Riptide closed out their 2017 with another frantic show that endured card changes but provided the spectacular once again.
Brighton’s Brighthelm Centre saw a late change to the main event after Kid Lykos’ latest shoulder injury prevented the planned main event of CCK versus Bird, Boar and Havoc… so in the wolf’s place we had… Jinny? There’s a noticeable increase in lighting in the venue, which means that we’re not always going from way-too-bright to wrestling in the dark. I approve!
Zack Gibson vs. Chuck Mambo
Entrances and what-not are cut out here, so we start with… someone in the crowd mistaking Chuck Mambo for Zack Ryder. Eight years ago, perhaps, but today?? Mambo’s holding his own early as the floating camera pans back-and-forth across the ring. We settle down into some boo/yay pinning attempts between the two, culminating in the old “double-pin but we raise shoulders up just in time”. Zack Gibson, comedy wrestler, eh?
That motif continues as Chuck uses Gibson as a literal surfboard, before he’s shoved down to the outside as he went for the springboard part of the Reefbreak double knees, as Zack wanted to do a dive… which was quickly met in kind. Another crack at the Reefbreak misses as Gibson again throws him to the outside for some forearms… and into the front row too. Back inside, Gibson continues to throw rights at Mambo, decrying him as a “joke”, but of course that sparks the fightback, with Mambo dropkicking Gibson back outside for… another dive? Yep, the springboard senton takes Mambo off-screen, before he pops back up like a horror movie monster, as a Reefbreak finally connects for a near-fall.
Just like that, Gibson takes him into the corner for a Ticket to Ride, but the Helter Skelter’s avoided as Mambo lands a fireman’s carry gutbuster and a springboard frog splash to almost claim victory. Looking for the finish, Mambo tries for Chuck You, which Gibson rolls out of and grabs the Shankly Gates, before the chain of counters led to a Helter Skelter for another near-fall. I like this game-raising Mambo does in Brighton…
Gibson goes back to the Shankly Gates, dragging Mambo into the middle of the ring, but Chuck’s back up and gets taken to the corner… where Gibson does his slip spot, allowing Mambo to rush in with a boot before hitting the Chuck You for the win. A solid outing for Mambo, who remains unbeaten in singles matches in Riptide, which is quite the thing… ***
El Phantasmo vs. Kip Sabian vs. Lion Kid
It’s a weird one this, seeing Lion Kid on a non-family show. The last time I think he did this was for the XWA, and he’s really conflicted, despite “being able to say naughty words”. Cover your ears, kiddies…
In the middle of having that crisis of confidence, Kip Sabian attacks Lion Kid, before going after El Phantasmo for buying into it all. They go through everyone’s favourite series, the one that ends with missed dropkicks, before turfing Lion Kid as ELP seems to want no part of him now. There’s a nice monkey flip series that leads to duelling pins and ELP’s favoured rope-walking spots, where he again kicks away Lion Kid before landing that ‘rana to Sabian. Lion Kid eventually returns, and wipes out ELP with a Code Red before nullifying Kip with a top rope ‘rana and a sorta blocked Sliced Bread.
Sabian’s Falcon arrow doesn’t produce a cover as he just throws Kid outside… before the plucky Lion began another fightback, blocking a double-suplex to the floor and instead going down his own way with a moonsault. He still won’t do a swear, but he does do a nice tornado DDT for a two-count on Sabian, before hitting a sweet Quebrada into a double reverse DDT as some different three-way stuff was busted out.
Another tornado DDT follows after ELP’s cover led to a kick-out that sent him into Sabian, and then there’s more flips, with a Sabian stomp breaking up ELP’s pin from another Quebrada… and it’s those two who have another stand-off as they trade low blows. Lion Kid gets excited as he looks to capitalise, but he’s stopped and met with a double low blow. I guess they work on lions too…
Except that just prompts Lion Kid into breaking out a swear! Pop of the night right there, and just in time as Lion Kid hits Sabian with some Sliced Bread – walking up ELP in the corner – for the win. A cute match with a self-contained storyline, as the Lion Kid was taught that swearing, erm, wins you matches? ***
Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) vs. Damon Moser & Spike Trivet
Another open challenge from the Aussies led to it being answered by Moser and Trivet – teaming for the first time since Spike bought him out. There’s some early reluctance as nobody wanted to face Mark Davis… but he’s quickly out as Moser’s isolated early on, taking shots from Fletcher, then Davis before slipping out and tagging in Spike unawares.
