One Fan's Review of SHIMMER Volumes 58-61

Earlier this month, I made my 6th trip to Berwyn, Illinois.  The 10 hour drive is filled with excitement and speculation, but nothing compares to experience of being at a SHIMMER taping weekend.  Throughout the weekend, there were many "hits" and a few "misses", but this was a weekend filled with great wrestling. There are so many people and things that happened that deserve to be "hits" and a few "misses", so I am going to group as many things together as I can.  This is a long one, so bear with me.  

Before I get into the "hits" and "misses", I would like to offer my thanks to Dave Prazak, Allison Danger, Kevin Harvey, and all of the SHIMMER crew.  This group of people have put together one of the best rosters in the wrestling industry and we, the fans, get the opportunity to experience this weekend of greatness twice a year.  

Hits

Kevin Harvey - When I heard the announcement that Joey Eastman was retiring, my heart sunk.  But, when I found out that Kevin was going to be the new announcer, I knew we'd be in solid hands.  I wasn't expecting just how good he was going to be.  Match 6 of Volume 57 was the turning point that made me a full out Kevin fan.  The decision to do the traditional Japanese introductions was extremely impressive.  Kudo, Mr. Harvey.

The Returns - Hiroyo Matsumoto and Nevaeh were the major returns this past weekend after both missing the spring weekend.  I never realize how much I miss Hiroyo until she returns.  She is such a joy to watch in the ring.  One of the most talented women on the roster and without a doubt, the happiest.  Nevaeh has always been a miss for me.  I had not really ever seen anything from her that wow'd me.  But, since the last taping, I've watched some of her CZW work, which start to impress me.  Then, this weekend, she really showed me that she has a spot.  I would really like to see her back.

The Rising Stars - This was a great weekend for the women that are up and coming.  Women like Su Yung, Veda Scott, Thunderkitty, Heidi Lovelace, and Mia Yim all had their best showings so far.  Gotta give props to Thunderkitty for keeping the "Trailer Made" chant alive in her match on Volume 61.  Mia Yim had probably the biggest rise of the roster.  Her time in Japan has been very beneficial for her.  If anyone had any doubt about her before Volume 58, those doubts should be gone now.

Storylines - SHIMMER has often been criticized about a lack of storylines.  I thought the stories this

weekend were fantastic.  We had the Klepto-Portia arc begin on 58 and run all the way to wrap on 61.  This was great to watch.  Portia is such a good story teller in the ring and I couldn't see anyone else pulling this off.  The Lufisto/Melissa arc is something that I assume came into be with Hamada's last minute travel issues.  It worked out really well and I can't wait to see how it finished up in the spring.  My favorite, however, is the Madison Eagles/Nicole Matthews feud.  SHIMMER has never been a promotion to have many heel/heel matches, but this is working so well.  The two put on a fantastic match on 58 and the constant shots throughout the weekend were fantastic.

The Debuts - This was a great weekend for Debuts.  Nikki Storm is one of the best, if not the best, debut of the year.  She embodies a cocky heel so well.  Her promos before each match was great.  Hikaru Shida was another incredibly talented women to come from the far east.  She was so so so good and her match against Nicole Matthews on Volume 60 showed that she was willing to have some tough shots with the Kendo stick. I think Angie Skye's move from Sparkle to SHIMMER was long overdue.  I was a fan from her very first Sparkle match and she showed against Mia Yim that she deserves to be on the main roster.  

Tag Team Division - The Tag Team Division has been very shaky for several years.  On any taping

weekend, there hasn't ever been more than a couple of teams that have been together more than a few matches.  Some of the teams have just been thrown together, which hasn't done anything to solidify the division.  This weekend, I thought the addition of the KimberBombs and Stephie/Nevaeh were great.  Both team work so well together and they both need to be brought back.  3G, LuKana, and Made in Sin also impressed.  I think Made in Sin is going to be the team to dethrone 3G.  

The SHIMMER Faithful - As always, we have to give props to the women like Nicole Matthews, Madison Eagles, Kana, Lufisto, Mercedes Martinez, and Cheerleader Melissa.  Any match these women are in, you know will be solidy.  Kudos to all of them for their matches all weekend and a big congratulations to Cheerleader Melissa.  Her announcement as the 2013 PWI #1 woman on the Top 50 was a very nice surprise.  

