Well Dave, I'd personally not like to see that happen... but you're right in saying that it's not worth keeping this up if there aren't enough people getting involved. I can't speak for the other handlers, and I can't tell you why the activity in the federation has waned over the past few months (or the past year altogether, depending on how you look at it).
All I can really say is, I truly apologize for all the occasions in which I contributed to the card coming up late... maybe not so much this last one, but there have been at least a few times when I was holding things up because I just couldn't commit myself to getting a main event in. I feel if I hadn't dragged my ass so much, less time would have been lost between cards, and a few more handlers would have probably stuck around.
Really, over the past couple years, the size of our pool of players has shrunk... longtime players have bowed out of the game as it befits their lives, and we haven't really succeeded in keeping the newer handlers around. I feel like that might have something to do with it too. Tag-action is down to one team once again... felt like the King of the Cage failed in it's attempt to bolster that division. I had intentions of sending in an angle on this card reintroducing the Crimson Calling with a new tag partner, mainly in an effort to put some bodies in there and make it relevant again. But then again, that's just me padding the card with more of my characters... the same as putting Olvir and Magnus into the battle royal, because it didn't seem like enough people were going to opt in to make a legit battle royal.
I feel maybe this is a time when the federation as a whole needs to be given an appraisal... because I agree that there's no point in just phoning it in from card to card if our hearts are only half into it. My personal feeling, with the cards being somewhat spread out, is that maybe we need to abandon the regular-show concept with Aggression altogether... stick to just seasonal Pay Per Views and big super-events, maybe six shows a year. Understandably, though, this would pretty much be also nixing the entire concept of a storyline arc building up over a series of shows to a blowoff Pay Per View; every show would seem more like a one-and-done thing.
I'm not sure how everybody else feels like that... but my observations lately seem to tell me that what makes Empire Pro appealing compared to other federations is that this fed provides the most stripped down and straightforward competitive roleplaying atmosphere. So, why stretch it out with all of the angles and segs and build-up? Why not cut out all the over-arching storylines and just give the people what they've been waiting six months to really see? Impulse vs. The First, for the World Title... or Rezin vs. MJ2 for the Television Title. Winner takes all. Two months later, next man up.
Personally speaking, I'm a proponent of storylines and all that crap... but if feels like with the current circumstances, people lose interest waiting for the next card to come in so they can write out the next chapter in their character's angle. A lot happens over time... lives change, circumstances change, and people have to quit the hobby, for whatever reasons. My honest feeling is that rather than adapt our lives to the game, we adapt the game to our lives. Keep it something that people can check in on occasionally, but don't have the time to check the board every day for an update.
Ultimately, Dave, the prime reason why I've been a part of this federation for many years -- and also a reason why I've always come back every time I left -- is because you are one of the most fair-minded and practical handlers I've ever worked with, and while I may not agree on your every decision, I respect your opinion and honor your judgment. So however you make the call, I ain't going to throw up any complaints. But I'm owning up to my end of the problem and offering solutions, and publicly putting my honest opinions out there for anybody to see and comment on. I leave it to everyone else and how they feel on the situation to convince you of the best choice of action.
