KB’s Review: AAW Take No Prisoners 2019: Indy Shows Can Work

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over ten years now and have reviewed over 5,000 shows. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be posting a new review here on Wrestlingrumors.net, starting today. It could be anything from modern WWE to old school to indies to anything in between. Note that I rate using letters instead of stars and I don’t rate matches under three minutes as really, how good or bad can something that short be?

Take No Prisoners
Date: May 11, 2019
Location: Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Tyler Volz, Marty DeRosa

This time for sure! This is from AAW and I’ve been trying to do a show from this promotion for months now. Due to one reason or another (show being taken down, time, etc.), I’ve never actually been able to pull it off but this time I’m getting this thing done. It’s another promotion I don’t know much about other than some of the roster so I’m coming in blind again. Let’s get to it.

The announcers welcome us to the show but here’s Jimmy Jacobs to interrupt and remind us that he’s a genius. He doesn’t like the idea of a scramble match to open the show because he’s too awesome for that. Jacobs wants what he deserves but here’s Mance Warner to interrupt. The fight is on with Jacobs bailing to the floor before a lariat can connect, which is a lot better than taking an eye poke.

Opening sequence, which looks like a regular TV intro.

Jake Something vs. Air Wolf vs. Trey Miguel

Trey, in an eye patch, has the referee hold the ropes open and then jumps over the top in a rather nice jerk move. Miguel is told to take the patch off and yells about it but uses the distraction to chop both of them in the chest. Those have no effect and Miguel seems to know that he’s screwed up. A handshake to Jake gets him taken to the mat and Trey has to avoid a charge. Jake charges Wolf into the corner so Trey and Wolf start some double teaming to send him outside.

Wolf flips Miguel down and hits a chop, followed by a dropsault to Miguel and onto Jake on the floor. Back in and Wolf gets caught in a hanging DDT out of the corner from Jake, who gets dropped by a top rope Meteora from Trey. Jake gets caught in a Cheeky Nandos kick from Wolf, who is superkicked down, allowing Trey to hit his own superkick. A top rope seated senton hits Jake….who no sells it and grabs a Batista Bomb for two on Miguel. That leaves Wolf against the monster and it’s a sitout Boss Man Slam to give Jake the pin at 6:55.

Rating: C. I’ve only seen a little from Jake before so this was quite the impression making match for him. He looked like a powerhouse out there and beat up both guys without much effort, which is exactly what they were going for. Miguel seemed to be quite the jerk but didn’t get the chance to do much. Wolf was his usual pretty good self, though aside from one match against Fenix, I haven’t seen the big breakout match from him yet.

TJP is ready to tour the indies and is ready to debut against Myron Reed.

Clayton Gainz vs. Kris Statlander

Gainz, with Ace Austin, is rather muscular and Statlander is an alien who I can’t get away from these days. The much bigger Gainz shoves her down and laughs when Kris tries a German suplex. A big boot gives Gainz two and some choking on the ropes is good for the same. Gainz loads up the bicep pose and gets rolled up for two before shoving Kris down again.

Kris comes back up with forearms and a Matrish, followed by some running forearms in the corner. Austin gets knocked down and a release German suplex gets two on Gainz. Back up and Kris catches him on top for an electric chair faceplant, only to walk into a sitout slam. Hold on though as Gainz needs some water, allowing Kris to roll him up for the surprise pin at 5:54.

Rating: D. They telegraphed the heck out of that ending and the match wasn’t much to see before then. It was a simple story of Gainz beating her up for four minutes, Kris getting in a little offense, and then the fluke pin. You could feel that coming at the start of the match and it felt like something that has been done several times before.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman, the Heritage Champion, says he’s been talking to Cody and the backstage interviewer is NOT a good fit for AEW. He’ll be debuting a new title tonight.

