DarK_RaideR's BattlE_LoG

[EricMN]

On 3/29/2022 at 12:16 PM, DarK_RaideR said:

Pro Wrestling Hero Europe #3
Mon. W1 Mar 2020, 110.417 viewers on Euro Cable Sports 4 and GBTV Sports

 

I like the way you're building this. Put the titles on the established stars to bring in the old audience from the former NGW and use them to put over both those that weren't as established and the next generation of younger wrestlers.

[DarK_RaideR]

Pro Wrestling Hero Europe #4
Mon. W2 Mar 2020, 118.470 viewers on Euro Cable Sports 4 and GBTV Sports

Vidmar and Yakovlev opened this week’s episode and it seems their pairing with Tereza Smirnov finally has a name: The Eastern Bloc. This wasn’t just about revealing the name though, the two men addressed Petter Erikson, saying he won the TV title battle, but not the war. As for Smirnov, it was said that she was not present with them but would be showing up tonight, as she would be wrestling none other than Paula Edwards.

Rating: 46


Marcello Ricci vs Tomohiko Yamagata

After last week’s verbal stalemate with fellow Italian Giovanni Bruno, Ricci had a point to prove and frustrations to vent in this match, where once again he showcased his technical skill against the high flying Yamagata. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but Yamagata is a great in-ring worker who seems to be missing something on the presentation part. Unless he strikes gold with some wacky kind of character, he’s the type who’d make a great workhorse to carry the TV title but not really break into the main event scene anytime soon. For now, all he had to do was excite the fans with his moves and give Ricci a good match before taking the Milanese Elbow and the pin.

Rating: 52

Another hype vignette was aired next, though it was a polar opposite of last week’s stuff. This time we got Blond, Joan Blond. Yup, 007 reference and you can imagine what her montage of being awesome involved. Gotta give credit to whoever came up with the minutiae of the gimmick, despite the silver full body suit she didn’t come across as being sexualized, but rather as a parody character leaning towards the comedy aspect, maybe with a splash of 70s Barbarella cheese. Can’t wait to see her show up.
 

w/
Paula Edwards vs Tereza Smirnov (with Dovydas Vidmar)

If I had to describe this match using just one word, it would be “swerve”. The Colorado Crusher versus a rookie sounded like a squash, but it wasn’t, thanks to Smirnov’s hard hits and surprising toughness. She came out with Vidmar by her side, but when the ref bump happened, Edwards brought the fight to the Bratva Bruiser and effectively took him out of the fight by powerbombing him onto the floor in a spectacular moment. Then just when you thought she had it in the bag, Petrov Yakovlev ran down to the ring to attack her and allow Smirnov to set up the Slav Stomp. Having fought bravely but essentially against three separate opponents, Edwards could not go on after that and her opponent made the cover to score a big upset win.

Rating: 38

Not seen last week in person, the RotO champion made an appearance here to address Bruno and Ricci’s claims. Having no shortage of confidence, Frye said he would be willing to defend his title against either of the two, as he’s a fighting champion and a man who’s never backed down from a challenge.

Rating: 56

w/
Mad Millie Morgan vs Malady (with Fusae Etsuko)

Malady’s saga jumping through her mentor’s hoops continued and I’m starting to wonder if the initial excitement of seeing the Gothic Grappler back has now faded and we’re seeing Etsuko slowly return to her darker self. It’s not just the way she’s (mis)treating Malady, you could mistake that as testing her resolve, but to see her pinned with Morgan’s feet on the ropes and do nothing about it just crosses the line. Anyway, I get that by having two unestablished names face off, it made sense to turn the in-ring action to eleven in order to compensate, but man are these two green as grass or what. They just stood there and hit each other as hard as they could, but with no real sense of selling, psychology or storytelling. It’s a shame really, the storyline itself is quite gripping but the matches don’t live up to it.

Rating: 29

Giovanni Bruno was on the mic next and he had come up with just the greatest idea to one-up Marcello Ricci in the race for a chance at Frye’s title: tonight, on the main event, he too would be facing “The Louisiana Pitbull” Robert Howard! I had to laugh at Bruno’s delivery here, he seemed so pleased with himself, I just knew his attitude would do a full 180 once he actually got in the ring with Howard and it would be hilarious to watch.

