The Cast: Who's Who (October 2016)

Guys,

Once again, only 1 new guy, but also a new identity for Jae.

The Cave Undercard: Bird Boy vs. Moneymaker

Xaq/Bird Boy = Jeff Seid (Model)

Review: One Month @ Wrestler4Hire

Full disclosure: Access to all these matches was provided to me by Wrestler4Hire.

Well, I'm coming up to the end of my free trial of Wrestler4Hire, so I thought it'd be a good time to post about my experience overall, rather than another single-match review. You'll get my thoughts on a few matches, but mostly this is my take on the overall experience.

So how did it go?

Well? C'mon, tell the folks what you think, Alex!
(Alex Oliver v Zach Reno)

Review: Jake Jenkins vs. Gunner Bayani (RHW 1.0)

Jake Jenkins vs. Gunner Bayani is probably a weird Rock Hard Wrestling match for me to choose to feature, because it's not necessarily a favorite. It is, however, still enjoyable depending on your tastes. I picked it because it breaks the expected mold in a few ways. RHW was the most consistent and homogeneous of the video companies, so a little variety was and is interesting to me.

It's Jake vs. Gunner

Review: Duke Russo vs. Dave Markus (Movimus)

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

I was so excited when I saw this in my inbox. I have all of Duke Russo's matches so far, so getting this in advance was very cool. Along with Mikey Hanlon, Duke's my must-buy guy from Movimus. He hasn't disappointed me in the past and he doesn't start now. I really enjoyed Duke Russo vs. Dave Markus. It showcases the best of both guys in an action-packed 26-minute match.

It's a battle of two of Movimus' hottest stars

Review: Superman vs. Nightmare (Wrestler4Hire)

Full disclosure: Access to this match was provided to me by Wrestler4Hire

I like that Cameron Matthews tries new things with his videos. Some are more successful than others, but it's cool that he's experimenting. With 18+ videos available to stream at any given time, it's easy to enjoy each video for what it is, because there's no direct cost except for time. Why do I bring this up? Is it because I didn't like this? Nope, I did like it quite a bit.

Superman is bored by Nightmare's weakness, but I wasn't

Review: #474 Chase Michaels vs. Derrick Cole (UCW)

When last we saw Chase Michaels, he was sandbagging UCW champion Axel with new facial hair and a new attitude (reviewed here). I didn't spoil the ending of that match, but now I can, because you can't actually buy Chase Michaels vs. Derrick Cole without learning if Chase is the champion or not.

So that's your warning to turn back now before I reveal if this is a title match or not.

Is this a match or is it a title match?
Is Chase the champ or a stepping stone for Derrick?

Review: Ty Alexander + Drake Marcos vs. Damien Rush (BGEast)

According to the BGEast catalogue description, "The only question to ask is whether Drake and Ty will be able to channel their own bitter, erotic rivalry into a workable alliance to be able to turn the tide ..."

Allow me to answer that.

SPOILER ALERT! No.

Surprise! There's no surprise in this video.

The Cave: The Adventures of SuperStar 11

"Where did Micah get the character name Ace anyway?"

My 22-year old boyfriend and me are hanging out after a great shoot of the latest Cave match. The Cave is a gay-oriented, superhero-themed, wrestling video company that I co-own with my best friend Ryan. Jae and I both wrestle for it, along with a ton of hot guys. We don't normally do weekday shoots, but availability meant we had to make it work this time.

Jae and me (Cody)

Review: Kirk Donahue vs. Zach Reno (BGEast)

The second match I watched from BGEast's "Babyface Brawl" (or as I call it, "Jobbers Gone Wild") is Kirk Donahue vs. Zach Reno. This video really lives up to the premise, giving these prominent punching bags a great platform to show what they can do beyond suffer. The action is even better than Biff v Chet and I was really impressed by two guys who're not usually high on my list.

Zach: "Don't put your head too close to this one,
you'll knock yourself out."

Review: Chet Chastain vs. Zach Reno (Wrestler4Hire)

Full disclosure: Access to this match was provided to me by Wrestler4Hire.

A couple of days ago, I said that Chet doesn't really fit my definition of a babyface. Well, here he gets a lot closer, on appearance anyway. He's got the cocky swagger, but he looks younger and cuter with no goatee and a little more meat on his bones. So the young pro wrestler looks every bit a babyface against the shaggy Zach Reno.

It's a heated pro battle

Review: Biff Farrell vs. Chet Chastain (BGEast)

Chet: “I want you to explain in ONE WORD how professional wrestling feels.”
Biff: “IT HURTS!”

BGEast calls this series "Babyface Brawl", but really I think it's more like "Jobbers Gone Wild". I'm reviewing two of the matches and in both cases, there's one guy who isn't a babyface by my definition. Naming conventions aside, Biff vs. Chet was a must-buy for me as it pairs two of my current favorites in action.

Chet vs. Biff - pro vs. bodybuilder

Review: Garrett Thomas vs. Mike Splitz (Wrestler4Hire)

Full disclosure: Access to this match was provided to me by Wrestler4Hire

Garrett Thomas: "I'll bend you like a damn pretzel."
Mike Splitz: "I'll enjoy it!"

I'm not sure Mike enjoys this as much as he claims

You're going to see an uptick in reviews about Wrestler4Hire. They offered me a free membership for 30 days. I thought about it for about a week, but ultimately decided to take them up on their offer. It took me a minute because I'm not a big fan of subscription services, so it feels weird to accept one. They're not even the first people to make this kind of offer, but it's the first membership offer I've accepted.

Review: #490 Axel vs. Chase Michaels (UCW)

After watching a bunch of fun and flirty UCW matches, I'd forgotten how great they are at serious matches. Axel vs. Chase Michaels has two lean hot studs, a ton of tension and non-stop brawling. While other guys are pausing to flex and preen, this video starts going hard from one-minute in and literally doesn't stop until the champ has his belt at the end.

Axel suspects nothing as nice guy Chase stalks him
(the goatee should've tipped him off)

Review: Eagle vs. Steel (Thunders Arena)

Strange, but ultimately satisfying. That's the best way I can describe this 27-minute video from Thunders Arena. The action, the sequencing, the cutaways and the camerawork. Much of it feels strange, like a "What did I just watch?" feeling. For 22-minutes, I wasn't really into Eagle vs. Steel, but then the last 5 are really good. It's one of those videos you need to stick with, but it ended up being worth it for me.

Like Greek gods sculpted from marble

The Cave Undercard 13: Bird Boy vs. Moneymaker

"What? He's not here yet? I better text -"

The 20-year old muscle punk grabs my phone out of my hand, "I told you, Ryan. Cody is running late, but he said don't wait for him. Gimme five minutes to get dressed then we can go."

Xaq locks my phone away in his locker. The naked stud turns to grab his gear as though the discussion is over. He's a powerful 5'11"/205-lbs, but at 6'4"/250-lbs of muscle, I'm bigger, stronger and a better fighter. I could easily handle this, but Cody wouldn't be happy with me if I hurt his sidekick before his big solo debut.

Xaq