Went to the house show in Birmingham last night, I'd sum up the experience as follows:
Enjoyed the show, didn't enjoy the experience.
As per usual with any show I go to, fate seems to dump me slap bang in the middle of my worst nightmare. Screaming, over-excited kids are to be expected, Douchebag Adult Fans (herein known as DAFs) are even worse.
3 guys 2 rows back spent the entire show thinking they were at post-Mania Raw. 20-odd times they tried to get a "Super Dragon" chant started to no avail. Just give it up, fellas. Add to that chants for "Botchamania" when they somehow managed to fuck up a pre-recorded Sandow promo, a "kind of face, sort of heel" duelling chant between the three of them for Cesaro that left the kids bewildered, and a bunch of other IWC memes that really should be left on screen and not taken into the arenas.
Thankfully, a dad on the row in front became a Badass Submission Machine, turned around and cut a rousing promo on the DAFs asking them to reel it in a bit. Suddenly "loudmouth heels" became "chicken shit heels" and they were quiet for the rest of the show. End of the 3-Man Audio Circle Jerk.
In addition to these DAFs you had the usual Cena loving kids and really you kind of understand why Cena won't turn when you see the love these kids have for the guy. There's the over-enthusiastic mum in front who was the only one stood up during Cena's match. I had a Kane lookalike sat next to me who insisted that he used to be a wrestler and was telling me about the injury preventing him from getting back in the ring.
Other notes:
- Bray Wyatt has given every overweight DAF who can afford a hat and a hawain shirt an easy choice when it comes to playing dress up.
- it's hard going watching match after match. I think I'd like to go to a tv taping with the added structure of promo time and segments that didn't involve a match.
- too much stalling. Virtually every match had the heel stalling for time at the start of the match. Great heat generator the first time, not so much the 6th match in a row
- Sami Zayn had a match with Sandow. Very disappointed that few knew who he was. They're missing out not watching NXT.
- Brodus Clay came out to his old music in the Funkasaurus gimmick to squash Jinder Mahal, very strange given the recent heel turn
- plenty of YES! chants in spite of no Daniel Bryan. The crowd love to get involved with anything. "he's got the whole world" was very over as was "Let's Go Cena". Strange dynamic at work there.
- Speaking of strange dynamic; Cesaro (sans Heyman). Definitely a heel but the Swing is massively over. The kids around me changed allegiance 6 or 7 times during his match with Ziggler. Hard to tell who was heel/face at any given time.
- kinda wish they had a way of stating who would be there. Whilst I knew that Orton, Shield, Kane and DB (if not for injury) were down in Cardiff, I couldn't help feel the kids we're let down by some of the top guys not being there. At least when they toured as Raw/SmackDown you had a general idea of who to expect.
- No Adam Rose. Gutted.
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