Rite of Passage

I like the way Aaron Travers bares his teeth when he's tormenting Jason Kane. He not only flashes his pearly whites but he bites his lower lip. The go-go dancer has a good feel for the mannerisms of a bully, enjoying a little too much his opponent's shudders and groans. But potential is not achievement, and his inexperience eventually makes him easy pickings for the more experienced (but still only nineteen) Jason, the actual heel in this match. 

Both wrestlers have gangling limbs, pretty much the opposite of the traditional wrestler's build, and I would peg them for platform divers before I'd ever picture them as grapplers. But I'm particularly impressed by Jason's broad shoulders, pronounced lats, and biceps. Has he always had them? I don't remember their looking quite this impressive in his previous matches against Ethan Andrews and Eli Black. In this match he's got a good three inches and thirty pounds over his opponent, and despite having a face that would look right at home at Hogwarts, he devotes every ounce of muscle to pounding Aaron into mincemeat and seems to relish the newfound role of aggressor. 

Not that Aaron seems to mind. "Fuck you," he growls at his tormenter. "Do it harder." The kid's definitely game for pain. He's got a stubborn streak, defiantly saying no when Jason asks him if he's had enough. I see in him the makings of a good heel someday. With blue, compelling eyes and dark blond hair, angular jawline and cheekbones, and a blunt, narrow forehead, from some angles he looks like a young Peter Cetera, from others, a more stoic Jake Shears. The boxlike head and conspicuous choppers will be wasted unless Rock Hard Wrestling decides to groom him for all-out heeldom. I don't particularly want to see Aaron in a Gestapo uniform, but he looks like he could pull off the look.

This is a fairly quick match. The moves and holds are limited in number but well timed and impressively sold, especially considering Aaron's inexperience (which, according to the catalog description, is total). It's a classic initiation rite, and Jason demonstrates unexpected grit as the initiator. Both have screen presence, with Jason displaying more charisma than I've seen in any of his previous bouts.