Storm Comments for 2/28

[Ace309 0]

The World Championship match is one of the most difficult matches I've had to mark, because I think it may have been the best thing that I've seen Clark write. The problem was, for me, that Clark's match was almost entirely Clark-centric; Drake, I felt, had a fast-paced match with balanced offense corrected for the styles of the wrestlers. What's more, he made Clark credible in his match - no small feat against Drake - without resorting to a formulaic Shawn Michaels big-man-little-man match, and the way he wrote the finish was so chilling and cold-blooded that he made me feel like this monstrous ex-con was going to commit manslaughter right there in that very ring. The Drake match was a thing of beauty, a platonic ideal of what I wanted to see from these two writers.

 

It wasn't a perfect match; I think Clark handled the Clark character much better in his version, and I especially liked his Disney theme for the evening. Clark's match had very good psychology, but it was entirely focused on advancing the Clark character. Both matches were wonderful but flawed, however, and I had to make a decision.

 

I hate you both for making me choose one of you to win.

 

Discounting the two matches I received after the deadline bypassing the markers, we had six written matches for an overall 50% showing rate. However, I did receive a complete match a while after the deadline on the night of the show, and I received a complete match this afternoon. I'll split the difference and count last night's toward the showing rate, since it was, you know, on the night of the show - that brings us up to 58.33% with a double no-show.

Edited March 2, 2007 by Ace309

[Red Baron 0]

Spot on main event, and the show was solid.

[Secret Agent 0]

There was a match for JJ/Myers, you know.

[Coffin Surfer 0]

Great Main Event! Drake reminded me of Aja Kong on a vicious mean streak with even less vunerability. I love the way that Clark never really has a chance or any real momentum outside of a few cool hope spots that only serve to reinforce how unstoppable Drake. The finish was great but just to nitpick if I may, I think it would have been more effective and brutal had Drake just pinned him after the pounding him down. Best match I've read here in some time. Very low key and blunt dramatic storytelling.

[Toxxic 0]

I'll admit to not reading it completely thoroughly (I had to skim a little, but still read most of it), but I think Clark got in a bit more than a few hope spots. I think Mak did well to avoid making Clark look weak, but still, I would agree, emphasised the dominance and power of his character. And that is, really, what makes a match of this sort great - it wasn't a shitkicking, but the finish left no doubt whatsoever of who the winner was. I also hear what Danny says about pinning him straight after pounding him down, but I imagine Mak's trying to build up his finisher so we'll probably be seeing a bit more of it in the near future - and justifiably too!

 

In other news, Drea proves that she's nigh-unassailable with the Hardcore Title, MANSON turns in the goods to prove what a good writer he can be when he shows, and the Caddys obey Akira and beat them. Crowd response: I liked that.

 

Oh yeah, and we keep the title belts a bit longer, but through time constraints rather than a clean win. Nay mind, I'm sure W&D will get back to us before too long...

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

First salvo of comments, more later.

 

This will be the first show I've completely read in a while, so there are a few things I'm in the dark about, but screw that!

 

- Maddix promo: This is what I was talking about earlier. I've sort of been following, but not really, the Drake/Landon thing. It was good and stuff, though. Yeah.

 

- IL promo: Nice little bit of business to set up what should be some very good stuff betwixt an elder statesman and a young pup, even though there's only like, what, two years separating the characters. Also, Ben should have pointed at himself during the "I've smashed through anything you point at" bit.

 

- MANSON vs. Barbosa: I could be wrong, but this match seemed a bit rushed. A few sentences just looked odd, but it wasn't anything too glaring. Anyway, to the actual match. Basically, it was a squash, but considering the characters, not writers, involved, it's a somewhat justified squash. MANSON is super scary guy, Ricky is super green rookie guy. MANSON shouldda ate the kid's face, though, lollerzmcgee.

 

- Cadillac Boys vs. Asia Underground: I liked this match quite a bit. It had a nice, fast pace to start and solid tag interaction.

 

That's as far as I got, since, you know, I suck, lolz. I'll read the last to laterz and junk.

 

Hey, how about this idea to get a bit more comments: If someone comments on the match you were involved in (Regardless of the outcome), you at least skim, if not read the match they were involved in and leave at least one sentence about it, positive or negative. Maybe? No? Meh.

[Above Average 0]

I'm one of the two people that picked the tag title match as MOTN, because it would be conceited to pick my own match . Actually, I think it was one of the better tags I read in a long time. I don't think it could've worked against any other team than W&D, because of the backstories you could play with the character dynamics, so it wasn't quite formula (face vs. face with a tweener vibe), but it had the standard extended tag structure of multiple heat segments, each face getting their comeback, the clusterfuck leading to a false finish, etc. Still, you did a lot of things to make the formula your own.

 

Firstly, the overarching story of Stephens attitude adjustment makes a lot of sense in the context of this match with bitter rivals, his previous series with Clark, Janus/Clusterfuck and the main event angle as a whole. Mike is pissed off and Landon is kinda just playing it off as paranoia, granted Stephens's anger is currently focused somewhere else, but if something were to happen Maddix doesn't seem like he'd expect it, either from the match or the promos surrounding it.

 

Second, your writing styles mesh extremely well. The flow is smooth, logicial and does an excellent job of leading the reader without bashing them over the head with the commentary. The one spot I loved from this match was the Victory Roll counter to the Dangerous Drop because as soon as you went into that sequence I immediately thought Victory Roll finish. If I had thought about how deflating a clean win without the aftermath of that spot would've been there considering it's Landon and Johnny, I'd have realized it was obviously a false finish, but I completely suspended my disbelief and bought into the nearfall, which is a credit to your writing. With the way the match started, the real finish with Landon grabbing the tights and Mike chokeslaming Wildchild was the perfect capper to the escalating tension since the beginning of the match.

 

And finally, the little things. Using W&D's referee. Dangerous and Mike jaw jacking. Stephens doing the same stuff he did to Clark against Wildchild getting him mixed reactions. And possibly the best of those being Mike staying in the ring daring Johnny to try and break the pin, since he saved WC earlier. That's good storytelling from my MOTN.

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

Last bit of comments from me, yayz.

 

- Galacticos vs. Wild & Dangerous: I really liked this match. It had nice flow and junk and stuff. I won't say much else, since Mak said it a lot better, lollerz.

 

- Galacticos promo: More goodness from the tag champs. And other things! To the face of your mothers~

 

- Drake promo: RAR! GABE KILL YOU IN THE BRAINS!

 

- Drake vs. Clark: This was a pretty good match, too. Drake shows himself to be someone you don't want to mess with (Unless you've got a thermonuclear badger on your side), and Alan doesn't look like too much of a chump-store.

 

So, my match of the night selection goes to Galacticos versus Wild & Dangerous, but I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the more evenness of action, but I don't know, since it's not like I'm all "Man, Drake shouldn't win, he basically squashed the International champ! GRR!" In all honesty, I should have voted for MANSON, since it is MANSON, after all.

 

lawlz.