Highs & Lows of 9-13-11 Adrenaline Rush

[Toom E. Guci]

So, here I am back for another Highs & Lows. Personally, I felt the last show's booking was so bad to even warrant a Highs & Lows but this show truly made up for that. This was a show that was a step back into the right direction for a promotion. Plus a major announcement that originally had me with mixed reactions regarding it, but it looks to be for the better as EXW has a venue change starting in October.

At first, I wasn't crazy about the change, as the venue is Celebrity Theatre. Celebrity is known for parking fees, service fees, & facility fees...so you could see why I wasn't crazy about it. But after talking with a reliable source & being informed that all that will be covered in a flat fee of 10 bucks, it did have me feeling better. I don't mind paying ten bucks to support a local wrestling promotion. And by bringing it to Celebrity Theatre, you're giving the wrestlers a higher roof to work with for aerial moves & you're giving fans a more centralized location. For months, fans on the west side have begged for a show...now they got one that's much more closer. So definetly not a bad thing!

And on that note, here we begin!

Highs:
Mike James versus Rocky (didn't catch his last name)...surpassed the James/Manson Match as a Match of the Year Canidate. These 2 guys brought it to the Xtreme & made it hard for the rest of the show to top that. It's always great to see Mike get the freedom to do what he does best...and even better when a newcomer like Rocky gets to shine the way he did! The dueling chair battle was honestly the sickest chair/sword fight I have EVER seen! And the use of the ladder was even better then the use for Dom/Gallo TLC Last year.
Sitting at my table was Monster...always good to hang with him....and Tommy Drake....great to see Drake again & catch up with him, plus joke around with him.
Venue change to Celebrity Theatre...I currently do like the location & wish them, nothing but luck
Gabriel Gallo/Dom Vitalli versus Cutler Wright/Willie Mack was a strong main event. And an even better play on the Cutler/Gallo story.
Shadow Fox/Cedric the Hitman would fall into the second match of the night. Very strong showing on both parts & the strongest for Shadow Fox in a long time.
Josh Carey gets a win over Ryan Castellucci. Definetly the highest point in Josh's career. I've said it before & I'll say it again...Josh improves in strides each & every show.
Pali Prince cuts another great promo that gets interupted by an even better promo from Lawrence Tyler. And to make it better, it doesn't end with a beatdown that fans probally wanted, but a challenge to have Pali Prince versus an opponent of LT's chosing with the stipulation be that it's not LT.
EXW sponsored a food drive to help a local food bank. Well done with another way of getting the name to the community.
Dexter is looking better each show...and with his gimmick, no mic actually helps him since he's preaching to the fans via ringside banter.
Clutch looked solid in the Triple Threat Match & continues to grow.
Sandmanson....'nuff said!
Though nervous at first, Joe Vernola fit into his role as on the spot ring announcer. He wasn't out there, trying to be a character or make himself part of the show...he was just there to tell you what's next.


Lows:

Val's promo...sad, but true. Yes, he broke the news of the venue change. Yes, he announced that Giant Bernard will be there. But it just all seemed lost in the shuffle with the company's focus elsewhere as of late.
The opening Triple Threat...how does 1 wrestler win by dq in a Triple Threat? Makes no sense.
Woody versus Lucha Starr...not a strong match & Woody just appears lost in the shuffle.
I say good things about Josh above, but he did have a couple of bad spots that were obvious.
"Sal's gonna die" is officially a dead chant.
No Mosh Pit Mike, Ray Basura, Rexx Reed, or Kyle Hawk.
My usual crew of AJ, Will, or Brett weren't there to hang with.
Tyson Tyler appears to have no direction anymore & just another face in the crowd after a huge storyline.
"Puts some pants on!"? Ryan Lynch does not approve of that chant!
I really don't think it was wise of the camera man to focus on the fans chanting "TNK", as the New Kliq are not a part of EXW. And the camera man did it quite a few times, even trying to egg the fans on for more footage.


And so with EXW stepping back up to where they should be, the next show should be interesting. It's officially the last show at Toby Keith's for whatever reason why, only they know (bad service, not everybody buying food, not everybody tipped well, kicked out, crowded space, low ceilings....who knows!)...so how do you go out with a bang?

FREE SHOW SEPTEMBER 28TH! And hopefully it will be better then the last free show if you want to draw more fans in to follow you to Celebrity Theatre!

