Lockdowns used to just be a TNA pay-per-view… but since we’re mostly experiencing them for real now, we’re back with another list of suggestions on shows to pass the time. This time: two years of PROGRESS!
This time around, we’re going to dive into another VOD service – and it’s one that we’d wager a lot of you either subscribe to, or have done at some point: Demand PROGRESS. Across at demand-progress.com, the Pivotshare-powered site hosts (virtually) everything PROGRESS has done, along with content from a variety of other promotions for $6.99 a month.
We’ve reviewed pretty much everything that PROGRESS has put out – save for a few ENDVR shows and the Freedom’s Road series (we never did catch season two before it dropped off…). So, looking only at the PROGRESS content and none of the “friendly” promotions (so no Lucha Forever deep dives!), here’s some of our tips for good matches and storyline content from the earlier years of PROGRESS…
Chapter 25: Chat Shit, Get Banged – 2016 had a hot start with a heck of a tag match between the Origin and FSU… Zack Gibson vs. Mark Haskins keeps it up… Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay push it over the edge two as the “Villain” gets fleshed out…
Chapter 26: Unknown Pleasures – for a wacky four-way tag, the Dazzler Team vs. Sweet Jesus vs. The Origin vs. Big Damo & Joe Coffey not only opened up a portal to an alternative-Gallus, but makes me miss Earl Black Jr… Timothy Thatcher vs. Jack Gallagher had a solid outing,and one that could well improve without the “stink” of THAT EVOLVE run on it… Mark Haskins was the next victim in Marty Scurll’s big run…
Chapter 27: The Lost Art of Suffering – technical Jack Gallagher vs. Johnny Kidd is one for the your scrapbooks, if only for the sight of Kidd in a PROGRESS ring…
Chapter 28: Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want – the future Tyson T-Bone and WALTER in the early days of the Atlas division… as in “the Atlas division championship tournament”… FSU and the Origin have a pretty good tag title match in the main event.
Chapter 30: Super Strong Style 16 (2016): Night One – Chris Hero vs. Mark Andrews was the standout from the first ever SSS16 show… while the Origin vs. London Riots wrapped up a year-long feud for the tag titles in the main event.
Chapter 30: Super Strong Style 16 (2016): Night Two – (Big Daddy) WALTER vs. Chris Hero is worth your time. I know, right?! That wasn’t the only good Hero match that night, as his semi-final vs. Tommy End stood out.
Chapter 31: All Hail The New Puritans – Playing off their ENDVR feud, Pollyanna and Dahlia Black went down a storm, as did a Marty Scurll vs. Chris Hero title main event.
Chapter 32: 5000 to 1 – Titled after Leicester City’s fabled Premiership-winning season, Johnny Gargano’s only trip to the Electric Ballroom saw him put up the championship of Canada’s SMASH promotion against Mark Haskins
Chapter 33: Malice in Wonderland – Zack Gibson vs. Jack Gallagher and Mark Haskins vs. Will Ospreay stand out on a show that saw the end of the Pastor’s brief title run…
Chapter 36: We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Room… Again! – PROGRESS’ first “big September show” in Brixton felt like a watershed moment for some. The main event three-way for the title had the “moment” that lives on in video packages, but ZSJ vs. Tommaso Ciampa’s best-of-three falls match was a fine blow-off
Chapter 39: The Graps of Wrath – A historic show as PROGRESS needed to crown a new champion after Mark Haskins’ run lasted two shows before a career-delaying injury struck. Matt Riddle vs. Will Ospreay stole the show, despite the “one night tournament-ish” format, as the title match main event proved a worthwhile watch.
Chapter 43: Tropic Thunderbastard – a coming of age for the South Pacific Power Trip as Travis Banks and TK Cooper took on RINGKAMPF’s WALTER and Axel Dieter Jr. in an early match of the year contender…
Chapter 45: Galvanize – and the South Pacific Power Trip did it again two chapters later, against the future Moustache Mountain of Trent Seven and Tyler Bate. Stick around too, as RINGKAMPF vs. Hunter Brothers was a tag match that wowed fans who were unfamiliar to the Hunters… and in the singles, Flash Morgan Webster and Nathan Cruz stood out, while Will Ospreay and Mark Andrews leapt off the page. Heck, this entire show is perhaps one of PROGRESS’ best yet in terms of consistent in-ring action.
Chapter 46: I Like To Chill Out Here And Shoot Some Dinosaurs – a really cool show name, with some good stuff as well. Jack Sexsmith’s rise continued, albeit in defeat to Travis Banks, Axel Dieter Jr. and Mark Haskins went all out, while we also had a fans bring the weapons/loser leaves town match between Will Ospreay and Jimmy Havoc. And that was just the first half. After the break? Hunter Brothers vs. Moustache Mountain, WALTER vs. Matt Riddle and Mark Andrews vs. Pete Dunne. These shows are really shining a light on the Britwres heydey, eh?
