And Justice For All

Nick Gage (c) VS Matthew Justice - AIW Absolute Championship 3/23/2018

JJZ: So as soon as I saw a Nick Gage match I said "Yup!" If someone asked me to describe this match knowing nothing about AIW I'd say it's the most ECW match I've seen in years. Gage is a mad man that I would be very afraid to meet in a dark alley. Justice has a goddamn death wish. The stuff he takes in this match makes me feel a little bad that I get entertainment out of it. He can give it back as good as he gets but in this match I wouldn't be surprised if he had to take a trip to the hopbital after it was over. These two could have an insane long term feud if they haven't already. Heyman could've put some asses in seats with these boys. The home stretch got a little sloppy joe but the best sandwhiches are a little messy.

CJD: Ooof! What a fight. This definitely would have made a young CJD yell out in a drunken stupor "they need to go to the hopbital!!" It's been said before but AIW is the only promotion that actually captures a little of that ECW magic. I would credit it to them always being inspired by ECW but never exactly trying to emulate it. Gage is a great example. They booked him as a tough as nails fighting Champion instead of just a deathmatch guy, which is a stroke of Heyman genius like you said. That sort unexpected depth is exactly what made ECW special, but when people try to recreate it most of the time they just focus on the violence. This match had that too, and had it in spades. Something I loved about Necro/Kasai that I forgot to mention is what a lost art good crowd brawling is. Most use it as filler, but in that match and this one it actually drives the story and feels warranted. The intensity of the collar & elbows on the outside set the tone for this one right off the bat and they never took their foot off the gas.

Burning Bridges Is So 1999

Matthew Justice VS Stockade VS Demarcus Kane VS G-Raver - Blackcraft Wrestling Ladder Match 8/24/2018

CJD: You were on the fence about the match you played forward last week but I really enjoyed it. I hope that's the case this week with my match for you. There's a lot here I like, there's a lot here I don't. This is the opening match of the first Blackcraft show, and I don't think it'll come as a big surprise that they apparently closed the promotion three shows later. I'd hate to have been the second match that followed this up. On the positive side, Matthew Justice is an absolute lunatic in this match, Demarcus Kane is a revelation (apparently a decade+ vet who wrestles under Napalm Bomb normally?), and our boy G-Raver dare I say steals the show. Last week against Kasai I thought he brought some cool spots but lacked in some other areas. Here he's the complete package, and really stands out in a crowded busy match. I also liked seeing what he brought to the table in a less deathmatch focused environment. Very curious to hear your thoughts on this one!

JJZ: That's a lot of names. Loving this pick CJD. I'm familiar with Justice and G-Raver but Stockade and Kane are brand new to me. Correct me if I'm wrong baby, but isn't this our first ladder match featured on PIF? Loving this venue considering the promotion is Blackcraft. You can definitely tell the seniors from the freshmen in this match but that creates an exciting dynamic. Some long "FUCKKKKKKK" moments early. You didn't mention Stockade but I really liked his role in this match. I think all four guys brought different ingredients that worked well together. Booking this match to open the show is a terrible idea though, this was a main event you can't follow this for fucks sake what is happening match. Super entertaining. Hope no one got seriously hurt.

CJD: I liked some of what Stockade brought to the table. On a whole though I thought he spent too much time setting up spots or rushing into them. But he played his role in the match well. This one really stuck with me. As an opener it made no sense whatsoever but I was thoroughly entertained. I'm glad you were too!