By Sean Radican, Torch columnist

RADICAN'S BEYOND WRESTLING REVIEW SERIES
CRITCAL ACCLAIM
MARCH 23, 2014
PROVIDENCE, RI

(1) Stockade vs. Francis Kip Stevens vs. Ryan Rush vs. Jesse Vane in a Fatal Four Way match. It was all action from the stop. Stockade ended up slamming all of his opponents on top of each other on the floor. He followed up with the cactus elbow off the stage to the floor. Rush ran wild hitting a step up five to the floor on Stockade and then wiping out Vane inside the ring with a cannonball senton off the top for a 2 count. Stockade ended up hitting a triple Samoan drop on all of his opponents inside the ring and the fans went nuts. Vane went off the top a short time later, but Stockade caught him with a spear for the win.

Winner: Stockade

Star rating: (**3/4) - this was a solid way to start the show with a ton of spots. The highlight were Stockade's big cactus elbow on the outside and his triple Samoan drop inside the ring a short time later.

Crusade for Change came out to the ring. T.J. Marconi got on the mic and told the fans to stop booing him because he built this company. Darius Carter got on the mic next as the fans continued to boo. He said they had had enough. He said they had taken over the secret show and hinted they had beat down EFBYO. Carter said the time for change is now. Marconi asked if they should begin and the crowd shouted no.


(2) Drew Gulak vs. Tommaso Ciampa in a Submission match. Ciampa charged at
Gulak right away after entering the ring and they went at it. The announcers mentioned there are no rope breaks in the match. Ciampa grabbed a stretch and hit some elbows to the ribs, but Gulak managed to break free. Ciampa got a standing abdominal stretch and nailed Gulak with several punches to the ribs.
They ended up on the mat and Ciampa pulled on Gulak's nose, but the ref made him break it. Gulak slipped out and snapped Ciampa's leg on the mat. Ciampa fired back and caught Gulak in a nasty arm stretch using his legs. Ciampa hit a headbutt while applying the hold, but Gulak managed to escape. The fans fired up after Ciampa hit a back rake. He followed up with some huge chops and went back after Gulak's ribs. Gulak got an ankle lock and Ciampa grabbed the rope, but there are no rope breaks. Gulak let go of the hold and went after Ciampa's brace, but Ciampa fought him off.

Gulak got an abdominal stretch on the top rope. Ciampa countered it into a dragon sleeper. They ended up back on the mat and Ciampa maintained the hold. Ciampa eventually got a triangle chop off the top, but Gulak escaped and went after his leg. Gulak took Ciampa's knee brace and applied a half crab. He transitioned the hold and snapped back on Ciampa's leg. Ciampa knocked Gulak down won a kick to the head and used his brace to choke Gulak. He turned it into the rings of honor with the brace over Gulak's head. Ciampa finally let go after hitting several knees to Gulak's head and the ref got rid of the brace. Both man exchanged slaps and punches in the middle of the ring. Ciampa grabbed an arm submission and bit Gulak's fingers, but let go of it. Gulak hit a big headbutt and applied the trailblazer leg submission. Ciampa rolled over, but Gulak held on. Ciampa then punched Gulak right in the nuts to break the hold. Ciampa muscled Gulak up and hit a big piledriver. Ciampa hit several light slaps and Gulak went nuts and fired up on Ciampa with strikes.
Gulak got two ankle locks. Ciampa tried to kick out of it, but Gulak held on and kicked Ciampa on the head while maintaining the hold. Gulak bridged over on top of Ciampa while holding the ankle lock and he tapped.

The fans chanted that the match was awesome after it was over. Ciampa offered a handshake and Gulak accepted while the fans applauded. Ciampa gingerly left the ring and walked to the back. The fans applauded after he saluted Gulak one last time.