Rating: 46


RotO Television title match

Alberto Montero vs Petter Eriksson ©

Montero’s a solid brawler and I like how this complements the overall machismo of his character. He had the strikes and he had the confidence, which made for an exciting match against the rugged champion. Again, this wasn’t an over the top fistfight but neither one of those strong style crisp striking contests, it was down and dirty with both men looking ultra serious about doing business. Of course, the match happened out of the blue and I didn’t expect Montero to win, but he was given a lot of offense over the veteran before catching a Spinning Back Elbow to the face.

Rating: 49

Florida Simard addressed Maisie Laurels up next, conceding that the Englishwoman had a valid point. Simard got the win at Valentine’s Day Massacre but it was not without a shadow of a doubt. The French high flyer promised her however that next time they meet inside the ring, she will finish the job.

Rating: 51


Giovanni Bruno vs Robert Howard

Comedy aside, Bruno came to fight and he jumped his opponent with all his might before Howard had even entered the ring. I mean, he was the clear underdog in this fight so he had to make up for it somehow and seeing him do it in this fashion instead of being his usual comedy chickenshit heel self was refreshing, plus the action was frantic. Furthermore, since the fighting had begun before both men were done entering the ring, the bell hadn’t rung and the match hadn’t officially started, so Bruno could play dirty and use weapons without getting disqualified, which I think is brilliant both as a booking trick and as Bruno’s supposed tactic. Howard is no stranger to these situations however and he eventually mustered a counter offensive in spectacular fashion, complete with a spot where he put Bruno inside an aluminum trash can and sent him rolling down the bleachers. This was insane in all the right ways and even more insane was the finish. Bruno hit a blatant low blow, right in front of referee Carola Bianchi, after the two men had gotten into the ring and the match officially got started. Instead of disqualifying him, she made the count and called for the bell, which sent the audience into a thunderstorm of boos. I thought to myself “not again” when Bruno blew her a kiss after the match, because you know, he’s a lounge lizard and she’s also Italian, all that, but then he actually reached into his trunks and pulled out a roll of paper money like some kind of male stripper, from which he got a few and tucked them neatly into the ref’s shirt pocket. Brilliant way to close the show, had me wondering if there’s a story developing here, how this blatantly shady win is going to affect the Bruno-Ricci-Frye story going forward and whether we’re seeing the character of a crooked ref being introduced.

Rating: 48

That final match has me hyped to tune in next week and see what happens, although if we’re being strict about it, the TV title bout was marginally better. Pretty solid episode, full of things to dissect and enjoy with every bit having a reason to be on the card. They could have done a better job setting things up for next week, but I’m not mad, the finish was shocking enough to make up for it. 50 Overall.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

39 minutes ago, DarK_RaideR said:

Another hype vignette was aired next, though it was a polar opposite of last week’s stuff. This time we got Blond, Joan Blond. Yup, 007 reference and you can imagine what her montage of being awesome involved. Gotta give credit to whoever came up with the minutiae of the gimmick, despite the silver full body suit she didn’t come across as being sexualized, but rather as a parody character leaning towards the comedy aspect, maybe with a splash of 70s Barbarella cheese. Can’t wait to see her show up.

How do you like your Quasi-Futuristic Clothes Mr. Powers?

[EricMN]

On 4/1/2022 at 4:31 PM, DarK_RaideR said:

Giovanni Bruno vs Robert Howard

I loved everything about this match. Are you data-mining my wrestling viewing habits?

[DarK_RaideR]

On 4/2/2022 at 1:11 AM, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

How do you like your Quasi-Futuristic Clothes Mr. Powers?

YES

 

14 hours ago, EricMN said:

I loved everything about this match. Are you data-mining my wrestling viewing habits?

YES

 

also:

 

it clearly states here that if you're into this type of program, your not only a wrestling nerd but also in the 18-30 demographic, so stop calling yourself an old man.

