The Cast: Who's Who (May 2017)

Guys,

A lot of big boys this month, along with two narrators enjoying the action. One star, one surprising fan request and a couple of newbies.

The Cave Unleashed 2

Beau = Steven Webb (Bodybuilder)

Review: Guido Genatto vs. KARN (Wrestler4Hire)

I probably don't even need to do a review of this. You could just look at the pictures, because it's pretty much exactly what you'd expect. Wrestler4Hire has correctly labeled this as Alpha Males and that's the story. If you want to see these two mega stud pro wrestling heels battle it out to prove who's top dog, you will like this.

Two big pros battle it out for alpha male status.

Review: Joey King vs. Ludwig (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This match was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

I'm pretty much at the end of the Thunders matches that were sent to me. For now, at least. There are a few more I haven't watched, so maybe one day. There were a few that were neither good enough nor bad enough to inspire a review. Joey King v Ludwig was in the former category, but a commenter asked about it, so I decided to take a look.

Joey and Ludwig go for a spin.

Review: Alex Oliver vs. Chet Chastain vs. Austin Cooper (W4H)

As you can probably tell from my stories and reviews, I have broad tastes in wrestlers, gear and wrestling action. I don't have one favorite type in any category. Instead, I've learned the importance of matching the video to my mood. In this case, I planned it perfectly, so I enjoyed Alex Oliver vs. Austin Cooper vs. Chet Chastain from Wrestler4Hire.

A crazy three-way play session

Review: Pepper Parks vs. Brad Smith (NewPro Wrestling)

Back in the pre-YouTube days, I only had a few go-to indie wrestling federations where I could find the hottest studs. OVW, PCW, and HWA were the best among them. Of course, I had to rely on the feds posting videos, fans trading television recordings, and folks like BGEast's sister site NewPro Wrestling selling videos. Yes, it was truly the stone age.

I've wanted to reminisce on two different companies that we needed in those days. NewPro Wrestling was mostly an aggregator of hot indie matches with a diverse, international roster of wrestlers. Cyberfights was an aggregator of hot talent and future superstars. Time's just gotten away from me on this topic, but here we go.

What finally spurred me to write this post is Inner Jobber. He asked about a YouTube clip from my second favorite NewPro match ever (Sean's post is here). In the comments, he asked me about my favorite match, which is this one. Pepper Parks vs. Brad Smith from NewPro 15. I decided to write out a few thoughts.

*** NOTE: I'M GOING TO SPOIL THE HELL OUT OF THIS MATCH. THERE'S JUST NO WAY TO TALK ABOUT IT WITHOUT DOING IT. **

An indie battle that inspired me

Review: Marco vs. Scrappy (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This video was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

Every so often, I watch a video that has lots of things about it that I shouldn't like, but somehow it all comes together. The Scrappy vs. Marco Vegas battle is like that. It takes a while to get to the wrestling. There's no ending (due to illness). And it's a somewhat sloppy squash. However, the guys are charming, the action is playful, and there's actually quite a bit going on. So I actually enjoyed this silly confrontation.

romp: a spell of rough, energetic play.

Review: Jonny Firestorm vs. Christian Taylor (BGEast)

I finally got to the third match from the latest Backyard Brawl video from BGEast. So far, the compilation has been outstanding. In April, I reviewed Carter/Kirk and Karisma/Chace, both matches delivering all I wanted from sexy superstars on the outdoor mats.

So how'd this one go? Is Backyard Brawls 9 a rare trifecta of awesomeness? I think I spoiled that in an earlier review, but if I didn't, the answer is simple. Yes.

Jonny vs. Christian outside on the mats.

Review: Scrappy vs. Blayne (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This match was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

Back in January, I reviewed a match between Scrappy and Blayne (here). It was a custom series squash that I enjoyed very much. Scrappy went full-on heel and kicked ass as a ruthless bad boy. Now these two are back at it. I liked the original enough to watch this, but I wasn't sure if it would be more of the same. Luckily, this is an entirely new chapter that I liked just as much.

REVENGE! Scrappy gets it then Blayne wants it,
but who ends up with the ultimate revenge?

