Reading Through TWA Adrenaline: WrestleFest Is Starting to Take Shape

RESULTS: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bjQy_gemQRBFhU1wjKo6CjQ8fdle-jaxeIMN5T9bjVw/edit?tab=t.0
TWA on X: https://x.com/TWALiveEvents

I'm going to check out TWA's Adrenaline show from yesterday.

     Full disclosure before we begin, I am using dictation software to capture my thoughts live and will clean those up a bit after. I just wanted to be transparent about that.

The show opens with the fans, the signs, popcorn, chaos, the whole thing. Pretty standard wrestling show opening, but it does its job. Could be a bit longer and really give us some more commentary on the upcoming show. But that's more of a personal preference. 

Maxx Mayhem and Ava Delgado welcome us to the show and immediately start catching us up on what matters. We hear about the Macon family, The Ruin and Praveena, the mixed tag division, Sloane Rathbone, and the road to WrestleFest. I like that. I always appreciate when commentary tells me what I need to know right away, especially if I’m jumping into a fed or show without reading every single thing before it.

The pyrotechnics hit, the music hits, and we are officially underway.

First match is the Sinful Vixens versus Nova and Kane.

Right away, commentary gives us context. The Sinful Vixens took Sami Moxon and Sierra Morris to the limit last week, and even though they lost, they looked good. That helps because now I know this match is about proving they belong, not just a random tag match.

The match itself is solid. It starts with Brea Rose and Natalee Nova doing the technical stalemate, which is fine. Then it picks up with Kaira Wolfe using Brea as a launching pad for the step-up enzuigiri. That was a cool visual. I like tag team offense that actually feels like tag team offense and not just two people taking turns doing moves. That can be hard to capture in efeds.

Nova and Kane taking over with the bearhug, diving neckbreaker, and backbreaker combo was nice too. That felt brutal and gave the match a good middle stretch. I also liked Nova standing on Kaira’s fingers while Kane had the camel clutch. It gives them some personality beyond just “they’re the more experienced team.”

The finish was probably my favorite part. Kane goes for the Kane-initiation, but Brea has it scouted and turns it into a small package. Kaira holding Nova’s ankle just long enough from the floor was a good touch. That makes the Vixens look smart, not lucky, and also is something you may really see in wrestling.

Good opening match.

Then we go backstage for a Cassidy Morgan interview.

This is a really long segment, but I think it works because it actually has emotion behind it. Cassidy talks about losing the Next Gen Championship to Sloane Rathbone, watching it get thrown in the trash, Tiapolo, Vylah, and Ivanov turning on Charlie Money, and then his own life and what he’s been dealing with.

The stuff about flunking out of school, having no plan, half a tank of gas, and going to the Infect Factory hoping he wasn’t wasting what little he had left was good. It gave the promo a real human feel.

Then he talks about losing his dad, Jack Morgan, and not processing it. That part was heavy. It’s definitely more serious than a lot of the show around it, but I think it lands because Cassidy doesn’t come off like he’s trying to sound cool. He sounds like someone finally admitting he’s hurt.

The only thing I’ll say is that it could maybe be tightened a little bit. There are a lot of ideas in here: losing the title, grief, concussion concerns, mental health, family, pride, the title defense, and WrestleFest. It all connects, but it is a lot at once.

Still, I liked it. Cassidy came out of this feeling like a real person, and that’s always a good thing.

Next is the TWA United States Championship match, Crash Rodriguez defending against Shane Reeves.

I recently read Crash in a fun story where he got stabbed in another fed, so excited to see his name here again.

Commentary once again does a good job setting the tone. Crash is not a high-flying luchador. He’s a fighter. Shane Reeves is flash, speed, and ego. Simple setup, and it works.

The match itself was good. Shane starts cocky, gets chopped down because Crash is built like a wall, then finds an opening with the missed low blow distraction and starts using his speed.

I liked the springboard crossbody spot where Crash just braces his shoulder and Reeves bounces off. That’s a simple way to tell us who Crash is.

