Keith Houchen Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 Just now, Supremo said: wrestlers team elves Now THAT"LL get the kids hooked! They're always showing a Lord Of The Rings type on a saturday afternoon, and Alex Shane looks like a cave troll. Perfect tie-in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Fatty Facesitter Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 Finally got round to watching episode it this morning. Apologies for the relative essay - - Thought the studio looked the part. My Uni used to be based at Epic Studios and it always grim when it isn't lit properly. But I thought the 'WOS Arena' actually looked a lot more modern and colourful than when WWE did their own taping there last year. Taped/manipulated or not, it looked like the audience had a great time. - Thought the in-ring action was great, especially considering they actually didn't have much time with four matches and tons of ad breaks crammed in. - Commentary was fine - Bennett's additional lines really added to it and I think there's a nice little dynamic between the three of them that viewers will further buy into over time. - As others have rightly pointed out - this show clearly wasn't aimed at what you'd call your traditional wrestling fan, which is fine in itself and I think a sensible strategy for ITV. - In terms of the way the show was edited - a huge amount of the general public don't really know the mechanics of how television shows are put together or really make much of a comment on how things are edited. I do agree with the comments listed previously - it came across as very clunky, the audio levels on comentary were peaking too much and it looks as though the show has been edited live without much work to repair certain errors in post-production by re-inserting a quick clip from a different angle or such like. But I get their theory behind their styling - quick cuts can subtly add to the pace of a production, just as with most action-based TV shows of films. So again, the execution could have been much better and more care could've been exercised in the edit suite afterwards, but I understand the reasons behind the pacing and I don't think Joe Public will be as conscious about this aspect. - The one bug bear I had from this to expand on the point above on this not being aimed at the traditional wrestling fan - as good as the action was - the show if anything probably had TOO much wrestling on it. - As with any TV Pilot (I know this wasn't technically the pilot but you catch my drift), establishing a core set of characters early doors is crucial, and so is getting to know their personalities, and really apart from probably Stu Bennett, Kip Sabian making the most of a backstage promo and Grado (More on him in a bit). They had a real opportunity here to expand on people. Adam from Love Island could be a huge heel on this show, and he can even borrow elements from that show to add to his character. Have him walk around backstage constantly taking selfies and drinking out his own personalised water bottle (merch!), stage a diary-room-esque set for him to do pieces to camera commenting on issues surrounding the show, have him in the middle of the ring about to meet his foe, then something bleeps, he checks his phone and shouts "I've got a text!" and announce that Bennett has just made this match no DQ, or this match is to be restarted, there's literally tons of shit you could do with that adding to the fact he already really fancies himself. Fuck, you could even build a small stable around him with previous Love island villans acting as part of his entourage. - Similarly with people like Rampage - yes, he looks intimidating and he can carry himself in the ring, great. But WHY is he called Rampage? Where did he get that name from? Ditto Krater - yes he looks big, he looks menacing, but why not have some kind of quick vignette about his past, build up that mystique factor, etc? Why should we give a flying fuck about any of these people? There weren't really any name graphics, no small vignettes to introduce who they were, nothing like that. We know British Bulldog junior is the son of a legend, that doesn't need much explanation, but why we should Joe Public care about Will Ospreay before he steps in the ring? Before any contestant goes into a reality type show, there's a quick vignette about who they are, what they do, where they come from, what their motivations are. In WWE's case they sometimes even used to revert to the pop-up window in the corner of the screen as the superstars walked to the ring - even something as subtle as that would do. - With Grado - he's brilliant in the Les Kellett type of role, but I think putting him in the main event to start with and having him be the top babyface challenger is a mistake. Again, keep in mind this isn't aimed at your traditional fan. I think before you put him in that kind of scenario, you need to take the audience on a journey with them first so they can get to know him, love his comedy antics and effectively build him up to what you'd call main event level slowly. The opening promo dynamic was actually quite confusing, in the sense that Bennett was talking about taking the brand to another level, but then you have Grado coming out, and the worst part of Bennett's in-character criticisms of Grado were that they had a ring of truth about them. Now, if you change tact and have Grado do a few exhibition/comedy matches on TV for a few weeks and you run this same segment again, by this point the audience are most invested in Grado, they'll have already seen amazing action from the other members of the roster, and a potential Austin/Vince type run has much more steam behind it. Imagine having a few weeks invested in this and THEN have Grado talking about his training regime about walking his dog twice a day, sometimes THREE times a day. Don't get me wrong, Grado is brilliant and he's already proven he can be a top guy elsewhere, but I'm thinking purely from the point of view of Joe Public here and the journey they need to be taken on with him. - I think Harry Smith would be the perfect role for lead babyface on the show. He naturally bridges the gap between the old era and the new era, looks imposing but as evidenced by the match with Ospreay he can go at a decent pace. He's not the best wrestler on the show or potentially even the best character, but he is the kind of bridge that the show really could have utilised. However, it's possible that ITV wouldn't feel comfortable presenting to him to a wider audience on something like This Morning or the like, and perhaps Grado is much more comfortable in that sort of environment hence them putting their eggs into his basket. But there's no reason you couldn't have Bennett do that and hype him up on his behalf etc. - Overall I think it was a really interesting first episode and I'd love it to succeed - I think it's too early to call how it will go at this point but my key takeaway would be the show needs more character development. The potential is there, it's all about the execution now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 I don't want it to fail as all we will be left with is beardy mouth breathers who refer to wrestling as "The Graps" and whine about how Daniel Bryan is been held back. Wrestling is like the Black Pudding industry, it constantly needs new blood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Carbomb Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 2 minutes ago, Lion_of_the_Midlands said: Wrestling is like the Black Pudding industry, it constantly needs new blood. So does Tampax. