GOLD RUSH - Feedback Thread

[Jerry David]

Hi Everyone,

Feedback on Gold Rush is welcome in all formats, but here are some prompts for you if you aren't sure:

BEST MATCH:
BEST SEGMENT:
BEST ANGLE:
BEST LINE OF THE NIGHT:
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT:

We understand it's a BIG show, so some of you might not get to read it all. That's understandable. But please leave feedback on what you DID read here!

Sign-up's for Domination 10 is also up on the relevant forum!

REMEMBER: NO SIGN UP, NO GO!

Cheers,
sc00t

[pdbnb]

HYPE MODE ENGAGE!!

HERE WE GO BITCHES!!

Welcome to Gold Rush - Nice run down of the card, as ever. Appreciate the nod to the Malibu company that had lots of Girl Power (I'd say look them up
some time, but the boards have been nuked for close to a decade at this point) and the classy way to write off Big Aug.

Daniel Dream Interview - This could have benefitted greatly from an intro and outro, as it feels rushed the way it is. Daniel keeps flip-flopping alignments, being heelish about his bye, then babyface when he talks about Aug. Is he meant to be tweener? This has a very 'early Crusader X' feel to it, in that it exhibits exactly the same flaws I kept pointing out about Blair's character in his early days. Hector can and has done better than this. A miss for me, unfortunately.

Undivided Attention - This segment being placed back to back with the previous one only highlights that one's flaws even further. Reyn being in and out with no extraneous business, for once, and achieving twice what Dream did, in half the time. We may have no babyface to root for in this match, but we now know who acquitted themselves better ahead of it.

A Cruel Truth - Um...WOW? Speaking of Crusader X, HOLY SHIT what a segment. There are a couple of snafus formatting wise, and 'me' is used instead of 'him' in one place, but MAN does the emotion burst through the screen and hit you in the face! Early highlight, and early SoTN contender right here. Try and beat this, everyone.

Reyn v Dream - Ohhh yeah, here we go! If this lasts more than a minute and Dream isn't a vampire by the end of it, I'm invoking the Realism Clause. Unless he's packing Holy Water and a cross, and then it'll last a minute, but the other way around. Other than that HOLY SHIT WHAT A MATCH AND HOLY SHIT THE FINISHING SEQUENCE AND HOLY SHIT THE RESULT and Darring has big shoes to fill here - and so does everybody else if this is THE OPENER HOLY SHIT FIVE STAR MATCH! Also, if you're going to put down a vampire, THAT'S how you do it. Van Helsing gimmick for Dream, pronto!

A Golden Opportunity - Holy crap. They're excited. Can you tell? Uggghh a couple of oversights here grammar wise...I wish I'd caught those.

The Cycle of Truth - Apologies for the length and deliberate pace of this segment. I was trying to show Truth as both a coward and someone full of bluster, and having a time skip seemed the right way to do it.

Queen Bianca vs Jester - ...time travel? OK then. Clever way of doing away with somebody's character without actively misusing them, by implying rather than showing.

Elementary - I hope little Johnny's all right. Doritos about to be in a whole heap of trouble, methinks.

Hell Hath No Fury... - The plot thickens...

RIP Rich Family - The PTA are cemented as top heels. What DICKS. I hope the Riches knock the stuffing out of them.

Respect Match - RESPEEEEECKKKKK!! Good match with a genuinely surprising result, which raises questions about tag team standings and hierarchy. But that's the beauty of surprises - I can't wait to have them answered!

Closer - DoritosVerse and NakedManVerse continue to intersect. Intriguing, but not about wrestling at all, in a show once criticised for having too many character development segments.

The Angel Corps vs Jed's Law - The last to be written, and in my opinion lesser, of my three matches. Still a blast, though. Hopefully, Jed did not look like a little bitch...

A Championship Celebration - Alecz being Alecz and putting the cart before the horses. Whoever wrote him did a good job, even if we do miss his mannerisms...

Right on The Button - The TENSION when you think the 'ship is about to be undone, and then the EXHILARATION when it isn't! A few formatting issues after that, which do not dampen the effectiveness of the segment as a whole.

X vs Amber - With the result a foregone conclusion, this was one of those matches that was more about the ride than the destination. And the ride was a wild one, every step of the way. Another barn burner to add to our list.

Truth vs The Great Wall - I can't remember blazing through a big match as quickly as I did through this one in a LONG time. Incredibly fun to write, and hopefully incredibly fun to read, as well. Also, hey BB - you called it in the predictions, brother.

FTK Stands For What? - I knew this feud was coming, and it's off to a hilarious start here. This is going to be G O O D.

