Continuum V
Apr 12, 2023 5:00:41 GMT -5
Post by OrochiGeese on Apr 12, 2023 5:00:41 GMT -5
"The Randolph Report"
Event "Continuum V"
Date Held: Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Report Posted: Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Location: "Peter Venkman Memorial Arena" in Westchester, New York.
[John Randolph:] "Happy Spring and welcome to Continuum V. We are at the halfway point in the league and some wrestlers are already at the brink of being numerically eliminated from contention for the Infinity Continuum Championship. We have a number of very big matches tonight along with a return of a former NEXUS Champion that we haven't seen in a long time: Joachim.
Each of our four matches will take place between wrestlers from a different Block in this League.
Block A - NEXUS
Block B - Space-Time
Block C - World Heavyweight
Block D - Universal
Tonight's matches features these wrestlers:
Block A: Tsaoring Chou vs. Wang Gom-Bu
Block D: Kazuo Saji vs. Darius Korvin
Block C: Joachim vs. Charles Langford
Block B: RYOMA vs. Brandr Hoff
(Click here to see the scoring system for the league.)
(Click here to see the results and points for each wrestler.)
[John:] "In a rare treat for Block A fans, tonight's match features two participants that want to be here for the right reasons: legitimate competition. Tsaoring Chou and Wang Gom-Bu have had rather interesting journeys as of late, but they both entered this league with the desire to emerge as the Infinite Continuum Champion while showing respect for their rivals.
For those that don't remember the start of this league three years ago, many of the wrestlers participated in a "Promo Round-up" to give their thoughts on competing. Tsaoring emphasized his focus on meditation to help him cope with the shenanigans he predicted would occur. Recently, Tsaoring has gotten some exposure displaying that meditation in some exhibition matches that were broadcast online.
Wang Gom-Bu, through his then-manager Archibald Snow, was originally quite confident in his chances of victory. For those wondering where Snow is, by the way, no one has any clue. Arthur thinks that Snow got frustrated as a result of the hiatuses and just went back to England to retire. Wang has done just fine on his own though. He has really found himself as not just a wrestler: but a whole person. He is a popular mentor in the Basic Training program and some of that anger that he had early on in his career has faded. He's a fierce competitor but has made a number of friends on this roster: including his opponent for tonight.
With four points, Wang has a small lead in this Block over Tsaoring's three. But each of them have had to contend with some unseemly situations in their matches. At Continuum II, Wang dominated in his match against Kurt Sanders. However, as he is wont to do, Kurt found an an underhanded way to get Wang disqualified to steal the victory. At Continuum III, Tsaoring had his match with Alicia Gordon interrupted in a bizarre way. The arena's lights turned off and Alicia was covered with what appeared to be blood: presumably by Marie Reyes. It was amazing that the match even continued but it ended in a time-limit draw.
Both men have been prevented from showing all that they could do up to this point in the league. At least Wang was able to have a normal match with Jason, even though both were somewhat frustrated at the time limit draw. At least nothing untoward occurred there. This brings us to tonight where I am confident that each man will pay themselves and each other enough respect to wrestle like true competitors.
It's hard to call a winner in this match though. A few years ago, Wang narrowly defeated Tsaoring Chou in the first round of the Universal Circuit Title Tournament. Tsaoring impressed the crowd as well as Wang, but Wang still holds that victory. Tsaoring has had more in ring time as of late whereas Wang has spent most of his time training rookies. Whether that leads to more rust or hunger is unclear. So let's get to the ring to find out which one of these two can make a stab at closing in on Kurt Sander's despicable point lead in Block A.
After both men come to the ring, to great applause, they immediately shake hands. It's a long shake, but not one of intimidation. It's a medi-shake* - a combination of shaking each other's hands while meditating on the solemn occasion. I can get behind this gesture.
("Medi-shake" should not be confused as a health supplement endorsed by the UBL. Do not take "Medi-Shake" if you are currently metabolizing and plan to continue. Side-effects of "Medi-shake" include increased fighting spirit in matches andpossible definite diarrhea."
Match 1 - A: Tsaoring Chou vs. Wang Gom-Bu
It doesn't take a long-time fan to figure out how the match started. Just look at the two. Chou attempted to use his speed to land his signature chops and flippy maneuvers against Wang. Wang used his massive body to absorb the chops and shrug off Chou's hurracanrana attempts. Wang was not able to connect with anything though due to Chou's disengagement speed. The fans cheered for the impressive skills of both men but seemed a little "settled" at the rather conventional action that this match-up initially produced.
Chou recognized the lower energy of the arena and immediately worked to change it. Chou ran full-force at Wang, anticipating the counter chop and rolling through it, then lept onto the ropes and jumped backward in a moonsault which he converted into a double mule-kick style dropkick. Seriously, this may have been the spot of the night. It didn't knock Wang down but it did send him careening backward. Chou took advantage of this rare loss of balance and followed up with a running hurracanrana which did knock Wang down. The fans erupted in this sudden burst of inspired offense by Chou. Wang got up but with a bit of difficulty. For a man that size, getting knocked down is not something that happens often so it's harder to prepare for.
From that point on, Chou stayed on the offense with an array of dropkicks, flying cross chops, and even a surprising use of arm bars. Still reeling from having the rug pulled out from under him, and perhaps suffering from the aforementioned ring rust, Wang was out of sorts. However, a man of his size and strength always finds his way back into the match. It was, of course, the same spirit of risk-taking that got Chou ahead that ended up evening the momentum score here.
Chou attempted yet another high concept strategy: He twisted Wang's arm, climbed the post, and started walking the ropes. When he jumped off the ropes, spinning like 3 tines in mid-air, he came down attempting an armdrag. However, Wang just grabbed him out of the air with a bearhug. It looked like Wang was squeezing a disobedient teddy bear here due to the size disparity. Fortunately, Chou's attempt did occur near the ropes so he was able to stretch out his leg to rest on the middle rope which broke the hold. But the shock of the counter and the initial bear hug damage certainly turned the tides here. To those who ask, how much damage could a man do in just a few seconds? Invite your neighborhood bear in and find out.
Wang did to Chou what Wang is wont to do: punish the back of his opponent with wear-down holds like the camel clutch then unload with chops. With his body being worn down and his movement restricted, Chou was in trouble. Try jumping around when your back is being wrenched? Or just when you reach 40. Good luck!
Wang seemed to be heading toward victory as he dragged Chou into the middle of the ring. After Chou was hoisted in the air once more for a bearhug, Chou gave a last ditch effort to add his own jump onto Wang's lift. This resulted in Chou flying up in the air and coming down with his signature "Soaring Spiring" splash!! What a counter!! This knocked Wang down and covered him at the same time. It only got a 2-count but it sent a message: Do not voluntarily send Tsaoring soaring into the heavens!!
Chou build on this momentum sensing that it was now or never. He moonsaulted onto Wang's knees which surprised the fans. First, Chou doesn't typically target the legs of his opponent. Secondly, ouch - Wang's knees look like bricks. However, Chou took a calculated risk here. He knew that it would do just enough damage to Wang's legs to buy him some extra time to get to the top rope. Chou scored with a jumping single arm chop as Wang struggled to get up. This earned another 2 count for Chou. He seemed a little uncertain of what to do next so he ... sat down and meditated? Okay, that's an option. I mean, it's better than anything Sanders has done. The problem is that, by now, Wang got up. However, Wang is choosing not to attack Chou in this state. Is it out of respect or some equivalent of "don't wake a meditating tiger?" Is that even a rule or just...well, fairly common sense? Don't invite your neighborhood tiger in to ask about this.
In either case, Wang has let Chou come back to us in a natural way. Chou begins running as quickly as he can around Wang. Even though Chou lost some speed from this match, Wang is having trouble turning his body to match Chou's positioning. Chou skips his last 90 degree angle turn to instead jump on the post, then jump off it with a flying frankensteiner!! However, even with all the momentum he had, he isn't able to send Wang over the top. Instead, Wang merely leans forward and covers Chou, getting near a 3 count. Chou, very frustrated at what just may have been his final ditch effort, seems to get desperate.
He umleashes a flurry of chops and leg kicks to Wang as if he has a recently awakened a muay thaiger. Wang still struggles against competitors with a striking background due to the fact he's a large target and rather slow. But Chou's strikes just don't have the power and speed that he needs to really unload on Wang. Wang realizes he can strike the deciding blow here. He thrusts his arm forward and grabs Chou around the waist. Despite absorbing a few chops in the process, Wang is able to use his massive strength to pick up and send Chou down with a Musou slam. He covers Chou with all of his body and earns the 3 count.
Tsaoring Chou (L) [Musou - 13:25] (W) Wang Gom-Bu
Tsaoring Chou earned 0 points.
Wang Gom-Bu earned 5 points.
[John:] "That was quite a match. You have to give both competitors credit here. This was a dizzying array of motion and comebacks. While I think Wang earned the decisive victory, Chou did everything that he could to fight back and nearly took the win on a few occasions.
After a few minutes of Chou meditating, Wang helps Chou up and raises his hand. The two are clearly friends and have great mutual respect. Chou does not seem to be upset at all and Wang is a gracious winner. They even appear to be laughing about something on their way backstage.
After a few minutes to allow the fans to re-adjust their motion sensors, we start preparing for the next match. And wow do we ever have a big one for you. Kazuo "Chrome" Saji is set to face Darius Korvin. Not only is Darius a former Field Leader, but he occupied that mentorship position when Kazuo was still a student in the program. Darius holds at least one formal victory over Saji, along with a number of wins in training matches. More importantly, Darius holds the psychological upper hand as one of the mentors and motivators of Saji. As one of the hundreds of people who has been "not mad, but disappointed" at Saji in the past, Darius is someone who Kazuo has wished to impress but had fallen short of doing so.
But that was then, and wow is this ever now.
Folks, if you haven't been paying attention to Kazuo Saji recently, you have completely fallen out of the know. Saji may be facing Darius but he's channeling Darwin in the way that he has evolved over the past few years. I recently did an interview with Kazuo and he was more focused and confident than I have ever seen him.
In the past few years, Saji's earned impressive accolades in Sierra Wrestling All-Stars. And in just the past two months, he has elevated his career and further potential to an entirely new level. Just two weeks ago, he defeated Armel St. Martin for the first time to win Block A of the prestigious SWA World Open. Then this past weekend he defeated Samael, his long time SWA rival, to win the entire World Open for the first time.
