GCW: Til Infinity- December 31, 2021
by Doc Allen
Live from the Carousel Room at Showboat Hotel, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Our hosts are Dave Prazak and Kevin Gill.
10 Bell Salute for the late Markus Crane.
GCW Extreme Championship:
PCO © vs. Matt Tremont
Tremont is a surprise open challenger for PCO's newly restored Extreme Championship. Fans chant "Bulldozer" for Tremont and then "both these guys." They lock up and trade closed fists. They happily trade shoulder blocks in a spirited contest. PCO attempts a tope but Tremont swings a chair into his skull. They fill the ring with chairs while brawling, and trade ill-advised unprotected headshots. PCO clotheslines Tremont out for a bumpy landing and then hits a diving somersault senton. PCO nearly slips while delivering another somersault senton onto the apron. PCO takes too long setting up a door on some chairs and Tremont hits a DDT. Tremont repositions the door against the buckles, but PCO repays the DDT. PCO goes through two standing chairs with a moonsault when Tremont dodges. Samoan drop by Tremont, but PCO sits up, so Tremont hits a splash for 2. Tremont chokeslams PCO through a chair for an oddly cold nearfall. PCO grins while sitting up, but Tremont puts him through the door with a DVD. PCO kicks out at the last second. Tremont fetches a wired bat, swings and misses, and PCO takes it away for a series of blows. PCO's knees land on Tremont's gut in a moonsault and that's it at 12:59. This was a rough, slow motion brawl, I regret giving low ratings to matches where the guys took so much punishment, **.Winner and still Extreme Champion: PCO
Cole Radrick vs. Tony Deppen
Deppen stomps a mudhole into Radrick. They run the ropes and Radrick scores a springboard head scissors takedown and then a gutbuster. Brainbuster by Radrick and then a fakeout dive. Radrick changes directions to catch Deppen with a tope. Deppen recovers with a suplex into some non-folding chairs. Deppen sprays mucus from his "word hole" while ranting and keeps beating up Radrick like he caught him breaking into his house. Radrick survives with a power slam for 2. Russian legsweep by Deppen sets up a modified crossface. Radrick escapes, lights Deppen up with open hand slaps, and hits a spinning kick to the head. Second rope moonsault by Radrick gets 2. Radrick thrusts Deppen into the buckles and hits a springboard cutter for another 2 count. Crowd isn't buying any of this. They trade rapid counters until Radrick scores an Air Raid Crash for 2. Deppen comes back with a running DVD into the buckles, followed by a flying double stomp for a ludicrous nearfall. Radrick hits a weak 619 and then a butterfly suplex into a cross armbreaker. Deppen escapes and knees the head for a cold nearfall. Radrick kicks out of a Tombstone piledriver and this is getting stupid. They have more time to fill, and Radrick's arm injury doesn't seem to be a factor, so they have a Fighting Spirit sequence. Low lariat by Radrick, who kips up. Deppen flips the bird and eats a roundhouse kick. Deppen slams Radrick into a Last Chancery for the submission at 11:54, justifying the earlier arm work. This was a total misfire, full of ridiculous, undeserved false finishes that no one aside from 2 vocal fans were buying, *½.Winner: Tony Deppen Joey Janela joins commentary. He's trying not to get drunk tonight, because he has a big match tomorrow against Scotty 2 Hotty. He still might hit the bars after the show and lose 900 or 2,000 dollars at the casinos.
Ho Ho Lun vs. Jimmy Lloyd
Lun has the speed and technique advantage, and takes Jimmy down for a boot rake and dropkick to the head. Jimmy kips up for a springboard armdrag. Leaping enziguri by Jimmy, and then a cannonball against the ropes. They go straight to exchanging open hand chops. Jimmy hits a messy uranage out of the corner and an Arabian press for 2. Missile dropkick by Lun, but Jimmy counters into a Dragon suplex. Package piledriver by Jimmy gets 2. Lun hits an enziguri and a Fisherman buster for another cold nearfall. Lun brings in a chair, but Lloyd puts him through it with a Tombstone piledriver, but Lun kicks out to no reaction. Lun hits a Canadian Destroyer, but Lloyd then hits a Snowplow through 4 chairs for the win at 7:22. Really awkward clash of styles and skills, as Lun totally outclassed Lloyd but still had to put him over. Also, it's time for someone to read the room and tell the guys to stop going for constant kickouts at 2, they are not getting over tonight, *.Winner: Jimmy Lloyd
Lun sells a head injury while thanking the fans for their "Please come back" chant.
