I waaaant it, I waaaant it
Freeman Feedback
Shows have been getting better and better. I know going in that this is a four pager, so that’s awesome. We haven’t had those in forever, and in fact even in ACW’s best days we seldom made the fourth page. The only time we usually made it consistently was in the buildup to Omega Effect last year I believe, and so we are in not just a “not dying” position but in a “very very strong” position. Things are looking up. With Born Again, a supercard with a name I am not very fond of, just around the corner, there will need to be some buildup here.
Going into this show I remember that there will be Dave Shadow vs VorteX, and I am excited to see it. I remember no other matches however. Im not sure if any of them have been announced, however there still have been some strong feuds, so hopefully things will come together by this show. As this is not a PPV, I think slightly less buildup is fine, and in fact better. So I don’t mind that I can only name one match by now.
I read this show over three separate days, most of those times at night, so I was kind of tired for a lot of this and it was a long show. Some of these may not be the most accurate or interesting just because I started getting worn out. That led to maybe some segments not getting read with the attention of the other ones. But whatever, it's something!
Anyways, moving on.
Card Subject to Change (Flamingo/BK/CP/Shadow) – Wow! What a way to start the show! I will start by saying that I am a huge mark for big group segments such as this one. I like watching all the different characters interact in one setting. I feel that it always provides for an interesting read, and I seldom dislike them. And with one featuring three of ACW’s most talented writers ever…and CP…there was no way it was going to flop. (Sorry CP, I have to take at least one shot at you per feedback, probably more.) Now, I did feel slightly that there could have been even MORE done. Not that this wasn’t good, just that with the prospect of these four men in the same ring I would have liked a little more dialogue, maybe more playing off of BK and Flamingo and their previous history, etc. I didn’t really buy Hawthorne letting the fork thing go like that because he had previously said I believe that he was not letting anybody by off of previous actions, or successes, and was going to not give anybody any special privileges. That’s the kinda vibe I got from his letter, and just letting Flamingo go because he sells merchandise was weird. I also found it weird CP said Shadow never beat him when Shadow I believe beat him by finisher quite decisively at Winter’s Discontent. I can see CP saying it, but it was strange Shadow didn’t even bother to reply or retort. This was a very strong opening segment. It’s hard not to be interested for the show when it is set up in such a manner. While as I said I would have liked more, what was there was good, and I really liked the ending with an amazing main event booked. Flamingo and BK on the same team? As well as Shadow and CP? Now that’s what I call an interesting main event. So yes, while it didn’t exactly knock it out of the park as it could have, it was a great way to start the show and set the stage for the rest of Warfare. Nice job.
Mouse Trap (TK, Badger, Rena) – TK knows how I feel about SLA in general, and I am iffy about the whole SLA International Title…but I will keep optimistic. This promo was pretty good, but I don’t find the prospect of seeing Rena vs Badger that interesting mostly because they have no hatred between them as they aren’t feuding, and they haven’t interacted at all in the past. Had they been with TK for a while together it could have been interesting to see them go against each other, but I dunno…it doesn’t really work that well for me. Maybe because it doesn’t matter who wins, as the title still goes to TK’s stable thing. But whatever. The three make a pretty good combination so far.
Pre-Match Talk (Frank Washington) – AGH! THE EYE-BURNING XS3 FONT! ITS BACK! It took XS3 forever to realize that blue color sucks and sometimes new people come in and use it anyways. It’s unreadable and burns the eyes <_< I usually don’t like having to comment on standard interviews, as I feel there is less for me to say about them. Sometimes they are great, but usually they are more standard and there isn’t much to say. This was a good interview, but I don’t have anything particular to say about it besides that I don’t love when people mention WWE and TNA because I feel like we are in our own little E-fed world where they don’t exist. It’s not as bad as when Nick Durden brought DX to Warfare however. I thought Frank Washington said some good things, but until much is shown about him besides this there isn’t much to comment about him. It’d be nice to see a bit about who he is. But Im sure that will come in time.
