SHIMMER Women Athletes – Volume 2 – 6th November 2005


I’m back for my second SHIMMER review after enjoying the first show immensely. The two main events were an overwhelming success, and there was lots more solid wrestling on the undercard, where Cheerleader Melissa and MsChif particularly stood out. The way SHIMMER tapes their shows means their second Volume was filmed the same day as the first show. So pretty much everything is the same as Volume 1 here - the setting, the crowd, the talent roster and so on. The main event sees the four women who stole the show on Volume 1 put in the same match under elimination rules (so that’s Martinez vs Haze vs Del Rey vs Lacey) which sounds decent. This is regarded as the most underwhelming SHIMMER release thus far so we’ll see how it holds up. Obviously we’re in Berwyn, IL just like the first show. Commentating once again are Dave Prazak and Allison Danger, who did a decent job on the first DVD.


Lacey cuts a promo on Daizee Haze to open the show. She promises to get revenge on her for winning their match at Volume 1.


Krissy Vaine vs Cindy Rogers

Team Blondage (of which Vaine is a member) cheated to pin Rogers in a tag match on Volume 1, so now Cindy comes in for some retribution in a singles match. For those who didn’t read my first review or can’t remember, Krissy is the much hotter member of TB who is now employed in some fashion by World Wrestling Entertainment.


The opening chaining is very basic, which after seeing Krissy wrestle on Volume 1 isn’t entirely surprising. Vaine tries to offer a handshake but Cindy is in no mood to shake, instead applying an anklelock. That was effective for a while, but Vaine is able to send Rogers into the corner for chops, then a Diva-style hair-toss. She stands on Cindy’s hair to continue the girly offence. Rogers sweeps the legs and nails a flipping neck snap for 2. Vaine gets 2 with a sidewalk slam. Rogers comes from the second rope with a messy facecrusher and both ladies take a while to recover. ‘Am I still pretty?’ – Vaine cracking me up. Cindy knocks her into the corner for a running ass to the face. Dragon sleeper applied (apparently called a TCP) and Krissy taps out at 07:59.


Rating - * - I’m really not surprised WWE have signed Vaine. She can’t wrestle that much but her crowd-working and character-conveyance is really solid. The match was messy and largely dull in my opinion but it got a very lively crowd response, which is testament to the effectiveness of Vaine’s work. It’s hard to say anything about Rogers. She’s alright without being an outstanding wrestler (such as Del Rey or Lacey), and she doesn’t have the persona and charisma of someone like a Daizee or an Allison Danger. It’s hard to see her being anything more than a lower card act for the time being.


Lexie Fyfe vs Nikki Roxx

Nikki was also on the losing end of Team Blondage’s cheating ways at Volume 1, so will now be looking to get her first SHIMMER win under her belt against one of the veterans on the roster. Lexie beat Christie Ricci at the first show with her TKO, and going 2-0 would be an impressive way to get the ball rolling on her SHIMMER career.


Hot girl referee is back. Lexie clubs Nikki but the younger athlete is able to recover and dropkick her opponent outside. She returns and these girls do a much better job of trading holds than Vaine and Rogers did in the first match. It’s Nikki’s speed against the power and experience of Fyfe. Lexie starts dragging Roxx around by the hair, then applies a leg full nelson as she takes control of the match. Pendulum stretch next, which has Nikki squealing in pain. It doesn’t get any easier for her, as Lexie slaps on a camel clutch WITH fish-hooking and hair pulling. Roxx tries a crossbody but Lexie rolls through it to club her in the back then execute rolling suplexes for 2. Facecrusher gets 2 as well. Nikki hits a volley of forearms in the corner but gets wiped out again by the bulk of her opponent. Fyfe tries a second rope leg drop but gets nothing but canvas. Nikki drops Fyfe on her ass from cradle DDT position (no idea what you call that) for the surprising win at 09:01.


Rating - ** - The finish was very sudden, but I thought Fyfe looked great as the cranky veteran beating the crap out of her younger, lightweight opponent. Nikki takes a hell of a beating which added to it, it just would’ve been good to see more of a comeback pre-empting her victory. By simply hitting her finisher and winning, it makes it seem less like she was a better wrestler and more like she was opportunistic and lucky. Just a mild criticism though, and both will be back in future Volumes.

