FromLarry Goodman:
There have been at least 34 felonies in this match alone.
We're past Memorial Day so it sure feels like summer in Alabama butSpring Spectacular was worth the wait. Thiswas a carefully constructed major show, the pieces of which came together gradually over an extended period of time.
Ayden Andrews and KayJay Impala had the best match of the show. Their 20 minute Ironman was also the best match of a feud that has had nothing but good matches. The surprise to me was Andrews retaining the All-Out Championship. The build appeared to lean into a title switch.
The Last Man Standing between Ace Haven and Shean Christopher settled nothing except these two are willing to abuse their bodies no end. There was no winner. The spectacular stunt that ended the match left both men under a pile of rubble and in need of being carried out.
Aaron Dallas retained the ProSouth Championship in a roller coaster ride of a main event, which paid off the Redneck Brawler Ryan Anselman/Brandon Whatley story arc. Anselman got sweet revenge by depriving Whatley of ill-gotten gains in his role as the special referee.
Serpent Ninja Academy (Hakeem Young & Julius Pryor) defeated Wright Cats (Saul Wright & Bobcat) to win the tag team championship The story yet to be resolved is the feud between Young and Wright.
Jake Franklin scored a huge upset win over Dameon Ceretone. Some genius described this match as a snuff film in wrestling ring. The complexities of Ceretone's character keep getting more complicated.
Mathias Darkthorne was back at the commentation station with Wicked Nemesis. "Ft. Worth" Gavin Pell was something of an ironman himself. He served as the official for all seven matches. Joseph Void was the ring announcer. A special shout is in order for Katie Lindsey. Her work on the rover camera was stellar and added to the quality of the livestream.
(1) Cameron Keast defeated Christian Pierce in 6:34.The combatants and Pell got in a three way tug of war for control of Pierce's bullrope. Pell ended up necked on the rope. With the ref down, Pierce swung and missed Keast with Roxanne and the bat broke. Keast threw a fireball that never got within a country mile of Pierce and pinned him with Dramatic Irony.
A fast-paced see-saw battle with both men going for broke.The gimmick laden finish was an entertaining piece of overkill. I like their chemistry.Pierce has been going rogue and is getting himself in hot water with Atonement leader Dameon Ceretone.
(2) Serpent Ninja Academy (Hakeem Young & Julius Pryor) defeated Wright Cats (Saul Wright & Bobcat) to win the ProSouth Tag Team Championship in 11 minutes. 
The action was OK. The psychology absolutely sucked. Not the match anybody was hoping for. I look forward to Saul vs. Hakeem singles match. We were to believe Hakeem is such an obsessed hothead the would squander a championship in order to do serious damage to Saul.
(3) Ravenna Vein defeated Tsunami in 7:50. A grainy video aired showing what happened after Tsunami dragged Vein out of the announcer's booth last week. Tsunami bit a chunk out of Vein's arm and fed the flesh to a dog. Tsunami made her way to the ring carrying a plate of the the unappetizing leftovers.
Nightmare fuel.
Ravenna pearl-harbored Tsunami before the bell. They brawled, trading stiff shots. Tsunami targeted Ravenna's heavily bandaged forearm. Tsunami took a hellish looking neckbreaker. Ravenna speared Tsunami but she grabbed the ropes at the count of two. Tsunami applied a crossface. Ravenna made it to the ropes and hit the Bloodshot but Tsunami escaped the ring before she could cover. Shean Christopher ran out/ While Shean argued with ref, Ravenna clocked Tsunami with a chain she had hidden in her gear. That was game over for The Gamemaster.
Exceeded all expectations. They worked a smart match, brawling at close range rather than doing spots that required fast movement. The match had intensity and the crowd was into it. Ravenna is much better in the ring now than she was when she wrestled Charlie Punk last November.
(4) 20 Minute Ironman Match: Ayden Andrews defeated KayJay Impala 2-1 at 53 seconds of sudden death overtime to retain the All-Out Championship. Andrews controlled the opening minutes with a punishing side headlock. The announce team said with Andrews' strength, the side headlock was an offensive weapon. After being in the hold for over a minute, Impala's face and ear were turning red from the pressure. Impala got untracked with a series of chops a backbreaker for near fall. Impala rocked Andrews' world with a running hip attack. Andrews caught Impala coming in with a flying knee and followed with a shining wizard to the back of the head for a near fall. Finisher attempts by both men were thwarted. Andrews applied a single leg crab, forcing Impala to use up the one rope break allowed under All-Out rules. Andrews capitalized on Impala's unstable knee with a german suplex and Impala was a sitting duck for Stamp of Atonement. Andrews up 1-0 at 8:23.
Impala was in a bad way. Andrews came within an eyelash of going up 2-0 after a baseball slide dropkick to Impala's face. Andrews issued a stiff receipt to Impala for those chops early in the match. Impala ducked a chop and dropped Andrews with a discus forearm for a two count. Andrews dodged a charging Impala and got a near fall with a gomengiri to the temple. Andrews played for a count out. Impala rolled back into the ring in the nick of time. Impala connected with a last-gasp pop up punch. Both men were down a long time and unsteady once they regained their feet. Impala got rolling with a Deep Six. Impala's sitdown chokeslam had the crowd chanting that was three. Impala hit the F5 to tie it up at one fall piece with 2:45 to go. Impala hit another F5 and Andrews rolled out to the floor. With 45 seconds left, Impala snap suplexed Andrews on the floor. Andrews was the first to get back in the ring. He picked up a title belt intent on using it but Impala speared him as the time limit expired.
