Review: Caffrey vs. Simpson (Thunders Arena)

Simpson: "I'm not just a prettyboy."
Caffrey (confused): "Who said you were a prettyboy?"

Rude.

Although, I get where Caffrey is coming from. Simpson would not my definition of a prettyboy, either. Muscleman? Yes. Stocky stud? Sure. Hairy hunk? Definitely. But a prettyboy? Nah, that's more Caffrey's turf, dude. Still, the exchange quickly sets up the dynamics of this Thunders Arena match. Caffrey vs. Simpson is a respect-free battle between two very different wrestlers.

Drama!

Review: Caffrey vs. Cason (Thunders Arena)

It's been a long time since I bought, watched or reviewed a Thunders Arena video. There are two good reasons why I took a break but I recently took another look. With their weekend sale, I decided to buy a couple of videos to see what's up. One was exactly what I don't like about Thunders, while Cason vs. Caffrey was everything that I do like about them. In the spirit of being positive, I figured I'd review the one I enjoyed.

Muscle on the mats at Thunders!

Review: Beast vs. Blayne (Thunders Arena)

Thunders Arena is usually in the $30 range but they were highlighting some for $20. I saw Beast vs. Blayne is one of those. I figured I must have it but I just couldn't remember it. When I double-checked, sure enough I didn't own it. Shocking, I know, but it made buying it an easy decision. It took me a minute to get to watching it but this fun blast from the (recent) past was worth the wait.

Yes, yes, yes!

Review: Loki vs. Steel x 2 (Thunders Arena)

I'm talking two Thunders Arena matches today. These videos are complete on their own, but they're linked. The result of mat match is referenced in the ring match. The loser on the mats wants revenge. He calls himself "the best", but the winner reminds him that he beat him, so he's only "second-best". Of course he says that was only on the mat, but the winner has a point.

This creates some tension, but honestly, these two show a natural rivalry that makes the videos move regardless of wins or losses.

The big boys meet up on the mats ...

... but they get serious in the ring.

Review: Iceman18 vs. Loki (Thunders Arena)

I haven't been watching a ton of wrestling videos lately and a lot of the ones I've seen? I don't really have a ton to say about them. They're neither great nor terrible. I'm feeling like good is the enemy of the reviewer. I mean, what can I say about a good video other than 'the guys are hot' or 'the action is fine'. I've looked at branching out to newer places (for me), but I can't quite figure out what to buy at those sites and I'm not up for memberships that I barely use.

Anyway, with Iceman18 vs. Loki, the guys are hot and the action is fine.

It's like a 70's buddy cop show -
boyish and blond + dark and manly.

Review: Aspen vs. Scrappy (Thunders Arena)

In this world of video wrestler free agency, I wonder if it's ever hard for the men to remember where they are. Scrappy regularly wrestles for at least four places, Aspen for at least two. Wrestling video sites have different styles and personalities, just like wrestlers. So, when two free agents meet on the mats at Thunders Arena, what's their process? Do they try to consciously adapt?

I bring this up with Scrappy vs. Aspen specifically because this amazing video feels both Thunders but also not-Thunders at the same time.

Aspen's on fire as he takes on Scrappy at Thunders.

Review: Cason vs. Loki 2 (Thunders Arena)

I went to a destination wedding last weekend. It was a beautiful ceremony and all that jazz, but five days in rural New Brunswick isn't really my thing and I'm glad to be back in a city. Unfortunately, it didn't go like my Encounters: The Wedding Crash story (no reunion with a hot buddy and no wrestling). Oh well. Before I left, I did stock up on some Thunders Arena videos in their recent buy two get two free sale.

First up is the rematch, Cason vs. Loki. This is an actual rematch, as the guys start out referencing their first match (reviewed here) which kicked off 2019 beautifully.

It's a rematch but not a remake as bros battle again.

Review: Scrappy vs. Texas (Thunders Arena)

I haven't watched as much Thunders Arena this year as I usually do, but certain things still draw my attention. Big, brawny hunks like Texas are definitely one of them. Thunders has a history of finding great new talent. They come and go, but even when they go, they're quickly replaced by new musclemen. And when these new guys are put against one of the best in the business, I'll check it out.