Trivet tries to swerve away from a high five, but that just pisses off Davis into throwing some chops, with Moser taking the proverbial bullet as Spilke tried – and failed – to spray Dunkzilla with some of his cheap bubbly. A superkick from Fletcher made sure it was Spike’s ginger pal who got that instead, before Davis pours some more onto Spike from a great height.
Moser’s back to waffle Kyle from behind with a forearm, as a slingshot lungblower nearly gets Trivet an unlikely win, but it does put the posh boy and his mate on top for a while as they wore through Fletcher as the crowd seemed to be rather half-heartedly tearing into them. A barrage of forearms and knees keeps them ahead, as Moser tried to win with a backdrop suplex, before the endless teasing of Fletcher fired him up finally.
That led to the hot tag to Davis, and it was curtains it seemed as kicks and chops rocked Spike and Damon. The one-handed powerbomb to Moser keeps things on track for the Aussies, as does a Fidget Spinner to Spike… but Moser’s back to ruin things a little. Another springboard lungblower from Spike’s turned into a spinebuster as Davis ends up getting pelted with superkicks, which sent him outside as the Posh Boy and Friend tie his hands to the ring post with… zip ties?
With scissors not exactly on hand, Kyle Fletcher’s left on his own… but somehow Davis frees himself. Another rubbish job from the boys in the blue party then? Moser almost eats the loss after a double-team cutter, before the pull-up piledriver finally wipes him out. God, that move is a thing of beauty. ***¼
After the match, Spike hits the ring with a chair and wipes out the Aussies, prompting a cry of “we want Sexsmith” from the crowd. Moser tries to Pillman-ise Fletcher’s ankle, but the camera freezes just in time. We’ll never know…
Candyfloss vs. Laura di Matteo vs. Rhia O’Reilly vs. Charli Evans vs. Kaggy
Jinny was originally meant to be in this match, but the changes higher up the card saw her taken out of this and replaced by a newcomer in the form of Dragon Pro trainee Kaggy. Oh, and the returning Rhia O’Reilly, who was wrestling for the first time since her broken leg/ankle earlier in the year. Yep, it’s another multi-way match.
Kaggy stood out like a sore thumb, largely because the zombie hippy stood in the middle of the ring. Breaking Candyfloss’ lollipop didn’t win her any friends, and we’re quickly seeing everyone pairing off, with Candy almost forcing a quick win with an armbar to Laura di Matteo. A Japanese armdrag almost puts Laura on her head, something she tries to get payback on with a PK as the camera inexplicably shows Charli Evans on the outside. Moments later, Charli and Rhia come into play, dragging Laura outside as Kaggy tries to have a go on Candyfloss, and… this is getting tricky to follow. Another armbar from Candyfloss is rolled-up into a pin, as Kaggy turned her sights onto Charli Evans, blasting her in the corner with some double knees.
That’s Rhia’s cue to make her mark, hitting a suplex before a crushing Finlay roll sparked a chain-reaction of moves and dives. Candyfloss, Laura di Matteo and Charli Evans all went airborne… as for Rhia, well, perhaps it’s a little too soon given what caused her injury! Back inside, Rhia and Charli fight over a German suplex as the match descended into a pass-the-parcel game of forearms, with Kaggy just watching on in confusion. You and me both. Another Parade of Moves seemed to quieten the crowd, ending with a Stroke from Charli to Rhia, but Kaggy breaks up the pin and steals the win with a handful of tights. That musta been a heck of a Stroke! This was alright, but the crowd perhaps unsure on who to back – especially against an unfamiliar face. Multi-way matches are fun, but this felt like too much of a good thing. **¼
Omari vs. Millie McKenzie
Oh hi there Fight Club: Pro rematch!