That's right - Kazuo Saji just earned victory in one of the two leagues he was competing in at the same time. And you know what? Saji going on to also win the UBL Infinite Continuum league would not be a surprise. Not only has he has put in the work to become a top tier threat for any promotion's World Championship, but he also currently has the most momentum out of anyone in his Block or the entire league.
It's not clear if Darius realizes the extent of the changes Kazuo made in and out of the ring. Even if he is aware, Darius may still underestimate Saji. It isn't always so easy to adjust your expectations for someone after they made such a strong, and rather embarrassing, first impression. While Saji may feel intimidated by the former position of power that Darius held over him, Darius may not fully be able to contend with who Saji has become until after the match has started. This gives Saji an advantage to some degree.
We also have not seen Darius wrestle for years. We don't know whether his quest to find Dr. Schassberg, his mentor, has taken time away from his training. We do know that he considers Jakob of Furis and Viktor Katona to be his close allies. The former is not going to improve Darius' in ring abilities, but the latter may.
Saji splits his time between two groups. He is an founding member of the Matsuki Holdings army of RYOMA, Tetsu Gushiken, and the Hellions. He also spends his time with Connor Cipris and their friends in SWA's dominant stable: BHB. All of these influences have helped mature Saji's in ring abilities and entire personality. You can't deny the strength and focus that your allies give to you. Plus, Asako Matsuki is as loud as Furis is frustrating so both men have experience in building patience. Darius has undoubtedly had a harder life but Saji has spent more time in the ring recently and is clearly on a roll.
I think Saji may have the edge in this match because he is constantly surrounded by people who have won multiple Championships and have their attention firmly on being the best wrestlers possible. Both Matsuki Holdings and BHB have formed a true family environment that has allowed Saji to thrive. I still don't really know whether Darius is more focused on his in ring career or mission to find Dr. Schassberg. The latter is commendable, obviously. But the time he has spent searching, and his out of ring battles with Destiny and Gauntlet, may have led his in ring abilities to degrade. At the time he was Field Leader, many in the front office were optimistic about his potential rise to the very top of the UBL. Once we found out that he actually joined UBL to fight Destiny though, his reputation changed. Does he want to be the best wrestler on the roster? Is he willing to put the time in to make that happen? Does the dissolution of Gauntlet change his focus back to the ring or make him even more desperate to find his mentor who was taken by the group that is now imprisoned? Questions!
I will note one more thing. This match was originally supposed to feature James Ward facing Saji. That all changed after Continuum III when Ward retired due to his crushing defeat at the hands, and smirks, of Geese Walker. I do believe Saji has a more capable opponent now than he would have, but Ward would have provided a different type of physical test. Darius isn't as strong as Ward but he is an accomplished amateur wrestler with punishing suplexes and submissions. His cattle mutilation maneuver, the "Korvin Mutation," is one of the most debilitating and hardest moves to escape that I've ever seen. However, Saji remains one of the strongest kickers in UBL and utilizes lightning quick neckbreakers. He has also been working with RYOMA and Sako Dasumi to add some more powerful moves, and has worked with Hae-Won and Tetsu to add more effective submissions. This match provides an interesting contrast of styles in addition to the history between Kazuo and Darius.
Both men have now made their way out to the ring. I'm hoping to see a pre-match handshake like we just saw in the last match - oooh, well, this went differently than I expected.
The one thing I assumed existed between these two was a high degree of mutual respect. But while Saji had a genuine smile for Darius when he came to the ring, the opposite was not true. Right before the bell rang, Saji held out his hand for a handshake. Darius responded by hitting Saji hard right across the face with a shotei slap. This drew a huge "ohhh" from the crowd. Saji was shocked by this and you could almost see an expression of betrayal given the mentorship role. For his part, Darius just had a scowl on his face.
It took a second for Saji to regain his composure but he actually held out his hand for another handshake. Maybe that first handshake shook a memory screw loose or maybe he thought reacting apologetically for a potentially forgotten slight was the right tactic? It wasn't. Darius once again unloaded with a huge slap across Saji's face. I thought I knew all of the history between these two but there's clearly something missing. What isn't missing is a bright red handprint on Saji's face which...probably isn't a new thing for him.
What transpired next was even more surprising to me. Saji holds out his hand for yet a third handshake. But when Darius went to slap him in the face, Saji spun in the same direction, outpacing the slap. Saji continues rotating and catches a wide open Darius with a spinning 360 shotei! This knocks Darius on his back. I've never seen Saji bait someone like that! Given how he was rocked, physically and emotionally, by those first two slaps, I was actually quite impressed at his resiliency and ability to make a game plan on the spot.
Saji then started screaming at Darius, asking him what his problem was. This wasn't meant as intimidating but rather out of confusion and genuine hurt. The crowd was completely with Saji here, especially given the rare mix of vulnerability and strength he was showing. Saji waited for Darius to get up, and Darius screamed "that was a mistake." Eiji Yoshida, our referee for the match, has signaled for the bell to be rung! Neither man is exactly 100% but the fans are on the edge of their seats for what now looks like it will be a war!
Match 2 - D: Kazuo Saji vs. Darius Korvin
*POST MATCH SPOILERS*
[John:] "A tremendously impressive win for Kazuo Saji: especially in light of the emotions that were provoked at the start of this match. Saji broke out all his signature moves, including some new ones that we haven't seen before. He also showed incredibly resiliency against the "Korvin Mutation" finisher which Darius applied right after a devastating dragon suplex whip. Both men threw everything they had against each other but Kazuo was victorious with what has become one of the most potent finishers in professional wrestling!"
Kazuo Saji (W) ["Chrome Splitter" - 15:46] (L) Darius Korvin
Kazuo Saji earned 5 points.
Darius Korvin earned 0 points.
[John:] The match is over but the fireworks are not! Viktor Katona has run out to ringside and nails an unsuspecting, and exhausted, Saji with an elbow to the back of the head. Given how Darius greeted Saji, I shouldn't be too shocked at seeing Viktor join in on the attack. But this is the first time I've ever seen Katona attack someone that wasn't affiliated with Destiny or Gauntlet. I'm completely disgusted at this. Saji just wrestled the best match of his UBL career and this is how he's treated afterward.
Viktor and Darius start stomping on Saji. This is truly a sickening display. Fortunately, before they were able to do any real damage, Saji was rescued by many allies. His Matsuki-gun stablemates Tetsu Gushiken and RYOMA ran out to the ring along with Thunder Strike and his J.U.S.T.I.C.E. squad.
RYOMA pointed at Katona with legit anger in his eyes. This was chilling since you don't usually see RYOMA call someone out with that expression. That's like the "I'm a'lariat you to the ninth circle of hell" equivalent of a "come hither" look. Even THRASH Ogawa came out to make the save and cursed heavily at Katona for 'pissing on a good fight.' Not the phrasing I'd use but he's right. This isn't the way to follow up a great match and this behavior is never acceptable. Saji did absolutely nothing to justify this attack.
Oddly, Darius and Katona only got angrier when they saw THRASH come out and threatened him specifically. They seemed to lose any focus on Saji or anyone else. Why the specific anger at Ogawa? Are they still made at him for knocking out Furis last summer at Second Dimension? Perhaps. I mean, that's a long list of people to be angry at but Darius and Katona seems to have the bellicose bandwidth. The only thing we do know for sure is that Arthur Wingate is going to be angriest at this situation. He hates attacks like this and hates people using the league to advance agendas not related to competition and winning the Championship.
Luckily, no one was actually hurt in the previous melee. Saji was able to get up on his own and shrugs off any damage from the match and attack. He's also getting some compliments from his allies on his victory in the match and behavior in general. Thunder Strike, particularly, appears to be praising him for his poise and resolve. I think it's well deserved. Kazuo's skills looked significantly sharper than the last time we saw him when he tied Matt Rivers during Continuum II. His efforts are paying off as we are witnessing him reach a new level. Everything he said to me during our interview has been demonstrated in action here.
It's also refreshing to see Tetsu Gushiken come out. There's no doubt that he is a loyal friend and stablemate but you have to give him credit here. There was a chance he was going to have to actually fight to save Saji and he was willing to do that even if it meant he could accidentally hurt someone in the process. That seems like a huge step in the right direction for him given the issues that he has had over the past two years dealing with Langford's supposed injury at his hands. Maybe we can see Tetsu again in that ring soon. Many of us still believe he belongs actively competing in it rather than just preparing others for competition.
But the biggest story of this match, and likely the entire evening, is Kazuo Saji's decisive victory over Darius. In doing so, he accelerates the incredible momentum he has recently built. He has quite a tall task remaining though as he still has to go through Bak Fu and Geese Walker to finish his Block. And if those two weren't already closely watching Saji, they certainly will be now.
Intermission is here and it certainly came at a perfect time!
Merchandising and concessions
Over at the concessions booth, the warmer weather is putting somewhat of a kibosh on the hot food that was all the rage here a few months ago. Don't get me wrong - hotcakes are evergreen - but we're seeing some lighter and less filling fare prevail this time around.
"Tsaoring drops" are a hit with the kids and people who prefer to have mangled tongues. Look, you try one of those super sour candies as an adult and see how your mouth feels. Yeah, it was fun tasting hot regret when you were a kid but that can ruin an entire week at my age. If you're looking for an alternative sugar overload that is less acerbic but more gluttonous in nature: Wang Gum-balls are tremendous wads of tear-off gum similar to an old baseball-themed candy. Maybe we can call these "Battle League Chew?" No, we'll get sued? Fair enough. We probably need their consent to air people even chewing the gum.
For the older crowd, Brandr Hoff's beer company is debuting its flagship "Hoffenweizen" tonight. This is basically a wheat beer from one of the old countries. It's a good pour but it has disturbing apocalyptic imagery on the cans featuring Brandr slaying various mythical monsters. This beer almost tastes 'loud' as I can imagine a music video promoting it with the heaviest of metals. I don't know if Brandr settled on those designs after drinking too much of it. I'm surprised he didn't call it "Dethbock" but I guess he can always roll out that flavor later.
