Chikara Pro Wrestling

[Jay 2K Winger]

November Update

mjr asked me in another thread for an update, so here's what's going on...

The Ashes Of

These videos, mentioned earlier, continue to come out, now about twice a month, and continue to show the former Chikara wrestlers in the aftermath of the company's closure.

"Prelude" either deals with the founding of the Wrestle Factory, back in the day, or it deals with the new Wrestle Factory that opened in Allentown, PA, after the former ECW Arena closed. It features Mike Quackenbush.

"Man Down" features Fire Ant and Green Ant visiting a wheelchair-bound Worker Ant, retired and crotchety. Fire & Green are looking for Soldier Ant, who has been MIA. Worker has no information for them, and passes his old gear on to Green, telling him "You're the Worker now."

"Garbage" features Icarus stopping by a Dragon Gate USA show to see his former teammate Chuck Taylor, requesting his help in making sure Chikara doesn't die. Chuckie T, however, tells him that it's time to move on.

"Thwarted" features 3.0 (Scott Parker & Shane Matthews) in the aftermath of the closure of Wrestling Is Awesome, discussing how things have been going. It concludes with the two of them resolving to find Archibald Peck, to see what he knows, and they set out on a road trip.

"Fickle" features Icarus again as he goes to visit Tim Donst, now the manager of a furniture/antiques store. Donst is rather eerily cheerful and happy to see Icarus, eating some kind of super-healthy meal, and taking some kind of medication. Icarus asks for Donst's help, but Donst-- after seeming to blank out-- abruptly tells him he can't help. However, after Icarus leaves the building, Donst comes up to him and tells him to give his regards to Hallowicked and Jakob Hammermeier, even giving Icarus his old Young Lions Cup trophy, asking him to give it to Jakob. The video ends with a frustrated Icarus setting directions on his GPS for the Wrestle Factory.

Another video, "The Letter" is released on the YouTube.com/WrestlingIs channel tomorrow. From teaser videos released on Vine and to select fans (later uploaded on YouTube), it apparently features Hallowicked. Another one, "Sweat Shop" is due out later this month. From the title, it is assumed to be about the Wrestle Factory, since GEKIDO members The Swarm had unfavorably compared the WF to one.

Another provided-to-fan-and-uploaded-to-YT video teaser features a limping and cane-using Mike Quackenbush (who broke his leg in April) meeting with disgraced ex-referee and GEKIDO-liaison Derek Sabato, who pointedly asks Quack "Is this what you wanted?" The assumption is the teaser is set shortly after "Aniversario: Never Compromise."

The Wrestling Is... Companies

As noted previously, there were several companies that sprang up in the Chikara touring radius, particularly after Chikara closed, all called "Wrestling Is ___" They were Cool, Heart, Intense, Fun, Awesome, Respect, and Art. (Wrestler Jervis Cottonbelly has been quoted as saying that Fun represents the 'K' in Chikara, by virtue of its championship being a banana, which is full of potassium-- or 'K' on the periodic table.)

One by one, several of the WI_ companies have closed down for various reasons.

Intense was invaded by GEKIDO's 17, combatANT, and deviANT, who held the main event hostage until they could force the owner to shut the company down. GEKIDO had issued a Twitter threat prior to the show.

Awesome was threatened on YouTube by Kaiju Big Battel's Doctor Cube, who came out with his Minions and monsters, stealing the show's money and title, and having his Posse destroy the set and ring, causing the company to shut down.

Art was threatened on Facebook by Sinn Bodhi, the former Kizarny and former leader of the Dark Army. The day of Art's show this past weekend, a photo surfaced of a clown-masked Bodhi exchanging money with Art's owner, while holding some kind of box. After the main event, Bodhi and his Odditorium-- flanked by members of Dr. Cube's Posse-- came out and shut down the company. They were seen with that same mysterious box.

Cool, meanwhile, was threatened by UltraMantis Black, but the company hasn't been able to hold another show due to losing their venue and not being able to find a new one. So Cool is effectively dead in the water.

This leaves Heart, Respect, and Fun.

Fans have recently been trying to find a link between these, and due to recent information revealed by Wink Vavasseur (more on that below), one of the beliefs is that the Titor Conglomerate is bankrolling these attacks. It's also suspected that Dr. Cube is in possession of a reconstructed Eye of Tyr, which is capable of controlling peoples' minds.

