Beyond Wrestling Presents Wear Sunscreen
(aka the @StonedCoze experience)
Live from the Boardwalk Garden Pier in Atlantic City, NJ
August 23, 2020
Available on IWTV
“You came all the way from Arkansas?”
The genuine surprise in Tasha Steelz’s voice was encouraging. I’d just met her after her fantastic tag team match with Christian Casanova against Jordan Oliver and Myron Reed. We’d been talking about how the rain held off enough for us to see a great show, and that’s when I’d let on that I was from out of town. I absolutely love to see the reactions of wrestling talent when they find out that people are eager to travel a long distance just to see them go in the ring. It’s just as inspiring of a feeling to them as their reaction is to a fan like me.
For Beyond, though? I’ll put those miles in. When I started following the promotion last year it was my goal to get up north for a live show. In some ways, this year’s pandemic became my motivation for travel; it was now or never if I was going to make it to any shows. I went to last month’s Two Weeks Notice and immediately felt like I was among a family I’d just met for the first time but felt like I’d known them forever. Nothing was going to keep me away from this wonderful group of people. I’d be back, whether it was at the White Eagle or anywhere else.
Thankfully I didn’t have to wait long at all; once GCW had planned their follow-up show on the Boardwalk I was doubly excited to find out that Beyond Wrestling would make their return to the Garden Pier too. HELL. YES. My second Beyond show in a year. Maybe this damn pandemic would turn out to be mentally survivable after all and this nutso 2020 could possibly be salvaged. For those of you who still wonder why anyone would risk traveling to a wrestling show in times like these, let this one word be your clue as to the reason: hope.
I came away from Wear Sunscreen with the best optimism I’ve had in months. Not only is Beyond back, but they didn’t miss a beat with this one. The theme of intergender matches appealed to me and many others. The names booked on the show were ones that evoked excitement in audiences. All the way from commentary to each of the matches there was a feeling of ‘let’s knock this one out of the damn park’. This had to have been the vibe that was going around each week on Uncharted Territory last year. Finally, finally did I get to experience that wave of energy that seemed native only to places like the White Eagle and the Electric Haze.
Let me tell you...once you’ve had some, you’ll want seconds and thirds on it.
Now, the best part of my second Beyond Wrestling show was the fact that I came in this time knowing the regulars (and meeting even more). At Two Weeks Notice I met Cody, known on Twitter as @StonedCoze and one of Beyond’s for-real family. Cody’s also a damn good hook up for when you’re looking to get fully medicated and/or faded. Having enjoyed his company that fine Sunday in July, you bet your sweet ass I was looking forward to seeing him again at Wear Sunscreen. Not only is Cody a trip to indulge with, but watching a Beyond show with him is an experience in itself. I’ve heard it said that it’s best to immerse yourself in local flavor when you’re someplace new. With that said, I came away from my second show feeling like I’d been initiated. Not quite a Beyond regular yet, but damn sure well on my way thanks to Cody and company.
On Commentary: Paul Crockett and Nick Gage
Whatever shows you watched this weekend, I guarantee you the commentary team was lacking if it didn’t feature Nick Gage. As much as I love Sidney Bakabella, it was only right to hear from King Gage after his sudden and untimely injury last month at Two Weeks Notice. I’m not sure how long we’ll have to wait to see Gage back in the ring, but up until then I’d say it’d be a great thing if we could have him on commentary as often as possible. Going back and re-watching the show after returning home was a priority for me as I couldn’t wait to hear how Crockett and Gage meshed together at the commentary table. Now that we’ve had this pairing can we see it once more when Uncharted Territory returns? I’m sure Sidney will be glad to have a few nights off.
Match 1: Willow Nightingale vs. Max Caster (w/the Shook Crew)
Max and the Shook Crew just can’t get a break on the pier, can they? Last time they were in the ring we saw Max have to eat every word in his Allie Kat diss track. This time around he had the opportunity to redeem himself in a match against Willow Nightingale, but I think Max has a bad habit of biting off more than he can chew. Sure, it’s one thing to make a fire diss track, but backing it up? Not so much. My girl Willow came away with the win here, soundly defeating Max right there in front of his two Shook cronies and sending them back to the drawing board...or the recording studio...to see if they can muster up a challenge against anyone else for Caster since the ladies haven’t done so well by him this summer.
Match 2: Solo Darling vs. Pinkie Sanchez
A big part of the StonedCoze experience is massive support of El Presidente, and I’m cool with that. However, I couldn’t fully back Cody in his support of Pinkie because I’m just a down-ass Solo girl. Nothing against Team Pazuzu or anything like that, however, this was all friendly combat as far as I was concerned. This was the only time in the show that Cody’s opinion diverged from mine, but it made the match that much more entertaining with differing views and dueling chants. Even though I expected Solo to come off with the win here, Pinkie was the one who got the victory much to Cody’s supreme joy. Great match - not too long, not over too suddenly, and it was fun to enjoy this one with one of Beyond’s most supportive regulars.