The First in a Long Time (TJ) - I don’t get the point of TJ’s NPC’s going for actual jobs, but whatever. This was a pretty good interview, but another one of those I don’t really know what to say interviews, only that if TJ gets an actual feud against somebody he’d probably be good. As of yet he’s one of those guys who has yet to have one. I hope that he isn’t just going to hang around Shadow and his NPC’s without actually doing anything. Also why was the cameraman talking to them? Whatever. TJ is obviously a good writer, but I would like to see him not just in his own isolated world, but interacting with the other superstars.
This One is for Jefferson and Freeman, My Biggest Fans (Dave Shadow) – I certainly am one of Dave Shadow’s biggest fans! And how can I not be? I said that I seldom have much to say on interviews, because usually they are standard, and some are great. That was an example of an interview that is great. He hit the usual points, his feud of the month, his match tonight (Although that was changed to a tag match what happened to that? >_>) and did it in a way that was unique and fun. I mean, Jack not wanting to interview Shadow was fairly obvious, but Shadow’s obliviousness to that fact, and the part where he says that the interview went well and Jack may have a future in this business (which was hilarious), is what makes it better and takes what otherwise would have been fairly cliché and makes it perfect. Then close it off with the little SLA/ACW tension. I dunno. I am a huge Dave Shadow mark. I have admitted it countless times. But this is an amazing example of everything one can do RIGHT in a standard promo, and make an interview special.
Round Two (VorteX) – This was ok, but not as good as Dave’s interview right before it. What I didn’t like was VorteX’s strange explanation for why he didn’t attack Dave next week. Something about mentally preparing for the next beatdown. Why not simply say that the reason he didn’t attack was to get the psychological advantage, to show that he could have if he had chosen, and that Dave was at his mercy. By leaving without attacking he makes a statement and gets into Dave’s head. You said something similar but your explanation was just way stranger than it had to be when it was fairly straightforward already. While you are stepping up into the world title match, I would have liked to see you step up a bit more VorteX. I don’t know what more you could have done with this but I dunno. I feel like you are capable of going even further if you were to push yourself. But that’s just my opinion.
The Morning After the Night Before (Jack Jefferson) – Pretty good segment, though for some reason I don’t like Stephanie much so far, although I don’t know whether or not she is going to remain here long-term or is just some short story. Either way, I like how Jefferson’s current story continues to advance week by week. It’s interesting to watch his attitude and how he reacts to the situations in front of him. It’s been consistently good, and he actually gained more momentum now then he had as the champion, and is presenting his character in a more real way. Whereas before he seemed to be just sort of over-the-top crazy, he now seems more “real.” It’s hard to explain, but I think it’s because now we can see his rationale behind everything he’s doing, and see the logic behind his moods and his actions. Before he seemed to just be doing random things, but now I can see where his mind is at. Jefferson is good at making italics interesting, though some of them were a bit weird such as the line “her facial expression instantly shifting to that of a concerned woman.” which was an extremely awkward sentence. Overall, though, Jefferson has been so consistent since losing his title. The best he’s been probably.
Origin Saga Ch.3/Char and Turmoil (Badger) – GAH THE EYE BURNING BLUE AGAIN. THIS COLOR NEEDS TO BE A BANNED WORD! PLEASE SET IT TO REPLACE TO SOMETHING ELSE OR SOMETHING MODS <_<. THE SECOND I SEE IT MY EYES GET ALL WEIRD YOU CAN’T READ IT WITHOUT HIGHLIGHTING IT AND IT JUST PLAIN HURTS. Sorry…put me over the edge there seeing it a second time >_>. Anyways this promo was pretty weird. I’m not sure I get the ending. And the flashback was pretty weird. Though I thought it did a pretty good job of showing Badger’s emotions. For some reason it didn’t feel relevant though. I don’t know why. It was I guess, for character development purposes. But I dunno. Whatever.