Jack Cartwheel vs. Nick Wayne
Wayne is a sophomore in high school, which means I've been reviewing wrestling for as long as he's been alive. I feel okay with (most of) my life choices. They lock up and start with some friendly chain wrestling. They reach an elaborate stalemate, and Wayne looks proficient for someone his age. Cartwheel ties up the legs and cartwheels into a gator roll. They reach another stalemate, and Cartwheel shows off with some more cartwheels. The crowd applauds their third stalemate. Cartwheel gets carried away with cartwheeling around to avoid damage, flips double birds, but Wayne makes him pay with a soaring dive over the ring post. Wayne tries to slow things down, but Cartwheel uses a one armed stand to sweep the legs. Back handspring plancha to outside by Cartwheel! Cartwheel runs laps to tease a running attack, but instead delivers a t!tty twister. Cartwheel gets hung up in the buckles and Wayne lifts him up to force a sickening split! Cartwheel returns the favor by splitting Wayne's legs on the canvas. Cartwheel's standing SSP gets 2, and he misses a normal SSP. Enziguri by Wayne, and then a stunner. Standing moonsault by Wayne gets 2. Swanton bomb by Wayne, but Cartwheel reverses the pin attempt. They trade big kicks, and Wayne hits a mean poison rana! Standing Spanish Fly by Cartwheel gives them a breather. Fans chant "GCW!" Wayne goes for the Panama Sunrise, but Jack blocks with more cartwheels. Repeated elbows to the head by Jack, and many handsprings into a bulldog attempt, but Wayne reverses into a Blue Thunder Bomb. Wayne steps up into a Destroyer for only 2. Jack comes back with a DVD onto the apron. Jack keeps at it with a dead lift German suplex and cartwheel double stomp. Phoenix Splash ends it for Cartwheel at 13:11! Heads and tails above everything else on the show thus far, because they actually tried to have a match before kicking out at 2. This felt like a couple of jocks enjoying showing off what they could do, ***½.Winner: Jack Cartwheel
Emil Jay tells the fans that he'll be in his first ever battle rap later tonight. Okay then.
Atticus Cogar vs. Everett Connors (1:17 for his entrance garb)
Connors has quite the attire, with stuffed animals hanging from overalls, blue sky shirt, and a bucket hat. It goes well with his blue hair. Cogar isn't a fan and takes it to Connors with a running boot. Connors recovers with a dropkick, but foolishly opts to pose and Cogar retakes control with a hard Irish whip. Cogar sends Connors' head into a bridged chair. Cogar throws a chair at Connors' head for 2. Drop toe hold into a chair by Cogar, but Connors counters into a leg lariat. Cogar regains control with concentrated attacks to the arm. Connors mounts a scrappy comeback with lots of punching, and hits a slingshot double stomp to the face, followed by a messy stage dive. Leaping DDT by Connors gets 2. Cogar knees an open chair into the face for 2. Connors surprises with a pump handle slam, also for 2. Cogar answers with a superplex and holds on for an Air Raid Crash into an open chair, but Connors kicks out (in a totally undeserved false finish). I'm sorry, that should have been the finish, they're just spinning their wheels now. Cogar unloads chairshots. Connors blocks a headlock driver into the chair, totally whiffs on a leg lariat, and hits a Burning Hammer through the chair for, you guessed it, only 2. The fans do not care. Connors hits a pendulum piledriver for another cold nearfall. Cogar blocks sliced bread and hits a backbreaker. Cogar wakes the fans up with green skewers into Connor's blue hair, and the headlock driver ends it at 11:57. Totally devoid of heat, and full of silly false finishes that were unwarranted considering where Connors and Cogar are in the pecking order. Amazingly, Connors' stuffed animals survived the match still attached to his pajama overalls, *.Winner: Atticus Cogar
Cogar wraps his "MC" wrist bands around a bundle of light tubes and pays tribute to his late friend, Markus Craine. He shares a hug with Connors and then smashes the tubes over his head for an even better tribute.