With the fans chanting for five more minutes, Commissioner Amy Haven ordered sudden death overtime. Impala wanted use the belt Andrews tried to use on him but thought better of it. As Ft. Worth was putting the belt back in the corner, Andrews gave Impala a low blow, then hit Stamp of Atonement to retain.
I loved this match. The methodical pacing was so different from the norm, the way they let the effect of every move register and sold the cumulative effects of the damage as the match wore on. I can't recall the last time a pro wrestler apply a side headlock such that the opponent's face turned colors. I'd have to say this is my favorite Andrews match of his ProSouth run and a match that clearly demonstrated Impala's growth as a pro wrestler. True, Andrews won the match but he was unable to beat Impala cleanly.
(5) Last Man Standing Match: Ace Haven (with Amy Haven) vs. Shean Christopher was a no decision in 30:34. Ace entered wearing the robe Christopher put on him before suspending him up from the ceiling of the ProSouth Palace. "Die With Me" was scrawled on the back. Ace was wearing the weight belt belonging to Shean's brother, Donnie Primetime.
The shot of the robe was a tremendous visual. How did Ace come to possess Donnie's weight belt?
Shean's first move was a suicide dive onto Amy, crumpling her in a heap. Ace went out after him and whipped Shean with Donnie's weight belt. He pulled an exhaust pipe from under the ring and used it on Shean. Keast came out to help Amy to the back. They brawled into the crowd and did a bunch of spots inside ther ring involving a chair. Ace crowned Shean with the exhaust pipe and set up an iron casket of six chairs. Ace went for Endgame (pedigree) into the iron coffin but Ravenna hit the ring with a shot in the face for Ace. Shean gave Ace Dirty Pretty onto the iron coffin. Shean tried for top rop elbow but Ace caught him in midair with a cutter through the iron coffin. Ravenna helped Shean to his feet. Ace laid Ravenna out with an Acecutter. Shean gave Ace an avalanche Dirty Pretty. Ace was up at the count of nine. Ace gave Christopher Endgame off the ropes. Ravenna hit the Bloodshot flatliner on Ace and pulled Christopher of the ring to get him to a standing position before the count of ten.
Shean and Ravenna set up table side by side near the back wall of the arena. Amy attacked
Ravenna with the very same chain Ravenna used to win her match and dragged her to the back. Head of security Jamie Martin helped Ace place two tables on top of the first other tables. Shean hit Jamie in the head with a chair and climbed a ladder to the top of an entranceway. Ace climbed up after him. Ace and Shean dove off the entranceway through all four tables. Neither man could answer the 10 count and both were carried out.
A super compelling beginning and a spectacular ending, incredibly violent and a good 10-15 minutes too long. No matter what happened to get there, nobody was getting up from a crash landing through a 2 x2 stack of tables launched from anentranceway 10 feet above the floor.
(6) Jake Franklin defeated Dameon Ceretone in 9:18. Ceretone promised to teach Franklin a lesson because he was sick of Franklin's ilk getting in his business. As soon as he was done with Franklin, he was moving on to his friends and the people who said they were coming for Atonement. "Atonement is coming for you."
Franklin came out diving like a madman with a trifecta of topes and a flying body press off the top. Ceretone put him down with one savage knife edge chop. Ceretone chopped Franklin to death. They sounded like gunshots Franklin fired back as best he could. Ceretone gave Franklin the tree-of-woe double stomp to the outside and chopped him as he helplessly hung upside down. Franklin got a ray of hope with a series of german suplexes. Ceretone gave Frankling the DVD into the turnbuckles and pulled him at the count of two. Franklin shot Ceretoned the double birds. Ceretone hit Sleep the Deep and again pulled Franklin up at two with a smile on his face. Wright Cats came to ringside. Ceretone kept pulling Franklin to his feet and knocking him down with chops. Ceretone taunted Wright Cats as he set up for another Sleep the Deep and Franklin schoolboyed him for a shocking three count.
Ceretone is a sad*st of the highest order along with being the most hellacious chop thrower in the state of Alabama.I shudder to think about the redemption he has in store for the Trainees. The word quit is not in Franklin's vocabulary.Hischest was an ugly crimson mass of welts.
Young and Pryor confronted Anselman at ringside. Anselman KOed both of them and put the ref shirt on. Meanwhile, Whatley hit another Bottomless Pit and covered Dallas. Anselman made a super slow three count, which allowed Dallas to kick out. Whatley was enraged. He tried to choke Anselman out with the nunchucks. Dallas intercepted Whatley with a Steel Toe to retain.
They saved up the back and forth false finishes off signature moves for this match. It was good but not among the top tier ProSouth matches either one of them has had. The story carried it. I loved how Anselman got his revenge on Whatley without every laying a hand on him, though the same can't be said for Whatley's minions. I do wish Anselman had his own ref shirt.