Get Ready for Freddie (Freddie Maddox, TK) – This one was kind of weird to me, mostly because A. Thunderkiss saying he sees himself in Freddie Maddox didn’t make much sense to me, as I can’t see TK being like Maddox at all…B. Maddox’s lines were pretty weird. They kinda seemed like they weren’t edited by Taylor, or they were edited quickly, as especially in the beginning they just didn’t seem right. The idea of TK scouting people for SLA is pretty interesting though. I have a feeling Maddox WILL end up joining TK since Taylor was in the original SLA. So that will probably happen.
Still Going (Dave Shadow, TJ) – Renaissance for Stable of the Year of 2010! I think Williams is gone now so yeah <_< Good run guys! Anyways, I’m kidding, as obviously Dave probably didn’t see this coming but if Chris is gone then the epic text combo is gone right after it came back…I am going to miss that. Anyways, it was a pretty good segment, brought down by the unavoidable suddenness of the “Maybe this is a bad idea” thing after the stable just started, and the fact that of the two I felt TJ had the least reason to actually team with Dave. And now he’s the one left. Anyways, this wasn’t any fault of the people involved, just the way things worked out.
The Trap (Criminal, Wheeler) – This one wasn’t that great for me, and I feel like it could have been better, but the feud overall has been pretty interesting. I dunno I felt like there could have been more effort put into this one, but the idea was pretty decent, if not the most original.
Interview Privilege (Michael Smart) – At the beginning it was a decent interview, though mostly a standard, sorta generic one. Then Daniel Smart came in and it got a little better but I’m not the biggest fan of the Smart Report thing. Or maybe I would be but in this case not much was really done with it. I miss the segments where Michael and Daniel Smart would have tons of awesome interaction. I think there should be some more of that. I dunno, I hope Michael Smart is going to actually feud with Jefferson. It seems like that’s what’s happening.
Performance Review: Danny Mainer (Danny Mainer) – So what’s Mainer’s character now? As clearly this isn’t the same Danny Mainer who was here before. I miss Purple Text Danny Mainer. He was my favorite. Green text Danny Mainer was a psychopath and Yellow Text Danny Mainer is kinda boring so far. Cmon, bring back good ol’ Purple Text! I dunno, the segment was pretty good, I liked the tension between Hawthorne and Mainer but Mainer being so subdued and obedient was kind of weird considering how he was before. Changing the character isn’t such a big deal, it’s just Im just waiting to find out exactly what this new Danny Mainer is like.
At The Hospital (Panther) – I was pretty impressed with this, as I felt it was a pretty good improvement on Panther’s past segments. That’s just my opinion. I like the Panther/Flamingo feud though I thought it was a strange pairing at first. Only because of the whole Flamingo seeming fixated on getting revenge on Panther, for what seemingly is no reason. That’s pretty awesome. And I wonder where that will go from here. I dunno, Panther did a pretty good job with Mickie Flamingo as well.
Meeting With the Boss (VorteX) – So VorteX says he didn’t attack Williams? Did he really though? Who knows? Pretty short segment, and I was hoping it would be longer since I really liked the last Hawthorne/VorteX segment from I believe two weeks ago. Either way it served its basic purpose.
Self Respect (Mainer/Maddox) – That evil Mainer is bullying poor Maddox again! Mainer did a pretty good job with this segment…his toying with Maddox was pretty funny. Though I still don’t understand what Mainer’s new character is. But oh no, shall this drive Maddox to Thunderkiss and SLA? I thought it seemed again like Taylor barely did any of the lines for Maddox but maybe I’m wrong. Maybe he did. This again seemed to be building towards an inevitable Maddox freakout, where he will just own somebody. Hopefully that will happen at least, and I’m looking forward to it if it does.
Two for the Price of One (Gracie) – I love Gracie. I loved the line before he locked them in the armbar. Where he was like “Yes, it was your boss who I armbarred...and now it will be you!” That was awesome. He’s such a funny character. VICTORY BY ARMBAR!
F*$# the Police (Criminal) – IS THAT THE BLUE AGAIN? It wasn’t so eye-burning this time so maybe it was different or something, or just for some reason wasn’t as eye-burning. Still it sucks. Anyways, this segment was very very strange. So Criminal can no-sell a tazer? And just the dialogue between him and the officers was weird. From him threatening them basically, and then them loosening the cuffs because he told them to, etc. I dunno. The ending was pretty good though because I thought Criminal was going to beat them all up and make his match or something, and he didn’t, which was good.
