It's been a few days since I ruffled a few feathers, upset a few people, and continued to stand up for what I believe in when it comes to my wrestling preferences. I've had time to dwell on it, and after the unexpected volume of response I had for the article - The Positives and Negatives of NBWA: Passion For Glory - both good and bad, it's time to offer my services further.
Or should I say, continue to offer my services.
I've been doing show reviews for over a year and a half now, but as of late, I've gotten bored of doing them. I think that's partly because I wasn't finding fault with anything (not that I want to?!), and I was just, kind of, kissing arse every post that I was doing. This was unintentional. For the most, the British wrestling shows that I have been to have been great entertainment and have made me smile, surprised me (in a good way) and have left me wanting more.
A great example of this is the PROGRESS shows that I've attended in the last few months. That promotion hooked me before I even went to a show with the quality of their DVDs and the interaction with the audience. Being there live was just something out of this world that I urge everyone to find out for themselves!
This year has seen me want to get out there and see more and more different shows. This way I'll have a varied experience and knowledge of the wrestling that the UK has to offer. So far I have managed to see several new promotions including Triple X Wrestling (Coventry), Chaos (Bristol), PROGRESS (London), and have still made time to see some old favourites in Kamikaze Pro (Birmingham) and Pro EVW (Gloucestershire)... just to clear up that Pro EVW probably comes across as my favourite, but the truth is I will always have appreciation for the guys down there as they were the first to allow me to see behind the curtains. They, also, genuinely put on a very good, family orientated show that never seems to disappoint.
On Sunday, after I posted my article for all to see, I had a lot of negative response; mainly from fans and friends of NBWA. This was to be expected. What I didn't bargain for was the wonderful, positive responses that I received throughout the day. Several wrestlers and a few promoters contacted me to thank me for my honesty in my review. I greatly appreciated these comments, I can't say that enough. A couple also asked if I would attend their shows to give the same sort of critique. My answer to them requests is that I would love to.
And don't get me wrong, I realise that when it comes to the actual wrestling, I should watch my mouth. I HATE judging wrestlers on their wrestling ability (apart from when it is clear to see that they are dogsh*t!), but as a fan I know what I like to see - this is what I can bring to the table. To be fair, other writers and bloggers can do the same; I hope that they do. I pay my money to see a show; why shouldn't I voice my opinion if I didn't like something? Too many wrestling bloggers only find good in what they see - nobody seems to want to tell it how it is and, potentially, upset anyone. I think that they just want to stay in the good books so that there'll always be an invite for them. That's not going to get us any further forward now, is it?
In some small way, I hope I opened a few eyes on Sunday and made people realise that they shouldn't just accept the wrestling that they see as 'good' or 'great' just for the sake of it. Maybe some (probably the majority, actually) have no clue what is good wrestling and what is plain unacceptable wrestling. That really is that company's responsibility to ensure that they are putting on a respectable show so that they don't fool the fans that are going to part with their hard-earned money.
There's the background; now to the offer...
I will continue to travel as far as I can to spread the word of good (and bad) wrestling in this country. Any promotion that would like a critique of their show, I am more than willing to provide that. It's really impressed me that a couple of promoters have welcomed constructive criticism as they feel it will give them the information that they need to IMPROVE their product. Surely that's the attitude that should be adopted if British wrestling is to grow in the future?
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@jimmosangle
"I'm not here to make a mark; I'm here to leave a scar" - Corey Graves
Whilst I agree essentially with what you say the problem with any review is that it's always based on the reviewers own personal likes and dislikes and what they want a wrestling show to be. No promotion can be everything to everyone even though I think this is a trap a lot fall into and you end up with is either a rather odd ECW homage or a promoter thinking they are the next McMahon which is really one of major ilks about some current part of English wrestling. What is one fans meat is another one's poison. The only real part of wrestling that matters is the amount of money / bums on seats through the door that is the really the single benchmark which all Wrestling shows can be judged. Whilst I enjoy lots of shows the major problem I see is that English wrestling has lost it's identity so the real shows I would enjoy or really cater for my preferred taste can never exist now but it doesn't mean that any other type of show is poor or substandard. So it's really led me to consider a show on if I enjoyed it or not and would I go again rather than get involved in all the technical aspects and nit picking through moves or matches as really that's all wrestling is meant to be entertainment for a couple of hours that's not to be taken too seriously by anyone.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment! You make some VERY good points there, to which most I agree. I will say a few things though;
ReplyDeleteMoney/bums on seats really isn't my worry as a fan. That's the promotion's priority that I don't really need to know about while I'm watching the show.
I'm a very simple wrestling fan who wants two things; (1) the wrestlers to look like wrestlers (gear; go to the gym; LOOK like a bloody wrestler! - that's not to say they all have to be muscle-bound, huge guys) and (2) be able to wrestle; although I might not know, or to a point, care, how a match progresses and the various stages, bad wrestling is plain to see. This is unacceptable to me. It says to me that ANYONE could put a show on and that shouldn't be the case.
I agree with you that each review will be the reviewers personal preference and that's EXACTLY what I do. I think it's what we all do. This blog is my platform to express that preference and it's there to be taken or left.
I loved your point on some English promotions being an 'ECW homage or a promoter thinking they are the next McMahon'. I think this is somewhat true and a hole that we've found ourselves in in this country. The World of Sport era was a generation ago and, in my opinion, pretty much dead. Therefore the only influence we can directly take from, that the fans will relate to, IS the WWE, TNA and American wrestling in general. It's been the constant for the last thirty years.
One question to think about: If promotion A drew 150 in its early days and is now drawing 70 (at best), and promotion B drew 150 to start with and is now drawing 200 (with the chance of drawing more with a bigger venue), who has the brighter future? Who should take a hard look at themselves?
VERY obvious questions, in a way, but this is the reality about 'money/bums in seats' being the benchmark to judgement.
Really enjoyed your comment, thanks again!