Gulak got on the mic after Ciampa left. Gulak asked for his CZW World Hvt.
Championship. He said he is the number 1 ranked wrestler in Beyond Wrestling. He said he had beaten just about everyone in the locker room and maintained the honor of the company for the boys and the fans. He talked about D.J. Hyde making an ass out of himself last time at Beyond Wrestling. He said CZW would be at Fete Music on April Challenge. Gulak issued an open challenge to any wrestler in the world at the show. The fans wanted A.R. Fox. Biff Busick's music played and the fans went nuts. Busick got into the ring and got right in Gulak's face as the fans chanted for him. Busick said on April 27, he wants the CZW World Title. Both men shook hands and the fans applauded. Gulak left the ring and the fans continued to chant for Busick.

Winner: Drew Gulak

Star rating: (***1/2) - This was a really good match with a lot of stiff strikes and submission wrestling. The fans watched in appreciation during the first part of the match, but really got into it down the stretch when Gulak showed great fire making a comeback.

(3) Jaka vs. Eric Corvis. Jaka made his entrance and began brawling with Corvis on the outside right away. Corvis wanted Jacobs after his attack on him last month, but he got Jaka instead. They got into the ring with Jaka in control and the match officially started. Jaka went for an arm submission, but Corvis tied him into a knot and hit a leg drop to his back. Jaka quickly cut him off and slammed him head first into the mat after countering him near the apron. Corvis countered a rolling headbutt into a short ace crusher. Jaka quickly cut him off again with a belly to belly suplex. Corvis mounted a comeback and hit a dive through the ropes. Corvis couldn't get in any kind of a groove. He mounted another comeback and went for a frog splash, but Jaka got his knees up and locked in the sol naciente for the win.

Jaka continued to go after Corvis after the match. Jimmy Jacobs made his way down to the ring. He took out his spike. Corvis fought back and took out Jaka. He got on his knees and told Jacobs to make him bleed again. Jaka dragged him to the floor and Elgin ran to the ring and went at it with Jacobs.

Winner: Jaka

Star rating:(*3/4) - Not much to this one. Every time Corvis mounted a comeback, he got cut off and then Jaka tapped him out.

(4) Michael Elgin vs. Jimmy Jacobs. Elgin hit his signature delayed vertical suplex on Jacobs during the early stages of the match. Elgin then went for a dead-lift vertical suplex from the apron, but Jacobs crotched him and hit a back cracker off the turnbuckles. Jacobs went fora head scissors takedown, but Elgin tossed him off. Elgin eventually mounted a comeback and hit a T-bone suplex. He caught Jacobs with a black hole slam a short time later for a 2 count. Elgin continued to dominate the action, but Jacobs managed to kick out after a pair of German suplexes. Jacobs fired back with a springboard ace crusher for a 2 count. Jacobs hit a nice counter on Elgin after getting caught in mid-air going for a spear. Elgin fired back and went for a buckle bomb, but Jacobs countered it into the end time. Elgin eventually escaped and countered it into a hellavator for a 2 count. The fans fired up with both men down on the mat.

They had a great back and forth exchange. Jacobs ate a buckle bomb, but Jacobs fired out of the corner with a spear for a nearfall. Jacobs hit a big senton off the top, but Elgin kicked out at the last second. Elgin blocked the contra code and hit a tombstone for a near fall. The fan fired up after that exchange. They went up top and Jacobs shoved Elgin off but Elgin nailed him with a dropkick. Jacobs fired back and hit the Contra code off the top, but Elgin kicked out. Jacobs applied the end time again, but Elgin got to his feet and began slowly climbing the ropes with Jacobs holding onto him. Elgin eventually hit a powerbomb off the turnbuckles, a buckle bomb, and an Elgin bomb for the win.

The fans stood and applauded when the match was over.

Winner: Michael Elgin

Star rating: (***3/4) - The match started slowly, but they had some great exchanges down the stretch. The counter sequence where Elgin caught Jacobs in mid-air as he was going for a spear and went for a powerbomb only for Jacobs to turn it into a head scissors into the turnbuckles was fantastic. There may have been a few too many near falls for their spot on the card, but this was fantastic down the stretch.