Misses

Individuals - There were a few women that I just didn't quite get.  Savannah Summers had been announced for Sparkle, but she instead made a run in to save Santana on 58 and teamed with her on 59, making her official debut.  However, why did she make the run in?  What was the link with Santana?  And why did she get SO buried on 59 with no match at all on 60 or 61.  I was expecting to be able to see what she could do, but I was just left with an empty feeling.  Speaking of Santana, I still just don't quite understand her.  She is a good babyface, but who is she?  I don't understand why we should like her other than the fact that she is a babyface.  The other woman that was kind of a miss for me was Crazy Mary Dobson.  I think she is interesting in the ring.  She definitely has talent,

but there were a few things that she did, that just didn't quite make sense.  In her Sparkle match with Angie Skye, she ran and scaled the turnbuckle like she was going to do a top rope arm drag.  But when she flipped down to the mat, she stalled and did something else.  In her tag match when Mary Lee Rose was taking the pin, CMD was in the ring, ran around the pin, and slid out on the opponent's side allowing the the pin to happen.  I don't know if it is inexperience or if it is part of her "crazy" gimmick, but it is odd. 

Cheerleader Melissa's Streak - Melissa's steak of wrestling on every volume has officially ended.  With the unfortunate gash she received from Lufisto on 60, she was forced to miss the match on 61.  She was able to make an appearance, which was good. Now, I think Nicole Matthews holds the record for longest streak for not missing a volume.  

Christina Von Eerie vs Saraya Knight - This was the biggest miss for me.

 I don't even remember what CVE did to disrespect Knight to cause the challenge to be issued.  The match set up was very confusing.  The fact that Knight apparently tapped in round 2 was a big surprise since I didn't see it.  I thought this match was blood, just for the sake of blood.  Overall, this was the biggest misses of the weekend.  

Overall, I thought this was a very successful weekend.  A big thanks to the SHIMMER crew, the roster, and all of the fans. I can't forget the pre-doors open roundtable group.  This group of SHIMMER enthusiasts make the wait extremely entertaining. 

SHIMMER Volumes 58-61 preview

March 26, 2011 is a day that I will never forget.  It was my first SHIMMER live experience and it was fantastic.  The debut of The Knight Dynasty, Courtney Rush's main roster debut, and the dethroning of the Canadian Ninja's as Tag Team Champions.  This weekend is another SHIMMER weekend, the taping of Volumes 58-61.  Here is my preview of the potential weekend.


SHIMMER Championship

I will finally get to see Melissa as a true heel live this taping and I’m excited.  One of the most talented women on the roster, she is a heel through and through.  Even as a face in SHIMMER, she was still very heel-ish…..which I think is why I started to find her a little stale. 

Thinking about potential challengers, there is on person that I think will get a title shot for sure: Ayako Hamada. Hamada has continuously been one of the top performing women in SHIMMER for several years and you can always count on her to be a match of the volume contender.  After the confrontation between Hamada and Melissa at the end of the Danger retirement match on Volume 57, I think it is pretty safe to say we will see these in the ring.  I think Hamada should be the next champion, but I think Melissa will take this one.  It is too early for her to drop the title. 

Another woman that I expect to get a title shot is Kana.  Since her debut at Volume 41, she has taken the SHIMMER world by storm.  Her no-nonsense style is very unique and she has proven time and again that she is one of the toughest on the roster.  With impressive wins over the likes of Sara Del Rey, Lufisto, Athena, and Kalamity, she has proven that she is worthy of her first title shot. 

My next thought for a title defense is former champion Madison Eagles.  Although this would be a heel/heel match, it would be interesting to see the two clash since Melissa has turned to the dark side.  Madison dropped the title to Melissa on Volume 44 and was injured shortly thereafter.  Since returning on volume 53, she racked up 4 wins in 5 matches.  Not yet given her rematch, I would love to see the two square off again.

I have had a difficult time trying to figure out who a good challenger for her fourth defense of the weekend.  I considered it possibly being more of a surprise person like Christina Von Eerie, Leva Bates, or Santana Garrett.  All are good workers, but aren’t main event level women.  The best I could come up with was former Champion MsChif.  We haven’t seen ‘Chif and Melissa in the ring against each other since Volume 6.  Volumes 1, 4 and 6 saw the pair hash out a pretty nice feud with ‘Chif going 2-1 over Melissa.  With the fact that MsChif has been on and off the injured list more frequently over the last couple of years, I am not sure how much longer she will be an active competitor.  So it would be nice to see these two go at it again.