SIDENOTE – I think a whole afternoon of tapings/drinking are too much for some of the guys in the crowd. There are a few guys who are clearly drunk and yelling all kinds of stupid crap now. Morons…


Cheerleader Melissa/Tiana Ringer vs Ariel/Shantelle Taylor

Ariel really might be my favourite wrestler on the SHIMMER roster solely on the basis of using ‘C’est La Vie’ as her entrance music. That’s not sad is it? Anyway, this should be decent. Taylor defeated Ringer in a competitive match (SHIMMER’S first ever contest in fact) at Volume 1, whilst Ariel overcame Rain, so that team is full of confidence. Melissa had an impressive showing but came off on the losing end against MsChif.


Taylor tries to dropkick Melissa, but it takes three of them to get her off her feet. Ariel and Ringer in to trade armdrags which look very decent. Melissa grabs Shantelle’s hair and drags her down as she tries to go at it with Ringer to give her team an advantage. Full nelson/facecrusher combo drops Taylor again as her opponents start to team up to isolate her. Double hiptoss scores, and it looks like Cheerleader and Tiana are concentrating on the back (much as they did to their opponents on Vol. 1). Taylor has the audacity to attempt a small package on Melissa, who gets up and furiously clotheslines her back to the mat. She almost makes a tag but Tiana hauls her back with a spinebuster. Duelling clotheslines from those two and it becomes a race to their respective partners. Ariel takes Melissa to the floor with a satellite headscissors. Together with her partner they try a double superplex on Ringer…but Melissa marches back for a POWERBOMB CARWRECK SUPERPLEX! She blocks Ariel’s Ace Crusher with an AIR RAID CRASH. Melissa wins at 10:41.


Rating - *** - Admittedly I may be biased since Cheerleader Melissa and Ariel have quickly become two of my favourites on the roster but that was still a really good formula tag match. What I liked about it was that they didn’t rely on diva-style hair pulling or anything like that. Instead they had enough confidence in their straight wrestling ability to pull this off, and it worked. I said I wasn’t overly impressed with Shantelle after Volume 1, but she was easily good enough to pull off an in peril segment with the likes of Melissa…and the finishing sequence with the two big Cheerleader Melissa spots was good.


Sara Del Rey calls herself the most dominant female in the world, and says Mercedes got lucky the time limit ran out. Martinez comes in and disagrees with her. Both of them need to work on their interviews…


Amber O’Neal vs Christie Ricci

Neither of these two impressed me on the first show, so I’m interested to see if they can do any better second time around. Amber is the other half of Team Blondage so expect a lot of heel stuff from her. Since her partner is leaving after this show I guess we’ll find out if she has what it takes to stick around and work solo. Ricci lost to Lexie Fyfe at the first taping and will need to win to keep her roster spot.


Amber is hesitant to start wrestling, whilst Ricci has the fans right behind her. She tries a headlock only to be dropped with a back suplex. Eventually she gets an advantage by choking Ricci in the ropes. Next she utilises hair pulling and nose picking. Christie looks to power out of a camel clutch but O’Neal hits a bulldog to put a stop to that. Lion Tamer by the Team Blondage member, but Ricci has far too much power to be held in that move, so Amber chokes her again. They go through a really sloppy rolling cradle, then Ricci rattles off a couple of messy backbreakers for 2. Her attempt at a body slam is no better. O’Neal boots her as she comes from the top rope, but this match has totally lost me. In the end Ricci wins it with a northern lights suplex at 07:15.


Rating – DUD – It sucked, and I don’t have a whole lot more to say. Like her partner, Amber is mildly entertaining and has her act down to a tee, but the problem is she can’t wrestle all that good. But that character at least makes her a better bet to stay on the roster than Christie. I stick with my opinion on Ricci from Volume 1…she’s not the worst out there, but she tries things she’s not capable of, and when she looks sloppy performing basic moves like a body slam, I’d suggest telling her to go away and come back when she’s improved a little. This is probably the worst SHIMMER match thus far.