Wink Vavasseur & Titor Conglomerate

As noted in my last post, Wink Vavasseur recently broke his Twitter silence and has been vocal in his own failures and shortcomings, admitting that much of what he did was a vain attempt to impress his father, Titor Conglomerate executive W. Conrad Vavasseur. However, Wink dropped several bombshells.

Namely, that Titor had purchased Chikara (via its subsidiary Worldwide Media Development Corporation) in an effort to turn it into a training ground for its own private army. Mike Quackenbush responded to this by splitting the Wrestle Factory off from Chikara to protect it. Wink noted that Titor's plans ended in failure in this aspect.

Also, Titor Conglomerate had been secretly backing GEKIDO's invasion-- thus explaining why Wink appeared to cut them so many breaks-- and even paid for their medical expenses after Quack injured 17 and combatANT. This may also explain why GEKIDO invaded Wrestling Is Intense.

The Chikarmy vs Condor Security - #IAmCHIKARA

Icarus has stepped up his efforts to rally the fans and keep the faith alive. He announced another rally would take place, and clues that were left pointed fans to FDR Skatepark in Philadelphia on November 2. A few dozen fans turned up at the rally, where they found a wrestling ring set up, and several wrestlers present: Icarus, Hallowicked, AssailANT, Los Ice Creams, and Kobald. Also present were former Chikara Director of Fun Leonard F. Chikarason, referee Bryce Remsburg, and masked Wrestle Factory trainee Kid Cyclone.

One fan set up a Ustream and streamed the entire impromptu show (go on Ustream and look for "Chikara Armed Forces"), which was just a single six-man tag (Icarus, Wicked, AssailANT vs Los Ice Creams & Kobald). Toward the end of the match, however, two men from Condor Security turned up, abducted a fan, and drove off in a rental van. The match very quickly ended and the Chikara folks urged fans to leave "because it's not safe" as they took down the ring and left.

The abducted fan was later revealed to be named Thom, apparently a user on the Chikara 101 forums, and Icarus received a threatening video from Condor. Their voices distorted, and Thom blindfolded and gagged in the back of the van, Condor told the fans to go "to where we grabbed Thom" on November 30, and to "bring your brains." Further messages also ordered fans not to bring any wrestlers.

No one knows who Thom is-- he arrived by himself to the Nov 2 rally-- and some suspect him of being a Titor/Condor plant. Thom had started the "who's going to be at the rally" thread on the forums, but had been a relatively new member to the forums. Fans are already planning to go to FDR Skatepark again on Nov. 30, and some have said they'll be ready for a fight.

One thing other people have pointed out is that Wink Vavasseur had said, on Twitter, that he'd be at the rally, even asking fans where it would be. However, Wink never showed.

Expect another update in early December, once the Nov. 30 rally date and its aftermath have somewhat passed.

[Jay 2K Winger]

November 30 Update

The Ashes Of

"The Letter" turned out to be Icarus reading aloud a letter written by Hallowicked, addressing their time coming up through the Wrestle Factory in the first class, and showed Icarus arriving at the school.

"Sweat Shop" picked up where that left off, with a glimpse inside the Wrestle Factory, where Hallowicked was training some students. Icarus spoke with Wicked about Quackenbush, but neither one of them has seen him since the company closed. Quack had left behind a suitcase, full of his old gear. Icarus swiped some of it while Wicked wasn't looking, and then video ended with Icarus saying both, "You see the landlords out front?" and then asking when the next crop of students will be ready.

Four students were visible in the video. One was identified as Kid Cyclone, the trainee who came to the November 2nd rally. Another was pretty quickly theorized to be Private Eye Jr. The third was wearing a mask virtually identical to the Equinox mask, which has been worn by two other wrestlers. (Vin Gerard and Jimmy Jam Olsen) The fourth student hasn't been identified yet.

A Vine video was released after "Sweat Shop" debuted. Titled "In or Out," it centers on Eddie Kingston, arriving at what appears to be an ROH show. Kingston has been competing in Ring of Honor, as part of Outlaws Inc. with Homicide and managed by Prince Nana, who has been calling Kingston "The Grand Champion."