Say What? (Jack Jefferson) – I liked the beginning with Jefferson going through the events happening on the show or whatever while he watched it on TV. That was pretty cool. This better not end with Jefferson getting fired! I don’t think it will but if Jefferson left I would be sad. This whole month every Jefferson segment has been either exceptionally good, or just good. Nothing bad. This was one of those that aren’t amazing but are just good solid segments. Also, Im not sure if I mentioned during the feedback in the past or not, but I’m happy Jefferson did away with the centered text and went to a more standard type. I think it looks much better. I may have said that to him in the past, I’m not sure, but yes it looks much better. Oh, and I also liked the part in this segment where Jefferson started to rant about how he deserves a title shot before realizing he was getting side-tracked. That was funny.
Distrust (Rena/Senator) – I thought it was weird seeing Senator hug Rena and stuff just because it seems out of character. I know they had a relationship in the past which also seems out of character but that was before I joined three and a half years ago (A long time!) Anyways the dialogue section of this was really good, with Rena planting the doubt on Senator that CP will turn on him. I like the whole TK and Rena planting doubt in CP and Senator, trying to turn the two against each other. It’s a smart move. And it seems like it may work. I am very interested to see how this story progresses.
The Following Segment has been paid for by Criminal (Trent Wheeler) – This was pretty good. I like the segment title. Out of the Trent/Criminal stuff tonight so far this was the best part. I suppose it is a pretty good feud. For a PPV I’d say the feud is a little weak but for a supercard it’s pretty good. A solid Entertainment Title feud. So yeah, this was pretty good. I still don’t really like Ryan Stark.
At the Hospital (Panther) – I didn’t like this one much, mostly because of how much Hawthorne seemed convinced he wasn’t going to let Adrian go. I would think these were more than minor incidents, and it was weird to see him write it off that way. Earlier he did say Adrian was staying, but this approach to the situation sounded almost nonchalant. Mickey and Panther watching Scrubs was pretty funny though.
Next Week (Red) – This one was pretty good, but I still wish we found out about the Spade thing this week, because I am really confused by it. I liked the fact Red felt he could talk as he wanted to Hawthorne, since he wasn’t under contract and therefore Hawthorne wasn’t in charge of him. This is another pretty good build for a supercard angle, and while it is pretty obvious Red will win, it should be an interesting show. I think I like the new Mr. Red. I need to see more. I hope he sticks around longer this time than he has in the past.
Redundant Reminders (CP/Senator) – Nice ending. Haha. Good segment, very effective in getting the point across. CP and Senator touched base and talked about the whole manipulations from Rena and TK (I liked that Senator realized what Rena was up to), and then said that they both had nothing to worry about and were not going to listen to these manipulations. The obvious question being, is this really true? And is there some underlying doubt behind these reassurances? As I said earlier, I like how this is developing so far and want to see it continue to develop.
A curious Introduction (Scorpion) – My immediate reaction was…WTF was that? And I think that may be what I’m supposed to say. Maybe not. I’ll be honest and say I’m usually not as much of a fan at the long descriptive promos where there isn’t much dialogue, and I find it hard to write about. But this was really well-written, clearly. Very descriptive, with a lot of good use of language, etc. Why is he referred to constantly as the young one though? Anyways, it was a bit of a strange promo, but it’s a bit of a strange character so that works. It seems like it could be interesting, though it also seems like it could be very limited. But I’m sure you know what you’re doing. You clearly are not new to this. I shall wait to see more, but as far as writing quality it was very impressive.