Adam Brooks vs. Josh Alexander

Alexander is part of the North in Impact. Brooks flips out of a test of strength and grabs a headlock before standing on Alexander’s hands. That earns him a trip into the corner and an enziguri, followed by a nice backbreaker for two. A half nelson backbreaker into a reverse suplex gets the same as the fans are rather pleased with Alexander so far. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Alexander takes him back down into another one.

A Downward Spiral into the middle buckle slows Alexander down and a tornado DDT gives Brooks two. Alexander backdrops him down and slaps on the ankle lock, with Brooks not being able to kick him off. Instead Alexander hits a powerbomb for two more but a tiger driver is broken up. Brooks hits a reverse hurricanrana and it’s a springboard Canadian Destroyer onto the apron, because something on the apron is required these days.

The Fosbury Flop over the barricade drops Alexander again and the Meteora (of course) gets two. Brooks’ Swanton hits Alexander’s knees though and it’s a backbreaker onto the apron to make things even worse. Back in and a Jay Driller gives Alexander two, followed by the spinning Tombstone to put Brooks away at 8:01.

Rating: B-. Nice stuff here with both guys beating the heck out of each other and trading one big move after another. The problem with that though is the lack of psychology or flow to the match, though at least the moves did build to some bigger ones at the end. The Jay Driller not getting the pin was a bit much though, but that happens in most indy matches.

Statlander picks through a nutrition bar and hands it to the interviewer without saying anything. She hides under a chair and looks at the camera, saying that humans are weak and aliens deserve gold.

Rascalz vs. Besties In The World

It’s Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz for the Rascalz here. The Besties are Davey Vega and Mat Fitchett and they’re very, very close friends (and in answer to your next question….it’s not clear). Either way, they’re very popular, though it might just be due to having Truly Madly Deeply as their theme song. The Rascalz, heels here, break up the entrance and STOP THE SONG and it’s already time to beat up Fitchett.

The shoved standing moonsault gets two with Vega having to make the save. That earns Vega a series of superkicks but he’s fine enough to send both Rascalz outside. The suicide dive sends both of them over the barricade so Fitchett dives onto both of them again. A bell shot to the head slows Fitchett down though and Wentz rings it on Fitchett’s ankle for a bonus. The ankle is fine enough for the Besties to double team Wentz against the barricade, followed by a running boot to Xavier’s face back inside.

A double Flatliner gets two but a Wentz distraction lets Xavier fight back. The Rascalz’ hit a backbreaker/double stomp combination for two on Fitchett and Dezmond adds a moonsault kick to the head. Vega catches Dezmond on top but he’s fine enough to hit the Final Flash to break up a cover on Wentz. All four slowly get up and slug it out with the Rascalz getting the better of it. The shove moonsault hits knees and Vega small packages Wentz, only to have Trey Miguel run in and shove it over to give Wentz the pin at 10:34.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure how well that ending should hold up but at least they had a fun match on the way there. I could have gone for more of the tagging part of the tag team wrestling but that’s the kind of thing you just get used to these days. The Rascalz are rather fun though and the Besties are better when they crank it up, but at least we had a good match. It’s strange seeing the Rascalz as heels, though I could get used to it.

Post match the beatdown is on with Wentz calling out LAX for their Tag Team Titles.

Josh Alexander says he’s back for the AAW Title and he’ll be here every time until he gets it back.

Myron Reed vs. TJ Perkins

Reed regularly works in MLW and while he’s quite good despite being a bit small. They go to the mat to start for an exchange of near falls until Reed slips up for a standoff. Perkins offers a handshake so Reed dabs at him in a callback to Perkins’ time in WWE. A headscissors works better for Perkins but Reed reverses into one of his own. That’s broken up with the handstand into the bouncing escape and Perkins gets to pose a bit.

Perkins spins around the ropes and gets some near falls off a rollup. With that not working, Perkins grabs the hand and slaps on a Sharpshooter, which is switched into a Muta Lock for a sweet transition. Reed escapes a pair of backslide attempts and waves a finger at Perkins, which isn’t likely to be a good idea. For some reason the referee catches Reed’s kick, allowing Perkins to get that backslide for two.

