Read this full blog post at the author's site
Hello and welcome to the final part of my look at the first half of 2008! Today, I’m looking at one of the feds that everybody seems to talk about and I never used to read, New Frontier Wrestling.
And boy did I miss out.
Now, I’ll admit – I used to be put-off by some of what I read in NFW. I REALLY disliked a lot of the Troy Windham stuff I read a couple years back, like the teabagging of Joey Melton. I didn’t think it had any place on a wrestling card. But since I started reading the cards more regularly, there’s something I’ve noticed.
EVERYONE on the card has something to do!
It’s something that’s very rare in this hobby. Normally, you’ll only find one or two feuds of any merit, only a couple of interesting storylines, and those very often take up waaaay too much of a card. In NFW at the moment, though, you’ve so many storylines I can think of without looking back at the cards again – you’ve got Legion/Luci4 against James Varga, the HWC and Suicide Kings, Joe the Plumber against everybody, Lord Coyner Pollard’s diplomatic immunity, Lord Coyner Pollard vs. Legion, Nova vs. Kin Hiroshi, Teresa Q’s HUGE run with the gold, Rook Black and Uber Judge… it’s just amazing how much is on each card right now.
Add to that the Grand Prix (sorry M’lud) and you’ve got a very interesting time ahead.
Kudos, though, must go to Impulse. Never have I read a better straight babyface. I remember doing the rankings the other week, and there was a match where Impulse simply refused to take the win because of outside interference. He’s a really classy character with a lot of guts and a lot of determination, who hasn’t made a big name for himself. I really feel for the guy when, on a couple of Brawl cards, he’s had victory just snatched from his grasp – he’s the right sort of underdog.
Kudos also the two tag-teams – the Hollywood Wrecking Crew and Suicide Kings – for their INTENSE feud over the titles. It’s very rare that a tag team storyline is given such prominence on the card, but this has had me gripped since I started reading it. The HWC have really played the heels better than any other team currently out there, and the Suicide Kings… wow! I didn’t know it was possible to have two such evenly matched tag-teams. Along with Impulse, this feud’s really been a highlight of the cards.
Elsewhere on the card, you’ve got three characters that I think you should be keeping an eye on – Teresa Q (who’s one of the most interesting characters there is right now), Brock Alyas (who’s really got the makings of a legend), and Lord Coyner Pollard (insertrestofname). All three of these characters have a unique ability to move about the card almost at will, so seeing where they go from week to week’s going to be really interesting. The Diplomatic Immunity situation (which I had no hand in setting up but I’ll gladly run with) is going to be a huge boost to an already powerful undercard.
If it’s all sounding perfect at the moment, though, NFW’s not without its faults. When I’ve been doing the rankings, it’s sometimes been INCREDIBLY difficult to figure out what’s going on in some matches – especially on Brawl. I LOVE the idea of the Brawl cards, the same way I liked it when Dave was doing Onslaught in EPW, but boy does it become tough to figure out who won some of the matches! Sometimes I’m pretty sure I’ve given it the wrong way until the third or fourth time I’ve read the card. The PPVs and TV tapings are a lot easier to read, but even then, sometimes it seems I have to look reeeeeally close to find out the results. And that’s not good when I’m trying to put together the win/loss record!
But the highlight of the half-year so far? Definitely reading how well the characters are handled in the write-ups. The Dan Ryan/Nova match at Wrestlestock, together with the HWC/Suicide Kings series, have been some of the best matches I’ve ever read, with a lot of give and take. One thing NFW’s matchwriter’s know how to do is structure a match. The segments are always well spaced, and I’ve yet to see one which didn’t add something to the card. It’s really easy for a segment to become overlong and take away from the card, but I’m wondering if there’s some subtle editing going on to keep everything this tight.
2008 so far has been a great year to become a part of NFW. It’s a really strong fed which doesn’t really have any major weakness. Everyone is pretty much given a place on the card which puts them in the best light, and no one storyline is given such prominence that it feels like it’s taking away from the others.
Which, given the number of storylines there are going on at the moment, is a good thing. I don’t think we could take reading 1000 page write ups every week!
So that’s all for 2008 so far. I’m going to start reviewing individual shows a bit more often, and later in the year, look back and see how each of the three feds I’ve written about here has done closing the year. Until next time, stay safe, and remember…
If it’s green, get it amputated.
