Before I get too into the madness here (ooh, yeah! dig it!), I need to take a brief moment to thank the lone person who took it upon themselves to make me a new logo. Last week I asked my readers to whip me up something nicer, fancier or at least more personal than what I’m rocking right now, and one person did it. So, thank you! You got my likeness pretty close! I appreciate putting my name over somebody else’s name. And the bug eyes. All of it, actually. Even got my hair right, Jesus.
That out of the way, I would like to use this space to announce my SUPER AWESOME, TOTALLY EASY-TO-SIGN-UP-FOR WRESTLEMANIA XXX CONTEST! Yes, this is an AAW-focused column, but I am going to WrestleMania XXX and this is probably going to be the last one I ever attend, so I am making the very most of it. So stay tuned, as next week I will tell you how to enter and what you’ll be in the running for. Most likely an official event program, maybe a T-shirt, a playing card, an autograph, a WrestleMania-emblazoned toy schooner, whatever. It’s going to be great and it’s going to be next week. (That’s called building interest!)
Anyway, that’s all I have to say before I get into Low Ki levels of seriousness. OK, straight faces on.
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Not going to lie: I had another 2,000-word article ready to go, sitting in the editing stage in WordPress, but news just broke about two key matches for this Friday night, forcing me to delete the entirety of what I spent my morning (and afternoon) writing in exchange for, well, I’ll let you know when I’m done writing it. This third version of Squared Circular Logic was going to dissect the new fad of indy wrestling companies not announcing matches prior to their biggest shows — which AAW was guilty of before, like, an hour or two or five ago. That’s off the table now, obviously, though I’m sure I’ll detail it enough to feel OK with wasting two hours of my morning on something that no longer exists. Instead, I’m just going to run down “EPIC: The 10-Year Anniversary Event,” which, three days away, has five matches signed. Compared to WrestleMania, which is 19 days away, and also has five. Just saying.
As of this afternoon, Matchmaker Tony Rican signed Silas Young vs. Alex Shelley and Colt Cabana and a mystery partner vs. Shane Hollister and a mystery partner. Signing five matches actually puts AAW ahead of the pack in this regard, as Ring of Honor has one match signed for its Supercard of Honor VIII, while EVOLVE, Dragon Gate, SHIMMER and others have not one. I’m not going to erase or amend this again, so if they announce matches while I’m typing this, then they can bite me. But the point here is, what’s going on? What is with this obnoxious, counterproductive trend of not announcing matches, and why are indy wrestling companies piggybacking off one another when it comes to going through with it? Logically, announcing as complete a card as you can speaks to every single fan with access to your product. In AAW’s case, you can’t just say “The Berwyn crowd knows what to expect” as your excuse for not announcing a main event sooner, because that says you’re only looking to please the Berwyn fans. The Berwyn fans come first insomuch that you have to keep them loud and consistently interested, but the marketing efforts I speak of aren’t for them; they’re for everybody else. Announcing a full card gets people talking online, on forums, on Reddit, on social media, and that leads to more total buys. That’s simple math. Then again, I failed math, several times, so don’t take my word for it.
That was the gist of my original article, but seeing as AAW actually has half its card fleshed out, I figured I would make this less about nagging and more about objective analysis, though objectivity in journalism is dead, so let’s call this something else. Let’s begin with the recently announced contest between the returning Alex Shelley and AAW mainstay Silas Young. Personally speaking, this is not a match I want to see on this show. I don’t doubt it will be a good bout, but Shelley is the show’s one big guest star and he’s working with Young, who is the go-to opponent for bring-in competition, and by now, I am sick of it. I just want to see more variety. And, honestly, I don’t understand why anytime AAW brings in somebody, they have to go through Silas Young. I get that he’s the old dog, but come on. No matter who it is, be it Eddie Edwards last September, or Bryan Danielson four years prior to that, they all faced Young, and at this point, the company has much better, much more interesting options for Shelley’s opponent. Don’t get me wrong, I get the reason for it, I just would rather see something else.
The tag titles are on the line as #MenOfTheYear (Ethan Page and Michael Elgin) defend against The Irish Airborne/Ohio is 4 Killers/Dave and Jake Crist, who haven’t competed in AAW since November. That little vacation didn’t help build this match, but I have no doubts about it, as a tight face/heel dynamic will be in play throughout, and the crowd should be on the edge of its seat the entire time. I am concerned that the upcoming show falls on a Friday — might want to head to the Costco to buy some Red Bull in bulk before then — but these two teams are so solid that I can’t see this one not satisfying.
Marek Brave takes on Knight Wagner in a match I have no ideas on or opinions about, but I can, and will, say that it is happening. And, you know what? I’m glad it is, because these two deserve their own showcase, but to an outsider who doesn’t follow this company, why would you even announce it? What does a fan from California ordering the DVD care about a match between these two? Now, that isn’t the fault of the workers involved. It’s the company’s responsibility to get us to care about these wrestlers, and fact is, many still don’t. I barely do and I know who they are, and I like them! The entire purpose of pairing Knight with Truth Martini was to get people interested in Wagner, but what good is that when Truth rarely, if ever, shows up? Just.. make me care about these guys. All of them. That is your job.
