CHIKARA: Best of 2012 Review

1) Mike Quackenbush vs. Green Ant - The 13th Hat
It's the first match of the first event of the season and the funplex is PACKED. All the chair seats are normally filled, but this time there are also alot of people standing behind the seats around the walls. CHIKARA! CHIKARA! I don't think there's a better way to start the year off than with this teacher/student match up that always deliver. This match represented alot the things I've come to love about CHIKARA. They stayed on the mat and showed everyone the technical side of their offense while also displaying the fluidity that CHIKARA athletes are known for. This was an extremely well done submission contest that had several call backs to their previous encounters. In the end, Fire Ant picks up the win to finally earn himself some points in his series Quack. He's still down 2-1, but this was an awesome to start the season for a guy that Bryce Remsburg predicted would be the star of the year.

Match rating - ***1/2

2) FIST (Chuck Taylor & Icarus) vs. 3.0 (Jagged & Shane Matthews) - Campeones De Parejas - Green Ice


We're in Canada for Green Ice and the hometown boys Jagged Scott Parker & Shane Matthews are challenging one of the most hated teams in CHIKARA history, FIST. I was hoping this would be Chuck & Gargano representing FIST however I can't complete about Icarus' involvement because he gets major heat. This match was pretty entertaining as you would expect considering Chuck Taylor and the 3.0 guys are involved. We saw some shenanigans with a jacket Icarus was wearing early on although the two duos would get down to business. FIST used cheap tactics throughout the match in the form of a shoe and powder yet 3.0 somehow managed to pick up the win. I really wasn't expecting that. This was more about showcasing a feel good moment than a quality match and I'm glad it was included on here. Very cool moment as two guys who have been in CHIKARA for years yet never earned gold, finally left their mark and did so in their home. The roster hits the ring to celebrate with them afterwards.

Match rating - **3/4

3) Chuck Taylor vs. Archibald Peck - It's How You Play The Game
This was without a doubt one of the funniest matches I've ever seen. I knew Chuckie T was capable of this, but I had no clue that Peck could provide such entertainment. I can't even begin to name all the hilarious stuff they did here. From posing for pictures in front of two big paintings to Archibald's head getting "stuck" in one of the ceiling panels to the grenade spot to Bryce clotheslining & bodyslamming Chuck, it was just a ton of fun. After nearly 10 minutes of antics, Chuck hits Archibald with soul food from the top rope for the win.

Match rating - **1/2

Entertainment rating - *****

4) Eddie Kingston vs. Brodie Lee - Grand Championship Match - It's How You Play The Game
After one match in this building, I feel like I'm watching a C4 show! Not only because it's in the building where they host events, but also because I recently watched a DVD of theirs (which I highly recommend) and these two were featured during it. None the less, these two are CHIKARA faithful and they delivered in this match for the Grand Championship match. The crowd was on Brodie's case alot here. This must have been around the time that news broke about him signing to WWE because I heard alot of FCW comments. On top of that, he & Kingston jawed back and forth in the ring and John Cena was mentioned. As for the action, it was just what you would expect. A hard hitting slugfest. There were one or two moments of slight miscommunication early on however once that ending sequence kicked in, I forgot all about it. Good match.

Match rating - ***1/4

5) El Generico vs. Sara Del Rey - Hot Off The Griddle
I love CHIKARA for booking this match. And for a ton of other reasons too, but let's just rave about this bout for a moment. These two are among the most smooth and fun to watch performers in wrestling so it was a treat to watch them go at it. This was everything that I thought it would be. Great wrestling, several beautiful suplexes, nearfalls, and just all the awesome stuff that make me huge fans of both Generico & Del Rey. There was even a nice story told with Generico going easy early on, showing regret and not even wanting to chop her, then going 100mph and holding nothing back once she shoved and slapped him. Really good stuff, extremely enjoyable match.