Orlando – not strictly a “chapter show”, and a real ball-ache when it came to watching live. Luckily, you shouldn’t have the same issues on VOD – and you’ll be able to see another star-building outing from the South Pacific Power Trip, this time as they took on JML’s Shane Strickland and Sami Callihan. The remainder of the card from there delivers equally well, with Trent Seven vs. Matt Riddle for the Atlas title, a WWE UK title defence between Tyler Bate and Mark Andrews, and Pete Dunne defending the PROGRESS title vs. Mark Haskins making this a good showing for British Strong Style.
Chapter 47: Complicated Simplicity – Guess who’s back. Yep, the South Pacific Power Trip vs. London Riots continued the Kiwi’s run of great matches in PROGRESS, while a dream trios match between British Strong Style and RINGKAMPF kept that “six-man matches are always good” maxim alive.
Chapter 49: Super Strong Style 16 2017: Night One – If you’re looking for notebook matches, there’s a few matches that come close, but Zack Sabre Jr. vs. David Starr is that match…
Chapter 49: Super Strong Style 16 2017: Night Two – A five-star banger between Jeff Cobb and Matt Riddle had the scene abuzz… Flamita vs. Travis Banks was good, but pretty much everything else that followed struggled… while the Natural PROGRESSion Series final to crown PROGRESS’ first Women’s champion saw Toni Storm, Laura di Matteo and Jinny tear the Ballroom down.
Chapter 49: Super Strong Style 16 2017: Night Three – ZSJ vs. Travis Banks. Tyler Bate vs. Matt Riddle. Jeff Cobb vs. Pete Dunne. Travis Banks vs. Tyler Bate. The tournament matches delivered, and then some, as PROGRESS began their build to a debut show at Alexandra Palace.
Chapter 50: I Give It Six Months – an in-joke of a show name, but some solid stuff in here. Pete Dunne vs. Donovak Dijak? CCK vs. Moustache Mountain? The PROGRESS half century had those matches, that’s for sure…
Chapter 51: Screaming For PROGRESS – War Machine vs. London Riots in a tornado match continued their run of car-crashy matches in what was their best yet… WALTER vs. Matt Riddle was an unsurprising cracker… as was the Travis Banks & CCK vs. British Strong Style trios match – even if the weird “tag titles on the line in a trios match” stipulation rankled.
Chapter 52: Vote Pies – Travis Banks’ run to the PROGRESS title continues with a roadblock in the form of Matt Riddle. I’m sure you can imagine how that goes… elsewhere, Laura di Matteo knocked it out of the park as she challenged Toni Storm for the women’s title… while War Machine rules returned as they challenged Moustache Mountain for the tag straps…
Chapter 53: Fate Loves The Fearless – while it’s not aged well because of, erm, circumstances, the battle of the London Riots was a fun little scrap in its own bubble… Jack Sexsmith had a crack at Pete Dunne’s title as Dunne and Travis Banks picked each other’s poison. That was good, but perhaps overshadowed by Dunne’s pick: Keith Lee. If not that, then definitely the big return at the end. Ah, how things could have been…
Chapter 55: Chase The Sun – PROGRESS’ debut at Alexandra Palace definitely had its spotlight moments. The opening ladder match that saw CCK reclaim the tag titles against Moustache Mountain was a fine way to start… while ZSJ vs. Marty Scurll may be a little too long for some people’s tastes, but at time of writing, this still remains Marty’s final PROGRESS match, some two and a half years later… Mark Haskins and Jimmy Havoc’s death match starts a trend at Alexandra Palace… the Atlas title three-way between Timothy Thatcher, Matt Riddle and WALTER was exactly what you’d hope for… the scramble match for a title shot opens a portal to hell… if babyface Eddie Dennis was the thing you cherish. That match is still being felt in 2020 PROGRESS storylines. Then of course, the capping off of Travis Banks, as he overcame Pete Dunne in a main event that was perhaps teetering on the edge of what some call today “the forced epic”.
Chapter 57: Enter Smiling – the show that started the ball rolling for Doug Williams’ retirement in 2018… and also gave us a delight in CCK vs. RINGKAMPF… along with Keith Lee vs. Flash Morgan Webster, with the latter having his own “nearly man” storyline in play here.
Chapter 60: Unboxing Live 2 – We close out this portion of PROGRESS’ back catalogue with their second annual mystery show… Travis Banks vs. Will Ospreay knocked it out of the park, while the main event that saw Pete Dunne take on a on-loan-from-WWE Jack Gallagher was perhaps a sign of what to expect in the future.
Two years worth of the cream of PROGRESS – that ought to tide you all over, whether you’re looking to relive some of the “glory years” or if you’re a PROGRESS fan of a more recent vintage…