FIVE STARS AT THE TOKYO DOME (Showcase ep13 Feedback)
May 27, 2020 9:10:52 GMT -5
Blair Buchannan-Stylez likes this
Post by Sahara on May 27, 2020 9:10:52 GMT -5
FIVE STARS AT THE TOKYO DOME
Showcase Episode 13 Feedback
Warning/Disclaimer: Good or bad. Right or wrong. Agree? Disagree? Doesn’t matter. These are my opinions on Showcase. These observations are not meant to hurt anyone's feelings. I realize people put in a lot of work to make shows like this happen, from roleplays and segments to writing matches, but not every segment or match can be a 5 star classic in the Tokyo Dome, and that’s okay ... I’m very much of the mindset that we can always get better, and that includes me.
If you cannot accept opinions that you may not agree with, do not read this feedback!
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Still with me?! Okay then, let’s get started!
Show Opening:
Pros: Overall, I love the opening video montage. It’s easy to visualize, which is key. I also like the song choice, which adds to the ambiance and the frenetic pace when showing various wrestlers doing various ‘wrestler’ things throughout the opening video package. This package helps set the tone of what the OPW is all about.
Cons: Some of the unnecessary announcer banter and spastic formatting stepped slightly over the line of edgy and into what I’d call the juvenile zone. This show is being broadcast on HBO, so I expect a certain “HBO-like consistency and quality” to the programming, all of which lends to the suspension of disbelief. We’re talking about the channel that brought us Deadwood, The Wire, Game of Thrones … Real Time with Bill Mahar (sorry, couldn’t resist) and now, OPW. The random and seemingly odd spelling of things harkens me back to the 1990’s, “leet speak, or dare I say L33tSp33kz” and it comes across as oddly misplaced for a wrestling program taking place in 2020 and beyond, especially one that’s being broadcast on HBO.
I get the edgy hardcore image the OPW is trying to portray here, and in most circumstances it works really well, but sometimes -- wait for it -- less is more. Swearing to make a point can highlight that point and add to the moment … but swearing for the sake of swearing is overly gratuitous and detracts from other moments where it would be more impactful.
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Okay, now that Mr. Judgy Judgemental got that out of the way, how about we get on with it?!
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Havok vs Tuck:
Pros: Solid in-ring action and the announcers were used perfectly to highlight the action and put it over. Taj reminding the audience what the stakes were for this match was a minor but wonderful touch. Voodoo was another particular stand out here, putting over her in-ring experience while commenting on the action, which lends some credibility to what she’s saying. While there was a clear winner in the match, neither wrestler looked bad in the process which is a very good thing.
I also liked the use of the classic 3 arm drop count for the “sleeper” here, versus the more modern method wrestling uses where the match just suddenly ends. I get that it's more realistic how they do it now, but it doesn’t allow for that possible “comeback” moment.
Well written.
Cons: None.
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Roger Wright segment (w/Tuck and Havok):
Pros: Roger comes out and puts over the Prestige Division in a big way. This was well done to separate this division from others, without making the others look bad in the process. It makes the Prestige title feel important.
This went on to put Havok over by presenting him as the new champion due to Tuck’s (much deserved) termination. This leads to a confrontation between Tuck and Roger Wright, which doesn’t end well for Tuck -- so far anyway -- who did promise the return of Jonny later in the night. Good story continuity, as I was personally wondering if anything Tuck has been doing would ever come back to haunt him or not.
Enjoyed Havoks rather hilarious “future endeavors” remark here.
We have a new Prestige champion!
Cons: None, so far. But that depends on what’s to follow. If Tuck somehow returns in relatively short order, it will take a lot of creative and convincing storytelling to somehow justify it. If the followthrough is good, however, this won’t turn into a con.
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Aleister Davison vs Demon X:
Pros: Relatively short but effective debut match. Personally, I don’t think weekly matches should be overly long unless there is a storyline reason for it. Save the long match for the PPV blow off, so this was well done and got the point across in short order.
Nice little touch to have the announcers put over the finishing move.
Cons: None.
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Sahara on camera debut/segment:
Pros: Sahara.
Cons: Reality TV Stars.
On a more serious note, I try to not comment on my own segments, or segments I’m involved with, but I would like to thank
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Quick random comment -- I like the rollout of shows here in OPW, versus the entire card dropping all at once. Gives incentive to come back and check for more. Almost has a television style feel to it, where you have to sit through commercials which can help build anticipation for the upcoming match/segment. I just hope it takes place over a few days in total on a normal week, giving everyone ample time to read and digest the show as well as begin work on the next RP cycle without feeling rushed.
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Abdul Bin Hassan vs Kyle Mehr vs Jaxson Riley
Pros: Loved the use of the announcers to recap what’s been going on for new viewers (readers), so they can understand why this match is happening. Continuity like this always gets bonus points from me. Lot’s of action. All three looked great. The in-ring action was much cleaner toward the end of the match and easier to follow. Hassan with the hard fought win, and looked REALLY good in the process.