[EricMN]

On 4/6/2022 at 3:39 AM, DarK_RaideR said:

it clearly states here that if you're into this type of program, your not only a wrestling nerd but also in the 18-30 demographic, so stop calling yourself an old man.

Maybe I need to start angrily typing "spot monkey" and "sports entertainment" in order to not confuse the algorithm.

 

......naaaaaaaaahhhhhhh

[DarK_RaideR]

Pro Wrestling Hero Europe #5
Mon. W3 Mar 2020, 111.025 viewers on Euro Cable Sports 4 and GBTV Sports

This week’s episode kicked off with a promo from Petter Eriksson, his first time speaking as the RotO Television champion since winning the belt and defending it against Montero as well. I could tell this was pretty by-the-numbers and not going anywhere, so it came as no surprise when he was interrupted. Petrov Yakovlev showed up to say that Eriksson may have beat him to become the first champion, but the story between them isn’t over. He then proceeded to announce the first match confirmed for March Into Battle late next week, a tag team match between Petter Eriksson and Ragnarok against Petrov Yakovlev and Dovydas Vidmar!

Rating: 44


Ragnarok vs Thorsten Sigurdsson

The opening segment was also a set up for the opening match, where Ragnarok faced off against fellow Scandinavian powerhouse Thorsten Sigurdsson. I like how they pulled it off, keeping it simple but upping the intensity for a wild crazy brawl, really fits both men’s characters and helps distract from Thorsten being pretty green still. Also, for two big heavy hitters, they did a lot more than just stand and bang. They moved around, used the ropes and ringposts, there was fighting outside the ring that involved the apron, steps and barricades, some exciting controlled chaos that led up to Sigurdsson getting disqualified when he actually picked up a chair to smash Ragnarok in the back. I was expecting Ragnarok to win this and build momentum due to his match announced right before, but I guess they went with the DQ finish to also protect his opponent.

Rating: 30

Now this was interesting, Alberto Montero had a segment in which he walked up to Howard and mocked him, the vitriol perhaps hitting a bit too close to home as he referenced his RotO career thus far. To his eyes, Montero at least had a shot at a title already, whereas the Louisiana Pitbull appears to be just Frye’s laptop, keeping challengers at bay and not even doing too good of a job at it. This stuff got a good reaction and it was enough to make Howard snap; he just slapped the taste out of Montero’s mouth and fans loved it. No brawl between them, just the smack and Howard walked away, leaving a very shocked and confused Montero behind him, at least for now.

Rating: 48

A couple of minutes of TV time were spent to have Florida Simard come out and join the commentary team for the next bout. Pretty much tells you what you can expect down the road.
 

Joan Blond vs Maisie Laurels

I cannot lie here, this was abysmal. As entertaining as Blond is, she clearly couldn’t wrestle her way out of a paper bag if her life depended on it, at least not until she gets a lot more experience under her belt. Laurels got most of the offense to try and hide that issue, but she too is a far cry from McKenna’s level and most people would argue that slow, grinding submissions on the mat don’t exactly make for the most captivating matches. At least it gave Laurels plenty of opportunities to stare down Simard at ringside while keeping the holds applied, which led to the inevitable distraction (totally expected) and Blond pulling a quick roll up for the pin (which I did not expect).

Rating: 18

Next up we got another of those segments where Fusae Etsuko is hyping up the next opponent she has handpicked for her protege to face. Not sure if the expression was genuine or if Malady is that good an actor, but I couldn’t tell if she was amped up to prove herself to her mentor or simmering inside at Etsuko making her jump through more hoops. Anyway, it’s Maisie Laurels, we’re getting Malady versus Laurels next week.

Rating: 50


Big Ben vs The Fashionistas

I was genuinely surprised they went ahead with a handicap match. I knew Ben’s feud with The Fashionistas would continue since he beat one and lost to the other, but I was expecting him to be paired up with someone for a tag match next. Seeing how they made a spectacle out of this contest, I can’t help but agree it was probably the right call. Morelli and Milano got to be the sneaky heels that would gang up on him and although Ben isn’t the greatest seller of all time, he’s still pretty decent for a big man and managed to get fans cheering for his comeback. Which, of course, made him look like an absolute powerhouse as he manhandled both his opponents on his own. The finish saw him hit Morelli with his London Falling finisher and stack him on top of Milano for the pin, one two three and Ben got the win.

