W.A.R.: Wrestling and Romance

“Not every romantic story is about love. As odd as that sounds, romance can be a quality or feeling of mystery, excitement, and remoteness from everyday life. Wrestling is romantic. And sometimes when two hearts cross paths, that romance is intensified with violence and blood-soaked tears. Feuds such as these are about more than who’s the best in the world. They’re about one’s philosophy, the culmination of their existence, the fight for validation. Allesandro Devastation vs Stephanie Matsuda for the Wrestleworld American Dream Championship has been a long time coming. One could say it was destiny that this match is happening at Arcadia. In a fan poll conducted on the Wrestleworld website, this match was voted one of the most anticipated matches second only to Jaywalker vs Claudia Michaels for control of Wrestleworld. This meeting between the former leader of World’s Finest and the former left-hand ghost of Underworld can not only be seen as a winner takes all fight for supremacy, This match is a symbolic test of will to see who truly is the American Dream. Who best represents the will of the people in the good ‘ol USofA. When these two meet under Outlaw rules they will apply a craft forged in the blood and gore seen throughout American wrestling history. While the naked eye can see the obvious differences between the two competitors, we have to break this match down to its foundation for the real story that lies underneath. We’ll have to compare both of their American Dream title reigns in a good ‘ol fashioned tale of the tape.”




“On August 16th in the main event of Dreamworld, Stephanie Matsuda would defeat season-long rival Claudia Michaels and lifetime rival April Song in the main event of Book 1’s biggest show to become the inaugural American Dream Champion. This near-year-long journey had her cross paths with Michaels multiple times, usually while she was in the company of her Underworld faction. Things came to a head at Kingdom Come where the World’s Finest would defeat Underworld in a Trial of 7 Match. In this very same match, Underworld would fall apart at the seams with Allesandro butting heads with the man formerly known as Maverick. Allesandro’s journey to Dreamworld would have him face Jason Long in an Outlaw Match where he would be brutally defeated resulting in a months-long hospitalization. Meanwhile, Long was in possession of “Wraith’s” sapphire briefcase which he previously traded with Jacob Senn who wanted to challenge for the Shogun Championship. For the longest time Allesandro had his eyes on the American Dream, but would have to wait until rehabilitation was completed. Allesandro would rebuild his body in a way nobody expected. Meanwhile, the victorious Matsuda would have her first defense at By the Sword on October 18th. There she would defend her title in a triple threat scramble match against Cluadia’s heir apparent Jay Jones and the rebellious grappler Drago Santiago. After 29 minutes of grueling back and forth victories, Matsuda landed a Cloud 9 on both opponents to secure her eventual victory after both men sabotaged each other’s pin attempts. At the same event Allesandro’s father Kevin Devastation would face Maverick in a Trial by Combat Match. Both men were cornered by the two people who would become the main event for Arcadia: Jaywalker and Claudia Michaels. After Maverick forced Jaywalker to throw in the towel for a beaten Devastation he would use this moment to betray Claudia and eventually go his own way elsewhere. As for the Devastations, they were far from finished.”




“Enter War of the Worlds. In the weeks leading up to the January 3rd event, Layne Driver made his appearance after a small hiatus from sister promotion OWA. The former Kurobane defeated Christopher Sabertooth before turning his attention to the American Dream Champion and her slowly dissolving faction. A couple of in-fights, mostly between the Wildcards and Sweet Melody, would see the alliance fall as quickly as it was formed. This was to be expected; World’s Finest existed solely to take on Underworld. Layne questioned Stephanie’s motives After betraying Matsuda in a tag match, Layne would challenge Matsuda for her American Dream Championship. In what was one of the bloodiest matches of her career, Stephanie would lay everything on the line to retain her title to the point where she refused much-needed medical attention. It was then...disaster struck. Allesandro Devastation, once known as Wraith, made his presence known.” 



“Making his way down the ramp like a man on a mission, Allesandro cashed in his sapphire briefcase for an on-the-spot title shot for the very title Stephanie risked her life to retain. Cloud did her best to keep Devastation at bay, but one spear and powerbomb later, a new champion was crowned. Welcome to the Devastation Era.”