Masters vs Roxx - Here it is. The first, longest and most involved match I wrote this week. When it was pitched to me weeks ago, I said no - ESPECIALLY to the result. Then I was dragged around to it kicking and screaming, and knew I had to write one for the ages to justify it. So i set out to steal the show, and hopefully succeeded.

Time for Action - The usual short, sweet and to the point promo work from our Champ. This is the bar everyone should strive for in terms of promo quality.

The Ecstasy of Gold - Apart from a great opportunity for a pop culture reference, just a fun little coda to the emotional whirlwind that was the match itself. I will be heartbroken when Izzy gets put through a barbershop window eventually----I mean IF she does!

EZ v Jerry: Not a match, but it was never meant to be. Suitably brutal and visceral brawl that epitomizes the feud, with the spot of the night (piledriver onto glass? Are you SHITTING me? OUCH!) and a shocking, cliffhanger ending that reminds us this is a legit TV show, not just a wrestling show. Can't wait to see how EZ made it out, which I am sure he did...

It's Alive! - Called it!

Finale - What a cinematic climactic battle between Pierson and his own personal demon! One of the segments of the night, only let down by a few grammatical oversights. Chris continues to excel at and with this storyline.

I Am The Present - Excellent promo from X (I can seriously not believe how good Blair got this quickly) and just as it looks like it will run long, it sets up something else. X is the star of the PPV, for sure.

Main Event: Great psychology match which, once again, made the ride to the inevitable (and definitive!) conclusion incredibly fun. Fantastic way to close out a fantastic PPV.

FINAL THOUGHTS: ...what a show, guys. Worth the wait. Not a single dud match (with one obvious non-match exception) thrills and spills all the way through, and free of Magnum Opus' main issue, as it was just the right length, and a breeze to read. The new standard for GLOBAL shows, and with nowhere to go but up. Congratulations all around.

[Daniel Dream]

BEST MATCH: Daniel Dream vs Alex Reyn

BEST SEGMENT: Undivided Attention
BEST ANGLE: The World Championship scene looks strong.

Honorable mentions:

EZ Rah always entertains.

We got new tag team champions.

BEST LINE OF THE NIGHT: E Z reaches inside his pants and carefully pulls out a metallic cup, covered in NAILS!
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: Nothing major. I liked the show. One nitpick is the ref's name seemed to switch between 'Barry Snyder' and 'Barry Snider' (and once even Barry Sanders) even within segments which just got my attention.

Hopefully since we're in Hollywood, we can have a cinematic match to determine the real referee, Into The Snyder-verse

[pdbnb]

Feedback now complete up above. As usual, here is the TL;DR version.

BEST MATCH: For wrestling, the opener. For emotions, Rah and David, as we knew it would be.
BEST SEGMENT: Both of Crusader X's. He is the undoubted MVP of this show.
BEST ANGLE: See above.
BEST LINE OF THE NIGHT: There were a few excellent ones.
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: No particular remarks to make this time around. The odd missing or wrong word here and there, but nothing to detract from the show as a whole. Great job from all involved.

[E Z Rah]

What a fantastic show all and I had an absolute blast writing in this arc with Scott and the final match. Massive thanks to Scott for finishing it off for me and giving E Z a cracking send off.

Things are still all over the place with me at the moment after my world basically got turned upside down but right now I’m still focusing on my physical and mental health. When I’m in a better place E Z and I would love to make a return if you all will still have me.

Thanks you all for being so welcoming and supportive. Keep turning out great stuff like this!

Kyle

[Jerry David]

I have deliberately left it open for your return, Kyle. Given how well you’re doing personally I’m sure it won’t be long before everything is sorted and a ‘new normal’ established.

We’ve all got your back, mate. Whatever you need, whenever you need it.

[Legend]

First off - My apologies for not being able to make time for a complete segment-to-segment breakdown right now. It will be at least a week before I can fit that in. If it's warranted or there is interest, I will return and add more context when possible. However, I want to get some thoughts up due to all the hard work of the staff and handler base.

The immediate reaction is the music is 100% an upgrade to Opus!

Segments:

There was some good work here for segment work, and I thought maybe I would see a few pieces that didn't show up, which was a little disappointing, but nothing stood out as a big miss. I think there was a tale of two sides with the segments, it felt. In many ways, this was a tough arc that some of the stories had to muddle through. Some characters needed to be written out, and we kept them going. That showed at this point, but it was quality work, and nothing felt out of place. While we are usually strong on the Segment side, it felt like a step down this time, but in the matches, it took a step up.

Still, some good pieces here that are headlined by the Pierson segment. Wow!