Dante Leon and Ninja Mack vs. Alex Zayne and Blake Christian
They greet each other with dropkicks, and Christian and Mack square off. They miscue a kick and Mack takes an awkward bump, but they still make it to a stalemate. Leon interrupts and rolls into a stomp to the chest and standing moonsault. Zayne cartwheels to avoid Leon's monkey flip, and hits a springboard moonsault to the back (in another miscue, Leon was supposed to dodge). Zayne hits a somersault leg drop to keep things moving before anyone can process the botch. Mack goes for a springboard sunset flip and bangs his own head against Zayne's back in another horrible botch. Mack recovers with a proper sunset flip, but seems to have lost the crowd. Leon and Mack hit stereo dives to outside. The match settles into Mack and Leon working Christian with high flying moves in their corner. Christian saves himself with a 619-style legsweep, double stomp to the apron, and Asai moonsault. Christian and Zayne slow things down picking Mack apart. Mack blocks a poison rana, hits an enziguri, and makes a depressingly heatless hot tag to Leon, who hits a double flipping springboard cutter. Blake finds his second wind with a snap suplex on Leon, but he eats Mack's roundhouse kick. Zayne slams Mack, and he turns around for Leon's flying spin kick. Blake hits Leon with a Blue Thunder Bomb for 2. Zayne cartwheels off Blake's back for a turnbuckle attack, Leon no-sells and hits a missile dropkick. Everyone is down for a polite "GCW" chant. They brawl to their feet, Leon and Mack double team Zayne and nearly finish with the End Seeker, Blake saves the match. Some fans give them a generous "This is awesome" chant. Leon and Mack try a superplex to outside, but Zayne blocks and totally botches a leaping double rana. This is such a mess. Blake runs wild, Zayne moonsaults onto Leon outside. Mack takes consecutive drive-by attacks but kicks out. Mack dropkicks Zayne off the top rope, Leon accidentally hits his own partner with a top rope flipping cutter. Blake misses a flying double stomp on Mack and tries again and wins at 15:39. This was an embarrassing sloppy train wreck and a depressing imitation of better tag team classics, DUD.Winners: Blake Christian and Alex Zayne
Blake grabs a mic and says he feels like walking into the Hammerstein Ballroom as a champion. He and Zayne have their sights set on the GCW Tag Team titles. It's been a long time coming, but he wants some gold around his MFing waist.
Dark Sheik vs. Colby Corino
Colby is the spitting image of his father. They lock up, Colby scores a waistlock takedown. Fans give them a dueling chant. Colby gets another takedown, Sheik reverses into a trailer hitch. They put on a fun chain wrestling display. Corino hits a release suplex that Sheik was supposed to land on her feet, but stumbles. She still clears Colby for a diving DDT! Springboard leg drop by Sheik, but Colby blocks her springboard senton, and follows with a double knee backbreaker for 2. Corino props a chair, but Sheik thrusts him head first into it. German suplex by Sheik gets 2. Corino absorbs a head kick and blasts a backstabber and double stomp for 2. Colby punishes Sheik with a chair, failing to draw any heat, so he hits a backbreaker for 2. Sheik tries a flying spin kick, but Colby reverses into a wild slam. Sheik comes back with an old fashioned punch to the d!ck. She follows with a step up stomp to the face. Sheik hits a super rana and a flying leg drop for 2. Corino hits a running Alabama Slam into the corner and then a package backbreaker, but Sheik kicks out. Double knee backbreaker by Corino also gets 2. Sheik reverses Corino's top rope delayed suplex and nails a pump handle driver for, you guessed it, only 2. She hits a second driver and wins at 11:59. Match was kind of boring and lacked any interesting narratives, but it was competent, so I'll give it that, *¾.Winner: Dark Sheik
Sheik offers a handshake, but Corino simply spits at her and leaves. Come on, dude, we're still living in a pandemic.