SHIMMER Tag Team Championship

Going into 3G’s first taping as Tag Team Champions, Kellie Skater and Tomoka Nakagawa will inevitably have their hands full for at least one match of the weekend.  The tandem beat the Canadian Ninjas on Volume 57 to become the 8^th team to hold the belts.  However, Portia Perez and Nicole Matthews would love nothing more than to beat 3G to regain the belts for their 3^rd reign. 

Other than the Canadian Ninjas, I would expect to see a title defense against the teams of Made in Sin (Allysin Kay & Taylor Made), LuKana (Lufisto and Kana), and MSEERIE (MsChif and Christina Von Eerie).  Made in Sin and LuKana have both had unsuccessful title shots in the past, but this would be the first chance for the goth/punk rock team of MSEEIRE. In the end, I would expect 3G to retain through the weekend.  They are already booked to defend the belts at the next SHINE iPPV against Valykrie (Allysin Kay and Ivelisse Velez).  I think Allysin Kay has a very bright future in wrestling, so I would love to see her win the Tag belts at some point.  I wasn’t a fan of Taylor Made before teaming with Kay, but this team worked for her big time. I wouldn’t mind seeing the belts go to Made In Sin…..but only after they have been in SHIMMER for a while and establish themselves as a solid team.

Debuts

Two women have been announced to debut for this set of tapings: Nikki Storm and Hikaru Shida.  I am not very familiar with Hikaru Shida other than being able to recognize her name.  I have seen a few of her matches and she seems to do really well.  Given that there have been extremely few joshi’s that SHIMMER has brought over that I have not become a fan of, I am sure Shida will do well.

Nikki Storm, on the other hand, I am more familiar with.  One of the best heels in Europe, Nikki is in her inaugural US tour.  With SHINE, AIW: Girls Night Out under her belt, she has WSU this weekend then the big SHIMMER debut.  I cannot wait.  Nikki oozes charisma and is incredible on the mic.  In the ring, she is crazy good and can be relied on to have a very solid match.  I don’t think I have been this excited for a debut since The Knight Dynasty was announced for Volume 37.

Sparkle Debuts: Savannah Summers, Crazy Mary Dobson

Notable Absences 

Injuries: First, we learn about Athena’s shoulder injury at the WSU show.  Then we learn about Angelus Layne’s concussion.  Then it is Courtney Rush’s broken collarbone.  Now, we learn that Xandra Bale was booked to appear at SHIMMER, but she has broken her fibula.  Athena and Courtney have been riding a big wave of popularity over the past several tapings, so it is going to be a hit to their momentum.  But, I predict these two will be able to pick up where they left off in the spring.  Angelus Layne and Xandra Bale are two of the more recent additions to the roster.  Both have shown a lot of potential, so to see them out with an injury is disappointing.  But here’s to a speedy recovery to all 4 women.

MIA: Serena Deeb, Jessie McKay, Shazza McKenzie, Evie, and Rhia O’Reilly have all been confirmed as missing this taping.  I think I saw where Evie was booked for a show in New Zealand, but I haven’t seen anything concrete on the others.  I was disappointed when I saw that Evie would not be there as her debut this spring was great.  Shazza and Rhia have been here for a couple of tapings and Serena and Jessie have been SHIMMER staples for several years.  It won’t be the first time that we’ve gone through a weekend with holes like this, but it will be nice to see all of them back in the future.

Bad fans

This is not the blog I had written to be posted tonight.  I had written a preview of SHIMMER this weekend.  That will get posted later this week.  But, after the events of today on Twitter, I wrote a new one.  

Every time the Female Fight Season comes around, I am constantly reminded of how bad some “fans” are.  I’m dedicating this blog to them.  Maybe you will recognize yourself as one of these bad fans or someone that you know.  If you find yourself relating to one of these, it might be time to re-evaluate how you show your interest in the sport.  For the sake of anonymity, I am going to refer to the bad fans as men, but some of my experiences are based on women. 