Not the worst place to be on a PPV. Out with the old in with the new!



Matches:

A solid showing for matches on this show. The show opened up with a banger and ended with a feud-orientated match. That felt like a classic PPV booking decision there. Start hot with spots to get the crowd excited... End with tension and send the crowd home happy.

However, in between, there were some good matches. The Tag Respect match, David-Rah's feud blow-off, and plenty of good undercard matches were all quality matches.

This felt like a good showing on the match front. A step up from most shows. Well done to the match writers.


Overall PPV:

It was nice to get through this PPV, especially with our struggles with roster changes through this cycle. Hats to the remaining roster and staff for keeping stories going and coming together to create a quality show. There were a few missing pieces, but that wasn't a big deal. Ultimately, I think it's a show everyone should be proud of.

Top-down - Keegan, Scott, and Chris for keeping things organized through the ups and downs of the cycle and keeping shows coming out on time or pretty darn close to it. The roster stayed motivated even with all the changes, coming together to fill the needed gaps and coming strong at the end to put out a good PPV.

Well done, mates. It's nice to be part of another arc with you all.

[Jerry David]

The immediate reaction is the music is 100% an upgrade to Opus!

Damn! I was sure you'd hate it!

[Jerry David]

BEST MATCH: Hard to say. The main event was well-written, but the outcome was never in any doubt, and the tag title match outcome was also pretty obvious given Crash's current absence.
BEST SEGMENT: Finale.
BEST ANGLE: Pierson.
BEST LINE OF THE NIGHT: "RIP EZs dick" - Kyle, or “So, I said, you want my autograph too? I have a special pen just for you.” - Chris
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: Now the handlers who were dead weight are gone, we're gunna see A) no difference in quantity of writing but, B) not be writing it for the benefit of leeches. That will be where the improvement comes. Good riddance.

Overall show thoughts: I think match/segment balance was about right. I tried to do something different with the Bianca/Jester match to help illustrate what can be done with the GLOBAL concept - that not everything needs to be in-ring, in chronological order, or even really of this world. I'd love to see more people going this route with their storylines. The next arc I have 2 storylines planned, and not a wrestling ring in site. That is deliberate and will no doubt really irritate Brian... A nice little bonus!

Overall arc thoughts: Fuck the naysayers, fuck the flakes, fuck the dead weight. I think we had 1 or 2 shows that were underwhelming in this arc, but we finished strong and, as my wife says, that's all that matters.

[Keegan]

DREAM INTERVIEW: Well, I sold Hector short on time here, and that’s on me. He was eager to get the interview done, and I delayed the questions and perhaps didn’t ask the best ones, either. To me, however, and I’m not just saying it, I thought the interview played out well, and he did a good job. I would like to see him spit more fire on the mike in the third and final arc of the season, especially with which road he’s headed down next.

UNDIVIDED ATTENTION: Short and sweet.

A CRUEL TRUTH: As always, Blair made it easy for my parts. I thought this was an excellent start to what is a wonderful night for the Crusader X character. Blair really brought it.

REYN V DREAM: I’ve read this match 3 times now, so certainly feel qualified to comment on it. Shae seems to be the universally-loved match writer around here, which I’m happy for him to be for plenty of reasons, and I know from speaking to him that he’ll echo what I’m about to say: If you think that his matches have been spectacular so far, just wait for the future.

Adding commentary here, I did have the commentators react to some superb spots and sell the shit out of it. Each to their own, and while this was a very, very good match, I’m not convinced it was MOTN, though no doubt in the conversation and you can see why I wanted it in the opening spot.

A big match for both characters, and great to see people surprised by the result. This was, going in, one of the few genuine 50-50 matches, there aren’t enough of those in wrestling, full stop. Some tremendous spots in here, by default given the writer, but I (and he, no doubt) feel he still has gears to go through, and that can only be a great thing for the fed.

A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY: A nice feelgood segment ahead of a golden opportunity indeed, and some nicely worked CITCF references with golden tickets, and all that. Good stuff.

THE CYCLE OF TRUTH: A well-written segment that typifies everything we know, and love/hate depending on your perspective about the character. He’s a horrible man, no two ways about that, and having just watched a video on Piper…

DAVIS/THE JESTER: A great deal of suspense at the beginning, and that continues. An elongated segment for sure, and it reminded me of a cinematic match, which of course, was the point and purpose behind it, and I don’t mind that at all.

ELEMENTARY: I liked it, particularly the last lines. Indicative of Scott’s style when writing comedic pieces.

