Review: Viking vs. Mack - Vegas (Thunders Arena)

Viking: "I'm gonna ask, even though I already know the answer, -"

Mack: "These are not your shorts."

Viking: "- are those my fucking shorts?"

Next up from Thunders Arena's latest trip to Vegas is a re-match of sorts, although there's a new element added to the equation. Viking vs. Mack: Vegas Battles 36 has a storyline that any similarly-sized siblings or roommates can probably relate to. And it has a shocking reveal (which is not one of their bare butts, unfortunately).

Viking: "I told Mom specifically not to put my clothes
in your drawers. Not to do my laundry with yours."

The first time Viking and Mack faced off, I commented on their similarity. I even went so far as to call Mack "Viking 2" (review here). Well, early on in this one, my feelings from round one might be explained. Thanks to the casually said quote above, we learn that Viking and Mack are brothers (and Mama's boys, since they apparently still live at home and their mother still does their laundry).

This is the only reference to this connection, but to me it's pretty clear. Viking and Mack live together, because their clothes can be put in the wrong drawers. If they were roommates, Viking would say 'my Mom'. He doesn't. He says Mom. So both consider this person Mom. There are other options, but I'm going with the most obvious answer. Brothers.

Now, are they really brothers or is it a work for the video? Is this a custom video where a fan made them brothers? Maybe. Maybe not. But to use a comic book phrase, it's canon now.

Viking: "I told you to stop wearing
my goddamned clothes!"

Viking: "You've ruined all my other clothes."

Older brother Mack doesn't see the big deal.
All I see is sexy Viking put on display.

The timing of this was a little coincidental, as this month's story was all about sibling rivalry. The intensity isn't close to Toby-level crazy, but let's face it - brothers are natural rivals. In this case, Mack has stolen Viking's trunks and apparently, it's not the first time. Younger brother is upset, big brother doesn't get the big deal. There's some fat-shaming, some demands and, of course, some wrestling to see who gets the shorts.

Viking: "I'm tired of you always stealing my stuff."

Mack must be the older brother.

Viking: "They're stretched out because you're fat."

Viking and Mack are chill guys, so most of the dialogue is soft-spoken. However, they're also big guys and the action feels big. The guys use power to squeeze the life out of each other. Bearhugs, nelsons, and scissors feature prominently. The holds are held for extended periods, but it's not action-packed. Not like their first match in the ring, that's for sure. It's also a little repetitive at the start (nelson-scissors; nelson-scissors), but the guys start to vary it up as things progress.

There is some duplication,
especially at the beginning.

Full nelsons, scissors and bearhugs
are used by both brothers.

Mack: "I think it's fair to say that these

belong to me now. They can be my prize."

The Thunders' site declared that "Viking Crushes Mack" on its home page. He does not. If you're buying it for that, you were/will be disappointed. It's back-and-forth over long stretches of control, but with a clearly more dominant brother and a definitive winner. And the darkness and camera's distortion effect don't exactly showcase these hunks like I would've liked. You can probably get a sense of that from the images.

I had to click on this to see if it was a different match.
It's not.

In the end, this was good, not great. The guys' charisma is the best part of the video, while the sibling rivalry angle adds a fun element to the fight. Despite the 'stakes', this feels much lighter on action and intensity than their first encounter. I think your level of enjoyment will probably hinge upon how much you like these two studs.

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

Alex