REVIEW: Pro Wrestling: EVE - EVE 100
Pro Wrestling: EVE - EVE 100
229 The Venue, London
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Reviewer: Jamie Walker (@walker_this_way)
Credit: Pro Wrestling: EVE
To say EVE were up against it from the off with their 100th show is an understatement. A barrage of late injuries and illnesses had a major impact on the card, but the team and crowd were nevertheless eager to celebrate a historic milestone for one of the world’s biggest all-female wrestling companies.
The card of 22 was dropped to just 14, making for some very on the fly matches and moments. Dann Read kicked off the proceedings and does a great job of raring the crowd up, but we had no idea way actually lay in store for the next three hours.
Rayne Leverkusen vs Laura Di Matteo
This contest starts with your basic grappling holds, as both competitors try to get the upper hand. But it doesn’t last long…
Two minutes in The Uprising come out and interrupted things. Rhia O’Reilly was on the mic and she slams Laura for losing the International title and allowing it to leave not only EVE but the country.
Laura takes issue with this and challenges Rhia and Skye Smitson to a match for the EVE tag title - with Rayne as her partner.
Laura Di Matteo & Rayne Leverkusen vs The Uprising (Rhia O’Reilly & Skye Smitson) (c)
Laura Di Matteo and Rayne Leverkusen WIN the EVE Tag Team titles
Rayne starts the contest and has Skye in a precarious position before tagging in Laura. The former EVE International champ starts out on top but soon becomes overwhelmed by the power of The Uprising.
Rhia and Skye beat her from pillar to post as Rayne watched helplessly from the sidelines. Eventually Laura finds an opening and makes the tag, the term hot tag comes to mind as the crowd went mental for Rayne’s re-entry.
Rayne truly turns the tide for her team; a big suplex to Rhia and one to Skye. But the crowd comes unglued when Rayne rolls up Skye for a shock pin.
We have NEW eve tag team champs, The Uprising’s historic run comes to an end. What a mental start to 2023!
Rayne was fantastic in this match, not just for getting the win, she’s been a hidden gem for all of 2022 - can’t wait to see what this tag title reign brings for her. Laura was solid as ever but I didn’t expect the makeshift pairing to capture the belts so I’m excited to see where we go from here.
And it’s always funny to see The Uprising lose, especially as they dropped the belts in the process. They walked out of the ring and chased Dann to the back in the process.
Alexxis Falcon vs Session Moth Martina
Moth comes to the ring looking oddly timid, very polite and…with a bottle of WATER! She struggles to get in the ring and on the top rope for her entrance and reveals she’s lost a Xmas bet and is doing dry January. She claims she’ll be able to wrestle without alcohol but then Alexxis attacks her from behind…
Alexxis is way on top, martina misses the alcohol dearly, she just can’t seem to get any momentum without it. Where alcohol can sometimes slow people down, it seems that for martina it’s the crucial essence for making her good at the graps.
Alexxis gets a fan’s beer and tempts martina with it - the most heel thing she’s ever done. But, as Mariah Carey once said, then a hero comes along, it’s Millie McKenzie with a beer for her wrestling mom.
Martina refuses at first but then takes a swig and the rest is history. It’s like watching Popeye. She’s got new life and Alexxis doesn’t know what to do, she’s getting battered.
But the one swig wasn’t enough, Martina couldn’t overcome the early beating she’d taken and falcon won with a DDT from the middle rope.
She’s an awful, awful person, especially after the beer incident, but that aside it’s great to see Falcon getting these opportunities. Moth is golden as usual, she’s a gem of the scene and always brings the comedy.
Millie McKenzie vs Rhio
Millie was originally slated to face Emersyn Jayne and a test against Rhio would prove no less daunting for ‘Coventry’s loudest’. Millie goes for a handshake and Rhio is unsure, Millie promises she’s trying to be nice and true to her word she doesn’t hit this but swears at her instead.
Millie wants to prove she can outpower Rhio, trying to knock her off her feet but she can’t. She does however take her down after her own alcoholic encouragement from Martina.
Rhio takes control early on, with some stiff kicks and strikes. Millie looks to have gotten herself on top at one point but a dive to the outside missed and Rhio hits one of her own right into the chairs.
Back in the ring and she continues the dominance. To her credit Millie will not stay down, kicking out of everything thrown at her. Rhio seems to be getting frustrated and the strikes and kicks become a little harder, as if that was possible.
This fires Millie up and a big super kick and signature suplex looks to have Rhio beaten, but she kicks out at two and a half. The duel goes back and forth, as do the chants from the crowd.
The end comes when Millie wriggles out of an attempted package pile driver and hits RHIO with a spear and back body drop.
As expected this was a great contest, both these women are fantastic and deserve their respective spots near the top of the eve power rankings.