Rating: 37


Ryushi Ryusaki vs Tomohiko Yamagata

Japanese face-off in the following match and you could immediately tell these two make for a great pair of opponents. Yamagata is a classic junior heavyweight, a spectacular high flyer with speed and a solid technical foundation, whereas Ryusaki is so well rounded he could match his stuff or mix it up by playing the bruiser heel. Way better than it had any right to be, I guess this was essentially a match to fill time and maybe give these guys a chance to wrestle but it ended up being match of the night, at least in my book. For the record, Yamagata hit the Suicide Splash and won.

Rating: 50

Giovanni Bruno and Marcello Ricci took turns on the mic next to plead their case and argue about why they should be the one to challenge for the World Heavyweight title at March Into Battle. It was fun, but things took a serious turn when Nelson Frye actually showed up with a live mic in hand. The champion said it seems we’re headed for an England versus Italy clash at the Pay Per View either way, but we already saw tonight how that went (wait, is he alluding to…). Frye said he’d like to see if his two challengers can do better than their compatriots (yep, he’s referring to the handicap match) as well as give his fellow Englishman a chance for his superhuman performance tonight, so he laid down the challenge: next week, Big Ben, Giovani Bruno and Marcello Ricci… in a Ladder match for a chance at the RotO World Heavyweight championship!

Rating: 51

w/
Dovydas Vidmar (with Tereza Smirnov) vs Paolo Gandalfini

Couple of weeks since Gandalfini headlined an episode and the prize for his win against Ryusaki was a harder opponent in The Bratva Bruiser. Given Gandalfini’s old school style of European catch wrestling, I’d say Vidmar was a fitting opponent and they put on a show of gritty, tough man fighting. Nothing too flashy or mind-engaging, just brutal holds and stiff strikes, before adding some hard slams into the mix. I really enjoyed it, but the reason it just wasn’t up to par with the Ryusaki-Yamagata bout was seeing another dirty finish, when Smirnov got involved for the distraction that allowed Vidmar to hit the Bratva Breaker and score the pin. Given what had happened up to that point, the end was a let down.

Rating: 48

Another solid hour and a half of televised wrestling I’d rate as 48 again, RotO seem to have found their stride with storytelling and how to utilize each worker. Of course, the women’s division is still a glaring weak spot if you’re not named Paula Edwards of Florida Simard, but that will take time and patience to fix given what a wasteland Europe and the UK have always been for women’s wrestling. It’s not like they can just sign some big names and get the ball rolling, they need to build new stars up from the ground. Also, they’re not doing a great job of planting seeds for the coming week’s show and then pay them off, at this point it’s running more on trust and convincing fans to tune in anyway.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

I loved the big Ben match and the Ryusaki Tamagata match. Howard slapping someone was fun too.

[EricMN]

On 4/9/2022 at 8:01 AM, DarK_RaideR said:

it was enough to make Howard snap; he just slapped the taste out of Montero’s mouth

You’re hitting the high notes, my friend.

[DarK_RaideR]

3 hours ago, EricMN said:

You’re hitting the high notes, my friend.

[DarK_RaideR]

Pro Wrestling Hero Europe #6
Mon. W4 Mar 2020, 111.537 viewers on Euro Cable Sports 4 and GBTV Sports


Mad Millie Morgan vs Paula Edwards

It's been a few weeks since an episode went straight into a match and if the idea here was to immediately grasp viewer attention, I'd say a pretty good job of it was done. Despite messing a bunch of moves which I can attribute to her inexperience, Morgan brought one hell of a fight against her much larger opponent, causing absolute mayhem within the confines of what she could get away with before getting disqualified. It made sense from a storytelling standpoint given the size difference between the two, but in hindsight probably Morgan also benefitted from the chaos being exciting enough to mask her own shortcomings. My one takeaway from this match has to be the spot where Edwards was reeling on the apron and Morgan jumped off the top in hopes of a huracanrana that would send her opponent through a table that had been set at ringside, only for Edwards to block the move using her power in order to powerbomb Morgan through the wood. I'd say this match very much made Morgan given her tenacity to keep fighting after the table spot, and although she did get the win, she had to use both her opponents' tights and the ropes for leverage, which keeps Edwards strong even in defeat.