YDNB (Jordan Oliver, Charlie Tiger, and Ellis Taylor) vs. The Second Gear Crew (AJ Gray, Effy, and Matthew Justice)
YDNB start with triple superkicks, followed by triple dives to outside. YDNB trap Effy in their corner and take turns attacking his arm. Effy makes his own hot tag and dishes out suplexes. Effy and Tiger engage in a chair duel until Tiger hits a chair-assisted back splash for 2. Gray helps with a mean flapjack on Tiger. Gray and Justice hit a double clothesline, allowing the SGC to isolate Tiger. The SGC bring in a collection of doors to use as weapons. The match breaks down, Taylor leaps off Tiger's back to put Effy through ringside doors with a blockbuster! Gray and Tiger duke it out until Gray nails a decapitation lariat. Oliver and Justice both hit Coast to Coast dropkicks, and Oliver then catches Justice with an Asai moonsault. Tiger and Gray have a slapfest until YDNB triple team Gray with tandem offense, including a double boot into a German. Justice flies into Tiger's headbutt. Oliver jumps off Justice for a supercutter on Effy! Taylor hits Effy with a Swanton Bomb, but Gray slams Justice onto YDNB to break the group pinfall! Oliver stumbles up for a uranage on Gray, and Justice interrupts with a sloppy mid-air spear. Effy takes Tiger down for Gray's flying leg drop. Effy drops the Zack Ryder on Taylor, but the pin is interrupted. Justice smashes a Mance Warner chair over Taylor's head. The SGC hit a Doomsday Zack Ryder to finish Taylor at 13:17! This show badly needed a fun banger, and this provided great surprises and ambitious high spots with minimal slip-ups, ***½.Winners: The Second Gear Crew
INTERMISSION!
Six-Way Scramble:
Calvin Tankman vs. Manders vs. JJ Garrett vs. Shane Mercer vs. Marcus Mathers vs. Yoya
Garrett is billed as "Hot Steiner" and looks like an early 90's Scott Steiner mini-me. The locals in the crowd are happy to see Mathers. Yoya enters in Tony Deppen's jacket as a troll job. The three "hosses" in the match clear the ring for a makeshift triple threat match. Manders eats a double team slam. Tankman takes Mercer down with a neat rana. Mercer blocks Tankman's dive with a cool DVD. The diminutive Yoya goes for Mercer's throat, avoids a press slam, slips in a leap frog, recovers with a sunset flip into a shotgun dropkick! The little guys have their own makeshift triple threat while the hosses take a breather. Mathers clears the ring, but Tankman catches him with an apron bomb. Mercer looks for a Tombstone moonsault on Yoya, who counters to springboard into the arms of other hosses, and Garrett wipes them all out with a plancha! Manders hits a top rope rana onto a pile of bodies, and they gather together to catch a flying Tankman. Mercer hits Tankman with a one handed delayed suplex! Mercer slams Mathers onto Tankman, Yoya breaks the pin. Yoya hits Manders with a double stomp off of the back of Mercer. Garrett hits a doomsday lariat and a somewhat ugly powerbomb. Mercer hits Garrett with a wheelbarrow suplex. Mathers counters Mercer with a Destroyer, and then a Saito suplex. Manders hits Mathers with the Iowa Stampede, Garrett breaks the pin. Garrett double stomps Manders' head and follows with a cannonball. Tankman piles two bodies for a Tower of Doom slam. Meanwhile, Mathers hits a doomsday blockbuster, and everyone goes down for a "GCW" chant. Mercer and Tankman stumble up for a brawl, Tankman hits a mean backfist, Manders breaks the pin. Manders lariats Tankman, but Garrett interrupts him with a shotgun dropkick. Yoya hits a driver on Garrett, Mathers puts Yoya down with a piledriver for 2. Mathers' chops have little effect on Tankman, so he hits repeated elbow shots. Mathers takes a big chop and kips up, only to eat a popup backfist. The Tankman Driver finishes Mathers at 15:15! Really good and interesting scramble, thanks to the various size dynamics. You might not like this because it was a shameless spotfest, but what is supposed to happen when you send six guys out there in a one fall match? ***.Winner: Calvin Tankman
Charli Evans vs. Allie Katch