Royal Aces (Charlie Morgan and Jetta) vs Safire Reed and Amara Jayde
Charlie Morgan and Jetta address Alex Windsor before their match with Safire and Amara Jayde
The Aces come out first, after the interval, and take the mic for a promo calling out the absent Alex Windsor - and boy did this deliver!
They say ‘fuck Alex Windsor’ and claim she’s a ‘glory hunter’ who has only ever been in it for herself and never cared about them. Jetta proclaims the ‘Princess Diana of EVE’ is dead and that the ‘British wrestling legend’ era is back.
It’s a great promo and really works to put the pair over as the new top heels in the company.
Safire and the debuting Amara Jayde were up against it from the off. The Aces start on top, with the youngster team taking an early beating.
Then the heel work comes into play, something we didn’t see from either Jetta or Charlie throughout all of 2022. They show huge disrespect to their opponents with two on one beatdown and Jetta slaps Amara in the face at one point too.
Amara makes the hot tag to Safire who comes after Charlie and now it’s the young upstarts who are on top - but not for long. Some sneaky tactics from the Aces see them get rid of Amara before Safire gets hit with a super kick and package pile driver for the win.
I love this new heel side of the Aces, there are some fantastic stories that could be told here, not just in their feud with Windsor but beyond as well.
I was really impressed by Amara, and Safire always delivers - she’s gonna be a star.
Nina Samuels vs Kasey
Kasey and Nina Samuels have a match of the year contender
This was, as you’d expect, a brilliant contest! Both women went as it all guns blazing from the off and showed why they’ve been two of the best in the country for so long.
Nina spends the majority of the match targeting the back of Kasey which looks like it’s causing her real pain and is tough to watch at times. But this is one half of the She-Wolves we’re talking about, she doesn’t go down the without a fight.
Blows and strikes are traded back and forth and the crowd are really into it - although surprisingly split, I didn’t expect so much support for Nina and her heelish tactics.
Kasey looks to put Nina away with dropkick off the middle rope but Nina moves out the way, seeing Kasey face plant. That should’ve been it, but Nina, despite her baking skills, over egged the pudding. She slapped Kasey and you knew that was a mistake from the off.
Kasey fights her way back into it but a spinning backdrop to the knee has Kasey down for a considerable time and in a lot of pain. But she’s the Mother of Chaos never says quit, the battle rages on and the crowd is loving it
Nina wants Kasey to admit she’s broken and as Kasey tries to get Nina on her shoulders she can’t manage it, she crumbles and Nina hits her with more brutal strikes to the back.
But Kasey pushes her to the outside and goes for a dive but Dann is in the way; he gets hit hard by the dive and as he gets to his feet Nina and Kasey battle on.
With just 40 seconds left on the clock nina puts Kasey away and it’s genuinely heartbreaking. I really hope this storyline of wanting to prove she’s not done yet goes somewhere for Kasey. If played right, it’s an angle that could make her the biggest face in the company.
This was a genuine match of the year contender, an absolute brawl and the psychology was excellent. But nobody would’ve believed that another match of the year would follow so soon after…
The Pro Wrestling: EVE Multiverse Rumble
This was wild, so much so that I wasn’t even able to keep up my note taking to that high of a degree but let’s give it a go;
First off, I have to give credit to everyone in this match, because all of them pulled double duty on the night, some of them even pulled triple duty, but we’ll get to that later…
Today has been so much chaos for EVE that not even Dann knows how many people are actually in it.
2013 era Kazza G (Session Moth) enters first, black wig, red dress, the whole shabang. She’s finally making her EVE debut and loving it!
But then she looks confused as her current music plays, and the crowd goes wild as number two in the rumble is revealed as Jetta Moth Martina.
Kazza G and Jetta Moth Martina kick off the Multiverse Rumble
It is WILD seeing Jetta impersonate Moth, she grinds, she drinks, she flirts, it’s outrageous and brilliant. She tops it off by immediately eliminating Kazza.
Next up we’re off pirating as Captain Rhio Sparrow enters the fray, sword, hat and all. I’m not sure about the attempt at a pirate accent but she’s brilliant nevertheless.
Kris Wolf enters next, oh wait, sorry that’s Fearless Kris Wolf (Charlie Morgan). She herself grinds on Jetta Moth, even in the multiverse there’s an attraction between the two that can’t be stopped.
There’s some VERY rude behaviour between the pair involving Wolf’s tail, and that tail is then used as a sword in a fight with Captain Rhio.
Nikki (Rhia O’Reilly) Storm is the next to enter, her first steps in an EVE ring - well, sort of - since 2016.
Another WWE appearance comes shortly after in the for of Lita (Kasey), who comes complete with signature crop top. The smile on her face is brilliant as she goes through Lita’s signature moveset.