Rain vs Allison Danger

Fortunately this match should be a lot better than the last one. Both women had a decent match at Volume 1 and will be important parts of the SHIMMER roster, that much is for certain. Will Rain leave with her first win in the promotion, or will Allison Danger go 2-0?

Nice selling from both women which puts over the effectiveness of the various holds as they tentatively feel each other out from the bell. Check out Rain looking to bite her opponent as she clasps onto a side headlock. It’s Rain that takes an early advantage, and having gained that, milks it by pulling on the Danger’s hair as she’s tied in the ropes. She drives knees into Allison’s spine and gets a 2 count as a result. Camel clutch, again with the knee in the back…and then with fingers in the mouth and nose, but Allison is able to get to a rope. Danger tries a Shimmering Warlock out of desperation, but Rain ducks it and locks in a Boston crab. On the floor now, where Rain puts Danger in a bearhug then rams her into the ringpost to do more damage to the back. Allison finally starts mounting some offence, hitting a slick running knee strike out of the corner and leaving them both down. She follows that with clotheslines then rolling vertical suplexes for 2. Rain comes back with a neckbreaker over the knee. Acid Rain countered as Danger hits a shinbreaker then catapults Rain into a half crab. Raindrop DDT gets 2 on Danger, but Rain can’t hit Acid Rain due to her bad leg. SHIMMERING WARLOCK nailed, and Allison picks up a hard fought victory at 13:17.


Rating - *** - That was a really solid match, right up there with the best efforts I’ve seen from either woman. I hadn’t seen a lot of Rain’s work before coming to SHIMMER, just an IWA show here and there, but this match totally sold me on her. Danger, meanwhile, is a great babyface, especially in matches like this where she takes a lot of abuse since that minimises the amount of time she spends on offence where her execution is sometimes questionable. I liked the closing sequence with Rain injuring her leg and then becoming unable to nail her finisher, allowing Danger to do hers instead.


Daizee Haze says size doesn’t matter and she’s going to smoke her opponents tonight. To quote that old lady in ‘Dude, Where’s My Car?’ – “f*ckin’ stoners”.


Beth Phoenix vs MsChif

This would be Beth’s last appearance before going to the WWE too. She was beaten by Allison Danger at the first show. MsChif won a gripping match against Cheerleader Melissa and will be looking to keep the momentum going.


Beth looks scared of MsChif before she even reaches the ring. The bell rings and she quickly runs off to avoid her screaming green opponent. Chif applies an inverted horizontal surfboard but Phoenix is a strong woman and is able to negate the effectiveness of the hold. Phoenix slams MsChif on the wooden floor then urges the referee to count her out as quickly as possible. That tactic doesn’t work so Beth works a half nelson and now begs the ref to make MsChif submit. No luck there, so she drops a big leg and gets 2. MsChif comes back with a swinging neckbreaker but Phoenix is quickly able to scoop her into a backbreaker and stave off the comeback. MsChif goes back to the power of SCREAMING, and gets 2 with a Hero’s Welcome. A standing moonsault gets 2 as well. Phoenix blocks the Desecrator and hits the BETH VALLEY DRIVER! She wins at 08:27.


Rating - ** - That was really similar to Phoenix/Danger from Volume 1 in that it was a decent mixture of comedy and good wrestling. I’m somewhat confused as to the decision to put Phoenix over, given that she was already in OVW at this point, whilst MsChif will be one of the more important members of the SHIMMER roster. It seems a weird decision after MsChif was established as a star with her big win over Cheerleader Melissa.


Mercedes Martinez vs Lacey vs Sara Del Rey vs Daizee Haze

Main event time, and remember this is under elimination rules. Basically it’s putting the four women who stole the show first time round in the ring at the same time. Martinez and Del Rey went to a 20 minute draw and will be looking to prove who the better woman is. Haze and Lacey had a competitive 20+ minute classic, with Daizee coming out victorious. Lacey will be coming to get a win back.