 “The injuries Matsuda sustained between both matches would leave The Queen of Fighters sidelined for a while. As for Allesandro, he would have his first defense against the enigmatic Stark in the main event of Chapter 27. After a thrilling back and forth match, Devastation would come out victorious but continue his assault on Stark alongside Layne and Animus which led to Matsuda emerging with Christopher Sabertooth and Arata Asakura. This would lead to a 3-on-3 Campo de Batalla Match where the stakes were waged even higher. Outside of the ring was just about every danger imaginable. To say the match left destruction in its wake would be an understatement. At one point it looked like Devastation’s team was on the verge of victory until Animus abandons his companions while protecting his mask from being taken off. This causes Devastation to retreat, leaving Driver alone with a furious Matsuda, Sabertooth, and Asakura to do whatever they pleased until they secured the victory. After putting Driver behind her for good, Matsuda chased Devastation until she was able to trick him into putting his title on the line in a Fatal Four Way Match against her, Driver, and a returning Graham Baker in the semi-main event of Chapter 30. The match was even between the four competitors until Layne and Devastation joined forces to cuff Matsuda to the barricade. A surprise appearance from OWA Chairman Scott Oasis would prevent Layne from doing anything else, but Devastation would overcome Baker to retain his championship. Having enough of Devastation’s games, Matsuda goes after Allesandro until she forces him to pass out on live television with the Blasian Sleeper. Realizing he could no longer avoid the inevitable, Devastation puts his title on the line with Matsuda as the lone competitor.”




“This match isn’t a battle for Wrestleworld’s identity or even the American Dream Division itself. This is a war between two wrestlers who are on two entirely different points on the same timeline. If not for the Sapphire Briefcase Matsuda and Devastation wouldn’t be crossing paths. Matsuda would likely be walking into Arcadia with the belt around her waist and for all we know, she would’ve been Cynthia Rose’s choice. Allesandro Devastation will be going into Arcadia as an unrivaled champion, as someone who took their reign by force and aims to keep it going. Upon his return, he has yet to be pinned or submitted, with him falling only to Stephanie’s sleeper hold. This man grew in muscle and brutality during his time away, adopting a style different from his previous high flying-inspired move set. This doesn’t mean he can’t fly anymore for he has demonstrated that he can leap over the ropes with ease. If anything his change in style has shown that what Jason Long did to him had profound ramifications on how he performs in the ring. There’s no question that Stephanie has noticed this as well. His win over Stark and pin over Graham Baker have shown that he is capable of standing toe to toe with some of wrestling’s heavy hitters. His approach to the Outlaw style of wrestling is where he wastes no time breaking you down physically and mentally. He is no stranger to the spotlight as he’s competed in high-profile matches before. His opponents will need to think quickly on their feet and react properly unless they want to find themselves on the receiving end of a spear. Looking at Devastation’s two successful defenses, the man has shown he is just as capable as Matsuda of defending the belt against multiple opponents, though he’s done this through trickery rather than a skill like his opponent. There’s nothing wrong with Devastation’s approach, though. Unlike Matsuda, he’s not interested in exhausting his body in situations where he feels he doesn’t need to. He uses his power with tact, but this could also be him adjusting to his new style as he was always known as a versatile high-flyer previously. To the inexperienced, Devastation would be impossible to deal with. He’s too calculated in the use of his explosive moves, knowing when and where to hit his opponent. For Devastation to fall, it would have to take someone who’s willing to meet him on his terms and develop a way to defeat him down the stretch. If there’s someone up to that task, it could very well be Stephanie Matsuda.”