Reed is fine enough to send Perkins outside for a dive and a slingshot Codebreaker gets two more. Perkins is right back with a springboard crossbody to send Reed to the floor, setting up the slingshot dropkick. Back in and a curb stomp gets two on Reed, who comes back with a springboard cutter. A springboard 450 hits raised knees though and Perkins gets in the kneebar. That’s switched into an STF but Reed gets over to the rope. Stundog Millionaire drops Perkins but Reed can’t follow up, meaning Perkins is up first. Perkins snaps off a hurricanrana, which Reed reverses into a sunset flip for the pin at 12:23.

Rating: B. I liked this one quite a bit as both of them were moving around very well with some very fast paced offense. Perkins is someone who can have a good match with just about anyone and Reed got a great rub here. I could go for more of both of these two and Reed has impressed me so far in MLW.

Post match, Perkins raises Reed’s hand for a nice moment.

The Rascalz are willing to give the Besties a rematch, but the Tag Team Titles are theirs because they carry the company. Wentz drops a lot of F bombs.

Heritage Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Mance Warner

Warner, who comes out to Simple Man, is challenging for the midcard title. For those who haven’t seen him, Warner, is a very southern wrestler with some great charisma and an affinity for light beers and eye pokes. The fans throw toilet paper at Friedman, which seems to get on his nerves. Friedman pulls out his own version of the Heritage Title, which looks like a pretty standard title.

However, Friedman doesn’t think a wrestler like him should have to wrestle a man like Warner, so he has an offer. If Warner will lay down right now, he can have a job with AEW. Warner could be the next Ice Train, Roadblock, or MIKE ENOS of AEW! Warner thinks about it and then headbutts Friedman in the face to start things off.

The beating is on and Warner STEALS THE SCARF before biting Friedman’s fingers. The champ bails to the floor so Warner loads up a dive, which turns into an eye poke instead. They’re quickly on the floor and then in the balcony for some teased attempted murder. That doesn’t last so they head back to the ring where Warner’s chair shot gets two. Friedman sends him face first into the chair though and it’s time to get down to some more basic wrestling.

That earns him some face first rams into the buckle and it’s time to punch Friedman in the face. An elbow to the head gets two but the running knee is countered into a Boston crab to put Warner in trouble. That’s broken up so Warner hits a DDT and a running knee to the head gets two. With Friedman down, Warner takes about a minute to find a door underneath the ring. The ref gets bumped as Warner hits the lariat, because that happens in the indies as well. Cue Jimmy Jacobs to wrap a chair around Warner’s head and hit it with a kendo stick so Friedman can retain at 11:55.

Rating: C+. I like both guys so this was a fun one with a story that made sense and worked quite well. Warner has all kinds of charisma and Friedman is one of the best heels (and promos) in wrestling today. This was good stuff and I can go with Friedman having to survive to retain the title. I could go for more of this and that’s because they’re both very good at what they do.

Post match Friedman makes the mistake of saying he’ll face anyone anytime for the title…so let’s do that right now.

Heritage Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Jake Something

Friedman is defending again and immediately starts backtracking because of their history together. Jake calls him an f****** coward and we’re off in a hurry. The spear finishes Friedman to give Jake the title at 34 seconds.

The Besties in the World are mad because one of them has a bruise on his face before he and his wife (ah there we go) go to Mexico. They want their rematch in Austin, Texas.

Thunder Rosa is back from Japan and wants her Women’s Title back.

Here’s Armando Alejandro Estrada (his name here as well) to talk about being a family man. His daughters are just like everyone: they live at home with their family. He’s here to represent the man going straight to the top: Jacob Fatu (Umaga’s nephew).

Jacob Fatu vs. Ace Romero

Romero is a huge guy who weighs just shy of 400lbs and is a crowd favorite. Fatu jumps him before the bell (I think) and sends Ace into the post. Romero is busted open and it’s time for some chair shots to the back. The referee calls it off because of the cut so we need a replacement.