The Slingshot DDT onto the floor was a good moment to make Crash vulnerable. Then Crash catching Reeves mid-air during the diving elbow and driving him into the turnbuckle with the Snake Eyes was a nice comeback.

The apron and ring post spot was brutal. The running big boot pinning Reeves’ head against the steel was a strong visual.

Reeves hitting the superplex gave him a big moment, but Crash eventually catches him and hits the Crash Out to retain. That all made sense. Shane brought the flash, Crash brought the fight, and the champion stays champion. If only Crash would of continued the stabbing story to this fed. Yeah, I know, probably not the same universe, but I love meta things like that.

After that, we get a challenge laid down between Tony Savage and El Chicano.

This is a good segment. Tony Savage feels like that annoying confident champion who believes his own hype, and El Chicano is the one name he hasn’t crossed off the list.

I like the line about the “Savage Era” being a reign of convenience as long as El Chicano’s name is still on the to-do list. That’s good. That’s a strong challenger line.

Savage accepting for WrestleFest and threatening to unmask him works. This is a simple segment, but it gets the job done. We now have a WrestleFest match and a clear issue.

Then we get Hurley Bay in the crowd. Not much there, but noted.

Next is Ross Raymond versus Ty Wilson.

This one has a lot of story going in. Ross has the surgically repaired neck, Ty Wilson and Copeland have been mocking the injury, and Ross is trying to prove he still has it. Commentary gives us that context, which again is helpful.

The match starts with Ty being a jerk, mocking the neck and trying to get in Ross’s head. Ross grabbing him by the throat and throwing him into the corner was a nice answer.

Ty targeting the neck makes sense. The Boston Crab into the DDT onto the middle turnbuckle was a good spot for that story.

Then we get the outside involvement with Jason Copeland and Axl DeVille, and honestly, this is where the match becomes more about the tag title division than Ross and Ty specifically. That’s not a bad thing, because it clearly leads to the post-match chaos.

Ross catches Ty and hits the Boss-Slam for the win. Good. Then Danger Zone attacks, then Prestige Worldwide hits the ring, then Honkey Kong and Meatball come out. This becomes absolute chaos.

Scarlett Theriot comes out and makes the four corners elimination match at WrestleFest for the tag titles: Prestige Worldwide defending against Danger Zone, Jordan and Morris, and Honkey Kong and Meatball.

I like this. This is one of those moments where the craziness actually leads to something. Sometimes shows do big brawls and then nothing comes from it. Here, the GM comes out and says enough, we’re making the match. That’s what we see in pro wrestling. That works.

Next is the Lucy Theriot interview.

This is one of the stronger segments on the show. Lucy starts out arrogant, talking down about Sloane Rathbone, saying analysts get paid to wish for her downfall, and then Sloane just appears from the shadows.

Sloane is written pretty well here. She doesn’t scream or run. She just moves in and destroys Lucy. 

This is exactly the kind of segment you want when you’re building someone as a monster challenger.

The promo after the attack was short and effective. “Nobody is coming to save you.” That’s good. It didn’t need to be long.

Next is the Six-Person Tag Team Championship match: The Morgans defending against Dox, Dmitry Ivanov, and Vylah.

This match is just big people doing big people things, and I mean that as a compliment.

Right away, commentary sets it as power versus power. Vylah and Billie Morgan starting with forearms colliding like thunder was good. Dox, Dmitry, and Cassidy getting involved, then Ignis grabbing both Dox and Ivanov while they’re holding Cassidy and driving all three down with a triple-man chokeslam variation was a huge visual.

This is one of those matches where you can tell the writer wanted everything to feel massive. And it did.

Vylah looked good. Dox looked good. Dmitry targeting Ignis’s legs was smart. Seeing Ignis brought to one knee gives the match some stakes because you don’t want the monster to just no-sell everything all the time.

The Billie and Cassidy coordination with Vylah on the top rope was nice, and then Dox clearing them both out before Ignis rises up again worked.

The finish with Ignis catching Ivanov and hitting the Pyroclasm was strong. The Morgans retain, and they feel like a brick wall. That’s the right phrase for them. They don’t really celebrate. They just stand there. I like that presentation.