Camp Grapple 2: Hawkeye vs. Winchester

"We ain't keeping this wrestling thing secret no more, Surge? Fuck that. Done."

I lift my stethoscope off the sculpted left pec, "What?"

Hawkeye hops off the exam table and grabs his camouflage pants, "You heard me. I'm out."

Hawkeye

Review: Nick Sparx vs. Josh Rotner (W4H)

Of all the Wrestler4Hire videos I could review, I decided on this one. Why? Well, the others feature stars like Guido Genatto, KARN, Austin Cooper, Chet Chastain and Alex Oliver. I feel like those ones can wait, but this one? It might need some love and attention now. Nick Sparx vs. Josh Rotner features two new subjects that are likely less well known and might possibly get overlooked.

Nick Sparx manhandled by Josh Rotner.

Review: Scrappy vs. Karl (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This match was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

I have to admit that Scrappy vs. Karl was not high on my list to watch. Obviously, since I'm reviewing it, I finally took a look, but Thunders' past Vegas matches haven't always worked for me. I like Scrappy, but Karl was an unknown quantity. While massive looking, I didn't know if he could wrestle.

So when I pressed play for the first time, I kind of assumed it'd be a sloppy squash with too much posing and not enough wrestling. It isn't. And so, I was less right than I usually am. This was really worth watching for multiple reasons, including the guys, the action, specific moments of domination, and a subtle story that I manufactured in my brain.

Scrappy ventures outside of his weight class
for this Vegas battle against muscleman Karl

Review: Bolt vs. Spike (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This video was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

As I work through my backlog of videos, Spike vs Bolt is one I really looked forward to checking out. I really enjoyed Spike's debut against Marco (reviewed here), so I figured I'd really like this one, too. Bolt has found his groove and is proving to be pretty reliable as a wrestler.

Bolt takes on rookie Spike

Review: Tristan Baldwin vs. Ty Alexander (W4H)

Tristan: "Usually I leave 'em sweating, crying and cumming. You're doing neither for me right now, which tells me it's gonna have to get a little fucking rougher."

Let's celebrate the heel-jobber today with two of the best ... Tristan Baldwin and Ty Alexander. As we look at their match from Wrestler4Hire, in theory it's great when two of my favorite wrestlers get it on. However, this is a "My Nuts, Bro" video, which doesn't really excite me. And yet, the matchup is a particularly interesting combination and was simply too much to pass up streaming. These aren't two guys who I think of together, so it just intrigued me to see where it'd go.

Tristan: "You wanna play that game?
I'll make a man outta you."

Review: Scrappy vs. Adam Bryant (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This match was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

Next up from Thunders Arena, I checked out Scrappy vs. Adam Bryant. I won't lie. Scrappy was the draw here and he really delivered. Again.

Sexy Scrappy faces rough and ready Adam Bryant

Review: Bolt v Blayne (Thunders Arena)

Full disclosure: This video was provided to me by Thunders Arena.

Well, it's likely going to be a heavy Thunders Arena month. I already had leftovers from last month and then I received four more matches last week. It was a really good selection: Blayne/Bolt, Blayne/Scrappy, Scrappy/Adam Bryant and Vinny/Logan Vaughn. Then on Monday, I received Bolt/Spike, Scrappy/Marco, Scrappy/Karl and Marco/Karl. They're trying to kill me.

Anyway, I had to start somewhere, so I decided on Blayne vs. Bolt.

Blayne and Bolt have an ab-smashing good time.

The Cave Unleashed 2: Beau vs. Blake

This story is based on a reader commission

Big Bam's Gym, Harrisburg, PA

"What the fuck? Don't touch my fuckin’ shit! Put it down!"

I'm across the gym when I see Blake, a 33-year old thickly muscled bear-ish badass, quickly move from his bench he's usin' to the one where he set his bag down. The 6'2"/240-lbs beefy, local muscleman never stops starin’ down a younger 6'1"/235-lbs blond bodybuilder from Texas. The younger Texan just happens to be my younger brother, Beau.

Blake