Why Must I Always Close Browser Halfway Through a Seg (Maddox/Pilko) – I like Maddox’s speech about how he was going to stand up to the bullies, had nothing to lose, etc, however I also feel that this should have come from a slower build in a more fleshed out storyline. Where he eventually snaps or something, rather than just stating that now he was no longer being picked on anymore, etc, with no buildup. This way still works, but I just feel there was some potential for development in a storyline. I thought the part with Pilko was very weird though, and didn’t really get the end. Pilko is interesting but I feel he is crippled by the fact that Dan barely has written for him outside of these segments. In fact I think the PPV was the only time Pilko had any segment by himself, which makes it kind of hard to understand the character. I know it’s an over-the-top type thing yet it still is a bit confusing. I didn’t get why he backed away at the end. This segment was ok but I felt there was more potential for this.
Partners? Hardly (BK London) – It was basically a standard interview. I thought the conspiracy thing was weird since BK is a face, and that’s more of a heel thing to say. I’d say BK’s strengths are the planning of storylines, pacing of storylines, and storyline advancing segments. He is one of the best in these areas. As far as standard interviews go that isn’t exactly his strongest part. So this was pretty good but nothing phenomenal. I laughed at BK’s blunt description of his past with Flamingo though. It’s certainly an interesting team. This segment did have the positive of building towards the main event. I feel that that always helps a show when the promos hype up the main event and make it more than just another match.
Venerici (Jack Jefferson) – The finest wine in the history of Italian wine? Seriously? That was a weird sentence <_<. While slightly pointless in that nothing really happened besides Jefferson eating a meal at a restaurant, far from the most enticing material, it did remain interesting somehow. I liked Jefferson’s complaints with the waiter, and his correcting him with the Italian. I guess it did have a point, which was kind of shown by the last paragraph which basically showed that Jefferson at least at that moment is a bit content, as opposed to the Jefferson that beat up some sound guys and went to get drunk. I’m not sure if he intends to use this storyline to have Jefferson a bit more settled, and less impulsive, angry, and violent, but somehow I can’t see that, so I don’t think that’s going to happen. Though it could I suppose. I can’t see Jefferson settling down into a happy relationship. I look forward to seeing what Jefferson does at the supercard.
Numbers (VorteX) – This is a very strange storyline. I guess it’s kind of interesting to me, but very very weird. Anyways, that’s all I have to say for now.
Court Massacre (Criminal) – I don’t like how over the top the Criminal character is. I mean being a murderer? Apparently not just a one-time murderer but a multi-time murderer? He’s practically a serial killer. That is way too far for me, and I also didn’t like how they let him off the hook, after the charges on the drugs and the battery of the police officer. Again, over the top is ok, but there is a bit of a limit. I feel the Criminal character could benefit from being toned down a couple of notches, however others may disagree with that. That’s just my personal opinion.
Origin Saga Ch.4/Re-Awakening (Badger) – I didn’t like this one much either. For one, the whole inner self thing reminds me too much of the alter ego stuff that many people have done (unsuccessfully IMO) in the past. I have never liked a storyline such as Cobra, or Black and White, or Exemplar, or whatever inner self or alter ego people think up. Of course those three were better than Nightmare and Doom Train at least…I mean, that’s different than this I think, as this was an inner voice or something not really an ego…I think…but either way, I’m just saying. And I also don’t like how it looks like Badger is going to kill those people now. I don’t like how so many people in ACW have to have these pasts where they like kill people etc. I mean, Hunter was good back in the day of doing it in a way that really worked, but other times I feel it comes across as…I dunno…just very overdramatic and unbelievable. I mean you can make a good character without him being a killer.
Mid-Match Segment Returns (CP/Senator/Starr) – I love the mid-match Senator segments, though I must say this was my least favorite one so far. Also this show is long and I’m getting worn out, so maybe that’s why <_<. That is also why I don’t have much more to say about it.
Post-Match Segment (Flamingo/BK/Senator/CP) – Who in god’s name is Oliver Watson? I’ve never seen or heard of him before, but he attacks BK and everyone’s acting like he’s been there forever. Did I miss something? CP says something about him being Flamingo’s alt. I am very confused as to why this random person was talked about as if I was supposed to know who he was <_< . “Oh it’s Oliver Watson with a steel chair, and now he beats up BK.” Me…who? What? Why? This is extremely confusing. Anyways, besides the random appearance of Watson who didn’t exist until this segment, it was a very good segment. BK got owned. I hope he gets his revenge against CP for this one! I loved the mass beatdown on London, and Senator had a great rant on him. If I knew who Oliver Watson was this segment would be better.