Then we get television announcements for the Memorial Battle Royals. Not much to say there, but it keeps WrestleFest feeling bigger.

Next is Robert Lee Macon versus Ryder Moxon.

This one has a lot of old-school blood feud energy, especially with Waylon Lawless being brought up before the match even starts. We hear that Robert Lee Macon once pulled a blade from his boot and left Waylon bleeding out in Florida. That instantly gives this more weight than just another match.

The match itself is more about the story than Ryder and Robert Lee having a competitive back-and-forth. Robert Lee is violent, beats Ryder down, and then reaches for the boot. The second he does, Waylon Lawless appears.

I liked that. The ghost of his past shows up, and Robert Lee freezes. That gave Ryder the opening to hit the thrust kick and get the win. So Ryder wins, but the real story is Lawless and Macon.

The post-match is good. Lawless beats him down and lays out the WrestleFest challenge. I like the line about every scar having a name and Robert Lee’s name being written in the deepest one. That’s strong.

This did exactly what it needed to do. Lawless versus Macon at WrestleFest now feels personal.

Main event is Laz's Funhouse of Horrors: Lazarus versus D3V0.

This is a violent main event. Rusted steel cage, chains, weapons zip-tied to the mesh, stale beer, ozone, all that. It definitely has a different feel from the rest of the show.

The match is basically a horror movie fight, which I think fits Lazarus. D3V0 using the chain to choke Lazarus and grind his face into the cage was good. Lazarus using a staple gun to staple a “Kick Me” sign to D3V0’s shoulder is ridiculous, but in this kind of match, ridiculous works.

The trash can spot, the kendo sticks, the steel grate being thrown mid-air, the crates, the toolbox, all of it felt chaotic. The Fall of Phyrexia onto the toolbox was a strong finish. Lazarus retains.

Then Ælfhere Crowley and Anson Creed attack. Crowley picking the bones makes sense if he wants Lazarus broken before WrestleFest.

Clyde Wayne Macon and Cooter Bob Macon making the save was interesting because Clyde makes it clear he didn’t do it because he likes Lazarus. He did it because he wants Lazarus at his best when he takes the title. I like that. It keeps him from feeling like a good guy just doing a save. It’s more about pride.

The final staredown between Clyde and Lazarus was good. No punches thrown, just tension. Sometimes that works better.

Then before going off air, the camera shows a mysterious person in the luxury box. I like that ending. It gives you one more hook without overexplaining it.

Overall, I thought this was a good show.

What I liked most is that WrestleFest is clearly starting to take shape. We have El Chicano challenging Tony Savage. We have the four corners elimination tag title match. We have Sloane Rathbone looking like an absolute monster against Lucy Theriot. We have Lawless and Macon. We have Lazarus, Clyde, and Crowley building in the main event scene.

The show did a good job making things feel important. Most of the segments had a purpose, and a lot of them moved something toward WrestleFest.

The matches were easy to read, and unlike some other shows, there was enough commentary around them to give context. I appreciate that. Commentary helps me understand why I should care, and this show did that pretty consistently.

The downside is that some of the match writing feels very similar from match to match. A lot of it is big cinematic move descriptions, then a major finish. That’s not bad, but after a while, some of the matches can start to feel like they’re written in the same rhythm. I think adding a little more varied pacing, maybe more commentary breaks inside the matches, would help. 

Also, the Cassidy Morgan interview was good, but it was a lot. I liked the emotion, and I liked what he said, but that kind of segment can probably be trimmed just a little so the strongest parts hit even harder.

Overall, I enjoyed this. TWA Adrenaline gave me a clear road to WrestleFest even without knowing every detail about the fed or stories, several matches to care about, and some really strong character moments. Sloane Rathbone came off like a killer. The Morgans came off like monsters. Crash Rodriguez came off like a fighting champion. Lawless and Macon feels personal. And the main event scene feels violent and messy in a good way.

There are some things I’d tweak, but the road to WrestleFest feels alive, and that’s exactly what a show like this should be doing.