Over at the merchandise booth, "Chrome" sunglasses are the undisputed number one seller. They always move in droves after Saji wrestles and tonight is clearly no exception. I'll have to check the numbers but I think he provided us with more sales on those tonight than all merchandise of the past two shows combined. Those glasses are literally more money than even he used to claim when he first debuted. Think about that for a second and take a breath. I don't know whether Saji is living the dream or if we're all just having a collective delusion. But watching practically everyone file out of the arena tonight wearing those sunglasses was like Neo seeing all those Agent Smiths in Revolutions. Look, it wasn't the best movie but you still remember it. Admit it.
[John:] "Charles Langford joins us for the next match and I can't manage any emotional response to his presence. I'm not even angry, I'm just exhausted at the mockery that he, Sanders, and Woodruff continue to make of their careers at our expense. Charles is 'appearing' for the second event in a row. We are all hoping that he decides to actually get in the ring tonight to wrestle and leave the shenanigans at the door. No, we don't marvel at his skills but that isn't the point. He needs to compete so this league has full legitimacy. Perhaps he can take a card from the deck of River Reade: OG-Joshi's new resident gambler extraordinaire, and apply his love for games into actual competition and attempted oneupsmanship. But hey, maybe I'm a gullible moron for assuming that he'll suddenly change his ways and compete like he has integrity.
What I can promise is one notable improvement to the bedlam that occurred during Continuum IV. Arthur Wingate has informed me that if Eiji Yoshida even smells another member of 3 of a Kind at ringside during this match, he'll boot Charles and Kurt out of the league quicker than Jasper Woodruff runs to fool's gold. Arthur isn't banning ring seconds as a general rule, but he's done giving 3 of a Kind any benefit of the doubt. They go it alone for now on or they go. You'll be hard pressed to find people who disagree with that.
It's not all outbound talk though because tonight we are also set to witness a return. The opponent for Charles tonight is Joachim: a man we haven't seen wrestle, or exist, since Continuum III on December 13, 2020. If a Joachim falls on his path in the forest and no one is there, does he make a sound? I mean, I'd have to check with Barton for the exact gravitational equation but I'm pretty sure the answer is yes.
But what we don't have an answer to is what Joachim has been up to since Continuum III. He abruptly challenged Corey O'Brian to compete under some bizarre stipulations. It felt more like a multiple episode boss arc of Matsuki MECH than a wrestling match with the trading of finishers. Joachim lost decisively then was threatened by Corey to never make a challenge like that again. I completely understand where Corey was coming from. Years of Joachim's duplicitous Destiny behavior had already made him difficult to trust. So if he was trying to turn over a new brick in his path, any type of shenanigans were worthy of extra scrutiny and anger. But I will note that what Joachim did was far less cowardly than what Charles did during his match with Corey: run away and enlist outside help in doing so. The thing is, I'm sure Corey legitimately had higher expectations for Joachim than he does for Charles. He also has history with Joachim and Destiny.
In any case, we don't know where Joachim went, why he was gone so long without contacting us, and how he feels about Corey's response to his stipulations. We also don't know how Joachim feels about what happened to Gauntlet. Did Joachim's extended absence have to do with the rise in Gauntlet's previous aggression? Would he return here today if they weren't gone? For those who remember, Joachim was targeted by Gauntlet when he was still in Destiny. It's undoubtedly safer for him here now than it was when they were here.
All these questions float prominently but his expression offers no hints as to the answers. He walks to the ring first to a somewhat tepid response from the fans. Gone is the hatred mixed with begrudging respect. It's replaced with confusion - what is Joachim still looking for in the UBL? It's hard to connect with a man, even one with admitted passion and depth, when his motive here is so uncertain and silent. He doesn't seem dissuaded by the apathetic reaction from the fans though. Rather, he slowly walks down to the ring and begins silently meditating inside of it.
Out next is Charles Langford who is practically wearing a suit of bravado with the excess coming off his face. Amazingly, he's actually dressed in his ring attire. Unsurprisingly, he is carrying a microphone. He holds his hand out as if he is being interrupted but the crowd is waiting for him to speak and Joachim has not even acknowledged him.
[Charles:] "Okay now hold on, quit yer hollerin. Ole Charles here got something to say."
Again - no one was stopping him but I think he likes playing the victim for the attention.
[Charles:] "These leagues are second nature to me. Whether you're playin on felt or canvas, the same rules apply. The player who stays smart makes it to the end. By keeping my cards close to my vest, I stopped anyone from forming a game plan against me and kept my health. See, I could have bet it all for a victory against Mr. O'Brian. But why show everyone what I'm holdin, and face a man who would surely try to injure me, when I can just cash in against a man with a far weaker hand. Joachim was either gonna stay in the complimentary buffet of life or come in here years without seeing a flop. Son..."
Charles is gesturing to Joachim who, to his great credit, is more successful in ignoring Charles than anyone else I've ever seen.
[Charles:] "You're probably the only one in this Block that isn't trying to chase me down cause we barely know each other. And since I got nothing against you, let me offer some kindly advice. If you look around your Block and can't identify the sucker - y'er it. *Charles laughs.* So how about you save yourself some time, face, and health? Forfeit like a gentleman who knows his betters and I'll buy you a drink afterward. Whaddya say?"
Joachim suddenly gets up and makes eye contact with such ferocity that Charles actually stumbles. Oh no, I hope he didn't 'hurt' his ankle again. The thing is, before the fear crept in, Charles was making a pretty damn good case as to why he ducked Corey. It was cowardly but it wasn't dumb. He knew he couldn't beat Corey and that he'd have a much better chance at full health against Joachim. The problem is - he said the plan out loud and insulted Joachim to the point that any possible advantage he had may now be gone. In my view, Joachim is not on the level of Corey but he's still a much higher threat in this Block than Charles. I don't know if Charles realized that Joachim is not someone to antagonize. He's peaceful but does bare vengeance to those who mistreat and disrespect him. Through that little speech, Charles just voluntarily joined those ranks.
Charles seems confused as to what to do here since Joachim is now fully primed for battle. Charles starts to shuffle back but turns around and sees Jang Bae staring him in the face!! The fans erupt in cheers. It's been even longer since we saw Jang and the fans haven't forgotten the feats of heroism he has pulled off in the past. Preventing Charles from turning tail is yet another one. Charles has no way out and begrudgingly makes his way to the ring. Looks like we got a match!
Match 3 - C: Joachim vs. Charles Langford
To his credit, Charles looked impressive for the first few seconds. He used his bulky frame to push Joachim backward with a shoulder block. Joachim didn't fight the movement though and bounced off the ropes, quickly running back at a surprised Charles with a lariat. Charles is down and you'd think he just got hit with a cannon ball. This is the first contact anyone has made with him since he came back from injury.
Charles starts rolling around the ground and holding his neck. He pleads with Eiji to give him an injury time out. Eiji seems suspicious but grants him 1 minute. If Charles can't agree to continue wrestling by the end, the match will end. UBL and OG-Joshi referees are trained to give wrestlers the benefit of the doubt if they think a wrestler has sustained an injury. I believe Eiji is properly following that training here. Even a broken clock is right once a day, after all, so a perpetual liar can occasionally tell the truth.
We still don't know whether Charles suffered an injury at the knee of Tetsu Gushiken at Continuum I. Could Charles actually be injured? If he is, he seems to be spending more time complaining to Eiji than tending to his neck issue. He's ordering Charles to check Joachim's arm.
I mean? What are the charges here? Does Charles think Joachim has a robot arm now? This is ridiculous. If Charles was really hurt with a neck injury, he wouldn't be posturing like that. Maybe Joachim should offer to trade finishers with Charles - I suspect he'd like the game.
The minute has passed and Charles has to make his big decision. He calls over the referee and suggests that he'll continue the match. He just wants to shake Joachim's hand to start the match over "the right way." Joachim hears this and actively smirks. You'd think Charles, the supposed master of figuring out his opponents, would maybe decide not go through with a plan that his opponent (and everyone within a 10 mile radius) has so clearly figured out. But that's our Langford.
(I demand a cut of the profit on all "That's our Langford" merchandise.)
Joachim holds his hand out with an expression on his face that is a mix of cynicism and amusement. I think he actively wants Charles to attempt his shenanigans. Charles suddenly screams "Gauntlet!" and points his hand to the audience. This completely distracts Eiji, leads to a huge sigh from the audience, and gives Charles a second to execute his plan. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a playing card with jagged metal edges. We saw him use this during Continuum III to gain some control in the match with Kurt Sanders against THRASH Ogawa and William King.
Charles immediately slashes Joachim in the arm with the card: drawing blood. Joachim just stands there, emotionless, as Charles smiles. Charles than does it to the other arm which also draws blood. The look on Joachim's face goes from shock to intense amusement. As Eiji continues to scan the crowd for any signs of potential Gauntlet interference, Charles starts to realize that his attacks are backfiring. Maybe one day he'll look back at this and put it together:
Joachim is a voluntary blood letter! You don't scare him by busting him open! Joachim uses his hands to smear his blood over his chest. Charles immediately recognizes the utter folly of his plan and goes to hide behind Eiji. Eiji is absolutely shocked that Joachim is suddenly all bloody. Charles now appears without a game plan, which is likely a better position than possessing a horrible one. He starts pleading with Joachim to show him mercy but it's to no avail. Joachim grabs him and delivers 3 blistering chops to Charles' chest. Charles is already in too deep. He can't out run Joachim and Jang Bae is still on the ramp.
Then he does something we've never seen him do: outright fold. He reaches into his pocket to pull out the bloody card and tells the referee that he used it on Joachim. Eiji asks Joachim and, to the crowd's delight, Joachim denies it!! You gotta give it to Joachim - he wants to win this the right way and Charles looks mortified!! Eiji has also taken the card away from Charles so he can't actually use it (again). Charles is running out of options if he wants to avoid getting defeated for the full amount of points. Might he consider wrestling?
He might not. He drops to the mat and quickly rolls out of the ring. Joachim gives chase while Jang closely approaches. Charles realizes his escape routes backstage and to the crowd are cut off so he dives under the ring. Joachim is smart here - realizing that he may not be able to hear the count of the referee if he follows Charles. He gets back into the ring. Jang is limited as he can't actually make physical contact with Charles without Joachim being disqualified. Charles plays it safe - electing to stay under the ring for the next 5 minutes. That's right, ole Charles got disqualified once again by count out. That's our f'n Langford.