“Joshi Extreme Takeover, Matsuda’s “home promotion” that she now co-owns specializes in Queen’s Road Lucharesu. A lucha-influenced variation of strong style that takes elements of the King’s Road philosophy and applies it to women’s wrestling. The male variant of this approach is called Royal Road with Ark. Both styles are based around outlasting your opponent with superior stamina while performing gradually stronger moves to the point when reaching one’s limit you unleash a flurry of your strongest maneuvers until you overwhelm your opponent completely. Since she’s fighting an opponent twice her size, Matsuda must give her opponent any kind of leeway. She must attack him constantly and leave him guessing on what she’s going to do next. It wouldn’t take Devastation long to put Matsuda out of commission if she’s not careful, superior stamina or not. She’ll have to look for weaknesses from his previous injuries and exploit them to the fullest. Stephanie has grown to adopt the Outlaw style of pro wrestling and make it her own. This makes sense since around the time of Wrestleworld’s conception she was EWC X-Division Champion, taking on some of the bigger names of that promotion. Matsuda has also gone on a tear in 2020, winning a new title on average every 2-3 months. At her peak, Stephanie held six belts at the same time: the American Dream Championship, the OATH Intrepid Championship, the WWH Women’s World and International Championships, the OWA Tag Team Championship with Aria Jaxon, and the PWN Unified World’s Heavyweight Championship. Fun fact: Matsuda still possesses three of these titles, in addition to also having a run with the SSW Intercontinental and Tag Team Championships while chasing after Devastation in 2021. Yes, Stephanie Matsuda had a whole wrestling career that would take years for someone to obtain in a matter of two years. You throw in her world title reigns in JET and EAW respectively, along with a Specialist title win and you have someone who’s actually fighting above Devastation’s metaphorical weight. She defeated Claudia Michaels and April Song at the same time. She recently defeated War of the Worlds winner Cynthia Rose. Throughout her career, she’s had notable wins over some of the most prominent stars in this industry. And recently she defeated the EWC Undisputed Champion Ace King in a non-title match. We could very well see a second “Cloudy Year” in 2021. Some argue that her 2020 run is still ongoing as she still possesses three titles, one of which she’s held on for nearly a year. A five-time world champion still in her prime.”




“Allesando must realize how dangerous his opponent can be. Despite the bravado he’s displayed so far, there’s no question that he realizes that Stephanie Matsuda is an absolute threat to his reign. In many ways, this is why he has gone out of his way to try and force Matsuda to acknowledge him as champion. Someone as defiant as The Queen of Fighters would throw a wrench in his plans. Devastation has gone out of his way to tout about his supremacy, but Matsuda has been awfully quiet during this exchange. I’ve seen Matsuda like this and this is usually when she’s at her most dangerous. She’s a disciple of Miss Manami and Nina Sanada, two legendary joshi who let their actions speak for themselves. As good as Stephanie is on the mic she’s a better fighter than she is a talker. And when pushed into a corner, she’s capable of anything. That’s why upon reflection I have to side with Mrs. Matsuda on this one. We have twelve years worth of wrestling history to look back on to show why she thrives in situations such as this. From her legendary bouts with Aria Jaxon, feuds with Tarah Nova and April Song, and her rivalry with fellow JET co-owner Azumi Goto. The Queen of Fighters has experience fighting on the biggest night of the year. She unified the EAW Women’s World and the REVOLT Freeweight titles to become the one and only Unified Women’s World Champion. She is the third-longest reigning JET World Champion at 322 days. She remains the inaugural PWN Unified World’s Heavyweight Champion at 333 days, her new personal record for a world title reign. With a total of 16 titles throughout her career, Matsuda is no stranger to gold or accolades. When she first signed with Wrestleworld it was with the intention of creating a new legacy. She swept the Book 1 Wrestleworld Awards winning a total of five including Hero of the Year, American Dream Champion of the Year, and Match of the Year. She has a chance of repeating this if she’s successful in her campaign against Allesandro like she was against Claudia.”




