Review: Cason vs. Joey King/Brute (Thunders Arena)

I expected to review Cason vs. Joey King and Cason vs. Brute separately, but after watching the videos, I found that I had to do them together. Why? Because they're basically the same video. Beat for beat, they have extremely similar pacing, action and storylines.

I enjoyed Cason's first ring matches and have a preference? Will you enjoy them or have a preference? I'll try to help you figure that out with a couple of simple questions. Which pro do you like more. Who do you want to see suffer more - Cason or the pro?

I'm going to go out on a limb here ...
Cason has one of Thunders best bodies EVER.

Cason is gorgeous. He belongs in the ring. The chiseled body. The confidence of youth and muscle. In red trunks with his string hanging out, the young muscleman sweats up a storm as the action builds in these matches. In both matches, he flexes those muscles, but he's also displayed, stretched and bent.

The pros also look good. Joey King is more of a physical contrast - smaller, hairy and less ripped. Even with close-cropped hair, he still looks really good to me. Brute is bigger than Joey, more of a muscle match for Cason. You certainly won't confuse him with Cason, as he's older, gruffer and thicker. Joey is more talkative, but Brute has a strong presence, too.

Damn, the sculpted rookie looks so sexy in the ropes.

Damn, the hairy pro looks so sexy in the ropes.

Damn, the beefy pro looks so sexy in the ropes.

I watched the match with Joey King first. I really liked it. It's a 20 minute video with about 18 minutes of action. It's a close to even split on control, with Joey clocking in around 8 minutes and Cason probably around 9 minutes. The rookie dominates more in this match than his match with Brute, but more on that later.

On its own, this was a really good video. It's great to see Cason tested. And dominated. And knocked out. Joey's cockiness and pro skills combine to make him an incredibly formidable foe. Cason is impressive as he uses some solid ring moves, like a dragon sleeper and full nelson on the smaller pro.

My favorite moment is when Joey uses his sleeper, because I'd never seen Cason in that kind of trouble. It's hot to see the young alpha punk knocked out. I also like the neckbreaker, although it's shot from the side while I prefer seeing it looking at the victim. When it's his turn to sell, Joey makes a hot victim, showing off his pro chops. He talks a lot, both when he's winning and losing, while Cason is more than comfortable playing the cocky young stud.

Uh oh, rookie, you're facing a real wrestler now.

Has the rookie met his match in the ring?

The pro gets punished about 4 minutes longer here.

We learn that Cason's bearhug is brutal.

I watched the match with Brute second. It started to click that things were headed down the same direction pretty early. There are nuances to the action, but mainly it's the same. They threw me a little bit of a curveball at the midpoint, because Brute dominates for about 4 minutes more, but it circles back.

On its own, this was a really good video. It's great to see Cason tested. And dominated. And knocked out. Brute's size and pro skills combine to make him an incredibly formidable foe. Cason is impressively powerful as he casually bearhugs the big man over and over. My favorite moments are when the pro uses sleepers, including one of my favorite types. In fact, please indulge me while give that its own paragraph.

I love Cason in a dragon sleeper. He's literal perfection bent backwards like this. Brute has earned my undying love for this hold. In fact, I'm going to state that Cason in a dragon sleeper is now "my new favorite thing in the world". That honor doesn't usually last very long, because I'm fickle, but Cason and Brute can revel in it while it does last.

Uh oh, rookie, you're facing a real wrestler now.

Has the rookie met his match in the ring?

The rookie gets punished about 4 minutes longer here.

We learn that Cason's bearhug is brutal.

In the end, I liked both these videos. I wish they had more differences, but they're still good. Your call as to which one you'd like more, if you only wanted one.

For me, while I think Joey King is the sexier opponent, I actually prefer the match against Brute. The bigger pro wrestler is a better size match. Cason suffers a little longer. During that extra time, Brute uses the dragon sleeper and full nelson on the rookie versus Cason using them on Joey. That's important, because Cason in a dragon sleeper is "my new favorite thing in the world".

So, that's my take. What's yours?

Alex