Joacbim (DQ-W) [Count Out - 6:30] (DQ-L) Charles Langford
Joacbim earned 4 points.
Charles Langford earned 1 point.
Eiji earned a jagged metal playing card and 5 EXP.
Joachim shrugs at this unsatisfying win but the 4 points will help his total. He and Jang walk backstage to the mild applause of the crowd. At least he got the crowd back on his side here to an extent which was a tall order given their initial apathy for his return. Small victories.
Speaking of small victories, Charles didn't emerge from under the ring at the best time. During his walk of shame up the ramp, the crowd is treated to a fun moment watching him almost fall over when "Big Bridge Battle" hit the speakers. RYOMA is set to come out for his main event match now. As he makes his way to the ring, Charles Langford begins shouting at him. RYOMA initially ignores this but Charles is really angry at him for some reason. Maybe he didn't like getting blasted backward by the music and crowd reaction.
Regardless of the reason, Charles is now following RYOMA to the ring, practically spitting while shouting. RYOMA stops walking and lightly turns his head. He's still angry from what occurred earlier with Darius and Viktor Katona jumping Kazuo. That anger is evident in RYOMA's expression and it causes Charles to panic and run away. He actually trips over himself and falls right down before going backstage. RYOMA shakes his head in disgust and resumes his walk to the ring with the full support of the crowd.
RYOMA is set to face Brandr Hoff in this Block B match. Both men have only had one match so far in this league. RYOMA defeated Cosmic K*I*D at Continuum I. Brandr defeated Thomas Mills by count-out at Continuum III but completely dominated him in the process. Neither man has really been able to show the extent of their abilities over the past few years due to the schedule and constant hiatuses. However, RYOMA has had a more noteworthy few years leading up to this point. He held the Super NOVA Galactic Wrestling Universal Championship for almost two years: from August of 2020 to the May of 2022. He continues to lead Matsuki Holdings and help his friends achieve new heights in their careers. He also is one of the leaders in the UBL: respected by peers and fans alike. Finally, he played a significant role in the defeat of Gauntlet.
Brandr, for his part, has struggled to maintain championship relevance over time. He has had moments of great success that indicated his potential but has yet to take the next step to truly achieve it. He was the first man to defeat Destiny's monster: Matthias. Then in an impressive display, he won a Battle Royale granting him a shot at the NEXUS Title: only to fail to take it from Matt Rivers twice. He lost to Alicia Gordon during her time as Sirius Mask and then failed to defeat THRASH Ogawa for his Circuit Title. While his victory over Mills was impressive, the feat itself was not since Mills is not exactly elite level competition. With all that Brandr brings to the table, he has yet to put it all together for sustained success to make significant progress in his career. No one can doubt the physical tools he possesses or the mental strength that he has, but he does not have anything tangible to show for it in a career that has now lasted a decade.
RYOMA and Brandr possess some similarities in style. Both men utilize variations of the lariat as their finisher. RYOMA uses the "ECHO Lariat" and Brandr uses the "Val-halla-lariat." Both men lean heavily on power-based maneuvers, including power bombs, and usually are the biggest and strongest men in the ring. Against each other, RYOMA clearly has the height advantage but I believe Brandr may be the more powerful of the two. Brandr is more comfortable using submissions to finish a match which is one hole that RYOMA has always had in his game. However, I would grant RYOMA the edge in terms of mental endurance. Few in UBL can claim to possess the same level of "toukon," or "fighting spirit", as RYOMA has. This was on display in victories as well as in defeats against the best in the world. Watch his match against Zachariah Zealot where RYOMA lost the Super NOVA Title and marvel at the resiliency that he had. He lost twice to Corey O'Brian, and actually won once. We know how RYOMA is able to kick things into a higher gear to survive.
We have yet to see Brandr utilize that same ability to evolve within the match as well as outside of it. However, we know he is full of spirit, viking spirit, and is a very proud man. Facing an opponent like RYOMA could very well bring the best out of Brandr. It could cause him to make his best even better. After all, even in his losses to Rivers, Gordon, and Ogawa, Brandr was still fighting with all he had. Perhaps the biggest issue he's had is the lack of consistent competition on that highest level: a problem many of our roster members have had recently due to the constant hiatuses. But they got to evolve before that was an issue.
Brandr is out now and he certainly seems to recognize the obstacle, and opportunity, in front of him. He appears more focused than usual. Against Mills, Brandr seemed angry and impatient. Against RYOMA, Brandr looks intense but poised. Is Brandr's energy somewhat depending on the nature of his opponent? Or is he truly bringing his best to face the best? As for RYOMA, he still seems to be annoyed at Charles and even Katona from before but he's not looking past Brandr for one second. We don't usually see RYOMA go into matches angry. The last time he did was against Zealot and it didn't work out well for him. But tonight is different, the competition is different, and RYOMA is fighting to claim a new Championship after recently losing one he treasured. Becoming the first Infinite Continuum Champion would propel RYOMA"s career even higher than it has already gone and tonight's match is one more crucial step in doing so. For Brandr, this Championship would make his career and silence all doubters that he has had: including, perhaps, himself. We're about to see whether the sun sets on this proud Viking warrior.
Match 4 - B: RYOMA vs. Brandr Hoff
*POST MATCH SPOILERS*
Folks, I don't know whether to call this an upset or not but I can say for sure it was one of the best matches we've seen from this league. You just knew it was going to be a war when RYOMA spiked Brandr on his head 8 minutes in. Did I expect Brandr to answer with a Crucifix Powerbomb, from the top rope, mere minutes later? Certainly not. I suspect neither did RYOMA. From that point on, the two traded their signature moves, with RYOMA even using Brandr's own Crucifix Backbreaker against him. However, in what must have been a satisfying moment, Brandr then used that same Crucifix Backbreaker against RYOMA to score the victory.
RYOMA (L) [Crucifix Backbreaker - 17:09] (W) Brandr Hoff
Defeating Matthias was, up to this point, the biggest win of Brandr's career. Tonight, Brandr eclipsed that victory by defeating RYOMA. If Brandr goes on to have a legendary career, tonight marks the turning point that made it happen. His victory tonight, in a true epic of a match, may be just the momentum he needs to capture this Block and eventually league.
As for RYOMA, although he has dealt with adversity before, he may linger on an uncomfortable realization. He has never had two major losses before in a row. It is too early to say he's in a slump. Losing to Zachariah Zealot, who is currently in the prime of his career, is understandable. Losing to a motivated Brandr, who just reached to the heavens, is also not a shock. But what concerns me is RYOMA's lack of activity toward the end of that match. He was still battling but he did not attempt another signature move in the last few minutes. Did he lose his game plan or confidence once Brandr was able to survive the rapid fire attempts of signature moves? Was he building on a new plan but was too slow to execute it? Perhaps Brandr's offense rattled his mind and body more than we realized. Again, that crucifix powerbomb from the top was enough to defeat a weaker opponent right then. The fact RYOMA was able to kick out and continue to attempt his own specialties was impressive. But seeing RYOMA lose two high profile matches, back to back, is concerning.
RYOMA earned 0 points.
Brandr Hoff earned 5 points.
And so is what followed this match. After RYOMA began to get up, Brandr approached him. Despite the frustration of losing, RYOMA offered a handshake in his customary sportsmanship. However, Brandr pointed to his own arm instead. He demanded that RYOMA raise it high in victory. Brandr yelled: "Celebrate my domination of you!" RYOMA refused to do anything of the sort. He didn't back up but he didn't escalate. Brandr stepped forward and the two of them had a stare down. RYOMA is never a slouch in a fight but he definitely took some damage from the match. Brandr knew this and was trying to intimidate him into complying. And that is likely why RYOMA was joined by Kazuo Saji and Tetsu Gushiken. Both men ran to back up their friend and mentor.
However, Brandr stayed in the ring. He was even angrier now and shouted at all three men. Tetsu ignored him, focusing on making sure RYOMA was not injured. Kazuo saw that Tetsu had that role covered and did what he did best: walking up to Brandr and unleashing a verbal sh*t-talking tirade at him. Whether this was to allow RYOMA more time to recover or just out of anger, Saji lit into Brandr something fierce. Not gonna repeat a word of it here but, suffice to say, the front row learned some terms that won't likely be leaving their heads soon. Brandr responded by laughing then pointing out the size difference between them. He then tried to push Saji aside to approach RYOMA again. However, Saji's body and eyes did not budge one inch. And he got right back into Brandr's face. RYOMA walked up and joined Saji in staring down Brandr. Tetsu stood behind them but was standing in a manner that looked similar to his old fighting stance. He was ready. Come on, Tetsu!
The Hoff got the hint and left the ring, but was quite celebratory in his mockery on his way up the ramp.
Saji then shouted: "A fluke win every decade, bro. Better live that sh*t up." The crowd erupted in laughter. This caused Brandr to fly back into a rage and he turned around to approach the ring. Luckily, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. security had already come out. As they escorted Brandr backstage, Saji laughed and mouthed "u mad." RYOMA then thanked both of his proteges in a private moment between the three in the ring. Saji and Tetsu raised each of RYOMA's arms and the fans cheered for all three.
I'm just glad we avoided what could have been an even uglier scene here. I don't know what has gotten into Brandr. He was certainly ornery against Mills but I just thought that was an overreaction to lacking true competition. After all, Mills lost to Wonderland by getting his shoes tied together so I could understand if Brandr was frustrated facing him. But what we saw tonight goes beyond that into a militant form of arrogance. I don't know what would have happened if Tetsu and Kazuo didn't come out. Would Brandr have tried to physically force RYOMA to raise his arm? That's clearly going too far and I think RYOMA would have fought back rather assertively. Brandr better explain himself and an apology is certainly in order.
[John:] "And with tonight in the history book, we have now completed the first half of the Continuum stream league! We're planning on bringing you Continuum VI in the Fall. After that, we will have a two-night tournament to crown the next Universal Battalion Champions. But before we get to all that, our next show will be Basic Training's "Summer School" planned for June. In the meantime, look out for Universal Access matches. And if you aren't already watching OG-Joshi, you owe yourselves an explanation! I don't know how Jean did it - but she managed to turn back the clock and progress it at the same time. Look out for their "Spring Fling" later this month! That's all for me for now, but we'll see you soon!"
