Hey folks, I could keep up the illusion that I am capable of keeping up with WWE programming at a pace good enough to write about it regularly, but that's just not true. There have been weeks I've had to skip RAW/Smackdown completely, much less have time to write about it.
Something I can control better is reviewing big shows I watch and want to write about as I go for them. This is much better-suited for when I actually have free time. So I'm not going to do a regular column following a specific program, but instead review whatever I want when I want, because this is mostly for my own enjoyment anyway.
This past weekend I finally got to watching EVOLVE 68 and 69 shows. I know that this weekend was also the weekend of EVOLVE 70 and 71 shows, so this is clearly out of date right away, but I'm a little behind on my wrestling watching.
EVOLVE has had an up-and-down year. On one hand, most of the in-ring content has been great. They've worked out something great with WWE that benefits both companies, allowing performers to work WWN shows and WWE shows at the same time. Some of the best matches you'll find all year are on EVOLVE cards.
On the other hand, the booking has been bad. Aside from the Gargano/Galloway feud that evolved into something more along the lines of NXT vs. TNA, there hasn't been much to be inspired about. The company seems to only actually focus on one feud on the time, so it's mostly wrestling for wrestling's sake. That's not necessarily bad, but it's killed plenty a match in the EVOLVE Championship and Tag Team Championship divisions. Championship matches suffer when there's no real heat between the competitors.
EVOLVE 68 and 69 have some of those problems, but the lack of championship matches allows them to avoid some of the biggest issues the company has had. Let's dive in, shall we?
EVOLVE 68
Fred Yehi def. Jigsaw
The opening match of the weekend was extremely my jam. Jigsaw is an underrated performer who deserves more love than he gets, and I'm excited for him to be back with EVOLVE. Meanwhile, Yehi is one of the hottest things in the indies right now, in my opinion. He's got all the tools to be great and has some fantastic matches even though he hasn't received too much of a significant push in the bigger-name indies. With guys like Gargano and TJP moving on up, Yehi's gonna be one of the people that benefits the most. This is a really good match, and pretty much the perfect way to open up a show. Yehi needed a singles win after losing some big matches, and Jigsaw was a good person to get him over. Very solid chain wrestling here, and one of the best matches of the night. A-