The Perv

We all know this guy.  He is the one making lewd comments or inappropriate jokes.  I have sat next to many Pervs at the various live events, I am sure we all have.  Understanding that some female wrestlers play up the sexy side of their character with provocative ring attire and sultry ring entrances, is it so hard to keep your gross comments to yourself?  Why can’t you comment on the electric chair drop instead of asking the offensive wrestler to not drop her so hard so she doesn’t hurt her pretty face?  This is the guy that usually is the only one to laugh at his own jokes.  He is the one to snap pics as the women get in the ring so he has a camera full of butt shots.  You are gross and you make me want to switch seats. Where to be on the lookout for The Perv: Live Events, Forums, and Social Media

Mr. Moneybags

This is the guy that feels a sense of entitlement to a wrestling promotion because he USED to give them money.  Maybe he bought merch from them or maybe he was a financial backer in helping to cover cost of some of the talent.  But guess what….you aren’t anymore.  So, cut the crap and stop ragging on EVERYTHING a promotion does.  It is incredibly annoying.  I can tell that you are very knowledgeable about wrestling, but it is hard to take you seriously when half of what comes out of your mouth is a dig.  The world would be a much better place if you would start to ignore the promotion that ticked you off and focus on the ones that you like.  Just because a promotion isn’t going in the direction that you prefer, doesn’t mean that it isn’t a place for women to get their name out there and start creating a fan base.   Where to be on the lookout for Mr. Moneybags: Forums and Social Media

Mr. Know-it-All

I have to be careful to not fall into this one.  Women’s wrestling is such a niche market, that it isn’t hard to be the most knowledgeable in your circle.  But there is a big difference in being the most knowledgeable and being a know-it-all that doesn’t know what he is talking about.  There are TONS of websites that report the results of mainstream and independent wrestling shows.  There are also numerous sites that report behind the scene news.  Make sure your news source is reputable if you plan to pass the information along.  We all played the game of telephone growing up.  It would be a shame if the actual story was of a wrestler firing her manager, but story you read and retold was that a wrester was fired from a company because she was sleeping with half of the male roster.  Another problem with this fan, since he is very knowledgeable about wrestling, he feels like his is the only right now.  Forget all of the people who attend the shows and  buy the merch.  He is the only one with a correct opinion.  Where to be on the lookout for Mr. Know-it-All: Live Events, Forums, and Social Media

Mr. If-It-Isn’t-WWE-It-Isn’t-Good-Enough

He can talk about how each match on every Wrestlemania, Summerslam, and Unforgiven went.  He can discuss, in detail, how good the roster was in 1997 and 2006.  But mention someone like Mercedes Martinez or Madison Eagles and he doesn’t have a clue.  He says it costs too much money to follow independent wrestling.  When you ask him about looking it up on youtube….his response is that it was more important to watch Santina Marella win the 25-Diva Battle Royal on Wrestlemania XXV for the 18^th time.  Mainstream wrestling has had a lot of really good women’s matches and it is really easy to watch and follow the ‘E.  But there is so much more out there that you would enjoy if you would just try.  Where to be on the lookout for Mr. If-It-Isn’t-WWE-It-Isn’t-Good-Enough: Forums and Social Media

Mr. Friend-of-a-Wrestler

This person is either going to be your best wrestilng fan friend or the one you despise the most.   It isn’t uncommon for this person to have the inside track on what is going on, but this person is also typically a bandwagon joiner and egotistical blogger.  Since he is friends with wrestlers, he must be better than all of us simple fans.   And goodness, you better believe he knows more about how a match should be booked than most….in some case, more than the actual booker.  One experience I had with this type of fan was at a live event.  One of his favorite wrestlers took the loss to a newcomer to the promotion.  His favorite doesn’t have the best W-L record, so he is already bitter.  But when this lose happened, he blew a gasket.  The trash talking on Twitter started and it was RIDICULOUS.  This type of fan also gets VERY bent out of shape if a wrestler picks a name that even remotely resembles an established wrestler.  Now, I’m not talking about the Jessie Kay/Jessie McKay type of resemblance.  This fan would throw a fit if a wrestler decided to use the name Cat Cruise. He would say there is already a Cat Power and already a Melanie Cruise.  Google the name you want to pick.  Yes, because googling Cat Cruise is going to return a page that tells the new wrestler that her name MIGHT get confused with 2 separate women.  Where to be on the lookout for Mr. Friend-of-a-Wrestler: EVERY live event, Forums, and Social Media.

The purpose of this blog isn’t completely to bash these fans.  It is more of a way to highlight that we have things we need to work out.  If you see yourself in one of these fan types, it might be good to try to reign yourself in a little.  Maybe back off on all of the cat calls to the women in spandex.  Maybe don’t flaunt that you are besties with 16 wrestlers quite so much.  Most of all, try to be positive about the fact that we are all fans of the same sport.  We are very small in numbers, so there is no need to be shady and ugly about it.