Event "Continuum V"
Date Held: Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Report Posted: Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Location: "Peter Venkman Memorial Arena" in Westchester, New York.
[John Randolph:] "Happy Spring and welcome to Continuum V. We are at the halfway point in the league and some wrestlers are already at the brink of being numerically eliminated from contention for the Infinity Continuum Championship. We have a number of very big matches tonight along with a return of a former NEXUS Champion that we haven't seen in a long time: Joachim.
Each of our four matches will take place between wrestlers from a different Block in this League.
Block A - NEXUS
Block B - Space-Time
Block C - World Heavyweight
Block D - Universal
Tonight's matches features these wrestlers:
Block A: Tsaoring Chou vs. Wang Gom-Bu
Block D: Kazuo Saji vs. Darius Korvin
Block C: Joachim vs. Charles Langford
Block B: RYOMA vs. Brandr Hoff
(Click here to see the scoring system for the league.)
(Click here to see the results and points for each wrestler.)
[John:] "In a rare treat for Block A fans, tonight's match features two participants that want to be here for the right reasons: legitimate competition. Tsaoring Chou and Wang Gom-Bu have had rather interesting journeys as of late, but they both entered this league with the desire to emerge as the Infinite Continuum Champion while showing respect for their rivals.
For those that don't remember the start of this league three years ago, many of the wrestlers participated in a "Promo Round-up" to give their thoughts on competing. Tsaoring emphasized his focus on meditation to help him cope with the shenanigans he predicted would occur. Recently, Tsaoring has gotten some exposure displaying that meditation in some exhibition matches that were broadcast online.
Wang Gom-Bu, through his then-manager Archibald Snow, was originally quite confident in his chances of victory. For those wondering where Snow is, by the way, no one has any clue. Arthur thinks that Snow got frustrated as a result of the hiatuses and just went back to England to retire. Wang has done just fine on his own though. He has really found himself as not just a wrestler: but a whole person. He is a popular mentor in the Basic Training program and some of that anger that he had early on in his career has faded. He's a fierce competitor but has made a number of friends on this roster: including his opponent for tonight.
With four points, Wang has a small lead in this Block over Tsaoring's three. But each of them have had to contend with some unseemly situations in their matches. At Continuum II, Wang dominated in his match against Kurt Sanders. However, as he is wont to do, Kurt found an an underhanded way to get Wang disqualified to steal the victory. At Continuum III, Tsaoring had his match with Alicia Gordon interrupted in a bizarre way. The arena's lights turned off and Alicia was covered with what appeared to be blood: presumably by Marie Reyes. It was amazing that the match even continued but it ended in a time-limit draw.
Both men have been prevented from showing all that they could do up to this point in the league. At least Wang was able to have a normal match with Jason, even though both were somewhat frustrated at the time limit draw. At least nothing untoward occurred there. This brings us to tonight where I am confident that each man will pay themselves and each other enough respect to wrestle like true competitors.
It's hard to call a winner in this match though. A few years ago, Wang narrowly defeated Tsaoring Chou in the first round of the Universal Circuit Title Tournament. Tsaoring impressed the crowd as well as Wang, but Wang still holds that victory. Tsaoring has had more in ring time as of late whereas Wang has spent most of his time training rookies. Whether that leads to more rust or hunger is unclear. So let's get to the ring to find out which one of these two can make a stab at closing in on Kurt Sander's despicable point lead in Block A.
After both men come to the ring, to great applause, they immediately shake hands. It's a long shake, but not one of intimidation. It's a medi-shake* - a combination of shaking each other's hands while meditating on the solemn occasion. I can get behind this gesture.
("Medi-shake" should not be confused as a health supplement endorsed by the UBL. Do not take "Medi-Shake" if you are currently metabolizing and plan to continue. Side-effects of "Medi-shake" include increased fighting spirit in matches and
Match 1 - A: Tsaoring Chou vs. Wang Gom-Bu
It doesn't take a long-time fan to figure out how the match started. Just look at the two. Chou attempted to use his speed to land his signature chops and flippy maneuvers against Wang. Wang used his massive body to absorb the chops and shrug off Chou's hurracanrana attempts. Wang was not able to connect with anything though due to Chou's disengagement speed. The fans cheered for the impressive skills of both men but seemed a little "settled" at the rather conventional action that this match-up initially produced.
Chou recognized the lower energy of the arena and immediately worked to change it. Chou ran full-force at Wang, anticipating the counter chop and rolling through it, then lept onto the ropes and jumped backward in a moonsault which he converted into a double mule-kick style dropkick. Seriously, this may have been the spot of the night. It didn't knock Wang down but it did send him careening backward. Chou took advantage of this rare loss of balance and followed up with a running hurracanrana which did knock Wang down. The fans erupted in this sudden burst of inspired offense by Chou. Wang got up but with a bit of difficulty. For a man that size, getting knocked down is not something that happens often so it's harder to prepare for.
From that point on, Chou stayed on the offense with an array of dropkicks, flying cross chops, and even a surprising use of arm bars. Still reeling from having the rug pulled out from under him, and perhaps suffering from the aforementioned ring rust, Wang was out of sorts. However, a man of his size and strength always finds his way back into the match. It was, of course, the same spirit of risk-taking that got Chou ahead that ended up evening the momentum score here.
Chou attempted yet another high concept strategy: He twisted Wang's arm, climbed the post, and started walking the ropes. When he jumped off the ropes, spinning like 3 tines in mid-air, he came down attempting an armdrag. However, Wang just grabbed him out of the air with a bearhug. It looked like Wang was squeezing a disobedient teddy bear here due to the size disparity. Fortunately, Chou's attempt did occur near the ropes so he was able to stretch out his leg to rest on the middle rope which broke the hold. But the shock of the counter and the initial bear hug damage certainly turned the tides here. To those who ask, how much damage could a man do in just a few seconds? Invite your neighborhood bear in and find out.
Wang did to Chou what Wang is wont to do: punish the back of his opponent with wear-down holds like the camel clutch then unload with chops. With his body being worn down and his movement restricted, Chou was in trouble. Try jumping around when your back is being wrenched? Or just when you reach 40. Good luck!
Wang seemed to be heading toward victory as he dragged Chou into the middle of the ring. After Chou was hoisted in the air once more for a bearhug, Chou gave a last ditch effort to add his own jump onto Wang's lift. This resulted in Chou flying up in the air and coming down with his signature "Soaring Spiring" splash!! What a counter!! This knocked Wang down and covered him at the same time. It only got a 2-count but it sent a message: Do not voluntarily send Tsaoring soaring into the heavens!!
Chou build on this momentum sensing that it was now or never. He moonsaulted onto Wang's knees which surprised the fans. First, Chou doesn't typically target the legs of his opponent. Secondly, ouch - Wang's knees look like bricks. However, Chou took a calculated risk here. He knew that it would do just enough damage to Wang's legs to buy him some extra time to get to the top rope. Chou scored with a jumping single arm chop as Wang struggled to get up. This earned another 2 count for Chou. He seemed a little uncertain of what to do next so he ... sat down and meditated? Okay, that's an option. I mean, it's better than anything Sanders has done. The problem is that, by now, Wang got up. However, Wang is choosing not to attack Chou in this state. Is it out of respect or some equivalent of "don't wake a meditating tiger?" Is that even a rule or just...well, fairly common sense? Don't invite your neighborhood tiger in to ask about this.
In either case, Wang has let Chou come back to us in a natural way. Chou begins running as quickly as he can around Wang. Even though Chou lost some speed from this match, Wang is having trouble turning his body to match Chou's positioning. Chou skips his last 90 degree angle turn to instead jump on the post, then jump off it with a flying frankensteiner!! However, even with all the momentum he had, he isn't able to send Wang over the top. Instead, Wang merely leans forward and covers Chou, getting near a 3 count. Chou, very frustrated at what just may have been his final ditch effort, seems to get desperate.
He umleashes a flurry of chops and leg kicks to Wang as if he has a recently awakened a muay thaiger. Wang still struggles against competitors with a striking background due to the fact he's a large target and rather slow. But Chou's strikes just don't have the power and speed that he needs to really unload on Wang. Wang realizes he can strike the deciding blow here. He thrusts his arm forward and grabs Chou around the waist. Despite absorbing a few chops in the process, Wang is able to use his massive strength to pick up and send Chou down with a Musou slam. He covers Chou with all of his body and earns the 3 count.
Tsaoring Chou (L) [Musou - 13:25] (W) Wang Gom-Bu
Tsaoring Chou earned 0 points.
Wang Gom-Bu earned 5 points.
[John:] "That was quite a match. You have to give both competitors credit here. This was a dizzying array of motion and comebacks. While I think Wang earned the decisive victory, Chou did everything that he could to fight back and nearly took the win on a few occasions.
After a few minutes of Chou meditating, Wang helps Chou up and raises his hand. The two are clearly friends and have great mutual respect. Chou does not seem to be upset at all and Wang is a gracious winner. They even appear to be laughing about something on their way backstage.
After a few minutes to allow the fans to re-adjust their motion sensors, we start preparing for the next match. And wow do we ever have a big one for you. Kazuo "Chrome" Saji is set to face Darius Korvin. Not only is Darius a former Field Leader, but he occupied that mentorship position when Kazuo was still a student in the program. Darius holds at least one formal victory over Saji, along with a number of wins in training matches. More importantly, Darius holds the psychological upper hand as one of the mentors and motivators of Saji. As one of the hundreds of people who has been "not mad, but disappointed" at Saji in the past, Darius is someone who Kazuo has wished to impress but had fallen short of doing so.
But that was then, and wow is this ever now.
Folks, if you haven't been paying attention to Kazuo Saji recently, you have completely fallen out of the know. Saji may be facing Darius but he's channeling Darwin in the way that he has evolved over the past few years. I recently did an interview with Kazuo and he was more focused and confident than I have ever seen him.
In the past few years, Saji's earned impressive accolades in Sierra Wrestling All-Stars. And in just the past two months, he has elevated his career and further potential to an entirely new level. Just two weeks ago, he defeated Armel St. Martin for the first time to win Block A of the prestigious SWA World Open. Then this past weekend he defeated Samael, his long time SWA rival, to win the entire World Open for the first time.