Rating: 37

Another dimly lit video aired next, chains and giggles and all, but this time we also got some distant or blurry shots of the actually wrestler who's supposed to be hyped up. The package ended with a close up to the back of their head, which snapped around to reveal a quite creepy white mask with a skull smile.

Rating: 32

Ladder match
Winner gets to headline March Into Battle in a match for the RotO World Heavyweight title

Big Ben vs Giovanni Bruno vs Marcello Ricci

Given the opening match, I had no idea how these three would top the chaos and action but it appears they wisely decided to not even go there. Which I guess makes sense, not only to provide a different kind of match and avoid comparison but also because neither of the three wrestlers in it is the type to usually pull off death defying stunts off of high places or a psychopathic hardcore butcher. Instead, we got a pretty straightforward wrestling match with the two Italians making a de facto alliance against the powerhouse babyface, which of course crumbled immediately once it was time to climb up and claim the prize. This allowed Ben to make a brief comeback that popped the crowd, but Bruno and Ricci cheated their way into putting the brakes on that. Actually, I did like the minor detail of Bruno raking the eyes like a pure heel to send Ben stumbling onto the ladder, whereas Ricci played it cleaner and simply got out of the way of a charge, using the big man's momentum against him. After back to back ladder spots, Big Ben was essentially out of the match and it came down to the two Italians climbing opposite sides of the same ladder, trading blows on top. Ricci was the first to fall when the damage caught up to him, thus the way was clear for Giovanni Bruno to retrieve the briefcase with the contract in it. Not who I expected to win, but I guess they didn't want to do a Frye-Ricci rematch so soon or a face vs face setup if Big Ben won.

Rating: 47

Etelka the Hun was the given some air time to speak and I had to look up the last time I saw her, which turns out was at Valentine's Day Massacre wrestling Malady. Not much going on here story-wise despite the solid delivery, Etelka said she's still around and her presence will be felt soon, but I doubt if that means she was given something to do or if she's just trying to stay afloat.

Rating: 33

w/
Maisie Laurels vs Malady (with Fusae Etsuko)

I watched this match and thought to myself it's one of the better cases of booking in RotO. Yes it's introducing and building up Malady, I would assume it's slowly building to an Etsuko heel turn, plus they've gotten a ton of TV time out of it by having Malady do one match, then next week in an angle Etsuko picks her next opponent, then a week later we get that match. What I hadn't realized until this point is that her series of matches doubles as a showcase of the RotO Women's Division, giving the workers something to do and introducing them to the audience in a very organic, gradual manner. Anyway, enough of my ramblings, the match was nothing to write home about but it told a basic story of Malady's striking game against Laurels' grappling. The latter turned out for the better, which in turn forced Malady to switch her gameplan and try some MMA-inspired mat submissions, but it was either too late by that point or Laurels had her number on this night. Draping DDT, one, two, three, Laurels wins.

Rating: 25

Can't say I'm surprised Florida Simard got to cut a promo afterwards, since she's set to face Laurels at the Pay Per View. Guess that's gonna be the big draw of the Women's Division for that show and it should be pretty decent after all this build up.

Rating: 46

What I was surprised though was the cut backstage where a brawl between Vidmar, Yakovlev, Eriksson and Ragnarok had broken out. Well, I was surprised at first, because then I realized they too have a tag match at the pay per view. Good call to have them just fight instead of talk given how crazy their matches have been to date, but there's no denying this went on for way longer than it should have, ten full minutes that felt like an hour.