We’ve another split crowd here, and we’re back to the height difference as Millie somehow sent Omari tumbling from the opening tie-up… and she’s holding her own early, with some of their flippy stuff looking spectacular in the changing lighting conditions in the venue.
Millie clambers around Omari in search of something… a crucifix… a sunset flip… and eventually lands the latter before hitting a series of shotgun dropkicks to Omari. Forearms in the corner follow, but Omari quickly dumps her with a release slam that almost dumped Millie on her head. Ouch! Back-and-forth forearms end with Omari taking Millie into the ropes, but he’s able to block her attempt at a tornado DDT as she instead counters the counter with a German suplex! The DDT follows as Omari’s taken outside and… dive! A delayed Code Red back inside gets a near-fall, before Omari returned fire with a leg lariat and a spin-out suplex that left Millie laying.
Omari’s almost toying with her as a sit-out gutwrench powerbomb gets a near-fall, before she slips out of an O-Zone and chops away at Omari’s leg with kicks, only to run into another O-Zone, which connects for the win. Short and sweet, but really good – as I’d expect these two would have worked plenty of series like this in training! ***½
After the match, “Santa Claus” comes out and puts over Omari’s match as “five stars”. Yeah, it’s Kurtis Chapman, full of backhanded compliments and sexism… oh,and presents. It’s his elf, Lord Gideon Grey here to ruin the party, flipping over Millie into a DDT as their evil plan finally bore some fruit. Bloody grinches. Chapman gets fed up at noisy Gideon, and eventually shoves him off of Omari, before demanding that they get what they deserve: a wrestling match. They don’t give those to folks who are barred, but Chapman decides to hold the show hostage until he gets his match. Instead, he just gets a keyboard to the back from Millie, then a leg-lariat assisted German suplex into those keys. I don’t think either of those two were alive when New Jack was using keyboards for fun in ECW…
Of course, security again throws out Chapman. He’s still barred!
Matt Cross vs. Flash Morgan Webster
How’s this for a dream match you didn’t know you wanted?
Both men showed they were equal to each other early, with the pair going move-for-move and strike-for-strike… Flash tries to kick Cross off the top, but he’s shoved down and met with a double-stomp as the sometimes Son of Havoc looked to edge ahead. In return, Flash leaps up out of the corner and tries for the Eton Rifles, but it’s countered into a backbreaker for a near-fall.
Webster rebounds with a trip into a Special Brew Flip on Cross, before flipping over Cross so he can bound off of the ropes into a clothesline was the Mod tried to take over. Knees and a Rude Boy keep him ahead, as does an old-school neckbreaker, but Cross still had plenty of fight left in him… enough to backdrop out of a powerbomb and elbow out of a Brit Pop Drop, hitting Webster with one of his own instead!
Flash avoids a flying Cross, but can’t get away from a handspring back elbow before sneaking in some Angels Wings for a near-fall. Cross rolls outside for cover from there, for the obligatory dives, before he boots away another Rude Boy, rebounding off the ropes with his shoulders for a clothesline, before crushing Flash with a sweet shooting star press for the win. Another short one, but really good stuff for the time they had. ***½
After the match, Webster gets the microphone and told the crowd how he first started backyarding because of Matt Cross… he puts over Cross for being his inspiration, before turning on him, offering a handshake and blasting Cross with a headbutt. Webster calls the crowd “shit” and tells them to “stick your respect up your arse”. Well, if it’s giving Webster something other to do than be the good guy, I’m all for this turn… but until we find out what’s going on, all we can say is…
CCK (Chris Brookes & Travis Banks) & Jinny vs. Mike Bird, Wild Boar & Jimmy Havoc
With Lykos down, how’s this for a wacky intergender main event?
We start with another ridiculous height difference as Boar and Brookes face off. Well, Boar probably came up to Brookes’ navel, in all honesty, which made for a bit of a disadvantage for the Wild Boar. Mike Bird’s gotta help Chris Brookes as he seemed to develop selective hearing, before Boar just decided to obliterate the taller half of CCK with a back senton.