The Wrestling Is companies

As noted, Intense, Awesome, and Art have been shut down by some of the ghosts of Chikara's past rudos.

Wrestling Is Cool has now received a direct threat at last. But rather than being UltraMantis Black, the message came on YouTube from the BDK. An individual wearing Ares' old face mask from his BDK videos threatened the company. It's assumed that it is indeed Ares under the mask. Their next show is scheduled in Philadelphia, on Dec. 8th.

As for Wrestling Is Fun, they've been threatened as well, but the specifics come below...

The Chikarmy vs Condor Security

As noted, at the November 2 rally in FDR Park in Philly, Condor Security turned up and kidnapped Thom, a fan from the forums, hauling him off in a van. A video released later featured two Condor goons (with their voices distorted) told the fans to turn up at FDR Park on November 30, and to "bring your brains." When fans very quickly mobilized to be there, and wrestlers offered their aid as well, Condor quickly told the fans not to bring any wrestlers.

Icarus posted on the 101 forums, seeming to hit a "low point" and feeling responsible for what happened to Thom, and said he wouldn't be there on November 30, although fans were quick to rally behind him and assure him that we'd do him proud. Information came out the week of the rally that it would involve a "scavenger hunt."

On the day, fans turned up in FDR Park, where a Condor van showed up and dropped off a QR code. The code linked to a picture of several Chikara DVD covers, from shows that had been at The Arena.

At the Arena, a message was left in Finnish, which translated to "Find Me - Atomic City Comics." At that comic book store, another code was found that pointed to Cafe Fulya. At the cafe, a code was found on a coffee cup that pointed to the Trocadero.

At the Troc, a duffel bag was found containing Chikara t-shirts, and a t-shirt from Eastern State Pennitentiary. At Eastern State Penn, much searching needed to be done before a tweet from Private Eye Jr. pointed to a clue inside the building. Coordinates that pointed to Love Park. At Love Park, the fans were met by Gavin Loudspeaker, who gave them a garbled audio recording. The recording was identified later as the Rocky Theme, so the next location was the Art Museum.

At the museum, a flyer was found on the Rocky Steps, which had a code in the lower corner, a keyboard-shift code that translated to PHILADEXICAN COUSIN. A Google search led to Lucha Cartel, a cocktail/Mexican themed restaurant. At Lucha Cartel, fans were apparently met by Kobald, who gave a strip of paper with letters in a runic-style alphabet. This code took some time to decode, before the font was identified and the message was BARCADE, the Barcade Bar.

At Barcade, Wink Vavasseur was in disguise, and passed along a message in a matchbook. The address was a storage locker in a rental storage place, with an access code given. At the storage locker, fans found documents in a folder, when decoded, they were pertaining to converting the Easton Funplex into a new Elohim with Chikara wrestlers as their super soldiers of evil. At this point, Titor/Condor contacted the fans and gave a location, ordering them to turn over the documents in exchange for Thom.

En route to the rendezvous, however, Icarus and Private Eye Jr. swapped the documents for junk data. At the meet point, two gasmasked Condor goons were waiting in a car. The folder was given over, and Thom was released. According to Icarus, Thom was "a little shaken up" after a month of captivity.

Apparently, this entire hunt was a scheme by Titor/Condor to get their hands on documents that Wink Vavasseur had about the Funplex plan. They'd intended to get him at the November 2 rally, but he went underground to avoid their reach, so they took Thom instead, and used the fans as their proxies. At some point during the hunt, Chikara wrestlers and people (like Bryce, Kobald, Gavin, and even Wink) intercepted things and stalled for time while Wink came up with a plan.

Bryce Remsburg has stated he trusts Wink now, and the next scheduled show for the Easton Funplex in the Chikara-niverse is the Wrestling is Fun show on February 22, 2014.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Some updates--!!!

First, a correction. Wrestling Is Fun's next date is Jan. 18, 2014 in Easton. The Feb. 22 date is in Reading. Main thing of interest to some fans is that Feb 22, 2014 is theorized to be the date of Norse legend's Ragnarok.

Second, another correction. It seems the documents that Condor was after was not for the Easton Funplex itself, but for undeveloped land adjacent to it.