Now, anyone who knows Amira will know she’s an absolute riot and she proved this yet again as she entered the rumble as Sexy Laura Di Matteo. She dances, she has her hands all over herself, but she’s unfocussed and immediately gets eliminated.
Sexy Laura Di Matteo enters, then swiftly exits, the rumble
That’s gotta be Kane! Oh wait it’s RAYNE who looks excellent in her red mask. Then we finally get the storyline that was never finished in WWE, as she and Lita reunited in the middle of the ring (after a short trading of blows).
Irish Nikki Storm, Fearless Kris Wolf and Lita are all eliminated before You’ll Never Walk Alone hits and Amara Salah enters - we only wish Lizzy Evo had been here to sing along as well.
Sexy Di Matteo may have been eliminated earlier but then the Addams Family music hits and a Wednesday that looks a lot like the real LDM enters the ring.
Laura plays this brilliantly, she’s Wednesday to a tee, looking unphased and unbothered about anything. At multiple points she even just sits in the corner and watches proceedings without any hint of getting involved.
Wednesday Di Matteo looks totally at home in the rumble
Then comes the greatest moment of all, the moment that will always be remembered, where Alexxis Falcon cemented herself as a national treasure. She’d said before the rumble that nobody would guess what she’d be entering as and she was spot on.
Amarillo plays over the speakers and Alexxis comes out as Peter Kay, with a purple shirt and GARLIC BREAD! But the best is yet to come, as she leads the entire room, wrestlers and fans, is a conga singalong around the ring. It’s glorious, it’s the best thing I’ve ever seen! (see video below).
It was gonna be tough to top that, but the chaos just kept rising as Right to Censor (Nina Samuels) came to the ring and immediately started laying down rules. She did not approve of the garlic bread or Jetta Moth’s grinding.
But her anger was then directed to the entrance ramp and the glamorous and stylish Millie Samuels (McKenzie) came to the ring in Nina’s full ring gear. The thing that made this so great was Millie’s complete inability to keep Nina’s hat on during the entrance.
Millie Samuels enters the rumble, but struggles to keep the hat on
Millie Samuels time didn’t last long though, she was eliminated swiftly before the classic tune of the Heartbreak Kid played, complete with crowd singalong, and Shawn (Charlie) Morgan entered the ring looking frankly spectacular.
Once again Jetta Moth was impressed and who is Shawn to say no, these two are just destined to be together in every universe.
Shawn Morgan wows the crowd
Irish Nikki Cross (Rhia O’Reilly) enters next, having ditched the storm gimmick and moved to her first WWE persona and then Amira brings the ‘Sexy’ back to the ring, returning as the Sexy ‘Villainess’ Skye Smitson.
Once again there’s plenty of gyrating and touching, but it’s made even better when Skye herself enters as the classic Disney villain Gaston - from Beauty and the Beast. She looks at Sexy Skye with confusion and Amira’s ‘sexy’ faces are hilarious.
RAYNE and Gaston are eliminated before…GLASS SHATTER, STONE COLD! STONE COLD! STONE COLD! (Session Moth) Stunners all round and after a failed attempt at grinding on the WWE legend, Jetta Moth eliminates herself and runs to back.
STONE COLD! STONE COLD! STONE COLD!
More stunners incoming as KO, no not Kevin, Kasey Owens, enters the ring with a terribly drawn on beard and KO shirt. Shawn Morgan is eliminated and then comes our final entrant…
‘YOU CAN’T SEE ME’, the place comes unglued again as John Cena (Safire) enters the rumble, hitting a sweet Five Knuckle Shuffle in the process.
Now, here’s where it all broke down, through my own tears of laughter I totally lost track of WTF was happening. Everyone seemed to get eliminated and all I saw was Right to Censor (Nina) celebrating her victory, or so she thought…
Quietly, sneakily, not even bothered, Wednesday Di Matteo slides in the ring, puts Right to Censor over the top and then…just stands there. She’s WON the multiverse rumble and she couldn’t care less.
Wednesday Di Matteo WINS the Multiverse Rumble
Laura’s acting in this was excellent and she sold the Wednesday character beautifully. What an absolute star she is!
I urge everyone to go and watch this match on the EVE YouTube channel, my words don’t do it justice, it needs to be seen to be believed.
After the match Dann and the whole crew come to the ring, Dann thanks everyone for 100 shows, there’s hugs all round and a final singalong to Amarillo.
There are no words to describe how brilliant this match and the entire EVE 100 show was! With a depleted roster, everyone banded together and made this one of EVE’s greatest shows ever.
The lack of roster made things feel exciting, simply because nobody at all knew what was coming next. It was wild and crazy and funny and a beautiful way to celebrate a century of shows.
Congratulations to Dann and all the team at EVE, they deserve all the success.
And to any other wrestler or promoter reading this…good luck topping that for match of the year!