Lacey has no interest in starting with Del Rey, but Martinez has no such problem and strides in to renew their rivalry. They test each other a little before Haze tags and gets tossed around by Mercedes. Naturally after that Lacey demands a tag and enjoys the opportunity to get her hands on Daizee again. She nails a few kicks to the spine but Del Rey manages to tag again. Lacey knees Sara in the corner, then pulls her away with a lungblower for 2. She chokes the Haze on the ropes for good measure. Lacey has dominated the opening five minutes. Daizee finally grabs a half nelson, and Lacey wastes no time in tagging out. Enziguri sends Del Rey to the floor and Daizee dives after her with a TOP ROPE PLANCHA! Martinez tags and both her and Sara look desperate to score a pinfall over the other. Mercedes drops Daizee on her face for 2. Unsurprisingly the size and power of Martinez sees her able to control Haze. Lacey again tags herself in but Haze clotheslines her…so she tags out again. Del Rey drops Haze with a Samoan drop…now Lacey tags in again. Lacey is actually one of my favourite wrestlers right now lol. After some initial success Daizee comes back with a satellite headscissors, and Lacey brings Sara in again. SECOND ROPE SNAPMARE gets 2. Lacey’s Implant DDT is blocked with Haze’s Yakuza kick. FISHERMAN BUSTER by Martinez and Lacey is eliminated at 12:53. That doesn’t impress Daizee since it was her that did all the damage, and Mercedes stole the pin. Del Rey comes in for a hard strike duel with her nemesis Martinez. Haze flies in with a missile dropkick. HEART PUNCH…YAKUZA KICK! Martinez is eliminated at 15:04. Now it’s Sara that’s pissed off since it wasn’t her that was able to eliminate Mercedes. She ducks Daizee’s Yakuza kick and gives her a big powerbomb for 2. Yakuza kick nailed this time but Del Rey is in the ropes. She hits a facecrusher, but tries it a second time and is caught in the BUTTERFLY STRETCH! INTO THE BUTTERFLY POWERSLAM! Del Rey wins at 17:14.


Rating - *** - It was good, but all four women were visibly tired after their stellar efforts earlier in the afternoon at the Volume 1 taping. I think this match was actually less about the wrestling and held together by the way the women brought together the respective stories. You had Lacey trying to be a b*tch and beat up Daizee, you had Del Rey and Martinez trying to one up each other, then all four getting mad at each other when another woman got in the way of that. Credit Lacey for holding this match together for the opening 10 minutes. She’s easily the top heel in SHIMMER and did a hell of a job running the match before they started hitting the big spots at the end.


Cheerleader Melissa thinks MsChif was lucky when she beat her on Volume 1. She wants a rematch.


Dave Prazak makes the announcement that Lorelei Lee has earned a spot on the SHIMMER roster after impressing in a tryout match on an FIP show. She debuts on Volume 3.


Final promo of the evening - Allison Danger says Rebecca Knox will also debut at Volume 3. She’s impressed by her skills, and challenges her to her debut match on the next show.


Tape Rating - ** - I think I’m being pretty generous since this show isn’t a patch on the first SHIMMER event. To be honest, I think it was inevitable giving the gruelling taping schedule SHIMMER utilises. By taping two shows in one afternoon it takes sensible booking and some real stamina on the part of the talent to make the second show work. I’m assuming they’ll get used to it and future “second show of the afternoon” tapings will be better, but this one struggled. It also didn’t help that you had arguably the four most talented wrestlers on the roster loaded into the main event, leaving the rest of the undercard weak. Attribute the relative disappointment of this relief to “growing pains” and look forward to Volume 3. Not that there’s nothing to see here. Rain/Danger is surprisingly good, the main event is predictably good, and Cheerleader Melissa again looked immense in her tag match. VERY mild recommendation, but you can easily skip over this.


Top 3 Matches

3) Cheerleader Melissa/Tiana Ringer vs Ariel/Shantelle Taylor (***)

2) Allison Danger vs Rain (***)

1) Sara Del Rey vs Daizee Haze vs Mercedes Martinez vs Lacey (***)

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