(5) Matt Tremont & Anthony Stone vs. The Contingent (Nicholas Kaye & Myke Quest)in a No DQ match. This match is part of the ongoing feud between Kaye and Stone. The contrast in attire between the two teams is staggering, as Kaye and Quest are dressed for a night on the town and Tremont and Stone are dressed for a fight. Kaye and Quest bailed to the floor and Tremont and Stone followed them to the outside. They brawled out of the venue. They brawled back into the venue. The announcers said Quest looked like a fat Dean Ambrose. Stone was in the ring with Kaye, but quest came in from behind and shoved him into a chair held by Kaye. Quest took out a bag of tacks and dumped them onto the mat. Tremont entered the ring and hit a DVD onto the tacks on Quest, but Kaye broke up the pin. Quest and Tremont sat in chairs across from each other and began exchanging punches. Quest got up and hit Tremont with some barbed wire. He then put the barbed wire on Tremont’s head. Kaye was bleeding heavily from the head. Kaye ended up setting up Stone on a chair. He went up top, but Stone nailed him with a trashcan lid. They battled up top and Kaye shoved Stone on top of the chair. He then hit a double knee drop on top of Stone, who was leaning over the chair, but Tremont broke up the pin and hit a gut wrench powerbomb on Kaye onto the tacks, but Kaye kicked out.

Tremont went under the ring and got a door. Stone set up the door in the corner. Tremont went for a DVD on Kaye, but Quest nailed him with a kendo stick. Both teams went back and forth. Tremont hit a spear through the door on Kaye, but Quest broke up the pin. Tremont was bleeding from the head as well. Kaye held Tremont in a submission and Quest came off the top with a double stomp off the top with Kaye down on the outside, which was good for the win.

Quest and Kaye celebrated in the ring on top of Tremont after the match and the fans booed.

Winners: Nicholas Kaye & Myke Quest

Star rating: (**) – This was just a garbage math full of weapon shots and a lot of blood. I’m really not a fan of this style of match, but it was fine for what it was and the participants didn’t do anything too crazy in the match.

Michael Bennett came to the ring and ran down Beyond Wrestling saying they don’t pay their wrestlers. The fans booed and he went on to say Beyond Wrestling couldn’t afford Maria or him. He ran down Beyond Wrestling’s secret shows and said the point of wrestling is to make money. He said the wrestlers in the company disrespect everyone that came before them. Bennett said the only reason people are at the show is from Ring of Honor. He said he would give credit to Beyond Wrestling for bringing in wrestlers to teach their talent how to work.

Chris Dickinson was on the steps going up to the second floor and the fans popped big for him coming out. He said it was disgusting that Bennett got so much time to cut a promo when he’s not even booked the south. He challenge Bennett to a Falls Count Anywhere match. The fans wanted the match and fired up for Dickinson’s challenge. Bennett said where he comes from he gets paid to wrestle, so there’s no way he’s wrestling a Davey Richards wannabe in the ring. Dickinson hinted he would go after Maria and do sexual acts with her. That was enough for Bennett and he told him to bring it.

(6) Michael Bennett vs. Chris Dickinson in a Falls Count Anywhere match. They brawled in the ring before heading to the outside. They went back and forth brawling through the crowd. Bennett slammed Dickinson into a chair and posed for the crowd to get some heat. They brawled up to the stage and Bennett hit Dickinson across the back with a chair. Bennett flipped off the fans. The commentators said Denver Colorado had lost control since Bennett was wrestling in Beyond Wrestling. They ended up back inside the ring with Dickinson in control. Dickinson set up for the pazuzu bomb, but Bennett slipped out and hit a low blow for the win.

Winner: Michael Bennett – This was just an extended brawl that didn’t tell much of a story. I was thinking the match was going to go longer once they got into the ring, but the match ended rather quickly after that.

