Pro Wrestling Ponderings

It seems like no matter how many times I try to leave, I’m always drawn back to the squared circle. There always seems to be something that entices me enough to rethink my decision, and it’s usually something completely innovative that makes a genuine effort to rejuvenate the sport.

After The Cool Kids Table - for which I was a writer for three months - shut down and the burnout I was experiencing from professional wrestling still had not yet subsided, I decided that once Wrestlemania 25 had wrapped up I would be taking a break. This wasn’t the first time I decided to stop watching wrestling. Right after Wrestlemania 19, I had grown distant enough from the sport that calling it quits seemed like an inevitability. Eventually, various college roommates brought me back to the fold in late 2005, right around the time that Samoa Joe and Kenta Kobashi were making headlines with their epic encounter in Ring Of Honor. I was hooked again.

During the resurgence of my fandom, I witnessed some pretty extraordinary events. I made the first of many trips to the ECW Arena, the most memorable of which came from TNA, which featured the homecomings of Jerry Lynn, the Dudleys Boys, Rhino, and Simon Diamond. I witnessed several amazing moments in the history of ROH first hand, and also met the majority of the roster circa Fall 2006; the most gracious of whom I found to be the Briscoe Brothers and Colt Cabana. I was there live to witness the last match of Ric Flair at Wrestlemania 24 - an instant classic. I got to be there for the two nights of filming for “The Wrestler,” and even managed to appear briefly in the movie. Above all else, I finally fulfilled a lifelong dream of meeting one of my heroes in Bret Hart.

I also experienced the worst days of my fandom. Many heroes passed, such as Eddie Guerrero, Bam Bam Bigelow, and Mitsuharu Misawa - whose death I wrote of at length several weeks ago. The darkest of all occurred two years ago when one of my all time favorites permanently blemished the sport with it’s darkest mark yet. I considered walking away then and there, but I managed to stick it out for a little while longer, even though I knew my heart would never be into wrestling the way it use to be.

So I called it quits this past March. Now I can only make assessments from what I hear in passing. Occasionally I’ll find myself perusing the ROH website or overhearing a friend say that Edge and Jericho are the tag team champions. I would hardly say that I’m in a position to judge the post-Wrestlemania landscape and the decisions that have been made booking-wise since I’m not 100% certain of what’s going on, but one thing I’m not going to do is start watching a product again just out of sheer curiosity when I have no interest whatsoever.

I know there are other things that I could be doing for this site that would be more beneficial to you, the reader, than telling you why I’m hardly interested in this sport that you are clearly into to such an extent that you frequent our little site. I could be telling you which ROH DVDs to buy or whether or not that last episode of RAW was worth catching. But I’m not going to do that anymore. Giving you a half-hearted report on a product I don’t care all that much about is not something I’m interested in doing, and I doubt you’d be interested in reading it if it sucks. But just because I’m not into the majority of the current wrestling landscape doesn’t mean that I don’t have a lot to say about wrestling as a whole.

I have no personal ties to this industry. I have supported it long enough, given thousands upon thousands of dollars and God knows how many hours to it. It has caused me to stand up and cheer because I’ve had something to believe in. It has also made me shed tears and feel grief for the losses suffered and for the frustrations that have accompanied being a fan. This column was based upon me giving my opinion. I did the best to limit the amount of words (1,000 or less) I could use for the sole purpose of giving you the strongest argument that I could. And over the next few weeks, I’m going to give you the best arguments I can for and against certain aspects of this industry. This week’s edition is about a little promotion that will be opening it’s doors in the next two weeks, and if anything, it’s making me second guess my feelings about the current product…

My Case - Dragon Gate USA makes me care about wrestling
Despite making a promise to myself to go on a hiatus from wrestling, a conversation with fellow-former Cool Kid and good friend Kevin Ford brought me to the Chikara website for a scroll down memory lane. This was where I found out about Dragon Gate USA. Could this be, I thought to myself? Is Gabe Sapolsky going back to work? Will there be a brand new promotion that will bring the action and excitement of Dragon Gate to the United States? And would that promotion be partnering up with Chikara, the only other promotion exciting enough to maintain my interest in the current wrestling landscape?

How could one not be intrigued by such an announcement? I mean, there’s always going to be a buzz when a new promotion, particularly one with such notable names attached to it, starts up, but this is truly something else. After all, this seems like every wrestling-geek’s wet dream come true. All the right elements are in place for this one: An offshoot of the most exciting wrestling promotion on the planet. A seasoned booker. The continuation of some classic rivalries. The array of talent, ranging from new blood (The Young Bucks) to the pioneers (2 Cold Scorpio). And two wrestling capitols of the world - Japan and Philadelphia - colliding for a one of a kind showcase. How could I possibly pass up this opportunity? I knew right away that this was not an event to be missed, and if I was going to give wrestling another shot, I was going to have to be there in person to see it for myself.

I always was and still am a big Gabe supporter, and I believe what he needed was a fresh start. With DGUSA, that’s exactly what he’s going to get. This is his opportunity to break new ground the way he did when Ring Of Honor first opened it’s doors in February 2002. Only this is not some kooky experiment for the diehard indy fan base that will be there to fill the void. This is the entree portion of the appetizer that was Ring Of Honor’s first three Supercard Of Honor Dragon Gate showcases. He has Dragon Gate and Chikara - the best of the east and the west - at his disposal for the inaugural event. DGUSA is going to bring a different kind of action and a whole new cast of characters to the national platform. Put simply, it’s going to be a breath of fresh air. That’s exactly why I’m excited for this event. It’s given me cause to say, “Okay, I’ll give this sport another shot.”

The aptly titled “Open The Historic Gate” will be just that - historic. It will open many minds to the bombastic world of Dragon Gate, something that the fans here in the States have only skimmed the surface of. My expectations are mediocre to high: I know this event will be tremendous and will probably cause my jaw to hit the floor several times during the night. At the same time, however, I have to remind myself that this is the first show for the promotion and I want to keep my expectations in check, because I have been disappointed in the past for allowing my own over-hyping to get the best of me. That will not be the case for “Historic Gate.” Gabe promised in a recently-published article that the quality over quantity format will help prevent burnout, and with his experience in booking shows where burnout was a serious problem, I think this is a big opportunity to right a wrong. I think DGUSA will prove to be a promotion that leaves it’s hungry fans salivating for more once they have come down from the post show euphoria.

I’m walking into the Arena with a clear head, as the lack of wrestling in my life for the past several months has given me the opportunity to recharge my batteries. I’m playing the wait and see game, but regardless, I will have coverage of this event as soon as it happens. To say that I can’t wait for it is an understatement. Give me your best Dragon Gate - and I know you will - because I am ready to be made a wrestling fan once again.

Number of words it took me to state my case - 717

That does it for this week’s edition of the Case. I will be back with another edition within the next two weeks about another promotion that I walked away from and don’t anticipate returning to. I hope to have results from “Open The Historic Gate” in as soon as they happen, followed by a complete write-up. Until next time wrestling fans…

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