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 9 minutes ago, Carbomb said: So does Tampax. I thought of black pudding because I'm a greedy bastard Carbomb, you thought of Tampax because you are a stuck up c... Never mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAlexShane Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 41 minutes ago, Fatty Facesitter said: Adam from Love Island could be a huge heel on this show, and he can even borrow elements from that show to add to his character. Have him walk around backstage constantly taking selfies and drinking out his own personalised water bottle (merch!), stage a diary-room-esque set for him to do pieces to camera commenting on issues surrounding the show, have him in the middle of the ring about to meet his foe, then something bleeps, he checks his phone and shouts "I've got a text!" and announce that Bennett has just made this match no DQ, or this match is to be restarted, there's literally tons of shit you could do with that adding to the fact he already really fancies himself. Fuck, you could even build a small stable around him with previous Love island villans acting as part of his entourage. - You do realise Maxted was on Love Island a few years ago and for about 5 minutes. It's about as relevant as having who finished 6th on Big Brother back when Cameron won it on any show I seriously doubt any wrestling fan is also a Love Island fan that show is aimed at brain dead Reality tv wannabes girls of about 18-25 how many of these are also going to be wrestling nerds ? You are also highly unlikely to see Will or The British Bullpup wrestle anyone else on TV as they are both under NJPW contracts which would restrict who / what they can do on another TV show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 Who is Crater anyway? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members PunkStep Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 Wrestles for NGW under the name Cyanide. I saw him at Butlins earlier this year. Fairly imposing look, but nothing more. I watched this with the kids on Saturday night. It was ok, not as good as the pilot but some things had been ironed out. Enjoyed Ospreay VS Smith, without knowing either wrestler's finish (although I assumed Smith's would the the running powerslam) they hooked me with a few near falls. Both could end up being the two stars of this show. Thought the finish to the first match was a bit messy and unclear, also I wouldn't have started the first show with a 5-man cluster, but it was a good way to introduce a few guys early on. Still think Syzum is a bit shit, but he'll be fine in his role here. Rampage is good and Sha is boss. Love those two. Didn't watch much of the tag match as the Sky reception fucked up the recording, may have to watch it later. Same with the backstage interviews. The commentary didn't detract me from the action surprising and the production was pretty slick. I can't say I noticed the dodgy camera angles everyone has been mentioning. Overall, not a bad little show. My 8yo daughter was well into it, my 6yo son got bored and read a Pokemon book instead. They saw Liam Slater on the preview for next week, so they got all excited when they saw him at Butlins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAlexShane Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 4 minutes ago, Egg Shen said: Who is Crater anyway? Alex Cyanide https://twitter.com/alexcyanide Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Hannibal Scorch Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 Crater was like Abyss but with none of the ability. Worse thing on the show. Even more then the botch or So Cal Val's "commentary" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Houchen Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 37 minutes ago, NotAlexShane said: You do realise Maxted was on Love Island a few years ago and for about 5 minutes. It's about as relevant as having who finished 6th on Big Brother back when Cameron won it on any show I seriously doubt any wrestling fan is also a Love Island fan that show is aimed at brain dead Reality tv wannabes girls of about 18-25 how many of these are also going to be wrestling nerds ? Isn't that all the more reason to ramp it up to the max? His character thinks he is a household name, a big deal, whereas everyone else no idea who the egomaniac is? Hollywood Hogan wasn't exactly box office gold. Saying that though, it's all filmed now so we will have to see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAlexShane Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 6 minutes ago, Keith Houchen said: Isn't that all the more reason to ramp it up to the max? His character thinks he is a household name, a big deal, whereas everyone else no idea who the egomaniac is? Hollywood Hogan wasn't exactly box office gold. Saying that though, it's all filmed now so we will have to see how it goes. Well its that point of heel work that you run the risk of upsetting the viewers to the point where they turn off rather than tune in to see someone get their comeuppance. To me any program that has anyone on from bad reality TV like Love Island Towie etc and I turn off same with Piers Morgan or Katie Hopkins. I couldn't careless if a program promised me Piers Morgan getting castrated with a rusty piece of barb wire I would not watch it. My only concern with Maxted is he isn't good or slick enough with his ring craft work to carry off any major focused storyline. His promos seem like he is reading autocue etc and he seems to wrestle by numbers when trying to be a heel. Not really criticising him as he hasn't been wrestling long enough to get to that level required but if you watch say Rampage he comes over as very believable as does Sha. But anyway what a wonderful position to be in being able able to discuss British Wrestling on ITV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members SpursRiot2012 Posted July 30, 2018 Paid Members Share Posted July 30, 2018 I reckon Piers Morgan getting castrated with rusty barbed wire would do gang busters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon-Carr_92 Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 I still remember Cyanide going on British Boot Camp and he was challenged to do squats and he gassed really quickly. He looked a right clown. I just can't take him seriously after seeing that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotAlexShane Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 6 minutes ago, Jon-Carr_92 said: I still remember Cyanide going on British Boot Camp and he was challenged to do squats and he gassed really quickly. He looked a right clown. I just can't take him seriously after seeing that. To be fair to the lad that was filmed around 4 years ago. If you compare say Party Marty Scrull from his bootcamp appearances to the Villain 4 years later they are light years apart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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