Pro Wrestling Evo: Live & In Stereo Review
June 30, 2012
By Benjamin Tucker, PWTorch TV specialist

Match Results

(1) Chiva Kid beat Joe Black with a double moonsault.

(2) John Skyler pinned Adam Page.

(3) Robyn Golphin pinned Derek Ryze.

(4) Arik Royal pinned Kirby Mack.

(5) Fun Athletic Guys beat Corey Hollis & Chip Day.

(6) K.C. McKnight vs. Marcellus King went to a time limit draw.

(7) Cedric Alexander vs. Zack Salvation for the Evo Heavyweight Championship ended in a No Contest.

Overall Score - 6.0

I was highly intrigued by the first iPPV offering of Pro Wrestling Evo. Not only was it one of the first independent shows I've watched, but also the $2 price tag warranted some attention. And, while the basic action in each match was excellent, I couldn't help but feel that the company made many small errors on their first online show.

For one, every single match on the show had nearfall after nearfall, with the announcers going crazy for each one. Every time there's a close nearfall, the next one means less and less. Which means that, after seemingly every match has someone kicking out of a finisher, it doesn't mean much at the end and makes the announcers look foolish. Plus, the wrestlers rely on way too many of the same moves. The number of superkicks in the show was absolutely ridiculous.

That isn't to say that these matches were bad. In fact, there wasn't a bad match on the card. Kirby Mack and Arik Royal had an absolute brawl, which was only hampered by the fact that Mack actually kicked out of being DDT'ed on concrete, being thrown through 30 chairs, and taking Ryback's finisher before absolutely going to town on Royal (once again going to the issue with there being way too many nearfalls). Chiva Kid was highly entertaining (though his look needs an update), and it was amazing to see some of the moves these guys did (such as a double moonsault off the top rope).

Of course, one of the most important aspects of the wrestling business is that one needs to have a character. And, a lot of these guys haven't shown much of one. John Skyler got it across that he was a heel in his match with Adam Page, but didn't differentiate himself at all from Derek Ryze. A lot of the babyfaces had the same issues. In fact, very few guys (namely Kirby Mack, the Fun Athletic Guys, Arik Royal, and Marcellus King) showed much of anything in this respect. Some of the backstage promos may have helped out some of these guys, but unfortunately you couldn't hear a single word backstage all night.

Which brings up my next issue. Tech wise, Pro Wrestling Evo has multiple problems. Announcers went up and down in volume, the crowd was muted, there was no sound backstage, etc. I understand that this company is running on an extremely limited supply of money, but at the same time so do many other companies, and I haven't heard all of these issues plaguing others with similar monetary reserves.

However, if you can get past the technical issues, the lack of characters or the odd in-ring psychology, Pro Wrestling Evo has a lot to offer. The guys in the promotion have a ton of upside, overall, and with just a bit more training can become absolute stars. This is especially true for Cedric Alexander and Zack Salvation, who put on one heck of a main event. This show was far from perfect, but I wouldn't mind recommending people to keep an eye out for the promotion, either.

Any questions or comments? Feel free to message me on Twitter at BTuckertorch.

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