Wrestlers might be bigger in Texas, but are they better?

Review: Kasee vs. Loki (Thunders Arena)

Wow, I’ve heard about writing down your wishes and maybe they’ll come true. I literally just wrote a post for later this month where I said that I hoped Loki would return and here he is back at Thunders Arena. Now I kind of wish I’d written down that I hoped to win the lottery. Oh well, clearly a missed opportunity and I didn’t buy a ticket anyway.

Luckily, Kasee vs. Loki is not a missed opportunity. I enjoyed it very, very much.

Kasee: "You're stronger than I thought. I thought
you were all pizza, beef and burgers!"

Review: Big Sexy vs. Dominic vs. Frey (Thunders Arena)

As I was looking for things to talk about, I stumbled across this unheralded video. I say unheralded since I couldn't find any blogger who talked about it. Maybe they did and I missed it. I know Thunders Arena and Joe (by request) purged a bunch of Big Sexy stuff years ago when someone actually believed that you could erase things from the internet. How foolish folks were back then. Of course Big Sexy's profile and all his matches are back at Thunders, because let's face it, it was never really gone and nobody really cares.

Big Sexy vs Dominic vs. Frey is like an all-star video with three of the GOAT's at Thunders. It's a custom (wow, nice job, commissioner) also 42 minutes long and only $22 currently. Nice. But what's it all about?

Frey figure-fours Dom.

Review: Tristan Baldwin vs. Kasee (Thunders Arena)

Tristan: Wow. You weren't kidding when you said you were going to one-up me. I said wear something eye-catching. You wear eye-catching in half the size.
Kasee: Half the size?
Tristan: No, I'm talking about [your trunks]. The rest of you? Probably double the size.
Kasee: Thanks, bud. I've never even met you before. Who are you?

And with that opening, Kasee immediately breaks two cardinal rules of improv. He doesn't listen to his scene partner, which is why he doesn't realize Tristan is talking about his tiny red poser. And worse, he doesn't say "yes and ..." and instead actually rejects Tristan's premise that he told him what to wear pre-match. Tsk tsk. Lucky for Kasee he's pretty and who can stay mad at him in that 'gear'.

Tristan vs. Kasee starts out poorly, but if you stick with it, it becomes more worth it.

Things get better as the video goes along.

Review: Scrappy vs. Tristan (Thunders Arena)

Tristan: "See these trunks? I took these from some young zipperhead with a smart mouth, a pretty face and not much else. Just like you."

Scrappy: "Was that in the 70's?"

This is officially my first Thunders Arena match of 2019. So far, I've been watching ones that I purchased last year and they sent me seven freebies last month, one of which I reviewed. Scrappy vs Tristan, however, was bought from the website in 2019. I haven't really been feeling them so far, plus Underground Wrestler was posting a lot of the same guys on their Patreon. All it took to bring me back was one look at this superstar pairing.

Scrappy: "Fuck. They're going to give me
fucking grandpa to wrestle."

Review: Cason vs. Joey King (Thunders Arena)

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

The "tension" of this match is really relatable to me. When I'm writing stories, most of my characters are a lot younger than me. And the gap only gets wider as I age and they don't. Cody, for example, was 28 when he debuted in 2012 (80's baby) but now he won't turn 30 until 2020 at the earliest (90's baby). Someone who's first waking memory happened in the mid-1990's definitely won't use the same cultural references as I would.

In Cason vs. Joey King, things start out in the same way as Joey King is hit by the reality that his favorite Christmas movie came out 10 years before his opponent was even born.

It's Gen-X vs. Gen-Z at Thunders.

Review: Cason vs. Cap (Custom Series) (Thunders Arena)

Alex: It seems to me that a lot of custom video commissioners like seeing their favorites squashed. Is that your experience? If so, why do you think that is?

Marco: I would agree with that. They usually focus on the guy that they want to be the jobber. I think they connect with how the wrestler sells the pain, or on the other hand, how the jobber secretly loves the pain and asks for more in a non-verbal way.