Match 3: Pretty Proper (Lady Frost & Victor Benjamin) vs. Bear Country (Bear Bronson & Bear Boulder)
My first time seeing the great Pretty Proper live just had to be when they’d take on the biggest team in Beyond, right? I’ve been following the career of Lady Frost & Victor Benjamin for a little over a year now and as I sat back in the corner of the pier smoking out with Cody and watching this match, I have to admit I had some doubts that Victor and his lady could deliver a solid match against the Bears. I say that...but then again I’ve also got to say that the Bear Country of 2020 is not the Bear Country that I first encountered on Uncharted Territory last summer. This year’s been tough on everybody but at least most people can say they didn’t suffer a series of tag match losses at events that quickly got fewer and farther in between. Something’s missing with them Bears, and it was only proven even more when Pretty Proper were able to attain an impressive underdog victory in this match. Not to take away anything from Lady Frost or Victor Benjamin as they put on a hell of a match and earned the win, but I do believe that Bear Country at their best would have ensured a different outcome here. Props to Pretty Proper for the win!
Match 4: SLADE vs. Allie Kat
Well, the edibles kicked in around the time this match started (again, part of the StonedCoze experience) and I just had to make my way close to the ring to support my girl Allie Kat and remind SLADE of how much of a bastard he is. This match concerned me ever since it was announced. DC was just being cruel on purpose after the 4th of July match with Allie Kat, damn it. She was being set up to be annihilated...or at least that’s what I thought right up until I saw her in the ring with SLADE. In any situation, don’t count out Allie Kat too soon! This has been the message she’s been delivering to us ever since returning to the ring last year. Her strategy here seemed to be simply to stay alive long enough to wear SLADE down and find just the right moment to swing the match her way, and that’s exactly what she did. The surprise of the show was Allie Kat taking the victory in this match, but damn did I love to see it.
Match 5: Culture SZN (Tasha Steelz & Christian Casanova) vs. Injustice (Jordan Oliver & Myron Reed)
I was up and stayed up for this tag match. My buddy Mat joined me for this one too; I think we both knew we were in for something special here. This was my favorite match of the card. I’m all for giving Jordan Oliver as much hell as heaven will allow, but the guy is fucking amazing and that’s a fact. He makes such a great team with Myron Reed that I feel like they’d have fit in perfectly with the late 80s-early 90s high-flying WWF tag teams that were around years before these kids were born. They’re great, and yet you have Culture SZN who had absolutely all of my attention in this match. This was my first time seeing Tasha Steelz live and her in-ring chemistry with Casanova was strong. I’m a sucker for a tag team match with high drama and people flying everywhere and this one satisfied nicely. Injustice took the win but Culture SZN definitely left with everyone’s respect.
Match 6: Joey Janela vs. Kimber Lee
Oooh shit this one was stiff. Never let it be said that Joey Janela holds back on anyone. Granted, going up against Kimber Lee pretty much means you don’t work light, no matter who you are. Having seen a few of Kimber Lee’s intergender matches I expected this one to be brutal, especially since it shared co-main event status with Priscilla Kelly vs. Chris Dickinson. It was as if this match and the one after were trying to one-up each other when it came to in-ring savagery. Janela vs. Kimber Lee was on a completely different level than the classic Janela/Statlander match from Uncharted Territory. That was a hell of a bout while this one was a hell of a battle. I knew Kimber Lee would bring the fight to Joey but there wasn’t much doubt in my mind that the Bad Boy would take the win. It was just a matter of how much damage KL would inflict on Janela before the finish, and she got more than a few of her shots in before Janela shifted the balance of power in the match in his favor for good. This wasn’t Janela/Statlander, but this match definitely stood on its own as one of my favorite Kimber Lee matches.
Match 7: Priscilla Kelly vs. Chris Dickinson
God almighty, I am a believer in Priscilla Kelly. Where in the previous match I had full confidence that Janela would get the victory despite a huge fight, PK had me wondering if we’d really see one of the biggest upset underdog victories in history, intergender match or not. And yes, this was my first time seeing Priscilla Kelly live. I’d had the chance to see her in Memphis at Pro Wrestling Trainwreck in the pre-covid days, and I’m kicking myself now for not having done so. The woman is absolutely legitimate, and I hope that years from now this is the match that her fans look to as the turning point in her career. Let the Dirty Daddy be the one who had that match with her, because this damn sure was that match. As for Dickinson, I want there to be so many more intergender matches in the future with him involved. Dickinson is one of the most versatile wrestlers I’ve ever seen in my life. Let the man drive that point home by putting him in matches with some of the world’s best women wrestlers. There’s a lot of good that can be done there, clearly. Amazing, amazing main event, hard-fought win for the Filthy Father, and one of the best Beyond matches I’ve had the pleasure of re-watching twice now.
Post-Show Thoughts
That’s TWO Beyond shows in one year, friends. Two! I’m on a roll here and making 2020 my bitch. As much fun as I had at Two Weeks Notice last month, this show stole my heart. Wear Sunscreen was a show that had that Beyond feel that I got when watching episodes of Uncharted Territory for the first time last year. I’m fully appreciative of DC and the Beyond family for embracing me, too. Cody showed me the absolute best time on the Pier on Sunday, and it was fantastic to see familiar faces and greet new ones - I finally met Galen after seeing him week after week on IWTV with his distinctive blonde ‘do I always admired from afar. It’s things like these that keep me coming back, aside from the stellar quality of the shows of course.
We’re lucky to have Beyond Wrestling, ya’ll. We’re blessed to have it back.