Jacob Fatu vs. Paco

Paco is rather small and slugs away to start to limited effect. A high crossbody is a bad idea as well as Fatu catches him in a Samoan drop for the pin at 40 seconds. Are they running out of time and need to fill in everything they can?

Hang on though as Romero is back and the original match is on.

Ace Romero vs. Jacob Fatu

Romero sends him into the barricade and hits a running charge, which RAISES THE BARRICADE a good six feet in the air, which I’ve never seen before. They get inside so Romero can pelt a chair at Fatu’s head, sending him back outside. That means the big old suicide dive and the fans are way into Romero again. Back in and Fatu hits a superkick, followed by the running Umaga attack in the corner. Romero is too big to be Samoan dropped so it’s a spinning Rock Bottom for two instead.

Fatu loads up some chairs in some corners and another blasts Romero in the head. The Samoan drop doesn’t work again as Fatu falls face first onto the chair. Romero makes his comeback with a running dropkick and a sitout powerbomb gets two. A missed charge sends Romero head first into one of the chairs, setting up the Samoan drop. Fatu drops a Swanton for the pin at 7:32.

Rating: C-. Romero moves well for a star but it’s clear that he can only do so much without various shortcuts. Fatu on the other hand is one of the best prospects I’ve seen in a long time. He’s a guy with the size of Umaga and a level of athleticism that you would never expect from someone who looks like him. The facials and charisma are great bonuses and it’s a matter of time before he gets signed by one of the major companies.

Mance Warner wants Jimmy Jacobs in any match Jacobs wants.

Sami Callihan is sick but he’s ready to take out David Starr and keep the World Title.

Women’s Title: Jessika Havok vs. Thunder Rosa

Rosa is challenging and Havok….is a face? That’s certainly a new one. Some dancing disrobing means Rosa is ready to go so Havok sits her on top. That means a hip swivel into a failed sunset flip attempt as Rosa is trying to use the speed here. A missed charge in the corner doesn’t slow Havok down that much as Rosa dives into a chokeslam. Havok lifts her up into a full nelson before dropping her down, where Rosa taps for no meaning. The big leg misses so Rosa hits a running Downward Spiral for two.

It’s off to the bearhug though with Havok dropping down into something like a reverse Bubba Bomb for two of her own. Rosa fires off kicks to the leg and a dropkick to the leg cuts the champ down. Havok drives her into the corner again but a top rope hurricanrana sends Havok into the other corner. A running dropkick gives Rosa two and a missile dropkick is good for the same. The Black Widow is countered into a Tombstone though and Rosa is done at 9:57.

Rating: C+. Rosa was tiny next to the monster champ but they made it work well enough here. More time would have helped though as Havok just caught her without much effort in the end. What we had was good though and the announcers made the women’s division seem like a big deal.

Estrada and Fatu want better competition and if that means the World Title, so be it.

David Starr does not like Sami Callihan, who is the worst thing about wrestling today. Tonight, he’s showing that AAW is truly independent.

Lucha Bros vs. Team Tremendous

Team Tremendous, Dan Barry and Bill Carr, are a pair of detectives. I’ve seen them before and haven’t been overly impressed so hopefully they change things up here. They spend a lot of time yelling at each other before finally getting ready to go. Pentagon and Dan start things off and it’s more yelling with Dan trying some Spanish. A superkick finally drops Dan so Bill comes in for a hurricanrana as everything breaks down in a hurry.

We settle down to the big Carr slamming Fenix and dropping a big leg, with Barry making sure to hold the legs. Something that looked like a Magic Killer is broken up with a headscissors and the way too early hot tag brings in Pentagon for the rapid fire double teaming. Barry escapes the spike Fear Factor so it’s a reverse Razor’s Edge/running cutter combination for two on Pentagon instead.

