Each and every time At Odds with Wrestling assigns some homework, I try to watch along with them and throw in my fan opinions. I’m not a commentator like Joe nor a hoss like Adam, just a mark. I write down some thoughts on the in ring action and then listen along with all of you when a new episode of the podcast goes live late Thursday night. Let’s get into the action! 

This took place April 13, 2019 so a very recent homework pick. 

SCU vs Santana, Ortiz, and Chris Dickinson. 

I already love the set up for Uncharted Territory. This just looks like a bar full of rabid fans that managed to fit a ring inside. If this was in my hometown it would be a weekly guarantee you can find me here. Comic store after work on Wednesday, wrestling at night. When something this cool and genuine exists why the hell did we have to sit through months of Raw Underground? This feels more underground and true and indie than anything WWE tried to come up with. 

I’m the least familiar with Dickinson and guessing he’s here for the pin. 

It’s a showcase match. Six guys that the crowd is well familiar with and they’ve more than proved themselves hundreds of times over before this show. The match feels like it’s here and featuring this talent to start off with a bang. World class talent doing what they do best, and you know they’re some of the best because that’s why everyone is here. It’s good because it’s supposed to be good. David Starr runs in to distract Dickinson which allows SCU to hit some moves and Kaz pins Ortiz. Good starter but honestly it felt a little too long. 

MJF vs Kimber Lee. 

We all know who MJF is. I remember being shocked when Kimber Lee won the Chikara title and thinking she was a cute little thing. Then I feel like there was, shall we say drama, over the years. 

How does MJF look ten years younger here instead of two years? He’s improved a lot in a short time. MJF hitting a woman with these sneak attack chicken shit heel moves is even more heelish than if it were another man. Really good showing between the asshole heel and Kimber never giving up. I popped when she no sold the German suplex. MJF hits a slingshot piledriver for the pin. Another fun match. If I were there live this is the point when I shut off my brain and just immerse myself in the illusion that is pro wrestling for the rest of the night. 

The Beaver Boys (Alex Reynolds & John Silver) vs Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis).

I’ve only seen the Beaver Boys on AEW and to my knowledge this is my first time seeing Aussie Open. Silver has this intangible star quality to him. If he was taller and everything else the same there would be future world champion buzz around him. Mark Davis of Aussie has some crazy power as shown with a double slam and a one arm power bomb. He might be someone to keep an eye on. Beaver Boys hit some quick double team moves and get the pin after a fantastic sequence. This match was longer than the previous tag match but felt much shorter. Good flow to the match, nothing but potential in the ring, and some funny spots sprinkled in just the right places. 

Mick Moretti vs Gabriel Skye in a Discovery Gauntlet match.

What a great idea. The winner will face another new talent next week, and the winner of that match will face a different new talent the week after and so on. What an awesome idea. Skye comes out and you would think he’s going to be the star but then Moretti starts with his unique style and all eyes are on him. He looks like horror movie host Dr Gangrene on DDP Yoga. Quick match but that’s perfect for this Gauntlet idea. Moretti wins and I’m sold. Not only on him but I’m sold on watching all of Uncharted Territory as I can. 

Kris Statlander vs AR Fox.

My fellow House Show podcast hosts may not understand my love for Kris’s alien gimmick but this match should do a lot to make anyone into a Statlander fan. She is my pick to be the face (the face?!) of Uncharted Territory. Seriously, I know on her recent appearance on the AEW podcast Kris was saying she changed how her body looked during recovery from her injury. But this. It’s like when the pretty girl at work or school comes in one day in an all new outfit and she’s brand new all over again. Also, why do I feel there was some sort of controversy over Fox years ago? Or drama, or something. 

Oh there’s a match too. 

Fox going for the cheap nut shot on Kris is a great spot. She is just all in this night. Such a joy to watch. Not for those reasons, she is really having a blast out there and it comes through the screen. Fox has incredible moves – springboard neck breaker, the “dart” coast to coast, and hitting a swanton around the HVAC unit. I was stunned when Statlander kicked out. Kris surprises everyone, including Fox, with a leg grab to roll him up for the pin. Fox gets in Kris’s face and it’s all over for her until Kimber Lee comes out to make the save. But then Kimber turns on the alien! It’s intergalactic war! 

This was my favorite match of the night and I now have to find time to watch the rest of this series and see how the story progresses. 

Mystery Partner match.

Brian Cage & Jordynne Grace vs Session Moth Martina & Orange Cassidy.

I loved this match. There is no reason it should work, but it does. Grace and OC both introduce their partners for the night and the crowd loves it. Martina is a blast to watch and I love this gimmick. So much fun. Just looking at Cage and Grace there is no way Martina and Cassidy should have a chance against them. But this ends up being a real competitive match and there’s no way to know who’s going to win. 

Cage holds OC up for a suplex while the Orange one has his hands in his pockets. Which means this is all Cage. That’s some scary strength. When “serious” wrestlers are willing to play with “comedy” wrestlers it makes something magic and that is what happened here. This should have been the main event of the show. Grace hits some cradle power bomb thing and pins OC. 

So, on At Odds Joe said don’t bother watching the main event featuring the multi time cancelled David Starr vs Masato Tanaka. And I wasn’t going to watch it. But then the house is a mess and I can’t find anything and I wasn’t ready for bed yet so I reluctantly watched this too. Good set up at the end with Penelope Ford and Joey Janella. Real stiff chair shot. Masato wins. As much as I felt joy and fun coming through the ring, through two years of time, and through my screen I felt an ick doing the same while Starr was out there. I’ve been told at various places of employment that I notice and see things that others don’t. I end up getting a feeling that something is amiss and I start paying attention to figure out what’s wrong. Everything coming off from Starr is triggering that reaction. Something feels wrong the entire time he’s out there. A gaslighter, a manipulator, a (insert your favorite similar word here). I may have not known what it was back then but let’s say I would steer kids and women away from his merch table. 

This was a shockingly fun pick from Adam and I had a blast watching it. I appreciate At Odds and other podcasters and bloggers picking events, movies, comics, etc to discuss because it opens my eyes up to things I may not have been exposed to otherwise. Now excuse me, I’m trying to figure out how to find more Kris Statlander matches on IWTV.