They lock up and trade holds in competitive fashion. Allie misses a back senton. They restart with more chain wrestling. They release knuckle locks and remain in bridged positions to shake hands and then trade slaps. They get back to their feet for a proper slapfest. Evans' low crossbody against the ropes gets 2. Katch seems to tweak her own knee in a cartwheel and hits a head kick. Evans takes control by attacking the bad knee. Katch hits a seated senton and then a hip attack in the corner. Cannonball by Katch gets 2. Katch's selling suggests that she's fighting through the pain, not no-selling. Katch throws a headbutt, Evans hits a superkick, and they both go down for a "GCW" chant. Fans are distracted when Jimmy Lloyd randomly goes through a merch table off camera. The commentators laugh it off. Evans traps the wrist and kicks the head. Evans takes Katch to Suplex City. Katch answers with a superplex, and holds on for a slippery Northern Lights bomb. Evans kicks out! Katch looks freshly hobbled, Evans hits a Gory Bomb for 2! Evans applies the ankle lock, Katch gets the ropes. Katch hits a Northern Lights suplex, but can't maintain the cover due to her bad knee. Charli goes for a jackknife cover and then a Saito Suplex. Katch counters with a piledriver to win at 15:40! Good match with simple, yet effective psychology, ***.Winner: Allie Katch
They have some time to kill before midnight, so Emil Jay hosts a battle rap, which I'm going to skip, if you'll excuse me.
Death Match:
AKIRA vs. G-Raver
Well, it's officially 2022. Can this be the first good year of this lousy new decade? It's going to be a rough start for these competitors, because the room is full of death match plunder. They actually start with some grappling and run the ropes. G-Raver forces AKIRA to bite a light tube and smashes his knee against the head! G-Raver uses the jagged edge of tube to carve the forehead in just the right bladejob area. AKIRA defiantly eats the light tube and spits pieces into Raver's face. Raver shuts him down with a running boot. G-Raver smashes a tube over the forehead and hits an awkward springboard backfist. They head outside, where AKIRA slams G-Raver face first into a standing chair. AKIRA then tosses Raver from the apron through a door. AKIRA surgically opens Raver's head with a broken tube. AKIRA's Tiger Suplex gets 2. G-Raver answers with a tube across the back, boot to the head, and a draping slam onto a ladder. AKIRA kicks out and counters by swinging a bundle of tubes into the face. They take a break from weapons for a slow, sloppy wrestling sequence. AKIRA loses temper and viciously attacks the ears. AKIRA tries a tube assisted superplex, but G-Raver botches his counter and seems to stab himself on a swing. AKIRA hits a tube assisted flying senton for 2. The match comes to another screeching halt as they fumble through more holds. Raver hits flying double knees through a door for only 2. Crowd isn't buying any nearfalls. G-Raver pulls out a bag full of metal zip ties, but chooses to suplex AKIRA through a chair. Raver spits in the face and throws elbows, to which AKIRA puts his own hands behind his back and asks for more. Raver obliges by smashing a half dozen tubes over his face. AKIRA sticks sharp metal to his own forehead and suplexes Raver onto the zip ties. AKIRA dropkicks tubes into Raver's gut for 2. AKIRA hits a piledriver through more tubes for another 2 count. AKIRA struggles to bring in a tripod ladder, luckily Raver sells in the corner. The ladder falls apart, but AKIRA insists on bridging a tube ladder on it while the ring crew holds it up. This is embarrassing. It takes four people to hold the ladder from tipping while Raver and AKIRA climb up. Raver hits a disgusting superplex through the tube ladder and wins at 29:26. I honestly hated everything about this match. It was ugly, slow, long, dangerous, lacked anything resembling heat, and the holy $#!& finale fell apart. 2022 can only improve from here, right? DUD!Winner: G-Raver
AKIRA takes the mic and says he's on a mission to make the world respect death match wrestlers. Well, he'll have to do better next time. He plans on sticking around all year and win some matches. John Wayne Murdock interrupts to call out Alex Colon for a brawl, previewing their fight tomorrow, er, later today.
Final Thoughts: At just under five hours in length, the title "Til Infinity" takes on new meaning. This show was plagued with many flat out bad matches that could potentially hurt the good vibes surrounding GCW as they head towards their Hammerstein Ballroom event. Recommendation to avoid.
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