HELL HATH NO FURY: Again, an excellent piece, and a shining example of something simple that can be done in GLOBAL, which isn’t elsewhere. I love the Stella character.

RIP RICH FAMILY: Typical attitude on these guys, eh? Kept things ticking along.

RESPECT MATCH: I don’t normally talk about my own matches. I will here just to say sorry to Brian, and I’m relieved people have said they thought it was good, because I don’t. I thought this was poor, I never got going and PTA deserved more because they’re ‘excellent’ in the ring, and one day, I’ll get it right. So, you’ve been too kind, because this was crap. Apologies once again.

CLOSER: I got a kick out of seeing another mention of Goldilocks and The Three Bears…

ANGEL CORPS V JED’S LAW: I, for one, like the names. Both teams deploy tactics you’d expect, and I mean the right type to accentuate their strengths and cover their weaknesses. The commentary, as usual, was also great throughout.

A great period of control by the heels, isolating Angel and gaining sympathy on her – simple, smart, logical. A good level of heat built up for Saul’s hot tag. Psychology 101.

Generally speaking, I thought the tempo and tension was on point. An excellent dynamic in and out of the ring, a really enjoyable affair and a good blow-off match to the feud with the right winners in the end.

A CHAMPIONSHIP CELEBRATION: A well done to the writer and a good job under the circumstances.

RIGHT ON THE BUTTON: This could be even better than the first segment, and Blair did another tremendous job here. I thought this was handled to perfection and right up there as one of the best segments of the night, living up to its name in multiple ways.

CRUSADER X V AMBER LEE: Echoing what Pedro said in his feedback, and also to offer some additional insight, this is the first match Blair has ever written, and even just scrolling, it looked pretty special when I first looked at it.

Built up brilliantly through entrances and commentary, like the previous match was. A very lively start with things that play to both characters, but by the same token, there are key differences that show they’re adjusting to their opponents and the occasion.

This really ramped up, both in terms of quickness and physicality. For me, this was a really, really good match. Amber is showing fantastic resilience, comes back into it – and then not to be. While we knew who was going over coming in for obvious reasons, that was a hell of an effort to still make Amber strong in defeat, and it keeps the Crusader X bandwagon rolling. In my opinion, not only do I agree with the assessment that X was the PPV MVP, I have said for several weeks privately, and now on this forum, he’s been the main man in Arc 2, overall and comfortably. GREAT going.

JOHN J TRUTH V THE GREAT WALL: And…here’s one in contention. I really shouldn’t have put two matches, one after another, so I apologise for that.

Anyway, a nice little rant by Allie at the start. Some things going way above being a face or a heel, and she lets both of these guys have it, both barrels. Some of the barbs back and forth between Allie and The Mark, my goodness. A hell of a build-up to the match actually starting, and those hashtags…congratulations.

I’ll take the blame for this: The cage stipulation should’ve been sold more early doors to the point that I thought I might’ve imagined that was the stipulation, and got it wrong, when in fact, I knew that wasn’t the case.

Nor was I expecting a Mario reference in this match, but credit where it’s due. This also played up what The Great Wall’s strengths were, and what Truth can do to combat those, especially in this environment.

This has quite a lot of drama attached to it, particularly when John J. Truth has an opening. I thought the finish was handled wonderfully well, and this was about the story of the match rather than it being a barnburner, well The Great Wall is involved after all, and It was executed with that in mind.

FTK: Some cracking lines in here between two teams that I’m really looking forward to seeing interact more in the future. Very nicely played.

TAG TEAM TITLES: I’ll take the blame again for placement. WHAT AN ENTRANCE! Besides that, this was full of fantastic commentary and near-falls with sound psychology, that’s my general feelings and thoughts out of the way, early doors. Some very hot close-falls, indeed.
This had the sense that, while reading it, it could go either way. Not easy to do, speaking from experience as a writer and a reader, but Pedro does it perfectly here.

We get that trademark line at the end, on top of a really enjoyable tag match, and I look forward to seeing TR kick on from here, which they most definitely can.

TIME FOR ACTION: A nice go-home segment from one of the best in the business, and a strong ending – a bit like the show to the arc, overall, eh?

THE ECSTACY OF GOLD: I knew about this segment coming in, but still a lovely, emotional moment for the girls and a nice distinction between my/our. Very nice.

RAH/DAVID: Very few things in this hobby actually make me laugh, so to even get a smirk out of me is a good job, and this match managed that in the first few lines, so well done. I thought the scene of him taking a cab was cool and different. I just hope EZ Rah gave him the right time, so Jerry David wasn’t 15 minutes late, only to try and face time him and tell him that all the fans were ready to watch the match. That would’ve been something.

