The Big Picture
- Big Little Brawlers is a reality series about the Micro Wrestling Federation, showcasing the challenges and dreams of little people wrestlers.
- The show follows a cast of dedicated and courageous performers who are full-time wrestlers and perform in packed venues.
- Viewers will get to know the stars of the show, like married couple Pinky Shortcake and Syko, and witness their struggles and triumphs.
Big Little Brawlers premiered on Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 10 P. M. ET on Discovery Channel. The six-part reality series follows five larger-than-life individuals representing the Micro Wrestling Federation. There will be body slams, bear hugs, and headlocks, along with blood, sweat and tears. The challenges of being small will also not go unnoticed, both in the ring and at home. This is a cast of dedicated and courageous performers with huge personalities that will bring a deeper understanding of the world they live in. Big Little Brawlers will reflect the passion of the fans and the energy of the wrestlers, as they perform in packed venues filled with excitement. As full-time wrestlers, they are committed to live shows several days a week, all year round. However, the series will look beyond their ring performances, and focus on their hopes and dreams of getting the most out of life. The stars of the show will have to overcome ego, injury, and the limitations imposed by others.
Big Little Brawlers is filmed around Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, home to the Micro Wrestling Federation and is described as “one of the most successful little people wrestling leagues in the world.” The Micro Wrestlers perform four nights a week at their 300-seated Microtorium. The under-5-foot-tall cast includes the biggest names in the game. You will get to know married couple Pinky Shortcake and Syko, who wrestle against each other in the ring at night, and together raise their young daughter at home during the day. There’s Ivar the Micro, the announcer/hype man who hopes to become a wrestler himself. Lil’ Show is the veteran wrestler still aiming to support his wife and children. Hot Rod is the up-and-coming wrestler looking to prove himself among the veterans. The trailer for Big Little Brawlers was released on the Micro Wrestling Federation'sYouTube channel and offers further insight from the cast who risk love and limbs to achieve their goals.
Big Little Brawlers
Reality-TV
Sports
A group of wrestlers pursue their dreams of success in a prominent wrestling league. They face challenges in the ring yet persist. Out of the ring, the wrestlers also strive to be the best for their families.
- Release Date
- January 9, 2024
- Creator
- Jack Darrell
- Cast
- Jack Darrell , Disco Dom , Ivar the Micro , Lil' Show
- Main Genre
- Reality-TV
- Seasons
- 1
'Big Little Brawlers' Is an Off the Top Rope Reality Show
“Alongside spectacular feats of athleticism, this Discovery series broadens the way we reveal compelling stories of remarkable people overcoming huge odds,” said Howard Lee, President of Discovery Networks and TLC in a press release. Big Little Brawlers offers an untold and compelling portrayal of little people in the wrestling industry. Providing insight into their battles and aspirations as they maneuver their way through the Micro Wrestling Federation. Throughout the episodes, the cast will grapple with their roles as wrestlers in the spotlight, before heading back home to family life.
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Syko And Pinky are Partners In and Out of the Ring
Derec Pemberton, who goes under the stage name Syko, is married to fellow cast member and micro wrestler Ashley “Pinky Shortcake” Waterhouse. Viewers will see them competing together inside the ring and juggling the responsibilities of raising their daughter. Speaking to The DePaulia, Syko says how thankful he is to have his wife by his side. “I’m really lucky to have my wife wrestling because not many wrestlers have their wives on the road with them, so they’re always wanting to go back home,” Syko said. “But my girl is already here, so I got everything I need."
Syko, was a high school wrestler in Kansas City, Kansas, and ran his own micro wrestling company 13 years ago before it was shut down by a sports commission. He later wrestled with Extreme Midget Wrestling, where he performed for six years before moving to the Micro Wrestling Federation. Syko explains how wrestling has given him the opportunities to meet and socialize with little people like him. “When I was growing up, I didn’t have any other [dwarfs] around me,” Syko said. “And so I was always struggling in athletic areas. Now that I’m around other dwarfs that are doing the same stuff I’m doing, for the first time in my life I feel like I can compete and be athletic.”
Pinky Shortcake, being the only woman in the Micro Wrestling Federation, has always been wrestling guys. In most cases, husband Syko is her opponent. Pinky is no pushover though, the 31-year-old has been wrestling all of her adulthood. Originally from Maine, her father and uncle, AKA, Queasy and Sleazy, were two of the three kings of the former World Wrestling Federation. Speaking to The Sun, she explains “My character is Pinky Shortcake: she's a diva with long nails, the sexiest dwarf in the game, and always gets what she wants. When I come out into the ring and feel the crowd going wild, I just transform into her. Being the only woman in the show, the crowd always has my back," she said. I've always wrestled guys - my signature move is something I call the 'fader bomb', where I jump backwards to land on my opponent. I also like to hit my opponents with anything I can find, from belts to trays and chairs. Wrestling can be tough: I've been injured a lot - I've broken my scapula and my ribs."
Pinky Shortcake along with her husband Syko are both steeped in the world of wrestling, and it will be fascinating to see them in the series as wrestlers, opponents, a married couple, and parents to their 2-year-old daughter.
Ivar the Micro Dreams of Becoming a Wrestler
The cast of Big Little Brawlers performs in over 200 shows per year in the Micro Wrestling Federation, traveling across the United States in various-sized venues. Similar to WWE,Micro Wrestling Federation also has its own glitz and glamour with extravagant events, including championship matches and Royale Rumbles. Micro Wrestling also comes with an opening rock show to get the crowds fired up. This is arranged by Big Little Brawlers cast member Ivar the Micro, who is also the voice of Micro Wrestling. Ivar dreams of going from hype man to wrestler despite significant physical risk. The popular veteran had been in a wheelchair all his life on account of a brittle bone disease, making him break over 100 bones.
Before being employed by the Federation, Ivar unsuccessfully attempted to get his band, Three and a Half Men, to perform at a Micro Wrestling show. In an interview with DePaulia, Ivar, who originates from St Louis, Missouri explained moving to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, where Micro Wrestling’s headquarters is located, was the right decision. “In my life, I’ve never met anybody my height, so it was kind of cool, but it was scary because you had to take a big opportunity and a big change to leave your family," he said. To be able to put on these spectacular shows, Ivar worked out to get his body in shape. During those early days of his employment with Micro Wrestling, he dropped twenty pounds and gained the ability to walk. At the end of his performance in Aurora, he shouted to the crowd, “One day this bone disease will bring me back down, but until then I will rock out for you every f___ night.”
The Micro Wrestling Federation is a full-scale, WWE-type event supported by an entire cast under five feet tall. Founded in 2000, the MWF is the longest-running organization within the little-person wrestling industry. No other company has performed in more events since its inception, according to their website. They might be called little people, but they are also known as the most incredible athletes. The micro superstars have proven time and time again that even if born with a disadvantage in height, dreams can still come true with perseverance and hard work. The Micro superstars are living their dreams as professional wrestlers.
Big Little Brawlers is available to stream on the Discovery Channel.
