Sometimes, things just work out?
It’s not a pairing with a lot of history behind it, the match isn’t for anything, and it’s on a completely inconsequential show, but something about this clicks. Jimmy’s fired up in Michigan (and based on the SCUM shoot interviews Highspots, pilled up and/or coked up and/or drunk out of his fucking mind immediately following a break up), and Adam Cole is still at this great point where he’s established enough to be credible and has cool ideas and is a little bit of a bump freak, but then also still junior enough to let other smarter wrestlers take the wheel.
Very simple story told here, to the match’s benefit and to Adam Cole’s benefit in some sort of kayfabe sense, probably the most anyone’s ever elevated him on purpose so far in a single match outside of Kevin Steen in PWG.
After years of brawling and on and off again cheating, Jimmy Jacobs tries to surprise Adam Cole by playing it entirely straight and being way more athletic than he’s been in forever. It’s a really cool change, especially from a guy who too often got pigeonholed into the one thing he was really incredible at. The story goes about as it should from there. Cole’s surprised but adapts and as a bigger and more athletic guy, so once he figures the trick out, it’s not so hard for him to keep up. It’s still hard because Jimmy’s smarter than him, but Cole figures out more and more as it goes on. Beyond the story, Jimmy also elevates the match by taking a bunch of real manic bumps, even when he’s not trying to, like here when he tries to safely eject off the apron and still eats SO MUCH shit on the landing.
Despite that, Jimmy overreaches once more and Cole superkicks him mid-Spear in a spot that goes off much better than you’d think. The Florida Key follows that for the win.
Real surprise that, once again, I don’t expect anyone to ever believe me about given both my very clear bias towards one of my guys and also because yeah, on paper it doesn’t make sense.
***1/4
HANDWERK 