Cons: Triple threat mass confusion. While I list this as a con, I also understand that triple threat matches can be very hard to write in a way that prevents them from coming across as total clusterfucks at times.
Some heel/face confusion going on with the finish. Is Hassan supposed to be the heel? If so, why did the fans pop for his finisher only to have the announcers immediately explain how the fans were upset and didn’t care for the outcome? Yes, I realize some people may feel this is a minor nitpick, but minor details can make a big difference.
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Tommy Kain, Madisin Ivy, LA Stylez segment:
Pros: I like the oversized Winnebago called the WANNABANG, complete with the airbrushed absurdity. Usually we see tour buses, limos, oversized Humvees or the standard wrestling fare -- so extra points for some original spin on an old idea here. A curse filled rant seems to be ongoing. In this specific instance, I find the cursing/swearing to be okay and fitting for the situation, because this is -- up to this point anyway -- a rant in progress that happens to be caught on camera, which is quite different from, “We know we’re on camera but we’re gonna drop endless F-bombs … simply because it’s HBO and we can.”
Take note folks, Kain, who was cussing, ranting and raving just moments ago is suddenly *on camera* almost without dropping a single curse word from that point forward. This is proper on camera wrestling etiquette. If cussing adds some bang to what’s being said, by all means, use it … if it’s just there for the sake of being “edgy”, think twice.
Anyway, this segment appears to plant the seeds to the question, is Kain the newest member of the Syndicate and also gives us some history of his past involvement in the Defiance.
Enter LA Johnny Stylez … and dude is looking like a star.
Shoutout for resurrecting Zima, even though it tastes like shit.
Well done.
Cons: None.
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Al Envy vs Christian Rivers:
Pros: Enjoyable entrances. Again, I love the use of the announcers to recap past and possible future events involving both Envy and Rivers here.
Great opening moment. This match was written with a nice old school quality, where it wasn’t endless flips, ducks, and dives, and nearfalls. Uh oh, Elias is here to interfere!
Great to see Envy overcome it and have the announcers recap the fact Elias cost him the Southern Championship.
Envy looked like an absolute star here.
Cons: None.
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Carter Alpha vs Jason Ryan:
Pros: Enjoyed Mason Moore’s innuendo filled momentum line here. Bell rings and the match starts at 100mph and doesn’t appear to let up until the outside spot. Quick match, gets the job done.
Both put on a decent show. Can’t complain.
Cons: None.
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Sahara vs Pequeno Dinosaurio:
Pros: Sahara.
Cons: Pequeno Dinosaurio, his agility and his speed.
Okay, okay, I’m kidding. Rather than commenting too much on this match since it involved my character, I wanted to make a quick comment on the Pequeno Dinosaurio storyline that’s evolving before our eyes. I really like the fact that he/she brought in a character that isn’t a 7’2” goliath monster with 5,000 title reigns to his name, but is telling a story of a young buck who is just starting out and looking to live up to his father's name. If you haven’t been following this storyline, you should be.
Also, the *story* of the match if you followed the RP cycle was written wonderfully.
...as promised in both my roleplay and segment, it’s not winning or losing that matters, it’s how you win or lose … and also, Sahara is sooooo pretty! I think Brandy would agree!
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Tommy Kain vs Roger Wright
Pros: Nice opening slap spot sets the tone. Almost instantly breaks down into an all out brawl. They do eventually get it under control for the match to get underway. Nice way to build up some animosity and heat.
At one point here I liked how Pierre yelled from outside the ring to let Kain know of his ring positioning to break up the Guillotine Choke. Little details like this go a long way in helping with the visuals.
Nice nearfalls and action.
Glad this ended in a disqualification after all those shenanigans. Lot’s of heat, but very chaotic considering how many people got involved.
I did like the added little touch of Blair having to take off her earrings prior to attempting to get into the action. Again, little details like this are amazing.
This looks to set up or continue a lot of interesting feuds.
Cons: Took me like five minutes to figure out this was Kain vs Wright. Okay, maybe not five minutes, but it took longer than necessary. The announcers never mentioned who was fighting who, but that we were looking forward to it. LOOKING FORWARD TO WHAT, TAJ?! I’m all for announcer banter, especially when it’s funny, and they did play off one another quite well here (they usually do), but they have to remember to describe what it is we’re about to be seeing.
Potential Pros/Cons: This is a rarely used section that falls along the “wait and see” lines, where what we saw could become a pro or become a con depending on what happens down the line.
There were a few over the top spots here, and they’ll only work if sold properly. What do I mean? I hope those hammer shots are sold as potentially serious injuries or at least explained away in some fashion or we may as well have Nerf sponsor the OPW with their new Nerf Hammer Toy for children ages 3+.
Spots like this can work very well if they’re followed up on. If they’re ignored, it shows a lack of continuity and basically makes what could have been a major moment a throwaway spot, and it also diminishes all other similar spots.
