There was a time when Chikara was, by far, my favorite brand of wrestling. I got into it when Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro) and Sara Del Rey were full-time roster members, Colt Cabana, the Young Bucks and El Generico were regular guest stars, and before they even had a singles title. It was way different and more fun than most wrestling I had watched prior to that, but it was also just as good. I would put this era of Chikara up against just about any other “great” wrestling out there, it was that good.

My first DVD was King of Trios 2011, which remains one of my all-time favorite events. There was just so much fun stuff that weekend. Great nostalgia with guest stars like The 1-2-3 Kid, The Great Sasuke, Dick Togo and Jinsei Shinzaki mixed with new favorites like The Colony and El Generico and some great comedy wrestling with Matt Classic and the Osaka Pro guys. It was a perfect event to be introduced to what Chikara is and what it could be.  (more…)