(7) ReDRagon (Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish) vs. Team Tremendous (Bill Carr & Dan Barry). Team Tremendous got a good pop coming out for the match. ReDRagon came out to boos. Sugar Dunkerton and Pinkie Sanchez are in on commentary. They did some comedy early with Barry getting hurt by Fish and trying to get his injuries kissed better by a female or male at ringside. Fish kicked the ropes into Barry’s crotch, but nobody on the outside would kiss it better. Barry got the upper hand on O’Reilly and he tried to bail, but Carr tossed him right back into the ring. The action broke down with Team Tremendous in control. They whipped O’Reilly and Fish into each other and both men bailed to the floor. Barry ended up hitting an Asai moonsault to the floor to wipe out ReDRagon and the fans fired up. Carr set up for a dive, but stopped short when Fish and O’Reilly ran away. Team Tremendous isolated Fish inside the ring and began working him over. The action broke down and O’Reilly got into the ring and wiped out Barry with a series of kicks. O’Reilly booted Carr off the apron and they began working over Barry. Barry took a beating for a long period of time and ReDRagon worked over his arm at times. O’Reilly got an arm bar, but Barry got the ropes. Barry almost made the tag, but O’Reilly pulled Carr off the apron. Barry and Fish ended up going at it on the turnbuckles and Barry hit a victory roll off the top and finally made the hot tag to Carr.

Carr ran wild on Fish and O’Reilly as the fans fired up. Carr hit a black hole slam on O’Reilly for a 2 count. ReDRagon fired back and hit a back breaker/knee drop off the turnbuckles combination on Barry, but Carr broke up the pin. Carr went at it with Fish and O’Reilly, but took a combination of blows capped by a forearm to the head. ReDRagon then went after Barry. Fish went up top, but Barry rolled to the other side of the ring. O’Reilly slammed Barry again, but he rolled away when Fish went up top. O’Reilly slammed Barry again and both members of ReDRagon went up top for a combination move, but Barry rolled out of the way. Carr eventually wiped out Fish and O’Reilly with a pair of big lariats. He got Fish on his shoulders and Barry came off the top with an assisted sliced bread for the win.

The fans chanted for Carr & Barry after the match. O’Reilly tried to revive Fish after the match and he eventually began to recover. Fish and O’Reilly blew off a handshake after the match and the fans booed them. The fans then applauded for Team Tremendous after ReDRagon left the ring. Sozio tried to jump Team Tremendous after the match, but they fended them off. A large man then got into the ring and nailed Barry with a spear, but bailed when Carr got back into the ring.

Winners: Dan Barry & Bill Carr

Star rating: (***1/2) – The match started slowly, but there was some fun comedy mixed in. There was a long methodical heat segment on Barry and after that things picked up with both teams going back and forth. There were some good exchanges down the stretch. This was good overall, but it took a while to get going. The post-match attack wasn’t a thrilling conclusion to Barry and Carr getting a big win.

(8) J.T. Dunn vs. Chris Hero. Dunn got a big pop coming out first for the main event. Hero also got a good pop coming out. Dunn called out Hero for this match on the previous event. Sugar Dunkerton is back in on commentary. He called this a match between the present and the future referring to Hero and Dunn. Dunkerton was joined by Dave Yost on commentary. Hero got Dunn down on the mat twice during the early going, but he managed to escape both times. Dunn took Hero down and tied up his legs. He got on top of Hero’s back and grabbed an arm submission with Hero’s legs tied up, but Hero escaped and grabbed an arm submission. Dunn escaped and they came to a stalemate. Both men went back and forth on the mat with Dunn not giving in and going hold for hold with Hero. Hero showed a little frustration after they came to another stalemate. Hero got a leg submission and worked on Dunn’s leg. Dunn finally escaped and the fans chanted his name. Dunn leapt as he came off the ropes, but ate a huge kick to the chest for a 2 count. Dunn mounted a comeback and went after Hero’s leg. Dunn then went after Hero’s arm and dragged him down to the mat. Hero tried to keep his arms locked to block an arm bar. Dunn continued to work over Hero for a long period of time while going after his arm. The fans got behind Dunn as he worked over Hero on the mat. Hero got Dunn up on his shoulders, but Dunn took him back down with an arm submission. Hero finally fought free with some elbows. Dunn went for a springboard a short time later and got kicked right in the head for a near fall.