That's right - Kazuo Saji just earned victory in one of the two leagues he was competing in at the same time. And you know what? Saji going on to also win the UBL Infinite Continuum league would not be a surprise. Not only has he has put in the work to become a top tier threat for any promotion's World Championship, but he also currently has the most momentum out of anyone in his Block or the entire league.
It's not clear if Darius realizes the extent of the changes Kazuo made in and out of the ring. Even if he is aware, Darius may still underestimate Saji. It isn't always so easy to adjust your expectations for someone after they made such a strong, and rather embarrassing, first impression. While Saji may feel intimidated by the former position of power that Darius held over him, Darius may not fully be able to contend with who Saji has become until after the match has started. This gives Saji an advantage to some degree.
We also have not seen Darius wrestle for years. We don't know whether his quest to find Dr. Schassberg, his mentor, has taken time away from his training. We do know that he considers Jakob of Furis and Viktor Katona to be his close allies. The former is not going to improve Darius' in ring abilities, but the latter may.
Saji splits his time between two groups. He is an founding member of the Matsuki Holdings army of RYOMA, Tetsu Gushiken, and the Hellions. He also spends his time with Connor Cipris and their friends in SWA's dominant stable: BHB. All of these influences have helped mature Saji's in ring abilities and entire personality. You can't deny the strength and focus that your allies give to you. Plus, Asako Matsuki is as loud as Furis is frustrating so both men have experience in building patience. Darius has undoubtedly had a harder life but Saji has spent more time in the ring recently and is clearly on a roll.
I think Saji may have the edge in this match because he is constantly surrounded by people who have won multiple Championships and have their attention firmly on being the best wrestlers possible. Both Matsuki Holdings and BHB have formed a true family environment that has allowed Saji to thrive. I still don't really know whether Darius is more focused on his in ring career or mission to find Dr. Schassberg. The latter is commendable, obviously. But the time he has spent searching, and his out of ring battles with Destiny and Gauntlet, may have led his in ring abilities to degrade. At the time he was Field Leader, many in the front office were optimistic about his potential rise to the very top of the UBL. Once we found out that he actually joined UBL to fight Destiny though, his reputation changed. Does he want to be the best wrestler on the roster? Is he willing to put the time in to make that happen? Does the dissolution of Gauntlet change his focus back to the ring or make him even more desperate to find his mentor who was taken by the group that is now imprisoned? Questions!
I will note one more thing. This match was originally supposed to feature James Ward facing Saji. That all changed after Continuum III when Ward retired due to his crushing defeat at the hands, and smirks, of Geese Walker. I do believe Saji has a more capable opponent now than he would have, but Ward would have provided a different type of physical test. Darius isn't as strong as Ward but he is an accomplished amateur wrestler with punishing suplexes and submissions. His cattle mutilation maneuver, the "Korvin Mutation," is one of the most debilitating and hardest moves to escape that I've ever seen. However, Saji remains one of the strongest kickers in UBL and utilizes lightning quick neckbreakers. He has also been working with RYOMA and Sako Dasumi to add some more powerful moves, and has worked with Hae-Won and Tetsu to add more effective submissions. This match provides an interesting contrast of styles in addition to the history between Kazuo and Darius.
Both men have now made their way out to the ring. I'm hoping to see a pre-match handshake like we just saw in the last match - oooh, well, this went differently than I expected.
The one thing I assumed existed between these two was a high degree of mutual respect. But while Saji had a genuine smile for Darius when he came to the ring, the opposite was not true. Right before the bell rang, Saji held out his hand for a handshake. Darius responded by hitting Saji hard right across the face with a shotei slap. This drew a huge "ohhh" from the crowd. Saji was shocked by this and you could almost see an expression of betrayal given the mentorship role. For his part, Darius just had a scowl on his face.
It took a second for Saji to regain his composure but he actually held out his hand for another handshake. Maybe that first handshake shook a memory screw loose or maybe he thought reacting apologetically for a potentially forgotten slight was the right tactic? It wasn't. Darius once again unloaded with a huge slap across Saji's face. I thought I knew all of the history between these two but there's clearly something missing. What isn't missing is a bright red handprint on Saji's face which...probably isn't a new thing for him.
What transpired next was even more surprising to me. Saji holds out his hand for yet a third handshake. But when Darius went to slap him in the face, Saji spun in the same direction, outpacing the slap. Saji continues rotating and catches a wide open Darius with a spinning 360 shotei! This knocks Darius on his back. I've never seen Saji bait someone like that! Given how he was rocked, physically and emotionally, by those first two slaps, I was actually quite impressed at his resiliency and ability to make a game plan on the spot.
Saji then started screaming at Darius, asking him what his problem was. This wasn't meant as intimidating but rather out of confusion and genuine hurt. The crowd was completely with Saji here, especially given the rare mix of vulnerability and strength he was showing. Saji waited for Darius to get up, and Darius screamed "that was a mistake." Eiji Yoshida, our referee for the match, has signaled for the bell to be rung! Neither man is exactly 100% but the fans are on the edge of their seats for what now looks like it will be a war!
Match 2 - D: Kazuo Saji vs. Darius Korvin
*POST MATCH SPOILERS*
[John:] "A tremendously impressive win for Kazuo Saji: especially in light of the emotions that were provoked at the start of this match. Saji broke out all his signature moves, including some new ones that we haven't seen before. He also showed incredibly resiliency against the "Korvin Mutation" finisher which Darius applied right after a devastating dragon suplex whip. Both men threw everything they had against each other but Kazuo was victorious with what has become one of the most potent finishers in professional wrestling!"
Kazuo Saji (W) ["Chrome Splitter" - 15:46] (L) Darius Korvin
Kazuo Saji earned 5 points.
Darius Korvin earned 0 points.
[John:] The match is over but the fireworks are not! Viktor Katona has run out to ringside and nails an unsuspecting, and exhausted, Saji with an elbow to the back of the head. Given how Darius greeted Saji, I shouldn't be too shocked at seeing Viktor join in on the attack. But this is the first time I've ever seen Katona attack someone that wasn't affiliated with Destiny or Gauntlet. I'm completely disgusted at this. Saji just wrestled the best match of his UBL career and this is how he's treated afterward.
Viktor and Darius start stomping on Saji. This is truly a sickening display. Fortunately, before they were able to do any real damage, Saji was rescued by many allies. His Matsuki-gun stablemates Tetsu Gushiken and RYOMA ran out to the ring along with Thunder Strike and his J.U.S.T.I.C.E. squad.
RYOMA pointed at Katona with legit anger in his eyes. This was chilling since you don't usually see RYOMA call someone out with that expression. That's like the "I'm a'lariat you to the ninth circle of hell" equivalent of a "come hither" look. Even THRASH Ogawa came out to make the save and cursed heavily at Katona for 'pissing on a good fight.' Not the phrasing I'd use but he's right. This isn't the way to follow up a great match and this behavior is never acceptable. Saji did absolutely nothing to justify this attack.
Oddly, Darius and Katona only got angrier when they saw THRASH come out and threatened him specifically. They seemed to lose any focus on Saji or anyone else. Why the specific anger at Ogawa? Are they still made at him for knocking out Furis last summer at Second Dimension? Perhaps. I mean, that's a long list of people to be angry at but Darius and Katona seems to have the bellicose bandwidth. The only thing we do know for sure is that Arthur Wingate is going to be angriest at this situation. He hates attacks like this and hates people using the league to advance agendas not related to competition and winning the Championship.
Luckily, no one was actually hurt in the previous melee. Saji was able to get up on his own and shrugs off any damage from the match and attack. He's also getting some compliments from his allies on his victory in the match and behavior in general. Thunder Strike, particularly, appears to be praising him for his poise and resolve. I think it's well deserved. Kazuo's skills looked significantly sharper than the last time we saw him when he tied Matt Rivers during Continuum II. His efforts are paying off as we are witnessing him reach a new level. Everything he said to me during our interview has been demonstrated in action here.
It's also refreshing to see Tetsu Gushiken come out. There's no doubt that he is a loyal friend and stablemate but you have to give him credit here. There was a chance he was going to have to actually fight to save Saji and he was willing to do that even if it meant he could accidentally hurt someone in the process. That seems like a huge step in the right direction for him given the issues that he has had over the past two years dealing with Langford's supposed injury at his hands. Maybe we can see Tetsu again in that ring soon. Many of us still believe he belongs actively competing in it rather than just preparing others for competition.
But the biggest story of this match, and likely the entire evening, is Kazuo Saji's decisive victory over Darius. In doing so, he accelerates the incredible momentum he has recently built. He has quite a tall task remaining though as he still has to go through Bak Fu and Geese Walker to finish his Block. And if those two weren't already closely watching Saji, they certainly will be now.
Intermission is here and it certainly came at a perfect time!
Merchandising and concessions
Over at the concessions booth, the warmer weather is putting somewhat of a kibosh on the hot food that was all the rage here a few months ago. Don't get me wrong - hotcakes are evergreen - but we're seeing some lighter and less filling fare prevail this time around.
"Tsaoring drops" are a hit with the kids and people who prefer to have mangled tongues. Look, you try one of those super sour candies as an adult and see how your mouth feels. Yeah, it was fun tasting hot regret when you were a kid but that can ruin an entire week at my age. If you're looking for an alternative sugar overload that is less acerbic but more gluttonous in nature: Wang Gum-balls are tremendous wads of tear-off gum similar to an old baseball-themed candy. Maybe we can call these "Battle League Chew?" No, we'll get sued? Fair enough. We probably need their consent to air people even chewing the gum.
For the older crowd, Brandr Hoff's beer company is debuting its flagship "Hoffenweizen" tonight. This is basically a wheat beer from one of the old countries. It's a good pour but it has disturbing apocalyptic imagery on the cans featuring Brandr slaying various mythical monsters. This beer almost tastes 'loud' as I can imagine a music video promoting it with the heaviest of metals. I don't know if Brandr settled on those designs after drinking too much of it. I'm surprised he didn't call it "Dethbock" but I guess he can always roll out that flavor later.