Rating: 41


Alberto Montero & Ryushi Ryusaki vs The Gentleman and The Pitbull

Somewhat random for a main event to close the go-home episode before the big Pay Per View, but it was a great match nevertheless so I'm not complaining. Montero and Howard played off the story following their interaction last week and Frye was the conflicted champion, torn between his competitive spirit and friendship with the Louisiana Pitbull on one hand and the need to protect himself from any major harm in light of his big title match on the other. So yeah Ryusaki was the odd one out, especially given his past loss to Yamagata, but he's such a great wrestler that he quickly turned that into an afterthought. Did not expect them to go this hard and fast for the full fifteen minutes, but they did and it was awesome, complete with a bit of closure when Howard hit the Big Boot on Montero for the pin.
Rating: 53


Another solid episode of Pro Wrestling Hero Europe, not quite an over the top go home version I might have expected but good nevertheless at 47. Here's how the card's shaped up for March Into Battle:

 

Main Event
RotO World Heavyweight title match
Nelson Frye © vs Giovanni Bruno

Tag Team Grudge match
Dovydas Vidmar & Petrov Yakovlev vs Petter Eriksson & Ragnarok

Women's match
Florida Simard vs Maisie Laurels

Special Showcase match
Malady vs A Debuting Wrestler hand-picked by Fusae Etsuko

Opening match
Alberto Montero vs Robert Howard

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

So fun to watch the gentleman ans the pit bull ride again.

[EricMN]

I like how you're building the women's division. Good job using the analysis without over-explaining it all.

 

Ladder matches are mild chaos all to themselves and you don't need extra to put them over.

Well-booked tag match at the end, sir.

 

[DarK_RaideR]

18 hours ago, EricMN said:

Good job using the analysis without over-explaining it all.

I want to get the main story across, maybe with a few fan comments on the booking. No reason to do a move for move description, especially when I know I'm not directed towards an audience that's familiar with the names of the moves.

 

On 4/17/2022 at 10:41 PM, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

So fun to watch the gentleman ans the pit bull ride again.

18 hours ago, EricMN said:

Well-booked tag match at the end, sir.

Thank you both. Trying to use my veterans to build up new stars, but that doesn't mean I have to put them out to pasture just yet.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

1 hour ago, DarK_RaideR said:

 

Thank you both. Trying to use my veterans to build up new stars, but that doesn't mean I have to put them out to pasture just yet.

*Still misses Stig*

[DarK_RaideR]

On 4/19/2022 at 3:36 PM, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

*Still misses Stig*

IT'S STIIIIIIIIIIG!

 

Dude starts as already retired in the 2020 version of the database, but I wouldn't be against giving the Captain Hero gimmick to someone who proves worthy of its legacy...

[DarK_RaideR]

March Into Battle 2020
Held in Athens, Greece on Sun. W4 Mar 2020
Viewership:4.591 fans in attendance, 82.229 PPV buys (0.16) on Euro Your Demand and a total of 158.058 total viewers on Euro Your Demand and GBTV Sports


Alberto Montero vs Robert Howard

Guess things didn't end with Howard pinning Montero in the tag match after all, the two men got a big Pay Per View one on one bout to settle their differences and if the idea was to immediately grip the viewers, they did a damn good job of it. Fast paced, hard hitting, this opening contest was great without having to be an arena wide crazy brawl, which I guess they were saving for the Eastern Bloc vs Eriksson and Ragnarok later on. Good call on breaking up the striking action with the occasional big power move, slam or suplex too. Ten minutes of jam packed action and an emphatic Big Boot to seal the deal as The Louisiana Pitbull picked up a much needed win after acting like Frye's gatekeeper and piling up losses for so long.

Rating: 51

The Eastern Bloc then cut one last promo to hype up their much anticipated tag match against Eriksson and Ragnarok. Tereza Smirnov was with them and chipped in on the mic, though both men are still quite capable of delivering the goods even without her around.

Rating: 42

w/
Malady (with Fusae Etsuko) vs Spider Isako

I guess Isako should come as no surprise, huh? When RotO first started, I did bring her up as an example of someone with a gimmick way too similar to that of Etsuko during her in-ring days and she turned out to be the Gothic Grappler's hand-picked opponent for Malady. Good booking and storytelling I suppose, but given how inexperienced both ladies are, the match itself was a bit of a letdown. Malady got plenty of offence in but Etsuko absorbed the damage and kept coming with her signature sharp kicks and brutal knee strikes, complete with a Jumping Knee Strike that caught her opponent straight in the jaw and laid her out for the pin.