We sure do like to hurt the guys we love, don't we? In my Q+A with Marco, he confirmed my long-held belief that commissioners are way more focused on who the jobber is and how he'll get crushed than they are about heel. Obviously, there's an art to punishing a guy that most of us appreciate, but when our money is on the line, it's all about that suffering stud.

One of my favorite thing about Thunders' commissions is the frequency of revenge themes. Guys love to use their money to bring down the big boys at the hands of the little guys. And so, when a Cason fan plunks down his hard-earned money to see him take a dive, it's a perfect scenario to give Cap his revenge on his bigger alpha male bro Cason.

It's a relationship reversal as Cap gets to own Cason.

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

Aspen won my 2018 Cavey Award for Favorite Porn Crossover in a surprisingly competitive category. There are a lot and that's not even including guys who dabble in nudity and such. No, amongst studs (that I know) were established porn actors who then discovered wrestling, there were several strong contenders.

One of the reasons he rose to the top was that he also did wrestling-only videos, both in Muscleboy Wrestling and in Thunders Arena. It's a big step, jumping from the mats to the ring. Then, on top of that shift, starting against working pro wrestling heels? Wow. So, how did Aspen's Thunders adventure go?

Pro wrestler Joey King welcomes Aspen to the
Thunders ring with some classic action.

Big Brute teaches Aspen how the men of
Thunders are different from the boys of MBW.

Review: Loki vs. Scrappy (Thunders Arena)

We're back with more Loki from Thunders Arena. As I said in my previous Loki review, I was very excited to see him. And putting him against Cavey Award winning hunks like Cason (2018 Favorite Young Muscle) and Scrappy (2017 Favorite Wrestler) made these a safe bet. We know I loved the chemistry he shared with Cason. Do I like Loki vs. Scrappy as much? Or at all?

Loki just keeps smiling.

Review: Cason vs. Loki (Thunders Arena)

By now, you've probably bought Loki's debut matches from Thunders Arena or you aren't going to. I know that I'm late to the party with this hunk, but I love him too much not to post about him. He's one of my fantasy guys that I wished would wrestle and now that he is, I'm pretty excited.

I immediately bought two of them during the sales, but only really got to watch them recently. It was tough knowing that Cason vs. Loki was sitting on my hard drive, but I made it through the holidays and this was a wonderful way to start the new year.

Sweet! A bromance is born.

Review: Frey vs. Professor Muscles (Thunders Arena)

I watched Frey vs. Professor Muscles last year? It seems like ages ago. I was going to review it at the time, but after viewing, I just couldn't get interested enough to do it. However, after an off-hand remark in another review, an anonymous commenter (or maybe two) requested that I explain why I felt how I felt. And so, as a bit of fan service, I decided to write about it. It still took me a while to think of an angle, but I finally hit on something.

I bought this because I was really interested in the new muscleman because of his name and look, plus Frey is usually great with rookies. Unfortunately, things didn't work for me.

I bought it for the promise of Professor Muscles.

Review: Impact vs. Brock (Thunders Arena)

For my brief December trip down memory lane, I think I hit on a good one here. Impact from Thunders Arena is the perfect guy to look back at. His wrestling career ended before I was a blogger and he doesn't get a ton of coverage. Some of you might not even know who he is. But for a brief moment, damn, was he the finest thing around? Maybe not THE finest, but definitely one of the finest. And so, I decided to post about Impact vs. Brock because I think it's a great video for him.

Impact was a real shooting star.

Review: Rhino x 2 (Thunders Arena)

I think it's fair to say that Thunders Arena entire brand is built on high quality musclemen. Still, I continue to be impressed by their ability to keep finding the hottest muscle studs. It's nothing short of remarkable. I'm already excited to see what they do with "Loki", a very familiar and very handsome model-bodybuilder.

Anyway, Rhino was the hot new guy a couple of months ago, but I can't always keep up. However, the chance to check him out finally arose, so I took the leap. While Thunders always finds the best beefcakes, that doesn't always result in the best matches.

Okay, Rhino, let's see what you've got ...
(beyond your cute face and perfect body)