[El Torito World Order]

So after mocking you, insulting you both literally and with the product they presented you with, threatening to ban you, and openly showing they have no regard for the thoughts of their customer base.... you openly encourage both a price increase and a move to a (didn't think this was possible) less desirable venue than Toby Keith's? That sad man. You had a chance to stand your moral high ground and instead you ran back into their arms.

I made the mistake of going to a free show last time they had one. Turns out it wasn't free. It cost me 3 hours of my life. At least the last show had (reasonably) cheap beer and Robocop. I doubt CT has enough low-cost alcohol to get me through the show, and unless the Ghostbusters show up, I just don't think I could get through that shit. I feel bad because not only do they make me not want to come support the nice guys who work hard and bust ass to entertain, they make me skip even reading about it because it just doesn't matter.

[gdt34]

Last nights show was a definate step in the right direction. The booking was up and down but I was glad that i took the family to the show.
The Mike James/Rocky Steinmetz match stole the show. I loved every second of that match. Tyler and Woody seem to be lost in the muddle. I don't think the Shadow Fox/ Cedric the Hitman match was supposed to end that way. I hope that Shadow is ok, that landing looked terrible. Carey/Castellucci was an ok match, blown ending, but ok.
The think that drives me crazy, is that we fans can sometimes tell who is going to win even before the match starts. Tyler and the Dude, Woody and Luchastarr. The surprise is gone.
Were have all the Tag Teams gone??
As far aas the TNK "flash mob", I liked it. I drew attention to the fact that these fans want more people in EXW. I got the attention of the camera men and the announcers, the people around them, I like that these fans want more in EXW than the same old roster. I support them. If the camera men turned and got footage of it, thats fine, no blood no foul.
The show on the 27th should be the biggest show of the year to get fans to drive into Phoenix and pay more to watch. I know i'll be watching.............

[El Torito World Order]

Wait one of the highlights of the night was a bunch of people cheering for things that aren't even part of this show?

I LOVE IT!

[gdt34]

To me it was unexpected and cool. If people want new wrestlers in EXW, they should come up with ways to get them noticed. The "flash mob" did no damage to the match going on, and wasn't chanting all that long. In my opinion, it should happen more often.

[Toom E. Guci]

As I said on Facebook, it was 1 person who I did not get along with on a certain subject matter that we did not see eye to eye to. But honestly, that's over & done with...a thing of the past that the person & I involved have both grown up & let go. As a matter of fact, we had a nice, normal conversation last night about last night's show & the venue change.

Why did I attend, to answer your question...I am a fan of wrestling. I have friends that wrestle. I support wrestling as a whole & I support my friends 100%. I have no problem, nor have I ever had a problem, paying for a show. At the cost increase...a 3 whole dollar increase. Big deal! We've paid more for crappier shows...WAE anybody?

If you think about, some folks involved with EXW do care about what the fans think. You'd be surprised at how many folks ask me within the company if I was doing my Highs & Lows. Just like in IZW, there are people who do value the opinion of the fans. Yes, some folks have a problem with opinion, but other folks do not have a problem. Some folks have gotten angry over my opinion, & some folks get over it the very next day while others hold a grudge.

And as I said, last night's show was a strong step in the right direction. Are they always going to do great shows? Read my past Highs & Lows & you will see...no they won't. Not every wrestling promotion is always going to do a great show. IZW was the same way, as was RPW, WAE, WSW, & any others who came before.

Doesn't mean I need to stop going to support the Mike James', the Ray Basura's, the Mosh Pit Mikes', or the Pali Prince's...it just means I was unhappy for that week. Yet, in a 2 hour window...I get more wrestling then I do on Raw, Smackdown, or TNA.

[El Torito World Order]

I guess you're just not a man of strong moral convictions.

WAE was so bad it was funny. The same does not apply here. Maybe if it had a constantly winded Scott Norton or an insane Heidenreich yelling at people and demanding they buy his DVD's.

A $3 increase to tickets at a show that shouldn't cost $7 is unreal. You know what cost $7? IZW. I hate to compare the two because I hate when they get compared, but look at what you got there vs what you get now for $3 more. Small difference? Yes. But that doesn't make it meaningless.

If I were in their position, I'd love seeing a review of my work too. Especially because the friendlier ones after get to read positive things about themselves.

[Toom E. Guci]

Moral conviction would be me saying I'm never coming back & then coming back like a month later.

I never said I was done with EXW. I never said I was not going back to watch EXW.

Feel the way ya want, that's fine. Believe what ya want as well....it's cool. But the truth is that I support wrestling & what they do in the ring. I am not letting the behind the scenes stuff phase me because, frankly, I'm not behind the scenes.