PROMO - Self Control

[The Amazing Rando 0]

Somewhere between MSG and Baltimore, the SWF crew has stopped for a weekend house show. It is hours before the show is going to start, but a few superstars have already made their way to the building. One such person is Ricky Barbosa, who can be seen walking the halls looking as dejected as ever. But as he walks around a corner and into his dressing room, he is greeted by the figures of Alan Clark and Walter Reynolds, the bodyguard almost having to hold Alan Clark in place.

 

"RICKY!!"

 

Ricky, not totally paying attention to anything around him, jumps from the shock and looks up, only to quickly divert his eyes when he realizes who was calling his name. Alan, on the other hand, is still decidedly ticked off.

 

"I was undefeated, Ricky! Not a loss since returning to the SWF! Then you go jumping through hoops for my attention and we both suffered! I LOST THANKS TO YOU!" Alan is fuming, and the more he talks the more Ricky's head sinks into his shoulders.

 

"I'm...I'm sorry. That's all I can say. I will make it up to you if I can, I swe..."

 

"You aren't going to do anything. I don't want to see your face when I am in that ring. Wait, no, you'll just wear a mask or something. If I see you, or anything that I even THINK is you when I am in the ring, you'll be coming over to the OAOAST and dealing with Bloodshed. I am not going to be seen as a loser because of my so-called 'biggest fan'." Ricky is still silent. "If you really were my biggest fan you would do things that would help me WIN. But I don't even want you doing that. You sit here and you walk around and you wrestle wearing that 'Wayward Sons' t-shirt and think you know EVERYTHING about what it takes, but you don't. I don't even care if you can recite the oath frontwards, backwards, and in LATIN, okay...I can tell you don't know a thing about what it takes to be known as a 'Wayward Son'. Sometimes I used to wonder if Edward James knew what it took to be one, and you are no Edward James. His problems were self-assurance, and yours is just selfishness. You want me to like you and actually care that you exist because you wear a T-SHIRT.You were nothing but a faceless fan until two weeks ago!"

 

"That's not what I...."

 

"I don't want to hear it. Not a single fan cares about me anymore, and why is that, Ricky? It's because, just like the SWF, they don't NEED Alan Clark. They are stuck with him. My contract runs out in June, Ricky, and letting it expire is the only legal way to get away from this place without getting sued into oblivion by Disney. I was fully intent on staying and collecting my paychecks until you showed up. Now I am not so sure." Ricky looks up towards Alan at this revelation, but then quickly shoots his eyes back down to the floor when he notices Alan still staring down at him. "Do you think if I put on that shirt and walked to the ring to that music that the fans would CARE about me? It's more than clothes and music, it's VALUES...values that ceased having any meaning the moment I shook the hand of Landon Maddix. You want to attack me for that? You want to yell at me for doing what I did back then? DO YOU WANT TO HATE ALAN CLARK BECAUSE OF THE PAST TWO YEARS OF HIS LIFE??"

 

"No...I-"

 

"I don't care. I don't care. I don't care. I just want you to stay away from me. If you really cared about me the way you say you do, you might want to think about listening to me and doing what I say. Stay out of my way, and stop making a mockery of the Wayward Sons. It's dead. Seriously." and with that, Alan and Walter exit the dressing room, leaving Ricky alone with the camera in his face. After a few deep breathes, Ricky speaks softly to himself.

 

"To be a wayward son...is to look inside oneself...and find the light. To be a wayward son...is to become that light...and find peace. To be a wayward son...is to use that peace...to carry on." Ricky breathes deeply once again and looks up towards the camera. "I am a wayward son."

 

Fade.

[Ace309 0]

I'm really enjoying the character dynamic here. I like exploring the darkest areas Alan Clark's bastardliness... it's a different way of being a heel, and in this case different is fantastic.

[Toxxic 0]

I don't know if this is exploring the depths though, because Clark clearly still respects the idea of what being a Wayward Son was about and he thinks Barbosa doesn't live up to it - if he was going for full-on heel he'd mock the kid for adhering to such a childish way of thinking or something.

 

And they're the Boy Scouts. They will always be the Boy Scouts.

[The Amazing Rando 0]

It's hypocrisy. He's telling him that he isn't good enough, but then replies that he himself killed the entire idea when he joined Martial Law. Same goes for him telling Ricky that he's being selfish, when Clark later states he was willing to hang around in the fed and collect paychecks instead of letting his contract expire.

[The Ill One 0]

I'm also liking the character interaction here. Clark's obviously being a dick towards Ricky but everybody knows it's nice to have a punching bag to vent on when you fall short. I figured that Clark still believes there's something left in being a Wayward Son but doesn't want to admit it or let Ricky know it either.