That’s quickly replied to in kind as Brookes gets charged into the opposite corner, as Bird and Boar take their time on a clean break… because of course it wasn’t, and Brookes just marches across to tag in Travis Banks after taking just one chop. Banks and Bird weren’t anywhere near as squeamish, but that series ends with a low kick as Banks tripped the Welshman, before rolling him up for a swift superkick.
Which Bird instantly pops up from.
More tags take us to Jimmy Havoc and… Jinny. It’s teacher against student, but Jinny’s quickly dragged into the wrong corner by her hair as Bird and Boar solidified her as one to he cheered. Yeah, that reads strange and sounded strange, but it happened as the match broke down around the ringside area, with Bird and Boar isolating Brookes. Meanwhile, we get the next go around of Havoc and Banks, and poor Travis gets a poke to the eye as referee Shay Purser lost whatever control he had. Worse than Roberts…
Jinny gets involved, chopping Boar as the brawling continued, with Boar getting some form of payback by threatening to send her into the crowd… only for Brookes to make a save and throw him into the post instead. We finally go back inside as Brookes lands a slingshot cutter to Boar, before a double Acid Rainmaker gets Havoc back on top, as does a double stomp to both members of CCK… except Jinny swiftly comes in to break up the pin.
Mike Bird’s in next to slap Brookes… and take a chop as the taller one had enough, but a punch quickly cut him down to side as Wild Boar’s made to do the Elite’s “two boots” gimmick in the corner. Of course, he’s short, so it’s a struggle, and yeah, Bird gets thrown into them afterall. Somehow, they recovered quickly to keep Brookes down, but Jimmy Havoc’s antagonising of Travis Banks is quickly paid off as Banks gets a tag in as he unloads on Boar and Havoc with kicks and German suplexes, eventually building up to a cannonball to the cornered pair. Bird quickly returns to hit a pumphandle driver as a Parade of Moves broke out, courtesy of a flying ‘rana from Jinny… and yes, it’s still weird hearing her get cheers.
We get dives a plenty as Jinny, Banks and Brookes fly, whilst Mike Bird lives up to his surname, flying like one without wings, before Havoc teased a dive and just poked everyone in the eyes. Back inside again, Havoc gets tripped into Jinny’s knee, then thrown into the corner with a Japanese armdrag as Jinny teases a Style Clash… but instead takes a forearm before ducking away from an Acid Rainmaker.
Another Parade of Stuff follows, ending with Havoc’s Michinoku driver to Jinny picks up a near-fall, before Jimmy takes that powerbomb with an extra kick for another two-count. The bad guys take over with some classic wrestling holds – head crushes and Tongan death grips to name but two – as Boar starts to edge back in with shoulder charges for all.
Jinny’s wiped out with a cannon-Boar and a powerbomb, but it’s not enough to put her away… nor was a Trapper Keeper package piledriver, but that’s largely because of Travis Banks stopping Boar from making a cover. Bird’s back with a Steiner screwdriver as we’re going all 90s WCW… but Havoc swiftly falls to a slingshot cutter before Brookes turned a limp Jinny into Lykos… and that doesn’t work as Havoc rebounds her into a German suplex. Oops.
Travis Banks is back with more fire and chops, but Bird and Boar again do a number on him… until Banks pops up out of a piledriver?! A double clothesline left the Welsh pair down, with Bird eventually eating a Kiwi Krusher for a two-count as Havoc sprung back, planting Banks with a Jig ‘n’ Tonic as the Parade keeps going, taking us back to Jimmy and Jinny, with the latter hitting her trainer with his own move! One Jinny Lykos lungblower later, and it’s another Acid Rainmaker as Jinny picked up the crowd-pleasing win! Well then, Jinny in as a late replacement, getting the win and the applause, eh? I think I need a lie-down after that madness… ***½
Riptide’s year-ending show as more of the same from the upstart promotion – a good variety in terms of names, some pleasant surprises, and the continuation of the promotion’s sole thread in the return of Gideon Grey and his keyboard warrior. In terms of 2018, well Riptide’s already announced their entire calendar of dates, including some weekenders (a double-header in March and a three-show weekender in August), along with plans for a title tournament… so this isn’t going to be a flash in the pan promotion.