Backbone

This is pretty damn exciting for a sport (submission wrestling) that many pro wrestling fans call boring. Aron Stokes, 6', 178#, is called in to break in the new recruit Dave Markus, 5'9", 169#, in Movimus's latest release. It's a battle between wrestlers built like swimmers, with a slight height and weight advantage going to Stokes, not to mention a couple of impressive Movimus matches already under his belt. Though shorter and lighter, Markus is built more powerfully ... I mean like a fucking Lamborghini. 

Dave and Aron almost immediately hit the mat and lock themselves together in the tightest knot imaginable. Dave has Aron securely by the head, but Aron is giving up nothing. Getting nowhere, Dave swiftly repositions, but Aron won't budge. Their bodies together form a single solid fist, so evenly matched that they seem to hit a standstill within seconds, though neither is what you could possibly call "standing still." The moves are quick and sometimes audacious, though severely constrained by the opponent's strength and near-psychic anticipation of each next move. The two are amazingly in sync. I would have to double-check to be sure, but I'm fairly certain Movimus has never presented us with two competitors so evenly paired.

All this makes for good drama: two strong antagonists with their wits about them for 100 percent of the match, each one intent on doing whatever it takes to gain the advantage. It takes Markus about six exacting minutes to choke a submission out of Stokes, who then takes just a minute more to return the favor. Dave's shadow can't be more in step with him than Aron is (and vice versa). More than once Stokes pulls out a surprise move that reverses the battle's trajectory. Then Markus responds with a spin of his own. The struggle has got to be wearing these men down, but the intensity and heat never ebb but rather build and build almost impossibly to the end. 

The end? There's almost definitely got to be a rematch for these two. Please, Movimus, please! Look at Aron's face all lit up as he gives Dave a sportsmanlike hug after the last submission: This is a wrestler who knows he's been in the fight of his life. Now look at Dave's face: "Grim determination" is the only phrase that fits.