they post about not bringing guys back because they don't sell.

So Tak must sell pretty well, because he's been around a long time and starred in over 40 videos. And I've bought 16 of them, so I'm obviously a fan. In the vast majority of those videos, he's the smaller guy who gets manhandled by a bigger bodybuilder type. It makes sense, given that he's listed at a lean 5'10" and 156-lbs. While there are a lot of guys shorter than him, there aren't many lighter.

Tak earns his frequent flier miles

Route 69: Bad Boys S105

"HEY! Get the fuck out of here!"

Yeah, that's meant for me. Name's Lou. I'm a pro wrestling promoter and manager here in the Chicagoland area. I'm talking to a guy I'm trying to recruit, schmoozing him hard. Thing is, I'm trying to recruit him while I'm at another federation's facility.

The guy who runs it, Mason, ain't too happy to see me. We've had some run-ins before. He thinks I'm a lying sleazebag. I think he's a self-righteous putz. We're both right.

Mason, the self-righteous putz

Mason's hopping outta the ring where he was running moves. He's still yelling at me, "What did I tell you about coming here, Lou? Get the fuck out of my gym before I throw you out!"