This was both my first PBW show of the year (Rob and I were in Manchester for TNA the same date as Maybole and I was ill the day of the Airdrie show) and the first time ever in the Pavilion Theatre. I wasn't really sure how this would work with the ring up on a stage and everyone seated to one side but I figured it was worth checking out.
Now please remember these blogs are just my opinion and I don't expect everyone to agree with what I write so please bear this in mind! For me, as lovely as the Pavilion was, the atmosphere just wasn't the same. I love to get in the heel's faces and have them insult me or tell me to shut up while I am booing them, but at the Pavilion this was only possible if you were sitting in the front row. Most of the wrestlers entered from the side of the stage instead of making their way to the ring through the stalls which I thought would have been way cooler! The other disadvantage was having the ring so much higher than seating level meant there were less opportunities for really good photos unless I stood up (so jealous of a certain Mr Wilson who always gets the really cool shots). My other moan would be with the venue staff. Early in the show I had a female member of staff ask me to sit down as I was obstructing the view of people behind me.....well I may be a loudmouth but I am not ignorant and had there been anyone sitting behind me I would not have been standing but the seats behind me were empty so I don't get what the problem was...unless I was obstructing her view from her spot beside the doors! Then she came back and complained that my camera flash was annoying people - so I turned it off. When I got up to dance during Grado's entrance, a male member of staff asked me to sit down - when I asked him what the problem was as there was no-one behind me he said there was a no standing rule. I am just surprised they didn't ask me to be quiet because they seemed to have a problem with everything else I did!!!
Now on to the positives...the show itself. Once again Ross Watson put together a fantastic show. First match was fan favourites Just Uz against the Coffey Brothers, Mark and Joe. This match took place in the ring, on the stage in front of the ring and even made its way into the stalls for a short time. A great high energy match which ended in the win for Just Uz, but I am liking the Coffey Brothers more each time I see them wrestle - future tag champs I think!
Next was Scott Maverick up against "The Unstoppable" Andy Wild. Another solid match which went back and forth while the crowd chanted "Let's Go Wild" until Andy scored the pinfall.
The next match was scheduled to be a PBW title match between "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson, accompanied by Carmel Jacob, and Noam Dar. As Dar was injured, Thomson issued an open challenge to anyone from the PBW Academy. The challenge was answered by "Mexican" El Technico, a big guy in orange trunks and an orange and black mask with bits flying that just reminded me of the alien in the Predator movies and even whiter skin than me. If you are going with the Mexican thing mate, invest in some fake tan!! This was not a bad match but the crowd were pretty quiet. This can happen with unknown wrestlers and no-one wanted to chant for Thomson. El Technico showed some good moves but as I have often said to Liam, he only wins when Carmel is there to do it for him and this proved true once again as Carmel's interference was the only reason for Thomson's win.
The second half started with Red Lightning entering accompanied by Charles Boddington. He made reference to being attacked and hiring Boddington as protection. This was greeted by chants of "baldie midget". Then the crowd went wild as his opponent entered via the centre aisle of the stalls...the one and only Grado! There were hysterics as Grado tried and failed to squeeze between the handrail on the stage steps and a large speaker...and more when he was dragged up onto the stage by David Wilson, official photographer as mentioned earlier! Grado is an amazing entertainer and really gets the crowd behind him. Once the match was underway there were the usual underhand tactics by Boddington to try to get his man the win but it backfired when he tried to use his briefcase on Grado and took out Red Lightning instead. Grado scored the win and the crowd went wild again.
Next up was a tag match with the heels TJ Rage and James Scott facing Kenny Williams and Davey Blaze. James Scott's build and hairdo has earned him the nickname of "wee fat Taz" and I admit to starting said chant....and the filthy look I got from TJ Rage was brilliant, so I gave him a wee wave and shouted "Hiya TJ" That was the closest I got to actual interaction during the show but I will still take it! This was a pretty brutal match and no matter how much the crowd chanted for Kenny and Davey, it was the heels who took the win.
The final match up of the night was Jack Jester against Wolfgang. The majority of the crowd were firmly in the Wolfgang camp, however I did my best to keep the Jester chants going throughout much of the match and I have to say I think I did pretty well. This was another match that took place in the ring, on the stage and in the stalls. Both men pulled off some great moves but eventually Wolfgang took the win.
After the show, fans could meet and have photos taken with the wrestlers. This was actually done in the street in front of the theatre. Thankfully it wasn't raining as some of the guys were still in their wrestling gear! Had a wee chat with Andy Wild about his black eye at PWE - thankfully he had got it checked and it was okay but it had looked really bad. Got my pic taken with Jester wearing my new Jester t-shirt and he thanked me for photos I had taken the night before of him with his baby nephew and had printed for him. I also had a pic taken with Wolfgang, who I have often told I will always cheer, just not always for him. As you can see, I am not impressed by his win, and he is not impressed by my shirt!!
Anyway, my final thoughts are this....the show was fantastic but I wasn't keen on the venue. It was great if you wanted to take young kids along and there were a lot of youngsters here, but it wasn't for me.Check out PBW's Facebook for details of future events.
No comments:
Post a Comment