wrestling / Columns

Watry Attends An Independent Wrestling Show

October 3, 2018 | Posted by Justin Watry
Ken Anderson Wrestling Ken Anderson’s Image Credit: TNA

Let’s get right to it.

Backstory

Everything I wrote last week was 100% true. I don’t watch WWE Raw on Monday nights. I watch the Hulu version the next day. I also don’t watch WWE Smackdown Live on Tuesday nights. I watch the Hulu version the next day. I don’t follow Shimmer, Evolve, New Japan Pro Wrestling, or Ring Of Honor in the slightest. I didn’t check out ALL IN nor do I plan to, despite having the chance to attend live in Chicago a few weeks back. All the items listed as to why I am NOT a wrestling fan are factual.

Here is one thing I left out about the column though – it was always intended to be a two part story. Last week was the beginning. Here is your payoff…

On Saturday night, I went to an independent wrestling show in Cedarburg, Wisconsin called GLCW: Fall Brawl. From the local promotion Great Lakes Championship Wrestling, my girlfriend and I had plans to go there for awhile now, and I knew it would make the perfect segue into a little two part column. Here are my thoughts on the event…

GLCW Review

Arrival – I got off work after 6pm and made the drive to the building, which doubled as a bowling alley (usually very packed) and had a big banquet hall under the same roof. Bell time was listed as 7pm on Facebook, so I had my girlfriend meet me there. No way would there be time to do anything else beforehand. As fate would have it, I ended up being right behind her on the road on the way. We arrived a few minutes before the opening match was to begin. I quickly changed into my awesome custom made WWE suit (same one from my Orlando WrestleMania 33 trip). As we entered, it was $25 for a front row seat and meet/greet with Mr. Anderson or Swoggle, $20 for second row…and $15 for third row and beyond. We went with the cheapest option and found a nice center spot in the third row. Of course, the show didn’t end up starting at 7pm; that was changed to 7:30pm as was originally advertised two months ago. No sweat. Just more time to get food or a drink.

Stars Advertised – Right off the bat, I knew three stars on the marquee. As noted, Swoggle was there. I saw him at the merchandise table as I walked to my seat. The other big name set for the show was Mr. Anderson (more on that later) and Jay Bradley. For those of you who remember, I actually interviewed Jay Bradley a few years ago for 411mania. It was during his TNA Impact Wrestling run. Just a short while after the interview, he left the company. he was also hovering around the merchandise tables at the front door. I saw him later at the bar talking with somebody (not a wrestler).

Mr. No Show…No Show? – I don’t want to accuse GLCW of anything because they are top notch. The promoter has a great reputation and is well connected to the industry. That being said, Mr. Anderson was on the poster and had been shown on the GLCW Facebook page up until a day before the event. He wasn’t there. No main event versus Jay Bradley as hyped. No meet/greet session. No explanation. No announcement. Nothing. Personally, I didn’t really care. I was going anyways but still. I am hesitant to ask or dig for a reason why, but he was absolutely the MAIN star advertised and was nowhere to be found.

Opening – After a ten minute countdown, we were ready to start. The one and only Linda Kay asked us all to stand for the national anthem, except nothing ever played over the loud speaks. After about 30 seconds, a wrestler’s theme kicked on, and we went right to the action! I am not going to sit here and pretend to know the names of the wrestlers or even remember who won, but I will tell you this. We sure did pick the right spot because right in font of us was clearly the ‘drunk hecklers.’ It seems every sports event has that group where it borderlines on annoying and hilarious depending on the comments. it took all of five seconds for the first remark, as the referee trotted out to one man yelling “YOU SUCK! WE WANT A NEW REF!” It set the tone for the rest of the evening.

Action – I will say this. The in ring action was your basic stuff. Arm drags, body slams, whip tosses, rest holds, etc. However, all of told a story. The heel was cocky and would banter with the fans and taunt the kids, while the faces would clap to get everyone on his side and high five people at ringside. Very fun and old school junk that is often times forgotten about in WWE. One of my favorite parts of the event was the facial reactions. From the second the heels would enter through the curtain to the time they left, it was 100% bad guy. Growl at the kids, steal their food, insult host Linda Kay, make fun of the young looking referee, everything you can think off. Ditto for the faces. One of the goof guys (wish I kne the name) even had kid lining up to get his autograph afterwards. Very friendly and had a huge smile on his face the entire time.

Next Event – Melina Perez will challenge Katie Forbes for the GLCW Ladies Championship in November. Beauties And The Beasts is the title of the show. Hmmm…

Jay Bradley – Again, the advertised Jay Bradley vs. Ken Anderson match never took place. Instead, Bradley beat up on somebody I don’t know. He ended up getting the victory but not before being mocked for his ‘pretty boots.’ The whole match was the drunk hecklers chanting pretty boots at him. Entertaining and hilarious due to the fact that Jay was indeed wearing pretty boots. Weird. Dude is a beast though. Deserves another shot at the big stage as a bruising brawler.

Main Event – At about two hours, we got our main event match. Swoggle and somebody else tagged together as Tag Team Move to take on two gentlemen I have never seen before. I guess this was the audible call to close the show. I know many may not like this comment, but Swoggle was EXCELLENT! Amazing talent. Got the crowd involved. Had them laughing with his antics and very invested in the tag team bout. Very cool and was perfect in the small intimate setting. Obviously, he got the win in the end and took photos with fans in the ring after for five bucks each. No thanks, we left at that moment.

Final Thoughts – Very enjoyable. Screw Mr. Anderson not showing. Like I said, I will give everybody the benefit of the doubt here. Just saying – no update or explanation is not cool. Ironic coming from me, but it is true. I had a blast. Picked up a Spotted Cow at intermission. Maybe that was why, but honestly I had a great time. Fun and would absolutely go back. It had been awhile since my last GLCW show here in Wisconsin. Going to guess about 100 fans or so. Their big Blizzard Brawl usually gets a few thousand, so if you are in the area wanting to go, that is probably the best option. I asked my (non wrestling fan) girlfriend what she thought of the show afterwards. Her reply: “I liked it.” Considering she was clapping and cheering/booing like everybody else, I think she more than liked it…but that’s just my opinion.

Long story short, I knew what I was writing last week about NOT being a wrestling fan, and I knew I was attending an independent show a few days late as a BIG wrestling fan. The exact one two punch I as looking for. More will be written in my monthly ‘reader feedback’ column. Stay tuned.

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article topics :

Ken Anderson, Justin Watry