Hope there is follow up on an OPW official/referee openly accepting a bribe in the middle of a sanctioned match, otherwise why wouldn’t you just have Johnny do this every match and get away with whatever he wants? Again, depending on the follow up, this could be a great moment, or it could become a missed opportunity.
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Insurgence vs Apocalypse
Pros: I understand this was a complete no-show/took my ball and went home/lost my smile match on one side of the equation, which sucks for everyone else involved.
It was what it was.
I’ll give this bonus points for some off the wall creativity in light of the complete no show.
Cons: Not really sure this is a “con”, but I have absolutely no idea what I just fucking watched.
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Xavier Wolf vs Allison Riggs Preston
Pros: Love the idea of the pre-taped footage being used for an easy/cunning win on the part of Wolf. Good storytelling. This is my kind of “wrestling”. Not a punch thrown, yet color me entertained.
Cons: None.
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LA Johnny Stylez/Roger Wright Segment
Pros: Harkening back to earlier -- I’m glad to see there was followup to those hammer shots. As I tend to write my feedback in real time, no, I won’t be going back and correcting what I had written in light of this segment as my thoughts on continuity still remain. I’m just glad to see the followup happened!
Love the continuity and the storytelling here.
Sets up future events in an organic/unforced fashion.
Excellent segment.
Not-Really-Cons: These are not cons, but observations. Sometimes Johnny’s style of writing comes across like he’s impersonating Al Pacino, where he goes from talking to RANDOMLY YELLING A FEW WORDS and back to talking and then YELLING again. Whooo-haaa! This isn’t a complaint or a bad thing, either. I’m just not sure if this is by design or not, which is why I bring it up. In my mind, I’m imagining his character speaking, then randomly yelling, then speaking again. Could be an interesting unhinged type of character quirk to go along with his overall “I’m a star and I know it” demeanor.
This next critique sets off my writer's OCD, so I’m just gonna go ahead and say it. When describing a scene, it’s okay to use stylized mispellings as that’s a character style/branding choice, but when a wrestler is speaking, it makes no sense to spell “PHUCKIN” when the audience would hear “FUCKIN”. Anything in “quotes” is what people are hearing, not what they’re seeing. I don’t know why, but this minor nitpick bothers me.
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The Enforcer vs Anicka Swan
Pros: Nice setup and opening banter by the announcing team here. Good action. One standout moment here is how Taj mentions that Anicka knows she can’t let the match go too long or Enforcer would be the beneficiary.
Nice moonsault into the double stomp. Great nearfall.
I have to assume the referee was being distracted here when the chairshot lands, but it wasn’t entirely clear.
Christian Rivers!
Nearfall!
Strong finish to that match, and both competitors looked great throughout.
Cons: None.
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LA Johnny Stylez/
Pros: Great storytelling continuity throughout the show, and this is another example of it. Really love how these two play off each other.
Cons: None.
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Not the King ‘of the Sahara’ Quari vs Apathy
Pros: Interesting match design, intertwining some storyline here. For the most part I liked it, good setup, and it involves a few different names.
Cons: Remains to be seen, but there may have been too much going on here.
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Scotty Adams vs ParaDox vs Carter Alpha vs V.I.O.L.E.N.C.E (...and the last time I type a . between each letter of that! JFC.) … and many more!
Pros: The opening announcer banter was really well done for the most part, some of it dragged a bit, but it effectively put over the competitors and the Pureblood title. I see we’re going all out here with the thumbtacks.
Okay, nice death valley driver into the tacks. I guess if they’re there, ya may as well put them to some good use!
Pulling out all the stops here, including a bottle over the head.
LOL King Quark eliminated. Too bad, so sad. He did put on a good show, though.
Lots of interference at the end here...
Overall, I have to say this was a great match, well written for the most part, with excellent use of the delayed entrances. This sets up a LOT of stuff … HOWEVER … I’ll get to however below, but first I want to say I enjoyed the show long story rollout, and for the most part it was very effective.
That being said...
Cons: As with most Rumble type matches, they tend to go on a bit long by virtue of trying to get everyone involved, and this can cause match fatigue. At times there was a little bit too much going on here.
Overall, this show came across as what I’d consider a seismic shifting series of events for the Syndicate. It felt like a very nWo sort of takeover that I felt would be more suited to a PPV finish than a regular show. I harp on this a lot, and I don’t mean to be overly critical, but Johnny is treading on dangerous ground of becoming overexposed. He was in almost every other segment throughout the show, which mostly worked here, but sometimes less can be more. I hope this isn’t a recurring theme where one or two people are plastered all over a show, as it can become stifling to others.
That being said, I also understand that while a roster is being built out this is done because those in charge can get things moving in the proper direction and at a relatively high level. To that end, this show was very effective.
I have to say, despite this show having problems due to real-life circumstances, you all did one hell of a job!
All in all, while it wasn’t without a few minor problems and nitpicks, this is what I like to call…
FIVE STARS AT THE TOKYO DOME … BRRRRROOOOOOOTHEERRRRRR!