Match rating - ***3/4

6) Sara Del Rey vs. Meiko Satomura - The Ogg and I
Sara Del Rey has been one of my favorite things about CHIKARA for quite some time so seeing her in back to back matches on this set is awesome for me. Here she faces a Joshi standout in the form of Meiko Satomura. Based off how much I loved her match with Kana, I'm excited for this one. The two began with some technical standoffs then the strikes started coming out which was fun to watch as both women are skilled in that area. There were one or two missteps here and while it's not anything terrible, I think it did keep me from getting into this match as much I could have. I still enjoyed this one though. It wasn't as good as Del Rey's match with Kana, nowhere near it, but it's still a solid bout on it's own.

Match rating - ***

7) Eddie Kingston vs. Jigsaw - Grand Championship Match - The Ogg and I
This was an interesting contest. For one, these two are both friends and fan favorites. Secondly, they are polar opposites in the ring. And to make things even more intriguing, Jigsaw took the route that I didn't expect him to. Instead of using his speed, agility, & technical skills to take control of the match, he went toe to toe with Eddie after an early technical flurry. The two traded chops for a moment until Eddie made a mistake by hitting the ropes which allowed Jigsaw to take his legs out from under him. This gave Jig a target - the previously injured knee of Kingston. Very smart stuff here as he worked that leg over well. The other thing that shocked me in Jig's game plan is that he even went right into Kingston's territory by following him to the outside and brawling in the crowd. It was a surprising development although it showed just how much Jigsaw wanted to win the Grand Championship. He wanted it so badly that he would do whatever it took and put no boundaries on his gameplan. Jigsaw still had an organized plan though as mentioned before. I liked how they booked this where Kingston, the guy you least expected to be the underdog, almost became it. He kept kicking out of everything Jigsaw had, just like Jigsaw would end up kicking out of his. The final few minutes featured alot of drama and high impact action with both guys going to great lengths to win. In the end, multiple backfists from Kingston would earn him the victory after an awesome title defense. Best match on Disc 1. Fans chanted "Match of the Year" afterwards.

Match rating - ****

Disc 2:

8) Icarus vs. Gran Akuma - Ladder Match - Chikarasaurus Rex: How To Hatch A Dinasour
This is only the second Ladder Match in CHIKARA history and it's just as unique at the first. I like that CHIKARA doesn't go the route of having a crazy trainwreck spotfest for the Ladder Matches. Instead, they tell a story and build towards big spots. It sets them apart and gives fans a new dynamic for the Ladder Match. With PWG, CZW, and WWE doing the wild style of Ladder matches, this way is the right way to go. I basically just described how this match was formatted so I'll just reiterate it. The story here was two FIST members going toe to toe with Akuma, who is no longer in the group, fighting to keep his job at CHIKARA against the guy who is STILL the most hated man in the company, Icarus. These two took things slow, but really did a good job of portraying their dislike for one another. They built very well towards several spots including a powerbomb on the ladder and even a table spot. Everything here was done perfectly. Another stand out Ladder match that was uniquely done from CHIKARA. I'd recommend checking this one and the first one between Vin Gerard & Equinox in 2009.

Match rating - ***3/4

9) FIST (Chuck Taylor & Johnny Gargano) vs. The Young Bucks - Campeones De Parejas - 2/3 Falls Match - Chikarasaurus Rex: How To Hatch A Dinasour
I've seen some awesome Campeones De Parejas matches in my time of watching CHIKARA and this without a doubt ranks up there with the best of them. Fantastic tag team wrestling from start to finish is the best way to describe this. They had the crowd in the palm of their hands the entire time as dueling "Young Bucks" and "FIST" chants rang through the arena for nearly the whole match. Beyond that, they pretty much executed a double turn here. Considering, FIST is the most hated trio in the history of CHIKARA and had just exhibited why earlier in this night by attempting to help Icarus defeat Gran Akuma in the Ladder Match, I was shocked that the crowd started to get so behind them here. It was all because of how good The Young Bucks played their characters. They began throwing FIST's tactics back in their face and it's almost like the crowd rebelled against it. This turn was solidified when one of the Bucks brought in one of the belts and nailed Chuck Taylor with it during the wild final fall of this match. He went for the pin and Chuck kicked out just before 3 and the crowd exploded. This was pretty much a spectacle. Awesome match.