Next, the No Private Army blog updated in the wake of the Nov 30 scavenger hunt, and for the first time was not cloaking its words in analogy and rumor, explicitly stating that Titor/Condor's plot to acquire land to create a new Elohim facility, and stating that the conglomerate's plot had failed.

Today, Titor Conglomerate's website (TitorConglomerate.com) was revamped, and of note to a lot of fans was that the "investors login" seemed to be working-- even if the passwords were still unknown. More importantly, however, was a notice on the Portfolio page:

"We currently are seeking to liquidate one of our portfolio investments in the Sports and Entertainment Industry. If you are interested in acquiring this property, you can begin your inquiry here."

The link led to an extensive application for an Asset Inquiry. Most Chikara fans are leery of submitting any actual true information to via the online form, given the "Save Chikara" petition that surfaced earlier in the summer turned out to be a Condor trap. Regardless, it doesn't take a genius to come to the conclusion that Titor seems to realize they've been caught out, and are working to distance themselves from Chikara.

More to the point, Condor Security appears to be swinging in the wind now, as well, as they are not listed on Titor's Portfolio page either.

Titor has given a deadline of Dec 22, 2014 for inquiries, but in the meantime, it seems as if the Chikarmy may have finally "won."

[Jay 2K Winger]

The Ashes of
To save some time, here's a rundown of all the official "Ashes" installments.

"Prelude" - Set prior to 2002, it gives a little insight to the start of the Wrestle Factory, featuring a younger Mike Quackenbush speaking with a contractor about needed renovations to the building.
"Man Down" - Set anywhere from prior to June 2013 to August 2013, it shows Fire Ant & Green Ant approaching a wheelchair-bound Worker Ant, looking for the M.I.A. Soldier Ant. It finishes with Worker giving Green his old gear, telling him "You're the worker now."
"Garbage" - Set in July 2013, around a Dragon Gate USA show, it shows Icarus meeting with former stablemate Chuck Taylor, trying to convince him to help him save Chikara. Chucky T, however, tells Icarus it's over and advises him to call bookers to look for work.
"Thwarted" - Set in October 2013, just after Wrestling Is Awesome was shut down, it features 3.0-- Shane Matthews & Scott Parker-- resolving to find out what happened to Chikara, and deciding to hunt down Archibald Peck.
"Fickle" - Set at some point between July and October 2013, Icarus visits a furniture store that is managed by an eerily chipper Tim Donst, whose strange behavior confuses Icarus. Donst declines assisting Icarus, but does give him his Young Lions Cup trophy, asking him to give it to Jakob. The video ends with Icarus setting course for the Wrestle Factory.
"The Letter" - Picking up immediately where "Fickle" left off, it features Icarus narrating, reading a letter written to him by Hallowicked, discussing the bond they have as Chikara Gen-1 Originals, and calling the Wrestle Factory "the closest thing to home."
"Sweat Shop" - Picking up immediate where "The Letter" left off, it features Icarus meeting with Hallowicked at the Wrestle Factory, although it transpires that Icarus had been looking for Quackenbush, who hasn't been by and whose voicemail is full. Icarus swipes a piece of Quack's gear from a suitcase when 'Wicked isn't looking, comments on "the landlords out front," and asks at the end of the video, "When is this new batch of greenhorns going to be ready?"
"Dead Horse" - Set at some point presumably between "Sweat Shop" and the events of November 30, it features Eddie Kingston backstage at an ROH show, where he's confronted by Icarus, who reminds him of the way he always stood up for Chikara. An irate Kingston tells him to stop living in the past. At the end of the video, Icarus notes, "You still have it?" Kingston holds up the Chikara Grand Championship belt and says, "Not it. Her."
"Deja Vu" - Set after "Thwarted," 3.0 meet with barrister R.D. Evans, wanting to know "Where in the World is Archibald Peck?" Evans reiterated the time-travel theory surrounding Peck's adventures after being hit by Kingston's "Backfist to the Future," and eventually told them "I would start looking in Parts Unknown," the location of which, of course, he does not know. The video ended with 3.0 heading off to go try to find Peck.
"Where Everyone Knows Your Name" - Set after "Man Down," Fire Ant and Green Ant go to a bar, looking for leads on Soldier Ant, and meet with UltraMantis Black. Accusations are thrown around and tempers flare, as the Colony reveal they don't trust AssailANT.
"History" - Set presumably after "Where Everyone Knows Your Name" and "Dead Horse," Icarus goes to a library, where he confronts UltraMantis Black about his loyalties to Chikara's ideals.
"Solitude" - Set after "Deja Vu," 3.0 trudge through some winter frigidness and make it to Parts Unknown, where they approach a barn and knock on the door...
"Fuel" - Set at some point after "Sweat Shop," AssailANT and Jervis Cottonbelly are training/sparring at the Wrestle Factory when some unwelcome guests in the form of DeviANT and the Colony XTREME Force turn up...
"Flood" - Picks up immediately after "Fuel," DeviANT demands that AssailANT help them burn down the Wrestle Factory. The big blue Ant refuses and goes down fighting...
"Ideas" - Set at some point after "Sweat Shop," Icarus tracks down Mike Quackenbush at his home. He asks for Quack's help, noting "They won't listen to me, they'll listen to you... there's a war coming." Quack seemed haunted by the lengths to which he'd gone to fight GEKIDO and was reluctant, though Icarus gave him the wrestling gear he'd swiped at the Wrestle Factory before leaving.
"When?" - Picks up immediately after "Solitude," as 3.0 confront Archibald Peck in Parts Unknown. Archie has no answers, only theories, and says they're too late to stop the traces of Chikara from being "washed away." But he does seem to think there's something to be done... and his eyes turn toward a diagram of a Flux Capacitor and the date "25 May 2014"...