“But even with this level of success, her win percentage is pretty spotty. Matsuda’s luck is usually not in her favor, especially if she lets her emotions get the best of her. If Stephanie has a defined weakness this would be it. If she wants to walk out with the American Dream Championship she cannot let Devastation’s taunting get to her. She has spent the majority of her career cultivating a style unique to her filled with versatility and high-risk audibles when the situation calls for it. Her style has inspired a generation of young women, most of whom in promotions such as JET, LAW, OWA’s Odyssey, and Electra brands. In fact, lucharesu has been adopted in many schools around the world. While this match will indeed be close, The Queen of Fighters will identify their similarities which will be key in becoming champion for a second time. Stephanie and Allesandro both love to pick apart their opponents. They enjoy the idea of dissecting their opponents by breaking them down physically and mentally. Once Matsuda and Devastation are in your head, it’s hard to get them out. This is probably why they can affect each other’s psyche so well. As Stephanie ups the ante in their match, Allesandro will have to meet her at every turn because if you can't keep up, Matsuda will not hesitate to finish you off, most likely with one of her signatures instead of a finisher. This is what happened to Layne in their match. A well-placed Blue Trigger did the trick. No Blasian Suplex or Cloud 9 was needed. If anything, that was a message. Stephanie has many ways she can end a match. Most of Allesandro’s major moves are high-impact power maneuvers. If he can’t touch Matsuda or if she reverses at the right moment, it could be the end of his reign. In many ways, you can see it as about speed versus strength. But even with all the power in the world, Matsuda’s tenacity will see her through. There are some things that just can’t be taught, and as this tale of romance we can take a step back and see how Devastation is framing this as a David versus Goliath situation but upon closer inspection, it might be Matsuda in the role of Goliath. Sometimes things are not what they seem and in The Ballad of the American Dream, that certainly rang true.” 




Monica turned off her laptop as she finished watching the analysis video. Social media was buzzing about who was going to win next week. Stephanie was a heavy favorite, but some began doubting her after it took her so long to respond to her opponent. Monica wasn’t surprised by Stephanie’s silence. She was taking this match incredibly seriously. She spent more days in the gym than anywhere else. After weeks of training in Brooklyn, they traveled to their home in Eden to prepare for the upcoming match. Stephanie was eerily calm the whole time during training. Right now in the wee hours of the morning, the love of her life was sleeping soundly in bed. Her wife had an intense season, filled with pain, both physically and mentally. There was a moment where she thought she was going to lose her, but Matsuda recovered while holding on to her sanity. If Allesandro couldn’t break her before, then there was no way he was going to be able to do it now. 

As Monica climbed into bed, Stephanie turned over in her sleep. There was a feeling of peace she felt while watching Steph sleep. Maybe her mind felt at ease. When her wife was in this bed away from the world, she knew she was safe. There were no Claudias or Allesandros trying to hurt her. There were no intense schedules or rehabilitation trips to have a profound effect on their marriage. At this moment, none of that mattered. What did matter was Steph getting a full night’s rest. This was the first time in a while where it felt Stephanie’s mind was at ease. She was no longer nervous about fighting Allesandro. She knew what she had to do and how to do it. At this point, there was no turning back for anybody. 

As Monica closed her eyes, she could feel Stephanie snuggling up next to her. She wanted to protect her from the world, or even ask her about retirement. But, she may not have to wait long for that. There were times where she overheard the conversation between Stephanie and her doctor. Steph never had a serious injury but it is said the longer one's body would go without injury, the worse things were going to be when the body did fall apart. Monica would rather think of other things at the moment, but she wasn’t stupid. She saw the number of painkillers Stephanie was taking. Maybe things were getting to be too much, but they just needed to hang on a bit longer. Stephanie wanted to win back the American Dream Championship and several weeks from now she would be fighting for the EWC Undisputed Championship. The Queen of Fighters was about to reach the apex of her career and Monica was going to be right next to her like she was during the majority of her wife’s big wins. At this point, it was ride or die and Monica wouldn’t have it any other way.

As she drifted off into sleep, she wondered if there was a world where things were different. Maybe when it was all said and done Stephanie could live a life of peace where it was safe. Until then, The Queen of Fighters would be risking it all. No matter how you slice it, that worried Monica. One or another she did find a way to finally drift off into sleep. Arcadia was just days away.

And whether Monica knew it or not, everything was going to change.