Match rating - ****1/4

10) Eddie Kingston vs. Sara Del Rey - Grand Championship Match - The Great Escape
As I've learned from this set thus far, 2012 was a year that saw Sara Del Rey have her biggest run yet. Earlier we saw her defeat El Generico along with top Joshi athelete Meiko Satomura. That leads us here to her first shot at the CHIKARA Grand Championship against Eddie Kingston. On paper, this was a dream match and it certainly delivered. Del Rey showed her willingness to win by not backing down to Kingston one bit. She took it to him from the start with strikes and submissions that worked over the right arm of King as a way of stopping him from using his signature backfist. Kingston sold the arm well the entire match and I liked how they kept going back to it throughout the bout. They also did a good job of getting sympathy on Del Rey by trash talking from Kingston as well as Sara bleeding from the nose for a moment. There were multiple mark out moments here such as Del Rey piledriving Kingston, Eddie dropping her on the head with a back drop driver, and Del Rey suplexing Kingston off the second/top rope (I can't remember which). This was an all around fantastic match.

Match rating - ****1/4

11) ACH vs. Mr Touchdown - Young Lion's Cup Final - Ring of Wax
This match was hit or miss. It had it's moments, but overall it wasn't very good in my opinion.Ka They had some hilarious stuff in the opening moments including hiking a football and ACH telling Touchdown to go out for a pass. I loved the shenanigans here. The match got back going and wasn't anything special for a while. They lost my attention as it seemed they were just throwing things out to see what would stick. However, they finally started piecing something together and managed to create some great close falls then.. they overdid it. Way too many near falls here at the end. If they had finished this one up earlier, it may have gotten near 3 and a half stars, but they overdid the finish. Still an enjoyable watch for the most part though. As I said, it had it's moments.

Match rating - ***

12) The Young Bucks & Michael Bennett vs. The Sendai Girls - King of Trios Night Three
It's a Young Bucks trios match, what's not to love? This was just a ton of fun. The Sendai's were made to look strong despite being the underdog as they took it to Team ROH on several occassions. Bennett got his team some good heat here as well which made the crowd love The Sendai Girls even more. Entertaning match all around with moments like the Sendai Girls getting superkicked which made me mark out.

Match rating - ***1/2

13) Manami Toyota & Kaori Yoneyama vs. Commando Bolshoi & Tsubasa Koragaki - King of Trios Night Three
It's always a treat seeing the Joshi stars in CHIKARA and this was no different. Toyota was just as over as she was when she made her CHIKARA debut in 2010 and rightfully so because she's a legend in the world of women's Japanese wrestling. The other three women made one hell of an impression as well here, particularly Koragaki as she delivered so many amazing feats of strength including holding up Yoneyama clearly above her head in the air and holding both Toyota & Yoneyama in a torture rack. The finish sequence was unbelievable with alot of big moves such as several beautiful german suplexes and multiple nearfalls. Pretty awesome match.

Match rating - ****

14) The Young Bucks & Michael Bennett vs. Ultramantis Black, Hallowicked, & Frightmare - King of Trios Night Three
This one had a nice story as Team ROH worked over the leg of Frightmare that was injured earlier in the tournament. They did just as awesome of a job playing the heels here as they did in their match with the Sendai Girls which I really enjoyed. The Bucks do what they do better than anyone and I personally think Mike Bennett is underappreciated. The action ends up breaking down and we get some great exchanges. The ending was super chaotic, but I loved it because of the storyline progression. The Batiri comes down to ringside one by one and their leader Delirious comes out last. He's standing at the top of the entrance when someone else comes out from the entrance way behind him, it's CROSSBONES! He throws Delirious off the ramp into the ring post. A massive brawl breaks out and it is complete insanity. Ultramantis suplexes Nick Jackson off the top turnbuckle onto everyone, one of The Bucks going for a superkick on Hallowicked, but he ducks and SUPERKICK TO MARIA KANELLIS! Chikarason leaves the commentary booth to check on Maria meanwhile Bennett gets caught in the CHIKARA special and taps out. The Spectral Envoy are the 2012 King of Trios Champions! The interference could be seen as something that took away from the match, but CHIKARA does such a phenomenal job with character & storyline work that I loved it. So much went on here from The Batiri to Mantis finally winning something big after YEARS in the promotion. The atmosphere was off the charts. This was just great.