Unanswered threads in the "Ashes" series stem from a few different teaser clips, some sent to Chikara 101 users, some posted in Vine clips:
- Bryce Remsburg leaving the Trocadero
- The Batiri reacting to something on TV (presumed to be the events of the iPPV)
- Quackenbush & Sabato meeting at a cafe

Wrestling Is... Ragnarok

As I've detailed in past updates, several companies sprang up toward the end of Chikara's tenure before June. Wrestling is Cool, Wrestling is Heart, Wrestling is Intense, Wrestling is Fun, Wrestling is Art, Wrestling is Respect, and Wrestling is Awesome. Notably, members of these companies' rosters all tended to have Chikara alumni in them.

Over the last several months, however, the companies have started falling one by one. Notably, the villains involved in shutting down the companies have all been rudos of Chikara's past, usually in groups of three (or trios, if you will)...

Wrestling is Intense was the first to fall in September. After a warning given by GEKIDO on Twitter a week or so before, the group turned up following the main event. 17, combatANT, and deviANT physically assaulted the wrestlers in the main event, and threatened the rest of the company with similar attacks unless it shut down. Intense's head honcho reluctantly agreed.

Wrestling is Awesome fell next in October. Kaiju Big Battel's Dr. Cube issued a warning on YouTube prior to the attack. Once again, he was accompanied by two members of his Posse, stealing the company's title belt and the "gate" (the money from ticket sales), then had his Posse tear down the banner and basically forced the company to close from lack of money.

Wrestling is Art was next after that in November. 'Kizarny' Sinn Bodhi issued his threat on Facebook. The day of Art's last show, a picture was released online from Private Eye Jr., showing a clown-masked Bodhi exchanging money with Art's head honcho. Once again, following the main event, Bodhi came out, accompanied by a wrestler named Oliver Grimsley and a masked man called Qefka the Quiet (who has been seen at Wrestling Is _ events). Bodhi revealed he had purchased the company and shut it down.

Wrestling is Cool was the latest attacked, in December. As noted previously, a video surfaced on the BDK's old YouTube channel, in which a man wearing Ares' face-mask issued a warning to Cool. Following the main event, Cool's head honcho, Milo Schnitzel, gave Gavin Loudspeaker a clothesline and did the BDK salute. He killed the power to the microphone, and then was joined by the man from the video warning and a tall man with a Viking horned mask. There is debate over whether the video spokesman was Ares, and whether the Viking was Tursas, but given that Ares lives in Vegas now, and Tursas has stated on Twitter that he was not in Philadelphia, it seems we have three new BDK members to deal with. UPDATE: Ares confirmed over Twitter that he was the ringleader of the attack on WICool, identifying the horned figure as Nøkken. According to Wikipedia, the Scandinavian näck, näkki, nøkk, nøkken, strömkarl, Grim or Fosse-Grim were male water spirits who played enchanted songs on the violin, luring women and children to drown in lakes or streams.