Over at the merchandise booth, "Chrome" sunglasses are the undisputed number one seller. They always move in droves after Saji wrestles and tonight is clearly no exception. I'll have to check the numbers but I think he provided us with more sales on those tonight than all merchandise of the past two shows combined. Those glasses are literally more money than even he used to claim when he first debuted. Think about that for a second and take a breath. I don't know whether Saji is living the dream or if we're all just having a collective delusion. But watching practically everyone file out of the arena tonight wearing those sunglasses was like Neo seeing all those Agent Smiths in Revolutions. Look, it wasn't the best movie but you still remember it. Admit it.
[John:] "Charles Langford joins us for the next match and I can't manage any emotional response to his presence. I'm not even angry, I'm just exhausted at the mockery that he, Sanders, and Woodruff continue to make of their careers at our expense. Charles is 'appearing' for the second event in a row. We are all hoping that he decides to actually get in the ring tonight to wrestle and leave the shenanigans at the door. No, we don't marvel at his skills but that isn't the point. He needs to compete so this league has full legitimacy. Perhaps he can take a card from the deck of River Reade: OG-Joshi's new resident gambler extraordinaire, and apply his love for games into actual competition and attempted oneupsmanship. But hey, maybe I'm a gullible moron for assuming that he'll suddenly change his ways and compete like he has integrity.
What I can promise is one notable improvement to the bedlam that occurred during Continuum IV. Arthur Wingate has informed me that if Eiji Yoshida even smells another member of 3 of a Kind at ringside during this match, he'll boot Charles and Kurt out of the league quicker than Jasper Woodruff runs to fool's gold. Arthur isn't banning ring seconds as a general rule, but he's done giving 3 of a Kind any benefit of the doubt. They go it alone for now on or they go. You'll be hard pressed to find people who disagree with that.
It's not all outbound talk though because tonight we are also set to witness a return. The opponent for Charles tonight is Joachim: a man we haven't seen wrestle, or exist, since Continuum III on December 13, 2020. If a Joachim falls on his path in the forest and no one is there, does he make a sound? I mean, I'd have to check with Barton for the exact gravitational equation but I'm pretty sure the answer is yes.
But what we don't have an answer to is what Joachim has been up to since Continuum III. He abruptly challenged Corey O'Brian to compete under some bizarre stipulations. It felt more like a multiple episode boss arc of Matsuki MECH than a wrestling match with the trading of finishers. Joachim lost decisively then was threatened by Corey to never make a challenge like that again. I completely understand where Corey was coming from. Years of Joachim's duplicitous Destiny behavior had already made him difficult to trust. So if he was trying to turn over a new brick in his path, any type of shenanigans were worthy of extra scrutiny and anger. But I will note that what Joachim did was far less cowardly than what Charles did during his match with Corey: run away and enlist outside help in doing so. The thing is, I'm sure Corey legitimately had higher expectations for Joachim than he does for Charles. He also has history with Joachim and Destiny.
In any case, we don't know where Joachim went, why he was gone so long without contacting us, and how he feels about Corey's response to his stipulations. We also don't know how Joachim feels about what happened to Gauntlet. Did Joachim's extended absence have to do with the rise in Gauntlet's previous aggression? Would he return here today if they weren't gone? For those who remember, Joachim was targeted by Gauntlet when he was still in Destiny. It's undoubtedly safer for him here now than it was when they were here.
All these questions float prominently but his expression offers no hints as to the answers. He walks to the ring first to a somewhat tepid response from the fans. Gone is the hatred mixed with begrudging respect. It's replaced with confusion - what is Joachim still looking for in the UBL? It's hard to connect with a man, even one with admitted passion and depth, when his motive here is so uncertain and silent. He doesn't seem dissuaded by the apathetic reaction from the fans though. Rather, he slowly walks down to the ring and begins silently meditating inside of it.
Out next is Charles Langford who is practically wearing a suit of bravado with the excess coming off his face. Amazingly, he's actually dressed in his ring attire. Unsurprisingly, he is carrying a microphone. He holds his hand out as if he is being interrupted but the crowd is waiting for him to speak and Joachim has not even acknowledged him.
[Charles:] "Okay now hold on, quit yer hollerin. Ole Charles here got something to say."
Again - no one was stopping him but I think he likes playing the victim for the attention.
[Charles:] "These leagues are second nature to me. Whether you're playin on felt or canvas, the same rules apply. The player who stays smart makes it to the end. By keeping my cards close to my vest, I stopped anyone from forming a game plan against me and kept my health. See, I could have bet it all for a victory against Mr. O'Brian. But why show everyone what I'm holdin, and face a man who would surely try to injure me, when I can just cash in against a man with a far weaker hand. Joachim was either gonna stay in the complimentary buffet of life or come in here years without seeing a flop. Son..."
Charles is gesturing to Joachim who, to his great credit, is more successful in ignoring Charles than anyone else I've ever seen.
[Charles:] "You're probably the only one in this Block that isn't trying to chase me down cause we barely know each other. And since I got nothing against you, let me offer some kindly advice. If you look around your Block and can't identify the sucker - y'er it. *Charles laughs.* So how about you save yourself some time, face, and health? Forfeit like a gentleman who knows his betters and I'll buy you a drink afterward. Whaddya say?"
Joachim suddenly gets up and makes eye contact with such ferocity that Charles actually stumbles. Oh no, I hope he didn't 'hurt' his ankle again. The thing is, before the fear crept in, Charles was making a pretty damn good case as to why he ducked Corey. It was cowardly but it wasn't dumb. He knew he couldn't beat Corey and that he'd have a much better chance at full health against Joachim. The problem is - he said the plan out loud and insulted Joachim to the point that any possible advantage he had may now be gone. In my view, Joachim is not on the level of Corey but he's still a much higher threat in this Block than Charles. I don't know if Charles realized that Joachim is not someone to antagonize. He's peaceful but does bare vengeance to those who mistreat and disrespect him. Through that little speech, Charles just voluntarily joined those ranks.
Charles seems confused as to what to do here since Joachim is now fully primed for battle. Charles starts to shuffle back but turns around and sees Jang Bae staring him in the face!! The fans erupt in cheers. It's been even longer since we saw Jang and the fans haven't forgotten the feats of heroism he has pulled off in the past. Preventing Charles from turning tail is yet another one. Charles has no way out and begrudgingly makes his way to the ring. Looks like we got a match!
Match 3 - C: Joachim vs. Charles Langford
To his credit, Charles looked impressive for the first few seconds. He used his bulky frame to push Joachim backward with a shoulder block. Joachim didn't fight the movement though and bounced off the ropes, quickly running back at a surprised Charles with a lariat. Charles is down and you'd think he just got hit with a cannon ball. This is the first contact anyone has made with him since he came back from injury.
Charles starts rolling around the ground and holding his neck. He pleads with Eiji to give him an injury time out. Eiji seems suspicious but grants him 1 minute. If Charles can't agree to continue wrestling by the end, the match will end. UBL and OG-Joshi referees are trained to give wrestlers the benefit of the doubt if they think a wrestler has sustained an injury. I believe Eiji is properly following that training here. Even a broken clock is right once a day, after all, so a perpetual liar can occasionally tell the truth.
We still don't know whether Charles suffered an injury at the knee of Tetsu Gushiken at Continuum I. Could Charles actually be injured? If he is, he seems to be spending more time complaining to Eiji than tending to his neck issue. He's ordering Charles to check Joachim's arm.
I mean? What are the charges here? Does Charles think Joachim has a robot arm now? This is ridiculous. If Charles was really hurt with a neck injury, he wouldn't be posturing like that. Maybe Joachim should offer to trade finishers with Charles - I suspect he'd like the game.
The minute has passed and Charles has to make his big decision. He calls over the referee and suggests that he'll continue the match. He just wants to shake Joachim's hand to start the match over "the right way." Joachim hears this and actively smirks. You'd think Charles, the supposed master of figuring out his opponents, would maybe decide not go through with a plan that his opponent (and everyone within a 10 mile radius) has so clearly figured out. But that's our Langford.
(I demand a cut of the profit on all "That's our Langford" merchandise.)
Joachim holds his hand out with an expression on his face that is a mix of cynicism and amusement. I think he actively wants Charles to attempt his shenanigans. Charles suddenly screams "Gauntlet!" and points his hand to the audience. This completely distracts Eiji, leads to a huge sigh from the audience, and gives Charles a second to execute his plan. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a playing card with jagged metal edges. We saw him use this during Continuum III to gain some control in the match with Kurt Sanders against THRASH Ogawa and William King.
Charles immediately slashes Joachim in the arm with the card: drawing blood. Joachim just stands there, emotionless, as Charles smiles. Charles than does it to the other arm which also draws blood. The look on Joachim's face goes from shock to intense amusement. As Eiji continues to scan the crowd for any signs of potential Gauntlet interference, Charles starts to realize that his attacks are backfiring. Maybe one day he'll look back at this and put it together:
Joachim is a voluntary blood letter! You don't scare him by busting him open! Joachim uses his hands to smear his blood over his chest. Charles immediately recognizes the utter folly of his plan and goes to hide behind Eiji. Eiji is absolutely shocked that Joachim is suddenly all bloody. Charles now appears without a game plan, which is likely a better position than possessing a horrible one. He starts pleading with Joachim to show him mercy but it's to no avail. Joachim grabs him and delivers 3 blistering chops to Charles' chest. Charles is already in too deep. He can't out run Joachim and Jang Bae is still on the ramp.
Then he does something we've never seen him do: outright fold. He reaches into his pocket to pull out the bloody card and tells the referee that he used it on Joachim. Eiji asks Joachim and, to the crowd's delight, Joachim denies it!! You gotta give it to Joachim - he wants to win this the right way and Charles looks mortified!! Eiji has also taken the card away from Charles so he can't actually use it (again). Charles is running out of options if he wants to avoid getting defeated for the full amount of points. Might he consider wrestling?
He might not. He drops to the mat and quickly rolls out of the ring. Joachim gives chase while Jang closely approaches. Charles realizes his escape routes backstage and to the crowd are cut off so he dives under the ring. Joachim is smart here - realizing that he may not be able to hear the count of the referee if he follows Charles. He gets back into the ring. Jang is limited as he can't actually make physical contact with Charles without Joachim being disqualified. Charles plays it safe - electing to stay under the ring for the next 5 minutes. That's right, ole Charles got disqualified once again by count out. That's our f'n Langford.