Rating: 22

The real action happened after the match though, which again I should have seen coming. Etsuko slid into the ring and just when it seemed she was about to help Malady back onto her feet, kneed her in the face with the Darkness Falls instead. I was right to detect a subtle heel turn buildup with how she's been treating her protege all this time, it is now complete and Etsuko ended up leaving the ring with Isako, a much more suitable mentor-student pairing if you ask me. Now I'm curious to see how those two will work, as well as see the inevitable story of Malady's revenge play out.

Rating: 42


Florida Simard vs Maisie Laurels

Sticking with the women, Simard and Laurels faced off next, one more time after their disputed finish at Valentine's Day Massacre. I can't tell if fans have taken to Laurels in comparison to the previous Pay Per View or if the buildup paid off, but this match was leagues better than their previous one. Simard tried to keep the pace up and every time her opponent locked on a submission, she would somehow escape or reverse it early on, then by the end of the match she'd find a way to get to the ropes, a callback to how their previous match ended. I think they both benefitted from the setup, Simard looking smart and prepared while Laurels came across as a dangerous grappler with an arsenal of deadly holds. We still didn't get a clean finish though because Laurels tried to remove one of the corner pads and while the referee was busy putting it back in place, she pulled a carabiner out of her boot and used it to knock out her opponent with a punch for the pin. Looks like we're headed for a third and final match between these two.

Rating: 36

w/
Dovydas Vidmar & Petrov Yakovlev (with Tereza Smirnov) vs Petter Eriksson & Ragnarok

Yep, this was every bit the crazy fistfight we had been led to anticipate. I'm not sure if Vidmar and Eriksson took some big moves early on to justify their limited involvement because of their age and stamina, but I love how it ended up giving more of the spotlight to their young teammates. Didn't expect this kind of finish though, a double count out given how everyone ended up reeling on the ringside floor some ten minutes after the opening bell. Again, it seems this rivalry isn't over and if it means we're getting matches as good as this one, I'm all for it.

Rating: 47


RotO World Heavyweight championship match

Nelson Frye © vs Giovanni Bruno

This was Bruno's trial through fire, at least in my eyes. The man has been great doing his comedy gimmick and delivering solid character work as the sneaky sleazy heel, but headlining a Pay Per View in a singles match, against someone like Nelson Frye and with the title on the line, he needed to get serious and prove if he can hang around in the main event scene. Not too long a shot either, given how we've seen RotO turn Marcello Ricci into a serious grappler when it was necessary. Make no mistake, Bruno proved he is a very well rounded wrestler and the match was a blast, even if to me it felt a little short at just fifteen or so minutes. I did like the finish too, when Marcello Ricci came down at ringside to throw a tantrum about Bruno stealing his spot and how he should be the one in the ring competing. Sure, once again we didn't get an absolutely clean finish to a match, but I appreciated how Frye, instead of jumping on the opportunity of the distraction and getting a heelish kind of victory, just used the time to get back on his feet, recollect himself and waited for Bruno to return his attention to the match before he applied the Royal Armbar for the tap.

Rating: 49

More than half of the matches on this night had questionable finishes, which I have to say rubbed me the wrong way a bit, but the show was good nonetheless. I think the TV episodes have been a good way to tell the stories between major shows and build up hype, which paid off here. Some storylines seem to continue, others took a turn and there's no doubt I'll be waiting to see the aftermath tomorrow on Pro Wrestling Hero Europe. I'd say March Into Battle was a 47, all things considered.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Nice to see the gentleman bot losing from a ringside distraction for a change. Also, I've always viewed Etsuko as not on the heel-face paradigm at all, as her own entity on whom a label like heel or face just won't stick.

[EricMN]

Nice. I liked the Etsuko protégé storyline and building up Maisie is smart. The tag match was right up my alley and I bet the Belt match had pop.

 

10/10 would buy this.