Read this full blog post at the author's site
Hello and welcome to the final part of my look at the first half of 2008! Today, I’m looking at one of the feds that everybody seems to talk about and I never used to read, New Frontier Wrestling.
And boy did I miss out.
Now, I’ll admit – I used to be put-off by some of what I read in NFW. I REALLY disliked a lot of the Troy Windham stuff I read a couple years back, like the teabagging of Joey Melton. I didn’t think it had any place on a wrestling card. But since I started reading the cards more regularly, there’s something I’ve noticed.
EVERYONE on the card has something to do!
It’s something that’s very rare in this hobby. Normally, you’ll only find one or two feuds of any merit, only a couple of interesting storylines, and those very often take up waaaay too much of a card. In NFW at the moment, though, you’ve so many storylines I can think of without looking back at the cards again – you’ve got Legion/Luci4 against James Varga, the HWC and Suicide Kings, Joe the Plumber against everybody, Lord Coyner Pollard’s diplomatic immunity, Lord Coyner Pollard vs. Legion, Nova vs. Kin Hiroshi, Teresa Q’s HUGE run with the gold, Rook Black and Uber Judge… it’s just amazing how much is on each card right now.
Add to that the Grand Prix (sorry M’lud) and you’ve got a very interesting time ahead.
Kudos, though, must go to Impulse. Never have I read a better straight babyface. I remember doing the rankings the other week, and there was a match where Impulse simply refused to take the win because of outside interference. He’s a really classy character with a lot of guts and a lot of determination, who hasn’t made a big name for himself. I really feel for the guy when, on a couple of Brawl cards, he’s had victory just snatched from his grasp – he’s the right sort of underdog.
Kudos also the two tag-teams – the Hollywood Wrecking Crew and Suicide Kings – for their INTENSE feud over the titles. It’s very rare that a tag team storyline is given such prominence on the card, but this has had me gripped since I started reading it. The HWC have really played the heels better than any other team currently out there, and the Suicide Kings… wow! I didn’t know it was possible to have two such evenly matched tag-teams. Along with Impulse, this feud’s really been a highlight of the cards.
Elsewhere on the card, you’ve got three characters that I think you should be keeping an eye on – Teresa Q (who’s one of the most interesting characters there is right now), Brock Alyas (who’s really got the makings of a legend), and Lord Coyner Pollard (insertrestofname). All three of these characters have a unique ability to move about the card almost at will, so seeing where they go from week to week’s going to be really interesting. The Diplomatic Immunity situation (which I had no hand in setting up but I’ll gladly run with) is going to be a huge boost to an already powerful undercard.
If it’s all sounding perfect at the moment, though, NFW’s not without its faults. When I’ve been doing the rankings, it’s sometimes been INCREDIBLY difficult to figure out what’s going on in some matches – especially on Brawl. I LOVE the idea of the Brawl cards, the same way I liked it when Dave was doing Onslaught in EPW, but boy does it become tough to figure out who won some of the matches! Sometimes I’m pretty sure I’ve given it the wrong way until the third or fourth time I’ve read the card. The PPVs and TV tapings are a lot easier to read, but even then, sometimes it seems I have to look reeeeeally close to find out the results. And that’s not good when I’m trying to put together the win/loss record!
But the highlight of the half-year so far? Definitely reading how well the characters are handled in the write-ups. The Dan Ryan/Nova match at Wrestlestock, together with the HWC/Suicide Kings series, have been some of the best matches I’ve ever read, with a lot of give and take. One thing NFW’s matchwriter’s know how to do is structure a match. The segments are always well spaced, and I’ve yet to see one which didn’t add something to the card. It’s really easy for a segment to become overlong and take away from the card, but I’m wondering if there’s some subtle editing going on to keep everything this tight.
2008 so far has been a great year to become a part of NFW. It’s a really strong fed which doesn’t really have any major weakness. Everyone is pretty much given a place on the card which puts them in the best light, and no one storyline is given such prominence that it feels like it’s taking away from the others.
Which, given the number of storylines there are going on at the moment, is a good thing. I don’t think we could take reading 1000 page write ups every week!
So that’s all for 2008 so far. I’m going to start reviewing individual shows a bit more often, and later in the year, look back and see how each of the three feds I’ve written about here has done closing the year. Until next time, stay safe, and remember…
If it’s green, get it amputated.
Read this full blog post at the author's site