Joacbim (DQ-W) [Count Out - 6:30] (DQ-L) Charles Langford
Joacbim earned 4 points.
Charles Langford earned 1 point.
Eiji earned a jagged metal playing card and 5 EXP.
Joachim shrugs at this unsatisfying win but the 4 points will help his total. He and Jang walk backstage to the mild applause of the crowd. At least he got the crowd back on his side here to an extent which was a tall order given their initial apathy for his return. Small victories.
Speaking of small victories, Charles didn't emerge from under the ring at the best time. During his walk of shame up the ramp, the crowd is treated to a fun moment watching him almost fall over when "Big Bridge Battle" hit the speakers. RYOMA is set to come out for his main event match now. As he makes his way to the ring, Charles Langford begins shouting at him. RYOMA initially ignores this but Charles is really angry at him for some reason. Maybe he didn't like getting blasted backward by the music and crowd reaction.
Regardless of the reason, Charles is now following RYOMA to the ring, practically spitting while shouting. RYOMA stops walking and lightly turns his head. He's still angry from what occurred earlier with Darius and Viktor Katona jumping Kazuo. That anger is evident in RYOMA's expression and it causes Charles to panic and run away. He actually trips over himself and falls right down before going backstage. RYOMA shakes his head in disgust and resumes his walk to the ring with the full support of the crowd.
RYOMA is set to face Brandr Hoff in this Block B match. Both men have only had one match so far in this league. RYOMA defeated Cosmic K*I*D at Continuum I. Brandr defeated Thomas Mills by count-out at Continuum III but completely dominated him in the process. Neither man has really been able to show the extent of their abilities over the past few years due to the schedule and constant hiatuses. However, RYOMA has had a more noteworthy few years leading up to this point. He held the Super NOVA Galactic Wrestling Universal Championship for almost two years: from August of 2020 to the May of 2022. He continues to lead Matsuki Holdings and help his friends achieve new heights in their careers. He also is one of the leaders in the UBL: respected by peers and fans alike. Finally, he played a significant role in the defeat of Gauntlet.
Brandr, for his part, has struggled to maintain championship relevance over time. He has had moments of great success that indicated his potential but has yet to take the next step to truly achieve it. He was the first man to defeat Destiny's monster: Matthias. Then in an impressive display, he won a Battle Royale granting him a shot at the NEXUS Title: only to fail to take it from Matt Rivers twice. He lost to Alicia Gordon during her time as Sirius Mask and then failed to defeat THRASH Ogawa for his Circuit Title. While his victory over Mills was impressive, the feat itself was not since Mills is not exactly elite level competition. With all that Brandr brings to the table, he has yet to put it all together for sustained success to make significant progress in his career. No one can doubt the physical tools he possesses or the mental strength that he has, but he does not have anything tangible to show for it in a career that has now lasted a decade.
RYOMA and Brandr possess some similarities in style. Both men utilize variations of the lariat as their finisher. RYOMA uses the "ECHO Lariat" and Brandr uses the "Val-halla-lariat." Both men lean heavily on power-based maneuvers, including power bombs, and usually are the biggest and strongest men in the ring. Against each other, RYOMA clearly has the height advantage but I believe Brandr may be the more powerful of the two. Brandr is more comfortable using submissions to finish a match which is one hole that RYOMA has always had in his game. However, I would grant RYOMA the edge in terms of mental endurance. Few in UBL can claim to possess the same level of "toukon," or "fighting spirit", as RYOMA has. This was on display in victories as well as in defeats against the best in the world. Watch his match against Zachariah Zealot where RYOMA lost the Super NOVA Title and marvel at the resiliency that he had. He lost twice to Corey O'Brian, and actually won once. We know how RYOMA is able to kick things into a higher gear to survive.
We have yet to see Brandr utilize that same ability to evolve within the match as well as outside of it. However, we know he is full of spirit, viking spirit, and is a very proud man. Facing an opponent like RYOMA could very well bring the best out of Brandr. It could cause him to make his best even better. After all, even in his losses to Rivers, Gordon, and Ogawa, Brandr was still fighting with all he had. Perhaps the biggest issue he's had is the lack of consistent competition on that highest level: a problem many of our roster members have had recently due to the constant hiatuses. But they got to evolve before that was an issue.
Brandr is out now and he certainly seems to recognize the obstacle, and opportunity, in front of him. He appears more focused than usual. Against Mills, Brandr seemed angry and impatient. Against RYOMA, Brandr looks intense but poised. Is Brandr's energy somewhat depending on the nature of his opponent? Or is he truly bringing his best to face the best? As for RYOMA, he still seems to be annoyed at Charles and even Katona from before but he's not looking past Brandr for one second. We don't usually see RYOMA go into matches angry. The last time he did was against Zealot and it didn't work out well for him. But tonight is different, the competition is different, and RYOMA is fighting to claim a new Championship after recently losing one he treasured. Becoming the first Infinite Continuum Champion would propel RYOMA"s career even higher than it has already gone and tonight's match is one more crucial step in doing so. For Brandr, this Championship would make his career and silence all doubters that he has had: including, perhaps, himself. We're about to see whether the sun sets on this proud Viking warrior.
Match 4 - B: RYOMA vs. Brandr Hoff
*POST MATCH SPOILERS*
Folks, I don't know whether to call this an upset or not but I can say for sure it was one of the best matches we've seen from this league. You just knew it was going to be a war when RYOMA spiked Brandr on his head 8 minutes in. Did I expect Brandr to answer with a Crucifix Powerbomb, from the top rope, mere minutes later? Certainly not. I suspect neither did RYOMA. From that point on, the two traded their signature moves, with RYOMA even using Brandr's own Crucifix Backbreaker against him. However, in what must have been a satisfying moment, Brandr then used that same Crucifix Backbreaker against RYOMA to score the victory.
RYOMA (L) [Crucifix Backbreaker - 17:09] (W) Brandr Hoff
Defeating Matthias was, up to this point, the biggest win of Brandr's career. Tonight, Brandr eclipsed that victory by defeating RYOMA. If Brandr goes on to have a legendary career, tonight marks the turning point that made it happen. His victory tonight, in a true epic of a match, may be just the momentum he needs to capture this Block and eventually league.
As for RYOMA, although he has dealt with adversity before, he may linger on an uncomfortable realization. He has never had two major losses before in a row. It is too early to say he's in a slump. Losing to Zachariah Zealot, who is currently in the prime of his career, is understandable. Losing to a motivated Brandr, who just reached to the heavens, is also not a shock. But what concerns me is RYOMA's lack of activity toward the end of that match. He was still battling but he did not attempt another signature move in the last few minutes. Did he lose his game plan or confidence once Brandr was able to survive the rapid fire attempts of signature moves? Was he building on a new plan but was too slow to execute it? Perhaps Brandr's offense rattled his mind and body more than we realized. Again, that crucifix powerbomb from the top was enough to defeat a weaker opponent right then. The fact RYOMA was able to kick out and continue to attempt his own specialties was impressive. But seeing RYOMA lose two high profile matches, back to back, is concerning.
RYOMA earned 0 points.
Brandr Hoff earned 5 points.
And so is what followed this match. After RYOMA began to get up, Brandr approached him. Despite the frustration of losing, RYOMA offered a handshake in his customary sportsmanship. However, Brandr pointed to his own arm instead. He demanded that RYOMA raise it high in victory. Brandr yelled: "Celebrate my domination of you!" RYOMA refused to do anything of the sort. He didn't back up but he didn't escalate. Brandr stepped forward and the two of them had a stare down. RYOMA is never a slouch in a fight but he definitely took some damage from the match. Brandr knew this and was trying to intimidate him into complying. And that is likely why RYOMA was joined by Kazuo Saji and Tetsu Gushiken. Both men ran to back up their friend and mentor.
However, Brandr stayed in the ring. He was even angrier now and shouted at all three men. Tetsu ignored him, focusing on making sure RYOMA was not injured. Kazuo saw that Tetsu had that role covered and did what he did best: walking up to Brandr and unleashing a verbal sh*t-talking tirade at him. Whether this was to allow RYOMA more time to recover or just out of anger, Saji lit into Brandr something fierce. Not gonna repeat a word of it here but, suffice to say, the front row learned some terms that won't likely be leaving their heads soon. Brandr responded by laughing then pointing out the size difference between them. He then tried to push Saji aside to approach RYOMA again. However, Saji's body and eyes did not budge one inch. And he got right back into Brandr's face. RYOMA walked up and joined Saji in staring down Brandr. Tetsu stood behind them but was standing in a manner that looked similar to his old fighting stance. He was ready. Come on, Tetsu!
The Hoff got the hint and left the ring, but was quite celebratory in his mockery on his way up the ramp.
Saji then shouted: "A fluke win every decade, bro. Better live that sh*t up." The crowd erupted in laughter. This caused Brandr to fly back into a rage and he turned around to approach the ring. Luckily, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. security had already come out. As they escorted Brandr backstage, Saji laughed and mouthed "u mad." RYOMA then thanked both of his proteges in a private moment between the three in the ring. Saji and Tetsu raised each of RYOMA's arms and the fans cheered for all three.
I'm just glad we avoided what could have been an even uglier scene here. I don't know what has gotten into Brandr. He was certainly ornery against Mills but I just thought that was an overreaction to lacking true competition. After all, Mills lost to Wonderland by getting his shoes tied together so I could understand if Brandr was frustrated facing him. But what we saw tonight goes beyond that into a militant form of arrogance. I don't know what would have happened if Tetsu and Kazuo didn't come out. Would Brandr have tried to physically force RYOMA to raise his arm? That's clearly going too far and I think RYOMA would have fought back rather assertively. Brandr better explain himself and an apology is certainly in order.
[John:] "And with tonight in the history book, we have now completed the first half of the Continuum stream league! We're planning on bringing you Continuum VI in the Fall. After that, we will have a two-night tournament to crown the next Universal Battalion Champions. But before we get to all that, our next show will be Basic Training's "Summer School" planned for June. In the meantime, look out for Universal Access matches. And if you aren't already watching OG-Joshi, you owe yourselves an explanation! I don't know how Jean did it - but she managed to turn back the clock and progress it at the same time. Look out for their "Spring Fling" later this month! That's all for me for now, but we'll see you soon!"