The fans fired up with Hero regaining the upper hand. That was one heck of a kick to the head from Hero. Hero began working over Dunn again on the mat. Hero took down his knee pad and began driving his knee into Dunn’s head before sitting on top of him for a 2 count. The fans began chanting back and forth for Hero and Dunn saying he’s our hero and he’s our savior. Dunn fired back and hit a big kick to Hero’s head, but Hero countered a suplex and lifted Dunn up in the suplex position and then dumped him down back-first into the mat for a near fall. The fans popped for the near fall and Hero continued to work over Dunn. Hero made a cocky Undertaker style cover on Dunn, but he managed to kick out. Both guys went back and forth trading hard blows and chops. Hero hit a slingshot leg drop, but Dunn shrugged it off and hit an ace crusher and both men were down with the crowd going nuts. Dunn fired up with a combination of moves capped by a superkick for a 2 count. The fans chanted Beyond Wrestling as both men were slow to get up. Dunn hit a pair of running kicks in the corner, but men exchanged kicks to the head, but Dunn managed to hit sliced bread for a 2 count. The fans applauded once again for the hard-hitting action taking a pause. The fans clapped as Dunn stood over Hero. Dunn set up for a roaring elbow, but Hero surprised him with one of his own for a near fall. The fans chanted for Dunn, who looked to be out on the mat. Hero hit a rolling bicycle kick on Dunn for another near fall. Dunkerton said Dunn will not die in this match. The fans pounded the mat as Hero stood over Dunn. Hero hit Dunn with some light kicks as he tried to get to his feet. Dunn fired back with some punches and they began exchanging blows. Both men continued to go back and forth exchanging blows. Hero caught Dunn with a roaring elbow against the ropes and then hit the death blow, but Dunn kicked out at one and the fans went nuts. Dunn staggered to his feet and yelled at Hero. Dunn unloaded on Hero with chops and forearms. Dunn hit a rolling elbow, but Hero fired back with a huge roaring elbow of his own. Dunn kicked out at the last second and the fans went bananas. Hero lifted Dunn and hit a huge roaring elbow for another near fall. Hero set Dunn up and hit the death blow, but Dunn kicked out again. The fans applauded as Hero sold disbelief. The fans chanted you can’t beat him at Hero.

Dunn rolled to the apron. Hero nailed him with a pair of running boots, but he wouldn’t let go of the ropes. Dunn then caught Hero with a kick and hit a springboard code red for a near fall and the fans roared and went nuts again. Hero blocked a roaring elbow from Dunn. Both men then hit roaring elbows at the same time and collapsed to the mat as the fans went nuts. The ref began counting and got to ten for the double knockout finish.

The fans chanted for a sudden death period. They booed when it was announced that both wrestlers had been counted out inside the ring. The fans weren’t happy with the ending of the match. The fans chanted for one more match. Hero got on the mic and said he knows the fans don’t want it to end like that. He said Dunn doesn’t want it to end like that either. The fans began chanting for Dunn. Hero said two years he started getting tweets about a young kid reminiscent of a young Chris Hero. He said when he got released, he knew he had to get to providence to wrestle this young Chris Hero. Hero says he knows from talking to Dunn that it was important for him to win his respect. Hero said it was one hell of a hard fought match. Hero teased that he was going to say Dunn had earned his respect, but he ended up nailing him with a kick to the head. The fans booed with Dunn down on the mat. Hero said this was a lesson to the wannabes. He said spend less time trying to be the next Chris Hero and spend more time trying to be the first someone else.