(CP has just informed me that there was a segment written earlier between CP and Watson that did not make the show for some reason, so it is now posted. This makes the Watson thing make much more sense, but because it was so late I SHALL NOT ACKNOWLEDGE IT. AND THEREFORE MY COMPLAINTS STILL STAND. I will say I don’t know why Flamingo needs a second when he’s already got the Flamingo character, that IMO is much better. But whatever, if he wants to write for two he can do that I suppose)
Underestimation (Shadow/VorteX) – This segment was alright. I liked the action of it, and the Shadow lines, and the way it built up to Born Again. I really did. I liked the ending too, but my only problem is I don’t see how VorteX should be in Shadow’s head more than anybody else ever was. In fact, I don’t think VorteX has done all that much to get in his head as much as he says he has. I mean, I feel like VorteX has become more credible during this feud then he was, but still feel that he hasn’t reached the credibility for me to perfectly take him seriously as a world title competitor. Anyways, I would say Chris Phenomenal was in Shadow’s head way more than VorteX has been, and really VorteX hasn’t done that much. The promo is good but looking back the things that VorteX said didn’t really make that much sense to me. Nevertheless, there are points for effort, and this was obviously supposed to sell the supercard match and I thought theoretically it did a good job of that.
King Nothing (TK/Mainer/Rena) – I liked a lot about this. I liked the dialogue, I liked the end where they beat up Mainer, and threw him off the stage. It reminded me of Big Show throwing Lesnar and Undertaker off the stage for some reason. It was a good segment that built up the feud well. I do have some issues with this though. CP said a couple things that kind of irked me. Number 1, calling Mainer the second biggest face and also calling him “Mr. ACW”. I see a number of problems with this, as A. TK is barely presenting himself as a heel, though he should be going completely heel to make this work better, B. Mainer has been back for a week therefore I don’t see how he can be the second biggest face, C. Mainer hasn’t declared himself Mr. ACW, he just is anti-Thunderkiss, not pro-ACW. Mainer out of character also has had rants about ACW. Its nice to have him back but it seems slightly out of line to then declare himself the leader of the ACW side of this, as OOC he really is more of an SLA type guy, and is feuding with Thunderkiss who is like his best friend. It comes off as SLA vs an SLA guy, who is calling himself an ACW guy. If Thunderkiss and BK could put aside their differences, and BK was to lead the ACW side against TK’s SLA, (not that that would ever happen) now THAT would be an interesting feud to get behind. But if this is supposed to be SLA vs ACW, using Mainer as the leader of the ACW movement kinda ruins the whole thing for me. Yes I realize that OOC is not the same as in character, but with a storyline such as this that definitely plays off of some OOC events, it loses all impact because of this. I hope Mainer defects to SLA as I feel that makes the most sense.
Mystery (Rena) – Rena is really great at back-and-forth dialogue segments, and I liked this one a lot. I had a feeling Hawthorne was the mystery guy, as it wasn’t exactly the hardest thing to figure out, but I still liked it when I saw he was. So what was going on here? Was Rena working against TK? Or is she still with him, but for some reason is feeding Hawthorne information at the same time? I was kind of confused by the implications here, or what I was supposed to take from it, but I still felt that it was very effective, and a good ending to the show. Makes you want to see how the story will advance at Born Again, and what Rena’s role is going to be in this whole SLA/ACW storyline. Good segment.
Overall an amazing show! Four pages of quality writing! Things have really heated up, and that is shown by the supershow card which has 11 matches on it! Honestly that's way too many! I am excited by this. Everybody is pulling out all the stops. I am worn out from reading and feedbacking this thing though. It was long and that is why my feedback for some segments is not as good as feedback for other segments.
Overall though best ACW show in a long long long time