The Bros are back up with a double superkick so Carr clotheslines them both down for a breather. Fenix is back up with the top rope double stomp to drive Carr into the apron. The Pentagon Driver gets two on Barry and the electric chair/Sliced Bread combination for the same on Pentagon. Since Pentagon doesn’t sell for very long, he’s back up with a Canadian Destroyer to Carr. That means the Black Fire Driver to finish Barry at 9:50.

Rating: C+. It was fun while it lasted, which seems to be the subtitle of most of the matches on this show. What mattered most here though was having the Lucha Bros around, as they’re some of the best talents in the world right now. Is there any surprise that AEW wanted them as one of the focal points of the division? Team Tremendous….yeah still not feeling it.

Post match Fenix puts over AAW and Chicago, saying you can do whatever you want. Pentagon thanks AAW as well because they’re out of here (not mentioned of course).

Jimmy Jacobs tells Mance Warner to bring it.

AAW Title: David Starr vs. Sami Callihan

Starr is challenging and has Jake Something in his corner. Sami on the other hand has a suited hype man who looks like Joey Mercury. They lock up against the ropes to start as the fans are all over Callihan’s home state of Ohio. Starr wants to fight and lays down on the mat so Sami will come to him. That goes well for Starr, who has quite the amateur background. They take turns going after the arm before Callihan drives him up against the ropes again.

Hang on though as Sami needs to head to the floor and walk into the crowd for a bit. Back in and Starr gets a series of near falls off a series of rollups and Callihan is looking frustrated. A quick belly to back suplex gets Sami out of trouble and it’s off to w neck crank. Back up and a rolling kick to the ribs drops Callihan and it’s time to start in on the champ’s legs.

Starr sends him to the apron for a springboard clothesline but Callihan is ready for the dive. That means a chair to Starr’s head and some hard chops to the chest. The run around the ring takes too long though (because Sami is running around the ring) and Starr catches him with a superkick. Back in and Sami gets two off a top rope superplex before it’s off to the chinlock. The comeback is on with Starr unloading in the corner, followed by a low superkick.

The Downward Spiral gets two on the champ and Sami falls out to the floor. You don’t do that in an indy match so Starr nails the suicide dive. You also don’t come back in as Sami grabs a hanging swinging neckbreaker (or something close to it) for two of his own. Some clotheslines send Starr outside but he’s right back in with a running clothesline of his own. This one misses completely though and Starr slams his head into the bottom rope to knock himself silly.

A running knee to the head sets up a powerbomb into an STF but Starr makes the rope. Starr can barely stand but manages a heck of a shot to the face. Sami spits at him so Starr is right back with a brainbuster onto the knee for a hot two. The old Edgecator has Sami tapping, but the lackey has the referee. Starr lets him go….and Jake turns on Starr to knock him cold. Sami adds the Cactus Special and wins WITH A CHINLOCK at 26:00.

Rating: B. This was entertaining for the most part but it never really hit a high level that they were probably looking for. Jake turning on him felt like a big deal and will probably set up a big Jake vs. Starr match down the road. Sami feels like a major heel champion so whoever eventually gets to beat him should be an important moment. Fine main event, but nothing that you need to see.

Post match Sami says he is AAW and professional wrestling.

Overall Rating: B-. It wasn’t great and it’s not some must see show but I’ve seen far worse shows than this. The show felt like a bigger indy company with a lot of action, though trimming a match or two off and letting some others have more time would have made for a better night. What we got was rather good though with only one match I wouldn’t call at least pretty good. At the same time though, nothing was great and none of the matches stood out. I liked the show well enough though and given how bad some of the Wrestlemania weekend shows were, I can take a good up and down indy card.

Thomas Hall has been a wrestling fan for over thirty years and has seen over 50,000 wrestling matches. He has also been a wrestling reviewer since 2009 with over 5,000 full shows covered. You can find his work at kbwrestlingreviews.com, or check out his Amazon author page with 28 wrestling books. His latest book is the History Of In Your House.

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