Match rating - ***3/4

15) Gran Akuma vs. The Shard - Deep Freeze

Talk about a match that caught me by surprise! This was SOOO good and I had no real expectations heading into it. Akuma hasn't done much since defeating former FIST partner Icarus in the Ladder Match earlier in this set so he was really setting out to impress here and he did just that. This was my first time seeing The Shard and if he delivers like this in every match then he's someone I need to look into more often. Akuma is who really stood out to me here though. He broke out a bunch of moves I haven't seen him use before and this was easily the best singles performance I've seen from him. Really good match.

Match rating - ***3/4

16) Colt Cabana vs. Mike Quackenbush - Zelda The Great

While I consider myself a fan of Cabana, he's not someone I go out of my way to see wrestle. However considering the history of these two, I was looking forward to this. They both came along around the same time in the early 2000's and to add to the history, they were on opposites ends of the ring in the main event six man tag of the first ever CHIKARA show in a match that also involved CM Punk & Chris Hero (which is something I REAALLY want to see). This match turned out to be everything that I expected aside from it ending quicker than I thought it would. Just solid, fluent technical wrestling from start to finish.

Match rating - **3/4

17) The Young Bucks & The Bravado Bros vs. El Generico, 3.0, & Gran Akuma - A Piece of The Action

First off, it's great to see 3.0le back together with Gran Akuma by their side. With the past performances all the people involved have had, I really thought this would be a barnburner, but it wasn't. That's not to complain though because it was still a match filled with awesome wrestling. It just didn't pick up steam like I figured it would. Both teams played their respective roles perfectly and backed it up in the ring. Good 8 man tag.

Match rating - ***1/4

18) Mike Quackenbush, Fire Ant, Green Ant, & AssailANT vs. Jigsaw, Soldier Ant, DeviANT, & The Shard - Under The Hood

Storytelling, epic moments, emotion - those are the three words I can best find to describe this match. This particular storyline hasn't been covered much, if any, on this 3 disc set however the commentators did a fantastic job of filling me in. So much so, I was able to understand the significance of a lot of things here. There were so many amazing moments like Fire Ant & Green Ant going for their signature double team and Soldier Ant almost joining in by way of habit only to be cut off by their new partner AssailANT. Other moments include Jigsaw and Quack coming face to face for the first time. Quack goes for a huge palm strike, but he can't do it! Quack can't bring himself to hit one of his first and most successful students as well as long time tag partner. Jigsaw obliges him though and kicks him in the crotch. Moments like that were just epic and embody why I've come to love CHIKARA. With that being said, the reason you need to see this match is for moments like that, the wrestling was good however the memorable happenings are what I will take away from this match.

Match rating - ***3/4

Overall thoughts: This is the fourth set I've bought from CHIKARA in the past month & a half and yet again, I feel like my money was VERY well spent. Awesome wrestling of all kinds from singles & tag team bouts to Grand Championship & Tag Titles Matches to high flying spot fests & submission based encounters to storyline heavy bouts & joshi action. It's all here and it's all on every CHIKARA "Best of" DVD that I've gotten. So as you can probably already tell. This gets a recommendation from me along with all the previous CHIKARA "Best of's" that I've reviewed. A link to those can be found below. Thanks for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter @EthanPWT and this blog @ThePWTruth!

CHIKARA: Best of 2011 Review
CHIKARA: Best of 2010 Review
CHIKARA: Best of 2009 Review