Well, got back to my side of the Twin Cities about an hour or so ago. Had some time to digest the entire weekend's festivities. Some random thoughts spring to mind.
First off, a shoutout to the fellow members of the waiting-in-line-for-the-doors-to-open-wrestling roundtable, most of whom I don't actually know by name, but maybe they'll make themselves known if they read this shoutout and want to make themselves known. I sorta know them by observations about them; for example:
- Amsterdam the Amsterdamian (so named because he actually comes from Amsterdam in The Netherlands)
-The "chair people" (so named because they really are the only people I've ever seen in line at Shimmer who are smart enough to bring collapsable chairs for the wait), who I believe are led by The Old School NWA Professor (so named because he mentioned that the late 70's/early 80's era for promotions like Georgia Championship Wrestling and the like, were the style of wrestling he favored)
-Berwyn's Very Own Dave, who is the president of the Chicago Chapter of the Leva Bates Fan Club.
There are others whom I know I forgot to mention, for which I apologize. I should also give a shout out to the originator of the roundtable, Rick, who unfortunately has not been able to attend any tapings since September of 2010 due to health reasons. Just want you to know we're still thinking of you, Rick, and hope you can someday join us at the round table again.
One last shoutout before I go into random thoughts goes to Shimmer board member Spiffie and his friend in the White Sox cap whose name I didn't catch; who I sat by during both tapings this weekend. It was fun watching the show with you guys.
Okay, random thoughts:
-This is an obvious one to start, but I really do believe that every little thing that Leva Bates does is magic. She has a very fine grasp of her ring skills and psychology, as well as amazing charisma and really owns her loveable, fun loving, pop-culture-geek-who-incorporates-that-pop-culture-geekiness-into-everything-she-does-character. It is such a departure from the norm that is present in this post-original ECW/Attitude Era wrestling world where everyone just wants to be another certifiable bad@$$, and I find that very refreshing. She may never win a title in Shimmer, but, I don't think that really matters because I guarantee you that her popularity could very easily reach Melissa-esque levels someday, dare I say that it is pretty close already.
-While still speaking on Leva, I sincerely hope that Leva's entire mambo routine to Mercedes' theme song prior to their match on Vol. 42 either gets a split screen with Mercedes' entrance on the DVD or at least gets a bonus feature on the DVD akin to the "Alternate Entrance" bonus feature on Vol. 16 for the Homewreckers 3 vs. BlackChifHaze match. It was far too much fun to not have a focus on the DVD in some capacity. Pretty please, Dave?
-Nevaeh doesn't really click as a heel to me, mostly because I always saw her as the more likeable one of her tag team with Ashley Lane. Ashley Lane, on the other hand, has proven to be quite capable in the heel role on TV, so it seemed somewhat strange that she was not here in Shimmer as well. To say nothing of the fact that with the exception of the dynamic of the Portia/Serena feud, it seems to me that the "one who stayed" would likely garner more sympathy to the Shimmer Faithful as opposed to the one who sought "fortune and glory" (example: the pre-match promo for Chif vs. Daffney, Vol. 32).
-All of the Sparklers did really well this time around. I do hope that they eventually achieve perminant main show status down the line. Veda Scott, Buggy, Kimberly, and She Nay Nay were of particular note for me on the pre-show.
-I was also impressed by how Bonesaw went a little further than usual with her persona as part of the 8 woman tag on Vol. 44. In the past, she has seemed to just be going through the motions, which can be attributed to her experience level. It is amazing what just a little tweaking like her mock Christine Von Eerie hairdo and some rage filled roaring while on offense can do to help one grow as a character. Bravo.
-I'll catch hell for this, but, I really don't care. I just don't see the appeal of Kana. From what I saw, she doesn't do anything that veterans like Death Rey, Melissa, and Mercedes (or up and comers like Mia Yim) don't do already and it just seemed like an unnecessary expense for something we already have enough of. Don't get me wrong, no offense intended toward Kana, but, she didn't "wow" me at all. Considering as much hype as she was receiving here on the board, I was expecting a clone of Akira Hokuto, whom I was always very impressed with. I didn't get that, even with the top calibre of talent she faced.
-I was really amazed that the match that I expected to have a great deal of comedic shennanigans in it (Cruise/Libra/She Nay Nay/Bonesaw vs. RegenX/Von Eerie/Chif), have little to none and take a back seat in that category to one whom we haven't seen much humor from in quite a long time(Courtney Rush vs. Death Rey). I rather like the fact that Dave was willing to allow the degree of silliness that is usually reserved for the never ending Sparkle feud between Red Man and Green Man to take place on the main show. A dash of Chikara/Totally Tool Wrestling-esque absurdity every so often is good for the soul, and it added a different brand of "unforgettable-ness" to the brand we always get out of Death Rey.
-Saraya Knight genuinely frightens me beyond the capacity for rational thought.
I think I've rambled enough for now.