[DarK_RaideR]

Well, it was fine while it lasted. My brand new PC's hard drive decided to stop cooperating and although it's still covered by warranty and was replaced for free within a couple of days, I did lose all my saved games for Total Extreme Wrestling 2020, which means no more Ring of the Olympians. It was fun while it lasted and I appreciate you keeping up with it.

 

I've been silent about my stuff and I think I need to take even more off my plate, so expect my forum presence to be furthermore diminished. I'll still keep up with some of the threads, but in a more sporadic fashion.

 

[Mr_Willes]

[juliebarkley]

On 5/11/2022 at 2:36 AM, DarK_RaideR said:

I've been silent about my stuff and I think I need to take even more off my plate, so expect my forum presence to be furthermore diminished. I'll still keep up with some of the threads, but in a more sporadic fashion.

The forums will still be here when you get back. Take care of yourself.

[DarK_RaideR]

On 6/2/2022 at 11:18 PM, juliebarkley said:

The forums will still be here when you get back. Take care of yourself.

Thanks.

 

It's weird that the message right before the quoted one is a mr_willes gif. His passing was so sudden I still haven't fully come to terms with it. Today, @Jarric and the rest of that Ranger Dnd crew had a video call to talk this through during our usual gaming time slot. We were on a break for several weeks due to Willes being away on that fateful trip, so we thought we'd meet around our usual time to catch up. It was emotional but it also helps with the healing. Then I ran into Jarric's post on Willes few minutes ago and it made me think I probably need to do something similar for my sanity's sake.

 

I grew up as no stranger to death, to the point you'd think it's marginally weird. Never got to meet one grandpa, my other two grandparents passed almost on the same day within a year of each other while I was still in kindergarten and my last grandma died when I was 11 or 12. I grew up in a house where the city's main cemetery was just across the street and right behind that was my elementary school, so for almost six years I'd walk through graves on the daily coming and going to school. I decided to tattoo Sir Terry Pratchett's Death on my right calf and one of the reasons was to have it as a reminder that Death walks next to us with each step. And still, with all this, I haven't broken down or cried but I am deeply affected.

 

Willy had a very childish energy to him and an extremely Dutch sense of humor, which means it's often sex-related and usually a Schrödinger's cat situation between being funny but also a bit blunt and offensive. It's fun for online interactions, it's not for everyone but that's not all there was to him. Through that Ranger Dnd game as well as a couple of group chats we were in together, I got to know him better, see under the surface. The guy had love to spare: for his family, his wife, his kids, his dogs, his friends, barbeque, booze, motorcycling, working out, playing RPGs, you name it. He'd often get things I wouldn't vocalize, especially when I wasn't doing too well and although he was discreet and didn't bring it up, when I talked about it, he'd say he'd noticed and offer to talk if I needed to. Hell, last time I saw him I had to say a quick goodbye and log out few minutes before the game session ended because I had to rush out to somewhere and it feels so weird that this was our last interaction. He'd channeled much of his silly personality into his goblin monk, Dragtald, so losing him sucks some added air out of our game. As Jarric's gf said in our call today, he'd hate to have us stop the game because of *waves around* this but at the same time it feels weird to go on without him, it's a case of whatever you do, however you justify it, it's still gonna feel wrong and I guess grief is a lot like that. We'd talked about running a race together or riding our bikes to meet halfway in the Alps or something, but now that's never gonna happen and it sucks because even though I didn't know him all that well, there hasn't been a single person from this forum that I've met in person who wasn't an amazing human being. I often think of great people I've met here who haven't logged in for ages and who I miss, so I know Willes will be among them. He will be remembered and celebrated.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Hugs man. Grief and loss are hard.

[Jarric]

Here to talk if you need it man. I hope writing stuff out helped a little.

 

3 hours ago, DarK_RaideR said:

He will be remembered and celebrated.

 

Your mention of your tattoo got me looking at Terry Pratchett quotes:

 

“No one is finally dead until the ripples they cause in the world die away, until the clock wound up winds down, until the wine she made has finished its ferment, until the crop they planted is harvested. The span of someone’s life is only the core of their actual existence.”
― Terry Pratchett, Reaper Man