I am picturing chaotic brawling at the start, which suits me. Braced for a match with no commentary, which is refreshing considering, even though everybody has done a fine job with that thus far.

That big boot spot sounded painful. Most things these two guys do. Basic but brutal when they’re facing one another, at least at the start. I can see Rah pulling some crazy stunts out of the bag as this wears on. Then, you’ve got the glass spot not long afterwards, and the fact that it didn’t break got more of a reaction out of me than if it had. Ouch!

Then, naturally, it goes and breaks not long thereafter. This is already living up to expectations. And the sequence where David can’t see anything but Rah can, the moves were like a real fight, nothing fancy but all hurtful and personal. I have to say that I enjoyed Jerry telling a joke in the middle of a match, one in which they’re fucking each other up.

Oh my goodness, here’s another joke and it’s not a one-liner either. This was the eW equivalent of an Austin ‘WHAT’ promo, except with stomps being the punch/kick line. Good grief, that was GREAT.

Then, the spear spot turns everything on its head. And what a TWSIT on the ‘dick spot.’ Reminded me of Bret/Goldberg in a good way, and I did not see that one coming…NOT what she said.

These two are sick, sick men. Bad men. I don’t know if I’d call it MOTN, but it’s the one I had the most fun reading for all kinds of reasons, and a big well done to Scott and Kyle on two triumphant arcs where this feud and the two PPV matches have stood out. They both deserve tremendous credit, and it has been a joy to read. I loved this match, for what it’s worth.

IT’S ALIVE: Thank fuck for that! Talk about getting in and out with a segment. It certainly achieved a lot.

FINALE: That accomplished so much, and I’ve been privy to that for months, but it was still a superb read and shows the potential Pierson has here in GLOBAL. One of the most memorable pieces not just on this show, but in the arc and beyond, what a character Christian Pierson is, and Manny, too. First-rate dialogue and a fabulous finish to ‘the feud’ to boot. What’s next for Pierson? That’s a question I’m pondering more as a fan than a fed head.

I AM THE PRESENT: Cryptic, two-faced and it’s odd, because you think you get X as a character, and then you kind of don’t. He’s multi-layered, again something I think more can grasp better here in GLOBAL, and Blair hasn’t put a foot wrong tonight. I don’t know where this is going, but I’m excited to find out.

MAIN EVENT: A big thank you to Brian for stepping up and writing this. His matches have been underrated in my personal opinion, and the entrances here were done to perfection, lasting just enough to have a big-match feel without outstaying their welcome. A lot of sound commentary highlighting why ATG is a threat to Darring’s title.

I like that ATG is showing a different side, I imagine you’d have to in a real-life situation and that reminds me of Shawn at WM12. It stands to reason that Aleczander would use his physical advantages and mind games too, and take the early portion of the match. Plenty of sound reminders why Aleczander should be taken seriously.

The slap, the arrogant cover, the Darring chants…they make Aleczander feel like the one to overcome, not the champion himself, who is fighting from underneath.

A brutal spot on the outside. The commentary adds plenty of insight throughout, so well done on that, sir.

In terms of the story, this may be top of the list for the night. It’s definitely in contention for MOTN, too, something I felt when I originally read it, and upon second reading, too.

The pacing and psychology have both been masterful. Just when it looked like ATG would win, Darring pulls out the rug from underneath and both men look strong coming out of the match, and Brian did a brilliant job, considering we knew who was going to win all along.

And a typically great sell job ahead of what the season finale main event will be. Fantastically done.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Well, after a disappointing arc, the go-home show and Gold Rush have ‘rescued’ the arc. I wasn’t enthused coming into this show, and that was reflected by my output and writing, which I apologise for. I knew others would show up and those who’ve congratulated me on a great show, I’m not going to take any credit, because I don’t deserve any. You guys made this show what it is, and yes, it may’ve trumped Magnum Opus overall.

It was 20% shorter, and much easier to get through. I don’t know whether the season finale will be longer or not, I’ve got a feeling it will, but this has just raised the bar in terms of show quality. That’s your next challenge.

Quite a few people really brought it here. Pedro wrote three very different matches, and definitely improved on what he did at Magnum Opus. A tour de force. Blair was in phenomenal form. Shae did a terrific job with the opener, Brian likewise at the opposite end of the card, and Scott/Kyle’s work was spot on for the hottest feud by a fucking mile in Rah v David. Chris’s segment work for BOTH storylines was highly enjoyable and rewarding.

Thank you very much to everyone, here or not, for what they’ve done this arc. Gold Rush was a great, easy read.

Onwards.