Some fans have pointed out a few portents about Ragnarok in these monthly attacks. Recent theories hold that the date of Norse mythology's "twilight of the gods" will happen on February 22, 2014. Jervis Cottonbelly, a Chikara alumnus, has been present at every single show where these attacks have happened, and is currently due to face none other than Tursas at an Wrestling Is Fun show in Reading, PA. The date of that show? February 22, 2014.

Jervis even tweeted during the BDK's attack on Cool, including the phrase "by the fangs of Fenrir!" Fenrir is the giant wolf fated to kill Odin during Ragnarok.

Also of note from the Wrestling is Cool show, Eddie Kingston wrestled early in the show, and got extremely angry with fans wearing "#IamCHIKARA" shirts in the crowd. He verbally berated them, saying that they hadn't bled and sweat Chikara "for the last twelve years like me," and demanding they take the shirts off. This tirade caused Kingston to be counted out in his match.

The plot thickens...

[Jay 2K Winger]

The latest "Ashes" video went live. "Deja Vu" picks up the thread of 3.0 looking for Archibald Peck, starting by meeting with his legal representative, barrister R.D. Evans. Evans restated the going theory that Peck travels through time whenever he is struck by Eddie Kingston's "Backfist to the Future" move-- and that the theory held that Peck, after being hit by it at "Tag World Grand Prix 2013," was sent back to "Chikarasaurus Rex: How to Hatch a Dinosaur," where he was pinned by Dasher Hatfield and forced to leave Chikara. That Archibald Peck then began traveling the world-- as documented in the "Where in the World is Archibald Peck?" videos-- eventually ending up in Parts Unknown.

3.0 asked Evans where that is, but he doesn't know. Somewhat dejected, 3.0 left Evans' office to continue the search.

A link to the video can be found in my previous post, which has been edited to include the new video.

[Jay 2K Winger]

It appears that the Wrestling Is... Ragnarok isn't yet done...

Two separate threats have surfaced today...

First, from GEKIDO's Twitter--
"@_Gekido_: We've decided on a New Year's Resolution for 2014: before we have our ultimate revenge, we're going to have a little fun."

And then from Kaiju Big Battel's YouTube, Dr. Cube issued a warning of his own: "Ha ha ha! Ignorant fools! Your days are numbered! Time to let the real fun begin! Ha ha ha haaa..."

There is some debate and talk that the Dr. Cube who shut down Wrestling Is Awesome is an impostor, and thus that this Cube is also an impostor. Time will tell.

[Jay 2K Winger]

The latest "Ashes" video, "Where Everybody Knows Your Name," dropped today on YouTube.

Fire Ant and Green Ant go to the Fujiwara Arm Bar, where they meet UltraMantis Black, while looking for Soldier Ant. Accusations are thrown around and tempers flare, as the Colony reveal they don't trust AssailANT.

[Jay 2K Winger]

"Ashes"

The latest video in the series went live today. "History" features Icarus confronting none other than the great and devious UltraMantis Black in a library, where they have a brief debate on their loyalty to Chikara.

Recent developments

The attacks on the Wrestling Is companies have not gone unnoticed by the Chikara wrestlers. Icarus noted that Wrestling Is Fun is being targeted next and has intimated in a post on the Chikara 101 forums that he's going to try to rally some support to stop the GEKIDO and Dr. Cube.

[Jay 2K Winger]

"Ashes"

Well, it happened. I've been active on the 101 Forums, spreading the good word here and also maintaining a Chikara/Wrestling Is thread on Something Awful, and of course on the Twitter Machine, and last week, I received an email. Someone sent me a Dropbox link to a video, noting "Jay, we think you should watch this."

What it was, was a teaser clip for the next "Ashes" installment. I was away at MAGFest, without wifi access on my laptop, but I managed to download the vid to my phone, then upload it to YouTube.

The teaser video was labeled, in the Dropbox, as "21of48."