Another match that doesn’t really get my blood flowing, but not for lack of the participants’ own trying, is Seleziya Sparx vs. Heidi Lovelace. I like women’s matches and I love variety on my wrestling show, so on the surface, this is great! But then, when I go beyond the initial “yes man” approach of lapping up everything around me with a smile on my face, I realize I’ve never seen Sparx wrestle, and that this match makes zero sense to me, contextually. I can look her up on YouTube or buy one of her matches, but is that really my responsibility as a fan? Don’t know. For a company so dedicated to story development and characters and having things play out and make sense, this match confuses me. Again, maybe if I had an idea of who Sparx is, where she’s from, what she’s about, what she does — any of that — I would look on this more favorably. But I’m saying right here and now, assuming your fans know everything (or nothing) is dangerous. I understand there is merit in acid testing a bring-in in front of a live crowd the first time, but that also leads to embarrassing moments, like that one night I had to hear how Chuck Taylor was “gay” for 20 minutes straight. All because those fans were more ignorant than they needed to be. I don’t know, that’s a personal nitpick, so don’t let it bother you too much.
One match that slipped under my radar while writing this article was Colt Cabana and a mystery partner vs. Shane Hollister and a mystery partner. I’m not going to lie and tell you this is keeping my proverbial cup warm. The only thing that interests me about this match is the uncertainty surrounding the mystery partners. I know, I know, with CM Punk’s current, um, situation, and the precedent having already been set years ago, there will be people thinking Punk is penciled in for a match Friday night. I’m not sure that’s what AAW wants its fans to think, but that is really the only thing that could make this match work for me. Beyond a little bit of intrigue, there’s no title on the line, there’s no consequences if either Hollister or Cabana loses, there’s no heat. There is nothing there except comedy bits we’ve all seen a dozen times before, and it’s just filling time before Shane’s title match the next week. What I see before me is one more show in which Hollister is shortchanged and his title devalued. Nothing screams “we care about this wrestler” quite as much as a non-title filler match on what should be the most important show in company history.
I’m not terribly excited for “EPIC.” I even feel that moniker is a misnomer, but I am going to wait till the event is over before notarizing that claim. Other shows have felt bigger, more special, have had more popular names attached. Shelley’s great and all, but the January show had both Ricochet and Uhaa Nation. Together. Maybe I’m just really picky, but am I alone in believing this does not feel like an important show? Having two shows in nine days helps nobody, which is why AAW has done it for the third time in the past eight months. The last time they did it, however, it served the purpose of continuing the tag tournament. And one of the shows they did last July/August 2013 was a charity show featuring local talent and no big bring-ins, so that worked. But in attempting to run two shows in consecutive weeks, with both of those shows being standard and devoid of a gimmick, the product is being hindered considerably.
Will I be there on Friday? As sure as I love asking and answering my own questions. I just don’t have that same buzz about me going into it, and I guess that’s difficult to properly explain. It’s a sensory sort of thing. You just have to feel it. For instance, I recall not being able to sleep the night before Money in the Bank 2011, a pay-per-view that was so built from top to bottom that my mind kept me awake with racing thought after racing thought. I couldn’t silence the voices in my head. They didn’t council me, but they understood. More recent, more local, AAW’s November show, Windy City Classic IX. I was blown away by how high-energy it was from top to bottom, but a lot of my own energy was because I knew Steen was going to be there, and I knew he was going to face Hollister. Knowing that and only that increased my interest so high that I began watching more of both men’s work just to prime myself for what I was about to see. I don’t know how other wrestling fans get hyped for shows, but that is what I personally do and it keeps my head hummin’ through all the bad times. Like, right now, whenever my head’s in the dumper and I need a pick me up, I just look forward to WrestleMania. The thought of seeing Bryan win. My dude winning it all. I get to see that.
So, what I’m saying, is put that idea not only in my head, but the heads of everyone, everywhere. Restore the imagination, if you will. With what AAW has to work with, the matches are just sitting there. There’s no story there to an outsider, or even to an insider, really. Drawing up some articles on the official AAW website, or putting together some videos on a feud or a match, just doing something to provide further context, that would be appreciated and would flesh out the company as a whole. How many other companies give you that much narrative with what you’re about to see but maybe Ring of Honor? (Those articles previewing feuds and big-time matches are the very best. It gives the matches weight.) What sets AAW apart from the rest is its shows are full of matches that are good, yes, but also have a narrative impact. When viewed, I don’t know, a year from now, the Silas/Kingston beef will be looked at far more favorably. It will be seen as a “slow burn” feud with, I’m hoping, a sizable payoff. Look at it from that lens.
The question I’m closing with, then, is how will this show be viewed in a year or two? Will fans see Silas vs. Shelley as a dream match, at least by AAW’s standards, or will it just be a match that happened to happen on the 10th Anniversary Show? Think about that for me. And think about WrestleMania contest! Next week! See you there and squared… circular logic.
Bazinga!