The fans pounded the mat as Dunn began to recover in the ring. They then broke out into a big chant for Dunn. The fans chanted you’re our savior at Dunn. Dunn finally got to his feet and the fans began chanting his name. Dunn got the mic and ended up dropping it. The fans chanted he can’t beat you. Dunn got the mic again and faced the hard cam. He didn’t say anything at first. The fans chanted this is your house at Dunn. Dunn said, “One more match” and dropped the mic to end the show.

Winner: No winner due to double knockout.

Star rating: (****1/4) – This was one heck of a 30 minute war between Dunn and Hero. Dunn came out of this match looking really good and the fans really responded to him during and after the match. The first half of the match featured some really good mat wrestling with neither man ever being able to get the upper hand on the other for a long period of time. The second half of the match featured some really good action as the pace really picked up. Hero simply couldn’t put Dunn away and they built up to a really good near fall with Dunn kicking out of the death blow at one and the fans went nuts. There were an awful lot of near falls, but the fans stayed with this match the entire way. I really liked the post-match segment as well to set up the rematch between Hero and Dunn.

Overall thoughts: (7.5) – This was a solid show with some good matches leading into the main event. The undercard was up and down a bit, but Gulak-Ciampa, Elgin-Jacobs, and and ReDragon-Team Tremendous were all very good matches. The card was lacking that match to make the show really stand out until the main event when Dunn and Hero had an awesome match that captured what Beyond Wrestling is all about.

The first half of the card was highlighted by the Ciampa vs. Gulak submission match. They had a good hard-hitting technical battle on the mat. I really like matches of this style and after their unbearably long pull-apart to end the last Beyond Wrestling event, this was a nice change of pace for their feud.

Elgin-Jacobs was a match I was looking forward to after Jacobs had debuted on the previous show. I was interested in seeing what these two could do in a singles match, although it was a bit surprising not to see Corvis vs. Jacobs after Jacobs viciously attacked him on the previous show. The match started slowly, but they put together some really good exchanges late in the match to make up for it.

There were some misses on the card, as Jaka-Corvis, Bennett-Dickinson, and The Contingent-Tremont & Stone didn’t deliver anything memorable and fell flat in front of the audience at Fete.

ReDRagon vs. Team Tremendous was another match I was looking forward to on this card. They had a good match in the semi-main event, although the action was really slow to get going before things finally picked up after a long heat segment on Barry. The crowd never seemed to fully get into the match like I expected, but Barry & Carr did pick up a big win here against an established team.

The main event put this show over the top in terms of being a solid show worth picking up. J.T. Dunn had drawn a lot of comparisons heading into his match against Chris Hero, who at this time was fresh on the independent scene after being released by WWE late in 2013. They put together a really good match. The first half was all technical wrestling with neither man being able to get the upper hand. The action really picked up during the second half and Dunn showed a ton of heart refusing to be pinned by Hero. There were an awful lot of near falls, but I felt they worked in the story the match was trying to tell. Dunn really stood out here and the crowd was way behind him getting hotter than they had the entire night. I liked the double knockout finish after around 30 minutes of action to build to the rematch.

This show is well-worth checking out. There’s enough good action on the undercard to enjoy, but the main event really stood out on this show and delivered more than anything else on the card, as a match in this spot should. Critical Acclaim was Dunn’s chance to shine and this match showcased what Beyond Wrestling at Fete Music is all about, as Dunn, a Beyond Wrestling core roster member, shined against a veteran indie star in Chris Hero.

You can purchase Beyond Wrestling’s “Critical Acclaim” on DVD by clicking HERE or by visiting SmartmarkVideo.com. The show is also available on MPW at SmartMarkVideo.com and VOD at SMVOD.com For more information on Beyond Wrestling visit LookMaNoFans.com.

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