And then today, "Solitude" was released on the Wrestling Is channel. It follows up on 3.0's quest to get some answers from the man who was spotted at the Troc when Chikara came crashing down... Archibald Peck, last seen wandering into Parts Unknown. After trudging through some frigid winter conditions, 3.0 at last find Parts Unknown, and approach a barn. We hear them knock... just as the screen cuts to black. To be continued, it seems.

Recent developments

Icarus has been hitting up Twitter, recruiting help from Dasher Hatfield and Kobald to try to stop GEKIDO & Dr. Cube from destroying Wrestling Is Fun. He also reached out to Sidney Bakabella, manager of the Devastation Corporation and the rest of his Wrecking Crew, but Bakabella shot him down, noting they're "not a charity." (Although Bakabella has noted on Twitter that he's not happy about the dwindling number of "pay windows" available to him.)

[mjr]

Speaking of Twitter, I found Delirious' Twitter feed...frickin' hysterical! It's nothing but gibberish whenever he tweets!

[Jay 2K Winger]

Speaking of Twitter, I found Delirious' Twitter feed...frickin' hysterical! It's nothing but gibberish whenever he tweets!

Delirious' Twitter (@rohdelirious) -does- look like gibberish. But it can be decoded.

[mjr]

Delirious' Twitter (@rohdelirious) -does- look like gibberish. But it can be decoded.

Ooh! A challenge!

[Jay 2K Winger]

The latest "Ashes" video, "Fuel" has been posted to YouTube. It shows AssailANT and Jervis Cottonbelly training/sparring at the Wrestle Factory, when some unwelcome guests turn up in the form of DeviANT and the Colony XTREME Force...

[Jay 2K Winger]

More dark tidings as what I've termed the "Wrestling Is... Ragnarok" continues.

As noted previously, several of the Wrestling Is companies have been shut down by villainous groups that fans on the Chikara 101 forums have called the "Ghosts of Rudos Past." After shutting down Awesome, Art, Cool, and Intense, GEKIDO and Dr. Cube made a threat toward Wrestling Is Fun, their next show being scheduled for January 18.

Icarus heard about this and tried to rally a defense among several of the WIF roster and other former Chikara people. Many of them turned him down. However, he did get confirmed help from Dasher Hatfield and Estonian Thunderfrog. Jervis Cottonbelly was probably going to be involved in the defense as well (he was booked to compete on the WIF show), but he was absent, likely due to his kidnapping during the last "Ashes" video ("Fuel").

On the day at WIF, Icarus was seen sitting by the main doors to the gym with an aluminum baseball bat. During the show, the Baltic Siege (of whom Thunderfrog is a member) were brutally attacked by their opponents, the Devastation Corporation, and then still further by The Polar Baron's Bloc Party, a trio of villains with whom they've had issues. The Throwbacks barely got out of the gate in their match with the Batiri, who kept them beaten down for most of the match and left them in an injured state after their match.

During the main event, GEKIDO (represented by 17 and CombatANT) and Dr. Cube's Posse (represented by Cube, Haack, and Slaash) stormed in from the back door. Almost immediately after this happened, Icarus bolted in and hit the ring, followed quickly by Dasher and Thunderfrog. They held the invaders at bay, but Cube ominously declared, "Very well, Icarus, we shall respect your wishes." And then they left.

Today, January 19, Wrestling Is Respect had a show in New Jersey, practically up the road from the WIF show in Easton, PA. During the main event, GEKIDO (17 and The Shard) and Dr. Cube's Posse (Cube, Haack, and Slaash again) appeared, and once again, many wrestlers hit the ring to defend it-- the Baltic Siege among them, as well as Sidney Bakabella's Wrecking Crew (the Devastation Corporation, JAKA, and Oleg the Usurper)...

...which is when it was revealed that Bakabella was on the take. The Wrecking Crew turned on the Siege and everyone else in sight, leaving them lying. 17 tore down the WIR banners and threw them in the trash. Wrestling Is Respect is dead.

Icarus, curiously, was nowhere to be seen during the WIR attack.

[Jay 2K Winger]

This week's "Ashes" video

"Flood" picks up where "Fuel" left off last week. After the Colony XTREME Force kidnaps Jervis Cottonbelly, DeviANT demands that AssailANT help them burn down the Wrestle Factory. The big blue Ant refuses and goes down fighting...