SHIMMER Volume 1, Berwyn, IL
SHIMMER! Its importance to the wrestling landscape in the United States this century can’t really be overstated. The company founded by Dave Prazak and Allison Danger started a grassroots campaign to change the perception of American women’s wrestling in this country at the indie level, which took hold enough to, in time, influence the women’s wrestling we saw on WWE TV and everywhere else here.
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(Stream SHIMMER at StreamSHIMMER)
This is from SHIMMER’s first-ever show, the fifth match on the card, between two standouts of the period. MsChif had become familiar in the region thanks to Prazak getting a lot of these women on IWA Mid-South shows, which even when sparsely attended live still sold a fair amount on home video and got talked about in the good dork circles of the era, and Melissa had been making a real name for herself in California, mostly, and had traveled the world at a time when very few American women’s wrestlers were doing that. She’d already earned her stripes and would be a huge key for SHIMMER over its existence.
I never became quite the Melissa fan so many were, but that’s on me, geography, and what I watched most back then, mainly. Maybe in these later years of my life I will finally get fully on board with her. Very possible! I always thought she was quite good, mind you.
These are two sort of larger ladies, tall-ish and powerful, compared to a lot of their peers. Melissa goes right at MsChif, who does her big scream, and Melissa just looks at her and puts her on her ass. Then MsChif does her scream again, so Melissa screams, too, and they start hitting each other. That’s what wrestling is all about.
MsChif gets a mount and just hammers down on Melissa. More screaming. Most MsChif matches I’ve seen have been in this time period in IWA MS and SHIMMER, and being honest, these were often shows with somewhere between 40 and 70 people in attendance, and the screaming to nobody other than, eventually, a couple of people kind of laughing is always kind of funny to revisit.
As an aside, Prazak and Danger are the commentary here, and I’d heard them work a lot of IWA MS shows together. Allison was insightful and good, she was funny, lively, not afraid to “take the piss” as they say in “Europe,” and hearing her tone all that down to an almost totally different voice and tone in order to make sure SHIMMER is presented in a Serious Women Athletes fashion is always strange to me, too. Prazak is also calling the action much straighter here, way less ribbing and bullshitting than he’d do elsewhere at the same time. I get why they did it, they wanted (needed) this to be taken seriously and not snorted at by me in a tiny bedroom watching this shit on a PS2 in 2006, but it is strange to me all the same.
MsChif broke out some submissions that were weird, a little creative, sometimes just kind of goofy and overcomplicated, and she would take weird shit, too, because she was crazy flexible. I just really enjoyed her; someone who didn’t totally get her due as an influential figure on this scene.
Melissa goes to the eyes, back suplex, then she starts slapping MsChif in the face. MsChif generally was the bigger lady, stronger, and her energy could be intimidating. None of that works against Melissa the way it does most opponents.
Hey, speaking of MsChif’s crazy flexibility:
This is the first singles match these two ever had and you can kind of see that in some ways, but there’s an obvious natural chemistry in here, too. They have styles, presentation, and personalities that complement one another really well.
Melissa takes over big after that MsChif submission attempt, hurling MsChif out to the floor and following her out for the night’s first real outside action. There are 10-counts in SHIMMER, Prazak notes. Melissa continues in total control, beating the hell out of MsChif’s back out there, Melissa repeatedly breaking the count before finally taking it back inside, so they were out there for a good bit of time.
Hey, no, they’re staying out there because MsChief is trying to fight back, and now they’re trading chops. MsChif loses that fight, too, and gets her body all flexibly contorted through the damn guardrail by Melissa. Prazak and Danger do have to work around people nearby just sort of silently staring at them.
That takes them back into the ring. Melissa goes for the Kudo Driver, gets her up, but MsChif lands on her feet down the back. MsChif hits Unhallowed Grace, but not super clean or anything, with her knee and back having taken damage.
They’re both nearing the, “OK, gotta find a finish her” point, not desperation mode for Melissa, maybe, though for MsChif, yes. MsChif with the double stomps to the spine in the corner. Danger leaves commentary to go prepare for her match with Beth Phoenix, which is after this match. Some preparation, this thing is almost over! All she needs to get ready is a couple minutes?
MsChif runs into a sit-out power bomb from Melissa, which gets a two count, but delayed. Melissa goes for the Kudo Driver again, doesn’t get it, and MsChif counters with the Desecrator for the win.
The booking decision is perhaps slightly disagreeable, because Melissa was the more traveled competitor and all that, considered the better worker or whatever, but the thing is, Prazak knew 100 percent for sure that MsChif would be back for future shows. Melissa probably depended on, you know, what kind of money they made to bring people in from the West Coast and beyond. And it sets MsChif on the early path to being a top star in SHIMMER, with Melissa not exactly losing any credibility to anyone who knew anything.
It’s also the first really good match in SHIMMER history; with respect to the four matches before it, which mostly featured at least something kinda good in one aspect or another, this is the one where the company’s goals are really set in motion, where you see exactly what the idea is supposed to be. It’s good, hard-nosed fighting, with both of them getting to show off their skills.
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